IT firm Micro Focus Intl parted company with chief executive Nigel Clifford on Friday, leaving chairman Kevin Loosemore to take control at the British firm which issued a third profit warning in February.

The group, which supports mainframe computer applications for Tesco and Boeing, said at the time its customers in the United States had scrapped a number of upgrades.

Its software business, formed by two acquisitions under former chief executive Stephen Kelly, has also struggled to gain ground in a challenging market, resulting in the company downgrading expectations for the year to end-April in December.

Loosemore said in a statement: My immediate priority is to deliver the year end in line with shareholder expectations.

The company said there was no change in guidance in relation to trading for the current financial year.

(Reporting by Paul Sandle)