By Sweta Singh and Jeffrey Dastin
(Reuters) - United Continental Holdings Inc said Friday its recently named chief executive, Oscar Munoz, had been hospitalized, but the airline did not confirm a report in The Wall Street Journal that he had suffered a heart attack.
Munoz's health issues are the latest setback for United, the No. 2 U.S. airline in terms of capacity. The company last month named Munoz, a former CSX Corp executive, to replace Jeff Smisek as CEO amid a federal probe involving the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.
United's shares closed down 3.1 percent, at a one-week low of $55.97, on Friday. They have dropped nearly 17 percent so far this year.
In a statement on Friday, the airline said Munoz, 56, had been hospitalized on Thursday, but did not provide further details.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and we are respecting their privacy," the carrier said, adding that it was operating normally.
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United Continental has been beset by complaints by customers and employees in recent years, many related to its struggles to merge the operations of the former United and Continental airlines, and Munoz has made tackling them a top priority.
Shortly after taking over, Munoz told the company's employees in a letter that he would meet with as many workers as possible and "hear about operations directly from you."
Munoz had been scheduled to hold a labour summit with union leaders on Thursday. Mike Klemm, head of the local of the International Association of Machinists that represents various unionized United workers, said he was informed midday Thursday that it had been postponed.
"They told us he had a personal emergency," he said. "We wish Mr. Munoz a speedy recovery and look forward to getting back to work with him."
The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday that the company's board had been told about the heart attack starting on Thursday night and was waiting to hear from doctors and Munoz's family about severity of the heart attack before deciding if the appointment of an interim leader was necessary.
A United spokeswoman declined to comment on whether Munoz had suffered a heart attack, his current condition and whether the board had been informed of his hospitalization on Thursday.
United's failure to promptly disclose Munoz's admission to a hospital or the reason for it raised concerns about whether the company was disclosing enough to investors.
"It is tragic but true that the health of the CEO is not a private matter," said Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, a corporate governance expert and professor at the Yale School of Management.
"When someone assumes this responsibility, they surrender some of the everyday rights of others," he added. "The CEO's health is financially material information and has a huge impact on all key constituencies from investors, media, and employees to customers, suppliers, and regulators."
Various companies from Apple Inc to Goldman Sachs Group Inc have grappled in recent years with how to balance executives' desire for privacy with investors' need to know the state of their health.
The Wall Street Journal cited an "informed individual" as saying the heart attack may have been mild and that Munoz could be back at work in two weeks.
(Additional reporting by Michael Flaherty in New York; Editing by David Gregorio, Bernadette Baum and Leslie Adler)