Logitech International SA (LOGN.VX) Thursday named Whirlpool Corp (WHR) executive Bracken Darrell as its new chief executive after an eight-month search.

Darrell, who was president at the washing machine makers' European division, will become chairman at Logitech in April before taking on the CEO role next January. He will succeed stand-in CEO Guerrino De Luca who returned from his position as chairman to lead Logitech last July.

The appointment ends the uncertainty at the top of the beleagured company which has seen its share price plummet after posting four profit warnings over the last 12 months.

Darrell, aged 49, will take over responsibility for R&D, sales, manufacturing, supply chain, IT, human resources and legal affairs on April 9.

De Luca described Darrell as a "change agent" bringing innovation to his previous companies which included Procter & Gamble Co (PG), where he was president of Braun, and also General Electric Co (GE).

"Bracken brings a passion for keeping the consumer at the heart of decisions as well as a fresh perspective on our business," De Luca said.

Analysts express relief that the succession issue had been settled but noted Darrell was relatively unknown.

His experience in consumer electronics is a plus, said Cyrill Pluess, an analyst at Kepler Capital Markets.

"Logitech praises him as an innovation driver with a strong consumer focus and we hope he can deliver as we believe this has been one of the key missing elements in recent years," said Pluess.

Logitech, the world's biggest maker of computer peripherals such as webcams and mice, has seen 57% wiped off the its share price in the last 12 months, cutting its market capitalization to CHF1.4 billion.

In January it lowered its full-year sales and operating outlook for fiscal 2012 ending March 31. It had previously reduced its expectations in July and September last year, and also revised its numbers again before releasing fiscal 2011 figures in March.

Logitech's troubles stem from the popularity of tablet computers, which don't use as many of the traditional computer peripherals produced by the company.

The company has launched new tablet-compatible products, such as keyboards, but still faces problems with falling sales of webcams and remote controls.

At 1229 GMT, Logitech shares were trading down 1.5% at CHF7.10, while the benchmark SMI index was 0.1% higher.

-By John Revill, Dow Jones Newswires; +41 43 443 8042 ; john.revill@dowjones.com