Alan Webber spearheaded insurer’s effort to sell off its financial services and overseas units. Alan Weber, CFO and vice chairman of Aetna, Inc., is leaving the Hartford, Conn.-based health insurer after a three-year stint, according to Dow Jones Newswires. Alan Bennett, the company’s corporate controller, will assume to role of interim CFO.

An internal company memo written by John Rowe, Aetna’s chairman and chief executive told employees on Friday about Weber’s resignation, saying he has “decided to pursue an opportunity in financial services,” and reported Bennett’s appointment, Dow Jones reported

A company spokesman confirmed Weber’s departure and Rowe’s authorship of the memo, according to the newswire.

On Monday, Aetna’s shares slid 97, or 3.6 percent, to $26.03 shortly before midday on the New York Stock Exchange. Earlier in the session, the stock set a 52-week low of $25.82.

Last week, Aetna warned investors that first-quarter profits would fall well below consensus estimates because medical costs were running higher than expected.

It was the second time in the last year that Aetna issued a profit warning.

The company said Weber’s departure has nothing to do with its recent troubles.

“Alan has been planning this for some time,” said Roy Klauson, vice president of public relations.

Weber served at Citibank for 27 years before joining Aetna in 1998.

Last year, Weber headed efforts to sell Aetna’s financial services and overseas operations to ING Groep, the big Dutch corporation, in a deal valued at $7.7 billion.

The arrangement left Aetna, which has struggled to meet profitability expectations, free to concentrate on its health insurance business.