NEW YORK

J.C. Penney CEO Marvin Ellison, a former Home Depot executive, is leaving the department store chain after less than four years to become the top executive at Lowe’s.

The announcement Tuesday, just days after J.C. Penney released disappointing results, sent its shares down more than 3 percent.

Ellison, one of only a few African-American CEOs at a Fortune 500 company, will succeed Robert Niblock at Lowe’s on July 2. Lowe’s has struggled to keep pace with rival Home Depot in a solid housing market, and Niblock had previously announced plans to retire.

Ellison took the top job at J.C. Penney in late 2014. He has attempted to refocus the company on home appliances and beauty, following a shift by consumers away from spending a lot of money on clothing.

He did make some inroads, but the turnaround is far from complete. With consumer spending on the rise, J.C. Penney was among the few retailers that failed to show a clear benefit in the most recent quarter. Instead, the department store slashed its profit expectations for the year.

“Ellison’s exit will raise speculation that he is not particularly optimistic about the future prospects of (Penney) and sees the grass as being greener at Lowe’s,” wrote Neil Saunders, managing director of Global Data Retail, in a note.