According to its announcement, PFG recently received anonymous allegations questioning certain accounting practices at one of its broadline operating subsidiaries. The company's Audit Committee immediately began investigating these allegations and retained independent counsel, who also retained an independent accounting firm, to assist the Audit Committee in reviewing these allegations, PFG said.
Subsequently, the staff of the Securities and Exchange Commission informed the PFG that it had opened an informal inquiry into these anonymous allegations, as well as an allegation that the company's Broadline operating subsidiaries may have made improper intercompany transfers of inventory to avoid internally established reserve requirements for aged inventory, the distributorship said.
The Audit Committee has been conducting a thorough investigation into these allegations which is substantially complete, but some work remains to be done, PFG said. In addition, KPMG LLP, the company's independent auditor, has not yet had an opportunity to complete its work with respect to the Audit Committee's investigation and therefore, has not yet completed their work on the audit of the company's 2004 year end results, PFG explained.
The company currently expects that this work will be completed in the near future and that the Company will make all of its required SEC filings on a timely basis.
Robert C. Sledd, chairman and ceo, said, "We anticipate releasing our fourth quarter and year end earnings in the near future, following completion of the Audit Committee's investigation and KPMG's audit work with respect to the results of the Audit Committee investigation. Based on the work to date performed by the Company's management in preparing the year end financial statements and the Audit Committee's investigation of the matters described, we believe that fourth quarter and year end earnings will be in our previously announced range."
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