Anchor Glass Container Corp. will put off filing its 3Q 2005 financial results until it can resolve its previous accounting problems, although it expects to post a loss for the three months to 30 Sept…
Anchor Glass Container Corp. will put off filing its 3Q 2005 financial results until it can resolve its previous accounting problems, although it expects to post a loss for the three months to 30 September 2005. It is the second consecutive for Anchor, which did not file a 2Q 2005 financial report because of the same accounting error. In the first delay reported 5 August 2005, Anchor Glass said it would have to restate results from 2001 through 2003 and possibly 2004. Improper accounting of a USD 4.5 million customer payment in June 2003 led to Anchor understating a 2Q 2003 loss by USD 4.2 million. A separate transaction with the same customer resulted in understated losses of USD 500,000 in 2003 and USD 1.3 million in 2004. Accounting errors also led to Anchor overstating a 2001 loss by USD 2 million and a 2002 loss by USD 1.4 million. In the second delay reported 9 November 2005, the company said in a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission that it “has not yet been able to determine the correct accounting for the USD 4.5 million,” and “these errors reflect material weaknesses in [Anchor Glass“] internal controls over financial reporting”. Anchor Glass, the third-largest maker of glass containers in the USA for the beverage and food industries, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on 8 August 2005 while it reorganizes, the third such filing in nine years. Despite its financial difficulties, Anchor Glass said it expects a 3Q 2005 loss comparable to the USD 12.7 million it lost in the 1Q 2005 and more than the USD 5.9 million lost in the 3Q 2004.