SEC comment letters are a good source of information about the inner workings of a company. Even if the company may be well covered in the press, SEC comment letters still can offer additional information or new points of view. Back in March 2015, Lumber Liquidators … Continue reading
Category Archives: Corporate Governance
Clawbacks after Financial Restatements
In a recent move, the SEC adopted a controversial regulation that extends clawback provisions for U.S. public companies that face significant restatements. Under the old rule, companies could reclaim compensation paid to key executives based on incorrect financial statements, but only … Continue reading
CEO and CFO Departures: A Ten Year Review
In response to Section 409 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act related to “Real Time Issuer Disclosures,” the SEC began requiring all 10-K filers to disclose within four business days any personnel changes affecting the company’s directors and officers. This disclosure requirement became effective on … Continue reading
Auditors Copied on SEC Comment Letters
SEC Comment Letters are a rich vein of data on companies and their operations. For the average investor, however, that data is difficult to mine. The total volume of communication can be quite substantial, and the letters are often dense. Few stakeholders have the time … Continue reading
Research and Development Up Despite Stock Buybacks
Corporations have been purchasing record amounts of their own shares in recent years. This has boosted earnings per share and returned income to shareholders, but not everyone thinks that’s a good thing. As the trend intensifies, stock-buybacks are a hot topic in the news. According to … Continue reading
Recent Restatement Trends by Canadian Filers
For the years 2012 through 2014, the number of Canadian restatements has been trending downward. Canadian filers issued 227 restatements in 2012, compared to 179 in 2014, a decrease of over 20%. As we documented in our 2014 Financial Restatements report, there … Continue reading
PCAOB Audit Committee Dialogue
The PCAOB’s May 2015 release of its Audit Committee Dialogue provides audit committee members of publicly traded companies with insight into concerns that have consistently arisen in discussions between audit committees and auditors over the past few years. In addition, the … Continue reading