Veritas beset by more financial reporting delays

By Stuart Finlayson

Back-up software provider Veritas, which was recently the subject of a multi-billion dollar acquisition by security vendor Symantec, has once again run into problems with its financial reporting, forcing a delay in the filing of its 2004 10K.

Though not as serious as the problems it encountered a little over a year ago, when a series of accounting errors forced the company to delay filing its annual report and restate three years of results, the failure to meet the March 31 deadline offers a further indication that the company has yet to iron out all the problems it has had with the management of its financial reporting.

A statement issued by Veritas blamed the delay on financial process weaknesses, which caused a delay in providing its auditor, KPMG LLP, with the materials it needed to complete documentation and related audit procedures in connection with the assessment of the company's internal control over financial reporting in accordance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. The company expects to file by April 11.

Veritas said it has continued to review its controls over financial reporting, adding that it has now determined that the aggregation of its control deficiencies, which include two significant deficiencies, constitute a material weakness. One of the significant deficiencies relates to the company's controls over its order entry processes, while the other relates to its review of multiple element software license transactions.

While the admissions are not good by any stretch, the company has stated that the material weakness identified in its financial reporting that has caused the delay in filing is not expected to impact on its pending merger with Symantec.

Related Article:

Veritas to restate three years of results following improprieties