General Motors Corp. on Thursday said it will delay its fourth-quarter and full-year profit announcement scheduled for next week because it has to restate earnings back to 2002.
The automaker was supposed to announce its results Tuesday, but pushed it back until the week of Feb. 5. It said the delay is needed to remedy accounting errors made primarily before 2002.
GM said the errors caused it to overstate its deferred tax liabilities, so earnings from 2002 through 2006 were understated by $450 million to $600 million.
The company says this does not affect cash flow or previously reported cash balances. It will provide the revised earnings the week of Feb. 5, and file its annual report by the March 1 deadline.
Fritz Henderson, GM’s chief operating officer, said the delay in reporting fourth-quarter and year-end results will give its GMAC subsidiary time to complete its financial statement for 2006.
The sale of 51 percent of the financing unit to a consortium of investors led by Cerberus Capital Management LP didn’t close until Nov. 30.
Henderson also said GM expects to announce record fourth-quarter revenue and a fourth-quarter profit, with net income expected to improve significantly from a year earlier. He wouldn’t elaborate and wouldn’t break down results just for North America.
He said GM also further improved its liquidity position, ending the year with about $26.4 billion in cash, up $5.9 billion from 2005.
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jmateja@tribune.com
