PBSJ: Foreign Corrupt Practices violations 'may have occurred'
Tampa Bay Business Journal - by Margie Manning Senior Staff Writer
The initial results of an internal investigation by PBSJ Corp. suggest that violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act may have occurred.
The investigation does not suggest that any violations extend beyond its international operations or that members of its executive management were involved in illegal conduct, the company said its annual report, filed late Wednesday with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The employee-owned engineering and consulting firm initially disclosed that the audit committee of its board of directors was probing potential illegal activities in connection with certain projects undertaken by its PBS&J International Inc. subsidiary in a filing two weeks earlier with the SEC.
The company said it has voluntarily disclosed the initial findings of the investigation to the Department of Justice and to the SEC and will cooperate fully with their review.
PBSJ could face monetary penalties and criminal and civil sanctions if violations of the FPCA have occurred but said it wasn’t able to estimate what those penalties might be so it made no provision for them in the financial statements included in the annual report.
Peter Brown boosts income
PBSJ reported $798.6 million in revenue for the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, a 29.2 percent increase from revenue of $617.9 million in the prior year. Net income for fiscal 2009 was $23.6 million, a 52.6 percent increase from the year earlier.
Net income for fiscal 2009 included $1.3 million recognized on the deferred gain on the sale-leaseback of an office building and a $1.7 million reduction in general and administrative expense after settling agreements with former chairman Richard Wickett and former controller Kathryn Wilson, the filing said.
Net income per share was $4.19 for fiscal 2009 and $2.51 for fiscal 2008. PBSJ shares are held by its employees and not publicly traded.
Most of the increase in revenue in fiscal 2009 results from the acquisition of Peter R. Brown Construction in Largo in late 2008, the filing said. The rest of the increase was primarily attributable to emergency management contracts with Federal Emergency Management Agency following Hurricane Ike.
The company also cited cost-control measures that helped keep general and administrative expenses down.
Bonuses to top officers
Top executives of PBSJ are getting bonuses, the filing said. In November, the board of directors compensation committee approved a $120,000 cash bonus for John Zumwalt III, chairman and chief executive, and smaller cash bonuses for Robert Paulsen, president; Donald Vrana, senior vice president and chief financial officer; Wayne Overman, executive vice president and president of the PBS&J subsidiary; and Benjamin Butterfield, senior vice president and senior counsel. Each executive also was awarded restricted stock awards.
The filing also disclosed terms of PBSJ’s lease for its new headquarters. The company is leasing 93,302 square feet on four floors of MetWest International One at 4030 Boy Scout Blvd. in Tampa with rent of $2.2 million, or $24 a square foot, in the first year and escalating to $3.1 million, or $33.59 a square foot, by the 10th year of the lease.
All contents of this site © American City Business Journals Inc. All rights reserved.
No comments:
Post a Comment