Lookers delays financial results further and warns of share suspension
Car dealership firm Lookers has delayed publishing its financial results for the third time and has warned it may have to suspend trading.
Lookers had been scheduled to report its 2019 financial results in March but had to delay publication until April after it had “identified potentially fraudulent transactions” and hired Grant Thornton to review the situation.
Auditor Deloitte has also planned to resign as soon as the 2019 accounts are released.
The dealership network last week said it expected to publish its results by the end of the month. However in a statement today, Lookers said it could take until the end of the month due to “additional procedures that the company and Deloitte will now need to perform”.
After consultation with the regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the firm has warned that its shares will be suspended from 1 July if it does not publish its results by 30 June. The firm’s shares are down 14.44 per cent on the news.
“The company’s priority and focus is the production of the 2019 results at the earliest possible date and by no later than the end of August 2020,” Lookers said in a statement.
The firm’s profits are under pressure despite reopening its dealerships after the government announced showrooms could reopen after two months of closures.
However it announced it will cut roughly 1,500 jobs and close 12 showrooms, reducing its portfolio to 136 dealerships. The firm has been hit by plunging car sales and it said the closures will help ensure its long-term viability.