UPS to take $827M charge for accounting change

[cheryl]

UPS to take $827M charge for accounting change - Atlanta Business Chronicle

United Parcel Service Inc. will take $827 million for the fourth quarter of 2011 due to a change in pension accounting.

“This policy provides greater transparency to the company’s underlying operating results,” said Kurt Kuehn, UPS chief financial officer, in a statement. “I want to emphasize that this change has no impact on benefits for plan participants or UPS cash flow.”

 

[Catatonic]

UPS to take $827M charge for accounting change - Atlanta Business Chronicle

United Parcel Service Inc. will take $827 million for the fourth quarter of 2011 due to a change in pension accounting.

“This policy provides greater transparency to the company’s underlying operating results,” said Kurt Kuehn, UPS chief financial officer, in a statement. “I want to emphasize that this change has no impact on benefits for plan participants or UPS cash flow.”

Noticed he didn't say it would not impact MIP.

 

[menotyou]

I read that article before it was posted by Cheryl. That was my exact thought. I feel bad for management. Too bad you guys can't have individual contracts with them, or something. It just seems like they are only concerned with the top.

 

[Brownslave688]

It's sad when a company tries to make it look like they made less.

 

[Catatonic]

It's sad when a company tries to make it look like they made less.

Why?

 

[ups1990]

Hoax, isn't this first quartet our slowest one of the year? If so, we can probably expect our stock to go down again when this report comes out later this year.

 

[Catatonic]

Hoax, isn't this first quartet our slowest one of the year? If so, we can probably expect our stock to go down again when this report comes out later this year.

The charge was taken in the 4th Quarter of 2011... already incorporated in stock price and 12 month forward P/E.

This charge is a mark to market change. Many companies are doing this to comply with the expected changes in standard Accounting practices.
Honeywell did this a couple years ago.
The intent is to ensure proper funding in more dynamic nature and disallow the smoothing out the ups and downs in funding using projections of expected ROI.