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Non-Tech : RWY: Rent-Way, Inc. -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: red2501 who wrote (2)	6/28/2001 2:49:21 PM
From: long-gone	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 5

Wednesday June 27, 5:49 pm Eastern Time Rent-Way charges from probe exceed forecasts (UPDATE: Recasts; adds details of debt payment and recovery plans in paragraph 6) NEW YORK, June 27 (Reuters) - Rental store operator Rent-Way Inc. (NYSE:RWY - news) on Wednesday said extraordinary charges resulting from an investigation into accounting improprieties totaled $129 million for the years 1998, 1999 and 2000, above previous estimates. ADVERTISEMENT Erie, Pennsylvania-based Rent-Way, which made the announcement in conjunction with the filing of its 10-K for fiscal 2000, said $98 million in charges were directly related to improper entries while another $31 million in unrelated charges were recorded in the same period. Last month, Rent-Way said it expected charges to total about $127 million, well above previous estimates of $65 million to $75 million. The embattled company said there was no evidence to show that members of Rent-Way's senior management team had any knowledge of the accounting manipulation, which was implemented by a small number of employees. The accounting scheme worked by masking cost increases associated with Rent-Way's rapid growth in store count while operating margins were reported in line with historical levels, William McDonnell, chief financial officer of Rent-Way, said in a statement Rent-Way, which has reduced its bank debt by $40 million since January, reiterated plans to restore profit margins of between 14 and 16 percent by March of 2002. The company said it expects to file 10-Qs for the quarters ended Dec. 31, 2000 and March 31, 2001 by the end of July. For the quarter ended June 30, results will be released in a timely manner, the company said. Shares of Rent-Way fell 14 cents to close at $9.15 on the New York Stock Exchange, well below its 52-week high of $32.25. biz.yahoo.com