SEC Fines Interface $5 million

Atlanta, GA, September 29, 2020-Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regulators imposed a $5 million civil penalty on Interface, saying the company reported inflated financial results that misled shareholders in 2015 and 2016, reports the Atlanta Journal Constitution.

“Interface…said that, while it consented to the SEC order that states the company was negligent, it neither admits nor denies any wrongdoing. In a corporate filing, it said it has improved ‘internal controls and its accounting and finance functions to prevent these types of issues from occurring again.’”

“During 2015 and 2016, the company reported inflated income and earnings per share results, the SEC said. At times, the changes made it appear that Interface had met or exceeded analysts’ consensus estimates for company results, an important achievement for some investors. The adjustments did not comply with generally accepted accounting principles, according to the SEC.

As part of this case, two former employees, controller and chief accounting officer Gregory Bauer and former chief financial officer Patrick Lynch, were hit with penalties of $70,000 and $45,000, respectively, by the SEC.