Wajax Announces Change to Release Date for 2018 Annual Financial Statements and MD&A

TSX Symbol:  WJX

TORONTO, Feb. 26, 2019 /CNW/ - Wajax Corporation ("Wajax" or the "Corporation") today announced a change to the release date for its 2018 audited annual financial statements and related Management's Discussion and Analysis and certifications, to after market close on Thursday, March 21, 2019. The webcast of the Corporation's Annual Financial Results Conference Call will now take place at 9:00 a.m. ET on Friday, March 22, 2019. The change in release date is necessary to allow sufficient time for the identification and correction of certain non-cash accounting errors recently discovered by management. These changes are not expected to have a material impact on the financial results of the Corporation or require any restatement of financial statements under applicable accounting principles.  In addition, the correction of these non-cash accounting errors is not expected to affect the outlook for 2018 given by the Corporation in its November 5, 2018 news release, and full year financial results are expected to be generally consistent with the Corporation's budget.

During 2016, as part of its transition to the "One Wajax" operating model, the Corporation consolidated its three former operating divisions – Wajax Equipment, Wajax Power Systems and Wajax Industrial Components – into one business. As a result, in 2017, the Corporation began to report on its operations as one operating segment, versus the prior three operating segments. In 2018, the Corporation communicated plans to redesign its finance function, with the following objectives: (1) to better align the operation of the finance group with the operation of the business, (2) to standardize financial policies, procedures and controls of the three former operating divisions, and (3) apply the standardized financial policies, procedures and controls across the organization to support the implementation of the Corporation's new ERP system which is expected to begin in 2019. The finance function redesign is being completed with the support of external advisors to ensure adherence to industry best practices.

Recently and as part of preparations to release the financial statements for 2018, management retrospectively applied the now standardized financial policies, procedures and controls to the three former operating divisions and noted non-cash accounting errors in the current and prior periods, primarily relating to accounts payable. Although not anticipated to be material to any one year, management will be correcting the errors in the financial statements for the current period ending December 31, 2018 and in prior period financial statements. Additional time is necessary for this process and management expects that the change in release date to March 21, 2019 will be sufficient for this purpose.

Wajax Corporation

Founded in 1858, Wajax (TSX: WJX) is one of Canada's longest-standing and most diversified industrial products and services providers. The Corporation operates an integrated distribution system providing sales, parts and services to a broad range of customers in diverse sectors of the Canadian economy, including: construction, forestry, mining, industrial and commercial, oil sands, transportation, metal processing, government and utilities and oil and gas.

The Corporation's goal is to be Canada's leading industrial products and services provider, distinguished through its three core capabilities: sales force excellence, the breadth and efficiency of repair and maintenance operations, and the ability to work closely with existing and new vendor partners to constantly expand its product offering to customers. The Corporation believes that achieving excellence in these three areas will position it to create value for its customers, employees, vendors and shareholders.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward Looking Information

This news release contains certain forward-looking statements and forward-looking information, as defined in applicable securities laws (collectively, "forward-looking statements").  These forward-looking statements relate to future events or the Corporation's future performance.  All statements other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements.  Often, but not always, forward looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "anticipates", "intends", "predicts", "expects", "is expected", "scheduled", "believes", "estimates", "projects" or "forecasts", or variations of, or the negatives of, such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "should", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved.  Forward looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors beyond the Corporation's ability to predict or control which may cause actual results, performance and achievements to differ materially from those anticipated or implied in such forward looking statements.  There can be no assurance that any forward looking statement will materialize.  Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward looking statements.  The forward looking statements in this news release are made as of the date of this news release, reflect management's current beliefs and are based on information currently available to management.  Although management believes that the expectations represented in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, there is no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct.  Specifically, this news release includes forward looking statements regarding, among other things, our expectations regarding the results of our ongoing financial review, including our expectation that the identification and correction of the non-cash accounting errors discovered will not have any material impact on the financial results of the Corporation or require any restatement of financial statements under applicable accounting principles; our expectation that the correction of the non-cash accounting errors will not affect our outlook for 2018 given in our November 5, 2018 news release and that full year financial results are expected to be generally consistent with the Corporation's budget; our expectation that we will commence implementation of our new ERP system in 2019; our expectation that the non-cash accounting errors will not be material to any one year; our expectation that the change in release date for the Corporation's 2018 annual earnings to March 21, 2019 will allow sufficient time for the completion of the identification and correction of the non-cash accounting errors; our goal of becoming Canada's leading industrial products and services provider, distinguished through our core capabilities; and our belief that achieving excellence in our areas of core capability will position Wajax to create value for its customers, employees, vendors and shareholders. These statements are based on a number of assumptions which may prove to be incorrect, including, but not limited to, assumptions regarding the nature and extent of the non-cash accounting errors identified during the transition to our new finance group operating model and subsequent financial review; the time necessary to complete our review and complete necessary corrections; general business and economic conditions; the supply and demand for, and the level and volatility of prices for, oil, natural gas and other commodities; financial market conditions, including interest rates; our ability to execute our updated Strategic Plan, including our ability to develop our core capabilities, execute on our organic growth priorities, complete and effectively integrate acquisitions and to successfully implement new information technology platforms, systems and software; our ability to realize the full benefits from our 2016 strategic reorganization, including cost savings and productivity gains; the future financial performance of the Corporation; our costs; market competition; our ability to attract and retain skilled staff; our ability to procure quality products and inventory; and our ongoing relations with suppliers, employees and customers.  The foregoing list of assumptions is not exhaustive.  Factors that may cause actual results to vary materially include, but are not limited to, our ongoing financial review resulting in conclusions and impacts that are different than currently expected; our review taking longer to complete than currently anticipated; a deterioration in general business and economic conditions; volatility in the supply and demand for, and the level of prices for, oil, natural gas and other commodities; a continued or prolonged decrease in the price of oil or natural gas; fluctuations in financial market conditions, including interest rates; the level of demand for, and prices of, the products and services we offer; levels of customer confidence and spending; market acceptance of the products we offer; termination of distribution or original equipment manufacturer agreements; unanticipated operational difficulties (including failure of plant, equipment or processes to operate in accordance with specifications or expectations, cost escalation, our inability to reduce costs in response to slow-downs in market activity, unavailability of quality products or inventory, supply disruptions, job action and unanticipated events related to health, safety and environmental matters); our ability to attract and retain skilled staff and our ability to maintain our relationships with suppliers, employees and customers.  The foregoing list of factors is not exhaustive.  Further information concerning the risks and uncertainties associated with these forward looking statements and the Corporation's business may be found in our Annual Information Form for the year ended December 31, 2017, filed on SEDAR.  The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement.  The Corporation does not undertake any obligation to publicly update such forward-looking statements to reflect new information, subsequent events or otherwise unless so required by applicable securities laws. 

Additional information, including Wajax's Annual Report, is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com.

SOURCE Wajax Corporation

Mark Foote, President and Chief Executive Officer, Email: [email protected]; Darren Yaworsky, Chief Financial Officer, Email: [email protected]; Trevor Carson, Vice President, Financial Planning and Risk Management, Email: [email protected], Telephone #: [phone]