ABM Industries' Numbers Game (ABM)

ABM Industries Incorporated (ABM) reports record profits. They claim that this quarter had one less day than the comparable quarter for last year and because of fixed price contracts they made a windfall of $2.4 million. If the windfall had not existed then the reverse would also be correct they actually would have earned considerably less profit and experienced a decrease in profitability.

In the same breath they also explain that the board spent $2.4 million in professional fees for an independent investigation into last years accounting problems at a subsidiary. No comment on the results or when the results might be available.

By the way, their cash position has been cut in half which is never a happy event. This is a maintenance company reporting fully 30% of total assets are represented by goodwill and intangibles. Hmmm.

ABM 1-yr chart: