1.Basis of presentation

 

The accompanying financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States for interim financial information. Accordingly, they do not include all of the information and footnotes required by generally accepted accounting principles for fiscal year-end financial statements. In the opinion of management, all adjustments (consisting of normal recurring accruals) considered necessary for a fair presentation have been included. For further information, refer to the financial statements and related footnotes included in our 2018 Form 10-K (Commission File No. 001-34728) filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 26, 2019.

 

The Company currently conducts business in two segments: Work Truck Attachments and Work Truck Solutions. During the first quarter of 2019, the Company reorganized its business segments to reflect a new operating structure as a result of a change in how the Company’s chief operating decision maker allocates resources, makes operating decisions and assesses the performance of the business. Under this revised reporting structure, the Company’s two reportable business segments are as follows: 

 

Work Truck Attachments.  The Work Truck Attachments segment includes commercial snow and ice management attachments sold under the FISHER®, WESTERN® and SNOWEX® brands.  This segment consists of our operations that manufacture and sell snow and ice control products.

 

Work Truck Solutions.  The Work Truck Solutions segment includes manufactured municipal snow and ice control products under the HENDERSON® brand and the up-fit of market leading attachments and storage solutions under the HENDERSON® brand, and the DEJANA® brand and its related sub-brands.

 

See Note 15 to the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for financial information regarding these segments. As a result of the revised reporting structure, the prior period presentation of reportable segments has been recast to conform to the current segment reporting structure.

 

Interim Condensed Consolidated Financial Information

 

The accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheet as of March 31, 2019, the condensed consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive loss and the condensed consolidated statements of shareholders’ equity for the three months ended March 31, 2019 and 2018, and the condensed cash flows for the three months ended March 31, 2019 and 2018 have been prepared by the Company and have not been audited.

 

The Company’s Work Truck Attachments segment is seasonal and consequently its results of operations and financial condition vary from quarter-to-quarter.  Because of this seasonality, the results of operations of the Work Truck Attachments segment for any quarter may not be indicative of results of operations that may be achieved for a subsequent quarter or the full year, and may not be similar to results of operations experienced in prior years. The Company attempts to manage the seasonal impact of snowfall on its revenues in part through its pre-season sales program. This pre-season sales program encourages the Company’s distributors to re-stock their inventory of Work Truck Attachments products during the second and third quarters in anticipation of the peak fourth quarter retail sales period by offering favorable pre-season pricing and payment deferral until the fourth quarter. Thus, the Company’s Work Truck Attachments segment tends to generate its greatest volume of sales during the second and third quarters. By contrast, its revenue and operating results tend to be lowest during the first quarter, as management believes the end-users of Work Truck Attachments products prefer to wait until the beginning of a snow season to purchase new equipment and as the Company’s distributors sell off Work Truck Attachments inventory and wait for the pre-season sales incentive period to re-stock inventory. Fourth quarter sales vary from year-to-year as they are primarily driven by the level, timing and location of snowfall during the quarter. This is because most of the Company’s Work Truck Attachments fourth quarter sales and shipments consist of re-orders by distributors seeking to restock inventory to meet immediate customer needs caused by snowfall during the winter months. In addition, due to the factors noted above, Work Truck Attachments working capital needs are highest in the second and third quarters as its accounts receivable rise from pre-season sales. These working capital needs decline in the fourth quarter as the Company receives payments for its pre-season shipments.

 

Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements

 

In February 2016, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued ASU No. 2016-02 Leases (Topic 842). ASU 2016-02 increases transparency and comparability among organizations by recognizing lease assets and lease liabilities on the balance sheet and disclosing key information about leasing arrangements. In July 2018, the FASB issued ASU No. 2018-11 Leases: Targeted Improvements which allows entities to apply the new lease standard at the adoption date, rather than at the earliest period presented. In transition, lessees and lessors are required to recognize and measure leases using a modified retrospective approach.

 

The Company adopted the standard effective January 1, 2019. The Company elected several available practical expedients, as discussed in Note 6, and implemented certain internal controls to ensure the accurate presentation of financial information on adoption.

 

The standard had a material impact on the Company’s Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets, but did not have an impact on the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Loss. There was no cumulative catch-up adjustment made to opening retained earnings. The most significant impact was the recognition of right-of-use assets and lease liabilities for operating leases, while the accounting for finance leases (previously capital leases) remained substantially unchanged. As the Company elected to apply the standard at adoption as allowed under ASU No. 2018-11, there is no impact to previously reported results. The impact of this standard was the recognition of a lease liability and right-of-use asset of approximately $22.0 million, with immaterial differences related to prepaid rent, on the Consolidated Balance Sheet for lease contracts which were previously accounted for as operating leases. 

 

As allowed under ASC 842, the Company has adopted the following practical expedients: