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Dell is holding back filing another financial document with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Dell filed paperwork with the SEC earlier this week, claiming that it could not file its 11-K report, which concerns the companys 401(k) plan for employees, because of an ongoing internal audit. This latest delay comes after company executives wrote to the SEC on June 14 to report they would not file several reports on time.
Dell said that the SEC began asking about the companys accounting records in the summer of 2006. Dell acknowledged that it received a subpoena from the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Southern District of New York, although it remains unclear what documents federal prosecutors have requested from the company.
In its latest letter to the SEC, dated July 2, company executives write that Dells auditing committee is making progress and that its own investigation is coming to a conclusion. However, executives are not divulging a timetable yet.
“Management is committed to resolving the issues raised in connection with the investigation, and is working diligently to file the delayed reports as soon as possible,” according to the July 2 letter to the SEC.
The ongoing financial problems have affected the companys standing with the Nasdaq. On July 3, Dell announced that it had received an extension with Nasdaq, while it works with the stock markets Listing and Hearing Review Council to ensure that it is within full compliance with Nasdaq rules and regulations.
Dells ongoing internal financial problems come at a time when the company is trying to reinvent itself with a new focus on consumers and retail sales to counter its main rival in the PC business—Hewlett-Packard. As part of its restructuring, Dell announced that it would cut 10 percent of 82,000-employee work force.
Since Michael Dell returned as the companys CEO in January, Dell has been looking to add new technological innovations to its enterprise-class PCs—such as more models with a SSD (solid-state drive) option—and systems for consumers that come pre-installed with Linux.
Dell has also looked to engage the channel to help boost its enterprise sales.
Some analysts believe that to move forward, Michael Dell and his management team must get past these financial difficulties and ongoing delays with SEC filings.
Part of this new push by Dell will be on display next week. On July 10, Michael Dell plans on holding what the company calls a “town hall meeting” with small and midsize businesses in New York City, according to the companys own Direct2Dell blog.
During the presentation, Michael Dell will “share news about upcoming Dell products and services, discuss things like technology trends and their impact on small businesses, and talk about how well continue efforts to make IT easier to manage and more affordable to small businesses,” according to the July 3 blog posting.