WH Smith asks shareholders to support PwC despite audit error

British retailer WH Smith’s committee has advised shareholders to clasp PwC arsenic its auditor, adjacent aft the accounting steadfast failed to uncover a misstatement of profits successful the company’s North American division, reported the Times.

The issue, which came to airy successful August, resulted successful a important diminution successful WH Smith’s marketplace worth and has attracted regulatory scrutiny.

The Financial Conduct Authority began investigating the retailer aft it was revealed that profits had been overstated for respective years.

The disclosure led to the resignation of CEO Carl Cowling successful November and saw astir £600m ($808m) erased from WH Smith’s marketplace capitalisation successful a azygous day.

The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) is besides considering whether to unfastened a abstracted probe into PwC’s audit work, arsenic per a study by the Financial Times in November.

Despite these events, WH Smith’s committee said implicit the Christmas play that it volition “unanimously” urge PwC’s reappointment astatine the company’s upcoming yearly gathering successful February.

Chief fiscal serviceman Max Izzard stated past period that helium continues to person “confidence” successful PwC and intends to support their moving relationship.

“We person been moving truly intimately with PwC implicit caller months and person enjoyed a longstanding narration with them,” Izzard told the Times.

PwC has audited WH Smith since 2014, pursuing the extremity of Deloitte's 65-year spell with the institution during a clip of regulatory unit connected companies to rotate auditors much regularly.

In caller years, PwC has faced different reputational challenges including engagement successful a taxation matter successful Australia and its auditing of Evergrande, the Chinese spot developer recovered to person overstated its sales.

Following the nett misstatement, WH Smith shares person mislaid much than 40% of their worth crossed six months, reported the publication.

The retailer’s header nett earlier taxation for the twelvemonth ending 31 August 2025 stood astatine £108m.

It besides plans to unopen respective unprofitable stores successful North America.

The institution is seeking to recoup much than £1.5m successful bonuses from Cowling and erstwhile concern main Robert Moorhead.

Shareholders volition beryllium asked adjacent period to o.k. a last dividend reduced to 6p per stock from 22½p past year, arsenic good arsenic a caller semipermanent inducement scheme.

Principal shareholders see Causeway Capital, Artemis Investment Management, Royal London Asset Management and activistic capitalist Palliser Capital, which holds 5%.

PwC declined to remark connected the matter.

"WH Smith asks shareholders to enactment PwC contempt audit error" was primitively created and published by International Accounting Bulletin, a GlobalData owned brand.