Argus Corporation Limited Status Update Report.TORONTO -- Argus Corporation Argus Corporation, based in Toronto, Ontario, is an investment and holding company founded in 1945 by its President E. P. Taylor with minority partners Colonel W. Eric Phillips and Wallace McCutcheon and other investors. Limited ("Argus") (TSX TSX Toronto Stock Exchange (TSE before April, 2002) TSX Transfer from Stack Pointer to Index TSX True Space Extension :AR.PR.A) (TSX:AR.PR.D) (TSX:AR.PR.B) today provided a status update of developments since its last Status Update Report was filed on September 3, 2004. This Status Update Report ("Report") is provided pursuant to the guidelines (the "Guidelines") by which the Management and Insider Cease Trade Order with respect to the management and insiders of Argus was issued by the Ontario Securities Commission The Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) is a regulatory agency which administers and enforces securities legislation in the Canadian province of Ontario. The OSC is an Ontario Crown corporation which reports to the Ontario legislature through the Minister of Finance. on June 3, 2004 (the "Order"). Argus will normally provide updates on its affairs on at least a bi-weekly basis in accordance with the Guidelines until it is able to meet its public filing obligations. This Report includes certain updates regarding Hollinger Inc. ("Hollinger") of which Argus owns 61.8% of the Retractable re·tract v. re·tract·ed, re·tract·ing, re·tracts v.tr. 1. To take back; disavow: refused to retract the statement. 2. Common Shares and Hollinger International Inc. ("International") of which Hollinger owns 68% of the voting shares Voting Shares Shares that give the stockholder the right to vote on matters of corporate policy making as well as who will compose the members of the board of directors. Notes: Different classes of shares, such as preferred stock, sometimes don't allow for voting rights. and 18.2% of the equity. The Report further provides an update as to the preparation and filing of financial statements and other related matters by Argus. Argus has been unable to file financial statements and related Management's Discussion and Analysis Management's discussion and analysis (MD&A) A report from management to shareholders that accompanies the firm's financial statements in the annual report. It explains the period's financial results and enables management to discuss topics that may not be apparent in the financial ("MD&A") for the fiscal periods commencing on and after January 1, 2004 as it is required to consolidate its financial statements with those of Hollinger for those periods. Hollinger in turn has been unable to prepare its audited financial statements for the year ended on December 31, 2003 and subsequent fiscal periods as International has not released its financial statements for the year ended on December 31, 2003. International had previously advised that it would commence to prepare its audited financial statements for 2003 as soon as practicable after it received the Report of its Special Committee. That Report was issued on August 30, 2004. On September 16, 2004, International announced that it continues to believe that it needs additional time to review the Report and to assess, together with its auditors, the impact of the Report, if any, on the results of operations of International before it can complete and file the financial statements. It is anticipated that Hollinger may be able to commence to prepare its audited financial statements for 2003 and its financial statements for subsequent periods once International has completed its financial statements. In turn, Argus may then be able to prepare its financial statements for filing for the fiscal periods since January 1, 2004, but is presently unable to determine when that may be. The next filing deadline for Argus is November 14, 2004. It is required to file by that date its financial statements for the Third Quarter of 2004 ending on September 30, 2004 on a basis of consolidating those of Hollinger and the related MD&A. Argus does not expect that it will be able to meet that deadline. Argus owns 21,596,378 Retractable Common Shares of Hollinger with a market value at the close of trading on September 16, 2004 on the Toronto Stock Exchange Toronto Stock Exchange (TSE) Canada's largest stock exchange, trading approximately 1,200 company stocks and 33 options. of Cdn. $4.00 per share or Cdn. $86,385,512. Argus has Cdn. $620,934 of cash or cash equivalents on hand as of today. Hollinger Developments Mr. Justice Colin Campbell There have been several notable people named Colin Campbell: in Scottish history:
Details of the extent, scope, timing, cost and reporting of the investigation remain to be determined. Written submissions are to be presented by the parties and there is to be a Hearing by conference call on September 24, 2004. Hollinger has announced that it had approximately US $4.3 million of cash or cash equivalents on hand on September 14, 2004. It has previously deposited approximately US $10.5 million in cash as collateral with the trustee under the indenture An agreement declaring the benefits and obligations of two or more parties, often applicable in the context of Bankruptcy and bond trading. The term indenture primarily describes secured contracts and has several applications in U.S. law. governing Hollinger's senior secured notes (the "Notes"). Hollinger directly or indirectly owns 792,560 shares of Class A Common Stock and 14,990,000 shares of Class B Common Stock of International. Based on the closing price of the shares of Class A Common Stock of International on the New York Stock Exchange New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) World's largest marketplace for securities. The exchange began as an informal meeting of 24 men in 1792 on what is now Wall Street in New York City. on September 16, 2004 of US $17.19, the market value of Hollinger's direct and indirect holdings in International is US $271,302,206. The shares that Hollinger that holds of International are either held in escrow escrow Instrument, such as a deed, money, or property, that constitutes evidence of obligations between two or more parties and is held by a third party. It is delivered by the third party only upon fulfillment of some condition. in support of future retractions of the Series II Preference Shares of Hollinger or have been pledged as security in connection with the Notes. For additional information on developments respecting Hollinger, reference can be made to its public filings online at either www.hollinger.com or www.sedar.com. International Developments International continues to hold a large but unspecified amount of cash following its sale of its United Kingdom newspaper properties on July 30, 2004. International has not indicated its intentions with respect to the use of this cash. For additional information on developments respecting International, reference can be made to its public filings online at either www.hollingerinternational.com or http://www.sec.gov/edgar.shtml. Class Action Complaints Each of Argus, Hollinger and International is a defendant to a Consolidated Class Action Complaint commenced in Illinois. Answers are due to be filed by October 7, 2004. Argus is aware that a Statement of Claim has been filed in a class action lawsuit class action lawsuit A lawsuit in which one party or a limited number of parties sue on behalf of a larger group to which the parties belong. For example, investors may bring a class action lawsuit against a brokerage firm that has actively promoted a tax that was filed in the Saskatchewan Court of Queen's Bench Queen's Bench n. 1) the highest court in Great Britain during the reign of a Queen, so that opinions are identified as a volume of Queen's Bench (QB). 2) in the United States, organizations of women lawyers, dating from when women were a small minority of practicing on September 7, 2004. That claim has been made on behalf of shareholders of Hollinger and International as against Argus, Hollinger, and International, certain of their respective current and former directors and officers and others. The legal action is for an unspecified amount and has not been certified by the Court as a class action. There has been no other material change from the information contained in the Status Update Report of Argus issued on September 3, 2004. |
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