SEC Company Response from SCHERING AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT (CIK 0001124139) — Oct 21, 2005
SCHERING AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT (CIK 0001124139)
Date: Oct. 21, 2005 · CIK: 0001124139 · Accession: 0000950157-05-000643
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File numbers found in text: 001-16143
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CORRESP
1
filename1.htm
Correspondence
Mr.
Jim B. Rosenberg
Senior
Assistant Chief Accountant
Securities
and Exchange Commission
450
Fifth Street N.W.
Washington,
DC 20549-0305
Schering
AG
E:
joerg.spiekerkoetter@schering.de
T:
+49.30.468-
15873
+49.30.468-
11
11
F:
+49.30.468-
1
53 09
Your
Ref.
Your
letter dated
Our
Ref. (please indicate when replying)
Date
2005-10-21
Schering
Aktiengesellschaft
Form
20-F for Fiscal Year Ended December 31, 2004
Filed
March 18, 2005
File
No. 001-16143
Dear
Mr.
Rosenberg:
We
refer
to your comment letter on the above-referenced matter dated September 15,
2005.
We
have
responded to the staff’s comment to improve our disclosure related to estimates
that reduce gross revenue. Attached to this letter as Exhibit 1, we are
providing language, in disclosure format, that we believe to be responsive
to
the staff’s request for additional information concerning this subject. We
intend to include such disclosure in our future filings on Form
20-F.
As
requested, we enclose as Exhibit 2 supplemental information that the staff
may
wish to consider in assessing the adequacy and completeness of our proposed
disclosure.
In
addition to the attachments, we provide additional information below in response
to your comment. To assist the staff in its review, we have repeated your
comment and our response thereto immediately following the comment.
Comment:
1.
We
believe that your disclosure related to estimates that reduce gross
revenue such as product returns, rebates and discounts could be improved.
Please provide us the following information in disclosure-type
format:
a.
The
nature and amount of each accrual at the balance sheet date and the
effect
that could result from using other reasonably likely assumptions
than what
you used to arrive at each accrual such as a range of reasonably
likely
amounts or other type of sensitivity
analysis.
Address
Our
Ref.
Date
2005-10-21
Page
2
b.
The
factors that you consider in estimating each accrual such as historical
return of products, levels of inventory in the distribution channel,
estimated remaining shelf life, price changes from competitors and
introductions of generics and/or new
products.
c.
To
the extent that information you consider in b. is quantifiable, disclose
both quantitative and qualitative information and discuss to what
extent
information is from external sources, such as end-customer prescription
demand, third-party market research data comparing wholesaler inventory
levels to end-customer demand. For example, in discussing your estimate
of
product that may be returned, explain, preferably by product and
in
tabular format, the total amount of product in sales dollars that
could
potentially be returned as of the balance sheet date and disaggregated
by
expiration period.
Response:
We
believe
that our proposed disclosure as provided in Exhibit 1 is responsive to the
staff’s requests. In our proposed disclosure we have identified the key
assumptions we use in estimating returns and rebates. We believe that our
qualitative discussion of the assumptions underlying our estimates conveys
an
understanding of the impact that changes in those assumptions could have on
the
level of product returns, rebates, and discounts. However, the staff will note
that we have not included detailed quantitative sensitivity analyses in Exhibit
1, notwithstanding the staff’s request that we do so, because we have concluded
that including such details in our disclosure would not significantly enhance
the ability of users of our financial statements to assess the potential for
variability in our estimates once they have access to the types of information
contained in Exhibit 1. In support of this conclusion, we would like to point
out that (1) the aggregate balances of our accruals for product returns, rebates
and discounts at December 31, 2002, 2003 and 2004 were relatively insignificant
(less than 1.3 percent of our annual gross revenues), (2) the amounts
attributable to individual components of the accrual are even smaller in
relation to gross revenues, (3) historical revisions to prior provisions have
not significantly impacted our operating results and (4) for approximately
35-55
percent of these accrual estimates there is virtually no potential for
variability because they can be compared with objectively verifiable information
known to us before the issuance of our financial statements. Therefore, even
an
increase in the factors that drive the remaining portion of these accrual
estimates to levels beyond the range of what the staff describes as “reasonably
likely assumptions” would not be expected to have a material effect on our
reported operating results.
In
lieu of
detailed quantitative sensitivity analyses, we propose to disclose in future
filings, where applicable, quantitative information concerning relevant
historical experience as well as qualitative language intended to inform users
of our financial statements of management’s belief that the potential for future
variability in our accruals is not significant relative to our reported
operating results. Furthermore, if despite our expectations to the contrary,
future circumstances
result in unexpected material fluctuations we will disclose and discuss such
fluctuations as part of our Operating and Financial Review and
Prospects.
Address
Our
Ref.
Date
2005-10-21
Page
2
Comment:
d.
If
applicable, any shipments made as a result of incentives and/or in
excess
of your customer’s ordinary course of business inventory level. Disclose
your revenue recognition policy for such
shipments.
Response:
As
a
matter of policy, Schering has not offered and does not intend in the future
to
offer incentives to induce a customer to purchase inventory in excess of that
necessary to meet anticipated demand. On the other hand, in order to address
specific situations such as product launches and changes in product
formulations, Schering has on a limited number of occasions made shipments
of
specific products pursuant to incentives offered to wholesalers and other
customers. The purpose of these sales incentive programs was not to induce
customers to purchase inventory in excess of anticipated demand. We estimate
that the resulting effect was less than 0.3 percent of total gross sales and
less than 1.2 percent of operating profit in any one year. As these programs
have not significantly affected the aggregate levels of gross or net revenues
for any period, management does not propose to address these isolated and
insignificant sales incentive programs in its future disclosures. In addition,
pursuant to the Inventory Management Agreements (described in the following
paragraph), Schering has provided incentives to U.S. wholesalers not to engage
in speculative purchases by shipping limited quantities of specific product
at
pre-price increase prices.
During
the
past three years, Schering has taken significant steps better to align U.S.
wholesaler buying patterns with market demand and to reduce levels of inventory
held at those wholesalers, as described further below.
In
prior
periods in the U.S. market, wholesalers have been known temporarily to build
up
inventory levels to higher than normal levels in anticipation of price increases
or to build up or run down their inventory levels for other reasons not always
apparent to the pharmaceutical companies. As a result, as of 2003, Schering
entered into Inventory Management Agreements (IMAs) with wholesalers covering
approximately 70% of our U.S. pharmaceutical gross sales. These contracts were
designed to eliminate speculative purchases by wholesalers in excess of
anticipated end customer demand by establishing target inventory levels at
the
wholesalers. In addition, these IMAs provided for regular reporting of inventory
levels and customer withdrawal data. As a result, inventory levels at
wholesalers declined from 2.6 months at the end of 2002 to 1.3 months at the
end
of 2004. During 2005, Schering further addressed the issue of speculative
purchasing by U.S. wholesalers by terminating the IMAs and entering into
Fee-For-Service agreements which will penalize wholesalers for inventory levels
above an agreed threshold level. Therefore, at the end of 2005 we expect
wholesaler inventory levels to continue to decline. We believe the result of
the
contractual obligations in these agreements which give us increased influence
over U.S. wholesaler buying patterns combined with improved reporting of
inventory levels and customer withdrawal data will be a reduction of the actual
level of product returns as well as a reduction in the variability in our
product return accrual estimates.
Address
Our
Ref.
Date
2005-10-21
Page
4
In
Exhibit
1, we have included a statement of our policy with respect to wholesaler
incentives, a description of the actions Schering has taken in recent times
to
align U.S. wholesalers buying patterns with market demand and quantitative
information concerning inventory levels at participating wholesalers. We
believe
our proposed disclosure is responsive to the staff´s request for additional
information related to incentives to purchase inventory in excess of our
customers’ ordinary course of business inventory level.
Comment:
e.
A
roll forward of the accrual for each estimate for each period presented
showing the following:
·
Beginning
balance,
·
Current
provision related to sales made in current
period,
·
Current
provision related to sales made in prior
periods,
·
Actual
returns or credits in current period related to sales made in current
period,
·
Actual
returns or credits in current period related to sales made in prior
periods, and
·
Ending
balance.
Response:
Pursuant
to the staff’s request and supplementally to assist the staff in assessing the
adequacy and completeness of our proposed disclosure as set forth in Exhibit
1,
we have attached to this letter, as Exhibit 2, a schedule containing the
detailed roll-forward of our accruals for product returns, rebates and discounts
for the three years ended December 31, 2004. However, it should be noted that
Schering has not historically distinguished in its accounting records between
actual returns made in the current period related to current period sales and
actual returns made in the current period related to prior period sales. This
is
because wholesalers do not distinguish this information and therefore do not
indicate this on their return. In order to assist the staff with its review,
the
Company has estimated these amounts by analyzing data related to expiration
dates of products, and attempted to estimate from that information in which
year
the sale was made. This estimate is therefore not as precise as it would be
if
we had the ability to track this information directly.
Given
the
relatively insignificant amounts involved with respect to the individual
accruals and the relatively insignificant potential for variability in year
end
accrual balances as discussed above, we do not believe that the inclusion of
this schedule in our financial statements would significantly enhance the
ability of users of those statements to assess the potential for variability
in
our estimates, and, accordingly we do not propose to include such schedule
in
our future filings. However, we will continue to monitor the information
captured in this schedule and to incorporate it into our future disclosures
as
appropriate to ensure that users of our financial statements continue to have
access to the information they need to assess the potential for variability
in
our accruals relating to product returns, rebates and discounts
Address
Our
Ref.
Date
2005-10-21
Page
5
as
well as
information concerning material fluctuations from period to period, if any,
in
the actual levels of product returns, rebates and discounts.
Comment:
f.
Regarding
your discussion of results of operations for the period to period
net
sales comparisons, the amount of and reason for fluctuations for
each type
of reduction of gross sales, i.e. product returns, rebates and discounts,
including the effect that changes in your estimates of these items
had on
your net sales and operations.
Response:
Operating
and Financial Review and Prospects contains a discussion of material changes
in
volumes, prices and currency by product, product group and geographic segment.
Such discussion in