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NEW YORK (AP) - Saks Inc.'s shares tumbled more than 7 percent Friday, after the department store operator delayed its annual report and annual meeting amid an expanding regulatory and internal investigation into its payment and accounting practices. The company also said some employees had been put on leave.
The Birmingham, Ala.-based company said Thursday that an initial internal investigation, which concerned payments from vendors, had been broadened to include related financial and accounting issues. As a result, Saks said it had not been able to complete its financial statements for fiscal 2004.
On Friday, the company said that "certain individuals who are not executive officers" as defined by Securities and Exchange Commission, which has launched its own inquiry, had been placed on administrative leave because of the probe. Saks did not identify the affected employees.
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