NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND ACCOUNTING POLICIES.

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2011

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND ACCOUNTING POLICIES.

NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND ACCOUNTING POLICIES.

1.NATURE OF OPERATIONS AND ACCOUNTING POLICIES.

Supreme Industries, Inc. and its subsidiaries (collectively the “Company”) manufacture specialized vehicles including truck bodies, buses, and armored vehicles.  The Company’s core products include cutaway and dry-freight van bodies, refrigerated units, stake bodies, and other specialized vehicles including shuttle buses.  At December 31, 2011, the Company operated at eight manufacturing, distribution, and component manufacturing locations.  The Company’s customers are located principally in the United States of America.

The following is a summary of the significant accounting policies used in the preparation of the accompanying consolidated financial statements:

Principles of Consolidation - The accompanying consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Supreme Industries, Inc. and its wholly-owned subsidiaries.  All significant intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.

Fiscal Year End - The Company’s fiscal year ends the last Saturday in December.  The fiscal year ended December 31, 2011 contained 53 weeks. The fiscal years ended December 25, 2010 and December 26, 2009 each contained 52 weeks.

Use of Estimates in the Preparation of Financial Statements - The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period.  Actual results could differ from those estimates.

Revenue Recognition - The production of specialized truck bodies, buses, and armored vehicles starts when an order is received from the customer, and revenue is recognized when the unit is shipped to the customer.  Revenue on certain customer-requested bill and hold transactions is recognized subsequent to when the customer is notified that the products have been completed according to customer specifications, have passed all of the Company’s quality control inspections, and are ready for delivery based upon established delivery terms.

Net sales are net of cash discounts which the Company offers its customers in the ordinary course of business.

Concentration of Credit Risk - Concentration of credit risk is limited due to the large number of customers and their dispersion among many different industries and geographic regions.  During 2011, one customer accounted for approximately 20% of consolidated net sales. No single customer, or group of customers, accounted for 10% or more of the Company’s net sales for the fiscal years ended in 2010 and 2009.  At December 31, 2011 and December 25, 2010 one customer accounted for 12.8% and 16.6% of the Company’s total trade accounts receivable.  The Company performs ongoing credit evaluations of its customers and credit is extended on an unsecured basis.

Financial Instruments and Fair Values - The Company has utilized interest rate swap agreements to reduce the impact of changes in interest rates on certain of its floating rate debt.  The swap agreements are contracts to exchange the debt obligation’s LIBOR floating rate (exclusive of the applicable spread) for fixed rate interest payments over the term of the swap agreement without exchange of the underlying notional amounts.  The notional amounts of the interest rate swap agreements are used to measure interest to be paid or received and do not represent the amount of exposure of credit loss.  The differential paid or received under interest rate swap agreements is recognized as an adjustment to interest expense.

At December 27, 2008, the Company had an interest rate swap agreement outstanding with a notional amount of $15,000,000.  The interest rate swap agreement provided a 4.71% fixed interest rate and was scheduled to mature on July 28, 2010.  The interest rate swap agreement was designated and qualified as a cash flow hedging instrument.  It was fully effective, resulting in no net gain or loss recorded in the consolidated statements of operations.

Effective December 23, 2009, the Company terminated its interest rate swap arrangement and paid $375,000, the fair value of the swap on such date.  As the terminated swap arrangement was no longer an effective hedge against changes in interest rates, the swap was de-designated.  The Company was amortizing the loss on the swap included in other comprehensive income as of the date of the de-designation utilizing the straight-line method over the remaining life of the swap which matured on July 28, 2010.

Fair value is the exchange price that would be received for an asset or paid to transfer a liability (an exit price) in the principal or most advantageous market for the asset or liability in an orderly transaction between market participants on the measurement date.  The Company utilizes a fair value hierarchy which requires an entity to maximize the use of observable inputs and minimize the use of unobservable inputs when measuring fair value.  The hierarchy is as follows:

Level 1: Quoted prices (unadjusted) or identical assets or liabilities in active markets that the entity has the ability to access as of the measurement date.

Level 2: Significant other observable inputs other than Level 1 prices such as quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities; quoted prices in markets that are not active; or other inputs that are observable or can be corroborated by observable market data.

Level 3: Significant unobservable inputs that reflect a company’s own assumptions about the assumptions that market participants would use in pricing an asset or liability.

The carrying amounts of cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable, and trade accounts payable approximated fair value as of December 31, 2011 and December 25, 2010 because of the relatively short maturities of these financial instruments.  The carrying amount of long-term debt, including current maturities, approximated fair value as of December 31, 2011 and December 25, 2010, based upon terms and conditions available to the Company at those dates in comparison to the terms and conditions of its outstanding long-term debt.

Cash and Cash Equivalents - The Company considers all highly liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less to be cash equivalents.

Investments - The Company categorizes its investments as trading, available-for-sale, or held-to-maturity.  The Company’s investments are comprised of available-for-sale securities and are carried at fair value with unrealized gains and losses, net of applicable income taxes, recorded within accumulated other comprehensive income (loss).  The Company determined fair values of investments available for sale by obtaining quoted prices on nationally recognized securities exchanges (Level 1 inputs).  Dividend and interest income are accrued as earned.  The Company reviews its investments quarterly for declines in market value that are other than temporary.

Accounts Receivable - The Company accounts for trade receivables based on the amounts billed to customers.  Past due receivables are determined based on contractual terms.  The Company does not accrue interest on any of its trade receivables.

Allowance for Doubtful Accounts - The allowance for doubtful accounts is determined by management based on the Company’s historical losses, specific customer circumstances, and general economic conditions.  Periodically, management reviews accounts receivable and adjusts the allowance based on current circumstances and charges off uncollectible receivables against the allowance when all attempts to collect the receivable have failed.

Inventories - Inventories are stated at the lower of cost or market with cost determined using the first-in, first-out method.

Assets Held For Sale - The Company has previously made the decision to cease operations at a number of their facilities and is actively pursuing their sale. The Company evaluates the carrying value of property held for sale whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that a property’s carrying amount may not be recoverable. Such circumstances could include, but are not limited to: (1) a significant decrease in the market value of an asset, or (2) a significant adverse change in the extent or manner in which an asset is used. The Company measures the carrying amount of the asset against the estimated undiscounted future cash flows associated with it. Should the sum of the expected future net cash flows be less than the carrying value of the asset being evaluated, an impairment loss would be recognized. The impairment loss would be calculated as the amount by which the carrying value of the asset exceeds its fair value. The Company estimated the fair value of its properties held for sale based on appraisals and other current market data. During the years ended 2010 and 2009, the Company recorded non-cash charges to reflect impairment of certain assets held for sale totaling $1,839,846 and $80,000, respectively. The impairment charges, classified in impairment of assets held for sale and discontinued operations, represents management’s best estimate of the fair value of the assets based on current market conditions. As of December 31, 2011 the following locations were held for sale: Woodburn, Oregon; Wilson, North Carolina; one facility in Ligonier, Indiana; Streetsboro, Ohio; Apopka, Florida; and St. Louis, Missouri.  As of December 25, 2010 the following locations were held for sale: Woodburn, Oregon; Wilson, North Carolina; White Pigeon, Michigan; one facility in Goshen, Indiana; and Streetsboro, Ohio.

Property, Plant and Equipment - Property, plant and equipment are recorded at cost.  For financial reporting purposes, depreciation is provided based on the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the assets.  The useful life of each class of property is as follows:  land improvements (22 years); buildings (40 years); and machinery and equipment (3 to 10 years).  For financial reporting purposes, leasehold improvements are amortized using the straight-line method over the lesser of the useful life of the asset or term of the lease, except for the leasehold improvements associated with the leased facilities in Goshen, Indiana, and Griffin, Georgia, which are leased from a related party (a partnership whose partners include four directors/stockholders of the Company).  These related party leases include a provision whereby upon termination of the leases, the lessor is obligated to pay the lessee a cash payment equal to the unamortized balance of any leasehold improvements.  Accordingly, leasehold improvements to these leased facilities are amortized over the useful life of the asset (15 to 40 years).  Upon sale or other disposition of assets, the cost and related accumulated depreciation and amortization are removed from the accounts, and any resulting gain or loss is reflected in operations (included in other income in the consolidated statements of operations).  Expenditures for repairs and maintenance are charged to operations as incurred.  Betterments and major renewals are capitalized and recorded in the appropriate asset accounts.

Evaluation of Impairment of Long-Lived Assets - The Company evaluates the carrying value of long-lived assets whenever significant events or changes in circumstances indicate the carrying value of these assets may be impaired.  The Company evaluates potential impairment of long-lived assets by comparing the carrying value of the assets to the expected net future cash inflows resulting from use of the assets. During the years ended 2010 and 2009, the Company recorded non-cash charges to reflect impairment of certain real estate and equipment totaling $1.8 million and $0.1 million, respectively.  The impairment charges, classified in impairment of assets held for sale and discontinued operations, represents management’s best estimate of the fair value of the long-lived assets based on current market conditions.

Stock-Based Compensation - The Company records all stock-based payments to employees, including grants of employee stock options, in the consolidated statements of operations based on their fair values at the date of grant.

Restricted stock awards are valued based upon the closing market price of the Company’s stock on the date of grant. The Company currently uses the Black-Scholes option pricing model to determine the fair value of stock options.  The determination of the fair value of stock-based payment awards on the date of grant using an option-pricing model is affected by stock price as well as assumptions regarding a number of complex and subjective variables.  These variables include expected stock price volatility over the term of the awards, actual and projected employee stock option exercise behaviors, risk-free interest rate, and expected dividends.

Compensation expense (net of estimated forfeitures) relative to stock-based awards (see Note 8), included in the consolidated statements of operations for the years ended December 31, 2011, December 25, 2010, and December 26, 2009, was $451,203, $596,834 and $604,291, respectively. The weighted-average assumptions utilized in the determination of stock compensation expense relating to stock options were as follows:

	2010		2009
Risk free interest rate	1.90	%	2.53	%
Expected life	7.0 years		7.0 years
Expected volatility	48.82	%	48.35	%
Expected dividends	—	%	—	%

There were no stock options issued during the year ended December 31, 2011.

The risk-free interest rate is determined based on observed U.S. Treasury yields in effect at the time of grant for maturities equivalent to the expected life of the option.  The expected life of the option (estimated average period of time the option will be outstanding) is estimated based on the historical exercise behavior of employees with executives displaying somewhat longer holding periods than other employees.  Expected volatility is based on historical volatility measured daily for a time period equal to the expected life of the option ending on the day of grant.  The expected dividend yield is estimated based on the dividend yield at the time of grant as adjusted for expected dividend increases and historical payout policy.

Warranty - The Company provides limited product warranties for periods of up to five years from the date of retail sale.  Estimated warranty costs are provided at the time of sale and are based upon historical experience.  Warranty activity for the years ended December 31, 2011, December 25, 2010, and December 26, 2009 is as follows:

	2011			2010			2009
Accrued warranty, beginning of year	$	1,636,000		$	1,377,000		$	1,473,000
Warranty expense	1,757,367			2,405,774			1,435,184
Warranty claims paid	(1,805,367		)	(2,146,774		)	(1,531,184		)
Accrued warranty, end of year	$	1,588,000		$	1,636,000		$	1,377,000

Income Taxes - Deferred income taxes are determined using the liability method.

Earnings (Loss) Per Share - Basic earnings (loss) per share is computed by dividing net income (loss) by the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding during the period.

Diluted earnings per share is computed by dividing net income (loss) by the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding plus the dilutive effect of stock options and restricted stock awards.  The stock options and restricted stock awards were not included in the 2010 and 2009 computations of diluted earnings per share since their effect would have been anti-dilutive.

Comprehensive Income (Loss) - Other comprehensive income (loss) refers to revenues, expenses, gains, and losses that, under generally accepted accounting principles, are included in comprehensive income (loss) but are excluded from net income (loss) since these amounts are recorded directly as an adjustment to stockholders’ equity.  The Company’s other comprehensive income (loss) is comprised of unrealized gains and losses on hedge activities and available-for-sale securities, net of tax.

Segment Information - The Company’s principal business is manufacturing specialized vehicles.  Management has not separately organized the business beyond specialized vehicles (includes three categories of products) and manufacturing processes.  The fiberglass manufacturing subsidiary constitutes a segment, however this segment does not meet the quantitative thresholds for separate disclosure.  The fiberglass manufacturing subsidiary’s revenues are less than ten percent of consolidated revenues, the absolute amount of its net income (loss) is less than ten percent of the absolute amount of consolidated net income (loss), and finally, its assets are less than ten percent of consolidated assets.

Net sales from continuing operations consist of the following:

	2011		2010		2009
Specialized vehicles:
Trucks	$	218,927,753	$	122,489,740	$	96,742,558
Buses	60,640,186		69,951,326		66,439,902
Armored vehicles	18,952,739		24,599,094		18,751,395
	298,520,678		217,040,160		181,933,855
Fiberglass products	2,287,280		3,848,426		4,140,608
	$	300,807,958	$	220,888,586	$	186,074,463

Reclassifications - Certain amounts in the prior years’ consolidated financial statements have been reclassified to conform to the 2011 presentation.  These reclassifications had no effect on stockholders’ equity or net loss as previously reported.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements - In June 2011, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) No. 2011-5, Presentation of Comprehensive Income, which requires entities to present comprehensive income either in a single continuous financial statement or in two separate but consecutive financial statements.  Entities will no longer have the option to present components of other comprehensive income (“OCI”) as part of the statement of stockholders’ equity.  In addition, the amended guidance requires entities to show the effect of items reclassified from OCI to net income on the face of the financial statements.  The amended guidance is required for fiscal years and interim periods within those years, beginning after December 15, 2011.  Early adoption is permitted, and retrospective application is required.  The Company elected to early adopt this guidance which required the Company to change the presentation of comprehensive income but did not have an impact on its consolidated results.