by , 8:40 AM EDT, August 4th, 2006

Apple Computer issued a warning on Thursday that it may have to restate financial statements to account for past stock option grants. At issue are some back dated stock option grants that were issued between 1997 and 2001.

Apple issued a statement that says in part "The Company will likely need to restate its historical financial statements to record non-cash charges for compensation expense relating to past stock option grants. The Company has not determined the amount of such charges, the resulting tax and accounting impact, or which periods may require restatement. Accordingly, the Company today filed a Form 8-K stating that the financial statements and all earnings and press releases and similar communications issued by the Company relating to periods commencing on September 29, 2002 should therefore not be relied upon."

The investigation is still underway, so Apple is delaying the filing of its Form 10-Q for the quarter that ended July 1, 2006.

Apple first announced that it had discovered some irregularities in stock option grants at the end of June. The company hired independent counsel to investigate the matter further. In early July, two law suits were brought against the company over the irregularities.

Apple stock is currently trading in the pre-market at US$69.59, down 2.22 (3.19%).