this non-gaap presentation reflects the entire natg segment , misco germany operation and rebate processing business as a discontinued operation for all periods presented as well as including adjustments for non-recurring items , intangible amortization and equity compensation in recurring operations . 21 highlights from 2018 the following discussion of our results of operations and financial condition will provide information that will assist in understanding our financial statements and information about how certain accounting principles and estimates affect the consolidated financial statements . this discussion should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements included herein . consolidated sales increased 13.3 % to $ 896.9 million compared to $ 791.8 million in the prior year . on a constant currency basis , average daily sales increased 13.3 % compared to prior year . consolidated operating income grew 35.0 % to $ 61.7 million compared to $ 45.7 million last year . net income per diluted share from continuing operations declined 24.7 % to $ 1.31. the full year 2017 comparative period includes a tax benefit of $ 20.0 million primarily related to the reversal of valuation allowances against the company 's deferred tax assets and the impacts of u.s. tax reform enacted in q4 2017. net income per diluted share from discontinued operations was $ 4.62 , primarily related to the $ 160.5 million book gain recognized on the sale of the company 's france business and the inclusion of eight months of france operating results in discontinued operations in 2018 . 22 gaap results of operations key performance indicators * ( in millions ) : replace_table_token_4_th * excludes discontinued operations ( see note 4 of notes to consolidated financial statements ) . * * includes special charges , net ( see note 4 of notes to consolidated financial statements ) . replace_table_token_5_th 23 replace_table_token_6_th * percentages are calculated using sales data in hundreds of thousands . for the year ended december 31 , 2018 and 2017 , ipg had 253 selling days and for the year ended december 31 , 2016 , ipg had 254 selling days . * * see reconciliation of segment and consolidated gaap operating income ( loss ) from continuing operations to segment and consolidated non-gaap operating income ( loss ) from continuing operations – unaudited 1 on august 31 , 2018 , the company closed on the sale of the france operations . prior and current year results of these divested operations , along with the associated gain , have been classified as discontinued operations . on march 24 , 2017 , the company closed on the sale of its european technology group businesses , other than its operations in france . prior and current year results of these divested businesses , along with the associated loss on the sale recorded in 2017 , have been classified as discontinued operations . on december 31 , 2016 the company closed on the sale of its afligo rebate processing business and on september 2 , 2016 the company closed on the sale of certain assets of its misco germany operation which had been reported as part of its european technology products group . prior and current year results of the germany operations and the rebate processing business , along with the associated gain on the sale of the rebate business , have been eliminated in the non-gaap presentation . the company believes that the non-gaap presentation conveys additional meaningful information to investors as it depicts the operations that are currently generating sales and that will continue to do so in future periods . see accompanying gaap reconciliation tables . 2 systemax manages its business and reports using a 52-53 week fiscal year that ends at midnight on the saturday closest to december 31. for clarity of presentation , fiscal years and quarters are described as if they ended on the last day of the respective calendar month . the actual fiscal quarter ended on december 29 , 2018 , december 30 , 2017 and december 31 , 2016 , respectively . the years ended 2018 , 2017 and 2016 included 52 weeks . 24 systemax inc. reconciliation of segment and consolidated gaap net sales from continuing operations to segment and consolidated non-gaap net sales from continuing operations - unaudited ( in millions ) replace_table_token_7_th systemax inc. reconciliation of segment and consolidated gaap gross profit from continuing operations to segment and consolidated non-gaap gross profit from continuing operations - unaudited ( in millions ) replace_table_token_8_th 25 systemax inc. reconciliation of segment gaap operating income ( loss ) from continuing operations to non-gaap operating income ( loss ) from continuing operations - unaudited ( in millions ) replace_table_token_9_th 26 management 's discussion and analysis that follows will include ipg , corporate and other , natg continuing operations and discontinued operations . the discussion is based upon the gaap results of operations table . net sales segments : the ipg segment net sales benefited in 2018 from continued strong demand across most product categories with growth rates led by many of the newer product lines we have invested in over the past several years . ipg grew sales across all of our sales channels , with growth rates highest within our managed sales channels , where we are benefiting from improvements in sales force productivity , evidenced by increased penetration of existing customer accounts , as well as growth from new customer acquisition and a continuation of a strong macro-economic environment . ipg net sales benefited from growth in its canada business which delivered its eighth consecutive quarter of double digit growth in the fourth quarter . canada sales increased approximately 30.8 % , 30.7 % on a constant currency basis , compared to prior year . u.s. revenue increased 12.5 % compared to prior year . on a constant currency basis , ipg average daily sales increased 13.3 % compared to prior year . story_separator_special_tag details of the purchase is as follows : fiscal month total number of shares purchased average price paid per share total number of shares purchased as part of publicly announced plans or programs maximum number of shares that may yet be purchased under the plans or programs july 232,550 $ 38.96 232,550 1,767,450 the company maintains a $ 75.0 million secured revolving credit agreement with one financial institution which has a five-year term , maturing on october 28 , 2021 and provides for borrowings in the united states . the credit agreement contains certain operating , financial and other covenants , including limits on annual levels of capital expenditures , availability tests related to payments of dividends and stock repurchases and fixed charge coverage tests related to acquisitions . the revolving credit agreement requires that a minimum level of availability be maintained . if such availability is not maintained , the company will be required to maintain a fixed charge coverage ratio ( as defined ) . the borrowings under the agreement are subject to borrowing base limitations of up to 85 % of eligible accounts receivable and the inventory advance rate computed as the lesser of 60 % or 85 % of the net orderly liquidation value ( “ nolv ” ) . borrowings are secured by substantially all of the borrower 's assets , as defined , including all accounts , accounts receivable , inventory and certain other assets , subject to limited exceptions , including the exclusion of certain foreign assets from the collateral . the interest rate under the amended and restated facility is computed at applicable market rates based on the london interbank offered rate ( “ libo ” ) , the federal reserve bank of new york ( “ nyfrb ” ) or the prime rate , plus an applicable margin . the applicable margin varies based on borrowing base availability . as of december 31 , 2018 , eligible collateral under the credit agreement was $ 75.0 million , total availability was $ 73.4 million , total outstanding letters of credit were $ 2.3 million , excess availability was $ 71.1 million and there were no outstanding borrowings . the company was in compliance with all of the covenants of the credit agreement in place as of december 31 , 2018. levels of earnings and cash flows are dependent on factors such as consolidated gross margin and selling , distribution and administrative costs , product mix and relative levels of domestic and foreign sales . unusual gains or expense items , such as special ( gains ) charges and settlements , may impact earnings and are separately disclosed . we expect that past performance may not be 32 indicative of future performance due to the competitive nature of our business segments where the need to adjust prices to gain or hold market share is prevalent . macroeconomic conditions , such as business and consumer sentiment , may affect our revenues , cash flows or financial condition . however , we do not believe that there is a direct correlation between any specific macroeconomic indicator and our revenues , cash flows or financial condition . we are not currently interest rate sensitive , as we have minimal debt . the expenses , capital expenditures and exit activities described above will require significant levels of liquidity , which we believe can be adequately funded from our currently available cash resources . in 2019 we anticipate capital expenditures in the range of $ 8.0 to $ 12.0 million , though at this time we are not contractually committed to incur these expenditures . within this spend , we currently anticipate an expansion of our distribution footprint in the second half of 2019 , including opening a new distribution center . we anticipate that capital spend would return to more normalized historical levels upon the opening of a new facility . over the past several years we have engaged in opportunistic acquisitions , choosing to pay the purchase price in cash , and may do so in the future as favorable situations arise . however , a deep and prolonged period of reduced business spending could adversely impact our cash resources and force us to either forego future acquisition opportunities or to pay the purchase price in shares of our common stock , which could have a dilutive effect on our earnings per share . we believe that our cash balances , future cash flows from operations and our availability under credit facilities will be sufficient to fund our working capital and other cash requirements for at least the next twelve months . we maintain our cash and cash equivalents in money market funds or their equivalent that have maturities of less than three months and in non-interest bearing accounts that partially offset banking fees . as of december 31 , 2018 , we had no investments with maturities of greater than three months . accordingly , we do not believe that our cash balances have significant exposure to interest rate risk . at december 31 , 2018 cash balances held in foreign subsidiaries totaled approximately $ 4.0 million . these balances are held in local country banks and are held primarily to support local working capital needs . the company had in excess of $ 362 million of liquidity ( cash and an undrawn line of credit ) in the u.s. as of december 31 , 2018 , which is sufficient to fund its u.s. operations and capital needs , including any dividend payments , for the foreseeable future . our cash position at december 31 , 2018 does not reflect payment of our special dividend of $ 6.50 per share , which was payable on january 3 , 2019. this dividend resulted in a total cash outlay of $ 243.5 million and was essentially funded by the sale of our france operations . we are obligated under non-cancelable operating leases for the rental of most

required the use of cash . 28 natg discontinued operations incurred special charges of approximately $ 6.9 million throughout the year ended december 31 , 2017 , of which $ 6.2 million primarily related to updating our future lease cash flows and $ 0.7 million related to ongoing restitution proceedings against certain former natg executives . amounts that are unpaid at december 31 , 2018 are recorded in accrued expenses and other current liabilities and other liabilities in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets . the company 's natg segment incurred special charges in 2016 of approximately $ 11.7 million , of which $ 2.2 million is included in continuing operations and $ 9.5 million is included in discontinued operations . charges incurred included approximately $ 10.9 million for lease terminations and other exit costs ( includes $ 3.3 million benefit of previous rent accruals ) for the closing of the two remaining retail stores , a distribution center and the natg corporate headquarters in 2016 , approximately $ 2.0 million of additional lease termination costs ( includes $ 0.1 million benefit of previous rent accruals ) of our previously exited retail stores ( present value of contractual gross lease payments net of sublease rental income , or settlement amount ) , $ 0.6 million for consulting expenses related to the lease terminations and $ 0.2 million for severance and related expenses . natg also incurred in 2016 approximately $ 1.3 million of professional costs , related to the ongoing restitution proceedings against certain former natg executives and professional costs related to the investigation conducted at the request of the us attorney for the southern district of florida .


 Write a concise suspicious activity report of the following text delimited by triple backquotes. Return your response as a formal report which covers the key points highlighting the location,dates,entity names and account holder information in chronological order of the text.
     ```required the use of cash . 28 natg discontinued operations incurred special charges of approximately $ 6.9 million throughout the year ended december 31 , 2017 , of which $ 6.2 million primarily related to updating our future lease cash flows and $ 0.7 million related to ongoing restitution proceedings against certain former natg executives . amounts that are unpaid at december 31 , 2018 are recorded in accrued expenses and other current liabilities and other liabilities in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets . the company 's natg segment incurred special charges in 2016 of approximately $ 11.7 million , of which $ 2.2 million is included in continuing operations and $ 9.5 million is included in discontinued operations . charges incurred included approximately $ 10.9 million for lease terminations and other exit costs ( includes $ 3.3 million benefit of previous rent accruals ) for the closing of the two remaining retail stores , a distribution center and the natg corporate headquarters in 2016 , approximately $ 2.0 million of additional lease termination costs ( includes $ 0.1 million benefit of previous rent accruals ) of our previously exited retail stores ( present value of contractual gross lease payments net of sublease rental income , or settlement amount ) , $ 0.6 million for consulting expenses related to the lease terminations and $ 0.2 million for severance and related expenses . natg also incurred in 2016 approximately $ 1.3 million of professional costs , related to the ongoing restitution proceedings against certain former natg executives and professional costs related to the investigation conducted at the request of the us attorney for the southern district of florida .
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 Suspicious Activity Report : this non-gaap presentation reflects the entire natg segment , misco germany operation and rebate processing business as a discontinued operation for all periods presented as well as including adjustments for non-recurring items , intangible amortization and equity compensation in recurring operations . 21 highlights from 2018 the following discussion of our results of operations and financial condition will provide information that will assist in understanding our financial statements and information about how certain accounting principles and estimates affect the consolidated financial statements . this discussion should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements included herein . consolidated sales increased 13.3 % to $ 896.9 million compared to $ 791.8 million in the prior year . on a constant currency basis , average daily sales increased 13.3 % compared to prior year . consolidated operating income grew 35.0 % to $ 61.7 million compared to $ 45.7 million last year . net income per diluted share from continuing operations declined 24.7 % to $ 1.31. the full year 2017 comparative period includes a tax benefit of $ 20.0 million primarily related to the reversal of valuation allowances against the company 's deferred tax assets and the impacts of u.s. tax reform enacted in q4 2017. net income per diluted share from discontinued operations was $ 4.62 , primarily related to the $ 160.5 million book gain recognized on the sale of the company 's france business and the inclusion of eight months of france operating results in discontinued operations in 2018 . 22 gaap results of operations key performance indicators * ( in millions ) : replace_table_token_4_th * excludes discontinued operations ( see note 4 of notes to consolidated financial statements ) . * * includes special charges , net ( see note 4 of notes to consolidated financial statements ) . replace_table_token_5_th 23 replace_table_token_6_th * percentages are calculated using sales data in hundreds of thousands . for the year ended december 31 , 2018 and 2017 , ipg had 253 selling days and for the year ended december 31 , 2016 , ipg had 254 selling days . * * see reconciliation of segment and consolidated gaap operating income ( loss ) from continuing operations to segment and consolidated non-gaap operating income ( loss ) from continuing operations – unaudited 1 on august 31 , 2018 , the company closed on the sale of the france operations . prior and current year results of these divested operations , along with the associated gain , have been classified as discontinued operations . on march 24 , 2017 , the company closed on the sale of its european technology group businesses , other than its operations in france . prior and current year results of these divested businesses , along with the associated loss on the sale recorded in 2017 , have been classified as discontinued operations . on december 31 , 2016 the company closed on the sale of its afligo rebate processing business and on september 2 , 2016 the company closed on the sale of certain assets of its misco germany operation which had been reported as part of its european technology products group . prior and current year results of the germany operations and the rebate processing business , along with the associated gain on the sale of the rebate business , have been eliminated in the non-gaap presentation . the company believes that the non-gaap presentation conveys additional meaningful information to investors as it depicts the operations that are currently generating sales and that will continue to do so in future periods . see accompanying gaap reconciliation tables . 2 systemax manages its business and reports using a 52-53 week fiscal year that ends at midnight on the saturday closest to december 31. for clarity of presentation , fiscal years and quarters are described as if they ended on the last day of the respective calendar month . the actual fiscal quarter ended on december 29 , 2018 , december 30 , 2017 and december 31 , 2016 , respectively . the years ended 2018 , 2017 and 2016 included 52 weeks . 24 systemax inc. reconciliation of segment and consolidated gaap net sales from continuing operations to segment and consolidated non-gaap net sales from continuing operations - unaudited ( in millions ) replace_table_token_7_th systemax inc. reconciliation of segment and consolidated gaap gross profit from continuing operations to segment and consolidated non-gaap gross profit from continuing operations - unaudited ( in millions ) replace_table_token_8_th 25 systemax inc. reconciliation of segment gaap operating income ( loss ) from continuing operations to non-gaap operating income ( loss ) from continuing operations - unaudited ( in millions ) replace_table_token_9_th 26 management 's discussion and analysis that follows will include ipg , corporate and other , natg continuing operations and discontinued operations . the discussion is based upon the gaap results of operations table . net sales segments : the ipg segment net sales benefited in 2018 from continued strong demand across most product categories with growth rates led by many of the newer product lines we have invested in over the past several years . ipg grew sales across all of our sales channels , with growth rates highest within our managed sales channels , where we are benefiting from improvements in sales force productivity , evidenced by increased penetration of existing customer accounts , as well as growth from new customer acquisition and a continuation of a strong macro-economic environment . ipg net sales benefited from growth in its canada business which delivered its eighth consecutive quarter of double digit growth in the fourth quarter . canada sales increased approximately 30.8 % , 30.7 % on a constant currency basis , compared to prior year . u.s. revenue increased 12.5 % compared to prior year . on a constant currency basis , ipg average daily sales increased 13.3 % compared to prior year . story_separator_special_tag details of the purchase is as follows : fiscal month total number of shares purchased average price paid per share total number of shares purchased as part of publicly announced plans or programs maximum number of shares that may yet be purchased under the plans or programs july 232,550 $ 38.96 232,550 1,767,450 the company maintains a $ 75.0 million secured revolving credit agreement with one financial institution which has a five-year term , maturing on october 28 , 2021 and provides for borrowings in the united states . the credit agreement contains certain operating , financial and other covenants , including limits on annual levels of capital expenditures , availability tests related to payments of dividends and stock repurchases and fixed charge coverage tests related to acquisitions . the revolving credit agreement requires that a minimum level of availability be maintained . if such availability is not maintained , the company will be required to maintain a fixed charge coverage ratio ( as defined ) . the borrowings under the agreement are subject to borrowing base limitations of up to 85 % of eligible accounts receivable and the inventory advance rate computed as the lesser of 60 % or 85 % of the net orderly liquidation value ( “ nolv ” ) . borrowings are secured by substantially all of the borrower 's assets , as defined , including all accounts , accounts receivable , inventory and certain other assets , subject to limited exceptions , including the exclusion of certain foreign assets from the collateral . the interest rate under the amended and restated facility is computed at applicable market rates based on the london interbank offered rate ( “ libo ” ) , the federal reserve bank of new york ( “ nyfrb ” ) or the prime rate , plus an applicable margin . the applicable margin varies based on borrowing base availability . as of december 31 , 2018 , eligible collateral under the credit agreement was $ 75.0 million , total availability was $ 73.4 million , total outstanding letters of credit were $ 2.3 million , excess availability was $ 71.1 million and there were no outstanding borrowings . the company was in compliance with all of the covenants of the credit agreement in place as of december 31 , 2018. levels of earnings and cash flows are dependent on factors such as consolidated gross margin and selling , distribution and administrative costs , product mix and relative levels of domestic and foreign sales . unusual gains or expense items , such as special ( gains ) charges and settlements , may impact earnings and are separately disclosed . we expect that past performance may not be 32 indicative of future performance due to the competitive nature of our business segments where the need to adjust prices to gain or hold market share is prevalent . macroeconomic conditions , such as business and consumer sentiment , may affect our revenues , cash flows or financial condition . however , we do not believe that there is a direct correlation between any specific macroeconomic indicator and our revenues , cash flows or financial condition . we are not currently interest rate sensitive , as we have minimal debt . the expenses , capital expenditures and exit activities described above will require significant levels of liquidity , which we believe can be adequately funded from our currently available cash resources . in 2019 we anticipate capital expenditures in the range of $ 8.0 to $ 12.0 million , though at this time we are not contractually committed to incur these expenditures . within this spend , we currently anticipate an expansion of our distribution footprint in the second half of 2019 , including opening a new distribution center . we anticipate that capital spend would return to more normalized historical levels upon the opening of a new facility . over the past several years we have engaged in opportunistic acquisitions , choosing to pay the purchase price in cash , and may do so in the future as favorable situations arise . however , a deep and prolonged period of reduced business spending could adversely impact our cash resources and force us to either forego future acquisition opportunities or to pay the purchase price in shares of our common stock , which could have a dilutive effect on our earnings per share . we believe that our cash balances , future cash flows from operations and our availability under credit facilities will be sufficient to fund our working capital and other cash requirements for at least the next twelve months . we maintain our cash and cash equivalents in money market funds or their equivalent that have maturities of less than three months and in non-interest bearing accounts that partially offset banking fees . as of december 31 , 2018 , we had no investments with maturities of greater than three months . accordingly , we do not believe that our cash balances have significant exposure to interest rate risk . at december 31 , 2018 cash balances held in foreign subsidiaries totaled approximately $ 4.0 million . these balances are held in local country banks and are held primarily to support local working capital needs . the company had in excess of $ 362 million of liquidity ( cash and an undrawn line of credit ) in the u.s. as of december 31 , 2018 , which is sufficient to fund its u.s. operations and capital needs , including any dividend payments , for the foreseeable future . our cash position at december 31 , 2018 does not reflect payment of our special dividend of $ 6.50 per share , which was payable on january 3 , 2019. this dividend resulted in a total cash outlay of $ 243.5 million and was essentially funded by the sale of our france operations . we are obligated under non-cancelable operating leases for the rental of most

