Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets

3 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2011

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets [Abstract]

Note 11. Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets

Goodwill related to business combinations is not amortized but is subject to annual review for impairment. In general, when the carrying value of a reporting unit exceeds its implied fair value, an impairment loss must be recognized. For purposes of testing for impairment the Company uses a combination of valuation techniques, including discounted cash flows. Intangible assets are amortized over their estimated useful lives unless such lives are considered to be indefinite. A significant decline in cash flows generated from these assets may result in a write-down of the carrying values of the related assets. The Company performs its annual impairment review in the second fiscal quarter.

A summary of the carrying amount of goodwill attributable to each segment as well as the changes in such amounts are as follows:

	Cemetery			Funeral Home					Graphics			Marking		Merchandising
	Products			Products		Cremation			Imaging			Products		Solutions		Consolidated

Goodwill	$	88,142		$	162,819	$	16,735		$	167,828		$	29,593	$	9,138	$	474,255
Accumulated impairment losses		(412	)		-		(5,000	)		(3,840	)		-		-		(9,252	)
Balance at September 30, 2011		87,730			162,819		11,735			163,988			29,593		9,138	$	465,003

Additions during period		-			57		-			-			-		-		57
Translation and other adjustments		(654	)		-		(77	)		(4,169	)		45		-		(4,855	)
Goodwill		87,488			162,876		16,658			163,659			29,638		9,138		469,457
Accumulated impairment losses		(412	)		-		(5,000	)		(3,840	)		-		-		(9,252	)
Balance at December 31, 2011	$	87,076		$	162,876	$	11,658		$	159,819		$	29,638	$	9,138	$	460,205

The addition to Funeral Home Products goodwill primarily represents the effect of an adjustment to the purchase price of a small casket manufacturer

The following tables summarize the carrying amounts and related accumulated amortization for intangible assets as of December 31, 2011 and September 30, 2011, respectively.

	Carrying		Accumulated
	Amount		Amortization			Net
December 31, 2011:
Trade names	$	24,249	$	-	*	$	24,249
Trade names		2,167		(1,230	)		937
Customer relationships		47,435		(13,759	)		33,676
Copyrights/patents/other		9,823		(7,254	)		2,569
	$	83,674	$	(22,243	)	$	61,431

September 30, 2011:
Trade names	$	24,266	$	-	*	$	24,266
Trade names		2,227		(1,147	)		1,080
Customer relationships		47,876		(13,228	)		34,648
Copyrights/patents/other		9,870		(7,039	)		2,831
	$	84,239	$	(21,414	)	$	62,825
* Not subject to amortization

The net change in intangible assets during the three months ended December 31, 2011 included the impact of foreign currency fluctuations during the period and additional amortization.

Amortization expense on intangible assets was $992 and $1,063 for the three-month periods ended December 31, 2011 and 2010, respectively. The remaining amortization expense is estimated to be $2,894 in 2012, $3,549 in 2013, $3,337 in 2014, $3,077 in 2015 and $2,785 in 2016.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the aggregate amount of goodwill and a description of intangible assets, which may include (a) for amortizable intangible assets (also referred to as finite-lived intangible assets), the carrying amount, the amount of any significant residual value, and the weighted-average amortization period, (b) for intangible assets not subject to amortization (also referred to as indefinite-lived intangible assets), the carrying amount, and (c) the amount of research and development assets acquired and written off in the period, including the line item in the income statement in which the amounts written off are aggregated, if not readily apparent from the income statement. Also discloses (a) for amortizable intangibles assets in total and by major class, the gross carrying amount and accumulated amortization, the total amortization expense for the period, and the estimated aggregate amortization expense for each of the five succeeding fiscal years, (b) for intangible assets not subject to amortization the carrying amount in total and by major class, and (c) for goodwill, in total and for each reportable segment, the changes in the carrying amount of goodwill during the period (including the aggregate amount of goodwill acquired, the aggregate amount of impairment losses recognized, and the amount of goodwill included in the gain (loss) on disposal of a reporting unit). If any part of goodwill has not been allocated to a reportable segment, discloses the unallocated amount and the reasons for not allocating. For each impairment loss recognized related to an intangible asset (excluding goodwill), discloses: (a) a description of the impaired intangible asset and the facts and circumstances leading to the impairment, (b) the amount of the impairment loss and the method for determining fair value, (c) the caption in the income statement or the statement of activities in which the impairment loss is aggregated, and (d) the segment in which the impaired intangible asset is reported. For each goodwill impairment loss recognized, discloses: (a) a description of the facts and circumstances leading to the impairment, (b) the amount of the impairment loss and the method of determining the fair value of the associated reporting unit, and (c) if a recognized impairment loss is an estimate not finalized and the reasons why the estimate is not final. May also disclose the nature and amount of any significant adjustments made to a previous estimate of an impairment loss.

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