ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS
Forward-Looking Statements
We make forward-looking statements in Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations and elsewhere in this report based on the beliefs and assumptions of our management and on information currently available to us. Forward-looking statements include information about our possible or assumed future results of operations, which follow under the headings "Business", "Liquidity and Capital Resources", and other statements throughout this report preceded by, followed by or that include the words "believes", "expects", "anticipates", "intends", "plans", "estimates" or similar expressions.
Any number of risks and uncertainties could cause actual results to differ materially from those we express in our forward-looking statements, including the risks and uncertainties we describe below and other factors we describe from time to time in our periodic filings with the SEC. We therefore caution you not to rely unduly on any forward-looking statement. The forward-looking statements in this report speak only as of the date of this report, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments, or otherwise.
Risks and Uncertainties
We are subject to various risks that could materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations, cash flow, liquidity, or financial condition which make an investment in our securities risky. You should understand that these risks could, in circumstances we may or may not be able to accurately predict, recognize, or control, have a material adverse effect on our business, growth, reputation, prospects, financial condition, operating results (including components of our financial results), cash flows, liquidity, and stock price. In addition, these risks could cause results to differ materially from those we express in forward-looking statements contained in this report or in other Company communications, including those we file from time to time with the SEC. These risk factors do not identify all risks that we face; our operations could also be affected by factors, events, or uncertainties that are not presently known to us or that we currently do not consider to present significant risks to our operations. Because there is no way to determine in advance whether, or to what extent, any present uncertainty will ultimately impact our business, you should give equal weight to each of the following:
Risks Relating to the COVID-19 Pandemic
The global spread of the COVID-19 pandemic has been and continues to be a complex and rapidly-evolving situation, with governments, public institutions and other organizations imposing or recommending, and businesses and individuals implementing, at various times and to varying degrees, restrictions on various activities or other actions to combat its spread, such as restrictions and bans on travel or transportation, limitations on the size of gatherings, closures of or occupancy or other operating limitations on work facilities, schools, public buildings and businesses, cancellation of events, including sporting events, conferences and meetings, and quarantines and lock-downs. The COVID-19 pandemic and its consequences have and will continue to impact our business, operations, and financial results. The extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic impacts our business, operations, and financial results, including the duration and magnitude of such effects, will depend on numerous evolving factors that we may not be able to accurately predict or assess, including the duration and scope of the COVID-19 pandemic (including the location and extent of resurgences of the virus and the availability of effective treatments or vaccines); the negative impact the COVID-19 pandemic has on global and regional economies and economic activity, including the duration and magnitude of its impact on unemployment rates and consumer discretionary spending. Because the severity, magnitude and duration of the COVID-19 pandemic are uncertain, rapidly changing, and difficult to predict, the pandemic's impact on our operations and financial performance, as well as its impact on our ability to successfully execute our business strategy and initiatives, remains uncertain. As the COVID-19 pandemic has spread to other jurisdictions and has been declared a global pandemic, the full extent of this outbreak and the related governmental, business and travel restrictions in order to contain the COVID-19 pandemic are continuing to evolve globally. In response, we have created a COVID-19 task force,
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which includes a cross-functional group of senior-level executives, to manage and respond to the everchanging health and safety requirements across the globe and communicate our response to the pandemic to our global factory and office leaders.
Local government mandates required us, in the first quarter of 2020, to keep our China factories closed for a period of approximately two weeks beyond the end of the Chinese Lunar New Year. Our Mexico factory was closed for more than one week due to local health ordinance requirements during the second quarter of 2020. As a part of our response to this pandemic, our COVID-19 task force has developed and we have implemented additional safety measures for all factory employees across the globe, including temperature scans upon entry, hand sanitizer stations located throughout the facilities, mandatory mask wearing, social distancing measures in gathering places and restricting all visitor access. All factories are up to or near labor capacity as of the issuance of this report.
We have also taken measures to safeguard the health and well-being of our employees in our office locations throughout the world, including implementing work from home arrangements and a moratorium on all travel, except where essential and approved in advance. We have implemented enhanced safety measures upon the reopening of our office locations, including more frequent office sanitation, temperature scans upon arrival, mandatory mask wearing, additional hand sanitizer locations, social distancing measures throughout locations and restricted visitor access. The reopening of our offices continues to follow suggested guidelines by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Health Organization, and local governmental orders and recommendations. The continued safety and welfare of our employees will remain at the forefront of all decision-making.
We anticipate that restrictions enacted as a result of and the global health crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic will continue to negatively impact business activity across the globe, including our business. We expect our sales demand to be negatively impacted into, at least, the first half of 2021 given the global reach and economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the various quarantine and social distancing measures put in place to contain the spread of COVID-19. We have also seen some disruptions in our supply chain that, if continued, may cause us difficulty in fulfilling customer orders. A closure of one of our factories for a sustained period of time would, in the short run, impact our ability to meet customer demand and would negatively impact our results.
We will continue to actively monitor the situation and may take further actions altering our business operations as necessary or as required by federal, state, or local authorities. The potential effects of any such alterations or modifications may have a material adverse impact on our business during 2021. Even after the COVID-19 pandemic subsides or effective treatments or vaccines become available, our business, markets, growth prospects and business model could be materially impacted or altered.
Risks Relating to Operations
Cybersecurity Issues: Security Breaches, Failure to Maintain the Integrity of and Protect Internal or Customer Data May Result in Faulty Business Decisions, Operational Inefficiencies, Damage to our Reputation and/or Subject Us to Costs, Fines, or Lawsuits
Our business requires collection, processing, and retention of large volumes of internal and sensitive and confidential customer data, including personally identifiable information of our customers in various information systems that we maintain and in those maintained by third parties with whom we contract to provide services, including in areas such as customer product servicing, human resources outsourcing, website hosting, and various forms of electronic communications. We and third parties who provide services to us also maintain personally identifiable information about our employees. The integrity and protection of that customer, employee, and company data, including proprietary information, is critical to us. If that data is inaccurate or incomplete, we may make faulty decisions. Our customers and employees also have a high expectation that we and our service providers will adequately protect their personal information. Despite the security measures we have in place, our facilities and systems, and those of the retailers, dealers, licensees and other third-party suppliers and vendors with which we do business, may be vulnerable to security breaches, cyber attacks, acts of vandalism or misconduct, computer viruses, misplaced or lost data, programming and/or human errors or other similar events. Any security breach involving the misappropriation, loss or other unauthorized disclosure of confidential customer, employee, supplier or Company information, whether caused by us, an unknown third party, or the retailers, dealers, licensees or other third-party suppliers and vendors with which we do business, could result in losses, severely damage our reputation, expose us to the risks of litigation and liability, disrupt our operations and have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. As cyber security threats evolve in sophistication and become more prevalent in numerous industries worldwide, we continue to increase our sensitivity and attention to these threats, seek additional investments and resources to address these threats and enhance the security of our facilities and systems and strengthen our controls and procedures implemented to monitor and mitigate these threats. The domestic and international regulatory environment related to information security, data collection and privacy is increasingly rigorous and complex, with new and constantly changing requirements applicable to our business. Compliance with these
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requirements, including the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation and other domestic and international regulations, could result in additional costs and changes to our business practices.
Moreover, we rely heavily on computer systems to manage and operate our business, record and process transactions, and manage, support and communicate with our employees, customers, suppliers and other vendors. Computer systems are important to production planning, finance, company operations and customer service, among other business-critical processes. Despite efforts to prevent disruptions to our computer systems, our systems may be affected by damage or interruption from, among other causes, power outages, system failures, computer viruses and other intrusions, including cyber attacks. Computer hardware and storage equipment that is integral to efficient operations, such as email, telephone and other functionality, is concentrated in certain physical locations in the various continents in which we operate. Additionally, we rely on software applications, enterprise cloud storage systems and cloud computing services provided by third-party vendors, and our business may be adversely affected by service disruptions in or security breaches to such third-party systems.
Proprietary Technologies
We produce highly complex products that incorporate leading-edge technology, including hardware, firmware, and software. Firmware and software may contain bugs that may unexpectedly interfere with product operation. There can be no assurance that our testing programs will detect all defects in individual products or defects that may affect numerous shipments. The presence of defects may harm customer satisfaction, reduce sales opportunities, or increase warranty claims and/or returns. An inability to cure or repair such a defect may result in the failure of a product line, temporary or permanent withdrawal of a product or market, damage to our reputation, increased inventory costs, or product re-engineering expenses, any of which may have a material impact on our operating results, financial condition and cash flows.
Technology Changes in Wireless Control and Sensing
We currently derive substantial revenue from the sale of wireless remote controls, sensors and home automation products based on IR and RF and other technologies. Other control technologies exist or may be developed that may compete with this technology. In addition, we develop and maintain our own database of IR and RF codes. There are other IR and RF libraries offered by companies that we compete within the marketplace. The advantage that we may have compared to our competitors is difficult to measure. In addition, if competing wireless control and sensing technology and products gain acceptance and start to be integrated into home electronics devices and home security and automation products that are currently utilizing our remote controllers and sensors, demand for our products may decrease, resulting in decreased operating results, financial condition, and cash flows.
Our Technology Development Activities May Experience Delays
We may experience technical, financial, resource or other difficulties or delays related to the further development of our technologies. Delays may have adverse financial effects and may allow competitors with comparable technology offerings to gain an advantage over us in the marketplace or in the standards setting arena. There can be no assurance that we will continue to have adequate staffing or that our development efforts will ultimately be successful. Moreover, certain of our technologies have not been fully tested in commercial use, and it is possible that they may not perform as expected. In such cases, our business, financial condition and operating results may be adversely affected, and our ability to secure new licensees and other business opportunities may be diminished.
Dependence upon New Product Introduction
Our ability to remain competitive in the video services, consumer electronics, security, home automation, climate control and home appliance markets will depend considerably upon our ability to successfully identify new product opportunities, as well as develop and introduce these products and enhancements on a timely and cost effective basis. There can be no assurance that we will be successful at developing and marketing new products or enhancing our existing products, or that these new or enhanced products will achieve consumer acceptance and, if achieved, will sustain that acceptance. In addition, there can be no assurance that products developed by others will not render our products non-competitive or obsolete or that we will be able to obtain or maintain the rights to use proprietary technologies developed by others which are incorporated in our products. Any failure to anticipate or respond adequately to technological developments and customer requirements, or any significant delays in product development or introduction, may have a material adverse effect on our operating results, financial condition and cash flows. In addition, the introduction of new products may require significant expenditures for R&D, tooling, manufacturing processes, inventory and marketing. In order to achieve high-volume production of any new product, we may have to make substantial investments in inventory and expand our production capabilities. We cannot be certain that we will recover the costs we incurred in developing new products, investing in inventory, to expand our production capabilities, or that those new products will be successful.
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Dependence on Consumer Preference
We are susceptible to fluctuations in our business based upon consumer demand for our products. In addition, we cannot guarantee that increases in demand for our products associated with increases in the deployment of new technology will continue. We believe that our success depends on our ability to anticipate, gauge and respond to fluctuations in consumer preferences. However, it is impossible to predict with complete accuracy the occurrence and effect of fluctuations in consumer demand over a product's life cycle. Moreover, any growth in revenues that we achieve may be transitory and should not be relied upon as an indication of future performance.
Dependence on Major Customers
The economic strength and weakness of our worldwide customers affect our performance. We sell our wireless control products, AV accessory products, and proprietary technologies to video service providers, OEMs, retailers and private label customers. We also supply our products to our wholly owned, non-U.S. subsidiaries and to independent foreign distributors, who in turn distribute our products worldwide.
While we generally have a broad and varied customer base, during the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018, Comcast accounted for sales totaling more than 10% of our net sales. In addition to this customer, we have some customers that, individually, purchase a large amount of products from us. Although our broad distribution channels help to minimize the impact of the loss of any one customer, the loss of any of these large individual customers, or our inability to maintain order volume with these customers, may have an adverse effect on our sales, operating results, financial condition and cash flows.
Demand for Consumer Service and Support
We have continually provided domestic and international consumer service and support to our customers to add overall value and to help differentiate us from our competitors. We continually review our service and support group and are marketing our expertise in this area to other potential customers.
In addition, certain of our products have more features and are more complex than others and therefore require more end-user technical support. In some instances, we rely on distributors or dealers to provide the initial level of technical support to the end-users. We provide the second level of technical support for bug fixes and other issues at no additional charge. Therefore, as the mix of our products includes more of these complex product lines, support costs may increase, which may have an adverse effect on our business, operating results, financial condition and cash flows.
Dependence on Foreign Manufacturing
Although we own and operate factories in the PRC, Brazil and Mexico, third-party manufacturers located in Asia continue to manufacture a portion of our products. We believe that the loss of any one or more of our manufacturers would not have a long-term material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and cash flows, because numerous other manufacturers are available to fulfill our requirements; however, the loss of any of our major third-party manufacturers may adversely affect our business, operating results, financial condition and cash flows until alternative manufacturing arrangements are secured.
Dependence upon Key Suppliers
Most of the components used in our products are available from multiple sources. However, we purchase integrated circuits, used principally in our wireless control products, from a small number of key suppliers. To reduce our dependence on our integrated circuit suppliers we continually seek additional sources. We maintain inventories of our integrated circuits, which may be used in part to mitigate, but not eliminate, delays resulting from supply interruptions.
We have identified alternative sources of supply for our integrated circuit, component parts, and finished goods needs; however, there can be no assurance that we will be able to continue to obtain these inventory purchases on a timely basis. Any extended interruption, shortage or termination in the supply of any of the components used in our products, or a reduction in their quality or reliability, or a significant increase in prices of components, would have an adverse effect on our operating results, financial position and cash flows.
Outsourced Labor
We continue to use outside resources to assist us in the development of some of our products and technologies. While we believe that such outside services will continue to be available to us, if they cease to be available, the development of these products and technologies may be substantially delayed, which may have a material adverse effect on our operating results, financial condition and cash flows.
Disruptions Caused by Labor Disputes or Organized Labor Activities Could Materially Harm our Business and Reputation
Currently, approximately 1,700 of our Brazil and Mexico employees are represented by labor unions. Disputes with the current labor unions or new union organizing activities could lead to production slowdowns or stoppages and make it difficult or
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impossible for us to meet scheduled delivery times for product shipments to some of our customers, which could result in a loss of business and material damage to our reputation. In addition, union activity and compliance with international labor standards could result in higher labor costs, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial position and results of operations.
Transportation Costs and Impact of Oil Prices
We ship products from our factories and foreign manufacturers via ocean and air transport. It is sometimes difficult to forecast swings in demand or delays in production and, as a result, products may be shipped via air which is more costly than ocean shipments. We typically cannot recover the increased cost of air freight from our customers. Additionally, tariffs and other export fees may be incurred to ship products from foreign manufacturers to the customer. The inability to predict swings in demand or delays in production may increase the cost of freight which may have a material adverse effect on our product margins.
In addition, we have an exposure to oil prices in two forms. The first is in the prices of oil-based materials in our products, which are primarily the plastics and other components that we include in our finished products. The second is in the cost of delivery and freight, which would be passed on by the carriers that we use in the form of higher rates. We record freight-in as a cost of sales and freight-out in operating expenses. Rising oil prices may have an adverse effect on cost of sales and operating expenses.
Leased Property
We lease all of the properties used in our business. We can give no assurance that we will enter into new or renewal leases, or that, if entered into, the new lease terms will be similar to the existing terms or that the terms of any such new or renewal leases will not have a significant and material adverse effect on our operating results, financial condition and cash flows.
Competition
Competition within the wireless control industry is based primarily on product availability, price, speed of delivery, ability to tailor specific solutions to customer needs, quality, and depth of product lines. Our competition is fragmented across our products, and, accordingly, we do not compete with any one company across all product lines. We compete with a variety of entities, some of which have greater financial resources. Other competitors are smaller and may be able to offer more specialized products. Our ability to remain competitive in this industry depends in part on our ability to successfully identify new product opportunities, develop and introduce new products and enhancements on a timely and cost effective basis, as well as our ability to successfully identify and enter into strategic alliances with entities doing business within the industries we serve. Competition in any of these areas may reduce our sales and adversely affect our earnings or cash flow by resulting in decreased sales volumes, reduced prices and increased costs of manufacturing, distributing and selling our products. There can be no assurance that our product offerings will be, and/or will remain, competitive or that strategic alliances, if any, will achieve the type, extent, and amount of success or business that we expect them to achieve. The sales of our products and technology may not occur or grow in the manner we expect, and thus we may not recoup costs incurred in the R&D of these products as quickly as we expect, if at all.
The home security and automation industry is highly fragmented and subject to significant competition and pricing pressures. In particular, the monitored security industry providers have highly recognized brands which may drive increased awareness of their security/automation offerings rather than ours, have access to greater capital and resources than us, and may spend significantly more on advertising, marketing and promotional resources which could have a material adverse effect on our ability to drive awareness and demand for our products and services. In addition, video service providers have expanded into the monitored security industry and are bundling their existing offerings with monitored security services. We also face competition from DIY companies that are increasingly providing products which enable customers to self-monitor and control their environments without third-party involvement. Further, DIY providers may also offer professional monitoring with the purchase of their systems and equipment or new IoT devices and services with automated features and capabilities that may be appealing to customers. Continued pricing pressure, improvements in technology and shifts in customer preferences towards self-monitoring or DIY could adversely impact our customer base and/or pricing structure and have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Change in Competition and Pricing
Even with having our own factories, we will continue to rely on third-party manufacturers to build a portion of our universal wireless control products. Price is always an issue in winning and retaining business. If customers become increasingly price sensitive, new competition may arise from manufacturers who decide to go into direct competition with us or from current competitors who perform their own manufacturing. If such a trend develops, we may experience downward pressure on our pricing or lose sales, which may have a material adverse effect on our operating results, financial condition and cash flows.
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Strategic Business Transactions
We have historically made strategic acquisitions of businesses in industries adjacent to our core business and will likely acquire additional businesses in the future as part of our long-term growth strategy. The success of future acquisitions depends in large part on our ability to integrate the operations and personnel of the acquired companies and manage challenges that may arise as a result of the acquisitions, particularly when the acquired businesses operate in new or foreign markets. In the event we do not successfully integrate such future acquisitions into our existing operations so as to realize the expected return on our investment, our results of operations, cash flow or financial condition could be adversely affected.
Risks Related to Doing Business in the PRC
Presently, we manufacture a majority of our products in our factories in the PRC. Additionally, many of our contract manufacturers are located in the PRC. Doing business in the PRC carries a number of risks including the following:
The fluctuation of the Chinese Yuan Renminbi may harm your investment.
Under Chinese monetary policy, the Chinese Yuan Renminbi is permitted to fluctuate within a managed band against a basket of certain foreign currencies and has resulted in increased volatility in the exchange rate the Chinese Yuan Renminbi against the U.S. Dollar. While the international reaction to the Chinese Yuan Renminbi revaluation has been positive, there remains international pressure on the PRC government to adopt an even more flexible currency policy, which may result in a further and more significant appreciation of the Chinese Yuan Renminbi against the U.S. Dollar, which could lead to higher manufacturing costs for our products.
Availability of adequate workforce levels
Presently, the vast majority of workers at our PRC factories are obtained from third-party employment agencies. As the labor laws, social insurance and wage levels continue to grow and the workers become more sophisticated, our costs to employ these and other workers in the PRC may grow beyond that anticipated by management. While we have already experienced increases in labor rates in the PRC, as the PRC market continues to open up and grow, we may experience an increase in competition for the same workers, resulting in either an inability to attract and retain an adequate number of qualified workers or an increase in our employment costs to obtain and retain these workers.
Changes in the policies of the PRC government may have a significant impact upon the business we may be able to conduct in the PRC and the profitability of such business.
Our business operations may be adversely affected by the current and future political environment in the PRC. The government of the PRC has exercised and continues to exercise substantial control over virtually every sector of the Chinese economy, through regulation and state ownership. Our ability to operate in the PRC may be adversely affected by changes in Chinese laws and regulations, including those relating to taxation, labor and social insurance, import and export tariffs, raw materials, environmental regulations, land use rights, property and other matters.
The PRC laws and regulations governing our current business operations are sometimes vague and uncertain. Any changes in such PRC laws and regulations may harm our business.
There are substantial uncertainties regarding the interpretation and application of PRC laws and regulations, including but not limited to the laws and regulations governing our business, or the enforcement and performance of our arrangements with customers in the event of the imposition of statutory liens, death, bankruptcy and criminal proceedings. We cannot predict what effect the interpretation of existing or new PRC laws or regulations may have on our business. If the relevant authorities find that we are in violation of PRC laws or regulations, they would have broad discretion in dealing with such a violation, including, without limitation: levying fines; revoking our business and other licenses; requiring that we restructure our ownership or operations; and requiring that we discontinue any portion or all of our business.
The PRC's legal and judicial system may not adequately protect our business and operations and the rights of foreign investors.
The PRC legal and judicial system may negatively impact foreign investors, with enforcement of existing laws inconsistent. In addition, the promulgation of new laws, changes to existing laws and the pre-emption of local regulations by national laws may adversely affect foreign investors.
Risks Relating to Regulation and Legal
Significant Developments From Potential Changes in U.S. Trade Policies Could Have a Material Adverse Effect On Us
The U.S. government implemented additional tariffs on certain goods imported from the PRC. We manufacture a substantial amount of our products in the PRC and are presently subjected to these additional tariffs and will remain so until the tariff lists are altered. These tariffs, and other governmental action relating to international trade agreements or policies, may adversely impact demand for our products, our costs, customers, suppliers and/or the U.S. economy or certain sectors thereof and, as a
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result, adversely impact our business. These additional tariffs may cause us to increase prices to our customers which may reduce demand, or, if we are unable to increase prices, result in lowering our margin on products sold. It remains unclear what the U.S. or foreign governments will or will not do with respect to tariffs, international trade agreements and policies on a short-term or long-term basis. We cannot predict future trade policy or the terms of any renegotiated trade agreements and their impacts on our business. The adoption and expansion of trade restrictions, the occurrence of a trade war, or other governmental action related to tariffs or trade agreements or policies has the potential to adversely impact demand for our products, our costs, our customers, our suppliers, and the U.S. economy, which in turn could adversely impact our business, financial condition and results of operations.
As a result of these tariffs and other governmental action, we moved production of many of our products destined for U.S. to Mexico and a third-party manufacturing partner outside of the PRC. This transition was substantially completed by the third quarter of 2020.
Policy Changes Affecting International Trade Could Adversely Impact the Demand for Our Products and Our Competitive Position
Due to the international scope of our operations, changes in government policies on foreign trade and investment may affect the demand for our products and services, impact the competitive position of our products or prevent us from being able to sell products in certain countries. Our business may benefit from free trade agreements. Efforts to withdraw from or substantially modify such agreements or the implementation of more restrictive trade policies such as more detailed inspections, higher tariffs, import or export licensing requirements, exchange controls or new barriers to entry, could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, financial condition or cash flow and that of our customers, vendors and suppliers.
Additionally, the United Kingdom's exit from the European Union has caused and may continue to cause significant volatility in global stock markets, currency exchange rate fluctuations and global economic uncertainty. Although it is unknown what the terms of the United Kingdom's future relationship with the European Union will be, it is possible there will be greater restrictions on imports and exports between the United Kingdom and the European Union and increased regulatory complexities. Any of these factors could adversely impact customer demand, our relationships with customers and suppliers and our results of operations.
Risks and Uncertainties Associated with Our Expansion Into and Our Operations Outside of the United States May Adversely Affect Our Results of Operations, Cash Flow, Liquidity or Financial Condition
Our international operations, and resulting revenues, continue to grow, making up a significant part of our current business and future strategic plans. Additionally, we operate factories in the PRC, Brazil and Mexico, engineering centers in India, Korea and Japan and rely on third-party manufacturers located in Asia. As a result, we are increasingly exposed to the challenges and risks of doing business outside the United States, which could reduce our revenues or profits, increase our costs, result in significant liabilities or sanctions, or otherwise disrupt our business. These challenges include: (1) compliance with complex and changing laws, regulations and policies of governments that may impact our operations, such as foreign ownership restrictions, import and export controls, tariffs, and trade restrictions; (2) compliance with U.S. and foreign laws that affect the activities of companies abroad, such as anti-corruption laws, competition laws, currency regulations, and laws affecting dealings with certain nations; (3) limitations on our ability to repatriate non-U.S. earnings in a tax effective manner; (4) the difficulties involved in managing an organization doing business in many different countries; (5) uncertainties as to the enforceability of contract and intellectual property rights under local laws; (6) rapid changes in government policy, political or civil unrest, acts of terrorism, or the threat of international boycotts or U.S. anti-boycott legislation; and (7) currency exchange rate fluctuations.
We are also exposed to risks relating to U.S. policy with respect to companies doing business in foreign jurisdictions, and as such we are subject to a variety of taxes in the U.S. (federal, state, and local) and numerous foreign jurisdictions. We may recognize additional tax expense and be subject to additional tax liabilities due to changes in laws, regulations, administrative practices, principles, and interpretations related to tax, including changes to the global tax framework, competition, and other laws and accounting rules in various jurisdictions. Such changes could come about as a result of economic, political, and other conditions. Our tax expense and liabilities are also affected by other factors, such as changes in our business operations, acquisitions, investments, entry into new businesses and geographies, intercompany transactions, the relative amount of our foreign earnings, losses incurred in jurisdictions for which we are not able to realize related tax benefits, the applicability of special tax regimes, changes in foreign currency exchange rates, changes in our stock price, and changes in our deferred tax assets and liabilities and their valuation. Significant judgment is required in evaluating and estimating our tax expense and liabilities. In the ordinary course of our business, there are many transactions and calculations for which the ultimate tax determination is uncertain.
We are also currently subject to tax controversies in various jurisdictions, and these jurisdictions may assess additional tax liabilities against us. Developments in an audit, investigation, or other tax controversy could have a material effect on our
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operating results or cash flows in the period or periods for which that development occurs, as well as for prior and subsequent periods. We regularly assess the likelihood of an adverse outcome resulting from these proceedings to determine the adequacy of our tax accruals. Although we believe our tax estimates are reasonable, the final outcome of audits, investigations, and any other tax controversies could be materially different from our historical tax accruals.
Failure by Our International Operations to Comply With Anti-Corruption Laws or Trade Sanctions Could Increase Our Costs, Reduce Our Profits, Limit Our Growth, Harm Our Reputation, or Subject Us to Broader Liability
We are subject to restrictions imposed by the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and anti-corruption laws and regulations of other countries applicable to our operations, such as the U.K. Bribery Act. Anti-corruption laws and regulations generally prohibit companies and their intermediaries from making improper payments to government officials or other persons in order to receive or retain business. These laws also require us to maintain adequate internal controls and accurate books and records. We have properties and do business in many parts of the world where corruption is common, and our compliance with anti-corruption laws may potentially conflict with local customs and practices. The compliance programs, internal controls and policies we maintain and enforce to promote compliance with applicable anti-bribery and anti-corruption laws may not prevent our associates, contractors or agents from acting in ways prohibited by these laws and regulations. We are also subject to trade sanctions administered by the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control and the U.S. Department of Commerce, and other U.S. government agencies, and authorities in other countries where we do business. Our compliance programs and internal control policies and procedures may not prevent conduct that is prohibited under these rules. The United States or other countries may impose additional sanctions at any time against any country in which or with whom we do business. Depending on the nature of the sanctions imposed, our operations in the relevant country could be restricted or otherwise adversely affected. Any violations of anti-corruption laws and regulations or trade sanctions could result in significant civil and criminal penalties, reduce our profits, disrupt or have a material adverse effect on our business or damage our reputation or result in lawsuits or regulatory actions being brought against us or our officers or directors. In addition, the operation of these laws and regulations or an imposition of further restrictions in these areas could increase our cost of operations, reduce our profits or cause us to forgo development opportunities or limit certain business operations that would otherwise support growth.
We are Subject to a Wide Variety of Complex Domestic and Foreign Laws and Regulations
We are subject to a wide variety of complex domestic and foreign laws and regulations, and legal compliance risks, including securities laws, tax laws, employment and pension-related laws, competition laws, U.S. and foreign export and trading laws, and laws governing improper business practices. We are affected by new laws and regulations, and changes to existing laws and regulations, including interpretations by courts and regulators. From time to time, our Company, our operations and the industries in which we operate are being reviewed or investigated by regulators, which may lead to enforcement actions or the assertion of private litigation claims and damages.
Although we believe that we have adopted appropriate risk management and compliance programs to mitigate these risks, the global and diverse nature of our operations means that compliance risks will continue to exist. Investigations, examinations and other proceedings, the nature and outcome of which cannot be predicted, will likely arise from time to time. These investigations, examinations and other proceedings may subject us to significant liability and require us to make significant accruals or pay significant settlements, fines and penalties, which may have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, cash flow or financial condition.
Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights
We have numerous patents, trade secrets, trademarks, trade names, and know-how that are valuable to our business. However, the procedures by which we identify, document, and file for patent, trademark, and copyright protection are based solely on engineering and management judgment, with no assurance that a specific filing will be issued, or if issued, will deliver any lasting value to us. Because of the rapid innovation of products and technologies that is characteristic of our industry, there can be no assurance that rights granted under any patent will provide competitive advantages to us or will be adequate to safeguard and maintain our proprietary rights. We further believe that our business is not materially dependent upon any single patent, trade secret, trademark, trade name, copyright, and know-how. Despite our efforts to protect such intellectual property and other proprietary information from unauthorized use or disclosure, third parties may attempt to disclose, obtain or use our intellectual property and information without our authorization. Although we rely on the patent, trademark, trade secret and copyright laws of the United States and other countries to protect our intellectual property rights, the laws of some countries may not protect such rights to the same extent as the laws of the United States. Unauthorized use of our intellectual property by third parties, the failure of foreign countries to have laws to protect our intellectual property rights, or an inability to effectively enforce such rights in foreign countries could have an adverse effect on our business.
Further, some of our products include or use technology and/or components of third parties. While it may be necessary in the future to seek or renew licenses relating to various aspects of such products, we believe that, based upon past experience and industry practice, such licenses may be obtained on commercially reasonable terms; however, there can be no guarantee that
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such licenses may be obtained on such terms or at all. Because of technological changes in the wireless and home control industry, current extensive patent coverage, and the rapid rate of issuance of new patents, it is possible certain components of our products and business methods may unknowingly infringe upon the patents of others.
Potential for Litigation
As is typical in our industry and for the nature and kind of business in which we are engaged, from time to time various claims, charges and litigation are asserted or commenced by third parties against us or by us against third parties, arising from or related to product liability, infringement of patent or other intellectual property rights, breach of warranty, contractual relations or employee relations. The amounts claimed may be substantial, but they may not bear any reasonable relationship to the merits of the claims or the extent of any real risk of court awards assessed against us or in our favor.
We are Exposed to Greater Risks of Liability for Omissions or System Failures
If a customer or third party believes that he or she has suffered harm to person or property due to an actual or alleged security system failure, he or she (or their insurers) may pursue legal action against us, and the cost of defending the legal action and of any judgment against us could be substantial. In particular, because some of our products and services are intended to help protect lives and real and personal property, we may have greater exposure to litigation risks than businesses that provide other consumer and small business products and services. While our customer contracts contain a series of risk-mitigation provisions that are aimed at limiting our liability and/or limiting a claimant's ability to pursue legal action against us, in the event of litigation with respect to such matters it is possible that these risk-mitigation provisions may be deemed not applicable or unenforceable and, regardless of the ultimate outcome, we may incur significant costs of defense that could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.
Environmental Matters
Many of our products are subject to various federal, state, local and international laws governing chemical substances in products, including laws regulating the manufacture and distribution of chemical substances and restricting the presence of certain substances in electronics products. In addition, many of these laws and regulations make producers of electrical goods responsible for collection, recycling, treatment and disposal of recovered products. As a result, we may face significant costs and liabilities in complying with these laws and any future laws and regulations or enforcement policies that may have a material adverse effect upon our operating results, financial condition, and cash flows.
Regulations Related to the Use of Conflict-Free Minerals May Increase Our Costs and Expenses, and an Inability to Certify that Our Products are Conflict-Free May Adversely Affect Customer Relationships
The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act contains provisions to improve the transparency and accountability of the use by public companies in their products of minerals mined in certain countries and to prevent the sourcing of such "conflict" minerals. As a result, the SEC enacted new annual disclosure and reporting requirements for public companies that use these minerals in their products, which apply to us. Under the final rules, we are required to conduct due diligence to determine the source of any conflict minerals used in our products and to make annual disclosures in filings with the SEC. Because our supply chain is broad-based and complex, we may not be able to easily verify the origins for all minerals used in our products. In addition, the new rules may reduce the number of suppliers who provide components and products containing conflict-free minerals and thus may increase the cost of the components used in manufacturing our products and the costs of our products to us. Any increased costs and expenses may have a material adverse impact on our financial condition and results of operations. Further, if we are unable to certify that our products are conflict free, we may face challenges with our customers, which may place us at a competitive disadvantage, and our reputation may be harmed.
We are Required to Comply with Numerous Complex and Increasingly Stringent Domestic and Foreign Health, Safety and Environmental Laws and Regulations, the Cost of Which is Likely to Increase
Our operations are subject to various domestic and foreign health, safety and environmental laws and regulations. These laws and regulations not only govern our current operations and products, but also impose potential liability on us for our past operations. We expect health, safety and environmental laws and regulations to impose increasingly stringent requirements upon our industry and us in the future. Our costs to comply with these laws and regulations may increase as these requirements become more stringent in the future, and these increased costs may adversely affect our results of operations, cash flow or financial condition.
Risks Relating to Finance
Growth Projections
Management has made projections required for the preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States ("U.S. GAAP") regarding future events and the financial performance of the Company, including those involving:
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•the benefits the Company expects as a result of the development and success of products and technologies, including new products and technologies;
•the benefits expected by conducting business in Asian and Latin American markets, without which, we may not be able to recover the costs we incur to enter into such markets;
•new contracts with new and existing customers and new market penetrations;
•the expected continued adoption of the Company's technologies in gaming consoles, mobile devices, and other home entertainment and control devices;
•the expected continued growth in digital TVs, DVRs, PVRs and overall growth in the Company's industry;
•the impact competitors and OTT providers may have on our business; and
•the effects we may experience due to current global and regional economic conditions.
Actual events or results may be unfavorable to management's projections, which may have a material adverse effect on our projected operating results, financial condition and cash flows.
Additionally, we have goodwill and intangible assets recorded on our consolidated balance sheet. We periodically evaluate the recoverability of the carrying value of our goodwill and intangible assets whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that such value may not be recoverable. Impairment assessment involves judgment as to assumptions regarding future sales and cash flows and the impact of market conditions on those assumptions. Future events and changing market conditions may impact our assumptions and may result in changes in our estimates of future sales and cash flows that may result in us incurring substantial impairment charges, which would adversely affect our results of operations or financial condition.
Market Projections and Data are Forward-looking in Nature.
Our strategy is based on our own projections and on analyst, industry observer and expert projections, which are forward-looking in nature and are inherently subject to risks and uncertainties. The validity of their and our assumptions, the timing and scope of the markets within which we compete, economic conditions, customer buying patterns, the timeliness of equipment development, pricing of products, and availability of capital for infrastructure improvements may affect these predictions. In addition, market data upon which we rely is based on third party reports that may be inaccurate. The inaccuracy of any of these projections and/or market data may adversely affect our operating results and financial condition.
Potential Fluctuations in Quarterly Results
We may from time to time increase our operating expenses to fund greater levels of R&D, sales and marketing activities, development of new distribution channels, improvements in our operational and financial systems and development of our customer support capabilities, and to support our efforts to comply with various government regulations. To the extent such expenses precede or are not subsequently followed by increased revenues, our business, operating results, financial condition and cash flows will be adversely affected.
In addition, we may experience significant fluctuations in future quarterly operating results that may be caused by many other factors, including demand for our products, introduction or enhancement of products by us and our competitors, the loss or acquisition of any significant customers, market acceptance of new products, price reductions by us or our competitors, mix of distribution channels through which our products are sold, product or supply constraints, level of product returns, mix of customers and products sold, component pricing, mix of international and domestic revenues, foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations and general economic conditions. In addition, as a strategic response to changes in the competitive environment, we may from time to time make certain pricing or marketing decisions or acquisitions that may have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations or financial condition. As a result, we believe period-to-period comparisons of our results of operations are not necessarily meaningful and should not be relied upon as an indication of future performance.
Due to all of the foregoing factors, it is possible that in some future quarters our operating results will be below the expectations of public market analysts and investors. If this happens the price of our common stock may be materially adversely affected.
Fluctuations in Foreign Currency Exchange Rates or Interest Rates May Adversely Affect Our Results of Operations, Cash Flow, Liquidity or Financial Condition
Because of our international operations, we are exposed to risk associated with interest rates and value changes in foreign currencies, which may adversely affect our business. We earn revenues and incur expenses in foreign currencies as part of our operations outside of the U.S. Accordingly, fluctuations in currency exchange rates may significantly increase the amount of U.S. dollars required for foreign currency expenses or significantly decrease the U.S. dollars we receive from foreign currency revenues. We are also exposed to currency translation risk because the results of our non-U.S. business are generally reported in local currency, which we then translate to U.S. dollars for inclusion in our Financial Statements. As a result, changes between the foreign exchange rates and the U.S. dollar affect the amounts we record for our foreign assets, liabilities, revenues and
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expenses, and could have a negative effect on our financial results. We expect that our exposure to foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations will grow as the relative contribution of our non-U.S. operations increases. We actively manage the exposure of our foreign currency risk as part of our overall financial risk management policy, by entering into foreign exchange hedging agreements with financial institutions to reduce exposures to some of the principal currencies, but these efforts may not be successful. These hedging agreements also do not cover all currencies in which we do business, do not eliminate foreign currency risk entirely for the currencies that they do cover, and involve costs and risks of their own in the form of transaction costs, credit requirements and counterparty risk.
In addition, under the Second Amended and Restated Credit Agreement ("Second Amended Credit Agreement") with U.S. Bank National Association ("U.S. Bank"), we may elect to pay interest on the revolving line of credit ("Credit Line") based on LIBOR or a base rate as specified in the Second Amended Credit Agreement. LIBOR is subject to recent national, international and other regulatory guidance and proposals for reform. These reforms have resulted in plans to phase out and eventually replace LIBOR. On November 30, 2020, the Financial Conduct Authority, which regulates LIBOR, announced it would cease publication of the one-week and two-month USD LIBOR immediately after December 31, 2021 and cease publications of the remaining tenors immediately after June 30, 2023. On January 7, 2021, we executed an amendment to our Second Amended Credit Agreement which defines the Secured Overnight Financing Rate ("SOFR") as the replacement benchmark for LIBOR upon its phase out. The calculation of interest rates under the SOFR replacement benchmarks could negatively impact our business and financial results. To the extent these interest rates increase, our interest expense will increase, which could adversely affect our financial condition, operating results and cash flows.
Our Ability to Generate Cash Depends on Many Factors Beyond Our Control. We Also Depend on the Business of Our Subsidiaries to Satisfy Our Cash Needs
Our historical financial results have been, and we anticipate that our future financial results will be, subject to fluctuations. Our ability to generate cash is subject to general economic, financial, competitive, legislative, regulatory and other factors that are beyond our control. We cannot assure you that our business will generate sufficient cash flow from our operations or that future borrowings will be available to us in an amount sufficient to enable us to make payments of our debt, fund our other liquidity needs and make planned capital expenditures.
The degree to which we are currently leveraged could have important consequences for shareholders. For example, it could:
•require us to dedicate a substantial portion of our cash flow from operations to the payment of debt service, reducing the availability of our cash flow to fund working capital, capital expenditures, acquisitions and other general corporate purposes;
•increase our vulnerability to adverse economic or industry conditions;
•limit our ability to obtain additional financing in the future to enable us to react to changes in our business; or
•place us at a competitive disadvantage compared to businesses in our industry that have less debt.
A significant portion of our operations are conducted through our subsidiaries. As a result, our ability to generate sufficient cash flow for our needs is dependent on the earnings of our subsidiaries and the payment of those earnings to us in the form of dividends, loans or advances and through repayment of loans or advances from us. Our subsidiaries are separate and distinct legal entities. Our subsidiaries have no obligation to pay any amounts due on our debt or to provide us with funds to meet our cash flow needs, whether in the form of dividends, distributions, loans or other payments. In addition, any payment of dividends, loans or advances by our subsidiaries may be subject to statutory or contractual restrictions. Payments to us by our subsidiaries will also be contingent upon our subsidiaries' earnings and business considerations. Our right to receive any assets of any of our subsidiaries upon their liquidation or reorganization will be effectively subordinated to the claims of that subsidiary's creditors, including trade creditors. In addition, even if we are a creditor of any of our subsidiaries, our rights as a creditor would be subordinate to any security interest in the assets of our subsidiaries and any indebtedness of our subsidiaries senior to that held by us. Further, changes in the laws of foreign jurisdictions in which we operate may adversely affect the ability of some of our foreign subsidiaries to repatriate funds to us.
In addition, we may fund a portion of our seasonal working capital needs and obtain funding for other general corporate purposes through short-term borrowings backed by our revolving credit facility. If any of the banks in these credit and financing facilities are unable to perform on their commitments, which may adversely affect our ability to fund seasonal working capital needs and obtain funding for other general corporate purposes, our cash flow, liquidity or financial condition may be adversely impacted. Although we currently have available credit facilities to fund our current operating needs, we cannot be certain that we will be able to replace our existing credit facilities or refinance our existing or future debt when necessary. Our cost of borrowing and ability to access the capital markets are affected not only by market conditions, but also by our debt and credit ratings assigned by the major credit rating agencies. Downgrades in these ratings will increase our cost of borrowing and may have an adverse effect on our access to the capital markets, including our access to the commercial paper market. An inability to
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access the capital markets may have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, cash flow, liquidity or financial condition. Additionally, any failure to comply with covenants in the instruments governing our debt could result in an event of default which, if not cured or waived, would have a material adverse effect on us.
Risks Relating to Our Stock
The Price of Our Common Stock is Volatile and May Decline Regardless of Our Operating Performance
Historically, we have had large fluctuations in the price of our common stock, and such fluctuations may continue. The market price for our common stock is volatile and may fluctuate significantly in response to a number of factors, most of which we cannot control, including:
•the public's response to press releases or other public announcements by us or third parties, including our filings with the SEC and announcements relating to product and technology development, relationships with new and existing customers, litigation and other legal proceedings in which we are involved and intellectual property impacting us or our business;
•announcements concerning strategic transactions, such as spin-offs, joint ventures and acquisitions or divestitures;
•the financial projections we may provide to the public, any changes in these projections or our failure to meet these projections;
•changes in financial estimates or ratings by any securities analysts who follow our common stock, our failure to meet these estimates or failure of those analysts to initiate or maintain coverage of our common stock;
•investor perceptions as to the likelihood of achievement of near-term goals;
•changes in market share of significant customers;
•changes in operating performance and stock market valuations of other technology or content providing companies generally; and
•market conditions or trends in our industry or the economy as a whole.
In the past, stockholders have instituted securities class action litigation following periods of market volatility. If we were involved in securities litigation, we may incur substantial costs and our resources and the attention of management may be diverted from our business.
In addition, our officers and directors periodically sell shares of our common stock which they own, many times pursuant to trading plans established under Rule 10b5-1 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Exchange Act. Sales of shares by our officers and directors may not be indicative of their respective opinions of our performance at the time of sale or of our potential future performance. Nonetheless, the market price of our stock may be affected by such sales of shares by our officers and directors.
If Securities or Industry Analysts Fail to Continue Publishing Research About Our Business, Our Stock Price and Trading Volume May Decline
The trading market for our common stock has historically been at low volumes and is influenced by the research and reports that industry or securities analysts publish about us or our business. If one or more of these analysts cease coverage of our company or fail to publish reports on us regularly, we may lose visibility in the financial markets, which in turn may cause our stock price or trading volume to decline.
Future Sales of Our Equity May Depress the Market Price of Our Common Stock
We have several institutional stockholders that own significant blocks of our common stock. If one or more of these stockholders were to sell large portions of their holdings in a relatively short time, for liquidity or other reasons, the prevailing market price of our common stock may be negatively affected. Further, due to our historically low trading volumes, such large stockholders may not be able to sell the number of shares they wish to sell and/or in the time frame in which they wish to sell. Moreover, while such large stockholders are attempting to sell their shares, other stockholders may not be able to sell their shares at the price and time that such other stockholders desire due to the low trading volumes of our stock. Additionally, in March 2016, we issued common stock purchase warrants to Comcast to purchase up to 725,000 shares of our common stock at a price of $54.55 per share. The right to exercise the warrants is subject to vesting over three successive two-year periods (the third two-year period commenced on January 1, 2020 and ends on December 31, 2021) based on the level of purchases of goods and services from us by Comcast and its affiliates, as defined in the warrants. To the extent that the warrants vest and Comcast exercises the warrants and sells any of the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise, or the perception that such sales may occur, could adversely affect the market price and/or trading volume of our common stock. Based upon the volume of goods and services purchased by Comcast during the first and second two-year period which ended on December 31, 2017 and December 31, 2019, Comcast vested in 275,000 of the warrants.
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Approved Stock Repurchase Programs May Not Result in a Positive Return of Capital to Stockholders
Periodically, our Board approves programs to repurchase our common stock based upon an assessment of the then current value as compared to the then trading ranges and investor analyst reports. Also considered in this decision is the effect any such repurchases may have on our cash balances and needs, cash flow, and short- and long-term borrowing. Our stock price has experienced substantial price volatility in the past and may continue to do so in the future. Additionally, we, the technology industry and the stock market as a whole have experienced extreme stock price and volume fluctuations that have affected stock prices in ways that may have been unrelated to our and these companies' operating performance. Price volatility over a given period may cause the average price at which we repurchase our own stock to exceed the stock's price at a given point in time. While we believe our stock price should reflect expectations of future growth and profitability, we also believe our stock price should reflect expectations that our share repurchase program will be fully consummated even though our share repurchase program does not obligate us to acquire any specific number of shares. If we fail to meet expectations related to future growth, profitability, share repurchases or other market expectations, our stock price may decline significantly, which could have a material adverse impact on investor confidence.
Our Governing Corporate Documents Contain, and Our Board of Directors May Implement, Antitakeover Provisions that May Deter Takeover Attempts
Our governing corporate documents, among other things, require super-majority votes in connection with certain mergers and similar transactions. In addition, our Board of Directors may, without stockholder approval, implement other anti-takeover defenses, such as a stockholder's rights plan.
General Risks
Economic Downturns and Other Global, National, and Regional Conditions May Adversely Affect Our Results of Operations, Cash Flow, Liquidity or Financial Condition
Because we conduct our business on a global platform, our business is sensitive to global and regional business and economic conditions. Adverse changes in global, national, regional economies, governmental policies (including in areas such as trade, travel, immigration, healthcare, and related issues), and geopolitical conditions impact our activities. Such conditions in the United States and worldwide may impact our business due to weak economic conditions, changes in energy prices and currency values, political instability, heightened travel security measures, travel advisories, disruptions in travel, and concerns over disease, violence, war, or terrorism may reduce the demand for some of our products and impair the ability of those with whom we do business to satisfy their obligations to us, each of which could adversely affect our results of operations, cash flow, liquidity or financial condition. Higher inflation rates, interest rates, tax rates and unemployment rates, higher labor and healthcare costs, recessions, changing governmental policies, laws and regulations, and other economic factors could also adversely affect demand for some of our products and our results of operations, cash flow, liquidity or financial condition and that of our customers, vendors and suppliers.
Global economic uncertainty continues to exist. The continuation or worsening of the global economic downturn may adversely impact our net sales, the collection of accounts receivable, funding for working capital needs, expected cash flow generation from current and acquired businesses, and our investments, which may adversely impact our results of operations, cash flow, liquidity or financial condition.
We finance a portion of our sales through trade credit. Credit markets remain tight, and some customers who require financing for their businesses have not been able to obtain necessary financing. A continuation or worsening of these conditions could limit our ability to collect our accounts receivable, which could adversely affect our results of operations, cash flow, liquidity or financial condition.
Our ability to meet customers' demands depends, in part, on our ability to obtain timely and adequate delivery of quality materials, parts and components from our suppliers. Certain of our components are available only from a single source or limited sources. If certain key suppliers were to become capacity constrained or insolvent as a result of an economic downturn, it may result in a reduction or interruption in supplies or a significant increase in the price of supplies and adversely impact our financial results. In addition, credit constraints at key suppliers may result in accelerated payment of accounts payable by us, impacting our cash flow.
Risks Relating to Natural or Man-Made Disasters, Contagious Disease, Violence, or War May Cause Increases in the Cost of Raw Materials and Energy which May Adversely Affect Our Earnings or Cash Flow
Our ability, including manufacturing or distribution capabilities, and that of our suppliers, business partners and contract manufacturers, to make, move and sell products is critical to our success. We purchase raw materials and energy for use in the manufacturing, distribution and sale of our products. So called "Acts of God," such as hurricanes, earthquakes, tsunamis,
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floods, volcanic activity, wildfires, and other natural disasters, as well as man-made disasters and the spread of contagious diseases in locations where we lease and/or own properties and equipment or manage our business, and these circumstances could continue or worsen in the future to an extent and for durations that we are not able to predict. Actual or threatened war, terrorist activity, political unrest, civil or geopolitical strife, and other acts of violence could have a similar effect. As with the effects we have already experienced from the COVID-19 pandemic, any one or more of these events could disrupt raw material and fuel supplies and increase our costs, reduce our ability to manufacture and supply our products, and/or increase our operating costs, all of which could adversely affect our earnings or cash flows and profits. Although raw materials and energy supplies (including oil and natural gas) are generally available from various sources in sufficient quantities, unexpected shortages and increases in the cost of raw materials and energy, or any deterioration in our relationships with or the financial viability of our suppliers, may have an adverse effect on our earnings or cash flow in the event we are unable to offset higher costs in a timely manner by sufficiently decreasing our operating costs or raising the prices of our products. In recent years, some raw material and energy prices have increased, particularly silicon and plastic packaging. The cost of raw materials and energy has in the past experienced, and likely will in the future continue to experience, periods of volatility.
ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS
None.
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ITEM 2. PROPERTIES
Our global headquarters is located in Scottsdale, Arizona. We utilize the following facilities:
Location Purpose or Use SquareFeet Status
Hong Kong, PRC Asian headquarters 6,550 Leased, expires July 31, 2022
Guangzhou, PRC Service center 26,850 Leased, expires April 14, 2023
Manaus, Brazil Manufacturing facility 56,120 Leased, expires August 19, 2022
Monterrey, Mexico Manufacturing facility 145,185 Leased, expires July 29, 2025
Qinzhou, PRC Manufacturing facility 286,118 Leased, expires May 31, 2023
Qinzhou, PRC Manufacturing facility 398,269 Leased, expires February 28, 2022
Qinzhou, PRC Manufacturing facility 248,448 Leased, expires October 31, 2025
Yangzhou, PRC Manufacturing facility 77,888 Leased, expires October 31, 2025
(1)Lease expired on November 30, 2020. We are currently leasing the facility on a month-to-month basis, pending the finalization of a new lease.
(2)Private ownership of land in mainland PRC is not allowed. All land in the PRC is owned by the government and cannot be sold to any individual or entity. These facilities were developed on land which we lease from the PRC government.
In addition to the facilities listed above, we lease space in various international locations, primarily for use as sales offices.
Upon expiration of our facilities leases, we believe we will obtain lease agreements under similar terms; however, there can be no assurance that we will receive similar terms or that any offer to renew will be accepted.
We currently believe that our manufacturing, engineering, and research and development facilities are suitable and adequate for our continued needs. We will continue to assess the suitability and adequacy of these facilities to meet both our current needs, as well as our expected future requirements.
See "ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA — Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements — Note 8" for additional information regarding our obligations under leases.
ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS
We are subject to lawsuits arising out of the conduct of our business. The discussion of our litigation matters in "ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA — Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements — Note 13 — Commitments and Contingencies — Litigation" is incorporated by reference.
ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES
Not applicable.
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PART II
ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT'S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES
Our common stock trades on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol UEIC. Our stockholders of record on March 3, 2021 numbered 135. We have never paid cash dividends on our common stock, nor do we currently intend to pay any cash dividends on our common stock in the foreseeable future. We intend to retain our earnings, if any, for the future operation and expansion of our business.
Purchases of Equity Securities
The following table sets forth, for the fourth quarter, our total stock repurchases, average price paid per share and the maximum number of shares that may yet be purchased on the open market under our plans or programs:
(1)Of the repurchases in October, November, and December, 625, 3,004 and 63,935 shares, respectively, represent common shares of the Company that were owned and tendered by employees to satisfy option cost and tax withholding obligations in connection with stock option exercises and the vesting of restricted shares.
(2)On October 28, 2020, our Board of Directors authorized a new share repurchase program (the "November 2020 Program"), which replaced in its entirety the Company's previous repurchase program in place prior to October 28, 2020. Pursuant to the November 2020 Program, we may, from time to time until February 18, 2021, repurchase up to 500,000 shares of our common stock. At December 31, 2020, we had 500,000 shares of common stock authorized for repurchase remaining under the November 2020 Program. On February 11, 2021, our Board approved a new share repurchase program with an effective date of February 23, 2021 (the "February 2021 Program"). Pursuant to the February 2021 Program, we may, from time to time until May 6, 2021, repurchase up to 300,000 shares of our common stock. We may repurchase shares of common stock in privately negotiated and/or open-market transactions, including pursuant to plans complying with Rule 10b5-1 promulgated under the Exchange Act.
Equity Compensation Plans
Information regarding our equity compensation plans is incorporated by reference to "ITEM 12. SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS" under the caption "Equity Compensation Plan Information".
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Performance Chart
The following graph and table compares the cumulative total stockholder return with respect to our common stock versus the cumulative total return of the Standard & Poor's Small Cap 600 (the "S&P Small Cap 600"), the NASDAQ Composite Index, and the Peer Group Index for the five-year period ended December 31, 2020. The comparison assumes that $100 was invested on December 31, 2015 in each of our common stock, S&P Small Cap 600, the NASDAQ Composite Index, and the Peer Group Index and that all dividends were reinvested. We have not paid any dividends and, therefore, our cumulative total return calculation is based solely upon stock price appreciation and not upon reinvestment of dividends. The graph and table depicts year-end values based on actual market value increases and decreases relative to the initial investment of $100, based on information provided for each calendar year by the NASDAQ Stock Market and the New York Stock Exchange.
The comparisons in the graph and table below are based on historical data and are not intended to forecast the possible future performance of our common stock.
(1) Companies in the Peer Group Index are as follows: Xperi Corporation (formerly TiVo Corporation), Logitech International, Dolby Laboratories, Inc., and VOXX International Corp.
The information presented above is as of December 31, 2015 through December 31, 2020. This information should not be deemed to be "soliciting material" or to be "filed" with the SEC or subject to the liabilities of Section 18 of the Exchange Act nor should this information be incorporated by reference into any prior or future filings under the Exchange Act, except to the extent that we specifically incorporate it by reference into a filing.
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ITEM 6. SELECTED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL DATA
The information below is not necessarily indicative of the results of future operations and should be read in conjunction with "ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS", and the Consolidated Financial Statements and notes thereto included in "ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA", of this Form 10-K, which are incorporated herein by reference, in order to further understand the factors that may affect the comparability of the financial data presented below.
Year Ended December 31,
Earnings (loss) per share attributable to Universal Electronics Inc.:
Shares used in computing earnings (loss) per share:
Cash dividends declared per common share — — — — —
Operating margin (deficit) 6.1 % 2.0 % (0.2) % 1.5 % 3.9 %
Net income (loss) as a % of net sales 6.3 % 0.5 % 1.8 % (1.5) % 3.1 %
Return on average assets 7.2 % 0.6 % 2.0 % (1.8) % 4.0 %
December 31,
Ratio of current assets to current liabilities 1.8 1.4 1.4 1.2 1.5
(1)Book value per share is defined as stockholders' equity divided by common shares issued less treasury stock.
The comparability of information for 2020, 2019, 2018, and 2017 compared to previous years is affected by the acquisition of the net assets of RCS Technology, LLC ("RCS") during the second quarter of 2017.
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ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
We generally discuss 2020 and 2019 items and year-to-year comparisons between 2020 and 2019 in the section that follows. Discussions of 2018 items and year-to-year comparisons between 2019 and 2018 that are not included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K may be found in "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" in Part II, Item 7 of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019, filed with the SEC on March 16, 2020.
The following discussion should be read in conjunction with the Consolidated Financial Statements and the related notes that appear elsewhere in this document.
Overview
We design, develop, manufacture, ship and support control and sensor technology solutions and a broad line of universal control systems, audio-video ("AV") accessories, and intelligent wireless security and smart home products that are used by the world's leading brands in the video services, consumer electronics, security, home automation, climate control, and home appliance markets. Our product and technology offerings include:
•easy-to-use, voice-enabled, automatically-programmed universal remote controls with two-way radio frequency ("RF") as well as infrared ("IR") remote controls, that are sold primarily to video service providers (cable, satellite, Internet Protocol television ("IPTV") and Over the Top ("OTT") services), original equipment manufacturers ("OEMs"), retailers, and private label customers;
•integrated circuits ("ICs"), on which our software and universal device control database is embedded, sold primarily to OEMs, video service providers, and private label customers;
•software, firmware and technology solutions that can enable devices such as TVs, set-top boxes, audio systems, smart speakers, game controllers and other consumer electronic and smart home devices to wirelessly connect and interact with home networks and interactive services to control and deliver home entertainment, smart home services and device or system information;
•cloud-services that support our embedded software and hardware solutions (directly or indirectly) enabling real-time device identification and system control with billions of transactions per year in device and data management;
•intellectual property that we license primarily to OEMs, software development companies, private label customers, and video service providers;
•proprietary and standards-based RF sensors designed for residential security, safety and home automation applications;
•wall-mount and handheld thermostat controllers and connected accessories for intelligent energy management systems, primarily to OEM customers, as well as hotels and hospitality system integrators; and
•AV accessories sold, directly and indirectly, to consumers including universal remote controls, television wall mounts and stands and digital television antennas.
A key factor in creating products and software for control of entertainment devices is our proprietary device knowledge graph. Since our beginning in 1986, we have compiled an extensive device control knowledge library that includes nearly 13,000 brands comprising over 930,000 device models across AV and smart home platforms, supported by many common smart home protocols, including IR, HDMI-CEC, Zigbee (Rf4CE), Z-Wave, IP, as well as Home Network and Cloud Control.
This device knowledge graph is backed by our unique device fingerprinting technology which includes over 8.3 million unique device fingerprints across both AV and Smart Home devices.
Our technology also includes other remote controlled home entertainment devices and home automation control modules, as well as wired Consumer Electronics Control ("CEC") and wireless IP control protocols commonly found on many of the latest HDMI and internet connected devices. Our proprietary software automatically detects, identifies and enables the appropriate control commands for many home entertainment and automation devices in the home. Our libraries are continuously updated with device control codes used in newly introduced AV and IoT devices. These control codes are captured directly from original control devices or from the manufacturer's written specifications to ensure the accuracy and integrity of the library. Our proprietary software and know-how permit us to offer a device control code database that is more robust and efficient than similarly priced products of our competitors.
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We operate as one business segment. We have two domestic subsidiaries and 26 international subsidiaries located in Argentina, Brazil, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, France, Germany, Hong Kong (3), India, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico (2), the Netherlands, the People's Republic of China (7), Singapore, Spain and the United Kingdom.
To recap our results for 2020:
•Net sales decreased 18.4% to $614.7 million in 2020 from $753.5 million in 2019.
•Our gross profit percentage increased to 28.7% in 2020 from 22.6% in 2019.
•Operating expenses, as a percent of sales, increased to 22.6% in 2020 from 20.6% in 2019.
•Operating income increased to $37.3 million in 2020 from $15.3 million in 2019, and our operating margin percentage increased to 6.1% in 2020, compared to 2.0% in 2019.
•Our effective tax rate decreased to 12.1% in 2020 from 65.1% in 2019.
Our strategic business objectives for 2021 include the following:
•continue to develop and market advanced remote control products and technologies our customer base is adopting;
•continue to broaden our home control and home automation product offerings;
•continue to expand our software and service offerings to deliver a complete managed service platform;
•further penetration of international subscription broadcasting markets;
•acquire new customers in historically strong regions;
•increase our share with existing customers; and
•continue to seek acquisitions or strategic partners that complement and strengthen our existing business.
We intend for the following discussion of our financial condition and results of operations to provide information that will assist in understanding our consolidated financial statements, the changes in certain key items in those financial statements from period to period, and the primary factors that accounted for those changes, as well as how certain accounting principles, policies and estimates affect our consolidated financial statements.
COVID-19 Pandemic Impact
The global spread of COVID-19 has been and continues to be a complex and rapidly-evolving situation, with governments, public institutions and other organizations imposing or recommending, and businesses and individuals implementing, at various times and to varying degrees, restrictions on various activities or other actions to combat its spread, such as restrictions and bans on travel or transportation, limitations on the size of gatherings, closures of or occupancy or other operating limitations on work facilities, schools, public buildings and businesses, cancellation of events, including sporting events, conferences and meetings, and quarantines and lock-downs. The COVID-19 pandemic and its consequences have and will continue to impact our business, operations, and financial results. The extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic impacts our business, operations, and financial results, including the duration and magnitude of such effects, will depend on numerous evolving factors that we may not be able to accurately predict or assess, including the duration and scope of the COVID-19 pandemic (including the location and extent of resurgences of the virus and the availability of effective treatments or vaccines); the negative impact the COVID-19 pandemic has on global and regional economies and economic activity, including the duration and magnitude of its impact on unemployment rates and consumer discretionary spending. Because the severity, magnitude and duration of the COVID-19 pandemic are uncertain, rapidly changing, and difficult to predict, the pandemic's impact on our operations and financial performance, as well as its impact on our ability to successfully execute our business strategy and initiatives, remains uncertain. As the COVID-19 pandemic has spread to other jurisdictions and has been declared a global pandemic, the full extent of this outbreak and the related governmental, business and travel restrictions in order to contain the COVID-19 pandemic are continuing to evolve globally. In response, we have created a COVID-19 task force, which includes a cross-functional group of senior-level executives, to manage and respond to the ever changing health and safety requirements across the globe and communicate our response to the pandemic to our global factory and office leaders.
Local government mandates required us, in the first quarter of 2020, to keep our China factories closed for a period of approximately two weeks beyond the end of the Chinese Lunar New Year. Our Mexico factory was closed for more than one week due to local health ordinance requirements during the second quarter of 2020. As a part of our response to this pandemic, our COVID-19 task force has developed and we have implemented additional safety measures for all factory employees across the globe, including temperature scans upon entry, hand sanitizer stations located throughout the facilities, mandatory mask wearing, social distancing measures in gathering places and restricting all visitor access. All factories are up to or near labor capacity as of the issuance of this report.
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We have also taken measures to safeguard the health and well-being of our employees in our office locations throughout the world, including implementing work from home arrangements and a moratorium on all travel, except where essential and approved in advance. We have implemented enhanced safety measures upon the reopening of our office locations, including more frequent office sanitation, temperature scans upon arrival, mandatory mask wearing, additional hand sanitizer locations, social distancing measures throughout locations and restricted visitor access. The reopening of our offices continues to follow suggested guidelines by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Health Organization, and local governmental orders and recommendations. The continued safety and welfare of our employees will remain at the forefront of all decision-making.
We anticipate that these actions and the global health crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic will continue to negatively impact business activity across the globe, including our business. We expect our sales demand to be negatively impacted into, at least, the first half of 2021 given the global reach and economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the various quarantine and social distancing measures put in place to contain the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. We have also seen some disruptions in our supply chain that, if continued, may cause us difficulty in fulfilling customer orders. A closure of one of our factories for a sustained period of time would, in the short run, impact our ability to meet customer demand and would negatively impact our results.
We will continue to actively monitor the situation and may take further actions altering our business operations as necessary or as required by federal, state, or local authorities. The potential effects of any such alterations or modifications may have a material adverse impact on our business during 2021. Even after the COVID-19 pandemic subsides or effective treatments or vaccines become available, our business, markets, growth prospects and business model could be materially impacted or altered.
Critical Accounting Estimates
The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States ("U.S. GAAP") requires us to make estimates and judgments that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, 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. On an ongoing basis, we evaluate our estimates and judgments, including those related to revenue recognition, inventory valuation, impairment of long-lived assets, intangible assets and goodwill and income taxes. Actual results may differ from these judgments and estimates, and they may be adjusted as more information becomes available. Any adjustment may be significant and may have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements.
An accounting estimate is deemed to be critical if it requires an accounting estimate to be made based on assumptions about matters that are highly uncertain at the time the estimate is made, if different estimates reasonably may have been used, or if changes in the estimate that are reasonably likely to occur may materially impact the financial statements. Management believes the following critical accounting estimates affect our more significant judgments and estimates used in the preparation of our consolidated financial statements. In addition to the accounting policies mentioned below, see "ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA — Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements — Note 2" for other significant accounting policies.
Revenue recognition
Revenue is recognized when control of a good or service is transferred to a customer. Control is considered to be transferred when the customer has the ability to direct the use of and obtain substantially all of the remaining benefits of that good or service. Revenues are generated from manufacturing and delivering universal control, sensing and automation products and AV accessories, which are sold through multiple channels, and licensing intellectual property that is embedded in these products or licensed to others for use in their products.
Timing of Revenue Recognition – When determining the classification of over time verses point in time revenue recognition, there is significant judgment exercised by management in identifying and evaluating whether new contracts and/or products meet the criteria for over time or point in time revenue recognition. Significant judgments include the evaluation of legal terms and rights within each jurisdiction that we operate, specifically as it relates to our entitlement to gross margin at termination, and the evaluation of whether it is possible, contractually or economically, to repurpose or redirect products.
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Royalty Revenue - We license our intellectual property including our patented technologies and database of control codes. We record license revenue for per-unit based licenses when our customers manufacture or ship a product incorporating our intellectual property and we have a present right to payment. The number of shipped units is estimated based on historical revenue royalty and other known factors. If actual shipped units differs from our estimates we will record a reduction or increase to net sales in the period the actuals are reported by the licensee, typically in the following quarter.
Sales Returns and Allowances - A provision is recorded for estimated sales returns and allowances and is deducted from gross sales to arrive at net sales in the period the related revenue is recorded. These estimates are based on historical sales returns and allowances, analysis of credit memo data and other known factors. Actual returns and claims in any future period are inherently uncertain and thus may differ from our estimates. If actual or expected future returns and claims are significantly greater or lower than the reserves that we have established, we will record a reduction or increase to net sales in the period in which we make such a determination.
Sales Discounts and Rebates - A provision is recorded for estimated sales discounts and rebates and is deducted from gross sales to arrive at net sales in the period the related revenue is recorded. We accrue for discounts and rebates based on historical experience and our expectations regarding future sales to our customers. Changes in such accruals may be required if actual discounts and rebates differ from our estimates.
Inventories
Our finished good, component part, and raw material inventories are valued at the lower of cost or net realizable value. Cost is determined using the first-in, first-out method. We write down our inventory for the estimated difference between cost and estimated net realizable value based upon our best estimates of future demand and market conditions. We carry inventory in amounts necessary to satisfy our customers' inventory requirements on a timely basis. We continually monitor our inventory status to control inventory levels and write down any excess or obsolete inventories on hand. If actual market conditions become less favorable than those projected by management, additional inventory write-downs may be required, which may have a material impact on our financial statements. Such circumstances may include, but are not limited to, the development of new competing technology that impedes the marketability of our products or the occurrence of significant price decreases in our raw material or component parts, such as integrated circuits. Each percentage point change in the ratio of excess and obsolete inventory reserve to inventory would impact cost of sales by approximately $1.4 million.
Valuation of Long-Lived Assets and Intangible Assets
We assess long-lived and intangible assets for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that their carrying value may not be recoverable. Factors considered important which may trigger an impairment review, if significant, include the following:
•underperformance relative to historical or projected future operating results;
•changes in the manner of use of the assets;
•changes in the strategy of our overall business;
•negative industry or economic trends;
•a decline in our stock price for a sustained period; and
•a variance between our market capitalization relative to net book value.
If the carrying value of the asset is larger than its projected undiscounted future cash flows, the asset is impaired. The impairment is measured as the difference between the net book value of the asset and the asset's estimated fair value. Fair value is estimated utilizing the asset's projected discounted future cash flows. In assessing fair value, we must make assumptions regarding estimated future cash flows, the discount rate and other factors. If the actual performance of the assets becomes less favorable than those projected by management, adjustments to the carrying values of the these assets may have a material effect on the consolidated financial statements.
Goodwill
We evaluate the carrying value of goodwill on December 31 of each year and between annual evaluations if events occur or circumstances change that would more likely than not reduce the fair value of the reporting unit below its carrying amount. Such circumstances may include, but are not limited to: (1) a significant adverse change in legal factors or in business climate, (2) unanticipated competition or (3) an adverse action or assessment by a regulator.
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Effective in the year ended December 31, 2020, we perform our annual impairment test using a qualitative assessment weighing the relative impact of factors that are specific to our single reporting unit as well as industry and macroeconomic factors. Based on the qualitative assessment performed, considering the aggregation of the relevant factors, we concluded that it is not more likely than not that the fair value of our single reporting unit is less than the carrying value. Therefore, performing a quantitative impairment test was unnecessary.
Certain future events and circumstances, including adverse changes in general business and economic conditions in the United States and worldwide and changes in consumer behavior could result in changes to our assumptions and judgments used in the goodwill impairment tests. A downward revision of these assumptions could cause the fair value of the reporting unit to fall below its respective carrying values and a noncash impairment charge would be required. Such a charge may have a material effect on the consolidated financial statements.
Income Taxes
We calculate our current and deferred tax provisions based on estimates and assumptions that may differ from the actual results reflected in our income tax returns filed during the subsequent year. We record adjustments based on filed returns when we have identified and finalized them, which is generally in the third and fourth quarters of the subsequent year.
We recognize deferred tax assets and liabilities for the expected tax consequences of temporary differences between the tax basis of assets and liabilities and their reported amounts using enacted tax rates in effect for the year in which we expect the differences to reverse. We record a valuation allowance to reduce the deferred tax assets to the amount that we are more likely than not to realize. We have considered future market growth, forecasted earnings and tax rates, future taxable income, the mix of earnings in the jurisdictions in which we operate and prudent tax planning strategies in determining the need for a valuation allowance. In the event we were to determine that we would not be able to realize all or part of our net deferred tax assets in the future, we would increase the valuation allowance and make a corresponding charge to earnings in the period in which we make such determination. Likewise, if we later determine that we are more likely than not to realize the net deferred tax assets, we would reverse the applicable portion of the previously provided valuation allowance. In order for us to realize our deferred tax assets we must be able to generate sufficient taxable income in the tax jurisdictions in which the deferred tax assets are located. Any changes to the realizability of our deferred tax assets or liabilities may have a material impact on our financial statements.
We are subject to income taxes in the United States and foreign countries, and we are subject to routine corporate income tax audits in many of these jurisdictions. We believe that our tax return positions are fully supported, but tax authorities are likely to challenge certain positions, which may not be fully sustained. Our income tax expense includes amounts intended to satisfy income tax assessments that result from these challenges in accordance with the accounting for uncertainty in income taxes prescribed by U.S. GAAP. Determining the income tax expense for these potential assessments and recording the related assets and liabilities requires management judgments and estimates.
We maintain reserves for uncertain tax positions, including related interest and penalties. We review our reserves quarterly, and we may adjust such reserves due to proposed assessments by tax authorities, changes in facts and circumstances, issuance of new regulations or new case law, previously unavailable information obtained during the course of an examination, negotiations between tax authorities of different countries concerning our transfer prices, execution of advanced pricing agreements, resolution with respect to individual audit issues, the resolution of entire audits, or the expiration of statutes of limitations. The amounts ultimately paid upon resolution of audits may be materially different from the amounts previously included in our income tax expense and, therefore, may have a material impact on our financial statements.
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Results of Operations
The following table sets forth our results of operations expressed as a percentage of net sales for the periods indicated.
Year Ended December 31,
Research and development expenses 5.1 3.9
Selling, general and administrative expenses 17.5 16.7
Operating income 6.1 2.0
Interest income (expense), net (0.2) (0.5)
Accrued social insurance adjustment 1.5 —
Other income (expense), net (0.2) (0.1)
Income before provision for income taxes 7.2 1.4
Provision for income taxes 0.9 0.9
Net income 6.3 % 0.5 %
Year Ended December 31, 2020 ("2020") Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2019 ("2019")
Net sales. Net sales for 2020 were $614.7 million, a decrease of 18.4% compared to $753.5 million in 2019. The decrease in net sales occurred primarily with our traditional home entertainment and security customers as we experienced demand, production and supply disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Certain customers reduced order quantities, our China-based manufacturing facilities were delayed in re-opening after the Lunar New Year holiday and certain key suppliers were ordered to close by local authorities.
Gross profit. Gross profit in 2020 was $176.3 million compared to $170.2 million in 2019. Gross profit as a percent of sales increased to 28.7% in 2020 from 22.6% in 2019. Gross profit as a percent of sales was favorably impacted by a reduction in U.S. tariff expense, improved operational efficiencies in our Mexico-based manufacturing facility as it emerged from a start-up phase, an increase in royalty revenue as certain consumer electronics companies embed our technology in their devices, and the strengthening of the U.S. Dollar versus the Mexican Peso. Our manufacturing costs were negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic as our China-based manufacturing facilities were delayed in re-opening after the Lunar New Year holiday and our Mexico-based manufacturing facility was closed for approximately 10 days.
Research and development ("R&D") expenses. R&D expenses increased 6.9% to $31.5 million in 2020 from $29.4 million in 2019 primarily due to our continued investment in the development of products that enhance the user experience in home entertainment and home automation.
Selling, general and administrative ("SG&A") expenses. SG&A expenses decreased 14.3% to $107.5 million in 2020 from $125.5 million in 2019, primarily due to a reduction in incentive compensation expense, a decrease in contingent consideration recorded in connection with our acquisition of the net assets of Ecolink Intelligent Technology, Inc. ("Ecolink"), a decrease in freight costs and a reduction in travel expenditures. We also reduced certain discretionary expenses as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Interest income (expense), net. Net interest expense was $1.4 million in 2020 compared to $3.9 million in 2019 as a result of a lower average loan balance and a lower interest rate.
Accrued social insurance adjustment. In 2020, we reversed approximately $9.5 million of accrued social insurance. In June 2018, we sold our Guangzhou entity via a stock deal and the terms of the agreement included a two-year indemnification period. In June 2020, the indemnification period expired and we determined we were no longer legally liable for any liabilities associated with our Guangzhou entity. Accordingly, we reversed the accrued social insurance amount associated with the Guangzhou entity which was approximately $9.5 million
Other income (expense), net. Net other expense was $1.4 million in 2020 compared to $1.0 million in 2019, as a result of net foreign currency losses.
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Income tax expense. Income tax expense was $5.3 million in 2020 compared to $6.8 million in 2019. Our effective tax rate was 12.1% in 2020 compared to 65.1% in 2019. Our effective tax rate was lower than normal in 2020 as a result of the application of preferential foreign tax rates as well as foreign income not subject to tax in its respective local jurisdictions, partially offset by the U.S. tax loss not being benefited due to the valuation allowance.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
Sources and Uses of Cash
Cash provided by (used for) investing activities (23,734) 234 (23,968)
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents (843) 120 (963)
Net cash provided by operating activities was $73.4 million during 2020 compared to $85.3 million during 2019. Net income was $38.6 million in 2020 compared to $3.6 million in 2019. Accounts payable and accrued liabilities resulted in net cash outflows of $43.0 million in 2020 compared to net cash inflows of $14.2 million in 2019, largely as a result of a significant decrease in inventories as well as payments related to accrued compensation and contingent consideration. Inventories decreased by $28.3 million during the year ended December 31, 2020 compared to an increase of $1.9 million during the year ended December 31, 2019 as a result of lower sales volume in 2020. Our inventory turns remained relatively consistent with 3.4 turns at December 31, 2020 compared to 3.2 turns at December 31, 2019. Accrued income taxes decreased by $6.5 million during the year ended December 31, 2020 compared to an increase of $3.6 million during the year ended December 31, 2019, largely as a result of increased tax payments during 2020.
Net cash used for investing activities during 2020 was $23.7 million, of which $16.9 million and $6.4 million was used for capital expenditures and development of patents, respectively. Net cash used for investing activities during 2019 was $24.0 million, of which $21.3 million and $2.7 million was used for capital expenditures and development of patents, respectively.
Net cash used for financing activities was $66.0 million during 2020 compared to $39.2 million during 2019. The primary financing activities in 2020 and 2019 were borrowings and repayments on our line of credit and repurchases of shares of our common stock. Net repayments on our line of credit were $48.0 million and $33.5 million in 2020 and 2019, respectively.
During 2020, we purchased 443,803 shares of our common stock at a cost of $17.7 million compared to 57,740 shares at a cost of $1.9 million during 2019. We hold repurchased shares as treasury stock and they are available for reissue. Presently, we have no plans to distribute these shares, although we may change these plans if necessary to fulfill our ongoing business objectives. See "ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA - Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements - Note 14" for further information regarding our share repurchase programs.
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Contractual Obligations
The following table summarizes our contractual obligations and the effect these obligations are expected to have on our liquidity and cash flow in future periods.
Payments Due by Period
(In thousands) Total Less than1 year 1 - 3years 4 - 5years After5 years
(1)Purchase obligations primarily consist of contractual payments to purchase property, plant and equipment.
(2)Contingent consideration consists of contingent payments relate to our purchases of the net assets of Ecolink and Residential Control Systems, Inc. ("RCS").
Liquidity
Historically, we have utilized cash provided from operations as our primary source of liquidity, as internally generated cash flows have been sufficient to support our business operations, capital expenditures and discretionary share repurchases. More recently, we have utilized our revolving line of credit to fund an increased level of share repurchases and our acquisitions of the net assets of Ecolink and RCS. We anticipate that we will continue to utilize both cash flows from operations and our revolving line of credit to support ongoing business operations, capital expenditures and future discretionary share repurchases. We believe our current cash balances, anticipated cash flow to be generated from operations and available borrowing resources will be sufficient to cover expected cash outlays during the next twelve months; however, because our cash is located in various jurisdictions throughout the world, we may at times need to increase borrowing from our revolving line of credit or take on additional debt until we are able to transfer cash among our various entities.
Our liquidity is subject to various risks including the market risks identified in "ITEM 7A. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK".
December 31,
Our cash balances are held in numerous locations throughout the world. The majority of our cash is held outside of the United States and may be repatriated to the United States but, under current law, may be subject to state income taxes and foreign withholding taxes. Additionally, repatriation of some foreign balances is restricted by local laws. We have provided for the state income tax and the foreign withholding tax liabilities on these amounts for financial statement purposes.
On December 31, 2020, we had $9.8 million, $14.3 million, $13.5 million, $10.9 million and $8.7 million of cash and cash equivalents in the United States, the PRC, Asia (excluding the PRC), Europe, and South America, respectively. We attempt to mitigate our exposure to liquidity, credit and other relevant risks by placing our cash and cash equivalents with financial institutions we believe are high quality.
On November 1, 2019, we extended the term of our Second Amended Credit Agreement with U.S. Bank to November 1, 2021. The Second Amended Credit Agreement provided for a $130.0 million Credit Line through June 30, 2019 and a $125.0 million Credit Line thereafter and through its expiration date. The Credit Line may be used for working capital and other general corporate purposes including acquisitions, share repurchases and capital expenditures. Amounts available for borrowing under the Credit Line are reduced by the balance of any outstanding letters of credit, of which there were $2.7 million at December 31, 2020. On January 7, 2021, we executed an amendment to extend the term of our Second Amended Credit Agreement to November 1, 2022.
All obligations under the Credit Line are secured by substantially all of our U.S. personal property and tangible and intangible assets as well as 65% of our ownership interest in Enson Assets Limited, our wholly-owned subsidiary which controls our manufacturing factories in the PRC.
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Under the Second Amended Credit Agreement, we may elect to pay interest on the Credit Line based on LIBOR plus an applicable margin (varying from 1.25% to 1.75%) or base rate (based on the prime rate of U.S. Bank or as otherwise specified in the Second Amended Credit Agreement) plus an applicable margin (varying from 0.00% to 0.50% ). The applicable margins are calculated quarterly and vary based on our cash flow leverage ratio as set forth in the Second Amended Credit Agreement. The interest rate in effect at December 31, 2020 was 1.39%. There are no commitment fees or unused line fees under the Second Amended Credit Agreement. The amendment executed on January 7, 2021 defines the Secured Overnight Financing Rate ("SOFR") as a replacement benchmark for LIBOR upon its phase out.
The Second Amended Credit Agreement includes financial covenants requiring a minimum fixed charge coverage ratio and a maximum cash flow leverage ratio. In addition, the Second Amended Credit Agreement contains other customary affirmative and negative covenants and events of default. As of December 31, 2020, we were in compliance with the covenants and conditions of the Second Amended Credit Agreement.
At December 31, 2020, we had an outstanding balance of $20.0 million on our Credit Line and $102.3 million of availability.
Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements
We do not participate in any off-balance sheet arrangements.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements
See "ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA — Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements — Note 2" for a discussion of recent accounting pronouncements.
ITEM 7A. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK
We are exposed to various market risks, including interest rate and foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations. We have established policies, procedures and internal processes governing our management of these risks and the use of financial instruments to mitigate our risk exposure.
Interest Rate Risk
We are exposed to interest rate risk related to our debt. From time to time we borrow amounts on our Credit Line for working capital and other liquidity needs. Under the Second Amended Credit Agreement, we may elect to pay interest on outstanding borrowings on our Credit Line based on LIBOR or a base rate (based on the prime rate of U.S. Bank) plus an applicable margin as defined in the Second Amended Credit Agreement. Accordingly, changes in interest rates would impact our results of operations in future periods. A 100 basis point increase in interest rates would have an approximately $0.2 million annual impact on net income based on our outstanding Credit Line balance at December 31, 2020.
We cannot make any assurances that we will not need to borrow additional amounts in the future or that funds will be extended to us under comparable terms or at all. If funding is not available to us at a time when we need to borrow, we would have to use our cash reserves, including potentially repatriating cash from foreign jurisdictions, which may have a material adverse effect on our operating results, financial position and cash flows.
Foreign Currency Exchange Rate Risk
At December 31, 2020, we had wholly-owned subsidiaries in Argentina, Brazil, the British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, the Netherlands, the PRC, Singapore, Spain and the United Kingdom. We are exposed to foreign currency exchange rate risk inherent in our sales commitments, anticipated sales, anticipated purchases, operating expenses, assets and liabilities denominated in currencies other than the U.S. Dollar. The most significant foreign currencies to our operations are the Chinese Yuan Renminbi, Euro, British Pound, Mexican Peso, Indian Rupee, Brazilian Real, Japanese Yen, and Argentinian Peso. Our most significant foreign currency exposure is to the Chinese Yuan Renminbi as this is the functional currency of our PRC-based factories where the majority of our products are manufactured. If the Chinese Yuan Renminbi were to strengthen against the U.S. Dollar, our manufacturing costs would increase. We are generally a net payor of the Euro, Mexican Peso, Indian Rupee and Japanese Yen and therefore benefit from a stronger U.S. Dollar and are adversely affected by a weaker U.S. Dollar relative to the foreign currency. For the British Pound, Brazilian Real and Argentinian Peso, we are generally a net receiver of the foreign currency and therefore benefit from a weaker U.S. Dollar and are adversely affected by a stronger U.S. Dollar relative to the foreign currency. Even where we are a net receiver, a weaker U.S. Dollar may adversely affect certain expense figures taken alone.
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From time to time, we enter into foreign currency exchange agreements to manage the foreign currency exchange rate risks inherent in our forecasted income and cash flows denominated in foreign currencies. The terms of these foreign currency exchange agreements normally last less than nine months. We recognize the gains and losses on these foreign currency contracts in the same period as the remeasurement losses and gains of the related foreign currency-denominated exposures.
It is difficult to estimate the impact of fluctuations on reported income, as it depends on the opening and closing rates, the average net balance sheet positions held in a foreign currency and the amount of income generated in local currency. We routinely forecast what these balance sheet positions and income generated in local currency may be and we take steps to minimize exposure as we deem appropriate. Alternatively, we may choose not to hedge the foreign currency risk associated with our foreign currency exposures, primarily if such exposure acts as a natural foreign currency hedge for other offsetting amounts denominated in the same currency or the currency is difficult or too expensive to hedge. We do not enter into any derivative transactions for speculative purposes.
The sensitivity of earnings and cash flows to variability in exchange rates is assessed by applying an approximate range of potential rate fluctuations to our assets, obligations and projected results of operations denominated in foreign currency with all other variables held constant. The analysis includes all of our foreign currency contracts offset by the underlying exposures. Based on our overall foreign currency rate exposure at December 31, 2020, we believe that movements in foreign currency rates may have a material effect on our financial position and results of operations. We estimate that if the exchange rates for the Chinese Yuan Renminbi, Euro, British Pound, Mexican Peso, Indian Rupee, Brazilian Real, Japanese Yen, and Argentinian Peso relative to the U.S. Dollar fluctuate 10% from December 31, 2020, net income in the first quarter of 2021 would fluctuate by approximately $9.1 million.
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ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA
INDEX TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Page
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm 41
Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements 48
All schedules are omitted because they are not applicable or the required information is shown in the consolidated financial statements or notes thereto.
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REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
Board of Directors and Stockholders
Universal Electronics Inc.
Opinion on the financial statements
We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of Universal Electronics Inc. (a Delaware corporation) and subsidiaries (the "Company") as of December 31, 2020 and 2019, the related consolidated statements of operations, comprehensive income (loss), changes in stockholders’ equity, and cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2020, and the related notes and financial statement schedules included under Item 15 (collectively referred to as the "financial statements"). In our opinion, thefinancial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Companyas of December 31, 2020 and 2019, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2020, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.
We also have audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) ("PCAOB"), the Company's internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2020, based on criteria established in the 2013 Internal Control-Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO), and our report dated March 5, 2021 expressed an unqualified opinion.
Basis for opinion
These financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company’s financial statements based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the PCAOB and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.
We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. Our audits included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.
Critical audit matter
The critical audit matter communicated below is a matter arising from the current period audit of the financial statements that was communicated or required to be communicated to the audit committee and that: (1) relates to accounts or disclosures that are material to the financial statements and (2) involved our especially challenging, subjective, or complex judgments. The communication of critical audit matters does not alter in any way our opinion on the financial statements, taken as a whole, and we are not, by communicating the critical audit matter below, providing aseparate opinion on the critical audit matter or on the accounts or disclosures to which it relates.
Revenue recognition – Identifying and evaluating terms and conditions in contracts for the timing of revenue recognition
As described further in Note 2 to the consolidated financial statements, product revenue is generated through manufacturing and delivering universal control, sensing and automation products, and AV accessories. The Company recognizes revenue over time for custom products with no alternative use when the Company has an enforceable right to payment for performance completed to date, including a reasonable margin, through a contractual commitment from the customer. Revenue is recognized at a point in time if the criteria for recognizing revenue over time are not met. For each new contract and/or product, management performs an analysis to determine whether the asset created is a custom asset with no alternative use and whether the terms and conditions of the contract indicate the Company has an enforceable right to payment for performance completed prior to the transfer of title of the underlying asset. We identified the determination of over time verses point in time revenue recognition as a critical audit matter.
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The principal considerations for our determination that over time verses point in time revenue recognition is a critical audit matter is the significant judgment exercised by management in identifying and evaluating whether new contracts and/or products meet the criteria for over time or point in time revenue recognition. Significant judgments include the evaluation of legal terms and rights within each jurisdiction that the Company operates and evaluation of whether it is possible, contractually or economically, to repurpose or redirect products.
Our audit procedures related to the over time verses point in time revenue recognition included the following, among others:
•We tested the design and operating effectiveness of key controls over the Company’s new contract review process, specifically those related to the identification and evaluation of terms and conditions associated with an enforceable right to payment.
•We tested design and operating effectiveness of key controls associated with the Company’s classification of new products, specifically those associated with determination and classification of a product as having no alternative use.
•Performed tests of details, on a sample basis from the Company’s active products listing, to determine whether products marked as custom with no alternative use are restricted contractually or economically to be repurposed or redirected. This includes evaluating management assumptions regarding the economic feasibility of repurposing a finished product and evidence to support that the final product has no alternative use, such as brand names and custom designs within the plastic molding process.
•For a sample of contracts, obtained the contract and management’s analysis over the enforceable right to payment and validated that the payment terms within the contract were properly evaluated and the contract was properly included or excluded from the over time revenue recognition.
•For a sample of revenue transactions, we traced the products sold into the Company’s listing of active products and determined whether that product was appropriately classified as custom or non-custom by applying the same testing approach noted above. For transactions selected with custom products, we also obtained and read the contract and contract amendments to determine whether the payment terms within the contract specifically identified an enforceable right to payment upon cancellation. The two parts to this test serve to determine whether the transaction was appropriately recorded over time or at a point in time.
/s/ GRANT THORNTON LLP
We have served as the Company's auditor since 2005.
Newport Beach, California
March 5, 2021
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UNIVERSAL ELECTRONICS INC.
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(In thousands, except share-related data)
ASSETS
Current assets:
Prepaid expenses and other current assets 6,828 6,733
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
Current liabilities:
Accrued sales discounts, rebates and royalties 10,758 9,766
Long-term liabilities:
Other long-term liabilities 539 13
Commitments and contingencies
Stockholders' equity:
Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) (18,522) (22,781)
Total liabilities and stockholders' equity $ 510,290 $ 564,159
See Note 5 for further information concerning our purchases from related party vendors.
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.
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UNIVERSAL ELECTRONICS INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
(In thousands, except per share amounts)
Year Ended December 31,
Accrued social insurance adjustment 9,464 — —
Gain on sale of Guangzhou factory — — 36,978
Earnings per share:
Shares used in computing earnings per share:
See Note 5 for further information concerning our purchases from related party vendors.
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.
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UNIVERSAL ELECTRONICS INC.
CONSOLIDATED COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS) STATEMENTS
(In thousands)
Year Ended December 31,
Other comprehensive income (loss):
Change in foreign currency translation adjustment 4,259 (2,500) (3,682)
See Note 5 for further information concerning our purchases from related party vendors.
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.
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UNIVERSAL ELECTRONICS INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
(In thousands)
Shares Amount Shares Amount
Currency translation adjustment (3,682) (3,682)
Shares issued for employee benefit plan and compensation 108 1 1,061 1,062
Shares issued to directors 30 — — —
Employee and director stock-based compensation 8,820 8,820
Performance-based common stock warrants 163 163
Currency translation adjustment (2,500) (2,500)
Shares issued for employee benefit plan and compensation 133 2 945 947
Shares issued to directors 30 — — —
Employee and director stock-based compensation 8,845 8,845
Performance-based common stock warrants 1,997 1,997
Currency translation adjustment 4,259 4,259
Shares issued for employee benefit plan and compensation 169 1 1,135 1,136
Shares issued to directors 25 1 (1) —
Employee and director stock-based compensation 9,122 9,122
Performance-based common stock warrants 686 686
See Note 5 for further information concerning our purchases from related party vendors.
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.
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UNIVERSAL ELECTRONICS INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(In thousands)
Year Ended December 31,
Cash provided by operating activities:
Gain on sale of Guangzhou factory — — (36,978)
Employee and director stock-based compensation 9,122 8,845 8,820
Performance-based common stock warrants 686 1,997 163
Accrued social insurance adjustment (9,464) — —
Loss on sale of Ohio call center 712 — —
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
Prepaid expenses and other assets (245) 4,648 (587)
Cash provided by (used for) investing activities:
Proceeds from sale of Guangzhou factory — — 51,291
Refund of deposit received toward sale of Guangzhou factory — — (5,053)
Payment on sale of Ohio call center (500) — —
Net cash provided by (used for) investing activities (23,734) (23,968) 23,575
Cash provided by (used for) financing activities:
Proceeds from stock options exercised 2,805 448 864
Net cash provided by (used for) financing activities (65,964) (39,231) (53,318)
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents (843) (963) 2,756
Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents (17,149) 21,095 (14,132)
Supplemental cash flow information:
See Note 5 for further information concerning our purchases from related party vendors.
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.
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UNIVERSAL ELECTRONICS INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
DECEMBER 31, 2020
Note 1 — Description of Business
Universal Electronics Inc. ("UEI"), based in Scottsdale, Arizona, designs, develops, manufactures, ships and supports control and sensor technology solutions and a broad line of universal control systems, audio-video ("AV") accessories, and intelligent wireless security and smart home products that are used by the world's leading brands in the video services, consumer electronics, security, home automation, climate control, and home appliance markets. In addition, over the past 35 years, we have developed a broad portfolio of patented technologies and a cloud-based connectivity and control software solution that we license to our customers, including many leading Fortune 500 companies.
Distribution methods for our control solutions vary depending on the sales channel. We license our connectivity and control solution technologies across a variety of channels, primarily to original equipment manufacturers ("OEMs"). We distribute remote control devices, integrated circuits, sensors, connected thermostats and AV accessories directly to video and security service providers and OEMs, both domestically and internationally. We also distribute home security sensors and connected thermostats to pro-security installers and hospitality system integrators in the United States and Europe through a network of national and regional distributors and dealers.
Additionally, we sell our wireless control devices and AV accessories under the One For All® and private label brand names to retailers through our international subsidiaries and direct to retailers in key markets, such as in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Spain, and Italy. We utilize third-party distributors for the retail channel in countries where we do not have subsidiaries.
As used herein, the terms "we", "us" and "our" refer to Universal Electronics Inc. and its subsidiaries unless the context indicates to the contrary.
Note 2 — Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
Principles of Consolidation
The consolidated financial statements include our accounts and those of our wholly-owned subsidiaries. All intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in the consolidated financial statements.
Reclassifications
Certain prior period amounts in the accompanying consolidated financial statements have been reclassified to conform to the current year presentation. These reclassifications did not have a material effect on our previously reported consolidated balance sheets, net income or stockholders' equity.
Reportable Segment
An operating segment, in part, is a component of an enterprise whose operating results are regularly reviewed by the chief operating decision maker to make decisions about resources to be allocated to the segment and assess its performance. Operating segments may be aggregated only to a limited extent. Our chief operating decision maker, the Chief Executive Officer, reviews financial information presented on a consolidated basis, accompanied by disaggregated information about revenues for purposes of making operating decisions and assessing financial performance. Accordingly, we only have a single operating and reportable segment.
Estimates and Assumptions
The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America ("U.S. GAAP") requires us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, 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. On an on-going basis, we evaluate our estimates and assumptions, including those related to revenue recognition, allowance for credit losses, inventory valuation, impairment of long-lived assets, intangible assets and goodwill, business combinations, income taxes, stock-based compensation expense and performance-
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UNIVERSAL ELECTRONICS INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
DECEMBER 31, 2020
based common stock warrants. Actual results may differ from these assumptions and estimates, and they may be adjusted as more information becomes available. Any adjustment may be material.
Revenue Recognition
Revenue is recognized when control of a good or service is transferred to a customer. Control is considered to be transferred when the customer has the ability to direct the use of and obtain substantially all of the remaining benefits of that good or service. Revenues are generated from manufacturing, shipping and supporting control and sensor technology solutions and a broad line of pre-programmed and universal control products, AV accessories, and intelligent wireless security and smart home products that are used in the video services, consumer electronics, security, home automation, climate control, and home appliance market, which are sold through multiple channels, and licensing intellectual property that is embedded in these products or licensed to others for use in their products.
Revenue - Product revenue is generated through manufacturing, shipping and supporting control and sensor technology solutions and a broad line of pre-programmed and universal control products, AV accessories, and intelligent wireless security and smart home products that are used in the video services, consumer electronics, security, home automation, climate control, and home appliance market, which are sold through multiple channels. Our performance obligations are satisfied over time or at a point in time, depending on the nature of the product. Our contracts have an anticipated duration of less than a year and consideration may be variable based on indeterminate volumes.
Revenue is recognized over time when our performance creates an asset with no alternative use to us (custom products) and we have an enforceable right to payment for performance completed to date, including a reasonable margin, through a contractual commitment from the customer. Custom products are those products for which we are unable to redirect the asset to another customer in the foreseeable future without significant rework. The method for measuring progress towards satisfying a performance obligation for a custom product is based on the costs incurred to date (cost-to-cost method). We believe that the costs associated with production are most closely aligned with the revenue associated with those products.
We recognize revenue at a point in time if the criteria for recognizing revenue over time are not met, the title of the goods has transferred and we have a present right to payment.
A provision is recorded for estimated sales returns and allowances and is deducted from gross sales to arrive at net sales in the period the related revenue is recorded. These estimates are based on historical sales returns and allowances, analysis of credit memo data and other known factors. Actual returns and claims in any future period are inherently uncertain and thus may differ from our estimates. If actual or expected future returns and claims are significantly greater or lower than the reserves that we have established, we will record a reduction or increase to net sales in the period in which we make such a determination.
We license our intellectual property including our patented technologies and database of control codes. We record license revenue for per-unit based licenses when our customers manufacture or ship a product incorporating our intellectual property and we have a present right to payment. We record revenue over the license period for minimum guarantees. We record revenue upon delivery of intellectual property for fixed up-front fee licenses. Tiered royalties are recorded on a straight-line basis according to the forecasted per-unit fees taking into account the pricing tiers.
Contract assets - Contract assets represent the value of revenue recognized over time for which we have not yet invoiced the customer. Generally, we invoice the customer within 90 days of revenue recognition.
Contract liabilities - A contract liability is recorded when consideration is received from a customer prior to fully satisfying a performance obligation in a contract. Our contract liabilities primarily consist of cash received in advance for non-recurring engineering and tooling services. These contract liabilities will be recognized as revenues when control of the related product or service is transferred to the customer. See Note 12 for further information concerning contract liabilities.
Other performance obligations - Payment terms are typically on open credit terms consistent with industry practice and do not have significant financing components. We accrue for discounts and rebates based on historical experience and our expectations regarding future sales to our customers. Accruals for discounts and rebates are recorded as a reduction to sales in the same period as the related revenue. Such discounts were $15.9 million at December 31, 2020 and 2019. Changes in such accruals may be required if future rebates and incentives differ from our estimates.
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UNIVERSAL ELECTRONICS INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
DECEMBER 31, 2020
Trade receivables are recorded at the invoiced amount and do not bear interest. Sales allowances are recognized as reductions of trade receivables to arrive at trade receivables, net if the sales allowances are distributed in customer account credits. See Note 4 for further information concerning our sales allowances.
We present all non-income government-assessed taxes (sales, use and value added taxes) collected from our customers and remitted to governmental agencies on a net basis (excluded from revenue) in our financial statements. The government-assessed taxes are recorded in our consolidated balance sheets until they are remitted to the government agency.
Income Taxes
We provide for income taxes utilizing the asset and liability approach of accounting for income taxes. Under this approach, deferred taxes represent the future tax consequences expected to occur when the reported amounts of assets and liabilities are recovered or paid. Deferred taxes are presented net as non-current. The provision for income taxes generally represents income taxes paid or payable for the current year plus the change in deferred taxes during the year. Deferred taxes result from the differences between the financial and tax bases of our assets and liabilities and are adjusted for changes in tax rates and tax laws when changes are enacted. Valuation allowances are recorded to reduce deferred tax assets when a judgment is made that is considered more likely than not that a tax benefit will not be realized. A decision to record a valuation allowance results in an increase in income tax expense or a decrease in income tax benefit. If the valuation allowance is released in a future period, income tax expense will be reduced accordingly.
The calculation of tax liabilities involves dealing with uncertainties in the application of complex global tax regulations. The impact of an uncertain income tax position is recognized at the largest amount that is "more likely than not" to be sustained upon audit by the relevant taxing authority. An uncertain income tax position will not be recognized if it has less than a 50% likelihood of being sustained. If the estimate of tax liabilities proves to be less than the ultimate assessment, a further charge to expense would result.
In assessing the realizability of deferred tax assets, management considers whether it is more likely than not that some portion or all of the deferred tax assets will be realized. The ultimate realization of deferred tax assets is dependent upon the generation of future taxable income during the periods in which those temporary differences become deductible. We continue to assess the need for a valuation allowance on the deferred tax asset by evaluating both positive and negative evidence that may exist. Any adjustment to the net deferred tax asset valuation allowance would be recorded in the income statement for the period that the adjustment is determined to be required.
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the "Tax Act") subjects a U.S. shareholder to tax on Global Intangible Low-Taxed Income ("GILTI") earned by certain foreign subsidiaries. We have elected to account for GILTI in the year the tax is incurred as a period expense.
See Note 10 for further information concerning income taxes.
Research and Development
Research and development costs are expensed as incurred and consist primarily of salaries, employee benefits, supplies and materials.
Advertising
Advertising costs are expensed as incurred. Advertising expense totaled $0.9 million, $0.9 million, and $1.3 million for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively.
Shipping and Handling Fees and Costs
We include shipping and handling fees billed to customers in net sales. Shipping and handling costs associated with in-bound freight are recorded in cost of sales. Other shipping and handling costs are included in selling, general and administrative expenses. Shipping and handling fees and costs totaled $9.9 million, $13.2 million and $12.2 million for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively.
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UNIVERSAL ELECTRONICS INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
DECEMBER 31, 2020
Stock-Based Compensation
We recognize the grant date fair value of stock-based compensation awards as expense in proportion to vesting during the requisite service period, which ranges from one to four years. Forfeitures of stock-based awards are accounted for as they occur. Upon the exercise of stock options or the vesting of restricted stock awards, newly issued shares of our common stock are issued.
We determine the fair value of restricted stock awards utilizing the average of the high and low trading prices of our common shares on the date they were granted.
The fair value of stock options granted to employees and directors is determined utilizing the Black-Scholes option pricing model. The assumptions utilized in the Black-Scholes model include the risk-free interest rate, expected volatility, expected life in years and dividend yield. The risk-free interest rate over the expected term is equal to the prevailing U.S. Treasury note rate over the same period. Expected volatility is determined utilizing historical volatility over a period of time equal to the expected life of the stock option. Expected life is computed utilizing historical exercise patterns and post-vesting behavior. The dividend yield is assumed to be zero since we have not historically declared dividends and do not have any plans to declare dividends in the future. See Note 15 for further information regarding stock-based compensation.
Performance-Based Common Stock Warrants