Our business, financial condition, operating results and cash flows can be impacted by a number of factors, including, but not limited to, those set forth below, any of which could cause our results to be adversely impacted and could result in a decline in the value or loss of an investment in our common stock. Other factors may also exist that we cannot anticipate or that we currently do not consider to be significant based on information that is currently available. These risks and uncertainties have the potential to materially affect our business, financial condition, results of operations, cash flows and future results. Such risks and uncertainties may also impact the accuracy of forward-looking statements included in this Form 10-Q and other reports we file with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The industries in which we compete are subject to volatile and unpredictable cycles.
As a supplier to the global semiconductor, flat panel display, solar, industrial and related industries, we are subject to business cycles, the timing, length, and volatility of which can be difficult to predict. These industries historically have been cyclical due to sudden changes in customers’ manufacturing capacity requirements and spending, which depend in part on capacity utilization, demand for customers’ products, inventory levels relative to demand, and access to affordable capital. These changes have affected the timing and amounts of customers’ purchases and investments in technology, and continue to affect our orders, net sales, operating expenses, and net income. In addition, we may not be able to respond adequately or quickly to the declines in demand by reducing our costs. We may be required to record significant reserves for excess and obsolete inventory as demand for our products changes.
To meet rapidly changing demand in each of the industries we serve, we must effectively manage our resources and production capacity. During periods of decreasing demand for our products, we must be able to appropriately align our cost structure with prevailing market conditions, effectively manage our supply chain, and motivate and retain key employees. During periods of increasing demand, we must have sufficient manufacturing capacity and inventory to fulfill customer orders, effectively manage our supply chain, and attract, retain, and motivate a sufficient number of qualified individuals. If we are not able to timely and appropriately adapt to changes in our business environment or to accurately assess where we are positioned within a business cycle, our business, financial condition, or results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.
Our product lines are manufactured only at a few sites and our sites are not generally interchangeable.
Our power products for the semiconductor industry are manufactured in Shenzhen, PRC. Our high voltage products are manufactured in Ronkonkoma and Lockport, New York, Littlehampton, United Kingdom and Shenzhen, PRC. Our thermal instrumentation products are manufactured in Vancouver, Washington, Santa Clara, California, Littlehampton, United Kingdom and Frankfurt, Germany. Our pyrometry solutions are manufactured in Ballerup, Denmark. Each facility is under operating lease and interruptions in operations could be caused by early termination of existing leases by landlords or failure by landlords to renew existing leases upon expiration, including the possibility that suitable operating locations may not be available in proximity to existing facilities which could result in labor or supply chain risks. Each facility manufactures different products, and therefore, is not interchangeable. Natural, uncontrollable occurrences or other operational issues at any of our manufacturing facilities could significantly reduce our productivity at such site and could prevent us from meeting our customers’ requirements in a timely manner, or at all. Any potential losses from such occurrences could significantly affect our relationship with customers, operations and results of operations for a prolonged period of time. As a result, we have begun investing in the evaluation of additional production options in Southeast Asia. We believe this investment will help to mitigate our exposure to regional risks, improve our business continuity profile and lower costs over time.
Our restructuring and other cost reduction efforts have included transitioning manufacturing operations to our facility in Shenzhen from other manufacturing facilities, such as Fort Collins, Colorado and Littlehampton, United Kingdom, which renders us increasingly reliant upon our Shenzhen facility. We have been notified that we will be required to relocate our Shenzhen, PRC manufacturing facility by December 2021. A disruption in manufacturing at our Shenzhen facility, from whatever cause, could
have a significantly adverse effect on our ability to fulfill customer orders, our ability to maintain customer relationships, our costs to manufacture our products and, as a result, our results of operations and financial condition.
Our evolving manufacturing footprint may increase our risk.
The nature of our manufacturing is evolving as we continue to grow by acquisition. Historically, our principal manufacturing location has been in Shenzhen, PRC; however, we have also added specialized manufacturing at our Littlehampton, United Kingdom, Ballerup, Denmark, Frankfurt, Germany, Ronkonkoma and Lockport, New York and Santa Clara, California facilities. From time to time we may be required to relocate manufacturing or migrate manufacturing of specific products between facilities or to third party manufacturers. We have been notified that we will be required to relocate our Shenzhen, PRC manufacturing facility by December 2021. If we do not successfully coordinate the timely manufacturing and distribution of our products during this time, we may have insufficient supply of products to meet customer demand, we could lose sales, we may experience a build-up in inventory, or we may incur additional costs. In addition, we are evaluating establishing a second factory in southeast Asia to help mitigate business continuity, geopolitical and other risks. If we do not successfully implement this factory it could result in increased expenses and disruption of supply to our customers during the transition period.
Raw material, part, component, and subassembly shortages, exacerbated by our dependence on sole and limited source suppliers, could affect our ability to manufacture products and systems and could delay our shipments.
Our business depends on our ability to manufacture products that meet the rapidly changing demands of our customers. Our ability to timely manufacture our products depends in part on the timely delivery of raw materials, parts, components, and subassemblies from suppliers. We rely on sole and limited source suppliers for some of our raw materials, parts, components, and subassemblies that are critical to the manufacturing of our products.
This reliance involves several risks, including the following:
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the inability to obtain an adequate supply of required parts, components, or subassemblies;
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supply shortages, if a sole or limited source provider ceases operations;
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the need to fund the operating losses of a sole or limited source provider;
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reduced control over pricing and timing of delivery of raw materials and parts, components, or subassemblies;
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the need to qualify alternative suppliers;
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suppliers that may provide parts, components or subassemblies that are defective, contain counterfeit goods or are otherwise misrepresented to us in terms of form, fit or function; and
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the inability of our suppliers to develop technologically advanced products to support our growth and development of new products.
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the impact of geopolitical issues or tariffs that could affect the cost and availability of required parts, components, or subassemblies.
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From time to time, our sole or limited source suppliers have given us notice that they are ending supply of critical parts, components, and subassemblies that are required for us to deliver product. If we cannot qualify alternative suppliers before ending supply of critical parts from the sole or limited source suppliers, we may be required to make a last-time-buy(s) and take possession of material amounts of inventory in advance of customer demand. In some instances, the last-time-buy materials required to be purchased may be for several years which in turn exposes us to additional excess and obsolescence risk. If we cannot qualify alternative suppliers before the last-time-buy materials are utilized in our products or legacy inverter warranty operations, we may be unable to deliver further product or legacy inverter warranty service to our customers.
Qualifying alternative suppliers could be time consuming and lead to delays in, or prevention of delivery of products to our customers, as well as increased costs. If we are unable to qualify additional suppliers and manage relationships with our existing and future suppliers successfully, if our suppliers experience financial difficulties including bankruptcy, or if our suppliers cannot meet our performance or quality specifications or timing requirements, we may experience shortages, delays, or increased costs of raw materials, parts, components, or subassemblies. This in turn could limit or prevent our ability to manufacture and ship our products, which could materially and adversely affect our relationships with our current and prospective customers and our business, financial condition, and results of operations.
Our orders of raw materials, parts, components, and subassemblies are based on demand forecasts.
We place orders with many of our suppliers based on our customers’ quarterly forecasts and our annual forecasts. These forecasts are based on our customers’ and our expectations as to demand for our products. As the quarter and the year progress, such demand can change rapidly or we may realize that our customers’ expectations were overly optimistic or pessimistic, especially when industry or general economic conditions change. Orders with our suppliers cannot always be amended in response. In addition, in order to assure availability of certain components or to obtain priority pricing, we have entered into contracts with some of our suppliers that require us to purchase a specified amount of components and subassemblies each quarter, even if we are not able to use such components or subassemblies. Moreover, we have obligations to some of our customers to hold a minimum amount of
finished goods in inventory, in order to fulfill just in time orders, regardless of whether the customers expect to place such orders. We currently have firm purchase commitments and agreements with various suppliers to ensure the availability of components. If demand for our products does not continue at current levels, we might not be able to use all of the components that we are required to purchase under these commitments and agreements, and our reserves for excess and obsolete inventory may increase, which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations. If demand for our products exceeds our customers’ and our forecasts, we may not be able to timely obtain sufficient raw materials, parts, components, or subassemblies, on favorable terms or at all, to fulfill the excess demand
Significant developments stemming from recent U.S. government actions and proposals concerning tariffs and other economic proposals could have a material adverse effect on us.
Recent U.S. government actions are imposing greater restrictions and economic disincentives on international trade, particularly imports. The U.S. government has adopted changes, and intends to adopt further changes, to trade policy and in some cases, to renegotiate, or potentially terminate, certain existing bilateral or multi-lateral trade agreements. It has also initiated the imposition of additional tariffs on certain foreign goods, including steel and aluminum, semiconductor manufacturing equipment and spare parts thereof.
Examples of recent actions are tariffs on steel and aluminum product imports announced by the U.S. Department of Commerce in March 2018 and a 25% tariff on certain products that originate in China announced by the United States Trade Representative (“USTR”) in June 2018. The USTR also announced in June and July 2018 two additional supplemental lists of products that are subject to tariffs if the goods imported into the United States originate in China, which would increase the cost of imported products. These supplemental lists issued by the USTR issued an additional 25% and 10% duty, respectively, on certain semiconductor equipment and parts originating in China that are sold by us or used in our business in the United States. In August, the second list was made effective with a 25% tariff and in September the third list was made effective with a 10% tariff. Any increase in the cost of importing such goods and parts could decrease our margins, reduce the competitiveness of our products, or inhibit our ability to sell products or purchase necessary parts, which could have a material adverse effect on our business results, results of operations, or financial condition.
Changes in U.S. trade policy could result in one or more U.S. trading partners adopting responsive trade policy making it more difficult or costly for us to export our products to those countries. As indicated above, these measures could also result in increased costs for goods imported into the U.S. This in turn could require 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 goods and services sold. To the extent that trade tariffs and other restrictions imposed by the U.S. increase the price of semiconductor equipment and related parts imported into the U.S., the cost of our materials may be adversely affected and the demand from customers for products and services may be diminished, which could adversely affect our revenues and profitability.
We cannot predict future trade policy, the terms of any renegotiated trade agreements or additional imposed tariffs and their impact 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.
Changes in U.S. social, political, regulatory and economic conditions or in laws and policies governing foreign trade, manufacturing, development and investment in the territories and countries where we currently develop and sell products, and any negative sentiments towards the United States as a result of such changes, could adversely affect our business. In addition, negative sentiments towards the United States among non-U.S. customers and among non-U.S. employees or prospective employees could adversely affect sales or hiring and retention, respectively.
Increased governmental action on income tax regulations could negatively impact our business.
International governments have heightened their review and scrutiny of multinational businesses like ours which could increase our compliance costs and future tax liability to those governments. As governments continue to look for ways to increase their revenue streams, they could increase audits of companies to accelerate the recovery of monies perceived as owed to them under current or past regulations. Such an increase in audit activity could have a negative impact on companies which operate internationally, as we do.
Activities necessary to integrate acquisitions may result in costs in excess of current expectations or be less successful than anticipated.
We have completed acquisitions in the past and we may acquire other businesses in the future. The success of such transactions will depend on, among other things, our ability to integrate assets and personnel acquired in these transactions and to apply our internal controls process to these acquired businesses. The integration of acquisitions may require significant attention
from our management, and the diversion of management’s attention and resources could have a material adverse effect on our ability to manage our business. Furthermore, we may not realize the degree or timing of benefits we anticipated when we first entered into the acquisition transaction. If actual integration costs are higher than amounts originally anticipated, if we are unable to integrate the assets and personnel acquired in an acquisition as anticipated, or if we are unable to fully benefit from anticipated synergies, our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows could be materially adversely affected.
We have historically made acquisitions and divestitures. However, we may not find suitable acquisition candidates in the future and we may not be able to successfully integrate and manage acquired businesses. In either an acquisition or a divestiture, we may be required to make fundamental changes in our ERP, business processes and tools which could disrupt our core business and harm our financial condition.
In the past, we have made strategic acquisitions of other corporations and entities, as well as asset purchases, and we continue to evaluate potential strategic acquisitions of complementary companies, products, and technologies. We have also divested businesses. In the future, we could:
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issue stock that would dilute our current stockholders' percentage ownership;
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pay cash that would decrease our working capital;
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incur expenses related to impairment of goodwill and amortization.
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Acquisitions and divestitures also involve numerous risks, including:
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problems combining or separating the acquired/divested operations, systems, technologies, or products;
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an inability to realize expected sales forecasts, operating efficiencies or product integration benefits;
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difficulties in coordinating and integrating geographically separated personnel, organizations, systems, and facilities;
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difficulties integrating business cultures;
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unanticipated costs or liabilities;
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diversion of management's attention from our core business;
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adverse effects on existing business relationships with suppliers and customers;
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potential loss of key employees, particularly those of purchased organizations;
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incurring unforeseen obligations or liabilities in connection with either acquisitions or divestitures; and
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the failure to complete acquisitions even after signing definitive agreements which, among other things, would result in the expensing of potentially significant professional fees and other charges in the period in which the acquisition or negotiations are terminated.
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We may not be able to successfully identify appropriate acquisition candidates, to integrate any businesses, products, technologies, or personnel that we might acquire in the future or achieve the anticipated benefits of such transactions, which may harm our business.
Our operations in the People’s Republic of China are subject to significant political and economic uncertainties over which we have little or no control and we may be unable to alter our business practice in time to avoid reductions in revenues.
A significant portion of our operations outside the United States are located in the PRC, which exposes us to risks, such as exchange controls and currency restrictions, changes in local economic conditions, changes in customs regulations and tariffs, changes in tax policies, changes in PRC laws and regulations, possible expropriation or other PRC government actions, and unsettled political conditions including potential changes in U.S. policy regarding overseas manufacturing. These factors may have a material adverse effect on our operations, business, results of operations, and financial condition. See "We are exposed to risks associated with worldwide financial markets and the global economy" risk factor below.
The PRC’s economy differs from the economies of most developed countries in many respects, including with respect to the amount of government involvement, level of development, rate of growth, control of foreign exchange and allocation of resources. While the economy of the PRC has experienced significant growth in the past 20 years, growth has been uneven across different regions and amongst various economic sectors of the PRC. The PRC government has implemented various measures to encourage economic development and guide the allocation of resources. Strikes by workers and picketing in front of the factory gates of certain companies in Shenzhen have caused unrest among some workers seeking higher wages, which could impact our manufacturing facility in Shenzhen. While some of the government's measures may benefit the overall economy of the PRC, they may have a negative effect on us. For example, our financial condition and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected by government control over capital investments or changes in tax regulations that are applicable to us as well as work stoppages.
Changes in tax laws, tax rates, or mix of earnings in tax jurisdictions in which we do business, could impact our future tax liabilities and related corporate profitability
We are subject to income taxes in the U.S. (federal and state) and numerous foreign jurisdictions. Tax laws, regulations, and administrative practices in various jurisdictions may be subject to significant change due to economic, political, and other conditions, and significant judgment is required in evaluating and estimating our provision and accruals for these taxes. There are many transactions that occur during the ordinary course of business for which the ultimate tax determination is uncertain. Our effective tax rates could be adversely affected by earnings being lower than anticipated in jurisdictions where we have lower statutory rates and earnings higher than anticipated in jurisdictions where we have higher statutory rates, losses incurred in jurisdictions for which we are not able to realize the related tax benefit, changes in foreign currency exchange rates, entry into new businesses and geographies and changes to our existing businesses, acquisitions (including integrations) and investments, changes in our deferred tax assets and liabilities and their valuation, and changes in the relevant tax, accounting, and other laws, regulations, administrative practices, principles, and interpretations, including fundamental changes to the tax laws applicable to corporate multinationals. The U.S., many countries in the European Union, and several other countries are actively considering changes in this regard.
Changes in our provision for income taxes or adverse outcomes resulting from examination of our income tax returns could adversely affect our results
Our provision for income taxes is subject to volatility and could be adversely affected by earnings being lower than anticipated in countries that have lower tax rates and higher than anticipated in countries that have higher tax rates; by changes in the valuation of our deferred tax assets and liabilities; by changes, regulations, and interpretations of foreign-derived intangible income (FDII), global intangible low-tax income (GILTI) and base erosion and anti-abuse tax laws (BEAT); by expiration of or lapses in tax incentives; by transfer pricing adjustments, including the effect of acquisitions on our legal structure; by tax effects of nondeductible compensation; by tax costs related to intercompany realignments; by changes in accounting principles; or by changes in tax laws and regulations, treaties, or interpretations thereof, including changes to the taxation of earnings of our foreign subsidiaries, the deductibility of expenses attributable to foreign income, and the foreign tax credit rules. Significant judgment is required to determine the recognition and measurement attribute prescribed in the accounting guidance for uncertainty in income taxes. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), an international association comprised of 36 countries, including the United States, has made changes to numerous long-standing tax principles. There can be no assurance that these changes, once adopted by countries, will not have an adverse impact on our provision for income taxes. Further, as a result of certain of our ongoing employment and capital investment actions and commitments, our income in certain countries is subject to reduced tax rates. Our failure to meet these commitments could adversely impact our provision for income taxes. In addition, we are subject of regular examination of our income tax returns by tax authorities. We regularly assess the likelihood of adverse outcomes resulting from these examinations to determine the adequacy of our provision for income taxes. There can be no assurance that the outcomes from these continuous examinations will not have an adverse effect on our operating results and financial condition.
We are exposed to risks associated with worldwide financial markets and the global economy.
Our business depends on the expansion of manufacturing capacity in our end markets and the installation base for the products we sell. In the past, severe tightening of credit markets, turmoil in the financial markets, and a weakening global economy have contributed to slowdowns in the industries in which we operate. Some of our key markets depend largely on consumer spending. Economic uncertainty, such as that recently experienced in the PRC, exacerbates negative trends in consumer spending and may cause our customers to push out, cancel, or refrain from placing orders.
Difficulties in obtaining capital and uncertain market conditions may also lead to a reduction of our sales and greater instances of nonpayment. These conditions may similarly affect our key suppliers, which could affect their ability to deliver parts and result in delays for our products. Further, these conditions and uncertainty about future economic conditions could make it challenging for us to forecast our operating results and evaluate the risks that may affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations. As discussed in "Our orders of raw materials, parts, components, and subassemblies are based on demand forecasts," a significant percentage of our expenses are relatively fixed and based, in part, on expectations of future net sales. If a sudden decrease in demand for our products from one or more customers were to occur, the inability to adjust spending quickly enough to compensate for any shortfall would magnify the adverse impact of a shortfall in net sales on our results of operations. Conversely, if market conditions were to unexpectedly improve and demand for our products were to increase suddenly, we might not be able to respond quickly enough, which could have a negative impact on our results of operations and customer relations.
Our results of operations could be affected by natural disasters and other events in the locations in which we or our customers or suppliers operate.
We have manufacturing and other operations in locations subject to natural occurrences such as severe weather and geological events including earthquakes or tsunamis that could disrupt operations. In addition, our suppliers and customers also have operations in such locations. A natural disaster, fire, explosion, or other event that results in a prolonged disruption to our
operations, or the operations of our customers or suppliers, may materially adversely affect our business, results of operations, or financial condition.
We transitioned a significant amount of our supply base to Asian suppliers.
We transitioned the purchasing of a substantial portion of components for our thin film products to Asian suppliers to lower our materials costs and shipping expenses. These components might require us to incur higher than anticipated testing or repair costs, which would have an adverse effect on our operating results. Customers who have strict and extensive qualification requirements might not accept our products if these lower-cost components do not meet their requirements. A delay or refusal by our customers to accept such products, as well as an inability of our suppliers to meet our purchasing requirements, might require us to purchase higher-priced components from our existing suppliers or might cause us to lose sales to these customers, either of which could lead to decreased revenue and gross margins and have an adverse effect on our results of operations.
We must continually design and introduce new products into the markets we serve to respond to competition and rapid technological changes.
We operate in a highly competitive environment where innovation is critical, our future success depends on many factors, including the effective commercialization and customer acceptance of our products and services. The development, introduction and support of a broadening set of products is critical to our continued success. Our results of operations could be adversely affected if we do not continue to develop new products, improve and develop new applications for existing products, and differentiate our products from those of competitors resulting in their adoption by customers.
We must achieve design wins to retain our existing customers and to obtain new customers, although design wins achieved do not necessarily result in substantial sales.
Driven by continuing technology migration and changing customers demand the markets we serve are constantly changing in terms of advancement in applications, core technology and competitive pressures. New products we design for capital equipment manufacturers typically have a lifespan of five to ten years. Our success and future growth depend on our products being designed into our customers new generations of equipment as they develop new technologies and applications. We must work with these manufacturers early in their design cycles to modify, enhance and upgrade our products or design new products that meet the requirements of their new systems. The design win process is highly competitive and we may win or lose new design wins for our existing customers or new customers next generations of equipment. In case existing or new customers do not choose our products as a result of the development, evaluation and qualification efforts related to the design win process, our market share will be reduced, the potential revenues related to the lifespan of our customers' products, which can be 5-10 years, will not be realized, and our business, financial condition and results of operations would be materially and adversely impacted.
We generally have no long-term contracts with our customers requiring them to purchase any specified quantities from us.
Our sales are primarily made on a purchase order basis, and we generally have no long-term purchase commitments from our customers, which is typical in the industries we serve. As a result, we are limited in our ability to predict the level of future sales or commitments from our current customers, which may diminish our ability to allocate labor, materials, and equipment in the manufacturing process effectively. In addition, we may purchase inventory in anticipation of sales that do not materialize, resulting in excess and obsolete inventory write-offs.
If we are unable to adjust our business strategy successfully for some of our product lines to reflect the increasing price sensitivity on the part of our customers, our business and financial condition could be harmed.
Our business strategy for many of our product lines has been focused on product performance and technology innovation to provide enhanced efficiencies and productivity. As a result of recent economic conditions and changes in various markets that we serve, our customers have experienced significant cost pressures. We have observed increased price sensitivity on the part of our customers. If competition against any of our product lines should come to focus solely on price rather than on product performance and technology innovation, we will need to adjust our business strategy and product offerings accordingly, and if we are unable to do so, our business, financial condition, and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected.
Our competitive position could be weakened if we are unable to convince end users to specify that our products be used in the equipment sold by our customers.
The end users in our markets may direct equipment manufacturers to use a specified supplier’s product in their equipment at a particular facility. This occurs with frequency because our products are critical in manufacturing process control for thin-film applications. Our success, therefore, depends in part on our ability to have end users specify that our products be used at their facilities. In addition, we may encounter difficulties in changing established relationships of competitors that already have a large installed base of products within such facilities.
The markets we operate in are highly competitive.
We face substantial competition, primarily from established companies, some of which have greater financial, marketing, and technical resources than we do. We expect our competitors will continue to develop new products in direct competition with ours, improve the design and performance of their products, and introduce new products with enhanced performance characteristics. In order to remain competitive, we must improve and expand our products and product offerings. In addition, we may need to maintain a high level of investment in research and development and expand our sales and marketing efforts, particularly outside of the United States. We might not be able to make the technological advances and investments necessary to remain competitive. If we were unable to improve and expand our products and product offerings, our business, financial condition, and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected.
A significant portion of our sales and accounts receivable are concentrated among a few customers.
Our ten largest customers accounted for
53.2%
and
69.6%
of our sales for the
three months ended
March 31, 2019
and
2018
, respectively. During the
three months ended
March 31, 2019
, sales to Applied Materials, Inc. and Lam Research were
$36.3 million
and
$19.7 million
, respectively. During the
three months ended
March 31, 2018
sales to Applied Materials, Inc., and Lam Research were
$69.9 million
and
$39.7 million
, respectively. Applied Material, Inc. had a
$27.2 million
and
$34.3 million
accounts receivable balance as of
March 31, 2019
and
December 31, 2018
, respectively. Lam Research had a
$11.9 million
and
$12.2 million
accounts receivable balance as of
March 31, 2019
and
December 31, 2018
, respectively. A significant decline in sales from either or both customers, or the Company's inability to collect on these sales, could materially and adversely impact our business, results of operations and financial condition.
We maintain significant amounts of cash in international locations.
Given the global nature of our business, we have both domestic and international concentrations of cash and investments. The value of our cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities can be negatively affected by liquidity, credit deterioration, financial results, economic risk, political risk, sovereign risk or other factors. The Company intends to utilize its foreign cash to expand our international operations through internal growth and strategic acquisitions. If our intent changes or if these funds are needed for our U.S. operations, or we are negatively impacted by any of the factors above, our financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.
We are subject to risks inherent in international operations.
Sales to our customers outside the United States were approximately
58.9%
and
45.2%
of our total sales for the
three months ended
March 31, 2019
and
2018
, respectively. The acquisitions of the power controls modules and high and low voltage product lines have increased our presence in international locations. Our success producing goods internationally and competing in international markets is subject to our ability to manage various risks and difficulties, including, but not limited to:
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our ability to effectively manage our employees at remote locations who are operating in different business environments from the United States;
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our ability to develop and maintain relationships with suppliers and other local businesses;
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compliance with product safety requirements and standards that are different from those of the United States;
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variations and changes in laws applicable to our operations in different jurisdictions, including enforceability of intellectual property and contract rights;
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trade restrictions, political instability, disruptions in financial markets, and deterioration of economic conditions;
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customs regulations and the import and export of goods (including customs audits in various countries that occur from time to time);
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the ability to provide sufficient levels of technical support in different locations;
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our ability to obtain business licenses that may be needed in international locations to support expanded operations;
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timely collecting accounts receivable from foreign customers including
$23.6 million
in accounts receivable from foreign customers as of
March 31, 2019
; and
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changes in tariffs, taxes, and foreign currency exchange rates.
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Our profitability and ability to implement our business strategies, maintain market share and compete successfully in international markets will be compromised if we are unable to manage these and other international risks successfully.
Globalization of sales increases risk of compliance with policy.
We operate in an increasingly complex sales environment around the world which places greater importance on our global control environment and imposes additional oversight risk. Such increased complexity could adversely affect our operating results by increasing compliance costs in the near-term and by increasing the risk of control failures in the event of non-compliance.
Market pressures and increased low-cost competition may reduce or eliminate our profitability.
Our customers continually exert pressure on us to reduce our prices and extend payment terms. Given the nature of our customer base and the highly competitive markets in which we compete, we may be required to reduce our prices or extend
payment terms to remain competitive. We have recently seen pricing pressure from our largest customers due in part to low-cost competition and market consolidation. As a result of the competitive markets we serve, from time to time we may enter into long term pricing agreements with our largest customers that results in reduced product pricing. Such reduced product pricing may result in product margin declines unless we are successful in reducing our product costs ahead of such price reductions. We believe some of our Asian competitors benefit from local governmental funding incentives and purchasing preferences from end-user customers in their respective countries. Moreover, in order to be successful in the current competitive environment, we are required to accelerate our investment in research & development to meet time-to-market, performance and technology adoption cycle needs of our customers simply in order to compete for design wins, and if successful, receive potential purchase orders. Given such up-front investments we must make and the competitive nature of our markets, we may not be able to reduce our expenses in an amount sufficient to offset potential margin declines or loss of business and may not be able to meet customer product time-line expectations. The potential decrease in cash flow could materially and adversely impact our financial condition.
We are highly dependent on our intellectual property.
Our success depends significantly on our proprietary technology. We attempt to protect our intellectual property rights through patents and non-disclosure agreements; however, we might not be able to protect our technology, and competitors might be able to develop similar technology independently. In addition, the laws of some foreign countries might not afford our intellectual property the same protections as do the laws of the United States. Our intellectual property is not protected by patents in several countries in which we do business, and we have limited patent protection in other countries, including the PRC. The cost of applying for patents in foreign countries and translating the applications into foreign languages requires us to select carefully the inventions for which we apply for patent protection and the countries in which we seek such protection. Generally, our efforts to obtain international patents have been concentrated in the European Union and certain industrialized countries in Asia, including Korea, Japan, and Taiwan. If we are unable to protect our intellectual property successfully, our business, financial condition, and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected.
The PRC commercial law is relatively undeveloped compared to the commercial law in the United States. Limited protection of intellectual property is available under PRC law. Consequently, manufacturing our products in the PRC may subject us to an increased risk that unauthorized parties may attempt to copy our products or otherwise obtain or use our intellectual property. We may not be able to protect our intellectual property rights effectively. Additionally, we may not have adequate legal recourse if we encounter infringements of our intellectual property in the PRC.
Our legacy inverter products may suffer higher than anticipated litigation, damage or warranty claims.
Our legacy inverter products (of which we discontinued the manufacture, engineering, and sale in December 2015 and which are reflected as Discontinued Operations in this filing) contain components that may contain errors or defects and were sold with original product warranties ranging from one to ten years with an option to purchase additional warranty coverage for up to 20 years. If any of our products are defective or fail because of their design, we might be required to repair, redesign or recall those products or to pay damages (including liquidated damages) or warranty claims, and we could suffer significant harm to our reputation. We are experiencing claims from customers and suppliers and in some cases, litigation related to the legacy inverter product line. We review such claims and vigorously defend against such lawsuits in the ordinary course of our business. We cannot assure that any such claims or litigation brought against us will not have a material adverse effect on our business or financial statements. Our involvement in such litigation could result in significant expense to us and divert the efforts of our technical and management personnel. We also accrue a warranty reserve for estimated costs to provide warranty services including the cost of technical support, product repairs, and product replacement for units that cannot be repaired. Our estimate of costs to fulfill our warranty obligations is based on historical experience and expectation of future conditions. To the extent we experience increased warranty claim activity or increased costs associated with servicing those claims, our warranty accrual will increase, resulting in additional expenses in the line "Income (loss) from discontinued operations, net of tax” on our Consolidated Statement of Operations in future periods. We plan to continue supporting inverter customers with service maintenance and repair operations. This includes performing service to fulfill obligations under existing service maintenance contracts. There is no certainty that these can be performed profitably and could be adversely affected by higher than anticipated product failure rates, loss of critical service technician skills, an inability to obtain service parts, customer demands and disputes and cost of repair parts, among other factors. See
Note 4. Discontinued Operations
in Part I, Item 1 "Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements" contained herein.
Our products may suffer from defects or errors leading to damage or warranty claims.
Our products use complex system designs and components that may contain errors or defects, particularly when we incorporate new technology into our products or release new versions. If any of our products are defective or fail because of their design, we might be required to repair, redesign or recall those products, pay damages (including liquidated damages) or warranty claims, and we could suffer significant harm to our reputation. We accrue a warranty reserve for estimated costs to provide warranty services including the cost of technical support, product repairs, and product replacement for units that cannot be repaired. Our
estimate of costs to fulfill our warranty obligations is based on historical experience and expectation of future conditions. To the extent we experience increased warranty claim activity or increased costs associated with servicing those claims, our warranty accrual will increase, resulting in decreased gross profit. In recent years, we have experienced increased warranty costs for our legacy inverter product lines, which is reflected in "Income from discontinued operations, net of income taxes." See
Note 4. Discontinued Operations
in Part I, Item 1 "Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements" contained herein.
Unfavorable currency exchange rate fluctuations may lead to lower operating margins, or may cause us to raise prices, which could result in reduced sales.
Currency exchange rate fluctuations could have an adverse effect on our sales and results of operations, and we could experience losses with respect to forward exchange contracts into which we may enter. Unfavorable currency fluctuations could require us to increase prices to foreign customers, which could result in lower net sales by us to such customers. Alternatively, if we do not adjust the prices for our products in response to unfavorable currency fluctuations, our results of operations could be materially and adversely affected. In addition, most sales made by our foreign subsidiaries are denominated in the currency of the country in which these products are sold and the currency in which they receive payment for such sales could be less valuable at the time of receipt as a result of exchange rate fluctuations. Given recent acquisitions in Europe, our exposure to fluctuations in the value of the Euro is becoming more significant. From time to time, we enter into forward exchange contracts and local currency purchased options to reduce currency exposures related to likely or pending transactions including those arising from intercompany sales of inventory. However, we cannot be certain that our efforts will be adequate to protect us against significant currency fluctuations or that such efforts will not expose us to additional exchange rate risks, which could materially and adversely affect our results of operations.
Recent developments relating to the United Kingdom's referendum vote in favor of leaving the European Union and related actions could adversely affect us.
On June 23, 2016, the United Kingdom (UK) held a referendum in which voters approved an exit from the European Union ("EU"). On March 29, 2017, the UK's ambassador to the EU delivered a letter to the president of the European Council that gave formal notice under Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty of UK's withdrawal from the EU, commonly referred to as "Brexit". As a result, negotiations have commenced to determine the terms of the UK's withdrawal from the EU as well as its relationship with the EU going forward, including the terms of trade between the UK and the EU. Although it is unknown what those terms will be, it is possible that there will be greater restrictions on imports and exports between the UK and EU countries and increased regulatory complexities. These changes may adversely affect our sales, operations and financial results. Our operations in the UK may be adversely affected by extreme fluctuations in the UK exchange rates. Moreover, the imposition of any import restrictions and duties levied on our UK products as imported for EU customers may make our products more expensive for such customers and less competitive from a pricing perspective.
Changes in the value of the Chinese yuan could impact the cost of our operation in Shenzhen, PRC and our sales growth in our PRC markets.
The PRC government is continually pressured by its trading partners to allow its currency to float in a manner like other major currencies. Any change in the value of the Chinese yuan may impact our ability to control the cost of our products in the world market. Specifically, the decision by the PRC government to allow the yuan to begin to float against the United States dollar could significantly increase the labor and other costs incurred in the operation of our Shenzhen facility and the cost of raw materials, parts, components, and subassemblies that we source in the PRC, thereby having a material and adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.
Difficulties with our enterprise resource planning ("ERP") system and other parts of our global information technology system could harm our business and results of operation.
Like many multinational corporations, we maintain a global information technology system, including software products licensed from third parties. Any system, network or Internet failures, misuse by system users, the hacking into or disruption caused by unauthorized access or loss of license rights could disrupt our ability to timely and accurately manufacture and ship products or to report our financial information in compliance with the timelines mandated by the SEC. Any such failure, misuse, hacking, disruptions or loss would likely cause a diversion of management's attention from the underlying business and could harm our operations. In addition, a significant failure of our global information technology system could adversely affect our ability to complete an evaluation of our internal controls and attestation activities pursuant to Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.
If our network security measures are breached and unauthorized access is obtained to a customer's data or our data or our information technology systems, we may incur significant legal and financial exposure and liabilities.
As part of our day-to-day business, we store our data and certain data about our customers in our global information technology system. Unauthorized access to our data, including any regarding our customers, could expose us to a risk of loss of this information, loss of business, litigation and possible liability. These security measures may be breached by intentional misconduct by computer hackers, as a result of third-party action, employee error, malfeasance or otherwise. Additionally, third parties may attempt to fraudulently induce employees or customers into disclosing sensitive information such as user names, passwords or other information in order to gain access to our customers' data or our data, including our intellectual property and other confidential business information, or our information technology systems. Because the techniques used to obtain unauthorized access, or to sabotage systems, change frequently and generally are not recognized until launched against a target, we may be unable to anticipate these techniques or to implement adequate preventative measures. Any security breach could result in a loss of confidence by our customers, damage our reputation, disrupt our business, lead to legal liability and negatively impact our future sales.
Our business is subject to complex and evolving U.S. and international laws and regulations regarding privacy and data protection. Many of these laws and regulations are subject to change and uncertain interpretation and could result in claims, changes to our business practices, penalties, increased cost of operations, or declines in user growth or engagement, or otherwise harm our business.
Regulatory authorities around the world are considering several legislative and regulatory proposals concerning data protection, including measures to ensure that encryption of users’ data does not hinder law enforcement agencies’ access to that data. In addition, the interpretation and application of consumer and data protection laws in the U.S., Europe and elsewhere are often uncertain and in flux. It is possible that these laws may be interpreted and applied in a manner that is inconsistent with our data practices. These legislative and regulatory proposals, if adopted, and such interpretations could, in addition to the possibility of fines, result in an order requiring that we change our data practices, which could have an adverse effect on our business and results of operations. Complying with these various laws could cause us to incur substantial costs or require us to change our business practices in a manner adverse to our business.
Recent legal developments in Europe have created compliance uncertainty regarding certain transfers of personal data from Europe to the United States. For example, the General Data Protection Regulation ("GDPR"), effective in the EU starting on May 25, 2018, applies to all of our activities conducted from an establishment in the EU or related to products and services that we offer to EU users. The GDPR creates a range of new compliance obligations, which could cause us to change our business practices, and will significantly increase financial penalties for noncompliance (including possible fines of up to 4% of global annual turnover for the preceding financial year or €20 million (whichever is higher) for the most serious infringements).
The loss of any of our key personnel could significantly harm our results of operations and competitive position.
Our success depends to a significant degree upon the continuing contributions of our key management, technical, marketing, and sales employees. We may not be successful in retaining our key employees or attracting or retaining additional skilled personnel as required. Failure to retain or attract key personnel could significantly harm our results of operations and competitive position. Our success in hiring and retaining employees depends on a variety of factors, including the attractiveness of our compensation and benefit programs, global economic or political and industry conditions, our organizational structure, our reputation, culture and working environment, competition for talent and the availability of qualified employees, the availability of career development opportunities, and our ability to offer a challenging and rewarding work environment. We must develop our personnel to provide succession plans capable of maintaining continuity during the inevitable unpredictability of personnel retention. While we have plans for key management succession and long-term compensation plans designed to retain our senior employees, if our succession plans do not operate effectively, our business could be adversely affected.
Deterioration of demand for our inverter services could negatively impact our business.
Our business may be adversely affected by changes in national or global demand for our inverter service repair capabilities. Any such changes could adversely affect the carrying amount of our inverter service inventories, thereby negatively affecting our financial results from Continuing Operations.
We have been, and in the future may again be, involved in litigation. Litigation is costly and could result in further restrictions on our ability to conduct business or make use of market relationships we have developed, or an inability to prevent others from using technology.
Litigation may be necessary to enforce our commercial or property rights, to defend ourselves against claimed violations of such rights of others, or to protect our interests in regulatory, tax, customs, commercial, and other disputes or similar matters. Litigation often requires a substantial amount of our management's time and attention, as well as financial and other resources, including:
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substantial costs in the form of legal fees, fines, and royalty payments;
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restrictions on our ability to sell certain products or in certain markets;
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an inability to prevent others from using technology we have developed; and
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a need to redesign products or seek alternative marketing strategies.
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Any of these events could have a significant adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations.
Return on investments or interest rate declines on plan investments could result in additional unfunded pension obligations for our pension plan.
We currently have unfunded obligations to our pension plans. The extent of future contributions to the pension plan depends heavily on market factors such as the discount rate used to calculate our future obligations and the actual return on plan assets which enable future payments. We estimate future contributions to the plan using assumptions with respect to these and other items. Changes to those assumptions could have a significant effect on future contributions. Additionally, a material deterioration in the funded status of the plan could increase pension expenses and reduce our profitability. See
Note 17. Pension Liability
in Part I, Item 1 "Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements" contained herein.
Funds associated with our marketable securities that we have traditionally held as short-term investments may not be liquid or readily available.
In the past, certain of our investments have been affected by external market conditions that impacted the liquidity of the investment. We do not currently have investments with reduced liquidity, but external market conditions that we cannot anticipate or mitigate may impact the liquidity of our marketable securities. Any changes in the liquidity associated with these investments may require us to borrow funds at terms that are not favorable or repatriate cash from international locations at a significant cost. We cannot be certain that we will be able to borrow funds or continue to repatriate cash on favorable terms, or at all. If we are unable to do so, our available cash may be reduced until those investments can be liquidated. The lack of available cash may prevent us from taking advantage of business opportunities that arise and may prevent us from executing some of our business plans, either of which could cause our business, financial condition or results of operations to be materially and adversely affected.
Our intangible assets may become impaired.
As of
March 31, 2019
, we have
$101.3 million
of goodwill and
$52.9 million
in intangible assets. We periodically review the estimated useful lives of our identifiable intangible assets, taking into consideration any events or circumstances that might result in either a diminished fair value, or for intangible assets, a revised useful life. The events and circumstances include significant changes in the business climate, legal factors, operating performance indicators, and competition. Any impairment or revised useful life could have a material and adverse effect on our financial position and results of operations and could harm the trading price of our common stock.
We are subject to numerous governmental regulations.
We are subject to federal, state, local and foreign regulations, including environmental regulations and regulations relating to the design and operation of our products and control systems and regulations governing the import, export and customs duties related to our products. We might incur significant costs as we seek to ensure that our products meet safety and emissions standards, many of which vary across the states and countries in which our products are used. In the past, we have invested significant resources to redesign our products to comply with these directives. Compliance with future regulations, directives, and standards could require us to modify or redesign some products, make capital expenditures, or incur substantial costs. Also, we may incur significant costs in complying with the numerous import, export and customs regulations as we seek to sell our products internationally. If we do not comply with current or future regulations, directives, and standards:
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we could be subject to fines and penalties;
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our production or shipments could be suspended; and
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we could be prohibited from offering particular products in specified markets.
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If we were unable to comply with current or future regulations, directives and standards, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected.
Financial reform legislation will result in new laws and regulations that may increase our costs of operations.
The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the "Dodd-Frank Act") requires various federal agencies to adopt a broad range of new implementing rules and regulations, and to prepare numerous studies and reports for Congress. On August 22, 2012, under the Dodd-Frank Act, the SEC adopted new requirements for companies that use certain minerals and metals, known as conflict minerals, in their products, whether or not these products are manufactured by third parties. These requirements require companies to perform due diligence, disclose and report whether or not such minerals originate from the Democratic Republic of Congo and adjoining countries. We must perform sufficient due diligence to determine whether such minerals are used in the manufacture of our products. However, the implementation of these requirements could adversely affect the sourcing, availability and pricing of such minerals if they are found to be used in the manufacture of our products. In addition, we incur costs to comply with the disclosure requirements, including costs related to determining the source of any of the relevant minerals and metals used in our products. Since our supply chain is complex, we may not be able to sufficiently verify the origins for these minerals and metals used in our products through the due diligence procedures that we implement, which may harm our reputation. In such event, we may also face difficulties in satisfying customers who require that all of the components of our products are certified as conflict mineral free.
The market price of our common stock has fluctuated and may continue to fluctuate for reasons over which we have no control.
The stock market has from time to time experienced, and is likely to continue to experience, extreme price and volume fluctuations. Prices of securities of technology companies have been especially volatile and have often fluctuated for reasons that are unrelated to their operating performance. In the past, companies that have experienced volatility in the market price of their stock have been the subject of securities class action litigation. If we were the subject of securities class action litigation, it could result in substantial costs and a diversion of management’s attention and resources.
Our operating results are subject to fluctuations, and if we fail to meet the expectations of securities analysts or investors, our share price may decrease significantly
.
Our annual and quarterly results may vary significantly depending on various factors, many of which are beyond our control. Because our operating expenses are based on anticipated revenue levels, our sales cycle for development work is relatively long, and a high percentage of our expenses are fixed for the short term, a small variation in the timing of recognition of revenue can cause significant variations in operating results from period to period. If our earnings do not meet the expectations of securities analysts or investors, the price of our stock could decline.
Deterioration of economic conditions could negatively impact our business.
Our business may be adversely affected by changes in national or global economic conditions, including inflation, interest rates, availability of capital markets, consumer spending rates, energy availability and costs (including fuel surcharges) and the effects of governmental initiatives to manage economic conditions. Any such changes could adversely affect the demand for our products both in domestic and export markets, or the cost and availability of our needed raw materials and packaging materials, thereby negatively affecting our financial results.
A disruption in credit and other financial markets and deterioration of national and global economic conditions, could, among other things:
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negatively impact global demand for our products, which could result in a reduction of sales, operating income and cash flows;
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make it more difficult or costly for us to obtain financing for our operations or investments or to refinance our debt in the future;
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cause our lenders to depart from prior credit industry practice and make more difficult or expensive the granting of any technical or other waivers under our debt agreements to the extent we may seek them in the future;
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decrease the value of our investments; and
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impair the financial viability of our insurers.
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