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ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS
For risk factors relating to our business, please refer to the section entitled Risk Factors in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024 and filed by us with the SEC. Any of those factors could result in a significant or material adverse effect on our results of operations or financial condition. Additional risk factors not presently known to us or that we currently deem immaterial may also impair our business or results of
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operations. We may disclose changes to such factors or disclose additional factors from time to time in our future filings with the SEC.
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The following risk factors supplement and should be read in conjunction with those risk factors referenced above.
Risks Related to Our Government Contracts
Our business with various governmental entities is subject to the policies, priorities, regulations, mandates, and funding levels of such governmental entities and may be negatively impacted by any change thereto.
We have contracts with the U.S. government, and we may enter into additional contracts with the U.S. government in the future, and this subjects a large part of our business to statutes and regulations applicable to companies doing business with the government, including the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR). The following risk factors supplse government contracts customarily contain provisions that give the government substantial, and sometimes unilateral, rights and remedies, many of which are not typically found in commercial contracts and which are unfavorable to contractors. The provisions in U.S. government contracts must be complied with in order for the contract to be awarded and provide for government audits and reviews of contract procurement, performance and administration.
For instance, the U.S. government will often have the right to unilaterally modify contracts and always has the option to terminate contracts for convenience, and in that event, the counterparty to the contract may generally recover only its incurred or committed costs and settlement expenses and profit on work completed prior to the termination. If the government terminates a contract for default, the defaulting party may be liable for any extra costs incurred by the government in procuring undelivered items from another source.
Government contracts often also contain provisions and are subject to laws and regulations that provide government customers with additional rights and rement adies not typically found should be read in conjunction with those risk fin commercial contracts. These rights and remedies allow government customers, among other things, to:
Terminate existing contracts for convenience with no prior notice;
Reduce orders under or otherwise modify contracts unilaterally;
For contracts subject to the Truthful Cost or Pricing Data Act, reduce the contract price or cost where it was increased because a contractor or subcontractor furnished cost or pricing data during negotiations that was not current, accurate, and complete;
For some contracts, (i) demand a refund, make a forward price adjustment, or terminate a contract for default if a contractor provided inaccurate or incomplete data during the contract negotiation process and (ii) reduce the contract price under triggering circumstances, including the revision of price lists or other documents upon which the contract award was predicated;
Cancel multi-year contracts and related orders if funds for contract performance for any subsequent year become unavailable, or if government programs are subject to a continuing resolution;
Decline to exercise an option on a multi-year contract;
Claim rights in solutions, systems, or technology produced by us, appropriate such work-product for their continued use without continuing to contractors referenced abo for our services, and disclose such work-product to third parties, including other government agencies and our competitors, which could harm our competitive position;
Prohibit future procurement awards with a particular agency due to a finding of organizational conflicts of interest;
Subject the award of contracts to protest by competitors, which may require the contracting federal agency or department to suspend our performance pending the outcome of the protest and may also result in a
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requirement to resubmit offers for the contract or in the termination, reduction, or modification of the awarded contract;
Suspend or debar us from doing business with the applicable gove.
rnment; and
Control or prohibit the export of our products, intellectual property or services.
In addition, government contracts normally contain additional requirements that may increase our costs of doing business, reduce our gross margins, and expose us to liability for failure to comply with these terms and conditions.
These requirements include, for example:
specialized disclosure and accounting requirements unique to government contracts;
financial and compliance audits that may result in potential liability or price adjustments, recoupment of government funds for misapplication or identification of costs, civil and criminal penalties, or administrative sanctions such as suspension or debarment from doing business with the U.S. government;
public disclosures of certain contract and company information;
mandatory socioeconomic compliance requirements, including labor requirements, non-discrimination and affirmative action programs and environmental compliance requirements; and
requirements to procure certain materials, components and parts from specific countries or supply sources approved by the customer.
Government contracts are also generally subject to greater scrutiny by the government, which can initiate reviews, audits and investigations regarding our compliance with government contract requirements. New regulations or procurement requirements (including, for example regulations regarding counterfeit and corrupt parts, supply chain diligence and cybersecurity) or changes to current requirements could increase our costs and risk of non-compliance. In addition, if we fail to comply with government contracting laws, regulations and contract requirements, our contracts may be subject to termination, and we may be subject to financial and/or other liability under our contracts, the Federal Civil False Claims Act (including treble damages and other penalties), or criminal law. In particular, the False Claims Acts whistleblower provisions also allow private individuals, including present and former employees, to sue on behalf of the U.S. government. Any penalties, damages, fines, suspension, or damages could adversely affect our ability to operate our business and our financial results.
Our role as a contractor to agencies and departments of the U.S. government results in our being routinely subject to investigations and reviews relating to compliance with various laws and regulations, including those associated with organizational conflicts of interest, procurement integrity, bid integrity and claim presentation, among others. These investigations may be conducted without our knowledge. Adverse findings in these investigations or reviews can lead to criminal, civil or administrative proceedings, and we could face civil and criminal penalties and administrative sanctions, including termination of contracts, forfeiture of profits, suspension of payments, fines and suspension or debarment from doing business with U.S. government agencies. In addition, we could suffer serious harm to our reputation and competitive position if allegations of impropriety were made against us, whether or not true, and as a result there could be an adverse impact on our revenue, earnings and cash flow.
Further, changes in government policies, priorities, regulations, use of other commercial data providers to meet U.S. government imagery needs, government agency mandates, funding levels through agency budget reductions, the imposition of budgetary constraints or a decline in government support or deferment of funding for programs in which we or our customers participate could result in contract terminations, delays in contract awards, reduction in contract scope and/or value, the failure to exercise contract options or issue new delivery orders, the cancellation of planned procurements and fewer new business opportunities, all of which could negatively impact our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. In addition, continued uncertainty related to recent and future disruptions in U.S. federal government operations, such as government shutdowns, the U.S. budget and/or failure of the U.S. government to enact annual appropriations, could have an adverse impact on our revenue,
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earnings and cash flow and may negatively impact regulatory approvals and guidance that are important to our operations. For example, in Q3 2025, due to a reduction in funds available to certain government programs, certain of our government contracts were reduced in value and/or experienced a decline in new delivery orders. As a result of the government shutdown, delays in enacting an annual FY26 federal government appropriation, or otherwise, we may experience additional reduction in contract value and/or delivery orders in the future.
Our customers also include non-U.S. governments. Similar procurement, budgetary, contract, and audit risks that apply in the context of U.S. government contracting may also apply to our doing business with these entities. In addition, compliance with complex regulations and contracting provisions in a variety of jurisdictions can be expensive and consume significant management resources.
Risks Related to Our Indebtedness and Alternative Financings
Our ability to generate the amount of cash needed to pay interest and principal on our outstanding indebtedness and our ability to refinance all or a portion of our indebtedness or obtain additional financing depend on many factors beyond our control.
Our ability to make scheduled payments on, or to refinance our obligations under, our existing debt agreements including convertible notes, depends on our financial and operating performance and prevailing economic and competitive conditions.
If our cash flows and capital resources are insufficient to fund our debt service obligations, we may be forced to reduce or delay capital expenditures, sell assets, restructure our debt, or obtain additional equity capital or debt financing on terms that may be onerous or highly dilutive. However, there is no assurance that such alternative measures may be successful or permitted under the agreements governing our indebtedness and, as a result, we may not be able to meet our scheduled debt service obligations. In the absence of such results of operations and resources, we could face substantial liquidity problems and might be required to dispose of material assets or operations to meet our debt service and other obligations, which could harm our business, financial condition, and results of operations.
We cannot guarantee that we will be able to refinance our indebtedness or obtain additional financing on satisfactory terms or at all, including due to existing liens on our assets or our level of indebtedness and the debt incurrence restrictions imposed by the agreements governing our indebtedness. In addition, any of our future debt agreements may contain restrictive covenants that may prohibit us from adopting any of these alternatives. Our failure to comply with these covenants could result in an event of default which, if not cured or waived, could result in the acceleration of our debt.
Further, the cost and availability of credit are subject to changes in the economic and business environment. If conditions in major credit markets deteriorate, our ability to refinance our indebtedness or obtain additional financing on satisfactory terms, or at all, may be negatively affected.
In addition, upon conversion of the notes, unless we elect to deliver solely shares of our Class A common stock to settle such conversion (other than paying cash in lieu of delivering any fractional share), we will be required to make cash payments in respect of the notes being converted. However, we may not have enough available cash or be able to obtain financing at the time we are required to make repurchases of notes surrendered therefor or pay cash with respect to notes being converted. In addition, our ability to repurchase the notes or to pay cash upon conversions of the notes may be limited by law, by regulatory authority or by agreements governing our then-existing indebtedness. Our failure to repurchase notes at a time when the repurchase is required by the indenture covering the notes (the Indenture) or to pay any cash payable on future conversions of the notes as required by the Indenture would constitute a default under the Indenture. A default under the Indenture or the fundamental change itself could also lead to a default under agreements governing our then-existing indebtedness. If the repayment of the related indebtedness were to be accelerated after any applicable notice or grace periods, we may not have sufficient funds to repay the indebtedness and repurchase the notes or make cash payments upon conversions thereof.
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The agreements governing our debt permit us, under some circumstances, to incur certain additional indebtedness or obligations. To the extent that we incur additional indebtedness or such other obligations, the risks associated with our leverage described above, including our possible inability to service our debt, would increase.
Conversion of the notes may dilute the ownership interest of our stockholders or may otherwise depress the price of our Class A common stock.
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The conversion of some or all of the convertible notes may dilute the ownership interests of our stockholders. Upon conversion of the notes, we have the option to pay or deliver, as the case may be, cash, shares of our Class A common stock, or a combination of cash and shares of our Class A common stock. If we elect to settle our conversion obligation in shares of our Class A common stock or a combination of cash and shares of our Class A common stock, any sales in the public market of our Class A common stock issuable upon such conversion could adversely affect prevailing market prices of our Class A common stock. In addition, the existence of the notes may encourage short selling by market participants because the conversion of the notes could be used to satisfy short positions, or anticipated conversion of the notes into shares of our Class A common stock could depress the price of our Class A common stock.
Risks Relating to Ownership of Our Class A Common Stock
Our stock price may fluctuate significantly and you could lose all or part of your investment as a result.
The trading price of our Class A common stock has been, and may continue to be, volatile. The stock market has experienced extreme volatility in the past and may experience similar volatility moving forward. This volatility often has been unrelated or disproportionate to the operating performance of particular companies. You may not be able to resell your shares at an attractive price due to a number of factors such as those listed in this Risk Factors section and the following:
results of operations that vary from the expectations of securities analysts and investors;
results of operations that vary from those of our competitors;
changes in expectations as to our future financial performance, including financial estimates and investment recommendations by securities analysts and investors;
declines in the market prices of stocks generally;
recent and future disruptions in U.S. federal government operations and continued uncertainty regarding government policies, budget and appropriation decisions and processes, including with respect to defense spending, as a result of administration changes, recent Executive Orders and newly enacted laws, geopolitical events and macroeconomic conditions;
strategic actions by us or our competitors;
announcements by us or our competitors of significant contracts, acquisitions, joint ventures, other strategic relationships or capital commitments;
any significant change in our management;
changes in general economic or market conditions or trends in our industry or markets;
changes in business or regulatory conditions, including new laws or regulations or new interpretations of existing laws or regulations applicable to our business;
future sales of our Class A common stock or other securities;
investor perceptions or the investment opportunity associated with our Class A common stock relative to other investment alternatives;
the publics response to press releases or other public announcements by us or third parties, including our filings with the SEC;
litigation involving us, our industry, or both, or investigations by regulators into our operations or those of our competitors;
guidance, if any, that we provide to the public, any changes in this guidance or our failure to meet this guidance;
the development and sustainability of an active trading market for our stock;
actions by institutional or activist stockholders;
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changes in accounting standards, policies, guidelines, interpretations or principles;
general economic and political conditions such as recessions, interest rates, fuel prices, changes in laws and policies affecting trade, including tariffs and trade wars, pandemics, currency fluctuations and acts of war (including ongoing geopolitical tensions, resulting sanctions imposed by the United States and other countries, and retaliatory actions taken by other countries in response to such sanctions) or terrorism; and
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the effects of natural disasters, terrorist attacks and the spread and/or abatement of infectious diseases, including with respect to potential operational disruptions, labor disruptions, increased costs, and impacts to demand related thereto.
These broad market and industry fluctuations may adversely affect the market price of our Class A common stock, regardless of our actual operating performance. In addition, price volatility may be greater if the public float and trading volume of our Class A common stock is low.
In the past, following periods of market volatility, stockholders have instituted securities class action litigation. If we are involved in securities litigation, it could have a substantial cost and divert resources and the attention of our executive management from our business regardless of the outcome of such litigation. See Item 3. Legal Proceedings and Note 15 Commitments and Contingencies of the notes to the consolidated financial statements for a discussion of current litigation.
If the estimates we make, or the assumptions on which we rely, in preparing our condensed consolidated financial statements are incorrect, our actual results may vary from those reflected in our projections and accruals.
Our condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles in the United States of America (GAAP). The preparation of these condensed consolidated financial statements requires us to make estimates and judgments that affect the reported amounts of our assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses, and related disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities. We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions that we believe to be reasonable under the circumstances. We cannot assure you, however, that our estimates, or the assumptions underlying them, will be correct.
Further, from time to time we issue financial guidance relating to our expectations for certain financial measures, which guidance is based on estimates and the judgment of management. If, for any reason, our expectations differ materially from our guidance, we may have to adjust our publicly announced financial guidance. If we fail to meet, or if we are required to change or update any element of, our publicly disclosed financial guidance or other expectations about our business, our Class A common stock price could decline.
We currently benefit from smaller reporting company status pursuant to the rules and regulations promulgated under the Exchange Act, and the reduced disclosure requirements applicable to smaller reporting companies could make it more difficult to compare our performance with other public companies and make our Class A common stock less attractive to investors.
We currently benefit from smaller reporting company (SRC) status and we currently are a non-accelerated filer; therefore, we are eligible for and have in the past taken advantage of exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not SRCs or non-accelerated filers, including:
reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K, and proxy statements; and
providing only two years of audited financial statements in our periodic reports, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K.
We will continue to benefit from SRC status until the earlier of:
the last day of the fiscal year in which the market value of our Class A common stock held by non-affiliates is equal to or exceeds $250 million as of the end of that fiscal years second quarter; or
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our annual revenue for the prior fiscal year was equal to or exceeded $100 million; or the last day of the fiscal year in which the market value of our Class A common stock held by non-affiliates is equal to or exceeds $700 million as of the end of that fiscal years second quarter.
To the extent we take advantage of the exemptions afforded SRCs and non-accelerated filers, our stockholders may not have access to certain information that they may deem important and a comparison of our financial statements to those of other public companies may be difficult or impossible. We cannot predict if investors will find
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our Class A common stock less attractive if we choose to rely on any of these exemptions. If some investors find our Class A common stock less attractive because we rely on any of these exemptions, there may be a less active trading market for our Class A common stock and our stock price may be more volatile and may decline. We will no longer be able to benefit from SRC status for filings for periods beginning with January 1, 2026.
Anti-takeover provisions in our organizational documents and in the Indenture could delay or prevent a change of control.
Certain provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws may have an anti-takeover effect and may delay, defer or prevent a merger, acquisition, tender offer, takeover attempt or other change of control transaction that a stockholder might consider in its best interest, including those attempts that might result in a premium over the market price for the shares held by our stockholders.
These provisions provide for, among other things:
a classified board of directors whose members serve staggered three-year terms;
the ability of our board of directors to issue one or more series of preferred stock;
advance notice for nominations of directors by stockholders and for stockholders to include matters to be considered at our annual meetings;
certain limitations on convening special stockholder meetings;
limiting the ability of stockholders to act by written consent;
providing that our board of directors is expressly authorized to make, alter or repeal our bylaws; and
the removal of directors only for cause and only upon the affirmative vote of holders of at least 66 2/3% of the voting power of our issued and outstanding capital stock entitled to vote in the election of directors, voting together as a single class.
Certain provisions in the Indenture may also make it more difficult or expensive for a third party to acquire us. For example, the Indenture requires us, in certain circumstances, to repurchase the notes for cash upon the occurrence of a fundamental change and, in certain circumstances, to increase the conversion rate for a holder that converts its notes in connection with a make-whole fundamental change. A takeover of us may trigger the requirement that we repurchase the notes and/or increase the conversion rate, which could make it more costly for a potential acquirer to engage in such takeover. Such additional costs may have the effect of delaying or preventing a takeover of us that would otherwise be beneficial to investors.
These anti-takeover provisions could make it more difficult for a third party to acquire us, even if the third-partys offer may be considered beneficial by many of our stockholders. As a result, our stockholders may be limited in their ability to obtain a premium for their shares. These provisions could also discourage proxy contests and make it more difficult for you and other stockholders to elect directors of your choosing and to cause us to take other corporate actions you desire. See Description of Securities filed as an Exhibit to our Annual Report on Form 10-K and the Indenture filed as an Exhibit to this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for more information.
Because there are no current plans to pay cash dividends on our Class A common stock for the foreseeable future, you may not receive any return on investment unless you sell your Class A common stock for a price greater than that which you effectively paid for it.
We intend to retain future earnings, if any, for future operations, expansion and debt repayment and there are no current plans to pay any cash dividends for the foreseeable future. The declaration, amount and payment of any
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future dividends on shares of our Class A common stock will be at the sole discretion of our board of directors. Our board of directors may take into account general and economic conditions, our financial condition and results of operations, our available cash and current and anticipated cash needs, capital requirements, contractual, legal, tax, and regulatory restrictions, implications on the payment of dividends by us to our stockholders or by our subsidiaries to us and such other factors as our board of directors may deem relevant. In addition, our ability to pay dividends is limited by covenants of our existing and outstanding indebtedness and may be limited by covenants of any future
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indebtedness we incur. As a result, you may not receive any return on an investment in our Class A common stock unless you sell our Class A common stock for a price greater than that which you effectively paid for it.