Innovex International (INVX) Risk Analysis

We provide products and systems to customers involved in oil and natural gas exploration, development and production. Some of our equipment is designed to operate in high-temperature and/ or high-pressure environments, and some equipment is designed for use in hydraulic fracturing operations. Because of applications to which our products are exposed, particularly those involving high pressure environments, a failure of such equipment, or a failure of our customers or their contractors to maintain or operate the equipment properly, could cause damage to the equipment, damage to the property of customers and others, personal injury and environmental contamination and could negatively impact customer relationships, which could subsequently have an adverse effect on our business, results of operations and cash flows. Our customers typically assume responsibility for, including control and removal of, all pollution or contamination which may occur during operations, including that which may result from seepage or any other uncontrolled flow of drilling fluids. Losses due to catastrophic events, such as blowouts, are generally the responsibility of the customer. However, we may have liability in such cases if we are negligent or commit willful acts. In addition,we typically have mutual indemnification agreements with customers on a "knock-for-knock" basis, which generally means that we and our customers assume liability for our respective personnel, subcontractors and property. As a result of this allocation of risk, we may be liable for certain losses, which could be substantial. Furthermore, despite the general allocation of risk whereby our customers have agreed to assume responsibility for or indemnify us against certain liabilities, we might not succeed in enforcing such contractual allocation or might incur an unforeseen liability falling outside the scope of such allocation. Litigation arising from a catastrophic occurrence at a location where our products and equipment are being used may result in our being named as a defendant in lawsuits asserting large claims. In addition, our customers may be unable to satisfy indemnification claims against them. As a result, we may incur substantial losses which could materially and adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations. In addition, we rely on third-party insurance as part of our risk mitigation strategy. However, our insurance may not be adequate to cover our liabilities. Further, insurance companies may refuse to honor their policies, or insurance may not generally be available in the future, or if available, premiums may not be commercially justifiable. We could incur substantial liabilities and damages that are either not covered by insurance or that are in excess of policy limits, or incur liability at a time when we are not able to obtain liability insurance. Such potential liabilities could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and cash flows.

Many of our products are mechanically complex and often must perform in extremely challenging conditions. The design and delivery of our products requires skilled and qualified technical personnel with specialized skills and experience, and our ability to be productive and profitable will depend upon our ability to employ and retain skilled workers. In addition, our ability to expand our operations depends in part on our ability to increase the size of our skilled labor force. The demand for skilled workers is high, and the supply is limited. As a result, competition for experienced personnel is intense, and we face significant challenges in competing for crews and management with large and well- established competitors. A significant increase in the wages paid by competing employers could result in a reduction of our skilled labor force, increases in the wage rates that we must pay, or both. If either of these events were to occur, our capacity and profitability could be diminished and our growth potential could be impaired.

Certain of our product lines, including frac plugs and well intervention tools, depend on a limited number of third-party suppliers and vendors, including for supplies of certain raw materials. As a result of this concentration in some of our supply chains, our business and operations could be negatively affected if our key suppliers were to experience significant disruptions affecting the price, quality, availability or timely delivery of their products. The partial or complete loss of any one of our key suppliers, or a significant adverse change in the relationship with any of these suppliers, through consolidation or otherwise, would limit our ability to manufacture or sell certain of our products, or require us to depend on costly alternatives, which may impact financial performance.

We purchase raw materials, sub-assemblies and components for use in manufacturing operations, which exposes us to volatility in prices for certain commodities. Significant price increases for these commodities could adversely affect our operating profits. Even if we have multiple suppliers of a particular raw material, there are occasionally shortages which lead to price increases. Any significant disruption in supply could affect our ability to obtain raw materials or satisfactory substitutes or could increase the cost of such raw materials or substitutes, which could have a material adverse effect on our liquidity, financial position and results of operations. Should our current suppliers be unable or unwilling to provide the necessary parts, raw materials or equipment or otherwise fail to deliver the products timely and in the quantities required, any resulting delays in the provision of our products could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. Additionally, like others in our industry, we continue to face inflation in raw materials cost. In addition to general inflationary pressures, adverse weather may also result in raw materials supply chain disruptions, that can lead to short-term raw material cost inflation. International conflicts or other geopolitical events, such as the continuing Russia-Ukraine war, may also cause upward pressure on raw materials costs due to transportation disruptions, higher manufacturing costs, disruptions in supply chains and availability of raw materials, interruptions in manufacturing operation, and heightened inflation. While we will generally attempt to mitigate the impact of increased raw material prices by endeavoring to make strategic purchasing decisions, broadening our supplier base and passing along increased costs to customers, there may be a time delay between the increased raw material prices and the ability to increase the prices of our products. For example, one of our product families depends on alloying elements such as magnesium, with China providing the majority of the world supply. Prices for alloying elements like magnesium are subject to constant volatility and may increase significantly from time to time. The inability to obtain necessary raw materials on acceptable terms could affect our ability to meet customer commitments and satisfy demand for certain products. Public health threats, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, severe influenza and other highly communicable viruses or diseases, in addition to international conflicts or other geopolitical events or extreme weather events could limit access to vendors and their facilities, or the ability to transport raw materials from our vendors, which would adversely affect our ability to obtain necessary raw materials for certain of our products or increase the costs of such materials. A significant price increase in or the unavailability of raw materials may result in a loss of customers and adversely impact our business, results of operations, financial condition and cash flows, and could result in asset impairments, including an impairment of the carrying value of our goodwill.

Regulatory agencies and environmental advocacy groups in the European Union, the United States and other regions or countries have been focusing considerable attention on the emissions of carbon dioxide, methane and other greenhouse gases and their role in climate change. There is also increased focus, including by governments and our customers, investors and other stakeholders, on these and other sustainability and energy transition matters. Existing or future legislation and regulations related to greenhouse gas emissions and climate change, as well as initiatives by governments, nongovernmental organizations, and companies to conserve energy or promote the use of alternative energy sources, and negative attitudes toward or perceptions of fossil fuel products and their relationship to the environment, may significantly curtail demand for and production of oil and gas in areas of the world where our customers operate, and thus reduce future demand for our products and services. This may, in turn, adversely affect our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. Our business, reputation and demand for our stock could be negatively affected if we do not (or are perceived to not) act responsibly with respect to sustainability matters.

Climate change continues to attract considerable public and scientific attention. As a result, numerous proposals have been made and are likely to continue to be made at the international, national, regional and state levels of government to monitor and limit emissions of carbon dioxide, methane and other greenhouse gases ("GHGs"). These efforts have included consideration of cap-and-trade programs, carbon taxes, GHG reporting and tracking programs and regulations that directly limit GHG emissions from certain sources. In the United States, no comprehensive climate change legislation has been implemented at the federal level. However, President Biden established addressing climate change as a priority of his administration and issued several executive orders addressing climate change. Additionally, in 2021 and 2022, President Biden signed into law the IRA, which contains billions of dollars in incentives and other provisions to advance the investment, development, and deployment of alternative energy sources and technologies. Moreover, the EPA has adopted regulations that, among other things, establish construction and operating permit reviews for GHG emissions from certain large stationary sources, require the monitoring and annual reporting of GHG emissions from certain petroleum and natural gas system sources in the United States, and together with the Department of Transportation, set GHG emissions and fuel economy standards for vehicles in the United States. The regulation of methane from oil and natural gas facilities has been subject to uncertainty in recent years. The EPA previously had promulgated new source performance standards ("NSPS") imposing limitations on methane emissions from sources in the oil and natural gas sector. Subsequently, in September 2020, the Trump Administration rescinded those methane standards and removed the transmission and storage segments from the oil and natural gas source category under the CAA's NSPS. However, in June 2021, President Biden signed a resolution passed by the U.S. Congress under the Congressional Review Act nullifying the September 2020 rule, effectively reinstating the prior standards. In March 2024, the EPA published new final regulations to expand NSPS requirements for oil and natural gas sector sources and establish comprehensive standards of performance and emission guidelines for methane and volatile organic compound emissions from existing operations in the oil and natural gas sector, including the exploration and production, transmission, processing, and storage segments. These new standards could result in increased costs for our customers and consequently adversely affect demand for our products. However, on January 20, 2025, President Trump signed multiple executive orders seeking to reverse these climate incentives, including pausing the disbursement of funds under the IRA. The same day, President Trump also issued executive orders to encourage fossil fuel production and exploration on federal lands and waters, while moving away from renewable energy and electric vehicles. Separately, various states and groups of states have adopted or are considering adopting legislation, regulation or other regulatory initiatives that are focused on such areas as GHG cap and trade programs, carbon taxes, reporting and tracking programs, and restriction of emissions. For example, several states, including Pennsylvania and New Mexico, have adopted regulations restricting the emission of methane from exploration and production activities. At the international level, in December 2015, the United States participated in the 21st Conference of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Paris, France. The resulting "Paris Agreement" calls for the parties to undertake "ambitious efforts" to limit the average global temperature and requires member states to submit non-binding, individually determined reduction goals known as "Nationally Determined Contributions" every five years after 2020. In April 2021, President Biden announced a goal of reducing the U.S.'s emissions by 50-52% below 2005 levels by 2030. In November 2021, in connection with the 26th Conference of the Parties in Glasgow, Scotland the United States and other world leaders made further commitments to reduce GHG emissions, including reducing global methane emissions by at least 30% by 2030 from 2020 levels. More than 150 countries have now signed on to this pledge. At the 28th Conference of the Parties in the United Arab Emirates, world leaders agreed to transition away from fossil fuels in a just, orderly and equitable manner and to triple renewables and double energy efficiency globally by 2030. Additionally, the Biden Administration announced a new climate target for the United States on December 19, 2024, which includes a 61-66% reduction in economy-wide net GHG emissions by 2035, as compared to 2005 levels. Though President Trump issued an executive order on January 20, 2025, directing the United States Ambassador to the United Nations to immediately withdraw from the Paris Agreement, international, regional, and state actions to limit GHG emissions could reduce the demand for our products. Litigation risks are also increasing as a number of entities have sought to bring suit against various oil and natural gas companies in state or federal court, alleging among other things, that such companies created public nuisances by producing fuels that contributed to climate change or alleging that the companies have been aware of the adverse effects of climate change for some time but defrauded their investors or customers by failing to adequately disclose those impacts. There are also increasing financial risks for fossil fuel producers as stockholders currently invested in fossil fuel energy companies may elect in the future to shift some or all of their investments into non-fossil fuel related sectors. Institutional lenders who provide financing to fossil fuel energy companies also have become more attentive to sustainable lending practices and some of them may elect not to provide funding for fossil fuel energy companies. There is also a risk that financial institutions will be required to adopt policies that have the effect of reducing the funding provided to the fossil fuel sector. Limitation of investments in and financing for fossil fuel energy companies could result in the restriction, delay or cancellation of drilling programs or development or production activities. Additionally, the SEC published final rules on March 28, 2024 relating to the disclosure of a range of climate-related risks. Several lawsuits have been filed challenging the rules. In April 2024, the SEC agreed to pause the rules to facilitate an orderly judicial resolution. We are currently assessing this rule but at this time we cannot predict the costs of implementation or any potential adverse impacts resulting from the rule. To the extent the rules are implemented, we or our customers could incur increased costs related to the assessment and disclosure of climate-related risks. In addition, enhanced climate disclosure requirements could accelerate the trend of certain stakeholders and lenders restricting or seeking more stringent conditions with respect to their investments in certain carbon intensive sectors. The adoption and implementation of new or more stringent international, federal or state legislation, regulations or other regulatory initiatives that impose more stringent standards for GHG emissions from the oil and natural gas sector or otherwise restrict the areas in which this sector may produce oil and natural gas or generate the GHG emissions could result in increased costs of compliance or costs of consuming, and thereby reduce demand for oil and natural gas, which could reduce demand for our products. Additionally, political, litigation and financial risks may result in our customers restricting or canceling production activities, incurring liability for infrastructure damages as a result of climatic changes, or impairing their ability to continue to operate in an economic manner, which also could reduce the demand for our products. One or more of these developments could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Finally, many scientists have concluded that increasing concentrations of GHG in the atmosphere may produce climate changes that have significant physical effects, such as increased frequency and severity of storms, droughts, and floods and other climate events that could have an adverse effect on our and our customers' operations.

Third parties from time to time may initiate litigation against us by asserting that the conduct of our business infringes, misappropriates or otherwise violates intellectual property rights. We may not prevail in any such legal proceedings related to such claims, and our products and services may be found to infringe, impair, misappropriate, dilute or otherwise violate the intellectual property rights of others. If we are sued for infringement and lose, we could be required to pay substantial damages and/ or be enjoined from using or selling the infringing products or technology. Any legal proceeding concerning intellectual property could be protracted and costly regardless of the merits of any claim and is inherently unpredictable and could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, regardless of its outcome. If we were to discover that our technologies or products infringe valid intellectual property rights of third parties, we may need to obtain licenses from these parties or substantially re-engineer our products in order to avoid infringement. We may not be able to obtain the necessary licenses on acceptable terms, or at all, or be able to re-engineer our products successfully. If our inability to obtain required licenses for our technologies or products prevents us from selling our products, that could adversely impact our financial condition and results of operations. Additionally, we currently license certain third-party intellectual property in connection with our business, and the loss of any such license could adversely impact our financial condition and results of operations.

We depend on our IT systems for the efficient operation of our business. Accordingly, we rely upon the capacity, reliability and security of our IT hardware and software infrastructure and our ability to expand and update this infrastructure in response to our changing needs. Despite our implementation of security measures, our systems are vulnerable to damage from computer viruses, natural disasters, incursions by intruders or hackers, failures in hardware or software, power fluctuations, cyber terrorists and other similar disruptions. Additionally, we rely on third parties to support the operation of our IT hardware and software infrastructure, and in certain instances, utilize web-based applications. We routinely monitor our systems for IT disruptions and cyber attacks and have processes in place to detect and remediate vulnerabilities. Nevertheless, we have experienced occasional IT disruptions, cyber attacks and attempted breaches, including attacks resulting from phishing emails. We responded to and mitigated the impact of these incidents. The failure of our IT systems or those of our vendors to perform as anticipated for any reason or any significant breach of security could disrupt our business and result in numerous adverse consequences, including reduced effectiveness and efficiency of operations, inappropriate disclosure of confidential and proprietary information, reputational harm, increased overhead costs, loss of important information, theft or misappropriation of funds, violation of privacy or other laws, and exposure to litigation or indemnity claims, including resulting from customer-imposed cyber security controls or other related contractual obligations, which could have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations. In addition, we may be required to incur significant costs to protect against damage caused by these disruptions or security breaches in the future. Unauthorized access to or modification of, or actions disabling our ability to obtain authorized access to, our customers' data, other external data, personal data, or our own data, as a result of a cyber incident, attack or exploitation of a security vulnerability, or loss of control of our clients' operations could result in significant damage to our reputation or disruption of the services we provide to our customers or of our customers' businesses. In addition, allegations, reports, or concerns regarding vulnerabilities affecting our digital products or services could damage our reputation. This could lead to fewer customers using our digital products and services, which could have a material adverse impact on our financial condition, results of operations, cash flows, and future prospects. In addition, if our systems or third-party products, services, and network systems for protecting against cybersecurity risks prove to be insufficient, we could be adversely affected by, among other things, loss of or damage to our intellectual property, proprietary or confidential information; loss of customer, supplier, or our employee data; breach of personal data; interruption of our business operations; disruption of our customers' businesses; increased legal and regulatory exposure, including fines and remediation costs; and increased costs required to prevent, respond to, or mitigate cybersecurity attacks. These risks could harm our reputation and our relationships with our employees, our customers, our suppliers, our alliance partners and other third parties, and may result in claims against us.

In response to Russia's military action in Ukraine in 2022, the United States, the European Union and the United Kingdom, among others, have imposed significant economic sanctions and export control measures on Russia and others supporting Russia's military and political actions in Ukraine, including, blocking or "asset freezing" sanctions on designated entities and individuals; restrictions on the Russian energy and financial sectors; blocking economic activity in certain areas of Ukraine not controlled by the Ukrainian government; prohibitions in relation to investment in Russia; prohibitions and restrictions relating to Russian origin oil and oil products; and export controls limiting the export of a wide range of goods and technical assistance to Russia. In response, Russia has implemented counter-sanctions, including restrictions on the divestment from Russian assets by foreign investors and restrictions on the payments of dividends and transfers of funds out of Russia by foreign investors. Although we have minimal operational exposure in Russia with no revenue for the year ended December 31, 2024, and we do not intend to commit further capital towards projects in Russia, the full impact of the invasion of Ukraine, including economic sanctions and export controls or additional war or military conflict, as well as potential responses to them by Russia, is currently unknown and they could adversely affect oil and gas companies, including many of which are our customers, as well as the global supply chain.

Terrorist activities, anti-terrorist efforts and other armed conflicts involving the United States could adversely affect the U.S. and global economies and could prevent us from meeting financial and other obligations. We could experience loss of business, delays or defaults in payments from payors or disruptions of fuel supplies and markets if pipelines, production facilities, processing plants, refineries or transportation facilities are direct targets or indirect casualties of an act of terror or war. Such activities could reduce the overall demand for oil and natural gas, which, in turn, could also reduce the demand for our products. Terrorist activities and the threat of potential terrorist activities and any resulting economic downturn could adversely affect our results of operations, impair our ability to raise capital or otherwise adversely impact our ability to realize certain business strategies.

Changes in government policies on international trade and investment can affect the demand for our products and services, impact the competitive position of our products and services or prevent us from being able to sell or purchase products and services in or from certain countries. Our business benefits from free trade agreements, and efforts to withdraw from, or substantially modify such agreements, in addition to the implementation of more restrictive trade policies, such as more detailed inspections, higher tariffs,import or export licensing requirements, economic sanctions, anti-boycott laws, exchange controls or new barriers to entry, could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, financial condition or cash flows. For example, we are experiencing and/or may experience in the future increased tariffs on certain of our products and product components from China, Mexico and Canada. We have planned and begun to implement various efforts in conjunction with our supply chain and end market partners to mitigate the impact of the increased tariffs, but we cannot predict how the tariffs and trade policies may change over time.

The oilfield services industry is highly competitive. The principal competitive factors impacting sales of our products are technology, service quality, safety track record and price. The market is also fragmented and includes numerous small companies capable of competing effectively in our markets on a local basis, as well as several large companies that possess substantially greater financial and other resources than we do. Our larger competitors' greater resources could allow those competitors to compete more effectively than we can. For instance, our larger competitors may offer products at below-market prices or bundle ancillary products and services at no additional cost to our customers. We compete with large national and multi-national companies that have longer operating histories, greater financial, technical and other resources and greater name recognition than we do. Several of our competitors provide a broader array of products and services and have a stronger presence in more geographic markets. Some jobs are awarded on a bid basis, which further increases competition based on price. Pricing is one of the primary factors in determining which qualified contractor is awarded a job. The competitive environment may be further intensified by mergers and acquisitions among oil and natural gas companies or other events that have the effect of reducing the number of available customers. If competition remains the same or increases as a result of future industry downturns, we may be required to lower our prices, which would adversely affect our results of operations. In the future, we may lose market share or be unable to maintain or increase prices for our present products or to acquire additional business opportunities, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. Our competitors may be able to respond more quickly to new or emerging technologies and services and changes in customer requirements. The amount of equipment available may exceed demand, which could result in active price competition. In addition, competition among oilfield equipment providers is affected by each provider's reputation for safety and quality. We cannot assure that we will be able to maintain our competitive position.

Fuel conservation measures, alternative fuel requirements, increasing consumer demand for alternatives to oil and natural gas, technological advances in fuel economy and energy generation devices could reduce demand for oil and natural gas, resulting in reduced demand for oilfield services. The impact of the changing demand for oil and natural gas services and products may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. The commercial development of economically viable alternative energy sources and related products (such as electric vehicles, wind, solar, geothermal, nuclear, tidal, fuel cells and biofuels) could have a similar effect. In addition, certain U.S. federal income tax deductions currently available with respect to oil and natural gas exploration and development, including the allowance of percentage depletion for oil and natural gas properties, may be eliminated as a result of proposed legislation. Any future decreases in the rate at which oil and natural gas reserves are discovered or developed, whether due to the passage of legislation, increased governmental regulation leading to limitations, or prohibitions on exploration and drilling activity, including hydraulic fracturing, or other factors, could have a material adverse effect on our business and financial condition, even in a stronger oil and natural gas price environment.