Mohawk (MHK) Risk Analysis

In the past, third parties have claimed that certain technologies incorporated in the Company's products infringe their patent rights. The Company cannot be certain that the Company's products do not and will not infringe issued patents or other intellectual property rights of others. The Company might be required to pay substantial damages (including punitive damages and attorneys' fees), discontinue the use and sale of infringing products, expend significant resources to develop non-infringing technology or obtain licenses authorizing the use of infringing technology. There can be no assurance that licenses for disputed technology or intellectual property rights would be available on reasonable commercial terms, if at all. In the event of a successful claim against the Company along with failure to develop or license a substitute technology, the Company's business, financial condition, results of operations, and prospects would be materially and adversely affected.

The Company's businesses rely on its information systems, including its computer hardware, software and network, to obtain, process, analyze and manage data. The Company relies on these systems to, among other things: - facilitate the purchase, management, distribution, and payment for inventory items;- manage and monitor the daily operations of the Company's distribution network;- receive, process and ship orders on a timely basis;- manage accurate billing to and collections from customers;- control logistics and quality control for the Company's retail operations;- manage financial reporting;- monitor point of sale activity;- store, deliver and transmit data to the Company's sales and distribution systems; and - manage and conduct certain production processes. Any event that causes interruptions to the input, retrieval and transmission of data or increase in the Company's service time could disrupt the Company's normal operations. Interruption, impediment or failure of the Company's information systems has in the past caused, and in the future could cause, unanticipated disruptions in service, decreased customer service and customer satisfaction and harm to the Company's reputation, which could result in loss of customers, increased operating expenses and financial losses. There can be no assurance that the Company can effectively carry out its disaster recovery plan to handle the interruption or failure of its information systems, or that the Company will be able to restore its operational capacity within sufficient time to avoid material disruption to its business. In addition, there can be no assurance that the Company can effectively manage the resources necessary to sustain and protect an appropriate information system infrastructure, or effectively implement system upgrades in a timely manner. The Company, both itself and through third-party service providers, collects and processes proprietary, personal, confidential and sensitive data, which may include information about customers, employees, suppliers, distributors and others. Some of this data is stored, accessible or transferred internationally. As the regulatory environment related to information security, data collection and use, and privacy becomes increasingly rigorous, with new and constantly changing requirements applicable to the Company's business, compliance with those requirements could also result in additional costs to the Company. Any failure to comply with federal, state or international privacy-related or data protection laws and regulations could result in proceedings against the Company by government entities or others. In addition to reputational impacts, penalties could include significant legal liability. The Company also relies on third-party service providers for a variety of information technology services, and such partnerships could be sources of operational and data security risk to the Company. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following: disruptions in communication services provided by a third-party service provider, breakdowns or failures of a third-party service provider's information systems; security breaches or cyber-attacks on a third-party service provider; capacity constraints; regulatory restrictions, fines, orders or other regulatory action causing reputational harm; failure of a third-party service provider to provide services for any reason; or poor performance of information technology services. In addition, the misappropriation, loss or misuse of customer, consumer, employee, supplier or Company data resulting from a failure of a third-party service provider could result in significant costs, lost sales, fines, lawsuits and damage to the Company's reputation.

The Company's business requires significant capital investment to expand capacity to support its growth, introduce new products, enter new markets and improve operating efficiencies.  The Company has historically made significant capital investments each year and will continue to make capital investments in future periods, including approximately $480 million of capital investments in 2026. While the Company believes that many of its past capital investments have been successful, there is no guarantee that the return on investment from the Company's recent or future capital expenditures will be sufficient to recover the expenses and opportunity costs associated with these projects.  Furthermore, a meaningful portion of the Company's capital investment is based on forecasted growth in its business, which is subject to uncertainty such as general economic trends, increased competition and consumer preferences.  If the Company does not accurately forecast its future capital investment needs, the Company could have excess capacity or insufficient capacity, either of which would negatively affect business, financial condition, results of operations, and prospects.

As part of the Company's business strategy, the Company intends to pursue a wide array of potential strategic transactions, including acquisitions of complementary businesses, as well as strategic investments and joint ventures. Although the Company regularly evaluates such opportunities, the Company may not be able to successfully identify suitable acquisition candidates, to secure certain required governmental approvals necessary to consummate such strategic transactions or to obtain sufficient financing on acceptable terms to fund such strategic transactions, which may slow the Company's growth and have a material adverse effect on the Company's business, financial condition, results of operations, and prospects.

The Company is subject to increasingly numerous and complex laws, regulations and licensing requirements in each of the jurisdictions in which the Company conducts business. In addition, new laws and regulations may be enacted in the U.S. or abroad, the compliance with which may require the Company to incur additional personnel-related, environmental, or other compliance-related costs on an ongoing basis. In particular, the Company's operations are subject to various environmental, social, and health and safety laws and regulations. For example, certain aspects of the Company's operations and supply chain have become, and are expected to become, increasingly subject to federal, state, local and international laws, regulations and international treaties and industry standards related to climate change. Many governing bodies have introduced additional due diligence and disclosure requirements addressing sustainability that the Company expects will apply to its operations and supply chain in the coming years, such as California's Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act and Climate Related Financial Risk Disclosure, and the European Union's Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive ("CSRD") and Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive ("CSDDD"). Although certain sustainability-related regulations and reporting obligations have been relaxed in some jurisdictions through legislation or by court order, sustained emphasis by the U.S., European Union and other governmental authorities on climate change and other environmental matters continues to create uncertainty. Numerous overlapping and sometimes conflicting regulations continue to evolve, and it is unclear which requirements will ultimately remain in effect following legislative or judicial review across multiple jurisdictions. This uncertainty is expected to result in ongoing compliance costs and may expose the Company to additional potential liabilities. The extent of these costs and risks is difficult to predict and will depend, in large part, on the extent of final regulations and the ways in which those regulations are enforced. The applicable requirements under these laws are subject to amendment, the imposition of new or additional requirements, changing interpretations by agencies or courts, and uncertainty as to whether or how enforcement will occur. If these laws or regulations impose significant operational restrictions and compliance requirements on the Company, they could increase costs associated with the Company's operations, including costs for raw materials, energy and transportation. The Company may also face increased costs related to defending and resolving legal claims and other litigation related to climate change and the alleged impact of the Company's operations on the environment. In addition, non-compliance with climate change treaties, regulations and disclosure requirements could also negatively impact the Company's reputation and result in penalties or enforcement actions. Furthermore, the Company is also subject to extended producer responsibility ("EPR") regulations in jurisdictions such as California and New York. These laws impose significant obligations on producers and manufacturers involved in packaging or product distribution, including product take-back, recycling, and detailed reporting requirements. Compliance may increase operational complexity and result in higher administrative costs. For example, EPR regulations may require registration with producer responsibility organizations, payment of eco-modulated fees based on recyclability, and adherence to labeling and recordkeeping standards, with requirements varying across jurisdictions. Failure to comply with these evolving mandates may expose the Company to penalties, enforcement actions, and reputational harm. In addition, the Company's manufacturing facilities may become subject to further limitations on emissions due to public policy concerns regarding climate change or other environmental or health and safety concerns. Because the Company's manufacturing processes use a significant amount of energy, especially natural gas, the imposition of greenhouse gas emissions limitations, such as a "cap-and-trade" system, could require the Company to increase its capital expenditures, use its cash to acquire emission credits or restructure its manufacturing operations.