Vontier (VNT) Risk Analysis

We own numerous patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets and other intellectual property and licenses to intellectual property owned by others, which in aggregate are important to our business. The intellectual property rights that we obtain, however, may not be sufficiently broad or otherwise may not provide us a significant competitive advantage, and patents may not be issued for pending or future patent applications owned by or licensed to us. In addition, the steps that we and our licensors have taken to maintain and protect our intellectual property may not prevent it from being challenged, invalidated, circumvented, designed-around or becoming subject to compulsory licensing, particularly in countries where intellectual property rights are not highly developed or protected. In some circumstances, enforcement may not be available to us because an infringer has a dominant intellectual property position or for other business reasons, or countries may require compulsory licensing of our intellectual property. We also rely on nondisclosure and noncompetition agreements with employees, consultants and other parties to protect, in part, trade secrets and other proprietary rights. There can be no assurance that these agreements will adequately protect our trade secrets and other proprietary rights, will not be breached, that we will have adequate remedies for any breach, that others will not independently develop substantially equivalent proprietary information or that third parties will not otherwise gain access to our trade secrets or other proprietary rights. Our failure to obtain or maintain intellectual property rights that convey competitive advantage, adequately protect our intellectual property or detect or prevent circumvention or unauthorized use of such property and the cost of enforcing our intellectual property rights could adversely impact our business, including our competitive position, and financial statements.

Manufacturing or design defects impacting safety, cybersecurity or quality issues (or the perception of such issues) for our products and services can lead to personal injury, death, property damage, data loss or other damages. These events could lead to recalls or safety or other public alerts, result in product or service downtime or the temporary or permanent removal of a product or service from the market and result in product liability or similar claims being brought against us. Recalls, downtime, removals and product liability and similar claims (regardless of their validity or ultimate outcome) can result in significant costs, as well as negative publicity and damage to our reputation that could reduce demand for our products and services.

In addition to the environmental, health, safety, anticorruption, data privacy and other regulations noted elsewhere in this Form 10-K, our businesses are subject to extensive regulation by U.S. and non-U.S. governmental and self-regulatory entities at the supranational, federal, state, local and other jurisdictional levels, including the following: - We are required to comply with various import laws and export control and economic sanctions laws, which may affect our transactions with certain customers, business partners and other persons, and dealings between our employees and between our subsidiaries. In certain circumstances, export control and economic sanctions regulations may prohibit the export of certain products, services and technologies. In other circumstances, we may be required to obtain an export license before exporting the controlled item. Compliance with the various import laws that apply to our businesses can restrict our access to, and increase the cost of obtaining, certain products and at times can interrupt our supply of imported inventory;- We also have agreements to sell products and services to government entities and are subject to various statutes and regulations that apply to companies doing business with government entities. The laws governing government contracts differ from the laws governing private contracts. For example, many government contracts contain pricing and other terms and conditions that are not applicable to private contracts. Our agreements with government entities may be subject to termination, reduction or modification at the convenience of the government or in the event of changes in government requirements, reductions in federal spending and other factors, and we may underestimate our costs of performing under the contract. In certain cases, a governmental entity may require us to pay back amounts it has paid to us. Government contracts that have been awarded to us following a bid process could become the subject of a bid protest by a losing bidder, which could result in loss of the contract. We are also subject to investigation and audit for compliance with the requirements governing government contracts;- We are also required to comply with increasingly complex and changing data privacy regulations in multiple jurisdictions that regulate the collection, use, protection and transfer of personal data, including the transfer of personal data between or among countries as well as customer requirements in diligence and contracts. Many of these foreign data privacy regulations (including the General Data Protection Regulation) are more stringent than those in the U.S. We may also face audits or investigations by one or more domestic or foreign government agencies relating to our compliance with these regulations. An adverse outcome under any such investigation or audit could subject us to fines or other penalties. That or other circumstances related to our collection, use and transfer of personal data could cause a loss of reputation in the market and/or adversely affect our business and financial position;- We are also required to comply with complex and evolving state, U.S. and foreign laws regarding the distribution of our products and services, including franchise laws and regulations. These rules are subject to change due to new or amended legislation or regulations, administrative or judicial interpretation or government enforcement policies. Any such change could adversely impact our current distribution and franchising business models and result in a decrease in sales or expose us to other significant costs affecting our business and financial position; and - We are also required to comply with ever changing labor and employment laws and regulations in multiple jurisdictions. For example, the California legislature's passage of Assembly Bill 5, which codifies a new test for determining employee or independent contractor status in California, may impact the treatment of franchisees in our Repair Solutions segment in California. In addition, it is possible that other jurisdictions may enact similar laws. As a result of the enactment of Assembly Bill 5, the lack of clear guidance from regulatory authorities and the courts on the application of Assembly Bill 5, and the possibility that other jurisdictions may enact similar laws, there is significant uncertainty regarding what the worker classification regulatory landscape will look like in future years. If regulatory authorities or courts determine that our franchisees are not independent contractors, we may be required to withhold and pay certain taxes in respect of such franchisees, may be liable for unpaid past taxes, unpaid wages and potential penalties, and may be subject to wage and hour laws and requirements (such as those pertaining to minimum wage and overtime), claims for employee benefits, social security contributions, and workers' compensation and unemployment insurance, which could have an adverse effect on our business and financial position. These are not the only regulations that our businesses must comply with. The regulations we are subject to have tended to become more stringent over time and may be inconsistent across jurisdictions. We, our representatives and the industries in which we operate may at times be under review and/or investigation by regulatory authorities. Compliance with these and other regulations may also affect our returns on investment, require us to incur significant expenses or modify our business model or impair our flexibility in modifying product, marketing, pricing or other strategies for growing our business. Our products and operations are also often subject to the rules of industrial standards bodies such as the International Standards Organization, and failure to comply with these rules could result in withdrawal of certifications needed to sell our products and services and otherwise adversely impact our business and financial statements. Failure to comply (or any alleged or perceived failure to comply) with the regulations referenced above or any other regulations could result in civil and criminal, monetary and non-monetary penalties, and any such failure or alleged failure (or becoming subject to a regulatory enforcement investigation) could also damage our reputation, disrupt our business, limit our ability to manufacture, import, export and sell products and services, result in loss of customers and disbarment from selling to certain federal agencies and cause us to incur significant legal and investigatory fees. For additional information regarding these risks, please refer to the section entitled "Business-Regulatory Matters."

Some of our existing or legacy businesses have in the past been, and in the future may be, the subject of suits brought by plaintiffs asserting that they have contracted or may contract either mesothelioma or another asbestos-related condition in connection with exposure to or use of products previously made or sold by such businesses. Many asbestos-related conditions, such as mesothelioma, have long latency periods in which the disease process develops, making it difficult to accurately predict the types and numbers of such claims in the future. While insurance coverage exists for many of these asbestos litigations, others may have no such coverage. If our insurance coverage is not applicable or is not adequate, we may be responsible for all defense expenditures, as well as any settlements or verdict payouts. Any future asbestos-related litigation, brought against us or our subsidiaries, whether with or without merit, could result in substantial liabilities and costs to us as well as divert the attention of our management, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

Our operations, products and services are subject to environmental laws and regulations, which impose limitations on the discharge of pollutants into the environment and establish standards for the use, generation, treatment, storage and disposal of hazardous and non-hazardous wastes and impose end-of-life disposal and takeback programs. We must also comply with various health and safety regulations in the United States and abroad in connection with our operations. In addition, some of our operations require the controlled use of hazardous or energetic materials in the development, manufacturing or servicing of our products. We cannot assure you that our environmental, health and safety compliance program (or the compliance programs of businesses we acquire) has been or will at all times be effective. Failure to comply with any of these laws could result in civil and criminal, monetary and non-monetary penalties and damage to our reputation. In addition, we cannot provide assurance that our costs of complying with current or future environmental protection and health and safety laws will not exceed our estimates or adversely affect our financial statements. Moreover, any accident that results in significant personal injury or property damage, whether occurring during development, manufacturing, servicing, use, or storage of our products, may result in significant production interruption, delays or claims for substantial damages caused by personal injuries or property damage, harm to our reputation, and reduction in morale among our employees, any of which may adversely and materially affect our results of operations. In addition, we may incur costs related to remedial efforts for alleged environmental damage associated with past or current waste disposal practices or other hazardous materials handling practices. We are also from time to time party to personal injury, property damage or other claims brought by private parties alleging injury or damage due to the presence of or exposure to hazardous substances. We may also become subject to additional remedial, compliance or personal injury costs due to future events such as changes in existing laws or regulations, changes in agency direction or enforcement policies, developments in remediation technologies, changes in the conduct of our operations and changes in accounting rules. We cannot assure you that our liabilities arising from past or future releases of, or exposures to, hazardous substances will not exceed our estimates or adversely affect our reputation and financial statements or that we will not be subject to additional claims for personal injury or remediation in the future based on our past, present or future business activities.

We cannot provide assurance that our internal controls and compliance systems will always protect us from acts committed by employees, agents or business partners of ours (or of businesses we acquire or partner with) that would violate U.S. and/or non-U.S. laws, including the laws governing payments to government officials, bribery, fraud, kickbacks and false claims, pricing, sales and marketing practices, conflicts of interest, competition, employment practices and workplace behavior, export and import compliance, economic and trade sanctions, money laundering and data privacy. In particular, the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, the U.K. Bribery Act and similar anti-bribery laws in other jurisdictions generally prohibit companies and their intermediaries from making improper payments to government officials for the purpose of obtaining or retaining business, and we operate in many parts of the world that have experienced governmental corruption to some degree. Any such improper actions or allegations of such acts could damage our reputation and subject us to civil or criminal investigations in the United States and in other jurisdictions and related stockholder lawsuits, could lead to substantial civil and criminal, monetary and non-monetary penalties and could cause us to incur significant legal and investigatory fees. In addition, the government may seek to hold us liable for violations committed by companies we invest in or acquire. We rely on our suppliers to adhere to our supplier standards of conduct. Material violations of such standards of conduct could occur that could have a material effect on our financial statements.

In 2025, approximately 31% of our sales were derived from customers outside the U.S. In addition, many of our manufacturing operations, suppliers and employees are located outside the U.S. Since our growth strategy depends in part on our ability to further penetrate markets outside the U.S. and increase the localization of our products and services, we expect to continue to increase our sales and presence outside the U.S. Our global business (and particularly our business in high-growth markets) is subject to risks that are customarily encountered in non-U.S. operations, including: - interruption in the transportation of materials to us and finished goods to our customers;- differences in terms of sale, including payment terms;- local product preferences and product requirements;- changes in a country's or region's political or economic conditions, including changes in a country's relationship with the U.S.;- trade protection measures (including tariffs), embargoes and import or export restrictions and requirements;- unexpected changes in laws or regulatory requirements, including changes in tax laws;- capital controls and limitations on ownership and on repatriation of earnings and cash;- epidemics, pandemics or other public health crises, that adversely impact travel, production or demand;- the potential for nationalization of enterprises;- limitations on legal rights and our ability to enforce such rights;- difficulty in staffing and managing widespread operations;- differing labor regulations;- difficulties in implementing restructuring actions on a timely or comprehensive basis;- differing protection of intellectual property; and - greater uncertainty, risk, expense and delay in commercializing products in certain foreign jurisdictions, including with respect to product and other regulatory approvals. Any of these risks could negatively affect our financial statements, business, growth rate, competitive position, results of operations and financial condition.

In 2025, the U.S. government announced the imposition of various tariffs including additional country-specific tariffs on all imports into the U.S. In response, certain countries announced reciprocal tariffs on imports from the U.S. While the U.S. has reached trade agreements with certain countries, tariffs on imports from other countries and other reciprocal tariffs either remain in effect or have been temporarily paused, and as such, significant uncertainty around future tariff policies remains. The U.S. may continue to alter its approach to international trade, which may impact existing bilateral or multi-lateral trade agreements and treaties with foreign countries. Changes in U.S. trade policy have created ongoing turmoil in international trade relations, and it is unclear what future actions governments will or will not take with respect to tariffs or other international trade agreements and policies. We have actively managed our tariff exposure and continue to diversify our supply chain to reduce our exposure to tariffs on imports into the United States, particularly from high-tariff countries. Ongoing or new trade wars or other governmental action related to tariffs or international trade agreements or policies or our ability to effectively mitigate the financial impact of tariffs could reduce demand for our products and services, increase our costs, reduce our profitability, adversely impact our supply chain or otherwise have a material adverse effect on our business and financial statements.