FRANKLIN ELECTRIC CO INC

4. FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS

FASB Accounting Standards Codification Topic 820, Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures, provides guidance for defining, measuring, and disclosing fair value within an established framework and hierarchy. Fair value is defined as the exchange price that would be received for an asset or paid to transfer a liability (an exit price) in the principal or most advantageous market for the asset or liability in an orderly transaction between market participants on the measurement date. The standard established a fair value hierarchy which requires an entity to maximize the use of observable inputs and to minimize the use of unobservable inputs when measuring fair value. The three levels of inputs that may be used to measure fair value within the hierarchy are as follows:

Level 1 – Quoted prices for identical assets and liabilities in active markets;

Level 2 – Quoted prices for similar assets and liabilities in active markets, quoted prices for identical or similar assets and liabilities in markets that are not active, and model-derived valuations in which all significant inputs and significant value drivers are observable in active markets; and

Level 3 – Valuations derived from valuation techniques in which one or more significant inputs or significant value drivers are unobservable.

As of September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023, the assets and liabilities measured at fair value on a recurring basis were as set forth in the table below:

The Company’s Level 1 cash equivalents assets are generally comprised of foreign bank guaranteed certificates of deposit and short term deposits. The share swap transaction asset is recorded within the "Receivables" line of the condensed consolidated balance sheets and is further described in Note 5 - Financial Instruments.

The Company's Level 3 category includes contingent consideration related to acquisitions, which valuation inputs are unobservable and significant to the fair value measurement. Projections and estimated probabilities are used to estimate future contingent earn-out payments, which are discounted back to present value to compute contingent earn-out liabilities. The following table provides a roll-forward of the contingent consideration liability, which is included in "Other long-term liabilities" as of December 31, 2023 and "Accrued expenses and other current liabilities" as of September 30, 2024 in the condensed consolidated balance sheets:

Total debt, including current maturities, have carrying amounts of $88.0 million and $100.5 million and estimated fair values of $86.9 million and $98.6 million as of September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively. In the absence of quoted prices in active markets, considerable judgment is required in developing estimates of fair value. Estimates are not necessarily indicative of the amounts the Company could realize in a current market transaction. In determining the fair value of its debt, the Company uses estimates based on rates currently available to the Company for debt with similar terms and remaining maturities. Accordingly, the fair value of debt is classified as Level 2 within the valuation hierarchy.