HF Foods Group Inc.

Previous wording

Distribution, selling and administrative expenses of $195.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 remained consistent with prior year expenses of $195.0 million. For 2023, there was a decrease in professional fees as a result of the net settlement amounts received totaling $10.0 million, partially offset by increases of $7.3 million in payroll and related labor costs, inclusive of the additional costs due to the Sealand Acquisition, and $2.0 million in insurance related costs. Professional fees decreased $12.9 million, or $2.9 million net of the settlement amounts received, to $13.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, from $26.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. In addition, we recognized an asset impairment of $1.2 million related to the exit of our chicken processing facility. Distribution, selling and administrative expenses as a percentage of net revenue increased to 17.0% for the year ended December 31, 2023 from 16.7% in the same period in 2022, primarily due to the costs disclosed above combined with the decrease in revenue year over year.

Current wording

Distribution, selling and administrative expenses of $198.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2024 increased compared to prior year expenses of $195.1 million primarily due to an increase of $4.3 million in payroll and related labor costs and an increase of $1.1 million in insurance costs, partially offset by a decrease of $2.8 million in professional fees. Distribution, selling and administrative expenses as a percentage of net revenue decreased to 16.5% for the year ended December 31, 2024 from 17.0% in the same period in 2023, primarily due to lower professional fees and increased net revenue, partially offset by increased payroll and related labor costs and insurance costs.

Previous wording

Interest expense for the year ended December 31, 2023 increased by $4.0 million or 53.9%, compared to the year ended December 31, 2022, primarily due to a sharply higher interest-rate environment. Average floating interest rates on our floating-rate debt for the year ended December 31, 2023 increased by approximately 3.4% on the line of credit and 3.4% on the JPMorgan Chase mortgage-secured term loan, compared to the same period in 2022. Our average daily line of credit balance decreased by $10.2 million, or 18.5%, to $44.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 from $55.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2022, and our average daily JPMorgan Chase mortgage-secured term loan balance increased by $6.5 million, or 6.4%, to $108.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 from $102.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2022.

Current wording

Interest expense for the year ended December 31, 2024 decreased by $0.1 million or 0.5%, compared to the year ended December 31, 2023, primarily due to a decrease in our average daily JPMorgan Chase mortgage-secured term loan balance of $5.1 million, partially offset by an increase in our average daily line of credit balance of $10.6 million combined with a slightly higher interest-rate environment. Average floating interest rates on our floating-rate debt for the year ended December 31, 2024 increased by approximately 0.2% on the line of credit and 0.1% on the JPMorgan Chase mortgage-secured term loan, compared to the same period in 2023. Our average daily line of credit balance increased by $10.6 million, or 23.7%, to $55.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2024 from $44.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, and our average daily JPMorgan Chase mortgage-secured term loan balance decreased by $5.1 million, or 4.7%, to $103.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2024 from $108.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2023.

Previous wording

Income tax expense (benefit) was an income tax expense of approximately $41,000 for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to income tax benefit of $0.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2022, primarily due to the impact of non-deductible items, change in valuation allowance, and state taxes, partially offset by the expiration of the statute of limitations in relation to unrecognized tax benefits, tax credits, and other tax adjustments during the year ended December 31, 2023.

Current wording

Income tax expense was $2.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2024, compared to $41,000 for the year ended December 31, 2023. The increase in income tax expense of $1.9 million was due to non-deductible items including the impact of the Company’s goodwill impairment charges, SEC settlement, and state taxes, partially offset by the change in valuation allowance, tax credits, the expiration of the statute of limitations in relation to unrecognized tax benefits, and other tax adjustments during the year ended December 31, 2024.

Previous wording

Net (Loss) Income Attributable to HF Foods Group Inc.

Current wording

Net Loss Attributable to HF Foods Group Inc.

Previous wording

(1) Represents non-recurring costs associated with the launch of strategic projects including supply chain management improvements and technology infrastructure initiatives.

Current wording

(2) Represents costs associated with the launch of strategic projects including supply chain management improvements and technology infrastructure initiatives.

Previous wording

As of December 31, 2023, we had cash of approximately $15.2 million, checks issued not presented for payment of $4.5 million and access to approximately $37.6 million in additional funds through our $100.0 million line of credit, subject to a borrowing base calculation. We have funded working capital and other capital requirements primarily by cash flow from operations and bank loans. Cash is required to pay purchase costs for inventory, salaries, fuel and trucking expenses, selling expenses, rental expenses, income taxes, other operating expenses and to service debts.

Current wording

As of December 31, 2024, we had cash of approximately $14.5 million, checks issued not presented for payment of $5.7 million and access to approximately $36.1 million in additional funds through our $100.0 million line of credit, subject to a borrowing base calculation. We have funded working capital and other capital requirements primarily by cash flow from operations and bank loans. Cash is required to pay purchase costs for inventory, salaries, fuel and trucking expenses, selling expenses, rental expenses, income taxes, other operating expenses and to service debts.

Previous wording

Net cash provided by operating activities consists primarily of net income adjusted for non-cash items, including depreciation and amortization, changes in deferred income taxes and others, and includes the effect of working capital changes. Net cash provided by operating activities decreased by $15.5 million, or 49%, primarily due to the timing of working capital outlays. During the year ended December 31, 2023, we implemented new enterprise accounting and finance applications, which modified our accounts receivable, accounts payable and treasury processes. As a result of this transformation, we significantly paid down our accounts payable, which negatively impacted our net cash provided by operating activities.

Current wording

Net cash provided by operating activities consists primarily of net income adjusted for non-cash items, including depreciation and amortization, asset impairment charges, changes in deferred income taxes and others, and includes the effect of working capital changes. Checks issued not presented for payment was reclassified from financing to operating activities for both the current and prior year which resulted in a $1.2 million increase to net cash provided by operating activities in the current year and a $17.5 million decrease in the prior year. Net cash provided by operating activities increased by $24.3 million primarily due to the timing of working capital outlays such as the increase of $18.6 million resulting from checks issued not presented for payment and was partially offset by decreased operating income (excluding the $46.3 million non-cash goodwill impairment charge) and the $3.9 million SEC settlement payment.

Previous wording

Net cash used in investing activities decreased by $49.3 million, or 97%, primarily due to payments related to acquisitions in the year ended December 31, 2022.

Current wording

Net cash used in investing activities increased by $11.0 million primarily due to increased capital project spend in the year ended December 31, 2024.

Previous wording

As a result of our 2023 financial performance in comparison to previous forecasts, combined with our level of stock price, we performed a quantitative impairment assessment. A quantitative goodwill impairment analysis requires valuation of the respective reporting unit, which requires complex analysis and judgment. We use a combination of discounted cash flow (“DCF”) model and market approaches, such as public company comparable analysis and comparable acquisitions analysis to determine fair value. The income approach and market approaches were weighted equally to estimate fair value. The income approach requires detailed forecasts of cash flows, including significant assumptions such as revenue growth rates, gross profit margin, and an estimate of weighted-average cost of capital which we believe approximate the assumptions from a market participant’s perspective. The market approaches are primarily impacted by an enterprise value multiple of EBITDA. These estimates incorporate many uncertain factors which could be impacted by changes in market conditions, interest rates, growth rate, tax rates, costs, customer behavior, regulatory environment and other macroeconomic changes. We categorize the fair value determination as Level 3 in the fair value hierarchy due to its use of internal projections and unobservable measurement inputs.

Current wording

For the December 31, 2024, September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023 impairment tests, we used a combination of discounted cash flow (“DCF”) model and market approaches, such as public company comparable analysis and comparable acquisitions analysis to determine fair value of the reporting unit. The income approach and market approaches were weighted equally to estimate fair value. The income approach requires detailed forecasts of cash flows, including significant assumptions such as revenue growth rates, gross profit margins, distribution, selling and administrative expenses, among other assumptions, and an estimate of weighted-average cost of capital which we believe approximate the assumptions from a market participant’s perspective. The market approaches are primarily impacted by an enterprise value multiple of EBITDA. These estimates incorporate many uncertain factors which could be impacted by changes in market conditions, interest rates, growth rate, tax rates, costs, customer behavior, regulatory environment and other macroeconomic changes. In addition, we considered the reasonableness of the fair value of the reporting unit by assessing the implied enterprise value control premium based on our market capitalization and also considered the lack of liquidity in the Company’s common stock. The Company’s common stock is fairly thinly traded, with a higher level of internal stockholders than its peers, and no major analyst coverage. As a result, the implied value from the traded stock price is based on limited investment public interest. Our market capitalization is calculated using the number of common shares outstanding and common stock publicly traded price. We determined that the implied control premium was reasonable which corroborates our fair value estimates. We categorize the fair value determination as Level 3 in the fair value hierarchy due to its use of internal projections and unobservable measurement inputs.

Previous wording

The results of testing as of December 31, 2023, concluded that the estimated fair value exceeded carrying value, and no impairment existed as of that date. In addition, we corroborated the reasonableness of the total fair value of the reporting unit by assessing the implied control premium based on our market capitalization. Our market capitalization is calculated using the number of common shares issued and common stock publicly traded price. We also consider the amount of headroom for the reporting unit when determining whether an impairment existed. Headroom is the difference between the fair value of a reporting unit and its carrying value. The fair value of the reporting unit exceeded the reporting unit carrying value by approximately $10%, or $45.0 million. No goodwill impairment was recorded for the year ended December 31, 2023. See Note 8 - Goodwill and Acquired Intangible Assets to the consolidated financial statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for additional information.

Current wording

See Note 8 - Goodwill and Acquired Intangible Assets to the consolidated financial statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for additional information.

Previous wording

We performed sensitivity analyses on the key inputs and assumptions used in determining the estimated fair value of our reporting unit by utilizing changes in assumptions that would reasonably likely occur. Assuming all other assumptions and inputs used in the fair value analysis are held constant, a 100 basis point increase in the discount rate assumption, a 1x decrease in the respective EBITDA multiple assumptions, a 25 basis point decrease in the gross profit margin assumption, and a 50 basis point decrease in the long-term revenue growth rate assumption would result in a decrease in the fair value of our reporting unit of approximately $14.8 million, $36.9 million, $8.4 million, and $22.6 million, respectively. These estimated changes in fair value are not necessarily representative of the actual impairment that would be recorded in the event of a fair value decline.

Current wording

We performed sensitivity analyses on the key inputs and assumptions used in determining the estimated fair value of our reporting unit by utilizing changes in assumptions that would reasonably likely occur. Assuming all other assumptions and inputs used in the fair value analysis are held constant, for the December 31, 2024 impairment test, a 100 basis point increase in the discount rate assumption, a 1x decrease in the respective EBITDA multiple assumptions, a 25 basis point decrease in the gross profit margin assumption, and a 50 basis point decrease in the revenue growth rate assumption would result in a decrease in the fair value of our reporting unit of approximately $11.6 million, $31.0 million, $7.3 million, and $5.5 million, respectively, which would likely result in further impairment. These estimated changes in fair value are not necessarily representative of the actual impairment that would be recorded in the event of a fair value decline.

Previous wording

If, in future periods, the financial performance of the reporting unit does not meet forecasted expectations, or a prolonged decline occurs in the market price of our common stock, it may cause a change in the results of the impairment assessment and, as such, could result in an impairment of goodwill.

Current wording

If, in future periods, the financial performance of the reporting unit does not meet forecasted expectations, or a prolonged decline occurs in the market price of our common stock, it may cause a change in the results of the impairment assessment and, as such, could result in further impairment of goodwill.

Previous wording

We impaired machinery used in the operations within HF Foods Industrial, Inc. and recognized impairment expense of $1.2 million in distribution, selling and administrative expenses in the consolidated statements of operations during the year ended December 31, 2023. We impaired our acquired developed technology attributable to Syncglobal, Inc. and recognized impairment expense of $0.4 million in distribution, selling and administrative expenses in the consolidated statements of operations during the year ended December 31, 2022.

Current wording

No impairment of long-lived assets was recognized during the year ended December 31, 2024. We impaired machinery used in the operations within HF Foods Industrial, Inc. and recognized impairment expense of $1.2 million in distribution, selling and administrative expenses in the consolidated statements of operations during the year ended December 31, 2023. We impaired our acquired developed technology attributable to Syncglobal, Inc. and recognized impairment expense of $0.4 million in distribution, selling and administrative expenses in the consolidated statements of operations during the year ended December 31, 2022.