Risk Factors Dashboard
Once a year, publicly traded companies issue a comprehensive report of their business, called a 10-K. A component mandated in the 10-K is the ‘Risk Factors’ section, where companies disclose any major potential risks that they may face. This dashboard highlights all major changes and additions in new 10K reports, allowing investors to quickly identify new potential risks and opportunities.
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Risk Factors - AXIL
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Investing in our securities involves a high degree of risk. The following are material factors known to us that could adversely affect our business, financial condition, or operating results, as well as adversely affect the value of an investment in our common stock. These disclosures reflect the Company’s beliefs and opinions as to factors that could materially and adversely affect the Company and its securities in the future. If any of the following risks materialize, our business, financial condition, operating results, or prospects could be materially and adversely affected. If any of the following risks actually occur, our business, financial condition, operating results, or prospects could be materially and adversely affected. Disclosure of risks should not be interpreted to imply that the risks have not already materialized, and there may be additional risks that are not presently material or known. References to past events are provided by way of examples only and are not intended to be a complete listing or a representation as to whether or not such factors have occurred in the past or their likelihood of occurring in the future. You should carefully consider the risks described below, together with all of the other information contained in this Annual Report on Form 10-K and our other filings with the SEC, before making an investment decision.
Risks Related to Our Business and Operations
Our future operations and growth depends on successful execution of our strategic initiatives and market acceptance of our products. Our ability to grow depends on our ability to execute our growth strategy, which includes expanding into retail channels and international markets and expanding our sales team. These initiatives require significant commitments of management and capital investments and involve operational complexity. Failure to effectively execute our growth strategy could result in missed opportunities and financial losses, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, or results of operations. In addition, if our existing or new products fail to achieve or maintain market acceptance, we may be unable to remain competitive and our business, results of operations, and financial condition could be harmed.
We generate a significant portion of our sales from a limited number of customers. For our hearing enhancement and protection segment, one customer accounted for 23% of consolidated net revenues and 69% of segment accounts receivable for fiscal year 2026. While we are working to grow our retail and wholesale channel, we expect that sales of our products to a limited number of customers will continue to account for a high percentage of our net revenues for the foreseeable future. The concentration of our customer base increases risks related to the financial condition of our customers, and the deterioration in financial condition of a single customer or the failure of a single customer to perform their obligations could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and cash position. If any such customers change their business requirements or focus, vendor selection, or purchasing behavior, they may delay, suspend, reduce or cancel their purchases of our products or services and our business, financial condition, and results of operations may be adversely affected.
We are highly dependent on a small number of personnel. As of May 31, 2026, we had thirteen full-time employees and two part-time employees. We rely on a limited number of executive officers and key personnel, including Jeff Toghraie, our Chief Executive Officer and Chairman, and Jeff Brown, our Chief Financial Officer, Chief Operating Officer, and Director, to run our business. The loss of services of either of these executives or other key personnel could materially impair our ability to meet reporting obligations, maintain effective internal controls, manage liquidity, or conduct operations. Because of our limited personnel structure, the unexpected departure or unavailability of key personnel could have a disproportionately adverse impact on our financial condition and ability to continue operations.
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Risks Related to Our Supply Chain and Cost Structure
We are subject to inflationary pressures and supply chain risks. Increases in raw material costs, transportation delays, or disruptions in supplier relationships could increase expenses or limit our ability to deliver products on time. Any inability to source sufficient raw materials for our business in a timely and cost-effective manner, or at all, could significantly impair our ability to fulfill customer orders and sell our products, which could negatively impact margins and customer satisfaction.
Inaccurate forecasting may lead to excess inventory or stockouts. To ensure adequate inventory supply, we must forecast inventory needs and place orders sufficiently in advance with our suppliers based on our estimates of future demand for particular products. Our ability to meet customer demand depends on accurate sales forecasting, which could be affected by many factors, including changes in consumer preferences for our and our competitors’ products. If we overestimate demand, we may carry obsolete or excess inventory, which could result in inventory write-downs or write-offs. If we underestimate demand, we may miss sales opportunities and have unfulfilled orders, which could negatively impact our customer relationships and result in lost revenues.
We rely on a limited number of suppliers for certain key components and raw materials. Our ability to manufacture and deliver products depends on a small number of third-party suppliers, some of whom provide proprietary or difficult-to-substitute materials. Any disruption, delay, capacity constraint, or deterioration in the financial condition of these suppliers could adversely impact our operations. We may not be able to quickly secure alternative sources for key components and raw materials on commercially reasonable terms, which could lead to production delays, increased costs, or inability to meet customer demand.
Risks Related to Legal and Regulatory Matters
Our business and the products we sell are subject to complex and evolving regulations. We are required to comply with various laws and regulations at the local, regional, state, federal, and international levels. These laws and regulations change frequently, and such changes can impose significant costs and other burdens of compliance on our business. Any changes in regulations, the imposition of additional regulations, or the enactment of any new legislation that affects employment/labor, trade, product safety, transportation/logistics, energy costs, health care, tax, environmental issues, including the impact of climate change, or compliance with applicable anti-bribery laws, among other things, could have an adverse impact on our financial condition and results of operations. In addition, changes in enforcement priorities by governmental agencies charged with enforcing existing laws and regulations could increase our cost of doing business. Furthermore, our products are regulated by various U.S. and international authorities. As a result, our products could be subject to recalls and other remedial actions. Product safety, labeling, and licensing concerns may result in us voluntarily removing selected products from our inventory. Recalls or the voluntary removal of our products could result in lost sales, potential harm to our reputation, increased customer service costs, and legal expenses. Recalls or the voluntary removal of our products can result in lost sales, potential harm to our reputation, increased customer service costs, and legal expenses. In addition, changes in labeling, safety, or marketing laws may increase compliance costs or limit our ability to sell certain products. Non-compliance with any of these laws could result in fines, product recalls, or reputational damage, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, and financial condition.
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Changes in U.S. and international trade policies, including tariffs and import rules, could increase our costs and disrupt operations. We source a significant portion of our products and components from international suppliers, and we sell our products in a number of countries. The current trade environment remains highly fluid and uncertain. The U.S. government has imposed, modified, and in certain cases temporarily suspended significant tariffs on goods imported from China and other countries, and further changes to tariff policy may occur with limited notice. Due to the uncertainty surrounding the ultimate scope and duration of applicable tariffs, during fiscal year 2026 the Company reversed charges only on those tariff costs for which it received refunds. Subsequent to fiscal year end, the Company received approximately $910,000, the full amount of refunds of duties previously paid under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (“IEEPA”), including interest. Future tariff increases, the imposition of reciprocal tariffs or trade restrictions by other countries, the elimination of existing exemptions, or adverse changes to trade agreements could materially increase our landed costs, compress margins, and require us to raise prices or absorb additional expenses. If we are unable to offset these cost increases or pass them on to customers, our margins and financial results could be materially adversely impacted.
We may not be able to maintain effective internal control over financial reporting. As a public company, we are required to design, implement, and maintain effective internal control over financial reporting in accordance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, including ongoing evaluation, remediation of deficiencies, and adaptation to changes in our operations, systems, and regulations. We regularly assess risks, monitor controls, and implement enhancements to help ensure the accuracy and timeliness of our financial reporting; however, we cannot guarantee that our controls will prevent or detect all errors or noncompliance. Failure to maintain effective controls could result in material misstatements, financial restatements, regulatory scrutiny, increased costs, and loss of investor confidence.
Risks Related to Our Capital and Securities
We may need additional capital, which may not be available or may dilute existing stockholders. To support our operations or strategic plans, we may need to raise capital through equity or debt financings. There can be no assurance that such additional funding will be available on terms attractive to us, or at all. If we cannot secure funding on acceptable terms, or at all, we may be forced to delay growth or other strategic initiatives, which could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations. If we cannot secure funding on acceptable terms, or at all, we may be forced to delay growth initiatives, which could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations. If additional funding is raised through the issuance of equity or convertible securities, holders of our common stock could suffer significant dilution, and any new shares we issue could have rights, preferences, and privileges superior to those of our common stock.
The issuance of convertible securities may dilute our common stockholders. We have previously issued Series A Convertible Preferred Stock in connection with acquisitions. Conversions of these preferred shares into common stock, or the issuance of shares in connection with other convertible securities that we may issue in the future, could significantly dilute common stockholders and negatively affect the market price of our common stock. Conversions of these preferred shares into common stock, or the issuance shares in connection with other convertible securities that we may issue in the future, could significantly dilute common stockholders and negatively affect the market price of our common stock.
Our common stock price may be volatile and as a result may not be attractive to investors. Our stock price has been and may continue to be volatile due to a variety of factors, many of which are beyond our control, including, but not limited to, the following:
· | our actual or anticipated financial performance; |
· | changes in the supply or demand of our products; |
· | our ability to execute our growth strategy; |
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· | speculation about our business in the press or investor community; |
· | the degree of trading liquidity in our common stock, including our ability to remain listed on the NYSE American; |
· | stock market price and volume fluctuations of other publicly traded companies, and in particular, companies that are in our industry; |
· | investor perceptions of our industry or our prospects; |
· | macroeconomic trends and conditions; |
· | announcements by us or our competitors of new product offerings, significant acquisitions, or strategic partnerships; or |
· | additions and departures of key personnel. |
In addition, the stock market in general may experience significant price and volume fluctuations, which may be unrelated to the operating performance of particular companies but could cause declines in the market price of our common stock. The price of our common stock could fluctuate based upon factors that have little or nothing to do with our Company or its performance.
Risks Related to Technology and Cybersecurity
A failure of our IT systems or a cybersecurity breach could disrupt our business. We rely on IT infrastructure, including hardware, networks, software, digital platforms and third-party systems to operate our business and communicate with customers. These uses give rise to cybersecurity risks, including security breaches, system disruption, theft, and inadvertent release of information. We have implemented measures to prevent and mitigate cybersecurity breaches. To date, we are not aware of any cybersecurity incidents that have had or are reasonably expected to have a material adverse effect on our operations. However, we or our third-party service providers may experience cybersecurity incidents in the future. In addition, as artificial intelligence capabilities improve and are increasingly adopted, they may be used to identify vulnerabilities and craft increasingly sophisticated cybersecurity attacks, and vulnerabilities may be introduced from the use of artificial intelligence by us, our customers, suppliers and other business partners and third-party providers. While we have implemented various security measures, we cannot guarantee that such measures will be effective or sufficient to prevent a cyberattack, and future cyberattacks could still occur and could go undetected and persist for an extended period of time. There can be no assurance that our operations will not be materially adversely impacted by future cybersecurity incidents, and there is a risk that we may incur significant costs in protecting against or remediating cyberattacks or other cybersecurity breaches. A significant IT failure, data breach, or cyberattack could harm our reputation, disrupt operations, and expose us to legal or regulatory liabilities. In addition, the theft, destruction, loss, misappropriation, release of sensitive or confidential information, or interference with the IT infrastructures of third parties on which we rely, including suppliers and customers, could result in a disruption to our supply chain, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition, or results of operations. We also incur costs in order to comply with cybersecurity or data privacy regulations or with requirements imposed by business partners. Data privacy and cybersecurity laws in the United States and internationally are constantly changing, and the implementation of these laws has become more complex. Any security breach, whether successful or not, would harm our reputation and could damage our competitive position and cause the loss of customers. In addition, any such breach, or any material failure on our part to comply with applicable laws, could subject us to litigation, government investigation or enforcement actions or other regulatory sanctions, regulatory penalties or fines, or costly response measures.
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Risks Related to Macroeconomic and External Conditions
Economic downturns or shifts in consumer behavior may reduce consumer demand for our products. Unfavorable economic factors that are beyond our control, including those impacting discretionary spending, may reduce consumer demand for our products. These factors include, but are not limited to, economic uncertainty, including potential recession, inflation, , interest rate uncertainty, tariffs, supply chain and labor disruptions, unemployment rates, labor and materials shortages, banking instability, political and social unrest, geopolitical events and uncertainty, foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, and changing tax rates and policies. Any one or a combination of these factors could adversely affect consumer spending and preferences. If consumer demand for our products decreases, our revenue and profitability may be materially and adversely impacted.
ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS.
Not applicable.
ITEM 1C. CYBERSECURITY.
Cybersecurity is an important part of our Enterprise Risk Management (“ERM”) program, and the Company seeks to address cybersecurity risks through a comprehensive, cross-functional approach.
Our executive management team is responsible for assessing and managing risks from cybersecurity threats to the Company. In addition, in light of the pervasive and increasing threat from cyberattacks, the Board and the Audit Committee, with input from management, assesses the Company’s cybersecurity threats and the measures implemented by the Company in an effort to mitigate and prevent cyberattacks. The Audit Committee consults with management regarding ongoing cybersecurity initiatives, and requests management report to the full Board regularly on their assessment of the Company’s cybersecurity program and risks. The Audit Committee consults with management regarding ongoing cybersecurity initiatives, and requests management to report to the full Board regularly on their assessment of the Company’s cybersecurity program and risks. Both the Audit Committee and the full Board receive regular quarterly reports from management on cybersecurity risks and timely reports regarding any significant cybersecurity incident, as well as ongoing updates regarding any such incident until it has been addressed.
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