Table of Contents





U.S.

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C.  20549


FORM 10-Q

(Mark One)

ý QUARTERLY REPORT UNDER SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

QUARTERLY REPORT UNDER SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the quarterly period ended September 30, 2017

2023

or


o TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the transition period from            to          

Commission File Number: 001-07120

hartehanksprimarylogoaa01.jpg

img002.jpg

HARTE HANKS, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Delaware

74-1677284

Delaware74-1677284

(State or other jurisdiction of

(I.R.S. Employer

incorporation or organization)

Identification Number)

9601 McAllister Freeway,

1 Executive Drive, Suite 610, San Antonio, Texas 78216

303, Chelmsford, MA 01824

(Address of principal executive offices, including zipcode)

(210) 829-9000
zip code)

(512) 434-1100

(Registrant’s telephone number including area code)

None

(Former name, former address and former fiscal year, if changed since last report)

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Title of Each Class

Trading Symbol(s)

Name of each exchange on which registered

Common Stock

HHS

NASDAQ

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.  Yes ý   No o

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate website, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (Section 232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files). Yes ý   No o

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company.  See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and "emerging“emerging growth company"company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

Large accelerated filer

o

Accelerated filer

ý

Non-accelerated filer

o (Do not check if a smaller reporting company)

Smaller reporting company

o

Emerging growth company

o


if

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. o

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act).  Yes o  No ý

The number of shares outstanding of each of the registrant’s classes ofissuer’s common stock as of October 15, 2017 was 62,068,179 shares2023 was 7,216,314 shares.





HARTE HANKS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

TABLE OF CONTENTS

FORM 10-Q REPORT

For the Quarterly Period Ended September 30, 2017



PART I.         FINANCIAL INFORMATION

Item 1.  Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements

Harte Hanks, Inc. and Subsidiaries Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets

  

September 30,

  

December 31,

 

In thousands, except shares and per share amounts

 

2023

  

2022

 
  (unaudited)  (audited) 

ASSETS

        

Current assets

        

Cash and cash equivalents

 $13,288  $10,364 

Accounts receivable (less allowance for doubtful accounts of $170 and $163, respectively)

  33,303   39,700 

Unbilled accounts receivable

  10,350   7,893 

Contract assets

  433   309 

Prepaid expenses

  2,722   2,176 

Prepaid income taxes and income tax receivable

  1,221   4,262 

Other current assets

  878   1,607 

Total current assets

  62,195   66,311 

Property, plant and equipment (less accumulated depreciation of $37,847 and $44,013, respectively)

  9,279   10,523 

Right-of-use assets

  16,773   19,169 

Other assets

        

Intangible assets, net

  3,000   3,540 

Goodwill

  2,426   2,398 

Deferred tax assets, net

  15,816   16,306 

Other long-term assets

  1,323   1,737 

Total other assets

  22,565   23,981 
         

Total assets

 $110,812  $119,984 
         

LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY

        

Current liabilities

        

Accounts payable and accrued expenses

 $18,547  $22,465 

Accrued payroll and related expenses

  4,944   6,679 

Deferred revenue and customer advances

  5,681   4,590 

Customer postage and program deposits

  1,445   1,223 

Other current liabilities

  2,652   2,862 

Current portion of lease liabilities

  5,446   5,747 

Total current liabilities

  38,715   43,566 
         

Pension liabilities - Qualified plans

  17,388   18,674 

Pension liabilities - Nonqualified plan

  18,510   19,098 

Long-term lease liabilities, net of current portion

  13,553   16,575 

Other long-term liabilities

  2,142   3,263 

Total liabilities

  90,308   101,176 
         

Stockholders’ equity

        

Common stock, $1 par value, 25,000,000 shares authorized;12,221,484 shares issued, 7,216,314 and 7,402,614 shares outstanding at September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively

  12,221   12,221 

Additional paid-in capital

  160,213   218,411 

Retained earnings

  846,897   846,490 

Less treasury stock, 5,005,170 shares at cost at September 30, 2023 and 4,818,870 shares at cost at December 31, 2022

  (953,591)  (1,010,012)

Accumulated other comprehensive loss

  (45,236)  (48,302)

Total stockholders’ equity

  20,504   18,808 

Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity

 $110,812  $119,984 
(Unaudited)
In thousands, except per share and share amounts September 30,
2017
 December 31,
2016
ASSETS  
  
Current assets  
  
Cash and cash equivalents $11,403
 $46,005
Accounts receivable (less allowance for doubtful accounts of $866 at September 30, 2017 and $1,028 at December 31, 2016) 90,687
 88,813
Inventory 796
 838
Prepaid expenses 5,372
 5,944
Prepaid taxes and income tax receivable 8,836
 2,895
Other current assets 4,424
 4,934
Total current assets 121,518
 149,429
Property, plant and equipment (less accumulated depreciation of $137,176 at September 30, 2017 and $141,388 at December 31, 2016) 21,078
 23,924
Goodwill 34,510
 34,510
Other intangible assets (less accumulated amortization of $2,015 at September 30, 2017 and $1,471 at December 31, 2016) 2,758
 3,302
Other assets 2,877
 2,272
Total assets $182,741
 $213,437

    
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY  
  
Current liabilities  
  
Accounts payable $42,458
 $45,563
Accrued payroll and related expenses 10,332
 9,990
Deferred revenue and customer advances 6,889
 6,505
Income taxes payable 655
 30,436
Customer postage and program deposits 6,961
 7,985
Other current liabilities 4,225
 4,188
Total current liabilities 71,520
 104,667
Long-term debt 12,000
 
Pensions 59,723
 60,836
Contingent consideration 32,847
 29,725
Deferred tax liabilities, net 9,893
 11,044
Other long-term liabilities 3,154
 4,509
Total liabilities 189,137
 210,781
Stockholders’ (deficit) equity  
  
Common stock, $1 par value, 250,000,000 shares authorized 120,746,615 shares issued at September 30, 2017 and 120,436,735 shares issued at December 31, 2016 120,747
 120,437
Additional paid-in capital 348,159
 350,245
Retained earnings 823,924
 837,316
Less treasury stock, 58,678,436 shares at cost at September 30, 2017 and 58,791,630 shares at cost at December 31, 2016 (1,254,889) (1,259,164)
Accumulated other comprehensive loss (44,337) (46,178)
Total stockholders’ (deficit) equity (6,396) 2,656
Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity $182,741
 $213,437

See Accompanying Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements


Harte Hanks, Inc. and Subsidiaries Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive LossIncome (Unaudited)

 

Three Months Ended September 30,

 

Nine Months Ended September 30,

 

In thousands, except per share amounts

2023

 

2022

 

2023

 

2022

 

Revenue

$47,119 $53,886 $142,001 $151,500 

Operating expenses

            

Labor

 22,953  27,389  74,084  78,415 

Production and distribution

 15,378  16,175  43,158  42,400 

Advertising, selling, general and administrative

 4,922  5,970  16,071  17,243 

Depreciation and amortization expense

 952  579  3,051  1,764 

Total operating expenses

 44,205  50,113  136,364  139,822 

Operating income

 2,914  3,773  5,637  11,678 
             

Other expense (income), net

            

Interest expense, net

 1  84  (150) 313 

Other expense (income), net

 383  (4,696) 3,760  (5,951)

Total other expense (income), net

 384  (4,612) 3,610  (5,638)

Income before income taxes

 2,530  8,385  2,027  17,316 

Income tax expense

 1,912  1,219  1,620  2,344 

Net income

 618  7,166  407  14,972 

Less: Preferred Stock dividends

   125    371 

Less: Earnings attributable to participating securities

   868    1,817 

Net income attributable to common stockholders

$618 $6,173 $407 $12,784 
             

Earnings per common share

            

Basic

$0.09 $0.87 $0.06 $1.81 

Diluted

$0.08 $0.83 $0.05 $1.73 
             

Weighted average shares used to compute income per share attributable to common shares

            

Basic

 7,239  7,125  7,340  7,045 

Diluted

 7,314  7,524  7,509  7,418 
             

Comprehensive income, net of tax:

            

Net income

$618 $7,166 $407 $14,972 
             

Adjustment to pension liability, net

 503  719  1,421  2,307 

Foreign currency translation adjustment

 (559) (3,007) 1,645  (6,118)

Total other comprehensive (loss) income, net of tax

$(56)$(2,288)$3,066 $(3,811)
             

Comprehensive income

$562 $4,878 $3,473 $11,161 
(Unaudited)

4

  Three Months Ended September 30,
In thousands, except per share amounts 2017 2016
Operating revenues $94,424
 $97,425
Operating expenses  
  
Labor 55,047
 59,484
Production and distribution 26,726
 27,275
Advertising, selling, general and administrative 9,145
 11,586
Depreciation, software and intangible asset amortization 2,556
 3,166
Total operating expenses 93,474
 101,511
Operating income (loss) 950
 (4,086)
Other expenses  
  
Interest expense, net 1,285
 704
Other, net 1,763
 596
Total other expenses 3,048
 1,300
Loss from continuing operations before income taxes (2,098) (5,386)
Income tax expense (benefit) 382
 (1,101)
Loss from continuing operations $(2,480) $(4,285)
     
Income from discontinued operations, net of income taxes $
 $1,244
     
Net loss $(2,480) $(3,041)
     
Basic earnings (loss) per common share    
Continuing operations $(0.04) $(0.07)
Discontinued operations 
 0.02
Basic loss per common share $(0.04) $(0.05)
     
Weighted-average common shares outstanding 62,012
 61,543
     
Diluted earnings (loss) per common share    
Continuing operations $(0.04) $(0.07)
Discontinued operations 
 0.02
Diluted loss per common share $(0.04) $(0.05)
     
Weighted-average common and common equivalent shares outstanding 62,012
 61,543
     
Net loss $(2,480) $(3,041)
     
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax  
  
Adjustment to pension liability $413
 $358
Foreign currency translation adjustment 33
 (437)
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax 446
 (79)
Comprehensive loss $(2,034) $(3,120)



Harte Hanks, Inc. and Subsidiaries Condensed Consolidated StatementsTable of Comprehensive Loss
  Nine Months Ended September 30,
In thousands, except per share amounts 2017 2016
Operating revenues $284,040
 $294,305
Operating expenses  
  
Labor 172,500
 184,480
Production and distribution 80,125
 84,581
Advertising, selling, general and administrative 30,431
 35,162
Depreciation, software and intangible asset amortization 8,166
 9,403
Total operating expenses 291,222
 313,626
Operating loss (7,182) (19,321)
Other expenses  
  
Interest expense, net 3,543
 2,399
Other, net 5,087
 944
Total other expenses 8,630
 3,343
Loss from continuing operations before income taxes (15,812) (22,664)
Income tax benefit (3,293) (5,778)
Loss from continuing operations $(12,519) $(16,886)
     
Income from discontinued operations, net of income taxes $
 $3,980
     
Net loss $(12,519) $(12,906)
     
Basic earnings (loss) per common share    
Continuing operations $(0.20) $(0.27)
Discontinued operations 
 0.06
Basic loss per common share $(0.20) $(0.21)
     
Weighted-average common shares outstanding 61,866
 61,445
     
Diluted earnings (loss) per common share    
Continuing operations $(0.20) $(0.27)
Discontinued operations 
 0.06
Diluted loss per common share $(0.20) $(0.21)
     
Weighted-average common and common equivalent shares outstanding 61,866
 61,445
     
Net loss $(12,519) $(12,906)
     
Declared dividends per share $
 $0.09
     
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax  
  
Adjustment to pension liability $1,164
 $1,238
Foreign currency translation adjustment 677
 (1,856)
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax 1,841
 (618)
Comprehensive loss $(10,678) $(13,524)

See Accompanying Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements

Harte Hanks, Inc. and Subsidiaries Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
(Unaudited)

  Nine Months Ended September 30,
In thousands 2017 2016
Cash flows from operating activities  
  
Net loss $(12,519) $(12,906)
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash provided by operating activities    
Income from discontinued operations, net of tax 
 (3,980)
Depreciation and software amortization 7,622
 8,787
Intangible asset amortization 544
 616
Stock-based compensation 1,818
 2,373
Net pension cost (payments) 827
 297
Interest accretion on contingent consideration 3,122
 1,730
Adjustments to fair value of contingent consideration 
 (247)
Amortization of debt issuance costs 
 495
Deferred income taxes (1,917) (3,243)
Loss on disposal of assets 135
 
Other, net 
 28
Changes in assets and liabilities, net of acquisitions:    
Decrease (increase) in accounts receivable, net (1,874) 25,979
Decrease (increase) in inventory 42
 (58)
Decrease (increase) in prepaid expenses and other current assets (4,864) 2,887
Increase (decrease) in accounts payable (3,840) 1,662
Decrease in other accrued expenses and liabilities (31,062) (2,667)
Net cash provided by (used in) continuing operations (41,966) 21,753
Net cash provided by discontinued operations 
 4,774
Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities (41,966) 26,527
     
Cash flows from investing activities    
Acquisitions, net of cash acquired 
 (3,500)
Purchases of property, plant and equipment (4,112) (6,870)
Proceeds from sale of property, plant and equipment 18
 280
Net cash used in investing activities within continuing operations (4,094) (10,090)
Net cash used in investing activities within discontinued operations 
 (2,431)
Net cash used in investing activities (4,094) (12,521)
     
Cash flows from financing activities  
  
Borrowings 27,000
 160,570
Repayment of borrowings (15,211) (174,828)
Debt financing costs (515) (2,189)
Issuance of common stock (110) (229)
Issuance of treasury stock 
 130
Payment of capital leases (383) 
Dividends paid 
 (5,285)
Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities of continuing operations 10,781
 (21,831)
     
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents 677
 (1,856)
Net decrease in cash and cash equivalents (34,602) (9,681)
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period 46,005
 16,564
Cash and cash equivalents at end of period $11,403
 $6,883
     
Supplemental disclosures    
Cash paid for interest $172
 $4,252
Cash paid for income taxes, net of refunds $34,723
 $2,248
Non-cash investing and financing activities    
Purchases of property, plant and equipment included in accounts payable $1,174
 $264
New capital lease obligations $58
 $274
See Accompanying Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements

Harte Hanks, Inc. and Subsidiaries Condensed Consolidated Statements of Changes in Stockholders' Equity(Unaudited)

  

Three Months ended September 30, 2023

 
                      

Accumulated

     
          

Additional

          

Other

  

Total

 
  

Preferred

  

Common

  

Paid-in

  

Retained

  

Treasury

  

Comprehensive

  

Stockholders’

 

In thousands

 

Stock

  

Stock

  

Capital

  

Earnings

  

Stock

  

Loss

  

Equity

 

Balance at June 30, 2023

 $-  $12,221  $187,386  $846,279  $(980,156) $(45,180) $20,550 

Stock-based compensation

        160            160 

Vesting of RSUs

        (27,333)     27,055      (278)

Repurchase of common stock

              (490)     (490)

Net Income

           618         618 

Other comprehensive loss

                 (56)  (56)

Balance at September 30, 2023

 $-  $12,221  $160,213  $846,897  $(953,591) $(45,236) $20,504 
                             
  

Nine Months ended September 30, 2023

 
                      

Accumulated

     
          

Additional

          

Other

  

Total

 
  

Preferred

  

Common

  

Paid-in

  

Retained

  

Treasury

  

Comprehensive

  

Stockholders’

 

In thousands

 

Stock

  

Stock

  

Capital

  

Earnings

  

Stock

  

Loss

  

Equity

 

Balance at December 31, 2022

 $-  $12,221  $218,411  $846,490  $(1,010,012) $(48,302) $18,808 

Stock-based compensation

        1,203            1,203 

Vesting of RSUs

        (59,401)     58,791      (610)

Repurchase of common stock

              (2,370)     (2,370)

Net income

           407         407 

Other comprehensive income

                 3,066   3,066 

Balance at September 30, 2023

 $-  $12,221  $160,213  $846,897  $(953,591) $(45,236) $20,504 

(Unaudited)
  

Three Months ended September 30, 2022

 
                      

Accumulated

     
          

Additional

          

Other

  

Total

 
  

Preferred

  

Common

  

Paid-in

  

Retained

  

Treasury

  

Comprehensive

  

Stockholders’

 

In thousands

 

Stock

  

Stock

  

Capital

  

Earnings

  

Stock

  

Loss

  

Deficit

 

Balance at June 30, 2022

 $9,723  $12,121  $272,727  $818,900  $(1,066,608) $(54,851) $(17,711)

Stock-based compensation

        927            927 

Vesting of RSUs

        (53,343)     52,460      (883)

Net income

           7,166         7,166 

Other comprehensive income

                 (2,288)  (2,288)

Balance at September 30, 2022

 $9,723  $12,121  $220,311  $826,066  $(1,014,148) $(57,139) $(12,789)
                             
  

Nine Months ended September 30, 2022

 
                      

Accumulated

     
          

Additional

          

Other

  

Total

 
  

Preferred

  

Common

  

Paid-in

  

Retained

  

Treasury

  

Comprehensive

  

Stockholders’

 

In thousands

 

Stock

  

Stock

  

Capital

  

Earnings

  

Stock

  

Loss

  

Deficit

 

Balance at December 31, 2021

 $9,723  $12,121  $290,711  $811,094  $(1,085,313) $(53,328) $(24,715)

Stock-based compensation

        1,915            1,915 

Vesting of RSUs

        (72,315)     71,165      (1,150)

Net income

           14,972         14,972 

Other comprehensive income

                 (3,811)  (3,811)

Balance at September 30, 2022

 $9,723  $12,121  $220,311  $826,066  $(1,014,148) $(57,139) $(12,789)
In thousands, except per share amounts Common
Stock
 Additional
Paid-in
Capital
 Retained
Earnings
 Treasury
Stock
 Accumulated Other
Comprehensive
Income (Loss)
 Total
Stockholders’
Equity
Balance at December 31, 2015 $120,147
 $353,050
 $973,538
 $(1,262,859) $(43,560) $140,316
Exercise of stock options and release of unvested shares 284
 (284) 
 (229) 
 (229)
Net tax effect of stock options exercised and release of unvested shares 
 (1,091) 
 
 
 (1,091)
Stock-based compensation 
 2,241
 
 
 
 2,241
Dividends paid ($0.085 per share) 
 
 (5,285) 
 
 (5,285)
Treasury stock issued 
 (2,905) 
 3,035
 
 130
Net loss 
 
 (12,906) 
 
 (12,906)
Other comprehensive loss 
 
 
 
 (618) (618)
Balance at September 30, 2016 $120,431
 $351,011
 $955,347
 $(1,260,053) $(44,178) $122,558
In thousands, except per share amounts Common
Stock
 Additional
Paid-in
Capital
 Retained
Earnings
 Treasury
Stock
 Accumulated Other
Comprehensive
Income (Loss)
 Total
Stockholders’
Deficit
Balance at December 31, 2016 $120,437
 $350,245
 $837,316
 $(1,259,164) $(46,178) $2,656
Cumulative effect of accounting change 
 709
 (873) 
 
 (164)
Exercise of stock options and release of unvested shares 310
 (310) 
 (110) 
 (110)
Stock-based compensation 
 1,760
 
 
 
 1,760
Treasury stock issued 
 (4,245) 
 4,385
 
 140
Net loss 
 
 (12,519) 
 
 (12,519)
Other comprehensive income 
 
 
 
 1,841
 1,841
Balance at September 30, 2017 $120,747
 $348,159
 $823,924
 $(1,254,889) $(44,337) $(6,396)

See Accompanying Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements


Harte Hanks, Inc. and Subsidiaries Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows

(Unaudited)

  

Nine Months Ended September 30,

 

In thousands

 

2023

   

2022

 

Cash Flows from Operating Activities

         

Net Income

 $407   $14,972 

Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities:

         

Depreciation and amortization expense

  3,051    1,764 

Stock-based compensation

  1,203    1,776 

Net pension cost (payment)

  16    (775)

Deferred income taxes

  (453)    

Changes in assets and liabilities:

         

Accounts receivable and contract assets

  3,816    (2,916)

Prepaid expenses, income tax receivable and other current assets

  4,106    2,496 

Accounts payable and accrued expenses

  (3,785)   4,778 

Deferred revenue and customer advances

  1,091    3,101 

Customer postage and program deposits

  222    (1,912)

Other accrued expenses and liabilities

  (3,564)   (1,032)

Net cash provided by operating activities

  6,110    22,252 
          

Cash Flows from Investing Activities

         

Purchases of property, plant and equipment

  (1,480)   (5,743)

Proceeds from sale of property, plant and equipment

  3    57 

Net cash used in investing activities

  (1,477)   (5,686)
          

Cash Flows from Financing Activities

         

Repayment of borrowings

      (5,000)

Debt financing costs

  (6)   (123)

Payment of finance leases

  (144)   (148)

Repurchase of common stock

  (2,370)    

Treasury stock activities

  (610)   (1,150)

Net cash used in financing activities

  (3,130)   (6,421)
          

Effect of exchange rate changes on cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash

  1,421    (6,118)
          

Net increase in cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash

  2,924    4,027 

Cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash at beginning of period

  11,364    15,133 

Cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash at end of period

 $14,288 

(1)

 $19,160 
          

Supplemental disclosures

         

Cash paid for interest

 $198   $137 

Cash (received) paid for income taxes, net

 $(3,369)  $828 

Non-cash investing and financing activities

         

Purchases of property, plant and equipment included in accounts payable

 $1,935   $2,385 
          

(1) This amount is comprised of the below balances:

         

Cash and cash equivalents

 $13,288   $6,907 

Restricted cash

      2,327 

Cash held in Escrow account included in other assets (see Note L)

  1,000    9,926 

Cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash at end of period

 $14,288   $19,160 

See Accompanying Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements

Harte Hanks, Inc. and Subsidiaries

Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited)

Note A — Basis- Overview and Significant Accounting Policies

Background

Harte Hanks, Inc. together with its subsidiaries (“Harte Hanks,” “Company,” “we,” “our,” or “us”) is a leading global customer experience company.  With offices in North America, Asia-Pacific and Europe, Harte Hanks works with some of Presentation


the world’s most respected brands.

Segment Reporting

The Company operates three business segments: Marketing Services; Customer Care; and Fulfillment & Logistics Services. Our Chief Executive Officer (“CEO”) is considered to be our chief operating decision maker. Our CEO reviews our operating results on an aggregate basis for purposes of allocating resources and evaluating financial performance by using the three financial measures: revenue, operating income and operating income plus depreciation and amortization (EBITDA).

Accounting Principles

Our unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes are prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”). In the opinion of management, the unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements reflect all adjustments of a normal recurring nature that are necessary for a fair presentation of the results for the interim periods presented. Interim results are not necessarily indicative of results for a full year. The information included in this Form 10-Q should be read in conjunction with information included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022 (the “202210-K”).

Consolidation


The accompanying unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statementsinterim condensed consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Harte Hanks, Inc. and its subsidiaries.  All intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.  As used in this report, the terms “Harte Hanks,” “the company,Company,” “we,” “us,” or “our” may refer to Harte Hanks, Inc., one or more of its consolidated subsidiaries, or all of them taken as a whole.


whole, as the context may require.

Interim Financial Information


The condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with United States Generally Accepted Accounting Principles ("U.S. GAAP")GAAP for interim financial information and with the instructions to Form 10-Q10-Q and Rule 10-018-01 of Regulation S-X.S-X. Accordingly, they do not include all of the information and footnotes required by U.S. GAAPU.S.GAAP for complete financial statements. In the opinion of management, all adjustments (consisting of normal recurring adjustments) considered necessary for a fair presentation have been included.  Operating results for the threeThe prior period amounts in Labor, Production and nine months ended September 30, 2017 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the year ending December 31, 2017. The information included in this Form 10-Q should be read in conjunction with Management’s DiscussionDistribution, Advertising, Selling, General and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations and the consolidated financial statements and notes thereto included in our annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2016.


Discontinued Operations

As discussed in Note M, Discontinued Operations, we sold the assets of Trillium Software, Inc. and its subsidiaries (collectively "Trillium") as of December 23, 2016. As such, the results of operations, financial position, and cash flows for Trillium are reported separately as discontinued operations for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2016 presentedAdministrative expenses in the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements. Resultscondensed consolidated Statements of the remaining Harte Hanks business are reported as continuing operations.

Going Concern

Our recent operating and financial performance has caused us to closely review our ability to continue as a going concern. We have taken a number of actions to continue to support our operations and meet obligations in light of our recent financial performance and decreased cash flows.

On April 17, 2017, we entered into a new credit agreement with Texas Capital Bank, N.A. (the "Texas Capital Credit Facility"). The Texas Capital Credit Facility provides $20.0 million in borrowing capacity under a revolving credit line with limited financial covenants compared to our previous credit facilities. We believe that the liquidity provided by the Texas Capital Credit Facility is sufficient for our needs given the nature and performance of our operations.

On May 1, 2017, we entered into an agreement with 3Q Digital (the "3Q Agreement") which allows us to defer payment of the significant contingent liability that otherwise would have been due in 2018. Under the terms of the 3Q Digital purchase agreement, we are required to pay the former owners of 3Q Digital up to $35.0 million of additional consideration contingent on achievement of certain revenue growth goals. The 3Q Agreement defers our obligation to pay such contingent consideration until April 1, 2019, or the sale of the 3Q Digital business, whichever is earlier.

We believe that in conjunction with our current liquidity position, the new credit facility, and the deferral of payment of the contingent consideration, there are no conditions or events, considered in the aggregate, that raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern for the 12 months following the issuance of these unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.

We continue to take actions to return the business to profitability and improve our cash, liquidity, and financial position. We have implemented expense reduction actions, including downsizing our workforce and consolidating back-office and information technology functions. We completed the closure of our Baltimore direct mail facility in the first quarter of 2017 in response to the declining demand for printed marketing materials. Continuing work from this facility was transitioned to other facilities, allowing for higher utilization rates. We have started to see the favorable impact of these actions and intend to continue efforts to reduce expenses through the end of 2017.


In addition to the actions discussed above, we are taking steps to improve our operational and financial performance. We continue to work toward increasing operating efficiencies and have focused our investments on improving product offerings that we believe will drive revenue growth.

On April 18, 2017, we announced that as part of an initiative to enhance the company's strategic position and increase financial flexibility, the company would seek strategic alternatives for the 3Q Digital business. The liquidity from the potential sale of 3Q Digital would enhance our ability to invest in strategies to strengthen our core offerings.

Reclassifications

Certain amounts in the financial statements from the prior yearsComprehensive Income, have been reclassified to conform to the current year'speriod's presentation. This includes the retrospective adoption of ASU 2017-07, Compensation—Retirement Benefits (Topic 715): Improving the Presentation of Net Periodic Pension Cost and Net Periodic Postretirement Benefit Cost, resulted inThe most notable change is the reclassification of pensionthe $3.8 million of lease expense previously recorded in Labor as of September 30, 2016from Production and Distribution expense to Other, net in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Loss.

Advertising, Selling, General and Administrative expense.

Use of Estimates


The preparation

Preparation of condensed consolidated financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenue, and expenses.disclosed in the financial statements and the accompanying notes. Actual results and outcomes could differ materially from those estimates and assumptions.due to uncertainties. Such estimates include, but are not limited to, estimates related to lease accounting; pension accounting; fair value for purposes of assessing goodwill, long-lived assets, and intangible assets for impairment; revenue recognition; income taxes; stock-based compensation;compensation and contingencies. On an ongoing basis, management reviews its estimates and assumptions based on currently available information. Changes in facts and circumstances could result in revised estimates and assumptions.


Inventories

Our inventories consist primarily of print material and operating supplies. Inventory is stated at the lower of cost using the first-in, first-out method, or market.

Operating Expense Presentation in Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income

The “Labor” line in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Loss


“Labor” in the Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive LossIncome includes all employee payroll and benefits costs, including stock-based compensation along withand temporary labor costs. The “Production and distribution” and “Advertising, selling, general and administrative” lines do not include any labor, depreciation, or amortization.

Note B — Recent Accounting Pronouncements

In May 2017,amortization expense.

Revenue Recognition

We recognize revenue upon the FASB issued ASU 2017-09, Compensation—Stock Compensation (Topic 718): Scopetransfer of Modification Accounting, which provides clarified guidance on applying modification accountingcontrol of promised products or services to changescustomers in the terms or conditions of a share-based payment award. This ASU is effective for annual periods, and interim periods within those annual periods, beginning after December 15, 2017, with early adoption permitted. This change is required to be applied prospectively to an award modified on or after the adoption date. We are evaluating the effect that this will have on our consolidated financial statements and related disclosures.


In March 2017, the FASB issued ASU 2017-07, Compensation—Retirement Benefits (Topic 715): Improving the Presentation of Net Periodic Pension Cost and Net Periodic Postretirement Benefit Cost, which requires entities to present the service cost component of net benefit cost with the other current compensation costs. All other components of net benefit cost are to be reported outside of operating income. This ASU is effective for annual periods beginning after December 15, 2017, with early adoption permitted. This change is required to be applied using a retrospective transition method for each period presented. We adopted the update as of the first quarter of 2017. As a result of the adoption of this ASU, we reclassified $1.5 million of pension expense recorded in Labor in the nine months ended September 30, 2016 to Other, net in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Loss.

In January 2017, the FASB issued ASU 2017-04, Intangibles—Goodwill and Other (Topic 350): Simplifying the Test for Goodwill Impairment, which eliminates step two from the goodwill impairment test. Under the amendments in ASU 2017-04, an entity should recognize an impairment charge in the amount that reflects the carrying amount of a reporting unit exceeds its fair value; however, the loss recognized should not exceed the total amount of goodwill allocated to that reporting unit. This ASU is effective for annual or interim goodwill impairment tests in fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2019, with early adoption permitted. We adopted this standard in January 2017, and will apply it as necessary in our consolidated financial statements.

In August 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-15, Statement of Cash Flows (Topic 230): Classification of Certain Cash Receipts and Cash Payments, which provides clarified guidance on the classification of certain cash receipts and payments in the statement of cash flows. This ASU is effective for annual periods beginning after December 15, 2017, including interim reporting periods within those annual reporting periods. This change is required to be applied using a retrospective transition method to each period presented. Early adoption is permitted. We are evaluating the effect that this will have on our consolidated financial statements and related disclosures.

In March 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-09, Compensation—Stock Compensation (Topic 718): Improvements to Employee Share-based Payment Accounting, which requires entities with share-based payment awards to recognize all related excess tax benefits and tax deficiencies as income tax expenses or benefit in the income statement. This ASU is effective for interim and annual periods beginning after December 15, 2016. We have adopted the update as of the first quarter of 2017. As a result of the adoption of this ASU, excess tax benefits or deficiencies will now be reflected in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Loss as a component of income taxes, whereas they previously would be recognized in equity. Excess tax benefits will be recognized in the Consolidated Statement of Cash Flow as an operating activity, with the prior periods adjusted accordingly. Finally,consideration we have elected to account for forfeitures as they occur, rather than estimate expected forfeitures. The ASU was adopted on a modified retrospective basis and no prior periods were restated as a result of the change in accounting policy.

In February 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-02, Leases, which requires all operating leases to be recorded on the balance sheet. The lessee will record a liability for its lease obligations (initially measured at the present value of the future lease payments not yet paid over the lease term, and an asset for its right to use the underlying asset equal to the lease liability, adjusted for lease payments made at or before lease commencement). This ASU is effective for interim and annual periods beginning after December 15, 2018, with early adoption permitted. This change is required to be applied using a modified retrospective approach for leases that exist or are entered into after the beginning of the earliest comparative period in the financial statements. Full retrospective application is prohibited. We are evaluating the effect that this will have on our consolidated financial statements and related disclosures.

In May 2014, the FASB issued ASU No. 2014-09, Revenue from Contracts with Customers, which requires an entity to recognize the amount of revenue to which it expectsexpect to be entitled to receive in exchange for the transfer of promised goodsthose products or services to customers. The ASU will replace most existingbased on the relevant contract. We apply the following five-step revenue recognition guidancemodel:

Identification of the contract, or contracts, with a customer

Identification of the performance obligations in the contract

Determination of the transaction price

Allocation of the transaction price to the performance obligations in the contract

Recognition of revenue when (or as) we satisfy the performance obligation

Certain client programs provide for adjustments to billings based upon whether we achieve certain performance criteria. In these circumstances, revenue is recognized when the foregoing conditions are met. We record revenue net of any taxes collected from customers and subsequently remitted to governmental authorities. Any payments received in U.S. GAAP when it becomes effective. The standard permits the use of either the retrospective or cumulative effect transition method. On July 9, 2015, the FASB delayed the effective dateadvance of the new revenue standard by one year. The new effective date is for fiscal years, and interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2017, with early adoption permitted beginning January 1, 2017. We are evaluating the effect that this will have on our consolidated financial statements and related disclosures. We have not yet selected a transition method nor have we determined the effectperformance of services or delivery of the standardproduct are recorded as deferred revenue until such time as the services are performed or the product is delivered. Costs incurred for search engine marketing solutions payable to the engine host and postage costs of mailings are billed to our clients and are not directly reflected in our revenue.

7

Revenue from agency and digital services, direct mail, logistics, fulfillment and contact center is recognized when the work is performed.  Fees for these services are determined by the terms set forth in each contract. These fees are typically a fixed price or rate by transaction occurrence, service provided, time spent, or product delivered.

For arrangements requiring design and build of a database, revenue is not recognized until client acceptance occurs. Up-front fees billed during the setup phase for these arrangements are deferred until client acceptance occurs and direct build costs are capitalized. Pricing for these types of arrangements is typically based on our ongoing financial reporting.


Note C — a fixed price determined in the contract. Revenue from other database marketing solutions is recognized ratably over the contractual service period. Pricing for these services is typically based on a fixed price per month or per contract.

Fair Value of Financial Instruments

FASB ASC

Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") Accounting Standard Codification ("ASC") 820,Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures, (“ASC 820”) defines fair value as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. The guidanceASC 820 also establishes a fair value hierarchy that prioritizes the inputs used in valuation methodologies into three levels:

Level 1

Level 1

Quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities.

Level 2

Level 2

Observable inputs other than Level 1 prices, such as quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities; quoted prices in markets that are not active; or other inputs that are observable or can be corroborated by observable market data for substantially the full term of the assets or liabilities.

Level 3

Level 3

Unobservable inputs that are supported by little or no market activity and that are significant to the fair value of the assets or liabilities.

Because of their maturities and/or variable interest rates, certain financial instruments have fair values approximating their carrying values. These instruments include cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash, accounts receivable, trade payables, and trade payables.long-term debt.  The fair value of the assets in our outstanding debtfunded pension plan is discloseddiscussed in Note E, Long-Term Debt.H, Employee Benefit Plans.

Leases

We determine if an arrangement is a lease at its inception. Operating and finance leases are included in the lease right-of-use (“ROU”) assets and in the current portion and long-term portion of lease liabilities on our condensed consolidated balance sheets. ROU assets represent our right to use an underlying asset for the lease term and lease liabilities represent our obligation to make lease payments arising from the lease. Operating lease ROU assets and liabilities are recognized at the commencement date of each lease based on the present value of lease payments over the lease term. As most of our leases do not provide an implicit interest rate, we use our incremental borrowing rate based on the information available at the commencement date of each lease to determine the present value of lease payments. The operating lease ROU assets also include any lease payments made and exclude lease incentives. Our calculation oflease terms may include options to extend or terminate the acquisition related contingent consideration accounted for at fair value on a recurring basis is disclosedlease, which are included in Note L, Acquisition and Disposition.


Note D — Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets

Under the provisions of FASB ASC 350, Intangibles-Goodwill and Other (ASC 350), goodwill is tested for impairment at least annually, or more frequently if events or circumstances indicate thatlease ROU assets when it is more likely than notreasonably certain that goodwillwe will exercise that option. Lease expense for lease payments is impaired. We perform our annual goodwill impairment assessment as of November 30th of each year.


We continuously monitor potential triggering events, including changes in the business climate in which we operate, attrition of key personnel, the current volatility in the capital markets, the company’s market capitalization compared to our book value, our recent operating performance, and financial projections. During the quarter ended September 30, 2017, we did not identify any triggering events that require testing for impairment. The occurrence of one or more triggering events could require additional impairment testing, which could result in impairment charges in the future.

The changes in the carrying amount of goodwill are as follows:
In thousands Total
Balance at December 31, 2016 $34,510
Additions to goodwill 
Impairment 
Balance at September 30, 2017 $34,510

Other intangible assets with definite lives relate to contact databases, client relationships, and non-compete agreements. They are amortizedrecognized on a straight-line basis over the lease term. We have lease agreements with lease and non-lease components, which are generally accounted for separately. For certain real estate leases, we account for the lease and non-lease components as a single lease component.  

Note B - Recent Accounting Pronouncements

Recently adopted accounting pronouncements

In October 2021, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued ASU 2021-08, “Business Combinations (Topic 805): Accounting for Contract Assets and Liabilities from Contracts with Customers.” This ASU requires an acquiring entity to recognize and measure contract assets and contract liabilities acquired in a business combination in accordance with Topic 606. The ASU is effective for fiscal years and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2022.  

The Company adopted this standard on January 1, 2023 on a prospective basis. The adoption of this new standard did not have a material impact on the Company's financial statements.

8

Note C - Revenue from Contracts with Customers

Under  Accounting Standards Update (ASU) 2014-09, Revenue from Contracts with Customers ("ASC 606"), an entity recognizes revenue when its customer obtains control of promised goods or services, in an amount that reflects the consideration the entity expects to receive in exchange for those goods or services. To determine revenue recognition for arrangements that are within the scope of the new standard, the entity performs the following five steps: (i) identify the contract(s) with a customer; (ii) identify the performance obligations in the contract; (iii) determine the transaction price; (iv) allocate the transaction price to the performance obligations in the contract; and (v) recognize revenue when (or as) the entity satisfies a performance obligation. This standard requires disclosure of the nature, amount, timing, and uncertainty of revenue and cash flows arising from contracts with customers. This standard also includes criteria for the capitalization and amortization of certain contract acquisition and fulfillment costs.

Under ASC 606, revenue is recognized when control of the promised goods or services is transferred to the customer, in an amount that reflects the consideration we expect to be entitled to in exchange for those goods or services. Our contracts with customers state the terms of sale, including the description, quantity, and price of the product sold or service provided. Payment terms can vary by contract, but the period between invoicing and when payment is due is not significant.  The Company's contracts with its customers generally do not include rights of return or a significant financing component.

Consistent with GAAP, we present sales taxes assessed on revenue-producing transactions on a net basis.

Disaggregation of Revenue

We disaggregate revenue by three key revenue streams which are aligned with our business segments.  The nature of the services offered by each key revenue stream is different.  The following table summarizes revenue from contracts with customers for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022 by our three business segments and the pattern of revenue recognition:

  

Three Months Ended September 30, 2023

 

In thousands

 

Revenue for performance obligations recognized over time

  

Revenue for performance obligations recognized at a point in time

  

Total

 

Marketing Services

 $9,272  $1,319  $10,591 

Customer Care

  13,998      13,998 

Fulfillment and Logistics Services

  18,625   3,905   22,530 

Total Revenues

 $41,895  $5,224  $47,119 

  

Three Months Ended September 30, 2022

 

In thousands

 

Revenue for performance obligations recognized over time

  

Revenue for performance obligations recognized at a point in time

  

Total

 

Marketing Services

 $10,984  $2,032  $13,016 

Customer Care

  17,375      17,375 

Fulfillment and Logistics Services

  21,398   2,097   23,495 

Total Revenues

 $49,757  $4,129  $53,886 

  

Nine Months Ended September 30, 2023

 

In thousands

 

Revenue for performance obligations recognized over time

  

Revenue for performance obligations recognized at a point in time

  

Total

 

Marketing Services

 $29,321  $3,430  $32,751 

Customer Care

  45,625      45,625 

Fulfillment and Logistics Services

  52,044   11,581   63,625 

Total Revenues

 $126,990  $15,011  $142,001 

  

Nine Months Ended September 30, 2022

 

In thousands

 

Revenue for performance obligations recognized over time

  

Revenue for performance obligations recognized at a point in time

  

Total

 

Marketing Services

 $32,474  $6,915  $39,389 

Customer Care

  50,499      50,499 

Fulfillment and Logistics Services

  53,489   8,123   61,612 

Total Revenues

 $136,462  $15,038  $151,500 

Our contracts with customers may consist of multiple performance obligations. If the contract contains a single performance obligation, the entire transaction price is allocated to the single performance obligation. Contracts that contain multiple performance obligations require an allocation of the transaction price to each performance obligation based on a relative standalone selling price (“SSP”) basis unless the transaction price is variable and meets the criteria to be allocated entirely to a performance obligation or to a distinct good or service that forms part of a single performance obligation. For most performance obligations, we determine SSP based on the price at which the performance obligation is sold separately. Although uncommon, if the SSP is not observable through past transactions, we estimate the SSP taking into account available information such as market conditions and internally approved pricing guidelines related to the performance obligations. Further discussion of other performance obligations in each of our major revenue streams follows:

MarketingServices

Our Marketing Services segment delivers strategic planning, data strategy, performance analytics, creative development and execution, technology enablement, marketing automation, and database management. We create relevancy by leveraging data, insight, and our extensive experience in leading clients as they engage their respective estimated useful lives, typicallycustomers through digital, traditional, and emerging channels. We are known for helping clients build deep customer relationships, create connected customer experiences, and optimize each and every customer touch point in order to deliver desired business outcomes.

Most marketing services performance obligations are satisfied over time and often offered on a 2 to 10-year period. Other intangible assets are reviewed for impairment when events or changes in circumstance indicateper project basis. We have concluded that the carrying amountbest approach to measure the progress toward completion of the project-based performance obligations is the input method, which is based on either the costs or labor hours incurred to date depending upon whether costs or labor hours more accurately depict the transfer of value to the customer.

The variable consideration in these contracts primarily relates to time and material-based services and reimbursable out-of-pocket travel costs, both of which are estimated using the expected value method. For time and material-based contracts, we use the “as invoiced” practical expedient.

Our database solutions are built around centralized marketing databases with services rendered to build custom database, database hosting services, customer or target marketing lists and data processing services.

These performance obligations, including services rendered to build a custom database, database hosting services, customer or target marketing lists and data processing services, may be satisfied over time or at a point in time. We provide software as a service (“SaaS”) solutions to host data for customers and have concluded that these solutions are stand-ready obligations to be recognized over time on a monthly basis. Our promise to provide certain data related services meets the over-time recognition criteria because our services do not create an asset with an alternative use, and we have an enforceable right to payment. For performance obligations recognized over time, we choose either the input (i.e., labor hour) or output method (i.e., number of customer records) to measure the progress toward completion depending on the nature of the services provided. Some of our other data-related services do not meet the over-time criteria and are therefore, recognized at a point-in-time, typically upon the delivery of a specific deliverable.

Our contracts may include outsourced print production work for our clients. These contracts may include a promise to purchase postage on behalf of our clients.  In such cases, we have determined we are an agent, rather than principal and therefore recognize net consideration as revenue.

We charge our customers for certain data-related services at a fixed transaction-based rate, e.g., per thousand customer records processed. Because the quantity of transactions is unknown at the onset of a contract, our transaction price is variable, and we use the expected value method to estimate the transaction price. The uncertainty associated with the variable consideration typically resolves within a short period of time since the duration of these contracts is generally less than two months.

Customer Care

We operate tele-service workstations in the United States, Asia, and Europe to provide advanced contact center solutions such as: speech, voice and video chat, integrated voice response, analytics, social cloud monitoring, and web self-service.

Performance obligations are stand-ready obligations and are satisfied over time. With regard to account management and SaaS, we use a time-elapsed output method to recognize revenue. For performance obligations where we charge customers a transaction-based fee, we use the output method based on transaction quantities. In most cases, our contracts provide us the right to invoice for services provided, therefore, we generally use the “as invoiced” practical expedient to recognize revenue associated with these performance obligations unless significant discounts are offered in a contract and prices for services do not represent their SSPs.

The variable consideration in our contracts results primarily from the transaction-based fee structure of some performance obligations as the total transaction quantities to be provided are unknown at the onset of a contract, and are estimated using the expected value method.

Fulfillment&Logistics Services

Our services, delivered internally and with our partners, include printing, lettershop, advanced mail optimization (including commingling services), logistics and transportation optimization, monitoring and tracking, to support traditional and specialized mailings. Our print and fulfillment centers in Massachusetts and Kansas provide custom kitting services, print on demand, product recall support, trade marketing fulfillment, ecommerce product fulfillment, sampling programs, and freight optimization, thereby allowing our customers to efficiently and effectively distribute literature and other marketing materials.

Most performance obligations offered within this revenue stream are satisfied over time and utilize the input or output method, depending on the nature of the service, to measure progress toward satisfying the performance obligation. For performance obligations where we charge customers a transaction-based fee, we utilize the output method based on the quantities fulfilled. Services provided through our fulfillment centers are typically priced on a per transaction basis and our contracts allow us to invoice for services provided and reflect the value to the customer of the services provided to date. In most cases, we use the “as invoiced” practical expedient to recognize revenue associated with these performance obligations unless significant discounts are offered in a contract and prices for services do not represent their standalone selling prices. Prior to the closure of our direct mail production facilities, our direct mail business contracts may have included a promise to purchase postage on behalf of our clients; in such cases, we have determined we are an agent, rather than principal and therefore recognize net consideration as revenue.

The variable consideration in our contracts results primarily from the transaction-based fee structure of some performance obligations as the total transaction quantities to be provided are unknown at the onset of a contract, and are estimated using the expected value method.                                      

10

Upfront Non-Refundable Fees

We may receive non-refundable upfront fees from customers for implementation of our SaaS database solutions products or for providing training in connection with our contact center solutions. These activities are not deemed to transfer a separate promised service and therefore, represent advanced payments. Where customers have an option to renew a contract, the customer is not required to pay similar upfront fees upon renewal. As a result, we have determined that these renewal options provide for the purchase of future services at a reduced rate and therefore, provide a material right. These upfront non-refundable fees are recognized over the period of benefit which is generally consistent with estimated customer life (four to five years for database solutions contracts and six months to one year for contact center contracts).  The balance of upfront non-refundable fees collected from customers was immaterial as of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022.

Transaction Price Allocated to Future Performance Obligations

We have elected to apply certain optional exemptions that limit the disclosure requirements over remaining performance obligations at period end to exclude the performance obligations that have an original expected duration of one year or less, transactions using the “as invoiced” practical expedient, or when a performance obligation is a series and we have allocated the variable consideration directly to the services performed. As of September 30, 2023, we had no transaction prices allocated to unsatisfied or partially satisfied performance obligations.

Contract Balances

We record a receivable when revenue is recognized prior to invoicing when we have an unconditional right to consideration (only the passage of time is required before payment of that consideration is due) and a contract asset when the right to payment is conditional upon our future performance such as delivery of an additional good or service (e.g. customer contract requires customer’s final acceptance of custom database solution or delivery of final marketing strategy presentation before customer payment is required). If invoicing occurs prior to revenue recognition, the unearned revenue is presented on our Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheet as a contract liability, referred to as deferred revenue. The following table summarizes our contract balances as of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022:

In thousands

 

September 30, 2023

  

December 31, 2022

 

Contract assets

  433   309 

Deferred revenue and customer advances

  5,681   4,590 

Deferred revenue, included in other long-term liabilities

  321   432 

Revenue recognized during the nine months ended September 30, 2023 from amounts included in deferred revenue at the beginning of the period was approximately $3.9 million. Revenue recognized during the nine months ended September 30,2022 from amounts included in deferred revenue at the beginning of the period was approximately $2.9 million. 

Costs to Obtain and Fulfill a Contract

We recognize an asset for the direct costs incurred to obtain and fulfill our contracts with customers to the extent that we expect to recover these costs and if the benefit is longer than one year. These costs are amortized to operating expense over the expected period of the benefit in a manner that is consistent with the transfer of the related goods or services to which the asset relates. We impair the asset when recoverability is not anticipated. We capitalized a portion of commission expense, implementation and other costs that represents the cost to obtain a contract. The remaining unamortized contract costs were $0.6 million and $1.0 million as of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively.  For the periods presented, no impairment was recognized.

Note D - Leases

We have operating and finance leases for corporate and business offices, service facilities, call centers and certain equipment. Leases with an initial term of 12 months or less are generally not recorded on the balance sheet, unless the arrangement includes an option to purchase the underlying asset, or an option to renew the arrangement, that we are reasonably certain to exercise (short-term lease). Our leases have remaining lease terms of one to eight years, some of which may not be recoverable.


include options to extend the leases for up to an additional five years.

We subleased our Fullerton (CA), Jacksonville (FL) and Uxbridge (UK) facilities.  The changeslease and sublease for Fullerton (CA) facility expired in April 2023,  the lease and sublease for Uxbridge (UK) facility will expire in October 2023 and the lease and sublease for Jacksonville (FL) facility will expire at the end of July 2024.  

As of September 30, 2023, assets recorded under finance and operating leases were approximately $0.5 million and $16.3 million, respectively, and accumulated amortization associated with finance leases was $1.0 million. As of December 31,2022, assets recorded under finance and operating leases were approximately $0.6 million and $18.6 million, respectively, and accumulated amortization associated with finance leases was $1.0 million.  Operating lease right of use assets and lease liabilities are recognized at the lease commencement date based on the present value of lease payments over the lease term. The discount rate used to determine the commencement date present value of lease payment is the interest rate implicit in the carryinglease, or when that is not readily determinable, we utilize our incremental borrowing rate, which is the rate incurred to borrow on a collateralized basis over a similar term at an amount equal to the lease payments in a similar economic environment. Since noneof other intangible assets with definite livesour leases has a readily determinable implicit interest rate, we use our incremental borrowing rate under our Texas Capital Bank Revolver Facility as the discount rate.  Certain adjustments to the right-of-use asset may be required for items such as initial direct costs paid or incentives received.

11

There was no impairment of leases during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022

The following table presents supplemental balance sheet information related to our financing and operating leases:

In thousands

 

As of September 30, 2023

     
  

Operating Leases

  

Finance Leases

  

Total

 

Right-of-use Assets

 $16,289  $484  $16,773 
             

Liabilities

            

Current portion of lease liabilities

  5,388   58   5,446 

Long-term lease liabilities

  13,538   15   13,553 

Total Lease Liabilities

 $18,926  $73  $18,999 

In thousands

 

As of December 31, 2022

     
  

Operating Leases

  

Finance Leases

  

Total

 

Right-of-use Assets

 $18,574  $595  $19,169 
             

Liabilities

            

Short-term lease liabilities

  5,587   160   5,747 

Long-term lease liabilities

  16,523   52   16,575 

Total Lease Liabilities

 $22,110  $212  $22,322 

For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022, the components of lease expense were as follows:

In thousands

 

Three Months Ended September 30, 2023

  

Three Months Ended September 30, 2022

 

Operating lease cost

 $1,338  $1,393 
         

Finance lease cost:

        

Amortization of right-of-use assets

  35   39 

Interest on lease liabilities

  2   4 

Total Finance lease cost

  37   43 

Variable lease cost

  537   433 

Sublease income

  (177)  (128)

Total lease cost, net

 $1,735  $1,741 

In thousands

 

Nine Months Ended September 30, 2023

  

Nine Months Ended September 30, 2022

 

Operating lease cost

 $4,160  $4,393 
         

Finance lease cost:

        

Amortization of right-of-use assets

  115   126 

Interest on lease liabilities

  6   13 

Total Finance lease cost

  121   139 

Variable lease cost

  1,525   1,419 

Sublease income

  (676)  (539)

Total lease cost, net

 $5,130  $5,412

 

12

Other information related to leases was as follows:

In thousands

 

Nine Months Ended September 30, 2023

  

Nine Months Ended September 30, 2022

 

Supplemental Cash Flows Information

        
         

Cash paid for amounts included in the measurement of lease liabilities:

        

Operating cash flows from operating leases

 $9,525  $10,995 

Operating cash flows from finance leases

  6   12 

Financing cash flows from finance leases

  144   148 
         

Weighted Average Remaining Lease term

        

Operating leases

  5.6   6.3 

Finance leases

  1.3   1.6 
         

Weighted Average Discount Rate

        

Operating leases

  3.56%  3.39%

Finance leases

  7.04%  5.60%

The maturities of the Company’s finance and operating lease liabilities as of September 30, 2023 are as follows:

In thousands

 

Operating Leases (1)

  

Finance Leases

 

Year Ending December 31,

        

Remainder of 2023

 $1,600  $18 

2024

  5,286   50 

2025

  2,873   8 

2026

  2,373    

2027

  2,291    

2027 and beyond

  6,217    

Total future minimum lease payments

  20,640   76 

Less: imputed interest

  1,714   3 

Total lease liabilities

 $18,926  $73 

(1) Non-cancelable sublease proceeds for the remainder of the fiscal year ending December 31, 2023 and the fiscal year ending December 31, 2024 of $0.2 million and $0.4 million, respectively, are not included in the table above.

In thousands Total
Balance at December 31, 2016 $3,302
Amortization (544)
Balance at September 30, 2017 $2,758

Note E — Long-Term Debt


Credit Facilities

- Convertible Preferred Stock and Share Repurchase Program

Convertible Preferred Stock

Our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation authorizes us to issue 1.0 million shares of preferred stock. On March 10, 2016, January 30, 2018, we issued 9,926 shares of our Series A Preferred Stock to Wipro, LLC d/b/a Wipro US Branch IT Services (“Wipro”) at an issue price of $1,000 per share, for gross proceeds of $9.9 million pursuant to a Certificate of Designation filed with the State of Delaware on January 29, 2018. We incurred $0.2 million of transaction fees in connection with the issuance of the Series A Preferred Stock which were netted against the gross proceeds of $9.9 million on our Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.

On June 30, 2022, the Company entered into a secured credit facilityshare repurchase agreement (the “Repurchase Agreement”) with Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. as Administrative Agent, consistingWipro, pursuant to which the Company agreed to repurchase all 9,926 shares of the Company’s Series A Preferred Stock then outstanding in exchange for (i) a maximum $65.0cash payment equal to their liquidation value, or total cash payment of $9,926,000 and (ii) 100,000 shares of the Company’s common stock, par value $1.00 per share (the “Common Stock”)The cash portion of the repurchase price was paid into escrow at the signing of the Repurchase Agreement on June 30, 2022 and held in escrow until the closing of the repurchase on December 2, 2022.

On March 20, 2023, the Company cancelled all shares of Series A Preferred Stock pursuant to the Certificate of Elimination filed with the Secretary of State of Delaware. 

Share Repurchase Program

On May 2, 2023, the Board of Directors of Harte Hanks approved a share repurchase program to maximize shareholder value with authorization to repurchase $6.5 million revolving credit facilityof the Company’s Common Stock. In the three and a $45.0nine months ended September 30, 2023, we repurchased 0.1 and 0.4 million term loan facility (togethershares of common stock for $0.5 million and $2.4 million, respectively.

13

Note F — Long-Term Debt

Credit Facility

As of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, we had no outstanding borrowings under the "2016 Secured Credit Facility"). The 2016 Secured Credit Facility was secured by substantially all of our assets and material domestic subsidiaries. The 2016 Secured Credit Facility was used for general corporate purposes, and to replace and repay outstanding borrowings.


Prepayment of the 2016 Secured Credit Facility was required upon the completion of the sale of Trillium in accordance with its terms. The proceeds of the Trillium sale were used to repay in full all outstanding loans, together with interest, and all other amounts due in connection with repayment. Prepayment penalties of approximately $1.3 million were incurred as a result of repaying the 2016 Secured Credit Facility. The credit and guarantee agreements related to the 2016 Secured Credit Facility were likewise terminated.

On April 17, 2017, we entered into a secured credit facility with Texas Capital Bank, N.A., that provides a $20 million revolving credit facility (the "Texas Capital Credit Facility")(as defined below)The Texas Capital Credit Facility is being used for general corporate purposes and to provide collateral for letters of credit issued by Texas Capital Bank up to $5.0 million. The Texas Capital Credit Facility is secured by substantially all assets of the company and its material domestic subsidiaries. The Texas Capital Credit Facility is guaranteed by HHS Guaranty, LLC, an entity formed to provide credit support for Harte Hanks by certain members of the Shelton family (descendants of one of our founders).

The Texas Capital Credit Facility is due and payable in full on April 17, 2019. We can elect to accrue interest on outstanding principal balances at either LIBOR plus 1.95% or prime less 0.75%. Unused credit balances will accrue interest at 0.50%. Harte Hanks is required to pay an annual fee of $0.5 million as consideration for the collateral balances provided by HHS Guaranty, LLC and reimburse it for certain costs if incurred as a result of the guarantee.

The Texas Capital Credit Facility is subject to customary covenants requiring insurance, legal compliance, payment of taxes, prohibition of second liens, and secondary indebtedness, as well as the filing of quarterly and annual financial statements.

As of August 9, 2017, we were not in compliance with the Texas Capital Credit Facility's covenant requiring us to file our financial reports for the quarter ending June 30, 2017 with the Securities and Exchange Commission within forty-five days of the quarter end. On August 14, 2017, we entered into a waiver with Texas Capital Bank that waived our noncompliance through October 20,


2017. We filed our financial reports for the quarter ending June 30,2017 on October 2, 2017. We are required to meet covenants established by the Texas Capital Credit Facility following the expiration of the waiver.

Our long-term debt obligations were as follows:
In thousands September 30, 2017 December 31, 2016
Texas Capital Credit Facility ($20.0 million capacity), various interest rates based on (a) LIBOR plus 1.95% or (b) prime minus 0.75% (effective rate of 3.18% at September 30, 2017), due April 17, 2019 $12,000
 $
Total debt 12,000
 
Less current maturities 
 
Total long-term debt $12,000
 $

The carrying values and estimated fair value of our outstanding debt were as follows:
  September 30, 2017 December 31, 2016
In thousands Carrying Value Fair Value Carrying Value Fair Value
Total debt $12,000
 $12,000
 $
 $

Based on the recent entry into the Texas Capital Credit Facility, carrying values estimate fair value. These current rates are considered Level 2 inputs under the fair value hierarchy established by ASC 820, Fair Value Measurement, as they are based upon information obtained from third party banks.

At September 30, 2017,2023 and December 31, 2022, we had letters of credit outstanding in the amount of $3.8$0.8 million.  $3.3 million of ourNo amounts were drawn against these letters of credit were backed by cash collateral with the other $0.5 million offset against our availability on the Texas Capital Credit Facility.at September 30, 2023.  These letters of credit exist to support insurance programs relating to workers’worker’s compensation, automobile, and general liability. No amounts were drawn against these letters

As of credit at September 30, 2017.2023, we had the ability to borrow $24.2 million under the New Credit Facility.

On December 21, 2021, the Company entered into a three-year, $25.0 million asset-based revolving credit facility (the "Credit Facility") with Texas Capital Bank.  The Company’s obligations under the Credit Facility are guaranteed on a joint and several basis by the Company’s material subsidiaries (the “Guarantors”).   The Credit Facility is secured by substantially all of the assets of the Company and the Guarantors pursuant to a Pledge and Security Agreement, dated as of December 21, 2021, among the Company, Texas Capital Bank and the other grantors party thereto (the "Security Agreement").

The Credit Facility is subject to certain covenants restricting the Company's and its subsidiaries' ability to create, incur, assume or become liable for indebtedness; make certain investments; pay dividends or repurchase the Company's stock; create, incur or assume liens; consummate mergers or acquisitions; liquidate, dissolve, suspend or cease operations; or modify accounting or tax reporting methods (other than as required by U.S. GAAP).  The Company was in compliance with all of the requirements as of September 30, 2023.

The loans under the Credit Facility accrue interest at a variable rate equal to the Bloomberg Short-Term Bank Yield Index Rate plus a margin of 2.25% per annum. The interest rate was 7.62% as of September 30, 2023. The outstanding amounts advanced under the Credit Facility are due and payable in full on December 21, 2024.  Unused commitment balances accrue fees at a rate of 0.25%.

Cash payments for interest were $34 thousand and $52 thousand for the three months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022, respectively.  Cash payments for interest were $198 thousand and $137 thousand for the nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022, respectively.  

 

Note FG — Stock-Based Compensation

We maintain stock incentive plans for the benefit of certain officers, directors, and employees, includingemployees. Our stock incentive plans provide for the 2013 Omnibus Incentive Plan (the "2013 Plan"). ability to issue stock options, cash stock appreciation rights, performance stock units, phantom stock units and cash performance stock units. Our cash stock appreciation rights, phantom stock units and cash performance stock units settle solely in cash and are treated as the current liability, which are adjusted each reporting period based on changes in our stock price.

Compensation expense for stock-based awards is based on the fair values of the awards on the date of grant and is recognized on a straight-line basis over the vesting period of the entire award in the “Labor” line of the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Loss.Income. We recognized $1.8$0.2 million and $2.4$0.9 million of stock-based compensation expense during the ninethree months ended September 30, 2017 2023 and 2016,2022, respectively.


All  We recognized $1.2 million and $1.8 million of stock-based awards grantedcompensation expense during the nine months ended September 30, 2017 were granted under the 2013 Plan.

Stock Options

Stock options become exercisable in 25% increments on the first four anniversaries of the grant date, 2023 and expire on the tenth anniversary of their grant date. Options are granted at an exercise price equal to the market value of the common stock at the market close on the day prior to the grant. Options granted prior to the 2013 Plan will remain outstanding in accordance with their respective terms.

The following table summarizes all stock option activity for the nine months ended September 30, 2017:
  Number of
Shares
 Weighted
Average Exercise Price
 Weighted Average
Remaining Contractual
Term (Years)
Balance as of December 31, 2016 3,705,893
 $7.72
 4.74
Granted 
 
  
Exercised 
 
  
Forfeited (89,630) 7.13
  
Vested options expired (847,898) 11.07
  
Balance as of September 30, 2017 2,768,365
 6.72
 5.10
       
Vested and expected to vest as of September 30, 2017 2,768,365
 $6.72
 5.10
       
Exercisable as of September 30, 2017 2,003,764
 $7.59
 3.73


As of September 30, 2017, there was $0.7 million of total unrecognized compensation cost related to unvested stock options. This cost is expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of approximately 1.82 years.

Cash Stock Appreciation Rights

During the nine months ended September 30, 2017, the Board approved cash settling stock appreciation rights under the 2013 Plan.

Cash stock appreciation rights vest in 25% increments on the first four anniversaries of the grant date. Cash stock appreciation rights settle solely in cash and are treated as a liability.

The following table summarizes all stock appreciation rights activity for the nine months ended September 30, 2017:
  Number of
Shares
 Weighted Average Grant-Date Fair Value
Balance as of December 31, 2016 
 $
Granted 866,196
 0.97
Vested 
 
Forfeited 
 
Cash stock appreciation rights outstanding at September 30, 2017 866,196
 $0.97

As of September 30, 2017, there was $0.5 million of total unrecognized compensation cost related to cash stock appreciation rights. The cost is expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of approximately 3.73 years. Changes in our stock price, the volatility of our stock price, and the risk-free rate of interest will result in adjustments to compensation expense and the corresponding liability over the applicable service period.

Unvested Shares

Unvested shares vest in three equal increments on the first three anniversaries of their grant date. Unvested shares settle solely in common stock and are treated as equity.

The following table summarizes all unvested share activity for the nine months ended September 30, 2017:
  Number of
Shares
 Weighted Average Grant-
Date Fair Value
Balance as of December 31, 2016 945,252
 $3.76
Granted 1,336,060
 0.98
Vested (405,241) 4.13
Forfeited (132,468) 2.76
Unvested shares outstanding at September 30, 2017 1,743,603
 $1.61

As of September 30, 2017, there was $2.3 million of total unrecognized compensation cost related to unvested shares. This cost is expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of approximately 1.96 years.

Phantom Stock Units

Phantom stock units vest in 25% increments on the first four anniversaries of the grant date. Phantom stock units settle solely in cash and are treated as a liability.

The following table summarizes all phantom stock activity for the nine months ended September 30, 2017:
  Number of
Shares
 Weighted Average Grant-
Date Fair Value
Balance as of December 31, 2016 531,820
 $2.69
Granted 560,000
 0.97
Settled (125,046) 2.69
Forfeited (112,360) 2.51
Phantom stock units outstanding at September 30, 2017 854,414
 $1.59

As of September 30, 2017, there was $0.8 million of total unrecognized compensation cost related to phantom stock. This cost is expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of approximately 3.32 years. Changes in our stock price will result in adjustments to compensation expense and the corresponding liability over the applicable service period.

Performance Stock Units

Performance stock units vest in a range between 0% to 100% based upon certain performance criteria in a three-year period. At the end of the performance period, the number of shares paid will be based on our performance versus the target. Performance stock units settle solely in common stock and are treated as equity.

The following table summarizes all performance stock unit activity for the nine months ended September 30, 2017:
  Number of
Shares
 Weighted Average Grant-
Date Fair Value
Balance as of December 31, 2016 844,315
 $2.56
Granted 711,268
 0.99
Settled 
 
Forfeited (104,946) 4.79
Performance stock units outstanding at September 30, 2017 1,450,637
 $1.63

As of September 30, 2017, there was $1.3 million of total unrecognized compensation cost related to performance stock units. This cost is expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of approximately 1.90 years.

Cash Performance Stock Units

Cash performance stock units vest in a range between 0% to 100% based upon certain performance criteria measured over a three-year period. At the end of the performance period, the number of shares settled in cash will be based on our performance versus the target. Cash performance stock units settle solely in cash and are treated as a liability.

The following table summarizes all cash performance stock unit activity for the nine months ended September 30, 2017:
  Number of
Shares
 Weighted Average Grant-
Date Fair Value
Balance as of December 31, 2016 444,005
 $2.69
Granted 1,098,871
 1.01
Settled 
 
Forfeited (37,784) 2.69
Cash performance stock units outstanding at September 30, 2017 1,505,092
 $1.46

As of September 30, 2017, there was $1.1 million of total unrecognized compensation cost related to performance stock units. This cost is expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of approximately 2.38 years. Changes in our stock price will result in adjustments to compensation expense and the corresponding liability over the applicable service period. Expense is also adjusted up or down based on the current estimate of future performance against the established performance goals.

Note G — Components of Net Periodic Benefit Cost
2022, respectively. 

 

Note H — Employee Benefit Plans

Prior to January 1,1999, we maintainedprovided a defined benefit pension plan for which most of our employees were eligible to participate (the "Qualified“Qualified Pension Plan"Plan”).  WeIn conjunction with significant enhancements to our 401(k) plan, we elected to freeze benefits under the Qualified Pension Plan as of December 31,1998.


In 1994, we adopted a non-qualified, unfunded, supplemental pension plan (the "Restoration“Restoration Pension Plan"Plan”) covering certain employees, which provides for incremental pension payments so that total pension payments equal those amounts that would have been payable from our Qualified Pension Planthe principal pension plan were it not for limitations imposed by income tax regulation. The benefits under the Restoration Pension Plan waswere intended to provide benefits equivalent to our Qualified Pension Plan as if such plan had not been frozen. We elected to freeze benefits under the Restoration Pension Plan as of April 1,2014.

At the end of 2020, the Board of Directors of the Company approved the division of the Qualified Pension Plan into two distinct plans, “Qualified Pension Plan I” and “Qualified Pension Plan II.”  The assets and liabilities of the Qualified Pension Plan that were attributable to certain participants in Qualified Pension Plan II were spun off and transferred into Qualified Pension Plan II effective as of the end of December 31, 2020, in accordance with Internal Revenue Code section 414 (I) and ERISA Section 4044.

In January 2023, the Board of Directors of the Company approved the termination of the Qualified Pension Plan I.  The termination process will take approximately 18 months to complete and will result in the transfer of our obligations pursuant to this pension plan to a third-party provider.  

14



The overfunded or underfunded status of our defined benefit post-retirement plans is recorded as an asset or liability on our balance sheets. The funded status is measured as the difference between the fair value of plan assets and the projected benefit obligation. Periodic changes in the funded status are recognized through other comprehensive income in the Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income. We currently measure the funded status of our defined benefit plans as of December 31, the date of our year-end Consolidated Balance Sheets.

Net pension cost for both plans included the following components:

  Three Months Ended September 30, Nine Months Ended September 30,
In thousands 2017 2016 2017 2016
Interest cost $1,837
 $1,950
 $5,511
 $5,851
Expected return on plan assets (1,832) (2,061) (5,496) (6,183)
Recognized actuarial loss 688
 596
 2,065
 1,789
Net periodic benefit cost $693
 $485
 $2,080
 $1,457

We are not required to make, and do not intend to make, any contributions to our Qualified Pension Plan in 2017.

  

Three Months Ended September 30,

  

Nine Months Ended September 30,

 

In thousands

 

2023

  

2022

  

2023

  

2022

 

Interest cost

 $1,772  $1,260  $5,316  $3,780 

Expected return on plan assets

  (1,554)  (1,468)  (4,662)  (4,404)

Recognized actuarial loss

  630   719   1,890   2,157 

Net periodic benefit cost

 $848  $511  $2,544  $1,533 

Based on current estimates, we will not be required to make any contributionsa $1.6 million contribution to our Qualifiedthe combined qualified Pension Plan untilin 2023.  We made $1.2 million of such $1.6 million aggregate contribution in the 2018 plan year.


nine months ended September 30, 2023.

We are not required to make, and do not intend to make, any contributions to our Restoration Pension Plan in 2023 other than to the extent needed to cover benefit payments. We made benefit payments under our Restoration Pension Planthis supplemental plan of $0.4$1.4 million and$1.3and $1.3 million in the three and nine months ended September 30, 2017,2023 and 2022, respectively.


Note H —I - Income Taxes


For

The income tax provision was $1.9 million and $1.2 million for the three months ended September 30, 2017, an2023 and 2022, respectively.  The provision for income tax expense of $0.4 million resulted in a negative effective income tax rate of 18.2%. For the nine months ended September 30, 2017, an income tax benefit of $3.3 milliontaxes resulted in an effective income tax rate of 20.8%. We have calculated75.6% for thethree months ended September 30, 2023 and 14.5% for the three months ended September 30,2022.

The income tax provision was $1.6 million and $2.3 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022, respectively.  The provision for income taxes for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2017 by applying an estimate of the annual effective tax rate for the full calendar year to ordinary income or loss for the reporting period. The effective income tax rate calculated for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2017 differs from the federal statutory rate of 35.0%, primarily due to the nondeductible interest associated with the 3Q Digital contingent consideration and foreign tax credit limitations on dividends paid from foreign subsidiaries.


For the three months ended September 30, 2016, an income tax benefit of $1.1 million resulted in an effective income tax rate of 20.4%. For79.9% for the nine months ended September 30, 2016, an income tax benefit of $5.8 million resulted in an effective income tax rate of 25.5%. We used a discrete effective tax rate method to calculate income taxes2023 and 13.5% for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2016 because we determined that small changes in estimated ordinary income would result in significant changes in the estimated annual effective tax rate, such that the historical method would not provide a reliable estimate for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2016. The effective income tax rate calculated for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2016 differs from the federal statutory rate of 35.0%, primarily due to the nondeductible interest associated with the 3Q Digital contingent consideration and foreign tax credit limitations on dividends paid from foreign subsidiaries.

2022.

Harte Hanks, or one of our subsidiaries filesfile income tax returns in the U.S. federal, U.S. state, and foreign jurisdictions. For U.S. state returns, we are no longer subject to tax examinations for tax years prior to 2012. 2017.For U.S. federal and foreign returns, we are no longer subject to tax examinations for tax years prior to 2014.


2017.

We have elected to classify any interest expense and penalties related to income taxes within income tax expense in our Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Loss.Income. We did not have a significant amount of interest or penalties accrued at September 30, 20172023 or December 31, 2016.2022.


Note I —J - Earnings Per Share

In periods in which the companyCompany has net income, from continuing operations, the companyCompany is required to calculate earnings per share (“EPS”) using the two-classtwo-class method. The two-classtwo-class method is required because the company's unvested shares granted before 2017 areCompany’s Series A Preferred Stock is considered a participating securities. Participating securitiessecurity with objectively determinable and non-discretionary dividend participation rights. Series A Preferred stockholders have the right to receiveparticipate in dividends above their five percent dividend rate should the companyCompany declare dividends on its common stock.stock at a dividend rate higher than the five percent (on an as-converted basis). Under the two-classtwo-class method, undistributed and distributed earnings are allocated on a pro-rata basis to the common and restrictedthe preferred stockholders. The weighted-average number of common and restricted sharespreferred stock outstanding during the period is then used to calculate earnings per share ("EPS")EPS for each class of shares.

In December 2022, we repurchased all 9,926 shares of the Company’s Series A Preferred Stock then outstanding.

15


In periods in which the companyCompany has a net loss, from continuing operations, basic loss per share is calculated using the treasury stock method. The treasury stock method is calculated by dividing the net loss by the weighted-average number of common shares outstanding during the period. The two-classtwo-class method is not used, because the calculation would be anti-dilutive.



Reconciliations of basic and diluted EPS arewere as follows:

  Three Months Ended September 30,
In thousands, except per share amounts 2017 2016
Net Loss    
Loss from continuing operations $(2,480) $(4,285)
Income from discontinued operations 
 1,244
Net loss $(2,480) $(3,041)
     
Basic Earnings (Loss) per Common Share    
Weighted-average common shares outstanding 62,012
 61,543
Basic earnings (loss) per common share    
Continuing operations $(0.04) $(0.07)
Discontinued operations 
 0.02
Basic earnings (loss) per common share $(0.04) $(0.05)
     
Diluted Earnings (Loss) per Common Share  
  
Weighted-average common and common equivalent shares outstanding 62,012
 61,543
Diluted earnings (loss) per common share    
Continuing operations $(0.04) $(0.07)
Discontinued operations 
 0.02
Diluted earnings (loss) per common share $(0.04) $(0.05)
     
Computation of Shares Used in Earnings (Loss) Per Common Share  
  
Weighted-average common shares outstanding 62,012
 61,543
Weighted-average common equivalent shares-dilutive effect of stock options and awards 
 
Shares used in diluted earnings (loss) per common share computations 62,012
 61,543

2.8 million

  

Three Months Ended September 30,

 

In thousands, except per share amounts

 

2023

  

2022

 

Numerator:

        

Net income

 $618  $7,166 

Less: Preferred stock dividends

     125 

Less: Earnings attributable to participating securities

     868 

Numerator for basic EPS: income attributable to common stockholders

  618   6,173 
         

Effect of dilutive securities:

        

Add back: Allocation of earnings to participating securities

     868 

Less: Re-allocation of earnings to participating securities considering potentially dilutive securities

     (827)

Numerator for diluted EPS

 $618  $6,214 
         

Denominator:

        

Basic EPS denominator: weighted-average common shares outstanding

  7,239   7,125 

Diluted EPS denominator

  7,314   7,524 
         

Basic income per Common Share

 $0.09  $0.87 

Diluted income per Common Share

 $0.08  $0.83 

For the three months ended September 30, 2023 and 4.1 million of anti-dilutive market price options2022, respectively, the following shares have been excluded from the calculation of shares used in the diluted EPS calculation for the three months ended September 30, 2017calculation: 132,193 and 2016, respectively. 1.7 million and 1.3 million anti-dilutive unvested 12,694 shares were excluded from the calculation of shares used in the diluted EPS calculation for the three months ended September 30, 2017 and 2016, respectively.


  Nine Months Ended September 30,
In thousands, except per share amounts 2017 2016
Net Loss    
Loss from continuing operations $(12,519) $(16,886)
Income from discontinued operations 
 3,980
Net loss $(12,519) $(12,906)
     
Basic Earnings (Loss) per Common Share    
Weighted-average common shares outstanding 61,866
 61,445
Basic earnings (loss) per common share    
Continuing operations $(0.20) $(0.27)
Discontinued operations 
 0.06
Basic earnings (loss) per common share $(0.20) $(0.21)
     
Diluted Earnings (Loss) per Common Share  
  
Weighted-average common and common equivalent shares outstanding 61,866
 61,445
Diluted earnings (loss) per common share    
Continuing operations $(0.20) $(0.27)
Discontinued operations 
 0.06
Diluted earnings (loss) per common share $(0.20) $(0.21)
     
Computation of Shares Used in Earnings (Loss) Per Common Share  
  
Weighted-average common shares outstanding 61,866
 61,445
Weighted-average common equivalent shares-dilutive effect of stock options and awards 
 
Shares used in diluted earnings (loss) per common share computations 61,866
 61,445

3.1 million and 4.2 million of anti-dilutive market price optionsoptions; 58,869 and 0 of anti-dilutive unvested restricted shares; and 0 and 1,001,614 shares of anti-dilutive Series A Preferred Stock (as if converted).

  

Nine Months Ended September 30,

In thousands, except per share amounts

 

2023

  

2022

Numerator:

       

Net income

 $407  $14,972

Less: Preferred stock dividend

     371

Less: Earnings attributable to common stockholders

     1,817

Numerator for basic EPS: income attributable to common stockholders

  407   12,784
        

Effect of dilutive securities:

       

Add back: Allocation of earnings to participating securities

     1,817

Less: Re-allocation of earnings to participating securities considering potentially dilutive securities

     (1,737)

Numerator for diluted EPS

 $407  $12,864
        

Denominator:

       

Basic EPS denominator: weighted-average common shares outstanding

  7,340   7,045

Diluted EPS denominator

  7,509   7,418
        

Basic income per Common Share

 $0.06  $1.81

Diluted income per Common Share

 $0.05  $1.73

For the nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022, respectively, the following shares have been excluded from the calculation of shares used in the diluted EPS calculation for the nine months ended September 30, 2017calculation: 8,098 and 2016, respectively. 1.1 million13,602 shares of anti-dilutive market price options; 40,389 and 1.1 million16,849 of anti-dilutive unvested restricted shares; and 0 and 1,001,614 shares were excluded from the calculation of shares used in the diluted EPS calculation for the nine months ended September 30, 2017 and 2016, respectively.anti-dilutive Series A Preferred Stock (as if converted).

16


Note JK — Comprehensive Loss

Income 

Comprehensive lossIncome for a period encompasses net lossincome (loss) and all other changes in equity other than from transactions with our stockholders. Our comprehensive loss was as follows:

  Three Months Ended September 30, Nine Months Ended September 30,
In thousands 2017 2016 2017 2016
Net loss $(2,480) $(3,041) $(12,519) $(12,906)
         
Other comprehensive income (loss):  
  
  
  
Adjustment to pension liability 688
 596
 1,940
 2,063
Tax expense (275) (238) (776) (825)
Adjustment to pension liability, net of tax 413
 358
 1,164
 1,238
Foreign currency translation adjustment 33
 (437) 677
 (1,856)
Total other comprehensive income (loss) 446
 (79) 1,841
 (618)
         
Total comprehensive loss $(2,034) $(3,120) $(10,678) $(13,524)

Changes in accumulated other comprehensive lossincome by component arewere as follows:

In thousands Defined Benefit
Pension Items
 Foreign Currency Items Total
Balance at December 31, 2016 $(46,977) $799
 $(46,178)
Other comprehensive income, net of tax, before reclassifications 
 677
 677
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss, net of tax 1,164
 
 1,164
Net current period other comprehensive income, net of tax 1,164
 677
 1,841
Balance at September 30, 2017 $(45,813) $1,476
 $(44,337)
In thousands Defined Benefit
Pension Items
 Foreign Currency Items Total
Balance at December 31, 2015 $(43,915) $355
 $(43,560)
Other comprehensive loss, net of tax, before reclassifications 
 (1,856) (1,856)
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss, net of tax 1,238
 
 1,238
Net current period other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax 1,238
 (1,856) (618)
Balance at September 30, 2016 $(42,677) $(1,501) $(44,178)

  

Defined Benefit

  

Foreign Currency

     

In thousands

 

Pension Items

  

Items

  

Total

 

Balance at December 31, 2022

 $(44,120) $(4,182) $(48,302) 

Other comprehensive income, net of tax, before reclassifications

     1,421   1,421 

Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive income, net of tax, to other, net, on the condensed consolidated statements of comprehensive income

  1,645      1,645 

Net current period other comprehensive income, net of tax

  1,645   1,421   3,066 

Balance at September 30, 2023

 $(42,475) $(2,761) $(45,236) 

  

Defined Benefit

  

Foreign Currency

    

In thousands

 

Pension Items

  

Items

  

Total

Balance at December 31, 2021

 $(54,394) $1,066  $(53,328)

Other comprehensive loss, net of tax, before reclassifications

     (6,118)  (6,118)

Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive income, net of tax, to other, net, on the condensed consolidated statements of comprehensive income

  2,307      2,307

Net current period other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax

  2,307   (6,118)  (3,811)

Balance at September 30, 2022

 $(52,087) $(5,052) $(57,139)

Reclassification amounts related to the defined pension plans are included in the computation of net periodic pension benefit cost (see Note GH, Employee Benefit Plans).  

Note L — Acquisition of Inside Out Solutions, LLC

On December 1, 2022 (the “Closing Date”), we purchased substantially all of the assets (the “Transaction”) of Inside Out Solutions, LLC, a Florida limited liability company (“InsideOut”), Componentsfor an aggregate purchase price of Net Periodic Pension Benefit Costapproximately $7.5 million (the “Purchase Price”) pursuant to an asset purchase agreement, dated as of December 1, 2022 by and between Harte Hanks and InsideOut (the “Asset Purchase Agreement”).

InsideOut is a premium sales enablement agency offering technology and data driven support to technology, media telecommunications, business services, industrial, and financial technology customers in the North American and European markets with its headquarters in St. Petersburg, Florida. 

The acquisition of InsideOut further expands our capabilities within our marketing services and customer care segments and strengthens our ability to drive profitable revenue growth within our current sales enablement offerings, including: (i) demand generation which creates qualified marketing leads for our clients, and (ii) inside sales offerings to further promote a client’s internal growth objectives. In addition, the owner and CEO of InsideOut entered into a two-year consulting agreement with the Company, which will ensure consistency in our delivery of these sales enablement offerings, post-closing.

Pursuant to the Asset Purchase Agreement, $5.75 million of the Purchase Price was paid in cash at closing, $1.0 million in cash was placed in escrow to satisfy indemnification obligations, if any, and separately, to satisfy earn-outs related to future revenue performance. In addition, $0.75 million of the Purchase Price was paid at closing in shares of Common Stock issued in a private placement. The share amount was based on the volume weighted closing price over the fifteen trading days ending on November 28, 2022. The $1.0 million of cash in the escrow account is included in other current assets in our balance sheet as of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022. 

The Purchase Price was subject to a post-closing net working capital true-up 180-days after the Closing Date if net working capital is not between $1.3 million and $1.6 million.  The true up was immaterial.

The acquisition was accounted for under the acquisition method of accounting with the Company treated as the acquiring entity.  Accordingly, the consideration paid by the Company to complete the acquisition has been recorded to the assets acquired and liabilities assumed based upon their estimated fair values as of the date of the acquisition. The carrying values for current assets and liabilities were deemed to approximate their fair values due to the short-term nature of these assets and liabilities.  The following table shows the amounts recorded as of their acquisition date. 

In thousands

 

Amount

 

Accounts receivable

 $1,445 

Prepaid expenses

  148 

Property, plant and equipment

  177 

Total assets acquired

  1,770 

Less: Current liabilities assumed

  (761)

Net assets acquired

 $1,009 

17


We recognized $3.6 million of intangible assets and $2.4 million of goodwill associated with this acquisition.   The amount of goodwill recorded reflects expected earning potential and synergies with our Customer Care segment. We are amortizing the intangible assets on a straight-line basis over its useful life of five years. The amortization expense for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 were $180 thousand and $540 thousand, respectively.  A summary of the Company’s intangible asset as ofSeptember 30, 2023  is as follows:

 

Weighted Average

Gross

Accumulated

Net Carrying

In thousands

Amortization Period

Carrying Amount

Amortization

Amount

Customer Relationships

 5 years$3,600$600$3,000

Estimated future amortization expense related to intangible assets as of September 30, 2023 is as follows:

In thousands

    

Year Ending December 31,

 

Amount

 

Remainder of 2023

 $180 

2024

  720 

2025

  720 

2026

  720 

2027

  660 

Total

 $3,000 

The Company's result of operations for the three and nine months endedSeptember 30, 2023includes revenue of $2.2 million and $7.3 million, respectively, and net earnings of $0.1 million and 0.7 million, respectively, from the InsideOut operation.   

Note KM — Litigation and Contingencies

In the normal course of our business, we are obligated under some agreements to indemnify our clients as a result of claims that we infringe on the proprietary rights of third parties. The terms and duration of these commitments vary and, in some cases, may be indefinite, and certain of these commitments do not limit the maximum amount of future payments we could become obligated to make thereunder; accordingly, our actual aggregate maximum exposure related to these types of commitments is not reasonably estimable.thereunder. Historically, we have not been obligated to make significant payments for obligations of this nature, and no liabilities have been recorded for these obligations in our condensed consolidated financial statements.


We are also subject to various claims and legal proceedings in the ordinary course of conducting our businesses and, from time to time, we may become involved in additional claims and lawsuits incidental to our businesses. We routinely assess the likelihood of adverse judgments or outcomes to these matters, as well as ranges of probable losses; to the extent losses are reasonably estimable. Accruals are recorded for these matters to the extent that management concludes a loss is probable and the financial impact, should an adverse outcome occur, is reasonable estimable.


In the opinion of management, appropriate and adequate accruals for legal matters have been made, and management believes that the probability of a material loss beyond the amounts accrued is remote. Nevertheless, we cannot predict the impact of future developments affecting our pending or future claims and lawsuits. We expense legal costs as incurred, and all recorded legal liabilities are adjusted as required as better information becomes available to us. The factors we consider when recording an accrual for contingencies include, among others: (i) the opinions and views of our legal counsel; (ii) our previous experience; and (iii) the decision of our management as to how we intend to respond to the complaints.


Note L — Acquisition and Disposition

 
On March 4, 2016,

Note N  Segment Reporting

Harte Hanks is a leading global customer experience company. We have organized our operations into three business segments based on the types of products and services we completed the acquisitionprovide: Marketing Services, Customer Care, Fulfillment & Logistics Services.

Our Marketing Services segment leverages data, insight, and experience to support clients as they engage customers through digital, traditional, and emerging channels.  We partner with clients to develop strategies and tactics to identify and prioritize customer audiences in B2C and B2B transactions.  Our key service offerings include strategic business, brand, marketing and communications planning, data strategy, audience identification and prioritization, predictive modeling, creative development and execution across traditional and digital channels, website and app development, platform architecture, database build and management, marketing automation, and performance measurement, reporting and optimization.  

Our Customer Care segment offers intelligently responsive contact center solutions, which use real-time data to effectively interact with each customer.  Customer contacts are handled through phone, e-mail, social media, text messaging, chat and digital self-service support.  We provide these services utilizing our advanced technology infrastructure, human resource management skills and industry experience.

Our Fulfillment & Logistics Services segment consists of Aleutian Consulting, which has been integrated with our continuing operations. The resultsmail and product fulfillment and logistics services.  We offer a variety of Aleutian Consulting operations have been included in our financial statements since that dateproduct fulfillment solutions, including printing on demand, managing product recalls, and distributing literature and promotional products to support B2B trade, drive marketing campaigns, and improve customer experience.  We are reported in continuing operations. The purchase price was $3.5 million in cash. The fair valuealso a provider of the identified tangible assets residual purchase price methodology usedthird-party logistics and freight optimization in the calculationUnited States.  Prior to determine goodwill allocation relied on management's assumptions. These assumptions, which are significant to the calculated fair values, are considered Level 3 inputs under the fair value hierarchy established by ASC 820, as they are unobservable.


The purchase agreement for the 2015 acquisition of 3Q Digital includes a contingent consideration arrangement that requires us to pay the former owners of 3Q Digital an additional cash payment depending on achievement of certain revenue growth goals. The potential undiscounted amount of all future payments that could be required to be paid under this contingent consideration arrangement up to $35.0 million in cash payable in 2018.


On May 1, 2017, we entered into the 3Q Agreement, which defers our obligation to pay the contingent consideration to the former owners until April 1, 2019 or the sale of the 3Q Digital business, whichever is earlier. Any portion of the contingent consideration that remains unpaid after March 1, 2018 will accrue interest at a rate of 8.5%. In addition, under the 3Q Agreement we agreed to pay a special bonus pool to the former owners of the 3Q Digital business as well as a sale bonus for certain current employees of 3Q Digital in the event the business is sold prior to April 1, 2019.

The estimate of fair value of the contingent consideration requires subjective assumptions to be made regarding revenue growth, discount rates, discount periods, and probability assessments with respect to the likelihood of reaching the established targets. The fair value measurement is based on significant inputs unobservable in the market and thus represents a Level 3 measurement. Measurement is sensitive to changes in revenue projections used in the assumptions. Changes in current expectations and revenue performance could change the probability of achieving the targets within the measurement period and result in an increase or decrease in the fair value of the contingent consideration. As of September 30, 2017, we expect that the contingent consideration will be paid at the maximum potential amount of $35.0 million.

A reconciliation of accrued balances of the contingent consideration using significant unobservable inputs is as follows:
In thousands Fair Value
Balance at December 31, 2016 $29,725
Accretion of interest 3,122
Balance at September 30, 2017 $32,847

Any adjustments to the fair value of the contingent consideration are recorded within the "Other, net" line in the Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Loss.

Note M — Discontinued Operations

On December 23, 2016, we completed the sale of our Trillium businessdirect mail equipment in 2020, this segment also included our direct mail operations.  Outsourced direct mail is now included in our Marketing Services segment.

There are three principal financial measures reported to Syncsort. Theour CEO (the chief operating decision to sell Trillium was largelymaker) for use in assessing segment performance and allocating resources. Those measures are revenue, operating income (loss) and operating income (loss) plus depreciation and amortization (“EBITDA”). Operating income for segment reporting disclosed below, is revenues less operating costs and allocated corporate expenses. Segment operating expenses include allocations of certain centrally incurred costs such as employee benefits, occupancy, information systems, accounting services, internal legal staff, and human resources administration. These costs are allocated based on actual usage or other appropriate methods.  Unallocated corporate expenses are corporate overhead expenses not attributable to the prioritization of investments in support of optimizingoperating groups. Interest income and expense are not allocated to the segments.  The Company does not allocate assets to our clients' customer journey across an omni-channel delivery platform, and the determination that the Trillium business is likely to be a better strategic fit and more valuablereportable segments for internal reporting purposes, nor does our CEO evaluate operating segments using discrete asset to other parties.information.  The business was sold for gross proceeds of approximately $112.0 million in cash and resulted in a loss on the sale of $39.9 million, net of $4.6 million of income tax benefit.


Because the sale of Trillium represented a strategic shift that has a major effect on our operations and financial results, the results of operations, financial position, and cash flows for Trillium are reported separately as discontinued operations for all periods presented. Resultsaccounting policies of the remaining Harte Hanks businesssegments are reported as continuing operations.

Summarized operating results forconsistent with those described in the Trillium discontinued operations, through the datesNote A, Overview and Significant Accounting Policies.

18

The following table presents financial information by segment:

Three Months ended September 30, 2023

 

Marketing Services

  

Customer Care

  

Fulfillment and Logistics Services

  

Unallocated Corporate

  

Total

 
   (In thousands) 

Revenues

 $10,591  $13,998  $22,530  $  $47,119 

Segment Operating Expense

 $8,370  $11,339  $18,995  $4,549  $43,253 

Contribution margin (loss)

 $2,221  $2,659  $3,535  $(4,549) $3,866 

Shared Services

 $706  $668  $680  $(2,054) $ 

EBITDA

 $1,515  $1,991  $2,855  $(2,495) $3,866 

Depreciation and amortization

 $71  $253  $249  $379  $952 

Operating income (loss)

 $1,444  $1,738  $2,606  $(2,874) $2,914 

Three Months ended September 30, 2022

 

Marketing Services

  

Customer Care

  

Fulfillment and Logistics Services

  

Unallocated Corporate

  

Total

 
   (In thousands) 

Revenues

 $13,016  $17,375  $23,495  $  $53,886 

Segment Operating Expense

 $9,970  $13,661  $19,865  $6,038  $49,534 

Contribution margin (loss)

 $3,046  $3,714  $3,630  $(6,038) $4,352 

Shared Services

 $1,125  $743  $853  $(2,721) $ 

EBITDA

 $1,921  $2,971  $2,777  $(3,317) $4,352 

Depreciation and amortization

 $98  $206  $176  $99  $579 

Operating income (loss)

 $1,823  $2,765  $2,601  $(3,416) $3,773 

Nine Months ended September 30, 2023

 

Marketing Services

  

Customer Care

  

Fulfillment and Logistics Services

  

Unallocated Corporate

  

Total

 
          

(In thousands)

         

Revenues

 $32,751  $45,625  $63,625  $  $142,001 

Segment Operating Expense

 $26,464  $36,534  $54,435  $15,880  $133,313 

Contribution margin

 $6,287  $9,091  $9,190  $(15,880) $8,688 

Shared Services

 $2,261  $2,102  $2,203  $(6,566) $ 

EBITDA

 $4,026  $6,989  $6,987  $(9,314) $8,688 

Depreciation and amortization

 $167  $1,024  $736  $1,124  $3,051 

Operating income (loss)

 $3,859  $5,965  $6,251  $(10,438) $5,637 

Nine Months ended September 30, 2022

 

Marketing Services

  

Customer Care

  

Fulfillment and Logistics Services (1)

  

Unallocated Corporate

  

Total

 
          

(In thousands)

         

Revenues

 $39,389  $50,499  $61,612  $  $151,500 

Segment Operating Expense

 $30,903  $39,434  $50,795  $16,926  $138,058 

Contribution margin

 $8,486  $11,065  $10,817  $(16,926) $13,442 

Shared Services

 $3,290  $2,139  $2,483  $(7,912) $ 

EBITDA

 $5,196  $8,926  $8,334  $(9,014) $13,442 

Depreciation and amortization

 $288  $609  $581  $286  $1,764 

Operating income (loss)

 $4,908  $8,317  $7,753  $(9,300) $11,678 

19

  Three Months Ended September 30, Nine Months Ended September 30,
In thousands 2017 2016 2017 2016
Revenue $
 $11,683
 $
 $35,554
         
Labor 
 4,413
 
 14,916
Production and distribution 
 171
 
 583
Advertising, selling, general and administrative 
 2,535
 
 8,299
Depreciation and software amortization 
 576
 
 1,677
Interest expense, net 
 1,784
 
 3,870
Other, net 
 587
 
 765
Income from discontinued operations before income taxes 
 1,617
 
 5,444
Income tax expense 
 373
 
 1,464
Net income from discontinued operations $
 $1,244
 $
 $3,980


Item 2.  Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This report, including thisthe Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations (MD&A)(“MD&A”), contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the federal securities laws. All such statements are qualified by this cautionary note, which is provided pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.Act. Forward-looking statements maywill also be included from time to time in our other public filings, press releases, our website, and oral and written presentations by management. Statements other than historical facts are forward-looking and may be identified by words such as “may,” “will,” “expects,” “believes,” “anticipates,” “plans,” “estimates,” “seeks,” “could,” “intends,” or words of similar meaning. Examples include statements regarding (1) our strategies and initiatives, related thereto, (2) adjustments to our cost structure and otherincluding actions designed to respond to market conditions and improve our performance, and the anticipated effectiveness and expenses associated with these actions, (3)(2) our financial outlook for revenues, earnings (loss) per share, operating income (loss), expense related to equity-based compensation, capital resources and other financial items, (4)if any, (3) expectations for our businesses and for the industries in which we operate, including the impact of economic conditions of the markets we serve on the marketing expenditures and activities of our clients and prospects, (5)(4) competitive factors, (6)(5) acquisition and development plans, (7) expectations for and effects of acquired and disposed businesses and our ability to effect such acquisitions and dispositions, (8) our stock repurchase program, (9)(6) expectations regarding legal proceedings and other contingent liabilities, and (10)(7) other statements regarding future events, conditions, or outcomes.

These forward-looking statements are based on current information, expectations, and estimates and involve risks, uncertainties, assumptions, and other factors that are difficult to predict and that could cause actual results to vary materially from what is expressed in or indicated by the forward-looking statements. In that event, our business, financial condition, results of operations, or liquidity could be materially adversely affected and investors in our securities could lose part or all of their investments. SomeA discussion of some of these risks, uncertainties, assumptions, and other factors can be found in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission,SEC, including the factors discussed under “Item 1A. Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2016, Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2017,2022 (the “2022 10-K”), “Part II - Item 1A. Risk Factors” in this Quarterly Report, and in our other reports filed or furnished with the “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” in our third quarter 2017 earnings release issued on September 28, 2017.SEC. The forward-looking statements included in this report and those included in our other public filings, press releases, our website, and oral and written presentations by management are made only as of the respective dates thereof, and we undertake no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statement in this report or in other documents, our website, or oral statements for any reason, even if new information becomes available or other events occur in the future.

future, except as required by law.

Overview

The following MD&A section is intended to helpenable the reader to understand the results of operations and financial condition of Harte Hanks, Inc.including any material changes in the Company’s financial condition and results of operations since December 31, 2022, and as compared with the three and nine months ended September 30, 2022. This section is provided as a supplement to, and should be read in conjunction with, our consolidated financial statementsCondensed Consolidated Financial Statements and the accompanying notes to the condensed consolidated financial statementsincluded herein as well as our 2016 Form2022 10-K. Our 2016 Form2022 10-K contains a discussion of other matters not included herein, such as disclosures regarding critical accounting policies and estimates, and contractual obligations.


 See Note A, Overview and Significant Accounting Policies, in the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for further information.

Harte Hanks, partnersInc. is a leading global customer experience company operating in three business segments: Marketing Services, Customer Care, and Fulfillment & Logistics Services. Our mission is to partner with clients to deliver relevant, connected, and quality customer interactions. Our approach startsprovide them with discovery and learning, which leads to customer journey mapping, creative and content development,a robust customer-experience, or CX, strategy, data-driven analytics and data management,actionable insights combined with seamless program execution to better understand, attract, and ends with execution and support in a variety of digital and traditional channels. We do something powerful: we produce engaging and memorable customer interactions to drive business results for our clients, which is why Harte Hanks is famous for developing better customer relationships and experiences and defining interaction-led marketing.


engage their customers.  Our services provide our clients around the globe with a wide variety of integrated, multichannel, data-driven solutions for top brands around the globe. We help our clients gain insight into their customers’ behaviors from theirinclude strategic planning, data strategy, performance analytics, creative development and use that insight to create innovative multi-channelexecution; technology enablement; marketing programs to deliver a return on marketing investment. We believe our clients’ success is determined not only by how good their tools are, but how well we help them use those tools to gain insightautomation; B2B and analyze their consumers. This results in a strongB2C e-commerce; cross-channel customer care; and enduring relationship between our clients and their customers. We offer a full complement of capabilities and resources to provide a broad range of marketing services, inproduct, print, and electronic media from direct mail to email, including:

agency and digital services;
database marketing solutions and business-to-business lead generation;
direct mail; and
contact centers.


fulfillment. 

We are affected by the general, national, and international economic, geopolitical and business conditions in the markets where we and our customers operate. Marketing budgets are largely discretionary in nature, and as a consequence are easier for our clients to reduce in the short-term than other expenses should they face expense pressure.expenses. Our revenues are also affected by the economic fundamentals of each industry that we serve, various market factors, including the demand for services by our clients, and the financial condition of and budgets available to specificour clients, among other factors. In particular, for most of ourDue to the recent history our retail client vertical was our largest, usually representing well over a quarter of our revenues. Asincreases in inflation and interest rates throughout the retail industry has struggledglobe, and other geopolitical uncertainties, including but not limited to the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine and conflict in the face of internet-based shopping models, many of our clients,Middle East, there is continued uncertainty and consequently our revenues, have suffered.


significant disruption in the global economy and financial markets. We remain committed to making the investments necessary to execute our multichannel strategy while also continuing to adjust our cost structure to reduce costsappropriately reflect our operations and outlook. 

Management is closely monitoring inflation and wage pressure in the parts ofmarket, and the potential impact to our business.  While inflation has not had a material impact to our business, that are not growingit is possible a material increase in inflation could have an impact on our clients, and in turn, in our business.

Recent Developments

Executive Transition

Effective as fast. We believe these actions, suchof June 19, 2023, our Board of Directors appointed media-industry veteran Kirk Davis to serve as our Chief Executive Officer (“CEO”)and nominated Mr. Davis to the Board of Directors, to serve until our 2024 annual meeting of stockholders and until his successor is elected or qualified, or until his earlier death, resignation or removal.  Mr. Davis has decades of media and marketing expertise, most recently served as CEO of legacy publishing company Metro Corp. and previously served as CEO of GateHouse Media, which was the second-largest regional publishing company in the United States before merging with Gannett in 2019.

Effective as of October 23, 2023, our Board of Directors appointed David Garrison to serve as our interim Chief Financial Officer (“CFO”).  Mr. Garrison brings 20 years of public company CFO experience, with particular expertise in cost containment, streamlining operations, and enterprise resource implementation.  Mr. Garrison most recently served as the adoptionCFO of Digital Lumens Incorporated, a new database platformsmart lighting fixture and the developmentfactory automation technology company, and previously served as CFO of our DataView™ marketing data facility, willSensera, Inc., an Australian listed medical and smart technology company.

Changes in Segment Reporting

To improve our profitabilitystrategic posture in future periods.


Our business experiences some seasonal variations from quarter to quarter due to increased marketing activity prior toterms of go-to-market approach and duringcost structure, we have begun the holiday season, primarily in the retail vertical. Becauseprocess of the seasonality ofcombining our business, results for any quarter are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be achieved for the full fiscal year.

Our principal operating expense items are labor, outsourced costs,Marketing Services and mail supply chain management.

We continued to faceCustomer Care segment into a challenging competitive environment in 2017. The sale of Trillium in 2016, the new credit facility we entered into in 2017, and our announced intention to seek strategic alternatives for 3Q Digital are all parts of our efforts to prioritize our investments and focus on our core business of optimizing our clients' customer journey across an omni-channel delivery platform.single segment called Customer Experience.  We expect these actions will enhance our liquidity and financial flexibility. For additional information see Liquidity and Capital Resources.

Resultsthe revised segment structure to be complete by the end of Continuing Operations
Previously, Harte Hanks also provided data quality solutions through Trillium. As discussed in Note M, Discontinued Operations,2023.

Share Repurchase Program

On May 2, 2023, the Board of the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements we sold our Trillium operations on December 23, 2016 for gross proceeds of $112.0 million. Because Trillium represented a distinct business unit with operations and cash flows that can be clearly distinguished from the restDirectors of Harte Hanks both operationally and for financial purposes, the resultsapproved a share repurchase program to maximize shareholder value with authorization to repurchase $6.5 million of the Trillium operations are reportedCompany’s Common Stock.  In the three months and nine months ended September 30, 2023,  we repurchased 0.1 million and 0.4 million shares of common stock for $0.5 million and $2.4 million, respectively.  After giving effect to these repurchases, we have remaining authority of $4.1 million to repurchase shares remaining under the program.

Acquisition of Inside Out Solutions, LLC

On December 1, 2022, we purchased substantially all of the assets (the “Transaction”) of Inside Out Solutions, LLC, a Florida limited liability company (“InsideOut”), for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $7.5 million (the “Purchase Price”) pursuant to an asset purchase agreement, dated as discontinued operationsof December 1, 2022 by and between Harte Hanks and InsideOut (the “Asset Purchase Agreement”).

InsideOut is a premium sales enablement agency offering technology and data driven support to technology, media telecommunications, business services, industrial, and financial technology customers in the North American and European markets with its headquarters in St. Petersburg, Florida. 

The acquisition of InsideOut further expands our customer experience capabilities within our Marketing Services and Customer Care segments and strengthens our ability to drive profitable revenue growth within our current sales enablement offerings, including: (i) demand generation which creates qualified marketing leads for all periods presentedour clients, and are excluded from Management’s Discussion(ii) inside sales offerings to further promote a client’s internal growth objectives. In addition, the owner and AnalysisCEO of Financial Condition and InsideOut entered into a two-year consulting agreement with us, which will ensure consistency in our delivery of these sales enablement offerings, post-closing.

Results of Operations below. Results of the remaining Harte Hanks business are reported as continuing operations.


Operating results from continuing operations were as follows:

  Three Months Ended September 30,   Nine Months Ended September 30,  
In thousands 2017 2016 % Change 2017 2016 % Change
Revenues $94,424
 $97,425
 (3.1)% $284,040
 $294,305
 (3.5)%
Operating expenses 93,474
 101,511
 (7.9)% 291,222
 313,626
 (7.1)%
Operating income (loss) from continuing operations $950
 $(4,086) (123.3)% $(7,182) $(19,321) (62.8)%
     
      
  
Operating margin 1.0% (4.2)%   (2.5)% (6.6)%  
             
Loss from continuing operations before taxes $(2,098) $(5,386) (61.0)% $(15,812) $(22,664) (30.2)%
             
Loss per common share from continuing operations (0.04) (0.07) (42.9)% (0.20) (0.27) (25.9)%

  

Three Months Ended September 30,

      

Nine Months Ended September 30,

     

In thousands, except percentages

 

2023

  

2022

  

% Change

  

2023

  

2022

  

% Change

 

Revenues

 $47,119  $53,886   (12.6)% $142,001  $151,500   (6.3)%

Operating expenses

  44,205   50,113   (11.8)%  136,364   139,822   (2.5)%

Operating income

 $2,914  $3,773   (22.8)% $5,637  $11,678   (51.7)%
                         

Operating margin

  6.2%  7.0%      4.0%  7.7%    
                         

Income before income taxes

 $2,530  $8,385   (69.8)% $2,027  $17,316   (88.3)%
                         

Diluted earnings per common share from operations

 $0.08  $0.83   (90.4)% $0.05  $1.73   (97.1)%

Consolidated Results

Revenues


Third Quarter of 2017

Three months ended September 30, 2023 vs. Third Quarter of 2016


Three months ended September 30, 2022

Revenues from continuing operations decreased $3.0$6.8 million, or 3.1%12.6%, in the third quarter of 2017three months ended September 30, 2023, compared to the third quarter of 2016. These results reflect the impact ofthree months ended September 30, 2022.  Revenue in our retail, B2B, and consumer verticals decreasing $1.7Customer Care segment decreased $3.4 million, or 6.4%19.4%, $2.2to $14.0 million, and revenue in our Marketing Services segment decreased $2.4 million, or 10.1%18.6%, and $0.2to $10.6 million.  Revenue in our Fulfillment & Logistics Services segment decreased $1.0 million, or 0.8%4.1%, respectively. This is due to lost clients and clients reducing their marketing spend with us. These decreases were offset slightly by an increase in our financial services vertical of $1.2$22.5 million.

Nine months ended September 30, 2023 vs. Nine months ended September 30, 2022

Revenues decreased $9.5 million, or 8.4%. This increase was generated by expansion of work from existing clients. Our transportation and healthcare verticals were flat to the prior year.


First Nine Months of 2017 vs. First Nine Months of 2016
Revenues from continuing operations decreased $10.3 million, or 3.5%6.3%, in the first nine months of 2017ended September 30, 2023, compared to the first nine months of 2016. These results reflect the impact ofended September 30, 2022. Revenue in our retail, healthcare, and B2B verticals decreasing $6.8Marketing Services segment decreased $6.6 million, or 8.8%16.9%, $5.4to $32.8 million, and revenue in our Customer Care segment decreased $4.9 million, or 24.9%9.7%, andto $45.6 million.  Revenue in our Fulfillment & Logistics Services segment increased $2.0 million, or 3.2%3.3%, respectively. This is primarily due to lost clients and clients reducing their marketing spend on programs with us. These decreases were$63.6 million, which partially offset slightly by increases in our consumer and financial services verticals of $1.2 million, or 1.8%, and $3.0 million, or 7.2%, respectively. These increases were generated by expansion of work from existing clients. Our transportation vertical was flat to the prior year.

Revenues from our vertical markets are impacted by, among other things, the economic fundamentals of each industry, various market factors, including the demand for our services by our clients, and the financial condition of and budgets available to specific clients.

above decreases. 

Operating Expenses


Third Quarter of 2017

Three months ended September 30, 2023 vs. Third Quarter of 2016


Three months ended September 30, 2022

Operating expenses from continuing operations were $93.5$44.2 million in the third quarterthree months ended September 30, 2023, a decrease of 2017,$5.9 million, or 11.8%, compared to $101.5$50.1 million in the third quarterthree months ended September 30, 2022. 

Labor costsexpense decreased $4.4 million, or 7.5%16.2%, in the three months ended September 30, 2023, compared to the three months ended September 30, 2022 primarily due to the reduction in workforce in our Customer Care and Marketing Services segment as well as lower stock compensation expense.  Advertising, Selling, General and Administrative expenses decreased $1.0 million, or 17.6%, in the three months ended September 30, 2023, compared to three months ended September 30, 2022 primarily due to reduced software licensing fees and lower professional fees. Production and Distribution expenses decreased $0.8 million, or 4.9%, in the three months ended September 30, 2023, compared to the third quarter of 2016three months ended September 30, 2022, primarily due to lower managed payroll expensetransportation services cost associated with the lower Fulfillment & Logistics segment revenue as a result of our expense reduction efforts. General and administrative expense decreased $2.4 million, or 21.1%, compared to the prior year primarily due a reduction in employee related expenses. Production and distribution decreased $0.5 million, or 2.0%, compared to the same quarter of the prior year primarily due to a decrease in outsourced services and mail supply chain expenses. Depreciation and intangible asset and software amortization expense decreased $0.6 million, or 19.3%, compared to the third quarter of 2016.


First Nine Months of 2017 vs. First Nine Months of 2016

Operating expenses from continuing operations were $291.2 million in the first nine months of 2017, compared to $313.6 million in the first nine months of 2016. Labor costs decreased $12.0 million, or 6.5%, compared to the first nine months of 2016 primarily due to lower managed payroll expense as a result

The largest components of our expense reduction efforts. General and administrative expense decreased $4.7 million, or 13.5%, compared to the prior year primarily due a reduction in employee-related expenses. Production and distribution decreased $4.5 million, or 5.3%, compared to the prior year primarily due to a decrease in outsourced services and mail supply chain expenses. Depreciation and intangible asset and software amortization expense decreased $1.2 million, or 13.2%, compared to the first nine months of 2016.


Our largest cost componentsoperating expenses are labor, outsourced costs,transportation expenses and mail supply chainoutsourced costs. Each of these costs are somewhatis, at least in part, variable and tendtends to fluctuate in line with revenues and the demand for our services. Mail supply chainTransportation rates have increased over the last few years due to demand and supply fluctuations within the transportation industry. Future changes in mail supply chain ratestransportation expenses will continue to impact our total production costs and total operating expenses, and in turn our margins, and may have an impact on future demand for our supply chain management services.

Postage costs offor mailings are borne by our clients and are not directly reflected in our revenues or expenses.


Nine months ended September 30, 2023 vs. Nine months ended September 30, 2022

Operating expenses were $136.4 million in the nine months ended September 30, 2023, a decrease of $3.4 million, or 2.5%, compared to $139.8 million in the nine months ended September 30, 2022.

Labor expense decreased $4.3 million, or 5.5%, in the nine months ended September 30, 2023, compared to the nine months ended September 30, 2022 primarily due to the reduction in workforce in our Customer Care and Marketing Services segment from lower revenue which was partially offset by higher severance expense.  Advertising, Selling, General and Administrative expenses decreased $1.2 million, or 6.8%, in the nine months ended September 30, 2023, compared to nine months ended September 30, 2022 primarily due to reduced software licensing fees.  Production and Distribution expenses increased $0.8 million, or 1.8%, in the nine months ended September 30, 2023, compared to the nine months ended September 30, 2022, due to the change in revenue mix resulting in higher transportation costs in our Fulfillment & Logistics Services segment.

.  

The largest components of our operating expenses are labor, transportation expenses and outsourced costs. Each of these costs is, at least in part, variable and tends to fluctuate in line with revenues and the demand for our services. Transportation rates have increased over the last few years due to demand and supply fluctuations within the transportation industry. Future changes in transportation expenses will continue to impact our total production costs and total operating expenses, and in turn our margins, and may have an impact on future demand for our supply chain management services.  

Postage costs for mailings are borne by our clients and are not directly reflected in our revenues or expenses.

Interest Expense

Third Quarter of 2017(Income) expense, net

Three months ended September 30, 2023 vs. Third Quarter of 2016


Three months ended September 30, 2022

Interest expense, net, in the third quarter of 2017 increased $0.6 millionthree months ended September 30, 2023 was $1k as compared to $84k for the three months ended September 30, 2022. The $83k decrease was primarily due to the lower debt level. 

Nine months ended September 30, 2023 vs. Nine months ended September 30, 2022

Interest income, net, in the nine months ended September 30, 2023 was $150k as compared to the thirdinterest expense, net of $313k for the nine months ended September 30, 2022. The $463k improvement was primarily driven by the interest income we received from the IRS related to our tax refund claims during the first quarter of 2016. This increase is due2023.

Other expense (income), net

Three months ended September 30, 2023 vs. Three months ended September 30, 2022

Other expense (income), net, for the three months ended September 30, 2023 was $0.4 million of expense compared to an increase in interest accretion related to the 3Q Digital contingent consideration and interest expense incurred on the Texas Capital Credit Facility. Interest expense incurred in 2016 related to the 2016 Secured Credit Facility was reclassified to discontinued operations in accordance with ASC 205-20-45-6 and is not reflected in the change in interest expense.


First Nine Months$4.7 of 2017 vs. First Nine Months of 2016

Interest expense,other income, net, in the first nine months of 2017 increased $1.1prior year quarter .  The $5.1 million compared to the first nine months of 2016. This increase is due to an increase in interest accretion related to the 3Q Digital contingent considerationother expense, net was mainly associated with changes in foreign currency gain and interest expense incurred on the Texas Capital Credit Facility. Interest expense incurred in 2016 related to the 2016 Secured Credit Facility was reclassified to discontinued operations in accordance with ASC 205-20-45-6 and is not reflected in the change in interest expense


Other Income and Expense

Third Quarter of 2017loss account.

Nine months ended September 30, 2023 vs. Third Quarter of 2016


Nine months ended September 30, 2022

Other expense, net, increased $1.2for the nine months ended September 30, 2023 was $3.8 million of expense compared to $6.0 million of other income, net, in the prior year quarter .  The $9.7 million increase in other expense, net was mainly associated with changes in foreign currency gain and loss account.

Income Taxes

Three months ended September 30, 2023vs. Three months ended September 30, 2022

The income tax provision of $1.9 million in the third quarter of 2017 compared to third quarter of 2016. The increase is primarily the result of an increase in pension expense and losses on fixed asset disposals.


First Nine Months of 2017 vs. First Nine Months of 2016

Other expense, net, increased $4.1 million in the first nine months of 2017 compared to the first nine months of 2016. The increase is primarily the result of an increase in pension expense and losses on fixed asset disposals.

Income Taxes

Third Quarter of 2017 vs. Third Quarter of 2016

The income tax expense of $0.4 million in the third quarter of 20172023 represents an increase in expenseincome tax provision of $1.5$0.7 million when compared to the third quarter of 2016.2022.  Our incomeeffective tax expense inrate was 75.6% for the third quarter of 2017 resulted in a negative2023, an increase of 61.1% from the effective tax rate of 18.2%, decreasing from a rate of 20.4%14.5% for the third quarter of 2016.2022. The effective income tax rate differs from the federal statutory rate of 35.0%21.0%, primarily due to the nondeductible interest associated with the 3Q Digital contingent considerationchange in valuation allowance, U.S. state income taxes and income earned in foreign tax credit limitations on dividends paid from foreign subsidiaries.jurisdictions.

22

Nine Months of 2017months ended September 30, 2023 vs. First Nine Months of 2016


months ended September 30, 2022

The income tax benefitprovision of $3.3$1.6 million in the first nine months of 2017ended September 30, 2023 represents a decrease in benefitincome tax provision of $2.5$0.7 million when compared to the first nine months of 2016.ended September 30, 2022.  Our effective tax rate was 20.8%79.9% for the first nine months ended September 30, 2023, an increase of 2017, decreasing66.4% from athe effective tax rate of 25.5%13.5% for the first nine months of 2016.ended September 30, 2022. The effective income tax rate differs from the federal statutory rate of 35.0%21.0%, primarily due to the nondeductible interestchange in valuation allowance, U.S. state income taxes and income earned in foreign jurisdictions.

Segment Results

The following is a discussion and analysis of the results of our reporting segments for the three months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022. There are three principal financial measures reported to our CEO (the chief operating decision maker) for use in assessing segment performance and allocating resources. Those measures are revenue, operating income and operating income plus depreciation and amortization (“EBITDA”).  For additional information, see Note N, Segment Reporting, in the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.  

Marketing Services:

  

Three Months Ended September 30,

  

Nine Months Ended September 30,

 

In thousands

 

2023

  

2022

  

% Change

  

2023

  

2022

  

% Change

 

Revenues

 $10,591  $13,016   (18.6)% $32,751  $39,389   (16.9)%

EBITDA

  1,515   1,921   (21.1)%  4,026   5,196   (22.5)%

Operating Income

  1,444   1,823   (20.8)%  3,859   4,908   (21.4)%

Operating Income % of Revenue

  13.6%  14.0%      11.8%  12.5%    

Three months ended September 30, 2023vs. Three months ended September 30, 2022

Marketing Services segment revenue decreased $2.4 million, or 18.6%, due to a decrease of service volume from existing customers.  Operating income for the three months ended September 30, 2023 decreased $0.4 million from the prior year quarter due to the reduced revenue.  

Nine months ended September 30, 2023 vs. Nine months ended September 30, 2022

Marketing Services segment revenue decreased $6.6 million, or 16.9%, due to a decrease in direct mail service volume from existing customers.  Operating income for the nine months ended September 30, 2023 decreased $1.0 million from the prior year quarter due to the lower revenue.  

Customer Care:

  

Three Months Ended September 30,

  

Nine Months Ended September 30,

 

In thousands

 

2023

  

2022

  

% Change

  

2023

  

2022

  

% Change

 

Revenues

 $13,998  $17,375   (19.4)% $45,625  $50,499   (9.7)%

EBITDA

  1,991   2,971   (33.0)%  6,989   8,926   (21.7)%

Operating Income

  1,738   2,765   (37.1)%  5,965   8,317   (28.3)%

Operating Income % of Revenue

  12.4%  15.9%      13.1%  16.5%    

Three months ended September 30, 2023vs. Three months ended September 30, 2022

Customer Care segment revenue decreased $3.4 million, or 19.4%, primarily due to decreased project work which was partially offset by $2.2M revenue associated with the 3Q Digital contingent consideration and foreign tax credit limitations on dividends paid from foreign subsidiaries.


We have calculated the provision for income taxes for 2017 by applying an estimate of the annual effective tax rateInsideOut acquired in December 2022.  Operating Income was $1.7 million for the full calendar yearthree months ended September 30, 2023, compared to ordinaryoperating income or lossof $2.8 million for the reporting period. However, we usedthree months ended September 30, 2022. The $1.1 million decrease was related to the lower revenue.  

Nine months ended September 30, 2023 vs. Nine months ended September 30, 2022

Customer Care segment revenue decreased $4.9 million, or 9.7%, primarily due to the decrease in both non-recurring pandemic-related projects and a discrete effective tax rate methodlarge non-recurring recall project in 2022 which was partially offset by $7.3 million revenue from InsideOut.  Operating Income was $6.0 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023, compared to calculateoperating income taxes in 2016 because we determined that small changes in estimated ordinary income would result in significant changes inof $8.3 million for the estimated annual effective tax rate, such that the historical method would not provide a reliable estimate for 2016.


Earnings (Loss) Per Share from Continuing Operations
Third Quarter of 2017 vs. Third Quarter of 2016

We recorded net loss from continuing operations of $2.5 million and loss per share from continuing operations of $0.04 in the third quarter of 2017. These results compare to net loss from continuing operations of $4.3 million and loss per share from continuing operations of $0.07 per share in the third quarter of 2016.

First Nine Months of 2017 vs. First Nine Months of 2016

We recorded net loss from continuing operations of $12.5 million and loss per share from continuing operations of $0.20 in the first nine months ended September 30, 2022. The $2.3 million decrease was due to lower revenue.

Fulfillment & Logistics Services:

  

Three Months Ended September 30,

  

Nine Months Ended September 30,

 

In thousands

 

2023

  

2022

  

% Change

  

2023

  

2022

  

% Change

 

Revenues

 $22,530  $23,495   (4.1)% $63,625  $61,612   3.3%

EBITDA

  2,855   2,777   2.8%  6,987   8,334   (16.2)%

Operating Income

  2,606   2,601   0.2%  6,251   7,753   (19.4)%

Operating Income % of Revenue

  11.6%  11.1%      9.8%  12.6%    

Three months ended September 30, 2023vs. Three months ended September 30, 2022

Fulfillment & Logistics Services segment revenue decreased by $1.0 million due to declined volume from the existing customers. Operating income stayed flat at $2.6 million for the three months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022.  

Nine months ended September 30, 2023 vs. Nine months ended September 30, 2022

Fulfillment & Logistics Services segment revenue increased $2.0 million, or 3.3%, primarily driven by the increase in work from continuing operations of $16.9existing customers. Operating income was $6.3 million and loss per share from continuing operations of $0.27 per share infor the first nine months of 2016.


ended September 30, 2023 compared to $7.8 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2022. The $1.5 million decrease in operating income was primarily due to the change in revenue mix and higher transportation costs associated with higher logistics revenue.  

Liquidity and Capital Resources


Sources and Uses of Cash


Our cash and cash equivalent balances were $11.4$13.3 million and $46.0$10.4 million at September 30, 20172023 and December 31, 2016,2022, respectively.   Our As of September 30, 2023, we had the ability to borrow an additional $24.2 million under our Credit Facility.  The cash deposited in an escrow account to satisfy our contingent payment obligations in connection with the acquisition of InsideOut is not included in our cash and cash equivalent or restricted cash balances as of September 30, 2023.

We received $2.5 million in tax refunds in 2022 and received an additional tax refund of $5.3 million in March 2023, as a result of the change to the tax NOL carryback provisions included in the CARES Act.  Our principal sources of liquidity are cash on hand, cash provided by operating activities, and borrowings and proceeds from asset sales.available under our Credit Facility. Our cash is primarily used for general corporate purposes, working capital requirements, and capital expenditures.



At this time, we believe that we will be able to continue to meet our liquidity requirements and fund our fixed obligations (such as debt services, finance and operating leases and unfunded pension plan benefit payments) and other cash needs for our operations in the short term and beyond through a combination of cash on hand, cash flow from operations, and borrowings under the Credit Facility. Although the Company believes that it will be able to meet its cash needs for the short term and beyond, if unforeseen circumstances arise the company may need to seek alternative sources of liquidity. 

Operating Activities


Net cash used inprovided by the operating activities for the nine months ended September 30, 20172023 was $42.0$6.1 million, compared to net cash provided by operating activities of $26.5$22.3 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2016.2022. The $68.5$16.1 million year-over-year decrease is primarily the result of a $69.4 million difference in cash provided by changes in operating assets and liabilities. This difference is driven by a $28.4 million decrease in other accrued expenses and liabilities, which reflects the tax payment made in 2017 related to the taxable gain on the sale of our Trillium business in 2016. The other principal driver is the $27.9 million decrease in cash provided by operating activities was primarily driven by lower net income of $14.6 million and the $11.1 million decrease in accounts payable, accrued expenses and other liabilities, which was partially offset by a $6.7 million decrease in accounts receivable dueand contract assets, and a $1.6 million decrease in prepaid and other current assets in the nine months ended September 30, 2023 as compared to our year over year revenue decline.


the same period in 2022. 

Investing Activities


Net cash used in investing activities was $4.1$1.5 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2017,2023, compared to $12.5$5.7 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2016. Current year2022.  The $4.2 million year-over-year decrease in cash used in investing activities consisted of capital expenditures of $4.1 million. This compareswas primarily due to prior year investing activities consisting of the acquisition of Aleutian Consulting in March of 2016 for $3.5$4.3 million capital expenditures of $6.9 million, andless cash used to purchase property, plant and equipment (mainly for discontinued operations of $2.4 million.


our new ERP system) in the nine months ended September 30, 2023 as compared to 2022.

Financing Activities


Net cash flows fromused in financing activities was $10.8$3.1 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2017,2023, as compared to $6.4 million of net cash used of $21.8 millionin financing activities for the nine months ended September 30, 2016.2022.  The $32.6$3.3 million increase isdecrease was primarily duerelated to the net cash borrowed from credit facilities of $11.8$2.4 million in 2017 as opposedused to net cash paid of $14.3 million in 2016, as well as the lone dividend payment of $5.3 million maderepurchase our common stock in the first quarternine months ended September 30, 2023 as compared to the paydown of 2016.


the $5.0 million borrowing under our Credit Facility in the nine months ended September 30, 2022.

Foreign Holdings of Cash


Consolidated foreign holdings of cash as of September 30, 20172023 and 20162022 were $3.2$4.0 million and $4.0$1.8 million, respectively. The company is subject to, and has accrued additional U.S. income taxes and foreign withholding taxes for repatriated cash.

24


Credit Facilities

Long Term Debt

On March 10, 2016, weDecember 21, 2021, the Company entered the 2016 Secured Credit Facility with Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. as Administrative Agent. This facility consisted ofinto a maximum $65.0three-year, $25.0 million asset-based revolving credit facility and a $45.0 million term loan. The lenders provided waivers of our noncompliance of the minimum fixed charge coverage ratio and leverage ratios under the 2016 Secured Credit Facility as of April 30, 2016, June 30, 2016, September 30, 2016, and October 31, 2016. Additional covenants in the 2016 Secured Credit Facility included, among other things, restrictions on the company and its subsidiaries from liquidating, dissolving, suspending, or ceasing subsidiaries or a substantial portion of the business. As such, repayment was required following the completion of the sale of Trillium. Outstanding loans were repaid in full on December 23, 2016 using the proceeds of the sale and the 2016 Secured Credit Facility was likewise terminated.


On April 17, 2017, we entered into the Texas Capital Credit Facility with Texas Capital Bank, N.A. as lender.Bank.  The Texas CapitalCompany’s obligations under the Credit Facility consists ofare guaranteed on a two-year $20 million revolving credit facilityjoint and several basis by the Company’s material subsidiaries (the “Guarantors”).  The Credit Facility is secured by substantially all of ourthe assets and guaranteed by HHS Guaranty, LLC, an entity formed by certain members of the Shelton family, descendantsCompany and the Guarantors pursuant to a Pledge and Security Agreement, dated as of oneDecember 21, 2021, among the Company, TCB and the other grantors party thereto (the "Security Agreement").

The Credit Facility provides for loans up to the lesser of (a) $25.0 million, and (b) the amount available under a "borrowing base" calculated primarily by reference to the Company's cash and cash equivalents and accounts receivables. The Credit Facility allows the Company to use up to $3.0 million of its borrowing capacity to issue letters of credit.

The loans under the Credit Facility accrue interest at a variable rate equal to the Bloomberg Short-Term Bank Yield Index Rate plus a margin of 2.25% per annum. The outstanding amounts advanced under the Credit Facility are due and payable in full on December 21, 2024.

The Company may voluntarily prepay all or any portion of the company's founders.loans advanced under the Credit Facility at any time, without premium or penalty. The Credit Facility is subject to mandatory prepayments (i) from the net proceeds of asset dispositions not otherwise permitted under the Credit Facility; (ii) if the unpaid principal balance under the Credit Facility plus the aggregate face amount of all outstanding letters of credit facility adds additional financial flexibilityexceeds the borrowing base; (iii) in an amount equal to 50% of the net proceeds of issuances of capital stock (subject to customary exceptions); or (iv) in an amount equal to the companynet proceeds from any issuance of debt not otherwise permitted under the Credit Facility.

The Credit Facility contains certain covenants restricting the Company's and will be usedits subsidiaries' ability to create, incur, assume or become liable for working capitalindebtedness; make certain investments; pay dividends or repurchase the Company's stock; create, incur or assume liens; consummate mergers or acquisitions; liquidate, dissolve, suspend or cease operations; or modify accounting or tax reporting methods (other than as required by U.S. GAAP).

As of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, we had no borrowings outstanding under the Credit Facility.  At each of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, we had letters of credit in the amount of $0.8 million outstanding. No amounts were drawn against these letters of credit at September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022. These letters of credit exist to support insurance programs relating to workers’ compensation, automobile, and general corporate purposes. See Note E, Long-Term Debt,liability.  We had no other off-balance sheet financing activities at September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022.

As of September 30, 2023, we had the ability to borrow an additional $24.2 million under the Credit Facility. 

Dividends

We did not pay any dividends in the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for further discussion.


Dividends

We paid a quarterly dividend of 8.5 cents per share in the first quarter of 2016. We currently intend to retain any future earningsthree and do not expect to pay dividends on our common stock. Any future dividend declaration can be made only upon,nine months ended September 30, 2023 and subject to, approval of our board of directors, based on its business judgment.

2022

Share Repurchase


During 2017,

On May 2, 2023, the Board of Directors of Harte Hanks approved a share repurchase program to maximize shareholder value with authorization to repurchase $6.5 million of the Company’s Common Stock.  In the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023,  we have not repurchased anyrepurchased 0.1 million and 0.4 million shares of our common stock under our current stock repurchase program that was publicly announced in August 2014. Under our current program, we are authorized to spend up to $20.0for $0.5 million to repurchase shares of our outstanding common stock. At September 30, 2017, we had $11.4and $2.4 million, of remaining authorization under this program. From 1997 through September 30, 2017, we have repurchased 67.9 million shares for an aggregate of $1.2 billion.



We are unlikely to make any repurchases in the near term. Any future decisions to repurchase shares of our common stock will be based upon determination by our board that such repurchases are in the best interest of our stockholders after considering our financial position, results of operations, the price of our common stock, credit conditions, and other relevant factors.

respectively.

Outlook


We consider such factors as total cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash, current assets, current liabilities, total debt, revenues, operating income, cash flows from operations, investing activities, and financing activities when assessing our liquidity. Our principal sources of liquidity are cash on hand, cash provided by operating activities, and borrowings. Our management of cash is designed to optimize returns on cash balances and to ensure that it is readily available to meet our operating, investing, and financing requirements.


Our recent operating and financial performance has been marked by declining revenues, although the rate of those declines has abated in each of the past three quarters. Despite these declining revenues and continuing operating losses, we do believe that we are making progress that will ultimately return us to revenue growth and profitability.

On April 17, 2017, we entered into the Texas Capital Credit Facility. The Texas Capital Credit Facility provides $20.0 million in borrowing capacity under a revolving credit line and has far more favorable covenant requirements than our prior credit facility.as they arise. We believe that the liquidity provided by the Texas Capital Credit Facility is sufficient for our needs given the nature and performance of our operations.

We have also obtained the deferral of a significant contingent liability that otherwise would have been due in 2018. Wethere are required (under the terms of the purchase agreement for the acquisition of 3Q Digital) to pay the former owners of 3Q Digital an additional consideration contingent on achievement of certain revenue growth goals for that business; the maximum amount of contingent consideration payment is $35 million. On May 1, 2017, we entered into an Agreement (the "3Q Agreement"), which defers our obligation to pay the contingent consideration to the former owners until April 1, 2019no conditions or the sale of the 3Q Digital business, whichever is earlier.

We have taken actions to return the business to profitability and improve our cash, liquidity, and financial position. We have made expense reductions through downsizing our workforce and consolidating back-office and information technology functions. We also completed the closure of our Baltimore direct mail facilityevents, considered in the first quarter of 2017 in response to the declining demand for printed marketing materials. Continuing work from this facility was transitioned to other facilities, allowing for higher utilization rates. We have started to see the favorable impact of these actions and intend to continue efforts to reduce expenses through the end of 2017.
In addition to the actions discussed above, we are taking additional steps to improve our operational and financial performance. We continue to identify and act to secure additional cost reductions and operating efficiencies. We have also focused investments toward improving product offeringsaggregate, that we believe will improve revenue growth.

On April 18, 2017, we announced that as part of an initiative to enhance our strategic position and increase financial flexibility, we would seek strategic alternatives for our 3Q Digital business. The potential liquidity from this initiative would enhanceraise substantial doubt about our ability to invest in strategies to strengthen our core offerings.

continue as a going concern for the twelve months following the issuance of the Consolidated Financial Statements.

Critical and Recent Accounting Policies


Critical accounting policiesestimates are defined as those that, in our judgment, are most important to the portrayal of our company’sCompany’s financial condition and results of operations and which require complex or subjective judgments or estimates.  We considerActual results could differ materially from those estimates under different assumptions and conditions.  Refer to the following to be2022 10-K for a discussion of our critical accounting estimates.

Our Significant Accounting policies asare described in detailNote A, Overview and Significant Accounting Policies, in our 2016 Form 10-K:

Revenue recognition;
Goodwill and other intangible assets;
Income taxes; and
Accounting for contingent consideration.

There have not been any material changesthe Notes to the critical accounting policies described above and in our 2016 Form 10-K.

As discussed in Note B, Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.

See Recent Accounting Pronouncements, under Note B of the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for a discussion of certain new financial accounting pronouncementsstandards that have been issued which either have already been reflected in the accompanying consolidated financial statements, or will become effective for our financial statements at various dates in the future. The adoptionsrecently issued.


Item 3.  Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk

Market risk includes the risk of loss arising from adverse changes in market rates and prices. We face market risks related to interest rate and foreign exchange rate variations. We may utilize derivative financial instruments to manage our exposure to such risks.
We do not believe that a one percentage point change in average interest rates would have a material impact on our interest expense. As such, we do not believe that we currently have significant exposure to market risks associated with changing interest rates. At this time, we have not entered into any interest rate swap or other derivative instruments to hedge the effects of adverse fluctuations in interest rates.

Our earnings are also affected by fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates as a result of our operations in foreign countries. Our primary exchange rate exposure is to the Euro, British Pound, and Philippine Peso. We monitor these risks throughout the normal course of business. The majority of the transactions of our U.S. and foreign operations are denominated in the respective local currencies. Changes in exchange rates related to these types of transactions are reflected in the applicable line items making up operating income in our Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Loss. Due to the current level of operations conducted in foreign currencies, we do not believe that the impact of fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates on these types of transactions is significant to our overall annual earnings. A smaller portion of our transactions are denominated in currencies other than the respective local currencies. For example, intercompany transactions that are expected to be settled in the near-term are denominated in U.S. Dollars. Since the accounting records of our foreign operations are kept in the respective local currency, any transactions denominated in other currencies are accounted for in the respective local currency at the time of the transaction. Any foreign currency gain or loss from these transactions, whether realized or unrealized, results in an adjustment to income, which is recorded in “Other, net” in our Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Loss. Transactions such as these amounted to $0.7 million in pre-tax currency transaction losses in the first nine months of 2017. At this time, we are not entered into any foreign currency forward exchange contracts or other derivative instruments to hedge the effects of adverse fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates.
We do not enter into derivative instruments for any purpose other than cash flow hedging. We do not speculate using derivative instruments.

Not applicable.

Item 4.  Controls and Procedures

Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures


Disclosure

We maintain disclosure controls and procedures are controlsas defined in Rule 13a-15(e) and procedures15d-15(e) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) that are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in our reports filed or submitted under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 is recorded, processed, summarized, and reported within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms. Disclosure controlsforms, and procedures include controls and procedures designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in such reportsinformation is accumulated and communicated to management, including our Chief Executive Officer ("CEO") and Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Controller(“CFO”), as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.


Our management, including our Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer,CEO and Corporate Controller, carried out an evaluation ofCFO, evaluated the effectiveness of the design and operation of our disclosure controls and procedures as defined in Rulepursuant to Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as of September 30, 2017.2023, the end of the period covered by this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. Based on thatupon such evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer,CEO and Corporate ControllerCFO concluded that the company'sdesign and operation of these disclosure controls and procedures were not effective, as of September 30, 2017 dueat the “reasonable assurance” level, to the material weaknesses in internal control over financial reporting as described in Item 9A of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2016.


Material Weakness in Internal Control over Financial Reporting

We identified material weaknessesensure information required to be disclosed by us in the following areas (i)reports that we file or submit under the effectiveness ofExchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the control environment, risk assessment, informationtime periods specified in the SEC rules and communication, and monitoring, (ii) the effectiveness of internal controls over revenue recognition, (iii) the effectiveness of the accounting for the contingent consideration, (iv) the effectiveness of evaluation of goodwill for impairment, (v) the effectiveness of controls around evaluation of deferred tax assets, and (vi) the effectiveness of controls over the financial closing and reporting process.

Notwithstanding the material weaknesses, each of our Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer, and Corporate Controller concluded that the consolidated financial statements included in this report present fairly, in all material respects, our financial position, results of operations, and cash flows as of the dates and for the periods presented, in conformity with U.S. GAAP.


forms.

Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting


As discussed

There were no changes in Item 9A of our Annual Report on Form 10-K forinternal controls over financial reporting (as defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) under the year ended December 31, 2016, weExchange Act) during our most recent fiscal quarter that have undertaken actionsmaterially affected, or are reasonably likely to redesign processes and controls to address all of the material weaknesses. We have engaged specialists to assist us with reviewing, documenting, and (as needed) supplementing our controls, with a goal of providing controls that not only better address both the accuracy and precision of management’s review, but also enhance our ability to manage our business as it has evolved. We continue to evaluate our financial team and organizational structure, and have begun to make changes to roles and responsibilities to enhance controls and compliance, including the recently announced hiring of a new Chief Financial Officer. We expect to make further changes as our specialists deliver recommendations from their reviews. As we implement these plans, management may determine that additional steps may be necessary to remediate the material weaknesses.


Although we intend to resolve all of the material control deficiencies discussed in Item 9A of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2016, we cannot provide any assurance that these remediation efforts will be successful, will be completed quickly, or thatmaterially affect, our internal control over financial reporting will be effective as a resultreporting.  


Inherent Limitation of the Effectiveness of Internal Control

The effectiveness of any system of internal control over financial reporting is subject to inherent limitations, including the exercise of judgment in designing, implementing, operating, and evaluating the controls and procedures, and the inability to eliminate misconduct completely. Accordingly, any system of internal control over financial reporting can only provide reasonable, not absolute, assurances. In addition, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate. We intend to continue to monitor and upgrade our internal controls as necessary or appropriate for our business, but cannot assure that such improvements will be sufficient to provide us with effective internal control over financial reporting.

PART II.OTHER INFORMATION

Item 1.  Legal Proceedings

Information regarding legal proceedings is set forth in Note K, M, Litigation and Contingencies, in the Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 1 of Part I of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, which information is incorporated herein by reference.


Item 1a.  Risk Factors

In addition to the other information set forth in this report, you should carefully consider the factors discussed in Part I, “Item 1A. Risk Factors” in our 2016 Form2022 10-K, which could materially affect our business, financial condition, or future results. The risks described in our 2016 Form2022 10-K are not the only risks we face. Additional risks and uncertainties not currently known to us or that we currently deem to be immaterial also may materially adversely affect our business, financial condition, and operating results. In our judgment, there wereThere have been no material changes induring the three months ended September 30, 2023 to the risk factors as previously disclosed in Part I, “Item 1A. Risk Factors” of our 2016 Form 10-K other than as described below. Refer to Part I, Item 2 of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, for a discussion of the economic climate and impact on our financial statements.


Our inability to comply with the listing requirements of the New York Stock Exchange could result in our common stock being delisted, which could affect our common stock’s market price and liquidity and reduce our ability to raise capital.

In addition to our non-compliance with the NYSE listing requirement described in the risk factors of our 2016 Form 10-K, on August 9, 2017 we received a notice from the NYSE indicating that the average closing price of our common stock had fallen below $1.00 per share over a period of 30 consecutive trading days, which is the minimum average share price for continued listing on the NYSE under Rule 802.01C of the NYSE Listed Company Manual.

Under NYSE rules, we have six months following receipt of the notification to regain compliance with the minimum share price requirement. We can regain compliance at any time during the six-month cure period if our common stock has a closing share price of at least $1.00 on the last trading day of any calendar month during the period and also has an average closing share price of at least $1.00 over the 30-trading day period ending on the last trading day of that month or on the last day of the cure period.

If by February 9, 2018 we cannot demonstrate compliance with the minimum share price requirement, the NYSE will commence suspension and delisting procedures. There can be no assurance that we will be able to maintain our NYSE listing.

In addition, there are other continued listing requirements of the NYSE, such as a requirement stating that we will be considered to be below compliance if our average market capitalization over a consecutive 30 trading-day period is less than $50,000,000 and, at the same time our stockholders' equity is less than $50,000,000. Our common stock could be delisted if we are not in compliance with any such requirement and are to regain compliance during any applicable cure or grace period. A delisting of our common stock could negatively impact the company by, among other things, reducing the liquidity and market price of the common stock and reducing the number of investors willing to hold or acquire the common stock.

2022 10-K.

Item 2.  Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds
The following table contains information about our purchases of

We did not sell any unregistered equity securities during the third quarter of 2017:

Period 
Total Number of
Shares
Purchased (1)
 
Average
Price Paid
per Share
 
Total Number of
Shares Purchased
as Part of a Publicly
Announced Plan (2)
 
Maximum Dollar
Amount that May
Yet Be Spent
Under the Plan
July 1-31, 2017 
 $
 
 $11,437,538
August 1-31, 2017 2,290
 $0.80
 
 $11,437,538
September 1-30, 2017 19,364
 $0.87
 
 $11,437,538
Total 21,654
 $0.86
 
  
(1)  Represents shares withheldended September 30, 2023.

The following table provides information with respect to offset withholding taxes uponpurchases by the vestingCompany of unvested shares.

(2) The company does not anticipate purchasing any shares of our common stock through our stock repurchase program that was publicly announced in August 2014 forCommon Stock during the foreseeable future. Under this program, from which shares can be purchased inquarter ended September 30, 2023:

Period

 

Total Number of Shares (or units) Purchased

  

Average Price per Share (or unit)

  

Total number of Shares Purchased as Part of a Publicly Announced Plan or Program

  

Approximate dollar value of shares that may yet be purchased under the program (1)

 
               (in thousands) 

July 1, 2023 to July 31, 2023

  -  $   -  $4,621 

August 1, 2023 to August 31, 2023

  25,726  $6.40   25,726   4,457 

September 1, 2023 to September 30, 2023

  51,501  $6.32   51,501   4,131 
   77,227       77,227  $4,131 

(1) In May 2023,  the open market, our Board of Directors has authorized usof Harte Hanks approved a share repurchase program to spend upmaximize shareholder value with authorization to $20.0repurchase $6.5 million of the Company’s Common Stock.  After giving effect to these repurchases, we have remaining authority of $4.1 million to repurchase shares of our outstanding common stock. As of September 30, 2017, we have repurchased 1.5 million shares and spent $11.4 millionremaining under the 2014 stock repurchase program. Through September 30, 2017, we had repurchased a total

Item 3.  Defaults Upon Senior Securities

Not applicable.

Item 4.  Mine Safety Disclosures

Not applicable.

Item 5.  Other Information

None.

27

Exhibit

No.

Description of Exhibit

Exhibit
No.
*10.1
 DescriptionEmployment Agreement between the Company and Kirk Davis, effective as of June 19, 2023 (filed as Exhibit 10.1 to the Company's Form 8-K dated June 20, 2023)
   

*101.INSInline XBRL Instance Document - the instance document does not appear in the Interactive Data Files because its XBRL tags are embedded within the Inline XBRL Document.
*101.SCHInline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema Document
*101.CALInline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase Document
*101.LABInline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Labels Linkbase Document
*101.PREInline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase Document
*101.DEFInline XBRL Definition Linkbase Document
   
*101104 Cover Page Interactive Data File (embedded within the Inline XBRL Instance Document.
and contained in Exhibit 101)


*Filed or furnished herewith, as applicable.

**Confidential treatment has been requested with respect to certain portions of this exhibit. Omitted portions have been filed separately with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

28


Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

HARTE HANKS, INC.

November 8, 201713, 2023

/s/ Karen A. PuckettKirk Davis

Date

Karen A. Puckett

Kirk Davis

President and

Chief Executive Officer

November 8, 201713, 2023

/s/ Robert L. R. MundenDavid Garrison

Date

Robert L. R. Munden

David Garrison

Executive Vice President,

Interim Chief Financial Officer

and General Counsel and Secretary

November 8, 2017/s/ Carlos M. Alvarado
DateCarlos M. Alvarado
Vice President, Finance and
Corporate Controller


30
29