U.S.


UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549


FORM 10-K

10-K/A

(Amendment No. 1)

(Mark One)


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

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

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019

2020

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

hartehankslogo.jpg

hrth20210428_10kaimg001.jpg

HARTE HANKS, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)


Delaware

 

74-1677284

(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)

 

(I.R.S. Employer Identification Number)

incorporation or organization)

 Identification Number)



2800 Wells Branch Parkway, Austin, Texas 78728

(Address of principal executive offices, including 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

HRTH

New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”)

OTCQX


Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes o No ý

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes o No ý


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 (the “Exchange Act”)

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 every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§ (§                            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, a smaller reporting company or emerging growth company.

See definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

Large accelerated filer

o

Accelerated filer

o

Non-accelerated filer

ý

Smaller reporting company

ý

  

Emerging growth company

o



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 whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☐

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 aggregate market value of the voting and non-voting common equity held by non-affiliates computed by reference to the closing price ($2.20)3.10) as of the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter (June 30, 2019)2020), was approximately $12,417,814.


$17,824,464.

The number of shares outstanding of each of the registrant’s classes of common stock as of January 31, 20202021 was 6,307,8736,654,246 shares of common stock, all of one class.


Documents incorporated by reference:


Portions of the Proxy Statement to be filed for the company’s 2020 Annual Meeting of Stockholders are incorporated by reference into Part III of this Form 10-K.

None.

THIS ANNUAL REPORT ON FORM 10-K10-K/A IS BEING DISTRIBUTED TO STOCKHOLDERS IN LIEU OF A SEPARATE ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO RULE 14a-3(b) OF THE ACT AND SECTION 203.01 OF THE NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE LISTED COMPANY MANUAL.ACT.



Explanatory Note

This Amendment No. 1 on Form 10-K/A (“Amendment No. 1” or “Annual Report”) amends the annual report on Form 10-K of Harte Hanks, Inc. (together with its subsidiaries, “Harte Hanks,” “Company,” “we,” “our,” or “us”) for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020 (the “Original Filing”), filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on March 24, 2021 (the “Original Filing Date”). The sole purpose of this Amendment No. 1 is to include the information required by Items 10 through 14 of Part III of Form 10-K.

This information was previously omitted from the Original Filing in reliance on General Instruction G(3) to Form 10-K, which permits the information in the above referenced items to be incorporated in the Form 10-K by reference from our definitive proxy statement if such proxy statement is filed no later than 120 days after our fiscal year-end. The Company does not anticipate that its definitive proxy statement for the 2021 annual meeting will be filed within the 120-day period. Accordingly, Part III of the Original Filing is amended as set forth below. The reference on the cover of the Original Filing to the incorporation by reference to portions of our definitive proxy statement into Part III of the Original Filing is hereby deleted.

As required by Rule 12b-15 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, Item 15 of Part IV of the Original Filing has been amended to contain currently dated certifications required pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes- Oxley Act of 2002 (“Sarbox”) from our Principal Executive Officer and Principal Financial Officer. The currently dated certifications are attached hereto as Exhibits 31.3 and 31.4. This Amendment No. 1 does not amend, modify, or otherwise update any other information in the Original Filing. Accordingly, this Amendment No. 1 should be read in conjunction with the Original Filing. In addition, this Amendment No. 1 does not reflect events that may have occurred subsequent to the Original Filing Date.

.





Harte Hanks, Inc. and Subsidiaries

Table of Contents

Form 10-K10-K/A Report

December 31, 2019





PART I

ITEM 1.     BUSINESS
INTRODUCTION

Harte Hanks, Inc. (“Harte Hanks,” the “Company,” “we,” “our,” or “us”) is a purveyor of data-driven, omni-channel marketing and customer relationship solutions and logistics. The Company has robust capabilities that offer clients the strategic guidance they need across the customer data landscape as well as the executional know-how in database build and management, data analytics, digital media, direct mail, customer contact, client fulfillment and marketing and product logistics. Harte Hanks solves marketing, commerce and logistical challenges for some of the world’s leading brands in North America, Asia-Pacific and Europe.

We are the successor to a newspaper business started by Houston Harte and Bernard Hanks in Texas in the early 1920s. We were incorporated in Delaware on October 1, 1970. In 1972, Harte Hanks went public and was listed on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”).  We became a private company in a leveraged buyout in 1984, and in 1993 we again went public and listed our common stock on the NYSE.

All reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) are publicly available. These documents may be accessed free of charge on our website at http://www.hartehanks.com.  These documents are provided as soon as practical after they are filed with the SEC and may also be found at the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. Additionally, we have adopted and posted on our website a code of ethics that applies to our principal executive officer, principal financial officer, and principal accounting officer. Our website also includes our corporate governance guidelines and the charters for each of our audit, compensation, and nominating and corporate governance committees, and we will provide a printed copy of any of these documents to any requesting stockholder. These website addresses are intended to be for inactive textual references only. None of the information on, or accessible through, these websites are part of this Form 10-K or is incorporated by reference herein.

OUR BUSINESS
Harte Hanks partners with clients to deliver relevant, connected, and quality customer interactions. Our approach starts with discovery and learning, which leads to customer journey mapping, creative and content development, analytics, and data management, 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, this is why Harte Hanks is known for developing strong customer relationships and experiences and defining interaction-led marketing.

We offer a wide variety of integrated, omni-channel, data-driven solutions for top brands around the globe. We help our clients gain insight into their customers’ behaviors from their data and use that insight to create innovative multi-channel marketing programs that deliver greater return on their marketing investment. We believe our clients’ success is determined not only by how good their tools are, but how well we help them use these tools to gain insight and analyze their consumers. This results in a strong and enduring relationship between our clients and their customers which is key to being leaders in customer interaction. We offer a full suite of capabilities and resources to provide a broad range of marketing services, utilizing various different media from direct mail to email, including:

Agency: We offer full-service, customer engagement solutions specializing in direct and digital communications for both consumer and business-to-business markets. With strategy, creative, and implementation services, we help marketers within targeted industries understand, identify, and engage prospects and customers in their channel of choice. 

Digital Solutions: Our digital solutions integrate online services into the marketing mix, including search engine management, display optimization, digital analytics, website development and design, digital strategy, social media, email, e-commerce, interactive relationship management and a host of other services that support our core businesses.



Database Marketing Solutions: We have successfully delivered marketing database solutions across various industries to help our clients understand their customers’ needs and offer communication solutions to allow them to address those needs. Our solutions are built around centralized marketing databases with three core offerings: insight and analytics; customer data integration; and marketing communications tools. Our solutions enable organizations to build and manage customer communication strategies that drive customer acquisition and retention to maximize the value of existing customer relationships. Through insight and analytics, we help clients identify the marketing models that have proven successful with their most profitable customer relationships and then apply those marketing strategies to increase the return on investment for existing customers while also winning profitable new customers. We also aggregate our clients' customer data from multiple sources to provide our clients with a comprehensive illustration of their customers and prospective customers. We then help clients apply their data and insights to the entire customer life cycle, in turn helping clients sustain and grow their business, gain deeper customer insights, and continuously refine their customer resource management strategies and tactics.

Direct Mail: As a full-service direct marketing provider and a substantial mailing partner of the U.S. Postal Service (“USPS”),
our operational mandate is to ensure creativity and quality, provide an understanding of the options available in technologies and segmentation strategies and capitalize on economies of scale with our variety of execution options.

Mail and Product Fulfillment: We offer mail and product fulfillment solutions, including printing on demand, managing product recalls, and distributing literature and other products. Harte Hanks has temperature-controlled, FDA-approved and geographically convenient warehouses to support print and product, all controlled by our proprietary nexTOUCH platform. Our temperature-controlled, FDA-approved warehouses allow us to store and ship baby formula, sports drinks and other similar items often marketed through the distribution of samples of the product

Logistics: Harte Hanks is one of the leading providers of third-party logistics and freight optimization in the United States. We complete millions of shipments of time-sensitive materials annually and have access to a certified fleet of over 15,000 trucks and a proprietary logistical system called Allink®360 that is designed to ensure customers’ products are delivered on-time and on-budget.

Contact Centers: We offer intelligently responsive contact center solutions, which use real-time data to effectively interact with each customer. Our on-shore and off-shore customer support representatives handle incoming calls, email, chat, video and social media requests, all in multiple languages, 24/7 to improve customer experiences. At the same time, our advanced analytics can alert customers to trending product or service issues. Our team skillfully configures Oracle CRM or Salesforce to create great customer interactions by seamlessly linking continually improving content between agent or AI-driven interfaces and web-based self-help tools or community forums. Our lead specialists engage qualified buyers and influencers with the right message at the right moment. Additionally, when combined with our Fulfillment and Logistics offerings, we provide a full suite of services for customers’ warranty, returns and recall issues.

Many of our client relationships start with an offering from the list above on an individual solution basis or a combination of our offerings from across our services. As our relationship with a new client strengthens, we seek to deepen the relationship by providing additional services.

In 2019 and 2018, Harte Hanks had revenues of $217.6 million and $284.6 million, respectively. 

Management Changes

Effective November 18, 2019, Andrew Benett was appointed as Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.  Andrew is a seasoned executive with over 20 years of expertise in brand development, digital, direct, and marketing technology, and he was the former global CEO of Havas Creative Group, a leading marketing communications network with 12,000 employees. Andrew Harrison stepped down from his role as President, but will remain with the Company, and report to Andrew Benett in an executive advisory role.

Effective November 18, 2019, Brian Linscott was appointed Chief Operating Officer.  Brian has an accomplished track record for improving financial and operational results. Mr. Linscott's prior positions include CFO of Sun Times Media, LLC, a media company that included the Chicago Sun-Times, Managing Director of Huron Consulting Group, and a Partner at BR Advisors, where he led operation improvement, developed new partnerships and drove topline growth for media clients and other companies.

Effective November 18, 2019, Lauri Kearnes was promoted to Chief Financial Officer.  Lauri has held a variety of finance positions at the Company of increasing responsibility over the past sixteen years, and she played a critical role in the restructuring initiatives discussed below under “Restructuring Activities”. 



Restructuring Activities

Our management team, along with members of the Board, have formed a project committee focused on our cost-saving initiatives and other restructuring efforts. This committee has reviewed each of our business lines and other operational areas to identify both one-time and recurring cost-saving opportunities. To date, the committee has identified over $20 million in potential annual savings, some of which we have already begun to recognize.
In the year ended December 31, 2019, we recorded restructuring charges of $11.8 million. This comprised charges mainly related to customer database build write offs, termination fees related to certain contracts with Wipro, LLC (“Wipro”), severance agreements, asset impairment and facility related expenses.
We expect that in connection with our cost-saving and restructuring initiatives, we will incur total restructuring charges of approximately $14.0 million through the end of 2020.

Customers

Our services are marketed to specific industries or markets. We tailor our services and software products depending on the industry or market we are targeting. We believe that we are generally able to provide services to new industries and markets by modifying our existing services and applications. We currently provide services primarily to the retail, B2B, financial services, consumer, and healthcare vertical markets, in addition to a range of other select markets. Our largest client (measured in revenue) comprised 8% of total revenues in 2019. Our largest 25 clients in terms of revenue comprised 64% of total revenues in 2019.

Sales and Marketing

We rely on our enterprise and solution sellers to primarily sell our products and services to new clients and task our employees supporting existing clients to expand our client relationship through additional solutions and products. Our marketing services sales force sells a variety of solutions and services to address client’s targeted marketing needs. We maintain solution-specific sales forces and sales groups to sell our individual products and solutions.

Facilities

Our services are provided at the following facilities, all of which are leased:
Domestic Offices
Austin, TexasLenexa, Kansas
Chelmsford, MassachusettsMaitland, Florida
Deerfield Beach, FloridaNew York, New York
East Bridgewater, MassachusettsRaleigh, North Carolina
Grand Prairie, TexasShawnee, Kansas
Jacksonville, FloridaTrevose, Pennsylvania
Langhorne, PennsylvaniaTexarkana, Texas

  
International Offices 
Hasselt, Belgium

Signatures

Manila, Philippines
Iasi, RomaniaUxbridge, United Kingdom

14


Competition

Our competition comes from local, national, and international marketing and advertising companies, and internal client resources, against whom we compete for individual projects, entire client relationships, and marketing expenditures. Competitive factors in our industry include the quality and scope of services, technical and strategic expertise, the perceived value of the services provided, reputation, and brand recognition. We also compete against social, mobile, web-based, email, print, broadcast, and other forms of advertising for marketing and advertising dollars in general.

Seasonality

Our revenues tend to be higher in the fourth quarter than in other quarters during a given year. 

This increased revenue is a result of overall increased marketing activity prior to and during the holiday season, primarily related to our retail vertical.




GOVERNMENT REGULATION
As a company conducting varied business activities for clients across diverse industries around the world, we are subject to a variety of domestic and international legal and regulatory requirements that impact our business, including, for example, regulations governing consumer protection, and unfair business practices, contracts, e-commerce, intellectual property, labor, and employment (especially wage and hour laws), securities, tax, and other laws that are generally applicable to commercial activities.
We are also subject to, or affected by, numerous local, national, and international laws, regulations, and industry standards that regulate direct marketing activities, including those that address privacy, data security, and unsolicited marketing communications. Examples of some of these laws and regulations that may be applied to, or affect, our business or the businesses of our clients include the following:

The Federal Trade Commission’s positions regarding the processing of personal information and protecting consumers as expressed through its Protecting Consumer Privacy in an Era of Rapid Change, Data Brokers, Big Data and Cross-Device Tracking reports (each of which seek to address consumer privacy, data protection, and technological advancements related to the collection or use of personal information for marketing purposes).
Data protection laws in the European Union (“EU”), including the General Data Protection Regulation (EU Regulation 679/2016) which imposes a number of obligations with respect to the processing of personal data and prohibitions related to the transfer of personal information from the EU to other countries, including the U.S., that do not provide data subjects with an “adequate” level of privacy or security, and applies to all of our products in Europe.
The Financial Services Modernization Act of 1999, or Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (“GLB”), which, among other things, regulates the use for marketing purposes of non-public personal financial information of consumers that is held by financial institutions. Although Harte Hanks is not considered a financial institution, many of our clients are subject to the GLB. The GLB also includes rules relating to the physical, administrative, and technological protection of non-public personal financial information.
The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (“HIPAA”), which regulates the use of protected health information for marketing purposes and requires reasonable safeguards designed to prevent intentional or unintentional use or disclosure of protected health information.
The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003 (“FACT Act”), which amended the FCRA and requires, among other things, consumer credit report notice requirements for creditors that use consumer credit report information in connection with risk-based credit pricing actions and also prohibits a business that receives consumer information from an affiliate from using that information for marketing purposes unless the consumer is first provided a notice and an opportunity to direct the business not to use the information for such marketing purposes, subject to certain exceptions.
The Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”), which governs, among other things, the sharing of consumer report information, access to credit scores, and requirements for users of consumer report information.
Federal and state laws governing the use of email for marketing purposes, including the U.S. Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act of 2003 (“CAN-SPAM”), Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (“CASL”) and similar e-Privacy laws in Europe (in support of Directive 2002/58/EC). 
Federal and state laws governing the use of telephones for unsolicited marketing purposes, including the Federal Trade Commission’s Telemarketing Sales Rule (“TSR”), the Federal Communications Commission’s Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”), various U.S. state do-not-call laws, Canada’s National Do Not Call laws and rules (“Telecommunications Act”) and similar e-Privacy laws in Europe (in support of Directive 2002/58/EC).
Federal and state laws governing the collection and use of personal data online and via mobile devices, including but not limited to the Federal Trade Commission Act and the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, which seek to address consumer privacy and protection.
Federal and state laws in the U.S., Canada, and Europe specific to data security and breach notification, which include required standards for data security and generally require timely notifications to affected persons in the event of data security breaches or other unauthorized access to certain types of protected personal data. 

There are additional consumer protection, privacy, and data security regulations in locations where we or our clients do business. These laws regulate the collection, use, disclosure, and retention of personal data and may require consent from consumers and grant consumers other rights, such as the ability to access their personal data and to correct information in the possession of data controllers.  We and many of our clients also belong to trade associations that impose guidelines that regulate direct marketing activities, such as the Direct Marketing Association’s Commitment to Consumer Choice.


As a result of increasing public awareness and interest in individual privacy rights, data protection, information security, and environmental and other concerns regarding marketing communications, federal, state, and foreign governmental and industry organizations continue to consider new legislative and regulatory proposals that would impose additional restrictions on direct marketing services and products. Examples include data encryption standards, data breach notification requirements, consumer choice and consent restrictions, and increased penalties against offending parties, among others.
In addition, our business may be affected by the impact of these restrictions on our clients and their marketing activities. These additional regulations could increase compliance requirements and restrict or prevent the collection, management, aggregation, transfer, use, or dissemination of information or data that is currently legally available. Additional regulations may also restrict or prevent current practices regarding unsolicited marketing communications. For example, many states have considered implementing “do-not-mail” legislation that could impact our business and the businesses of our clients and customers. In addition, continued public interest in individual privacy rights and data security may result in the adoption of further voluntary industry guidelines that could impact our direct marketing activities and business practices.

We cannot predict the scope of any new legislation, regulations, or industry guidelines or how courts may interpret existing and new laws. Additionally, enforcement priorities by governmental authorities may change and impact our business either directly or through requiring our customers to alter their practices. Compliance with regulations is costly and time-consuming for us and our clients, and we may encounter difficulties, delays, or significant expenses in connection with our compliance. We may also be exposed to significant penalties, liabilities, reputational harm, and loss of business if we fail to comply with applicable regulations. There could be a material adverse impact on our business due to the enactment or enforcement of legislation or industry regulations, the issuance of judicial or governmental interpretations, enforcement priorities of governmental agencies, or a change in customs arising from public concern over consumer privacy and data security issues.

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS

Our intellectual property assets include trademarks and service marks that identify our company and our services, know-how, software, and other technology that we develop for our internal use and for license to clients and data and intellectual property licensed from third parties, such as commercial software and data providers. We generally seek to protect our intellectual property through a combination of license agreements and trademark, service mark, copyright, patent and trade secret laws as well as through domain name registrations and enforcement procedures. We also enter into confidentiality agreements with many of our employees, vendors, and clients and seek to limit access to and distribution of intellectual property and other proprietary information. We pursue the protection of our trademarks and other intellectual property in the U.S. and internationally. Although we from time to time evaluate inventions for patentability, we do not own any patents, and patents are not core to our intellectual property strategy (other than as may be incidental to commercially available technology or software we license).

We have developed proprietary software including NexTOUCH and Allink®360, each of which are integral to our business. NexTOUCH is key to the success of our mail and product fulfillment business while Allink®360 ensures customers' products are delivered on-time and on-budget.

EMPLOYEES

As of December 31, 2019, Harte Hanks employed 1,943 full-time employees and 487 part-time employees, of which approximately 1,279 are based outside of the U.S., primarily in the Philippines. A portion of our workforce is provided to us through staffing companies. None of our workforce is represented by labor unions. We consider our relations with our employees to be good.




ITEM 1A.     RISK FACTORS
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This report, including the Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations (“MD&A”),Amendment No. 1 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 (the “1933 Act”) and Section 21E of the Exchange Act. Forward-looking statements may also be included 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, including our ability to reduce costs pursuant to the Restructuring Activities,restructuring activities, (2) adjustments to our cost structure and other actions designed to respond to market conditions and improve our performance, and the anticipated effectiveness and expenses associated with these actions, (3) our financial outlook for revenues, earnings (loss) per share, operating income (loss), expense related to equity-based compensation, capital resources and other financial items, if any, (4) 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) competitive factors, (6) acquisition and development plans, (7) our stock repurchase program, (8) expectations regarding legal proceedings and other contingent liabilities, and (9) 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 their investments. Some of these risks, uncertainties, assumptions, and other factors can be found in our filings with the SEC, including the factors discussed below in thisthe Original Filing under Item 1A, “Risk Factors”, and any updates thereto in our Forms 10-Q and 8-K. 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, except as required by law.



In addition

PART III

ITEM 10.

DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

Implications of Being a Smaller Reporting Company

We qualify as a “smaller reporting company” as such term is defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act, and Item 10 of Regulation S-K. Accordingly, and in accordance with relevant SEC rules and guidance, as a smaller reporting company, we are allowed to the information set forth elsewhere in this report,take advantage of specified exemptions and reduced disclosure obligations, including in the MD&A section, the factors described below should be considered carefully in making any investment decisions with respect to our securities.


Most of our client engagements are cancelable on short notice.

The marketing services we offer, and in particular for direct mail and contact center services, are generally terminable upon short notice by our clients, even if the term of the agreement (and the expected duration of services) is several or many years. Many of our customer agreements do not have minimum volume or revenue requirements, so clients may (and do) vary their actual orders from us over time based on their own business needs, their satisfaction with the quality and pricing of our services, and a variety of other competitive factors. In addition, the timing of particular jobs or types of jobs at particular times of year (such as mail programs supporting the holiday shopping season or contact center programs supporting a specific event) may cause significant fluctuations in the operating results of our operations in any given quarter. We depend to some extent on sales to certain industries, such as the consumer retail industries, technology, and financial services. Some participants in these industries have announced that the global outbreak of COVID-19 has affected and is expected to continue to effect operations and results for at least the near future.
To the extent these industries experience downturns, our clients may re-evaluate their marketing spend, which could adversely affect the results of our operations.

A large portion of our revenue is generated from a limited number of clients. The loss of a client or significant work from one or more of our clients could adversely affect our business.

Our ten largest clients collectively represented 44% of our revenues for 2019. Furthermore, traditional consumer retail (which is an industry experiencing significant business model and financial challenges) represented 19% of our 2019 revenues. While we typically have multiple projects with our largest customers which would not all terminate at the same time, the loss of one or more of our larger clients or the projects or contracts with one of our largest clients could adversely affect our business, results of operations, and financial condition if the lost revenues are not replaced with profitable revenues from that client or other clients.




Our indebtedness may adversely impact our ability to react to changesexecutive compensation disclosure, in our business or changes in general economic conditions.

Onperiodic reports and proxy statements.

Directors and Officers

Directors

The following table sets forth certain information as of April 17, 2017, we entered into a credit agreement with Texas Capital Bank, N.A. The agreement consists of a two-year revolving credit facility (the “Texas Capital Credit Facility”), which we amended on January 9, 2018 to increase the availability under the revolving credit facility to $22 million and extended the term of the credit facility by one year to April 17, 2020. On May 7, 2019, we entered into another amendment to the Texas Capital Credit Facility which further extended the maturity of the facility by one year to April 17, 2021. The Texas Capital Credit Facility is secured by substantially all of our assets and is guaranteed by HHS Guaranty, LLC, an entity affiliated with one of our equity holders and one of our directors. The agreement limits our ability to incur funded debt while any obligation or letter of credit issued thereunder is outstanding, subject to customary exceptions. See Note F, Long-Term Debt, in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for further discussion.


We may incur additional indebtedness in the future and the terms of future arrangements may be less favorable to the company than our previous or current facilities. Our ability to incur indebtedness is also impacted by the terms of our Series A Convertible Preferred Stock, which limits our ability to incur indebtedness without the holders’ consent to the greater of $40 million or four times our trailing 12-month EBITDA (measured at the time such indebtedness is incurred). Any failure or inability to obtain new financing arrangements when needed on favorable terms could have a material adverse impact on our liquidity position.

The amount of our indebtedness and the terms under which we borrow money under any future credit facilities or other agreements could have significant consequences for our business. Borrowings may include covenants requiring that we maintain certain financial measures and ratios. Covenant and ratio requirements may limit the manner in which we can conduct our business, and we may be unable to engage in favorable business activities or finance future operations and capital needs. A failure to comply with these restrictions or to maintain the financial measures and ratios contained in the debt agreements could lead to an event of default that could result in an acceleration of indebtedness. In addition, the amount and terms of any future indebtedness could:

limit our flexibility in planning for, or reacting to, changes in our business and the industries in which we operate, including limiting our ability to invest in our strategic initiatives, and consequently, place us at a competitive disadvantage;
reduce the availability of our cash flows that would otherwise be available to fund working capital, capital expenditures, acquisitions, and other general corporate purposes; and
result in higher interest expense in the event of increases in interest rates, as discussed below under the Risk Factor “Interest rate increases could affect our results of operations, cash flows, and financial position.”

Risks related to our pension benefit plans may adversely impact our results of operations and cash flows.

Pension benefits represent significant financial obligations. Because of the uncertainties involved in estimating the timing and amount of future payments and asset returns, significant estimates are required to calculate pension expense and liabilities related to our plans. We utilize the services of independent actuaries, whose models are used to facilitate these calculations. Several key assumptions are used in the actuarial models to calculate pension expense and liability amounts recorded in the consolidated financial statements. In particular, significant changes in actual investment returns on pension assets, discount rates, or legislative or regulatory changes could impact future results of operations and required pension contributions. Differences between actual pension expenses and liability amounts from these estimated expense and liabilities may adversely impact our results of operations and cash flows.

We may need to obtain additional funding to continue as a going concern; if we are unable to meet our needs for additional funding in the future, we will be required to limit, scale back, or cease operations.

Our consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2019 have been prepared assuming we will continue to operate as a going concern. Because we continue to experience net operating losses, our ability to continue as a going concern is subject to our ability to obtain profitability or successfully raise sufficient additional capital as needed, through future financings, asset sales or other strategic arrangements. Additional funds may not be available when needed, or if available, we may not be able to obtain such funds on terms acceptable to us. If adequate funds are unavailable when needed, we may not be able to continue as a going concern. We may be required to scale down or sell certain businesses or cease operations.



We face significant competition for individual projects, entire client relationships and advertising dollars in general.

Our business faces significant competition within each of our vertical markets and for all of our offerings. We offer our marketing services within a dynamic business environment characterized by rapid technological change, high turnover of client personnel who make buying decisions, client consolidations, changing client needs and preferences, continual development of competing products and services, and an evolving competitive landscape. This competition comes from numerous local, national, and international direct marketing and advertising companies, and client internal resources, against whom we compete for individual projects, entire client relationships, and marketing expenditures by clients and prospective clients. We also compete against internet (social, mobile, web-based, and email), print, broadcast, and other forms of advertising for marketing and advertising dollars in general. In addition, our ability to attract new clients and to retain existing clients may, in some cases, be limited by clients’ policies on or perceptions of conflicts of interest which may prevent us from performing similar services for competitors. Some of our clients have also sought to reduce the number of marketing vendors or use third-party procurement organizations, all of which increases pricing pressure, and may disadvantage us relative to our competitors. Our failure to improve30, 2021 about our current processes or to develop new products and services could result in the loss of our clients to current or future competitors. In addition, failure to gain market acceptance of new products and services could adversely affect our growth and financial condition.

Current and future competitors may have significantly greater financial and other resources than we do, and they may sell competing services at lower prices or at lower profit margins, resulting in pressures on our prices and margins.

The size of our competitors varies widely across vertical markets and service lines. Some of our competitors may have significantly greater financial, technical, marketing, or other resources than we do in any one or more of our market segments, or overall. As a result, our competitors may be in a position to respond more quickly than we can to new or emerging technologies, methodologies, and changes in customer requirements, or may devote greater resources than we can to the development, promotion, sale, and support of innovative products and services. Moreover, new competitors or alliances among our competitors may emerge and potentially reduce our market share, revenue, or margins. Some of our competitors also may choose to sell products or services that compete with ours at lower prices by accepting lower margins and profitability or may be able to sell products or services that compete with ours at lower prices given proprietary ownership of data, technical superiority, a broader or deeper product or experience set, or economies of scale. Price reductions or pricing pressure by our competitors could negatively impact our margins and results of operations and could also harm our ability to obtain new customers on favorable terms. Competitive pricing pressures tend to increase in difficult or uncertain economic environments, due to reduced marketing expenditures of many of our clients and prospects, and the resulting impact on the competitive business environment for marketing service providers such as our company.

We must maintain technological competitiveness, continually improve our processes, and develop and introduce new services in a timely and cost-effective manner.

We believe that our success depends on, among other things, maintaining technological competitiveness in our products, processing functionality, and software systems and services. Technology changes rapidly as makers of computer hardware, network systems, programming tools, computer and data architectures, operating systems, database technology, and mobile devices continually improve their offerings. Advances in information technology may result in changing client preferences for products and product delivery channels in our industry. The increasingly sophisticated requirements of our clients require us to continually improve our processes and provide new products and services in a timely and cost-effective manner (whether through development, license, or acquisition). Our direct mail operations are increasingly pressured by larger-scale competitors who have adopted technologies allowing them to more effectively and efficiently customize mailed marketing materials. We may be unable to successfully identify, develop, and bring new and enhanced services and products to market in a timely and cost-effective manner, such services and products may not be commercially successful, and services, products, and technologies developed by others may render our services and products noncompetitive or obsolete.



Our success depends on our ability to consistently and effectively deliver our services to our clients.

Our success depends on our ability to effectively and consistently staff and execute client engagements within the agreed upon time frame and budget. Depending on the needs of our clients, our engagements may require customization, integration, and coordination of a number of complex product and service offerings and execution across many facilities. Moreover, in some of our engagements, we rely on subcontractors and other third parties to provide some of the services to our clients, and we cannot guarantee that these third parties will effectively deliver their services, that we will be able to easily suspend work with contractors that are not performing adequately, or that we will have adequate recourse against these third parties in the event they fail to effectively deliver their services. Other contingencies and events outside of our control may also impact our ability to provide our products and services. Our failure to effectively and timely staff, coordinate, and execute our client engagements may adversely impact existing client relationships, the amount or timing of payments from our clients and our reputation in the marketplace as well as our ability to secure additional business and our resulting financial performance. In addition, our contractual arrangements with our clients and other customers may not provide us with sufficient protections against claims for lost profits or other claims for damages.

We have recently experienced, and may experience in the future, reduced demand for our products and services due to the financial condition and marketing budgets of our clients and other factors that may impact the industry verticals that we serve.

Marketing budgets are largely discretionary in nature, and as a consequence are easier to reduce in the short-term than other expenses. Our customers have in the past, and may in the future, respond to their own financial constraints (whether caused by weak economic conditions, weak industry performance or client-specific issues) by reducing their marketing spend. Customers may also be slow to restore their marketing budgets to prior levels during an economic recovery and may respond similarly to adverse economic conditions in the future. Our revenues are dependent on national, regional, and international economies and business conditions. The global outbreak of COVID-19 has resulted in a near-term uncertainly for the global economy. A long-lasting economic recession, regardless of the cause, or anemic recovery in the markets in which we operate could have material adverse effects on our business, financial position, or operating results. Similarly, industry or company-specific factors may negatively impact our clients and prospective clients, and in turn result in reduced demand for our products and services, client insolvencies, collection difficulties or bankruptcy preference actions related to payments received from our clients. We may also experience reduced demand as a result of consolidation of clients and prospective clients in the industry verticals that we serve. 

Outbreaks of contagious diseases, or other public health pandemics, such as the COVID-19 outbreak, may adversely affect the Company’s business and operations.

The outbreak of diseases, such as the COVID-19 coronavirus, has curtailed and may curtail travel to and from certain countries, or geographic regions.  Restrictions on travel to and from these countries or other regions due to additional incidences for diseases could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s business, financial position, results of operations, and cash flows. The outbreak of COVID-19 has also caused significant volatility in the global markets and has also caused many companies to slow production or find alternative means for employees to perform their work. Risks and uncertainties related to this outbreak include the evolving effect of COVID-19 on our employees, customers, suppliers, and third-party providers, including the impact of U.S. and foreign government actions taken to curtail the spread of the virus.  Other risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: the risk of customer delays, changes, cancellations or forecast inaccuracies, the lack of visibility of future business, particularly because of changing economic conditions.  Although we have developed and continue to develop plans to help mitigate the negative impact of the COVID-19 outbreak to our business, the efforts may not prevent our business from being adversely affected, and the longer the outbreak impacts supply and demand the more negative the impact it likely will have on our business, revenues and earnings, and the more limited our ability will be to try and make up for delayed or lost product development, production and sales.  The extent and nature of the coronavirus outbreak are uncertain, which makes it difficult for us to predict the complete effect it could have on our future operations.

We must effectively manage our costs to be successful. If we do not achieve our cost management objectives, our financial results could be adversely affected.

Our business plan and expectations for the future require that we effectively manage our cost structure, including our operating expenses and capital expenditures across our operations. Our management team, along with membersdirectors:

Name

Age

Andrew B. Benett

50

Evan Behrens

51

David L. Copeland

65

John H. Griffin, Jr.*

60

Alfred V. Tobia, Jr.

55

* Chairman

Members of the Board have formed a project committee focused on cost-saving initiatives as well as other restructuring efforts and has been tasked with reviewingare generally elected at each of our business lines and other operational areas to identify both one-time and recurring cost-saving opportunities. While the committee has identified over $20 million in potential annual savings, some of which we have already begun to recognize, we may not be able to recognize all identified potential savings and even if we are able to recognize the identified savings, such cost savings may be insufficient to achieve our cost management objectives. To the extent that we do not successfully manage our costs our financial results may be adversely affected.





Our financial performance has harmed our commercial reputation and relationship with customers, vendors, and other commercial parties, and may impair our ability to attract, retain and motivate employees.

Our declining financial performance has caused customers and vendors to increase scrutiny on payment and performance terms in our agreements, which may impose additional costs (or result in reduced profitability) in our operations. Clients, vendors, and partners, as well as prospective clients, vendors, and partners) may also decline to do business with us due to their concerns regarding our financial condition. Additionally, due to our liquidity constraints, we may be unable to aggressively price our services to win work in competitive bid situations. These impediments to working with clients, vendors and partners may reduce both our overall revenues and profitability, and consequently the value of our common stock.

Likewise, our declining financial performance has negatively affected employee morale and compensation. Due to financial constraints, we may have difficulty providing compensation that is sufficient to attract, retain and motivate employees, especially skilled professionals for whom sizable bonus payouts are a key element of market-driven cash compensation. Furthermore, the decline in the price of our common stock has eroded the value of our equity-based incentive programs. If we are unable to attract, retain and motivate employees despite our financial performance and within the resource constraints, it will impair our ability to effectively serve our clients, which in turn is likely to reduce both our overall revenues and profitability, and consequently the value of our common stock.

Our inability to comply with the listing requirementsmeeting 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 abilityCompany’s stockholders to raise capital.

On October 31, 2018, we disclosed that we received a notice fromserve until the NYSE that we were not in compliance with the “Market Capitalization Listing Requirement,” which requires that we maintain an average market capitalization of over $50 million (measured over a consecutive 30 trading-day period) if our stockholders’ equity is less than $50 million, as it has been (the “Market Capitalization Listing Requirement”) since 2018.

Shortly after receipt of this notice, we submitted a plan of definitive action to the NYSE to allow us to remain listed while we attempt to regain compliance with the Market Capitalization Listing Requirement. The NYSE accepted our plan in January 2019, thereby delaying any decision to delist us for up to 18 months. In order to regain compliance with the Market Capitalization Listing Requirement, we will have to maintain the required $50 million global market capitalization over a consecutive 30 trading-day period. The NYSE has been closely monitoring the implementation of our plan and our failure to achieve the initiatives and goals included in the plan will result in our being subject to a NYSE trading suspension and the initiation of procedures to delist our common stock. In addition, if our average global market capitalization over a consecutive 30 trading-day period is less than $15 million, the NYSE will promptly initiate suspension and delisting procedures and, under the NYSE’s continued listing standards, we will not have any opportunity to regain compliance and our common stock will be delisted. A delisting of our common stock could negatively impact us by, among other things, reducing the liquidity and market price of our common stock and reducing the number of investors willing to hold or acquire our common stock. A suspension or delisting could also adversely affect our relationships with our business partners and suppliers and customers’ and potential customers’ decisions to purchase our products and services, and would have a material, adverse impact on our business, operating results and financial condition. In addition, a suspension or delisting would impair our ability to raise additional capital through equity or debt financing as well as our ability to attract and retain employees by means of equity compensation.

As of March 13, 2020, we had not regained compliance with the Market Capitalization Listing Requirement and our global market capitalization has ranged between $16 million and $20 million over the last thirty trading days. As a result, the Company has been exploring options for alternative listing venues for its common stock. However, no assurance can be given that we will be able to meet the initial listing requirements of any such venue. Should the delisting occur and we are unable to list on another public exchange our common stock could be traded on the over-the-counter bulletin board, or in the so-called “pink sheets.” In the event of such trading, it is highly likely that there would be: significantly less liquidity in the trading of our common stock; decreases in institutional and other investor demand for our common stock, coverage by securities analysts, market making activity and information available concerning trading prices and volume; and fewer broker-dealers willing to execute trades in our common stock. The occurrence of any of these events could result in a further decline in the market price of our common stock and may impair our ability to retain and attract employees and members of management.



Privacy, information security and other regulatory requirements may prevent or impair our ability to offer our products and services.

We are subject to and affected by numerous laws, regulations, and industry standards that regulate direct marketing activities, including those that address privacy, data protection, information security, and marketing communications. Please refer to the section above entitled “Item 1. Business - Government Regulation” for additional information regarding some of these regulations.

As a result of increasing public awareness and interest in privacy rights, data protection and access, information security, environmental protection, and other concerns, national and local governments and industry organizations regularly consider and adopt new laws, rules, regulations, and guidelines that restrict or regulate marketing communications, services, and products. Examples include data encryption standards, data breach notification requirements, registration/licensing requirements (often with fees), consumer choice, notice, and consent restrictions and penalties for infractions, among others. In addition, on May 25, 2018 the European General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) took effect. The GDPR applies to all products and services we provide in the European Union (the “EU”). GDPR includes operational requirements for companies that receive or process personal data of residentsnext annual meeting of the EU. For example, we may be required to implement measures to change or limit (by age, use or geography) our service offerings. We may also be required to obtain consent and/or offer new controls to existing and new users in the EU before processing data for certain aspects of our services.Company’s stockholders. In addition, the GDPR includes significant penalties for non-compliance and, over the past 12 months, the European Union has levied some significant fines on companies for violation of the GDPR. We are also subject to the California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”), which took effect on January 1, 2020. The CCPA requires businesses collecting information about California consumers to disclose what personal information is collected about a consumer and the purposes for which that personal information is used, disclose what personal information is sold or shared for a business purpose, and to whom, and delete information or stop selling such information upon request (subject to exceptions). We anticipate that additional restrictions and regulations will continue to be proposed and adopted in the future. The Philippines has adopted the Data Privacy Act of 2012 (Republic Act 10173) which mirrors most important aspects of the GDPR and is likely to have a similar effect on our operations in and involving the Philippines.

Our business may also be affected by the impact of these restrictions and regulations on our clients and their marketing activities. In addition, as we acquire new capabilities and deploy new technologies to execute our strategy, we may be exposed to additional regulation. Current and future restrictions and regulations could increase compliance requirements and costs, and restrict or prevent the collection, management, aggregation, transfer, use or dissemination of information (especially with respect to personal information), or change the requirements so as to require other changes to our business or our clients' businesses. Additional restrictions and regulations may limit or prohibit current practices regarding marketing communications and information quality solutions. For example, multiple states have implemented opt out legislation for telephone marketing, requiring the creation of statewide do-not call registries. Such legislation could impact our business and the businesses of our clients and of their customers. In addition, continued public interest in privacy rights, data protection and access, and information security may result in the adoption of further industry guidelines that could impact our direct marketing activities and business practices.

We cannot predict the scope of any new laws, rules, regulations, or industry guidelines or how courts or agencies may interpret current ones. Additionally, enforcement priorities by governmental authorities will change over time, which may impact our business. Understanding the laws, rules, regulations, and guidelines applicable to specific client multichannel engagements and across many jurisdictions poses a significant challenge, as such laws, rules, regulations, and guidelines are often inconsistent or conflicting, and are sometimes at odds with client objectives. Our failure to properly comply with these regulatory requirements and client needs may materially and adversely affect our business. General compliance with privacy, data protection, and information security obligations is costly and time-consuming, and we may encounter difficulties, delays, or significant expensesJune 2020 in connection with our compliance, or becauseits on-going review of our clients’ needthe Company's corporate governance structure, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee of the Board (the “Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee“) recommended that the Board decrease its size to comply. We may be exposedbetter reflect the size of the company and allow it to significant penalties, liabilities, reputational harm, and lossact more nimbly in an ever-changing environment.  Upon such recommendation, at the conclusion of business in the event that we fail2020 annual meeting, the Board determined to comply. We could suffer a material adverse impact on our business duedecrease its size from seven (7) to the enactment or enforcement of legislation or industry regulations affecting us and/or our clients, the issuance of judicial or governmental interpretations, changed enforcement priorities of governmental agencies, or a change in behavior arising from public concern over privacy, data protection, and information security issues.

Consumer perceptions regarding the privacy and security of their data may prevent or impair our ability to offer our products and services.

Various local, national, and international regulations, as well as industry standards, give consumers varying degrees of control as to how personal data is collected, used, and shared for marketing purposes. If, due to privacy, security, or other concerns, consumers exercise their ability to prevent or limit such data collection, use, or sharing, it may impair our ability to provide marketing to those consumers and limit our clients’ demand for our services. Additionally, privacy and security concerns may limit consumers’ willingness to voluntarily provide data to our clients or marketing companies. Some of our services depend on voluntarily provided data and therefore may be impaired without such data.



If we do not prevent security breaches and other interruptions to our infrastructure, we may be exposed to lawsuits, lose customers, suffer harm to our reputation, and incur additional costs.

The services we offer involve the transmission of large amounts of sensitive and proprietary information over public communications networks, as wellfive (5) directors.

Andrew B. Benett was appointed as the processingCompany’s Executive Chairman and storageChief Executive Officer in November of confidential customer information. Unauthorized access, remnant data exposure, computer viruses, denial2019 and served as Executive Chairman until April 2021.  Mr. Benett continues to serve as Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Benett has over 20 years of service attacks, accidents, employee error or malfeasance, “social engineering”experience in effecting business transformation within marketing services, consulting and “phishing” attacks, intentional misconduct by computer “hackers”corporate organizations. Prior to his appointment, Mr. Benett served as Global Chief Commercial Officer of Bloomberg Media from June of 2015 to September 2019, where his responsibilities included advertising sales, marketing services, events, consulting, integrated franchises, and other disruptions can occur,innovation. Previously, Mr. Benett spent 13 years working for Havas Creative Group, a leading marketing communications network. While working for Havas Creative Group, Mr. Benett served as Global Chief Strategy Officer of Euro RSCG Worldwide from 2004 to 2010, until he was promoted to Global Chief Executive Officer of Arnold Worldwide in 2010, and infrastructure gaps, hardwareto global CEO of Havas Creative Group in 2013. Prior to joining Euro RSCG Worldwide, Mr. Benett was EVP, Executive Director, Strategy and software vulnerabilities, inadequate or missing security controls, and exposed or unprotected customer data can exist that (i) interfere with the delivery of services to our customers, (ii) impede our customers' ability to do business, or (iii) compromise the security of our or our customers' systems and data, which exposes information to unauthorized third parties. We are a target of cyber-attacks of varying degrees on a regular basis. Although we maintain insurance which may cover some types of damages incurred by damage to, breaches of, or problems with, our information and telecommunications systems, such insurance is limited and expensive, and may not be sufficient to offset the costs of such damages or cover certain events, and therefore such damages may materially harm our business.


Our reputation and business results may be adversely impacted if we, or subcontractors upon whom we rely, do not effectively protect sensitive personal information of our clients and our clients’ customers.

Current privacy and data security laws and industry standards impact the mannerInnovation, at FutureBrand. He began his advertising career at McCann-Erickson in which we capture, handle, analyze, and disseminate customer and prospect data as part of our client engagements. In many instances, our client contracts also mandate privacy and security practices. If we fail to effectively protect and control information, especially sensitive personal information (such as personal health information, social security numbers, or credit card numbers) of our clients and their customers or prospects in accordance with these requirements, we may incur significant expense, suffer reputational harm, loss of business, and, in certain cases, be subjected to regulatory or governmental sanctions or litigation. These risks may be increased due to our reliance on subcontractors and other third parties in providing a portion of our overall services in certain engagements. We cannot guarantee that these third parties will effectively protect and handle sensitive personal information or other confidential information, or that we will have adequate recourse against these third parties in the event such third parties fail to adequately protect and handle such sensitive or confidential information.

If our facilities are damaged, or if we are unable to access and use our facilities, our business and results of operations will be adversely affected.

Our operations relystrategic planning. Mr. Benett sits on the abilityBoard of our employees to workDirectors of Viad Corp (NYSE: VVI) and is a Henry Crown Fellow at specially equipped facilities to perform services for our clients. Although we have some excess capacity and redundancy, we do not have sufficient excess capacity or redundancy (in equipment, facilities, or personnel) to maintain service and operational levels for extended periods if we are unable to use one of our major facilities. Outsourcing these processes to facilities not owned by us is notthe Aspen Institute. Mr. Benett received his B.F.A. in art history with a viable option. Should we lose access to a facility for any reason, our service levels are likely to decline or be suspended, clients would go without service or secure replacement servicesminor in psychology from a competitor. Georgetown University.

As consequence of such an event, we would suffer a reduction in revenues and harm to (and loss of) client relationships.


Significant system disruptions, loss of data center capacity or interruption of telecommunication links could adversely affect our business and results of operations.

Our business is heavily dependent upon data centers and telecommunications infrastructures, which are essential to both our call center services and our database services (which require that we efficiently and effectively create, access, manipulate, and maintain large and complex databases). In addition to the third-party data centers we use, we also operate several of our own data centers to support both our own and our clients' needs in this regard, as well as those of some of our clients. Our ability to protect our operations against damage or interruption from fire, flood, tornadoes, power loss, telecommunications or equipment failure, or other disasters and events beyond our control is critical to our continued success. Likewise, as we increase our use of third-party data centers, it is critical that the vendors providing that service adequately protect their data centers from the same risks. Our services are very dependent on links to telecommunication providers. We believe we have taken reasonable precautions to protect our data centers and telecommunication links from events that could interrupt our operations. Any damage to the data centers we use or any failure of our telecommunications links could materially adversely affect our ability to continue services to our clients, which could result in loss of revenues, profitability and client confidence, and may adversely impact our ability to attract new clients and force us to expend significant company resources to repair the damage. 

If our new leaders are unsuccessful, or if we continue to lose key management and are unable to attract and retain the talent required for our business, our operating results could suffer.

Over the past three years we have replaced many of our leaders (including our Chief Executive Officer, President, Chairman, Chief Marketing Officer,Mr. Benett provides valuable insight to the Board on our day-to-day operations. In addition, Mr. Benett's significant experience with marketing services and Chief Financial Officer)consulting organizations, and we have eliminated or consolidated several leadership positions (including Chief


Technology Officer,specifically his experience in effecting transformations of such organizations, provide the Board with valuable insight as the Company effects its various restructuring and Executivereorganization plans to return to profitability.  

Evan Behrens has served as a director of Harte Hanks since March 2019. Mr. Behrens currently serves on the board of Hornbeck Offshore and he is also the managing member of Behrens Investment Group. Previously, Mr. Behrens served as Senior Vice President of Sales), resultingBusiness Development at SEACOR Holdings from January 2008 to May 2017, where he served as the Chairman of the Board of Trailer Bridge Inc. and was the Managing Member of Illinois Corn Processors Inc. Prior to joining SEACOR Holdings, Mr. Behrens served as a partner at Level Global Investors and, prior to that, founded and managed B Capital Advisors (formerly Behrens Rubinoff Capital Partners). Mr. Behrens has previously worked as a Senior Portfolio Manager at SAC Capital managing both equity and credit portfolios and contributed in a much smaller leadership team. Ifresearch capacity at Odyssey Partners/Ulysses Management. Mr. Behrens currently serves on the board of directors of Oppenheimer Holdings Inc. Previously, Mr. Behrens served as a board member of Continental Insurance Group, Ltd, Penford Corporation, Global Marine Systems Limited, Stemline Therapeutics and Sidewinder Drilling LLC. Mr. Behrens obtained an A.B. degree in Political Science from the University of Chicago.

We believe Mr. Behrens’s qualifications for our new leaders failBoard include his professional experience in their newinvestments and additional rolesbusiness development and responsibilities (and more generally if we are unable to attract additional leaders withhis extensive experience as a director on the necessary skills to manage our business) our businessboards of both public and private companies.

David L. Copeland  has served as a director of Harte Hanks since 1996.  He has been employed by SIPCO, Inc., the management and investment company for the Andrew B. Shelton family, since 1980, and currently serves as its operating results may suffer. Further, our prospects depend in large part upon our ability to attract, train,President.  Since 1998, he has served as a director of First Financial Bankshares, Inc., a financial holding company.  Currently, he serves on the executive and retain experienced technical, client services, sales, consulting, marketing,nominating committees and management personnel. While the demand for personnel is also dependentthe audit committee chairman of First Financial Bankshares.

We believe that Mr. Copeland’s qualifications for our Board include his experience serving on employment levels, competitive factors,various committees for a publicly traded financial holding company.  We also believe he offers us extensive knowledge of financial instruments, financial and general economic conditions,trends and accounting expertise from serving as president of SIPCO, Inc. and on the audit committee of First Financial Bankshares.  Mr. Copeland, a certified public accountant and a chartered financial analyst, would qualify as a financial expert for our recent business performance may diminish our attractivenessaudit committee.

John H. Jack Griffin, Jr. has served as an employer. The loss or prolonged absencea director of Harte Hanks since July 2018.  In April 2021, he was appointed as the Company’s Chairman of the Board. From April to December of 2019, he served as Vice Chairman and Chairman of the Operations Committee of Harte Hanks.  Prior to that, he was a member of the Harte Hanks Office of the Chief Executive Officer (the “Office of the CEO”) from August 2018 to January 2019. Mr. Griffin is currently the Chairman of Dennis Publishing in New York and London, a position he has held since October 2018.  He served as Managing Director at Oaklins DeSilva+Phillips, an advisory firm in New York City focused on mid-market M&A transactions, valuations and restructurings for firms in media, marketing services, information, education and health care communications from 2016-2018. Previously, as CEO and director of these individuals could haveTribune Publishing Company (from 2014-2016), Mr. Griffin led the spin-off of Tribune Publishing Company’s Newspaper Division into a material adverse effect on our business, financial position, or operating results.


separate publicly traded company. Before Tribune, Mr. Griffin founded and served as CEO of Empirical Media LLC, a consulting firm that assisted legacy media companies with digital transition, restructuring and strategic planning, from 2011-2014. Mr. Griffin was previously CEO of Time Inc. and spent a dozen years at Meredith Corporation in senior executive capacities.

We could fail to adequately protect our intellectual property rights and may face claims for intellectual property infringement.


Our ability to compete effectively depends in part on the protection of our technology, products, services, and brands through intellectual property right protections, including copyrights, database rights, trade secrets, trademarks, as well as through domain name registrations, and enforcement procedures. The extent to which such rights can be protected and enforced varies by jurisdiction, and capabilities we procure through acquisitions may have less protection than would be desirable for the use or scale we intend or need. Litigation involving patents and other intellectual property rights has become far more common and expensive in recent years, and we face the risk of additional litigation relating to our use or future use of intellectual property rights of third parties.

Despite our efforts to protect our intellectual property, unauthorized parties may attempt to copy or otherwise obtain and use our proprietary information and technology. Monitoring unauthorized use of our intellectual property is difficult, and unauthorized use of our intellectual property may occur. We cannot be certainbelieve that trademark registrations will be issued, nor can we be certain that any issued trademark registrations will give us adequate protection from competing products. For example, others may develop competing technologies or databases on their own. Moreover, there is no assurance that our confidentiality agreements with our employees or third parties will be sufficient to protect our intellectual property and proprietary information.
Third-party infringement claims and any related litigation against us could subject us to liability for damages, significantly increase our costs, restrict us from using and providing our technologies, products or services or operating our business generally, or require changes to be made to our technologies, products, and services. We may also be subject to such infringement claims against us by third parties and may incur substantial costs and devote significant management resources in responding to such claims, as we have in the recent past. We have been, and continue to be, obligated under some agreements to indemnify our clients as a result of claims that we infringe on the proprietary rights of third parties. These costs and distractions could cause our business to suffer. In addition, if any party asserts an infringement claim, we may need to obtain licenses to the disputed intellectual property. We cannot assure you, however, that we will be able to obtain these licenses on commercially reasonable terms or that we will be able to obtain any licenses at all. The failure to obtain necessary licenses or other rights may have an adverse effect on our ability to provide our products and services.

Breaches of security, or the perception that e-commerce is not secure, could severely harm our business and reputation.

Business-to-business and business-to-consumer electronic commerce requires the secure transmission of confidential information over public networks. Some of our products and services are accessed through or are otherwise dependent on the internet. Security breaches in connection with the delivery of our products and services, or well-publicized security breaches that may affect us or our industry (such as database intrusion) could be severely detrimental to our business, operating results, and financial condition. We cannot be certain that advances in criminal capabilities, cryptography, or other fields will not compromise or breach the technology protecting the information systems that deliver our products, services, and proprietary database information.

Datasuppliers could withdraw data that we rely onMr. Griffin’s qualifications for our productsBoard include his proven success as both an operator and services.

We purchase or license muchadvisor to companies undergoing restructuring and reengineering solutions, along with his demonstrated record of the data we use for ourselvesachieving and for our clients. There could be a material adverse impact on our business if owners of the data we use were to curtail access to the data or materially restrict the authorized uses of their data. Data providers could withdraw their data if there is a competitive reason to do so, if there is pressure from the consumer community or if additional regulations are adopted restricting the use of the data. We also rely upon data from other external sources to maintain our proprietary and non-proprietary databases, including data received from customers and various governmentexceeding financial targets in demanding private and public record sources. If a substantial number of data providers or other key data sources were to withdraw or restrict their data, if we were to lose access to data due to government regulation, or if the collection of data becomes uneconomical, our ability to provide products and services to our clients could be materially and adversely affected, which could result in decreased revenues, net income, and earnings per share.



We may be unable to make dispositions of assets on favorable terms, or at all.

In 2018, we sold our 3Q Digital business (which we purchased in 2015 for $30 million in cash plus an earn-out of up to $35 million) for $5 million in cash and assignment of the earn-out obligation. In the future, we may determine to divest certain assets or businesses consistent with our corporate strategy. The price we obtain for such assets or businesses will be driven by performance of those businesses and the current market demand for such assets, and we may not be able to realize a profit upon sale. If we are unable to make dispositions in a timely manner or at profitable price when required to do so, our business, net income, and earnings per share could be materially and adversely affected.

We are vulnerable to increases in postal rates and disruptions in postal services.

Our services depend on the USPS and other commercial delivery services to deliver products. Standard postage rates have increased in recent years (most recently in January 2020) and may continue to do so at frequent and unpredictable intervals. Postage rates influence the demand for our services even though the cost of mailings is typically borne by our clients (and is not directly reflected in our revenues or expenses) because clients tend to reduce other elements of marketing spending to offset increased postage costs. Accordingly, future postal increases or disruptions in the operations of the USPS may have an adverse impact on us.

company environments. In addition, the USPSexperience Mr. Griffin gained as a member of the Office of the CEO enables him to provide the Board with additional insight into the Company’s operations, strategic initiatives and personnel.

Alfred V. Tobia, Jr. has had significantserved as a director of Harte Hanks since July 2017.  He is the President and Chief Investment Officer of Acacia Research Corp (NASDAQ: ACTG)  since September 2019 and a director since June 2018.  From March 2000 – September 2019, Mr. Tobia was a co-founder, general partner and portfolio manager for Sidus Investment Management, LLC and its affiliates, in which capacity he oversaw the management of the Sidus equity funds and provided analysis to the firm’s credit fund. From 1996 to 2000 Mr. Tobia was a senior managing director and supervisory analyst within the data networking and telecommunication equipment sectors at Banc of America Securities (formerly NationsBanc Montgomery Securities).  From 1992 to 1996, he was a senior analyst at Wertheim Schroeder & Co., focusing on PC and entertainment software, data networking and special situations. Prior to that, Mr. Tobia was an analyst at Mabon Nugent & Co. (1986 to 1992), covering various sectors of technology.

Mr. Tobia has extensive financial experience in both public and private companies and executive experience through the management of a small-cap investment fund and a public company. Mr. Tobia's background and insights provide valuable expertise in corporate finance, strategic planning, and capital and credit markets. We believe Mr. Tobia’s qualifications for our Board include his extensive financial, executive and management experience.

1

Officers

The following persons are our current executive officers and hold the positions set forth below:

Name

Age

Principal Position

Andrew B. Benett

50

Chief Executive Officer

Laurilee Kearnes

49

Chief Financial Officer

Brian Linscott

48

Chief Operating Officer

For biographical information about Andrew B. Benett, our Chief Executive Officer, see above under “Directors” included in Part III, Item 10 of this Annual Report. 

Laurilee Kearnes has served as the Company’s Chief Financial Officer since November 15, 2019.  Ms. Kearnes previously served as the Company’s Principal Accounting Officer and Vice President, Finance and Controller from August 2018 to November of 2019. Ms. Kearnes has over 20 years of experience in accounting and finance roles, including the last 17 years with Harte Hanks in various positions including Group Controller, VP Finance, and Group VP Finance, Accounting Shared Services.  Ms. Kearnes is currently serving on the OTCQX U.S. Advisory Council.  Ms. Kearnes started her career in public accounting and held accounting positions with Nutraceutical Corp. and Brooks Automation prior to joining the Company. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Accounting and a Master of Accounting from Utah State University.

Brian Linscott was appointed as our Chief Operating Officer effective January 2020. Mr. Linscotthas over two decades of experience advising clients and C-level executives on operational improvements, growth strategies, acquisitions, corporate development and capital structure across a variety of industries including media, manufacturing, and transportation. From 2015 to 2019, he served as a Partner at BR Advisors where he led the operational improvement of radio and printing companies, developed new partnerships, and facilitated asset transactions. He also serves as Operating Partner at Traverse Pointe Partners since 2014, where he advises a private equity fund on financial and operational challenges recently. In reaction,assessment of equity investments and developed post-acquisition operational strategies to create stockholder value. From 2013 to 2015, Brian served as a Managing Director at Huron Consulting Group where he managed client relationships, oversaw consulting teams, and developed new business opportunities in Huron’s Business Advisory practice.  From 2009 to 2012, Brian served as Chief Financial Officer / Senior Vice President at Sun Times Media, LLC where he created and executed a restructuring plan that led to substantial EBITDA growth, cash flow improvement, and a successful sale of the USPS has proposed many changescompany.  Mr. Linscott received his B.S. in its services, such as delivery frequency and facility access. These changes, together with othersFinance from the University of Illinois, Urbana.

Corporate Governance

We believe that may be adopted, individually or in combination with other market factors, could materially and negatively affectstrong corporate governance helps to ensure that our costs and ability to meet our clients’ expectations.


We are vulnerable to increases in paper prices.

Price of print materials are subject to fluctuations. Increased paper costs could cause our customers to reduce spending on other marketing programs, or to shift to formats, sizes, or media which may be less profitable for us, in each case potentially materially affecting our revenues and profits.

We are unlikely to declare cash dividends or repurchase our shares.

Although our board of directors has in the past authorized the payment of quarterly cash dividends on our common stock, we announced in 2016 that we did not plan to declare any further dividendscompany is managed for the foreseeable future. In addition, althoughlong-term benefit of our board has authorized stock purchase programs (and we repurchased shares as recently as 2015), we are unlikelystockholders. We continuously review our corporate governance policies and practices to make any repurchases in the near term. Decisions to pay dividends on our common stock or to repurchase our common stock will be based upon periodic determinations by our board that such dividends or repurchases are both inensure compliance with all applicable laws and agreementsregulations (securities laws and others) and will contemplate any changes to what is considered best practices for corporate governance even if such changes are not required by relevant laws and regulations.  This review is part of our continuing effort to enhance our corporate governance and to communicate our governance policies to stockholders and other interested parties.  In addition, while we are not currently listed on a national securities exchange, we strive to meet the corporate governance standards applicable to non-controlled companies listed on the NYSE, as we believe such standards establish a baseline for best practices in the area of corporate governance. 

You can access and print, free of charge, the charters of our Audit Committee, Compensation Committee and Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, as well as our Corporate Governance Principles, Business Conduct Policy, Code of Ethics and certain other policies and procedures on our website at www.hartehanks.com under the “Corporate Governance” section of our “Investors” tab.  The information on our website is not incorporated by reference and is not part of this Annual Report. Additionally, stockholders can request copies of any of these documents free of charge by writing to the following address:

Harte Hanks, Inc. (Attention: Secretary)

2800 Wells Branch Parkway

Austin, Texas 78728

From time to time, these governance documents may be revised in response to changing regulatory requirements, our evaluation of evolving best practices and industry norms and input from our stockholders and other interested parties. We encourage you to check our website periodically for the most recent versions.

Board of Directors and Board Committees

Our business and affairs are managed under the direction of the Board. The Company's By-laws provide that the Board will consist of the number of directors designated by the Board from time-to-time and, in the best interestabsence of such designation, the Board will consist of seven (7) directors.  Currently, the Board has five (5) directors, as the Board determined to decrease that number from seven (7) immediately after last year's annual meeting.

The Board elects the principal executive officer and other corporate officers, acts as an advisor to and resource for management, and monitors management’s performance. The Board, with the assistance of the Compensation Committee, also assists in planning for the succession of the principal executive officer and certain other key positions. In addition, the Board oversees the conduct of our stockholders after consideringbusiness and strategic plans to evaluate whether the business is being properly managed, and reviews and approves our financial conditionobjectives and results of operations,major corporate plans and actions. Through the price of our common stock, credit conditions,Audit Committee, the Board reviews and such other factors as are deemed relevant by our board. The failure to pay a cash dividend or repurchase stock could adversely affect the market price of our common stock.


Interestrate increases could affect our results of operations, cash flows and financial position.

Interest rate fluctuations in Europe and the U.S. can affect the amount of interest we pay related to our debt and the amount we earn on cash equivalents. Borrowings under our Texas Capital Bank credit facility bear interest at variable rates based upon the prime rate or the London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”). Our results of operations, cash flows, and financial position could be materially or adversely affected byapproves significant increases in interest rates. We also have exposure to interest rate fluctuationschanges in the U.S., specifically money market, commercial paper,appropriate auditing and overnight time deposit rates, as these affect our earnings on excess cash. Even with the offsetting increase in earnings on excess cash in the eventaccounting principles and practice and provides oversight of an interest rate increase, we cannot be assured that future interest rate increases will not have a material adverse impact on our business, financial position, or operating results.

In July 2017, the United Kingdom's Financial Conduct Authority, which regulates LIBOR, announced that, after 2021, it will stop compelling banks to submit rates for the calculation of LIBOR. Though the transition to an alternative rate is not expected to have a material impact on the Company's earnings, the transition to an alternative rate may cause interest rates, revenue,internal and expenses on financial instruments tied to LIBOR, such as our Texas Capital Bank credit facility, to be adversely affected.



We are subject to risks associated with operations outside the U.S.

Harte Hanks conducts business outside of the U.S. During 2019, approximately 16.3% of our revenues were derived from operations outside the U.S., primarily Europe and Asia. We may expand our international operations in the future as part of our growth strategy. Accordingly, our future operating results could be negatively affected by a variety of factors, some of which are beyond our control, including:

changes in local, national, and international legal requirements or policies resulting in burdensome government controls, tariffs, restrictions, embargoes, or export license requirements;
higher rates of inflation;
the potential for nationalization of enterprises;
less favorable labor laws that may increase employment costs and decrease workforce flexibility;
potentially adverse tax treatment;
less favorable foreign intellectual property laws that would make it more difficult to protect our intellectual property from misappropriation;
more onerous or differing data privacy and security requirements or other marketing regulations;
longer payment cycles;
social, economic, and political instability;
the differing costs and difficulties of managing international operations;
modifications to international trade policy, including changes to or repeal of the North American Free Trade Agreement or the imposition of increased or new tariffs, quotas or trade barriers on key commodities; and
geopolitical risk and adverse market conditions caused by changes in national or regional economic or political conditions (which may impact relative interest rates and the availability, cost, and terms of mortgage funds), including with regard to Brexit.
In addition, exchange rate fluctuations may have an impact on our future costs or on future cash flows from foreign investments. We have 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. The various risks that are inherent in doing business in the U.S. are also generally applicable to doing business anywhere else and may be exacerbated by the difficulty of doing business in numerous sovereign jurisdictions due to differences in culture, laws, and regulations.

If we fail to establish and maintain proper and effective internal control over financial reporting, our operating results and our ability to operate our business could be harmed.

Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 requires that we establish and maintain internal control overexternal audit processes, financial reporting and we are also required to establish disclosure controlsinternal controls.

Our Board of Directors has established an Audit Committee, a Compensation Committee and procedures under applicable SEC rules. An effective internal control environment is necessary to enable us to produce reliable financial reportsNominating and is an important component of our efforts to prevent and detect financial reporting errors and fraud. Management is required to provide an annual assessment on the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting and our independent registered public accounting firm is also required to attest to the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting. Our and our auditor's testing may reveal significant deficiencies in our internal control over financial reporting that are deemed to be material weaknesses and render our internal control over financial reporting ineffective. In the past these assessments and similar reviews have led to the discovery of material weaknesses, all ofCorporate Governance Committee, which have the composition and responsibilities described below. Each committee operates under a charter that has been remediated. However, no assurance can be given that we won't discover material weaknesses in the future. We have incurred and we expect to continue to incur substantial accounting and auditing expense and expend significant management time in complying with the requirements of Section 404.


While an effective internal control environment is necessary to enable us to produce reliable financial reports and is an important component of our efforts to prevent and detect financial reporting errors and fraud, disclosure controls and internal control over financial reporting are generally not capable of preventing or detecting all financial reporting errors and all fraud. A control system, no matter how well-designed and operated, is designed to reduce rather than eliminate the risk of material misstatements in our financial statements. There are inherent limitations on the effectiveness of internal controls, including collusion, management override and failure in human judgment. A control system can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance of achieving the desired control objectives and the design of a control system must reflect the fact that resource constraints exist.
If we are not able to comply with the requirements of Section 404, or if we or our independent registered public accounting firm identify deficiencies in our internal control over financial reporting that are deemed to be material weaknesses (i) we could fail to


meet our financial reporting obligations; (ii) our reputation may be adversely affected and our business and operating results could be harmed; (iii) the market price of our stock could decline; and (iv)e could be subject to litigation and/or investigations or sanctionsapproved by the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), the New York Stock Exchange or other regulatory authorities.

Fluctuation in ourrevenueand operating results and other factors may impact the volatilityBoard of our stock price.

The price at which our common stock has traded in recent years has fluctuated greatly and has declined significantly. Our common stock price may continue to be volatile due to a number of factors including the following (some of which are beyond our control):

variations in our operating results from period to period and variations between our actual operating results and the expectations of securities analysts, investors, and the financial community;
unanticipated developments with client engagements or client demand, such as variations in the size, budget, or progress toward the completion of engagements, variability in the market demand for our services, client consolidations, and the unanticipated termination of several major client engagements;
announcements of developments affecting our businesses;
competition and the operating results of our competitors;
the overall strength of the economies of the markets we serve and general market volatility; and
other factors discussed elsewhere in this Item 1A, “Risk Factors.”

Because of these and other factors, investors in our common stock may not be able to resell their shares at or above their original purchase price.

Our certificate of incorporation and bylaws contain anti-takeover protections that may discourage or prevent strategic transactions, including a takeover of our company, even if such a transaction would be beneficial to our stockholders.

Provisions contained in our certificate of incorporation and bylaws, in conjunction with provisions of the Delaware General Corporation Law, could delay or prevent a third party from entering into a strategic transaction with us, even if such a transaction would benefit our stockholders. For example, our certificate of incorporation and bylaws provide for a staggered board of directors, do not allow written consents by stockholders, and have strict advance notice and disclosure requirements for nominees and stockholder proposals.


ITEM 1B.     UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

None.

ITEM 2.     PROPERTIES
Our business is conducted in facilities worldwide containing aggregate space of approximately 1.3 million squares.  All facilities are held under leases, which expire at dates through 2025. See “Item 1 - Business - Facilities”.

ITEM 3.     LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

Information regarding legal proceedings is set forth in Note L, Litigation and Contingencies, of the “Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements” and is incorporated herein by reference.

ITEM 4.     MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

Not applicable.

PART II



ITEM 5.     MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES
Common Stock

Directors.

Director Independence

Our common stock is listed on the NYSEOTCQX.  As required under the symbol HHS. Aslisting standards of January 31, 2020, therethe OTCQX, at least two members of the Board must qualify as “independent.”  Our Board has affirmatively determined that the following three directors are approximately 1,440 common stockholders of record. The last reported share price of our common stock on March 18, 2020 was $2.13.


Dividend Policy

The Company currently does not intend on paying any dividends forindependent within the foreseeable future. Any payment of future dividends will be at the discretion of Harte Hanke’s Board of Directors and will depend upon, among other factors, the Company’s earnings, financial condition, current and anticipated capital requirements, plans for expansion, level of indebtedness and contractual restrictions, including the provisionsmeaning of the Company’s corporate governance guidelines, as well as those that are applicable to companies with shares listed on the NYSE: Messrs. Behrens, Griffin, and Tobia.

As part of the Board’s review of the independence of board members, questionnaires are used on an annual basis (or when a new director is added) to gather input to assist the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee and the Board in their determinations of the independence of the non-employee directors. Based on the foregoing and on such other then-existing indebtedness.due consideration and diligence as it deemed appropriate, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee presented its 2020 findings to the Board on the independence of each of its non-employee directors, in each case in accordance with the Company's corporate governance guidelines and applicable federal securities laws. The paymentBoard determined that, other than in their capacity as directors, none of future cash dividends,Messrs. Behrens, Griffin, and Tobia had a material relationship with Harte Hanks, either directly or as a partner, stockholder or officer of an organization that has a relationship with Harte Hanks. The Board further determined that (i) each of Messrs. Behrens, Griffin, and Tobia is otherwise independent under rules that would be applicable to companies listed on the NYSE, the Audit Committee, the Compensation Committee and the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee and (ii) each of Messrs. Behrens, Griffin, and Tobia satisfied the additional audit committee independence standards under Rule 10A-3 of the SEC.

When assessing the materiality of a director’s relationship with us, if any, the Board considers all known relevant facts and circumstances, not merely from the director’s standpoint, but from that of the persons or organizations with which the director has an affiliation, the frequency or regularity of the services, whether the services are being carried out at arm’s length in the ordinary course of business and whether the services are being provided substantially on the same terms to us as those prevailing at the time from unrelated parties for comparable transactions. Material relationships can include commercial, banking, industrial, consulting, legal, accounting, charitable and familial relationships.

2

Majority Voting Provisions of the Company's Bylaws

On July 17, 2019, the Board adopted Amendment No. 2 (the “Amendment”) to the Fifth Amended and Restated Bylaws of the Company. The Amendment amends Article I, Section 8 of the Bylaws to provide for the resignation of any director who fails to receive a majority of votes cast in favor of his or her election at an annual meeting of the stockholders (assuming that the election is uncontested) (the “Majority Voting Provision”). Under the Majority Voting Provision, each nominee who is a current director is required to submit an irrevocable resignation, which resignation would be made only from assets legally available.



Issuer Purchasesbecome effective upon (1) that person not receiving a majority of Equity Securities

the votes cast in favor of his or her election in an uncontested election and (2) acceptance by the Board of that resignation in accordance with the policies and procedures adopted by the Board for such purpose. The Board, acting on the recommendation of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, is required to determine whether or not to accept the resignation not later than 90 days following table containscertification of the stockholder vote, and the Board is required to accept the resignation absent a determination that a compelling reason exists for concluding that it is in the best interests of the Company for the person in question to remain as a director.

In connection with the adoption of the Amendment, the Board also adopted revisions to the Company’s Corporate Governance Principles and Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee Charter to implement the Majority Voting Provision and set forth the procedures governing the resignation of directors who do not receive a majority of the votes cast in an uncontested election.

Audit Committee

We have a separately designated standing Audit Committee established in accordance with Section 3(a)(58)(A) of the Exchange Act.  From January 1, 2020 to May 13, 2020, the Audit Committee was composed of Melvin L. Keating, Maureen E. O’Connell and Evan Behrens.  Mr. Keating was the Audit Committee Chair and he was considered an “audit committee financial expert” during this period as currently defined under the SEC and NYSE rules, and each other member of the committee is financially literate under the NYSE standards.

On May 14, 2020, in connection with the decision to decrease the size of the board, the Company re-designated the membership of all board committees. From May 14, 2020 to July 22, 2020, the Audit Committee was comprised of Maureen E. O’Connell, Evan Behrens and John H. Griffin, Jr.  Ms. O’Connell served as the Audit Committee Chair and she was considered an “audit committee financial expert,” as currently defined under the SEC and NYSE rules during this period.

Following July 23, 2020, the Audit Committee was comprised of Evan Behrens, John H. Griffin, Jr. and Alfred V. Tobia, Jr., all of whom continue to serve on the committee.  Mr. Behrens was the Audit Committee Chair through March 2021.  Mr. Griffin is presently the Audit Committee Chair and he is considered an “audit committee financial expert,” as currently defined under the SEC and NYSE rules.

Our Board has determined that all the Audit Committee members are independent within the meaning of the applicable SEC rules and the listing standards of the NYSE as such requirements apply to members of audit committees.

The primary function of the Audit Committee is to assist the Board in fulfilling its oversight of (1) the integrity of our financial statements, including the financial reporting process and systems of internal controls regarding finance, accounting, and legal compliance, (2) the qualifications and independence of our independent auditors, (3) the performance of our internal audit function and independent auditors, and (4) our compliance with legal and regulatory requirements.

The Audit Committee’s role is one of oversight. Management is responsible for preparing the Company’s financial statements and the independent registered public accounting firm is responsible for auditing those financial statements. Management, including the internal audit staff, or outside provider of such services, and the independent registered public accounting firm have more time, knowledge and detailed information about the Company than do Audit Committee members. Consequently, in carrying out its oversight responsibilities, the Audit Committee will not provide any expert or special assurance as to the Company’s financial statements or any professional certification as to the independent registered public accounting firm’s work.

Despite no longer being listed on the NYSE, the Board has determined that (x) all members of the Audit Committee should meet the standards required for audit committee membership on the Board of an NYSE listed company as it believes those standards establish best practices for audit committee membership and (y) all current members of the Compensation Committee meet such criteria. 

Compensation Committee

From January 1, 2020 to May 13, 2020, the Compensation Committee was composed of Melvin L. Keating, Maureen E. O’Connell and John H. Griffin, Jr.  On May 14, 2020, in connection with the decision to decrease the size of the board, the Company re-designated all of the board committees. From May 14 2020 to July 22, 2020, the Compensation Committee was comprised of John H. Griffin, Jr., Maureen E. O’Connell and Alfred V. Tobia, Jr.  Following July 23, 2020, the Compensation Committee was comprised of John H. Griffin, Jr., Evan Behrens, and Alfred V. Tobia, Jr., all of whom continue to serve on the committee.  Mr. Tobia, Jr. is presently our purchasesCompensation Committee Chair.

The primary functions of equity securitiesthe Compensation Committee are to (1) review and approve corporate goals and objectives relevant to principal executive officer compensation, evaluate the principal executive officer’s performance in light of those goals and objectives, and together with the other independent directors (as directed by the Board), determine and approve the principal executive officer’s compensation level based on this evaluation, (2) review and recommend to the Board (as directed by the Board) non-principal executive officer compensation, incentive-compensation plans and equity-based plans, and (3) to the extent such disclosure is required, review and discuss with management the Company’s “Compensation Discussion and Analysis” and produce a committee report on executive compensation as required by the SEC to be included in our annual proxy statement or Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC.

Despite no longer being listed on the NYSE, the Board has determined that (x) all members of the Compensation Committee should meet the standards required for compensation committee membership on the board of an NYSE listed company and (y) all current members of the Compensation Committee meet such criteria.

Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee

From January 1, 2020 to May 13, 2020, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee was composed of Maureen E. O’Connell, John H. Griffin, Jr. and Evan Behrens. On May 14, 2020, in connection with the decision to decrease the size of the board, the Company re-designated all of the board committees. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee is presently comprised of Evan Behrens, John H. Griffin, Jr. and Alfred V. Tobia, Jr.  Mr. Behrens is our Corporate Governance Committee Chair.

The primary functions of the Governance Committee are to (1) develop, recommend to the Board, implement and maintain our Company’s corporate governance principles and policies, (2) identify, screen and recruit, consistent with criteria approved by the Board, qualified individuals to become Board members, (3) recommend that the Board select the director nominees for the next annual meeting of stockholders, (4) assist the Board in determining the appropriate size, function, operation and composition of the Board and its committees, and (5) oversee the evaluation of the Board and management.

Despite no longer being listed on the NYSE, the Board has determined that (x) all members of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee should meet the standards required for nominating and corporate governance committee membership on the Board of an NYSE listed company and (y) all current members meet that criteria.

3

Board Meetings and Attendance

There were 28 meetings (in total) held by the Board during the fourth quarterfiscal year ended December 31, 2020, including 19 Board Meetings.  Separately, the Audit Committee had 5 meetings, the Compensation Committee had 3 meetings and the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee had 1 meeting during the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020. Although the Company does not have a formal policy regarding director attendance at the annual meeting of 2019:

stockholders, all directors are encouraged to attend. During the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020, all current directors attended at least 75% of the Board and applicable committee meetings held.

Board Leadership Structure and Self-Evaluation

Board leadership structures should vary for companies depending on their circumstances. The Board, through the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, regularly evaluates whether to combine or separate the roles of principal executive officer and Chairman, especially in connection with changes in leadership. Upon the appointment of Mr. Benett as the Company’s Chief Executive Officer, the Board and Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee re-evaluated the Board’s leadership structure and determined that the most effective leadership structure at that time was to have Mr. Benett serve as both Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer with a strong independent Director serving as the Lead Independent Director. The Board believed that, as the individual with primary responsibility for implementing the Company’s turnaround plan, Mr. Benett was best positioned to chair regular Board meetings and to focus the Board’s attention on the issues of greatest importance to the Company and its stockholders.  Mr. Behrens served as the Board’s Lead Independent Director until April 2021.  The Lead Independent Director, supported by the chairs of the independent committees of the Board, was responsible for assessing the performance of the Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer and protecting against potential management conflicts. 

In April 2021, the Board re-examined its leadership structure and determined that at this time the appropriate structure was to have separate individuals serve as CEO and Chairman.  In connection with this decision, Mr. John H. Griffin, Jr. was elected Chairman of the Board.  Separating these positions will allow Mr. Benett to focus on running the Company’s business, while allowing Mr. Griffin to lead the Board in its fundamental role of providing advice to and independent oversight of management. The Board also believes that separating the Non-Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer positions provides enhanced independent leadership and oversight for the Company and the Board.

Our Board conducts an annual evaluation in order to determine whether it and its committees are functioning effectively. As part of this annual self-evaluation, the Board evaluates whether the current leadership structure continues to be optimal for Harte Hanks and its stockholders. Our corporate governance guidelines provide the flexibility for our Board to modify or continue our leadership structure in the future, as it deems appropriate, in light of the results of evaluations or business needs.  As a result of the appointment of Mr. Griffin as Chairman, the Company no longer has a Lead Independent Director.

4

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
October 1 - 31, 2019 
 $
 
 $11,437,544
November 1 - 30, 2019 
 $
 
 $11,437,544
December 1 - 31, 2019 
 $
 
 $11,437,544
Total 
 $
 
  

Executive Sessions

Our Corporate Governance Principles provide that the non-management members of the Board will hold regular executive sessions in connection with regular Board meetings to consider issues that they may determine from time to time without the presence of any member of management. If the Chairman of the Board is not a member of management, the Chairman will chair each such session and report any material issues to the full Board. If the Chairman is a member of management, the Lead Independent Director serves as the chairman of the executive sessions.  In 2020, these sessions were presided over by our Lead Independent Director, and since the appointment of Mr. Griffin as Chairman, he has presided over the sessions.  If the non-management directors include directors who are not “independent” under applicable SEC rules, then the independent directors will hold an executive session at least once a year. The Chairman of the Board, if an independent director, chairs each such session and reports any material issues to the full Board. If the Chairman is not an independent director, the Lead Independent Director serves as the chairman of such sessions.  We believe having a substantial majority of independent, experienced directors comprising our Board benefits the Company and its stockholders by providing strong oversight and advice on the issues facing the Company.

Risk Oversight

Our Board is responsible for overseeing the risk management process. The Board focuses on our general risk management strategy and the most significant risks we face and ensures that management implements appropriate risk mitigation strategies. The Board is also apprised of particular risk management matters in connection with its general oversight and review of corporate matters.

In performing the risk management process, the Board reviews with management (1) Total numberour policies with respect to risk assessment and management of shares purchasedrisks that may be material to us, (2) our system of disclosure controls and procedures and system of internal controls over financial reporting, and (3) our compliance with legal and regulatory requirements. The Board also reviews major legislative and regulatory developments that could materially impact our contingent liabilities and risks. Our other Board committees also consider and address risk as they perform their respective committee responsibilities. For example, our Compensation Committee evaluates the risks associated with our compensation plans and policies, and our Audit Committee monitors risks relating to our financial controls and reporting. All committees report to the full Board as appropriate, including when a matter rises to the level of a material or enterprise level risk. The leadership structure of our Board described above under the section heading “Board Leadership Structure” ensures that management is properly overseen by independent directors.

In April 2021, recognizing the unique and evolving risks posed by cybersecurity and data protection, the Board determined to delegate to the Audit Committee the responsibility of overseeing risks related to cybersecurity, data protection (including confidential, proprietary and personal information, reputation and goodwill in all forms) and other similar risks. The Audit Committee is also responsible for overseeing and assisting in the establishment of policies and procedures to mitigate such risks. The Audit Committee Charter has been amended to update the committee’s scope of responsibility to include overseeing such risks.

Management is responsible for day-to-day risk management. Our finance, treasury, general counsel and internal audit functions serve as the primary monitoring and testing groups for company-wide policies and procedures and manage the day-to-day oversight of the risk management strategy for our ongoing business. This oversight includes shares, ifidentifying, evaluating and addressing potential risks that may exist at the enterprise, strategic, financial and operational levels, as well as compliance and reporting.

We believe the division of risk management responsibilities described above is an effective approach for addressing the risks facing the Company and that our Board leadership structure supports this approach.

Stockholder Communications with the Board of Directors

Stockholders may send communications to our Board, including any (i) purchasedindividual director or the directors as a group, by mailing such communications to Harte Hanks, Inc., Attn: Corporate Secretary, 2800 Wells Branch Parkway, Austin, Texas 78728. Such correspondence shall be addressed to the Board or any individual director by either name or title.

All communications received as set forth in the preceding paragraph will be opened by our Corporate Secretary or the secretary’s designee for the sole purpose of determining whether the contents represent a message to our directors. Any contents that are not in the nature of advertising, promotions of a product or service, or patently offensive material will be forwarded promptly to the addressee. In the case of communications to our Board or any individual director, our Corporate Secretary will make sufficient copies of the contents to send to each director to which the envelope is addressed. 

Code of Business Conduct and Ethics

We have established a corporate compliance program as part of our publicly announced stock repurchasecommitment to responsible business practices in all of the communities in which we operate. The Board has adopted a Business Conduct Policy that applies to all of our directors, officers and employees, which promotes the fair, ethical, honest and lawful conduct in our business relationships with employees, customers, suppliers, competitors, government representatives, and all other business associates. In addition, we have adopted a Code of Ethics applicable to our Chief Executive Officer and all of our senior financial officers. The Business Conduct Policy and Code of Ethics form the foundation of a compliance program that includes policies and (ii)procedures covering a variety of specific areas of professional conduct, including compliance with laws, conflicts of interest, confidentiality, public corporate disclosures, insider trading, trade practices, protection and proper use of company assets, intellectual property, financial accounting, employment practices, health, safety and environment, and political contributions and payments. The Business Conduct Policy forbids employees and directors from engaging in hedging activities with respect to our securities.

Both our Business Conduct Policy and our Code of Ethics are available on our website at www.hartehanks.com, under the “Corporate Governance” subsection of our “Investors” section. In accordance with OTCQX and SEC rules, we intend to disclose any future amendments to our Code of Ethics, or waivers from our Code of Ethics for our Chief Executive Officer or  Chief Financial Officer.

Hedging Policy

The Company’s Business Conduct Policy forbids employees and directors from engaging in hedging activities or similar arrangements with respect to our securities. As of the date of this Annual Report, management of the Company is not aware of any hedging activities by Company insiders involving the Company’s securities.

Delinquent Section16(a) Reports

Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act and related rules of the SEC require our directors, officers, and persons who own more than 10% of a registered class of our equity securities (collectively the "Reporting Persons"), to file initial statements of beneficial ownership of securities and statements of changes in beneficial ownership of securities with respect to our equity securities with the SEC. All Reporting Persons are required by SEC regulations to furnish us with copies of all Section 16(a) reports that they file. As with many public companies, we provide assistance to our directors and executive officers in making their Section 16(a) filings pursuant to powers of attorney granted by our insiders.

To our knowledge, based solely on our review of the copies of Section 16(a) reports provided to us by such Reporting Persons, including those reports that we have filed on behalf of our directors and executive officers pursuant to powers of attorney, or written representations from certain Reporting Persons we believe that there has been compliance with all Section 16(a) filing requirements applicable to such Reporting Persons with respect to the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020, except that one Form 3 and one Form 4 for Mr. Brian Linscott, were each filed late and three Form 4s for Mr. Copeland, two Form 4s for Mr. Tobia and Mr. Griffin, and one Form 4 for Mr. Behrens, were each filed late. The failure to file the Form 3 and Form 4s was inadvertent on the part of the Company’s officers and directors. The Company has enhanced its compliance system and level of awareness in order to ensure timely filings moving forward.

5

ITEM 11.

EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

Our Compensation Committee reviews our executive officers’ overall compensation packages on an annual basis or more frequently as it deems warranted. We provide our executives with an annual base salary as a fixed, stable form of compensation and an annual cash bonus opportunity to create additional performance incentives. We also from time to time grant our executives equity-based awards to provide an additional incentive to grow our business and further link their interests with those of our stockholders. We have also historically allowed our executive officers to elect to receive up to 30% of annual incentive plan (“AIP”) payments in the form of restricted stock vesting on the first anniversary of the grant, with executive officers receiving 125% of the value of the forgone cash bonus in shares of restricted stock.

As a “smaller reporting company” (as such term is defined under applicable securities laws), we are required to disclose the compensation for our principal executive officer and our two other most highly compensated executive officers serving as of the last day of the applicable fiscal year. In certain cases, disclosure may also be required for individuals who served as executive officers for a portion of the fiscal year but were not serving as executive officers at the end of the year. As a smaller reporting company, we are not required to include a compensation discussion and analysis in this Annual Report.

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020, the named executive officers were:

Andrew B. Benett, our Chief Executive Officer;

Brian Linscott, our Chief Operating Officer;

Laurilee Kearnes, our Chief Financial Officer.

The table below sets forth the annual compensation for services rendered during fiscal 2020 and, to the extent applicable under SEC Rules, fiscal 2019.

Summary Compensation Table - Fiscal2019-2020

         

All Other

  
  

Salary

 

Bonus

Stock Awards

Compensation

Total

Name and Principal Position

Fiscal Year

($)

 

($)

($)(1)

($)

($)

(a)

(b)

(c)

 

(d)

(e)

(f)

(g)

Andrew B. Benett, Chief Executive Officer 

2020

 

380,000

  

228,000

(2)

364,500

 

120,000

 

1,092,500

 

2019

 

57,692

(3)

 

 

427,500

 

 

485,190

Brian Linscott, Chief Operating Officer 

2020

 

338,654

  

247,500

(4)

201,648

 

 

787,802

Laurilee Kearnes, Current Chief Financial Officer (5)

2020

 

282,692

  

167,124

 

120,250

 

667

 

570,733

 

2019

 

235,096

  

52,169

 

136,843

 

 

424,108

(1)

The amounts in columns (e) reflect the full grant date fair value of the awards calculated in accordance with FASB ASC Topic 718. For a discussion of valuation assumptions, see note G of our audited financial statements for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020 included in the Original Filing.  For performance-based stock units the fair value assumed such awards vested based on probable outcome of the performance conditions as of the grant date.

   (2)   Column (d) represents a special bonus of $228,000 Mr. Benett received in 2020 for the achievement of certain operating performance measures.

(3)

Includes $43,846 in base salary payments with respect to Mr. Benett’s services as Chief Executive Officer from November 18, 2019 to December 31, 2019 and $13,846 in Executive Chairman fees for the period from November 18, 2019 to December 31, 2019.

(4)

Column (d) includes a sign-on bonus of $37,500 Mr. Linscott received in connection with his appointment as Chief Operating Officer.  Mr. Linscott also received a $210,000 special bonus in 2020 for the achievement of certain operating performance measures.

(5)

Ms. Kearnes was promoted from Principal Accounting Officer to Chief Financial Officer on November 15, 2019.  Her base salary for 2019 is prorated based on her service in such position. The amount disclosed in column (d) for 2020 includes $2,124 in respect of her 2020 Phantom Stock vesting and a special bonus of $165,000 granted to Ms. Kearnes in 2020 for the achievement of certain accounting performance measures. The amount disclosed in column (d) for 2019 includes $2,169 in respect of her 2019 Phantom Stock vesting and a special bonus of $50,000 granted to Ms. Kearnes in 2019, $25,000 of which was paid on September 20, 2019 and $25,000 of which was paid on March 20, 2020 due to achievement of certain accounting performance measures.

6

All Other Compensation

Name

 

Year

 

Insurance Premiums ($) (1)

  

Other ($)

  

Total ($)

 

Andrew B. Benett, Chief Executive Officer

 

2020

  

   

120,000

(2)

  

120,000

 

Laurilee Kearnes, Current Chief Financial Officer

 

2020

  

667

   

   

667

 

(1)

Reflects annual premium paid by the Company for life insurance policies obtained in connection with providing salary continuation benefits to each of the named executive officers. 

(2)

Reflects the Board fee paid to Mr. Bennett in 2020.

Stock Ownership Guidelines & Hedging Policies

The Committee believes that stock ownership requirements encourage officers to maintain a significant financial stake in our company, thus reinforcing the alignment of their interests with those of our stockholders. Consistent with this philosophy, we have stock ownership guidelines that require all officers to acquire and hold significant levels of our common stock. Under these guidelines (revised in February 2018), a corporate officer must reach the minimum required level of common stock ownership no later than five years from commencement of employment (and sooner in some cases). Officers promoted to a level with a higher minimum equity ownership level have three years to reach the higher level of ownership. The target ownership level (relative to base annual salary) is 500% for the CEO, 200% for executive vice presidents and senior vice presidents, and 100% for vice presidents.

The recent stock ownership of our executive officers is reflected below in “Item 12. Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters”. For purposes of measuring compliance with these stock ownership guidelines, all common stock (including restricted stock units) owned by an executive officer is included. Compliance with the target ownership level is measured by the greater of (i) the aggregate of the consideration paid for qualifying shares (but for unvested awards, the grant date value), or (ii) the result of multiplying the number of qualifying shares by the average closing price of the Company’s common stock over the trailing 12 months. Neither options nor performance awards are included in the compliance calculation.

If an officer has not previously met the minimum equity ownership level, the officer must retain half of the “net shares” related to any option exercise or vesting of restricted stock or performance awards. “Net shares” means the number of shares remaining after the sale of shares to cover the exercise price of options and the sale of shares sufficient to pay taxes related to the exercise of options or vesting of restricted stock or performance awards. If an executive officer has previously met the applicable target ownership level, then so long as such officer maintains the number of shares needed for compliance at that time, the officer will be deemed to be in compliance notwithstanding any stock price fluctuations.

The ownership guidelines, and compliance by officers with the guidelines, are reviewed annually by the Committee. Any remedial action for failure to comply with the stock ownership guidelines is to be determined by the Committee on a case-by-case basis. While our executive officers are endeavoring to meet these ownership thresholds, none of our officers have met the holding requirements under the guidelines.  Mr. Bennett has through 2024, Mr. Linscott has through 2025, and Ms. Kearnes has through 2022 to meet the holding requirements.

As part of our Business Conduct Policy, we have adopted an insider trading policy that, among other things, forbids officers from engaging in hedging activities with respect to our securities.

Clawback Policy

In February 2018, the Board adopted a clawback policy. This policy formalized the Company’s long-standing practice of including in award agreements (or other applicable documents which provide the terms of incentive compensation) a provision that makes such incentive compensation subject to forfeiture, reimbursement and/or recoupment in the event the Company is required to prepare an accounting restatement of its financial statements due to the Company’s material noncompliance with any financial reporting requirement under the federal securities laws. Under the clawback policy, incentive compensation includes the following (provided that such compensation is granted, earned or vested based wholly or in part on the attainment of a financial reporting measure): annual bonuses/incentive plan awards and other short-and long-term cash incentives; stock options; stock appreciation rights; restricted stock awards and/or units; performance unit awards; and any other compensation designated as “Incentive compensation” by the Committee at the time such compensation is made, granted or awarded.

Equity Compensation Plan Information at Year-End2020

The following table provides information as of December 31, 2020 regarding total shares subject to outstanding stock options and rights and total additional shares available for issuance under Harte Hanks, Inc. 2020 Equity Incentive Plan (as amended, the “2020 Plan”) and the Amended and Restated Harte Hanks 2013 Omnibus Incentive Plan (the “2013 Plan”).

Plan Category

 

(a) Number of Securities to be Issued Upon Exercise of Outstanding Options, Warrants and Rights (1)

 

(b) Weighted Average Exercise Price of Outstanding Options, Warrants, and Rights (2)

 

(c) Number of Securities Remaining Available for Future Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans (Excluding Securities Reflected in Column (a)(3)

Equity compensation plans approved by security holders

 

909,724

 

$40.25

 

2,060,951

(1)

Consisting of outstanding options, restricted stock units and stock-denominated performance units.  If actual performance under the performance-based restricted stock units falls below the prescribed level for these awards, fewer shares would be issued.

(2)

The weighted-average exercise price does not take into account any shares issuable upon vesting of outstanding restricted stock or performance restricted stock units, which have no exercise price.

(3)

Represents shares available under our 2020 Plan; all shares remaining available for issuance under the 2013 Plan were rolled into 2020 Plan when the 2020 Plan was approved by stockholders.  Shares available for issuance under our 2020 Plan may be issued pursuant to stock options, restricted stock, performance restricted stock units, common stock and other awards that may be established pursuant to the 2020 Plan.  If actual performance under the performance-based restricted stock units falls below the prescribed level for these awards, fewer shares would be issued.

7

Outstanding Equity Awards at Year End

The following table sets forth information regarding outstanding equity awards held at the end of 2020 by our named executive officers. These equity awards were issued pursuant to our 2020 Plan and applicable inducement award2013 Plan.

 

Option Awards

Stock Awards

Name

Number of Securities Underlying Unexercised Options (#) Exercisable

Number of Securities Underlying Unexercised Options (#) Unexercisable

 

Option Exercise Price ($)

Option Expiration Date

Number of Shares or Units of Stock That Have Not Vested (#)

 

Market Value of Shares or Units of Stock That Have Not Vested ($)

Equity Incentive Plan Awards: Number of Unearned Shares, Units or Other Rights That Have Not Vested (#)

 

Equity Incentive Plan Awards: Market or Payout Value of Unearned Shares, Units or Other Rights That Have Not Vested ($) (1) (2)

(a)

(b)

(c)

 

(d)

(e)

(f)

 

(g)

(h)

 

(i)

Andrew Benett

         

250,000

(3)

$

687,500

 

  

Laurilee Kearnes

 

200

 

 

$

123.1

2/5/2021

 

520

(5)

$

1,430

 

26,316

(7)

$

94,211

  

300

 

 

$

99.1

2/5/2022

 

73,772

(6)

$

202,873

     
  

400

 

 

$

77.2

2/5/2023

          
  

297

 

 

$

82.3

4/15/2024

          
  

854

 

(4)

$

76.8

4/15/2025

          

Brian Linscott

         

75,000

 $

206,250

     

(1)

Based upon the closing market price of our common stock as of December 31, 2020 ($2.75), as reported on the OTCQX.

(2)

In 2017, 2018 and 2019, our Compensation Committee awarded our executives performance-based stock units which are payable, if earned, in shares of common stock or cash. The payout levels range from 0% to a maximum of 100% of the performance units granted.

(3)

150,000 of these restricted stock units generally vest in three equal annual installments on the first three anniversaries of November 18, 2019; 150,000 of these restricted stock units generally vest in three equal annual installments on the first three anniversaries of January 2, 2020.

(4)

This SAR is scheduled to vest on June 23 of 2021.

(5)

This phantom stock is scheduled to vest on June 23, 2021.

(6)

13,158 of these restricted stock units vest in three equal installments on the first three anniversary of September 6, 2019.  4,386 of these restricted stock units is scheduled to vest on September 6, 2021 and 2022.  65,000 of these restricted stock units generally vest in three equal annual installments on the first three anniversaries of August 8, 2020.

(7)

These performance stock units generally vest if, following a period of at least one full year from September 6, 2019, certain share price targets are met.

Executive Employment and Severance Agreements

In 2020 we had the following types of severance arrangements with our named executive officers, each addressing or intended to address different employment and/or termination circumstances:

our executive severance policy (the “Executive Severance Policy”);

our “change in control” severance agreement (the “CIC Agreements”);

an employment agreement with Mr. Linscott, our Chief Operating Officer (“COO Agreements”; and

an employment agreement with Mr. Benett, our Chief Executive Officer (the “CEO Agreement”). 

In January 2020, the Board renewed its prior practice (established in 2019) that all severance agreements with executive officers, including each agreement made with individuals under the Executive Severance Policy, going forward, would be as determined by the Board in its discretion.

Executive Severance Policy

In January 2015, we adopted an Executive Severance Policy applicable to corporate officers and certain other executive employees designated by the Compensation Committee. The Executive Severance Policy applies only for named executive officers in circumstances when they do not have a specific agreement that determines their rights to severance. In 2020 only Ms. Kearnes was covered by the Executive Severance Policy. The Executive Severance Policy provides a participating executive whose employment is terminated without “cause,” (i) severance payments equal to such executive’s then-current base salary for the one-year severance period and (ii) subject to certain conditions, up to a year of contributions toward health care coverage. In exchange, executives withheldare required to deliver a full release to the Company and adhere to non-competition and non-solicitation covenants. The Executive Severance Policy does not provide any acceleration of vesting for equity awards in the event of an executive’s termination. The Executive Severance Policy can be amended upon six months’ notice by the Compensation Committee, and it terminates immediately prior to a change of control of the Company.

CIC Agreements

The CIC Agreements are designed to allow us to attract and retain key talent by providing defined compensation in the event of a change in control. The payout levels and other terms of the CIC Agreements are based on the Compensation Committee’s review of publicly available market data regarding severance agreements and prior iterations of these agreements. Mr. Linscott, Mr. Benett and Ms. Kearnes are each a party to a CIC Agreement with the Company. The CIC Agreements provide that if, after a change in control, an executive (i) is terminated other than for “cause” (as defined in the agreement), death or disability or (ii) elects to terminate the executive's employment for “good reason,” then such executive is entitled to severance compensation and a cash payment sufficient to cover health insurance premiums for a defined period of time (18 to 24 months). The amount of severance compensation is the sum of (A) the executive’s annual base salary in effect immediately prior to the change in control or termination date, whichever is larger, plus (B) the executive’s target-level bonus or incentive compensation multiplied by 1.0 or 2.0.  The foregoing severance multiples were reduced by 0.5 as a result of changes made in the form of CIC Agreement in 2015, but incumbent officers retained their earlier-awarded higher multiples. With respect to equity awards, the CIC Agreements provide that so long as such awards are assumed or replaced with equivalent awards by the acquirer, there will be no “single-trigger” acceleration.

Minimum Guarantee Agreements

The severance provisions of the Minimum Guarantee Agreements generally set the level of the applicable  executive’s severance pay withholding taxesperiod under the applicable severance arrangement (e.g., the Severance Policy or CIC Agreement).  The CEO Agreement with Mr. Benett provides that Mr. Benett will receive severance pay for a period of 18 months (as noted below). The COO Agreement with Mr. Linscott provides that Mr. Linscott will receive severance pay for a period of 12 months (as noted below).  

CEO Agreement

The CEO Agreement provides for the following severance payments and benefits upon a termination of Mr. Benett’s employment by the vestingCompany without “cause” or his resignation for “good reason” (each as defined in the CEO Agreement): (i) 18 months of shares.continued base salary and (ii) 12 months of continued health benefit coverage under the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985.

COO Agreement

The COO Agreement provides for the following severance payments and benefits upon a termination of Mr. Linscott’s employment by the Company without “cause” or his resignation for “good reason” (each as defined in the CEO Agreement): (i) 12 months of continued base salary and (ii) 12 months of continued health benefit coverage under the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985.

Annual Incentive Plan

We provide an annual incentive opportunity (an “AIP”) for named executive officers to achieve certain milestones within the Company and, where appropriate, to advance business line performance on a year-over-year basis. This annual short-term cash incentive opportunity provides an incentive for our executives to manage our businesses to achieve targeted financial results.  Our 2020 AIP for executives was administered under the 2013 Plan. We paid the following amounts to our named executive officers under the 2020 AIP, based on various financial performance and operational efficiency goals: $228,000 to Mr. Benett, $210,000 to Mr. Linscott and  $165,000 to Ms. Kearnes.

Equity Incentive Plan

From time to time, the Company grants equity incentive awards to our named executive officers and other selected employees. Prior to adoption of the 2020 Plan, such awards were granted under the 2013 Plan.  The 2020 Plan was approved by stockholders at the 2020 annual meeting of stockholders, and therefore no new awards will be granted under the 2013 Plan (although outstanding awards under the 2013 Plan will continue to be governed by the terms of the 2013 Plan).  The 2020 Plan is administered by our Board of Directors, or a committee thereof. Currently the plan is administered by the Compensation Committee. The administrator has authority to interpret the plan provisions and make all required determinations under the 2020 Plan (including making appropriate adjustments to reflect stock splits and similar events). Employees, directors and consultants of the Company and its subsidiaries are eligible for award grants under the 2020 Plan. Awards of stock options, stock appreciation rights, restricted stock, restricted stock units and other awards may be granted under the plan.

8


(2) 

DIRECTOR COMPENSATION

Director Compensation

Under our director compensation program in 2020, we provided compensation to our directors who are not employed by us or any of our subsidiaries (referred to herein as “non-employee directors”) as follows:

Annual Retainer

 $60,000 

Annual Equity Awards (18,000 shares)

 $  33,300 

Annual Committee Chair Fee

 

$  5,500 to $12,500

 

Lead Independent Director Fee

 $35,000 

Each independent director was able to elect, annually or in connection with such director’s appointment to the Board, to receive all or a portion of such director’s cash compensation otherwise payable for such director’s services in shares of the Company’s common stock. These shares of common stock are granted as soon as administratively practicable following the end of each of the Company’s fiscal quarters. The number of shares delivered is based on the market value of one share of the Company’s common stock on the OTCQX as of the last day of the immediately preceding quarter, in accordance with the 2020 Plan.

In 2019, the annual cash retainer was increased to $60,000 and the annual equity retainer was increased to $90,000, to compensate the directors for their increased time and efforts. In December 2019, the Board determined to maintain the annual retainers at 2019 levels. During 2020, the fourth quarterBoard decided to reduce the annual equity retainer to 18,000 shares of 2019,the Company's common stock.  In addition, in July of 2020 the Board determined to eliminate the separate  committee retainer fees and ceased paying such fees on July 22, 2020.  Non-employee directors only received their annual retainer fee after that date.  At August 8, 2020, the date of grant, this equaled $33,300.

Mr. Benett, our Chief Executive Officer and also a director of the Board, received a cash retainer fee of $120,000 in respect of his role as a director, which amount is included in the Summary Compensation Table.

2020Director Compensation for Non-Employee Directors

The following table sets forth the total compensation paid to our non-employee directors for their service on our board of directors during fiscal 2020:

Name

Fees Earned or Paid in Cash($) (1)

Option Awards ($)

Stock Awards ($) (2)

Total ($)

David L. Copeland

60,000

33,300

93,300

John H. Griffin Jr.

60,000

33,300

93,300

Melvin L. Keating

40,538

33,300

73,838

Maureen E. O’Connell

37,742

33,300

71,042

Alfred V. Tobia Jr.

63,075

33,300

96,375

Evan Behrens

79,570

33,300

112,870

(1)

This Column includes annual Board fees, and the committee retainers directors received in cash.  

(2)

Each of the independent directors was granted restricted stock units in 2020 with a grant date fair value of $33,300 (rounded down to the nearest whole share), computed in accordance with FASB ASC Topic 718. For a discussion of valuation assumptions, see note G of our audited financial statements for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020  included in our Form 10-K for the same period. Restricted stock units granted in 2020 provide for vesting on the first anniversary of the date of grant.    

(3)

This amount also includes $19,570 of annual Lead Independent Director fee Mr. Behrens received in 2020.

Director Stock Ownership Guidelines& Hedging Policy

Under our Corporate Governance Principles and Stock Ownership Guidelines, non-employee directors are expected to hold five times the annual cash retainer amount in company stock (an increase from three times the annual cash retainer amount). Employee directors are likewise subject to the Stock Ownership Guidelines, but as applicable to their management level rather than directorship. Currently, each of our directors is in compliance with this policy.  As part of our Business Conduct Policy, we did not purchase anyhave adopted an insider trading policy that, among other things, forbids directors from engaging in hedging activities with respect to our securities.

9

ITEM 12.

SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS

The following table sets forth the number of shares of our common stock throughbeneficially owned by (1) our stock repurchase program that was publicly announced“named executive officers” included in August 2014. Under this program, our Board has authorized usthe Summary Compensation Table below, (2) each current Harte Hanks director, (3) each person known by Harte Hanks to spend up to $20.0 million to repurchase shares of our outstanding common stock. As of December 31, 2019, we have repurchased 150,667 shares and spent $8.6 million under this authorization. 





ITEM 6.     SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA
The following table sets forth our selected historical financial information for the years ended and asbeneficially own more than 5% of the dates indicated. You should read the following historical financial information along with “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” contained in this Form 10-K. 
In thousands, except per share amounts 2019 2018
Statement of Comprehensive (Loss) Income  
  
Revenues $217,577
 $284,628
Operating loss (21,606) (26,034)
Net (loss) income $(26,264) $17,550
     
(Loss) earnings per common share—diluted $(4.26) $2.38
Weighted-average common and common equivalent shares outstanding—diluted 6,284
 6,270
     
Balance sheet data (at end of year)  
  
Cash and cash equivalents $28,104

$20,882
Total assets 110,202
 125,175
Total debt 18,700
 14,200
Total stockholders’ deficit (49,683) (19,184)



ITEM 7.     MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
Cautionary Note About Forward-Looking Statements

This report, including this Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations (“MD&A”), contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the federal securities laws. All such statements are qualified by the cautionary note included under Item 1A above, which is provided pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of Section 27A of the 1933 Act and Section 21E of the Exchange Act. Actual results may vary materially from what is expressed in or indicated by the
forward-looking statements.

Overview

The following MD&A section is intended to help the reader understand the results of operations and financial condition of Harte Hanks. This section is provided as a supplement to, and should be read in conjunction with, our Consolidated Financial Statements and the accompanying notes. The following MD&A of Financial Condition and Results of Operations gives retroactive effect to the Reverse Stock Split for all periods presented, unless otherwise noted. See Note A, Overview and Significant Accounting Policies, in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for further information.

Harte Hanks partners with clients to deliver relevant, connected, and quality customer interactions. Our approach starts with discovery and learning, which leads to customer journey mapping, creative and content development, analytics, and data management, 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, this is why Harte Hanks is known for developing strong customer relationships and experiences and defining interaction-led marketing.

Our services include a wide variety of integrated, multi-channel, data-driven solutions for top brands around the globe. We help our clients gain insight into their customers’ behaviors from their data and use that insight to create innovative multi-channel 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 the tools to gain insight and analyze their consumers. This results in a strong and enduring relationship between our clients and their customers which is key to being leaders in customer interaction.  We offer a full suite of capabilities and resources to provide a broad range of marketing services, utilizing various different in media from direct mail to email, including:

Agency
Digital Solutions
Database Marketing Solutions
Direct Mail
Mail and Product Fulfillment
Logistics
Contact Centers

We are affected by the general, national, and international economic 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. 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 specific clients, among other factors. We remain committed to making the investments necessary to execute our multichannel strategy while also continuing to adjust our cost structure to reduce costs in the parts of the business that are not growing as fast.

We continued to face a challenging competitive environment in 2019. The sale of 3Q Digital in 2018, together with our Restructuring Activities that have and will continue to result in a decrease of recurring expenses, are all part 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. We expect these actions will continue to enhance our liquidity and financial flexibility. For additional information, see “Liquidity and Capital Resources” section.

Results of Operations

Operating results from operations were as follows:


  Year Ended December 31,
In thousands, except per share amounts 2019 % Change 2018 
Revenues $217,577
 -23.6 % $284,628
 
Operating expenses 239,183
 -23.0 % 310,662
 
Operating loss $(21,606) 17.0 % $(26,034) 
Operating margin (9.9)% 8.8 % (9.1)% 
Other expense (income) 2,905
 -111.4 % (25,472) 
Income tax expense (benefit) 1,753
 -109.7 % (18,112) 
Net (loss) income $(26,264) -249.7 % $17,550
 
        
Diluted EPS from operations
$(4.26)
-279.0 %
$2.38
 

Year ended December 31, 2019 vs. Year ended December 31, 2018

Revenues

Revenues were $217.6 million in the year ended December 31, 2019, compared to $284.6 million in the year ended December 31, 2018. These results reflected the impact of declines in almost all of our industry verticals. Our retail, B2B, consumer brand, transportation and financial services verticals declined by $25.0 million, or 37.6%, $16.0 million, or 25.0%, $11.5 million, or 19.7%,
$8.5 million, or 38.9%, $7.9 million, or 14.7%, respectively. These declines were partially due to the sale of 3Q Digital at the end of February 2018, which led to $6.9 million of the revenue reduction from 2018 to 2019 and primarily impacted our B2B and Consumer verticals. Additionally, non-renewing clients and lower volumes from existing clients caused the further decrease in revenues. Revenue from healthcare clients increased slightly by $1.9 million, or 9.7%.

Among other factors, our revenue performance will depend on general economic conditions in the markets we serve and how successful we are at maintaining and growing business with existing clients and acquiring new clients. We believe that, in the long-term, an increasing portion of overall marketing and advertising expenditures will be shifted from other advertising media to targeted media advertising resulting in a benefit to our business. Targeted media advertising results can be more effectively tracked, enabling measurement of the return on marketing investment.

Operating Expenses

Operating expenses were $239.2 million in the year ended December 31, 2019, compared to $310.7 million in the year ended December 31, 2018. This $71.5 million year-over-year decline was partially caused by the sale of 3Q Digital ($5.8 million of total operating expense reduction).

Labor costs decreased by $42.0 million, or 25.6%, compared to the year ended December 31, 2018, primarily due to lower payroll expense as a result of Restructuring Activities and the sale of 3Q Digital ($4.8 million). Production and distribution expenses declined $24.4 million, or 24.3%, compared to the year ended December 31, 2018, primarily due to the lower transportation service expenses, lower broker production expense and lower production service expense in all cases due to the lower activity driving the lower revenue. The sale of 3Q Digital caused a $0.4 million expense reduction to the year-over-year results. Advertising, Selling and General expenses declined $9.9 million or 29.0%, primarily due to a reduction in employee-related expenses and lower professional service expense as well as the sale of 3Q Digital, which caused a $0.6 million expense reduction to the year-over-year results.

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

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

In the year ended December 31, 2019, we recorded restructuring charges of $11.8 million. In the year ended December 31, 2018,
we recorded an impairment of assets of $4.9 million. Depreciation, software and intangible asset amortization expense declined $2.1 million compared to the twelve months ended December 31, 2018, primarily due to the reduced capital expenditure and the elimination of the intangible assets upon the sale of 3Q Digital.

Operating Loss



Operating loss was $21.6 million in the year ended December 31, 2019, compared to $26.0 million in the year ended December 31, 2018. The $4.4 million decrease in operating loss reflected the impact of a decrease in revenue of $67.1 million, offset by a larger $71.5 million decrease in operating expenses. The sale of 3Q Digital in late February 2018 resulted in $1.1 million higher operating loss in 2019 because 3Q generated profit for the Company prior to its sale.

Interest Expense
Interest expense, net, in the year ended December 31, 2019, decreased $0.3 million compared to the year ended December 31, 2018. The decline was due to the elimination of interest accretion expense related to the 3Q Digital contingent consideration liability as of February 2018 which was partially offset by higher interest expense associated with increased borrowings outstanding under the Texas Capital Facility as of December 31, 2019.

Gain on sale

The gain on sale for the year ended December 31, 2019 was mainly the result of the receipt of a $5.0 million earn-out or contingent payment, related to the sale of 3Q Digital. We are not entitled to receive any additional earn-out or contingent payments in connection with the Sale of 3Q Digital.

The gain on sale for the year ended December 31, 2018 was primarily the result of the sale of 3Q Digital in late February 2018, which resulted in a gain on sale of $31.0 million.

Other Expense, net

Total other expense, net was $7.1 million in the year ended December 31, 2019, compared to other expense of $3.9 million in the year ended December 31, 2018. This $3.2 million increase in other expense was primarily attributable to changes in pension expense and foreign currency revaluation.

Income Taxes

Year ended December 31, 2019 vs. Year ended December 31, 2018

Our 2019 income tax expense was $1.8 million. Unfavorably impacting our expense was change in valuation allowance due to realization of deferred tax assets for current year operations and dividend inclusions from foreign subsidiaries related to current period Global Intangible Low Tax Income (GILTI) expense, the impact of which were $6.1 million and $1.1 million, respectively. Favorably impacting our expense was the state tax impact to our operations, impact of which was $0.5 million.

This compares to our 2018 income tax benefit of $18.1 million. Favorably impacting our benefit was deductible basis on the sale of 3Q Digital ($11.9 million), loss from deemed liquidation of foreign subsidiary ($4.2 million), rate benefit from carryback of capital loss to 35% tax rate year ($6.5 million) and return to provision differences ($1.8 million). Unfavorably impacting our benefit was change in valuation allowance due to realization of deferred tax assets for current year operations and dividend inclusions from foreign subsidiaries related to current period GILTI expense, the impact of which were $3.4 million and $2.8 million, respectively.

Net (Loss) income

Year ended December 31, 2019 vs. Year ended December 31, 2018

We recorded net loss of $26.3 million and net income from operations of $17.6 million in 2019 and 2018, respectively. The decrease in income from operations was mainly due to the $31.0 million pre-tax gain recognized from the sale of 3Q Digital in February 2018, and the income tax benefit related to the items noted above, which was only partially offset by the $5 million gain from the 3Q sale realized in 2019 as a result of the receipt of earn-out or contingent consideration.




Liquidity and Capital Resources

Sources and Uses of Cash

Our cash and cash equivalent and restricted cash balances were $34.1 million and $20.9 million as of December 31, 2019 and 2018. On June 26, 2019, we received $15.9 million in aggregate federal income tax refunds related to carryback of capital losses. On May 7, 2019, we received a $5 million earn-out or contingent payment from the sale of 3Q Digital. Our principal sources of liquidity are cash on hand, cash provided by operating activities, and borrowings. 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, operating leases and unfunded pension plan benefit payments) and other cash needs for our operations for at least the next twelve months through a combination of cash on hand, cash flow from operations and borrowings under the Texas Capital Credit Facility. Although the Company believes that it will be able to meet its cash needs for the foreseeable future, if unforeseen circumstances arise the company may need to seek alternative sources of liquidity.

Operating Activities

Net cash provided by operating activities was $12.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2019. This compared to cash used in operating activities of $9.2 million for the year ending December 31, 2018. The $21.3 million year-over-year increase was primarily
the result of the receipt of a $15.9 million tax refund and a $5 million earn-out payment from the sale of 3Q received in 2019 as well as changes in working capital.

Investing Activities
Net cash used in investing activities was $2.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2019. This compared to cash used in investing activities of $0.1 million for the year ending December 31, 2018. The $2.5 million decrease was due to the sale of 3Q Digital in late February 2018 which was partially offset by the reduced capital expenditure in the year ended December 31, 2019.

Financing Activities

Net cash provided by financing activities was $3.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2019, compared to $22.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2018. The $19.6 million decrease was primarily due to the $14.2 million of net borrowing under the Company’s Texas Capital Credit Facility and the issuance of the Series A Preferred Stock in the first quarter of 2018. The above decrease of cash inflow was partially offset by $4.5 million of borrowings under the Company’s Texas Capital Credit Facility in the first quarter of 2019.

Foreign Holdings of Cash

Consolidated foreign holdings of cash as of December 31, 2019 and 2018 were $3.4 million and $2.6 million.

Credit Facility

On January 9, 2018, we entered into an amendment to the Texas Capital Credit Facility that increased our borrowing capacity to $22.0 million and extended the maturity by one year to April 17, 2020. On May 7, 2019, we entered into an amendment to the Texas Capital Credit Facility which further extended the maturity of the facility by one year to April 17, 2021. The Texas Capital Credit Facility remains secured by substantially all of our assets and continues to be guaranteed by HHS Guaranty, LLC, an entity affiliated with one of our largest equity holders and one of our directors. We pay HHS Guaranty, LLC an annual fee of 0.5% of collateral actually pledged to secure the facility, which for 2019 amounted to $0.5 million.

At December 31, 2019 and 2018, we had letters of credit in the amount of $2.8 million outstanding. No amounts were drawn against these letters of credit at December 31, 2019 and 2018. These letters of credit exist to support insurance programs relating to workers’ compensation, automobile, and general liability. We had no other off-balance sheet arrangements at December 31, 2019 and 2018.

As of December 31, 2019 and 2018, we had $18.7 million and $14.2 million of borrowings outstanding under the Texas Capital Facility. As of December 31, 2019, we had the ability to borrow an additional $1.6 million under the facility.



Contractual Obligations

Contractual obligations at December 31, 2019 are as follows:
In thousands Total 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 Thereafter
Debt $18,700
 $
 $18,700
 $
 $
 $
 $
Interest on debt (1)
 1,791
 $1,343
 $448




 
 
Operating lease obligations 24,787
 9,090
 6,994
 5,113
 2,193
 1,274
 123
Finance lease obligations 1,044
 431
 238
 189
 151
 35
 
Purchase obligations and others (2)
 6,283
 2,712
 2,458
 1,111
 2
 
 
Other purchase obligations reflected on our balance sheet (3)
 1,130
 391
 328
 137
 137
 137
 
Unfunded pension plan benefit payments (4)
 17,709
 1,715
 1,745
 1,791
 1,841
 1,842
 8,775
Total contractual cash obligations $71,444
 $15,682
 $30,911
 $8,341
 $4,324
 $3,288
 $8,898
(1) Assumes $17.7 million and $8.4 million of average debt outstanding for the years ended December 31, 2020 and December 31, 2021 and that the interest rate was equal to our weighted average borrowing rate of 2019.
(2) Includes purchase obligations related to data center operations, licenses and telecommunication contracts cost that are not reflected on the consolidated balance sheets. For those agreements with variable terms, we do not estimate the total obligation beyond any minimum quantities and/or pricing as of the reporting date.
(3) Includes purchase obligation primarily related to license agreement recorded on our Consolidated Balance Sheet as of December 31, 2019.
(4) Includes unfunded pension obligations of non-qualified, supplemental Restoration Pension plan.


Dividends

We did not pay any dividends in either 2019 or 2018. We currently intend to retain any future earnings and do not expect to pay cash dividends on our common stock in the foreseeable future. Any future dividend declaration can be made only upon, and subject to, approval of our Board, based on its business judgment.

Share Repurchase

During 2019 and 2018, we did not repurchase any shares of our common stock, under ourand (4) all current stock repurchase program that was publicly announcedHarte Hanks directors and executive officers as a group. Except as otherwise noted below, (a) the persons named in August 2014. Under our current program we are authorizedthe table have sole voting and investment power with respect to spend up to $20.0 million to repurchaseall shares beneficially owned by them, and (b) ownership is as of March 31, 2021, when 6,666,984 shares of our outstanding common stock. At December 31, 2019, we had authorizationstock were outstanding.

Name and Address of Beneficial Owner (1)(2)

Number of Shares of Common Stock

Percent of Class

Named Executive Officers

  

Andrew B. Benett

213,500

*

Brian Linscott

36,004

*

Laurilee Kearnes

4,318

*

Directors

  

Evan Behrens

40,636

*

David L. Copeland (3)

390,947

5.86%

John H. Griffin, Jr.

51,389

*

Alfred V. Tobia, Jr.

55,741

*

   

5% Holders

  

Wipro LLC (4)

1,001,658

15.02%

William Blair & Company LLC (5)

661,118

9.92%

Houston H. Harte (6)

660,816

9.91%

Fondren Management LP (7)

592,000

8.88%

Westerly Holdings LLC (8)

975,000

14.62%

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP (9)

271,009

4.06%

   

All current directors and executive officers as a group (7 persons)(10)

792,535

11.89%

*

less than 1%.

(1)

The address of (a) Houston H. Harte is P.O. Box 17424, San Antonio, TX 78217, (b) Dimensional Fund Advisors, Inc. is 6300 Bee Cave Road, Building One, Austin, TX 78746, (c) Fondren Management LP is 1177 West Loop South, Suite 1625, Houston, Texas 77027, (d) Wipro LLC is 2 Tower Center Blvd, Suite 2200, East Brunswick, NJ 08816, (e) Westerly Holdings LLC, 201 Mission Street, Suite 580 San Francisco, CA 94105, (f) William Blair & Company LLC is 150 North Riverside Plaza, Chicago, IL 60606 and (g) each other beneficial owner is c/o Harte Hanks, Inc., 2800 Wells Branch Parkway, Austin, TX 78728.

(2)

Does not include shares that may be acquired upon the future exercise of options that will not vest within 60 days of March 31, 2021.

(3)

Includes the following shares to which Mr. Copeland disclaims beneficial ownership: (a) 3,800 shares held as custodian for unrelated minors for which Mr. Copeland is the sole custodian, (b) 30,150 shares that are owned by various trusts for which he serves as trustee or co-trustee and holds shared voting and dispositive power, (c) 306,246 shares owned by the Shelton Family Foundation, of which he is one of nine directors and an employee, and (d) an aggregate of 1,010 of the disclaimed shares are held in trusts of which Mr. Copeland serves as the sole trustee and holds sole voting and investment power. Information relating to this stockholder is based on the stockholder’s Schedule 13D, filed with the SEC on December 5, 2019 and stock transactions that Mr. Copeland informed the Company of in 2020.

(4)

Wipro, LLC owns 9,926 shares of Series A Convertible Preferred Stock, which shares are convertible into up to 1,001,658 shares of the Company’s common stock at Wipro LLC’s election. Information relating to this stockholder is based on the stockholder’s Schedule 13D, filed with the SEC on February 9, 2018.

(5)

661,118 shares are held by William Blair & Company, L.L.C., in its capacity as investment adviser, to clients who have granted discretionary authority to dispose of or direct the disposition of the shares to William Blair & Company, L.L.C. Those clients have the right to receive, or the power to direct the receipt of, dividends from, or the proceeds from the sale of, such securities. One such client, Sarah Harte in her position as trustee of the Harte Management Trust, is known to have such right or power with respect to more than five percent of the common stock. Information relating to this stockholder is based on the stockholder’s Schedule 13G, filed with the SEC on February 11, 2021.

(6)

660,816 shares are held in the Harte Management Trust, over which Houston H. Harte, Carolyn Harte and Sarah Harte share voting and dispositive power. Information relating to this stockholder group is based on such group’s Schedules 13D/A filed with the SEC on March 29, 2019.

(7)

Includes 554,000 shares held by BLR Partners LP and 38,000 shares held by The Radoff Family Foundation. BLRPart, LP, as the general partner of BLR Partners LP may be deemed to be the beneficial owner of the 554,000 shares beneficially owned by BLR Partners LP. BLRGP Inc., as the general partner of BLRPart, LP, may be deemed the beneficial owner of the 554,000 shares beneficially owned by BLR Partners LP. Fondren Management, LP, as the investment manager of BLR Partners LP, may be deemed the beneficial owner of the 554,000 shares beneficially owned by BLR Partners LP. FMLP Inc., as the general partner of Fondren Management, LP, may be deemed the beneficial owner of the 554,000 shares beneficially owned by BLR Partners LP. For the purposes of the reporting requirements of the Exchange Act, Bradley L. Radoff, as the sole shareholder and sole director of BLRGP Inc. and FMLP Inc. and a director of The Radoff Family Foundation, may be deemed the beneficial owner of the (i) 554,000 shares of Common Stock beneficially owned by LR Partners and (ii) 38,000 shares of Common Stock beneficially owned by The Radoff Family Foundation. Information relating to this stockholder is based on the stockholder’s Schedule 13D/A, filed with the SEC on August 27, 2019.

(8)

Represents 975,000 shares held for the accounts of Westerly Partners, L.P., a Delaware limited partnership, and Westerly Partners QP, L.P., a Delaware limited partnership. Westerly Capital Management, LLC serves as investment manager and Westerly Holdings LLC serves as the general partner to Westerly Partners, L.P. and Westerly Partners QP, L.P. For the purposes of the reporting requirements of the Exchange Act, Westerly Holdings LLC may be deemed to beneficially own 975,000 shares of Common Stock. Information relating to this stockholder is based on Amendment No. 2 the stockholder’s Schedule 13G/A, filed with the SEC on February 4, 2021.

(9)

Represents shares held by investment advisory clients of Dimensional Fund Advisors LP (“Dimensional”) for whom Dimensional serves as investment manager or sub-adviser to certain other commingled funds, group trusts and separate accounts (such investment companies, trusts and accounts, collectively referred to as the “Funds”). In its role as investment advisor, sub-adviser and/or manager, Dimensional or its subsidiaries possess sole voting power over 262,560 such shares and sole investment power over all such shares that are owned by the Funds, and may be deemed to be the beneficial owner of the shares of the Issuer held by the Funds. However, all securities reflected are owned by the Funds. Dimensional disclaims beneficial ownership of such securities. The Funds have the right to receive or the power to direct the receipt of dividends from, or the proceeds from the sale of the securities held in their respective accounts. To the knowledge of Dimensional, the interest of no one such Fund exceeds 5% of the Company’s common stock. Information relating to this stockholder is based on the stockholder’s Schedule 13G, filed with the SEC on February 8, 2019.

(10)

This group includes Andrew B. Benett, Laurilee Kearnes, Brian Linscott, Evan Behrens, David L. Copeland, John H. Griffin, Jr. and Alfred V. Tobia, Jr.

10

ITEM 13.

CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS, AND DIRECTOR INDEPENDENCE

Our Board reviews related party transactions for potential conflict of $11.4 million under this program. From 1997 through December 31, 2019, we repurchased 6.8 million shares for an aggregate of $1.2 billion.


Outlook

We consider such factors as total cashinterest issues and cash equivalents, current assets, current liabilities, total debt, revenues, operating income, cash flows from operations, investing activities,has adopted certain policies and financing activities when assessing our liquidity. Our management of cash is designedprocedures relating to optimize returns on cash balances and to ensure that it is readily available to meet our operating, investing, and financing requirements as they arise. We believe that there are no conditionsits review, approval or events, considered in the aggregate, that raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern for the twelve months following the issuance of the Consolidated Financial Statements.

Critical Accounting Policies

Critical accounting policies are defined as those that, in our judgment, are most important to the portrayal of our Company’s financial condition and results of operations and which require complex or subjective judgments or estimates. The areas that we believe involve the most significant management estimates and assumptions are detailed below. Actual results could differ materially from those estimates under different assumptions and conditions.

Our Significant Accounting policies are described in Note A, Overview and Significant Accounting Policies, in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statement.

Revenue Recognition

Application of various accounting principles in U.S. GAAP related to measurement and recognition of revenue requires us to make significant judgments and estimates. Specifically, complex arrangements with non-standard terms and conditions may require significant contract interpretation to determine appropriate accounting.

We recognize revenue upon transfer of control of promised products or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration we expect to be entitled to receive in exchange for those products or services. We apply the following five-step revenue recognition model:

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 netratification of any taxes collected from customers and subsequently remitted to governmental authorities. Any payments received in advance of the performance of services or delivery of the product 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 and postage costs of mailings are billed to our clients and are not directly reflected in our revenue.

Income Taxes



We are subject to income taxes in the United States and numerous other jurisdictions. Significant judgment is required in determining our provision for income taxes and income tax assets and liabilities, including evaluating uncertainties in the application of accounting principles and complex tax laws.

We record a provision for income taxes for the anticipated tax consequences of the reported results of operations using the asset and liability method. Under this method, we recognize deferred tax assets and liabilities for the expected future tax consequences of temporary differences between the financial reporting and tax basis of assets and liabilities, as well as for operating loss and tax credit carryforwards. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using the tax rates that are expected to apply to taxable income for the yearstransaction in which those tax assetsthe Company is a participant and liabilities are expected to be realized or settled. We record a valuation allowance to reduce our deferred tax assets to the net amount that we believe is more likely than not to be realized. For additional information on the valuation allowance see Note I, Income Taxes, in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
We recognize tax benefits from uncertain tax positions only if we believe that it is more likely than not that the tax position will be sustained on examination by the taxing authorities based on the technical merits of the position. Although we believe that we have adequately reserved for our uncertain tax positions, we can provide no assurance that the final tax outcome of these matters will not be materially different. We adjust these reserves when facts and circumstances change, such as the closing of a tax audit or the refinement of an estimate. To the extent that the final tax outcome of these matters is different than the amounts recorded, such differences will affect the provision for income taxes in the period in which such determination is made and could have a material impact on our financial condition and operating results. The provision for income taxes includes the effects of any reserves that we believe are appropriate, as well as the related net interest and penalties.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

See Note A, Overview and Significant Accounting Policies, in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for a discussion of certain accounting standards that we have recently adopted and certain accounting standards that we have not yet been required to adopt and may be applicable to our future financial condition and results of operations.



ITEM 7A.     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 variations and to foreign exchange rate variations. From time to time, we may utilize derivative financial instruments to manage our exposure to such risks.

The interest rate on the Texas Capital Credit Facility is variable based upon the prime rate or LIBOR and, therefore, is affected by changes in market interest rates. We estimate that a 100-basis point increase in market interest rates on the actual borrowings in 2019 would have an immaterial impact on our interest expense. At December 31, 2019, the company had $18.7 million of debt outstanding under the Texas Capital Credit Facility. The nature and amount of our borrowings can be expected to fluctuate as a result of business requirements, market conditions, and other factors. Due to our overall debt level and cash balance at December 31, 2019, anticipated cash flows from operations, and the various financial alternatives available to us, we do not believe that we currently have significant exposure to market risks associated with an adverse change in 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 Sterling, 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 Income (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 Income (Loss). Transactions such as these amounted to $1.0 million pre-tax currency transaction gain in 2019 and $0.5 million in pre-tax currency transaction loss in 2018. At this time, we are not party to 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. We do not speculate using derivative instruments.



ITEM 8.     FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

The Financial Statements required to be presented under Item 8 are presented in the Consolidated Financial Statements and the notes thereto beginning at page 33 of this Form 10-K (Financial Statements).



ITEM 9.     CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS ON ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE
None.

ITEM 9A.     CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES
Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

We maintain disclosure controls and procedures as defined in Rule 13a-15(e) and 15d-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 Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized, and reported within the time periods specified inby the SEC’s rules and forms,regulations regarding transactions with related persons. As set forth in the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee’s charter, except for matters delegated by the Board to the Audit Committee, all proposed related transactions and conflicts of interest should be presented to the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee for its consideration. If required by law, SEC regulations or any other applicable rule or regulations, such transactions must obtain Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee approval. In reviewing any such transactions and potential transactions, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee may take into account a variety of factors that it deems appropriate, which may include, for example, whether the transaction is on terms comparable to those that could be obtained in arm’s length dealings with an unrelated third party, the value and materiality of such information is accumulatedtransaction, any affiliate transaction restrictions that may be included in our debt agreements, any impact on the Board’s evaluation of a non-employee director’s independence or on such director’s eligibility to serve on one of the Board’s committees and communicatedany required public disclosures by Harte Hanks.

Indemnification of Officers and Directors

Our Certificate of Incorporation and Bylaws require us to management, includingindemnify our Chief Executive Officer (“CEO”)officers and Chief Financial Officer (“CFO”) as appropriatedirectors to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.

Our management, including our CEO and CFO evaluated the effectivenessfullest extent permitted by the Delaware General Corporation Law. These documents also contain provisions that provide for the indemnification of our disclosure controlsdirectors for third party actions and procedures pursuant to Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Exchange Act as of December 31, 2019. Based upon such evaluation, our CEO and CFO concluded that the design and operation of these disclosure controls and procedures were effective, at the “reasonable assurance” level, to ensure information required to be disclosedactions by us in the reports that we file or submit under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the SEC rules and forms.
As of the end of the period covered by this report, an evaluation was carried out under the supervision and with the participation of our management, including our CEO and CFO, for our internal control over financial reporting to determine whether any changes occurred during the fourth quarter of 2019 that have materially affected or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting. Based on that evaluation, there were no changes other than what is disclosed below in our internal control over financial reporting or in other factors that have materially affected or are reasonably likely to materially affect our internal control over financial reporting. We may make changes in our internal control processes from time to time in the future. It should also be noted that, because of inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements, and controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions or in the degreeright of complianceHarte Hanks that mirror Section 145 of the Delaware General Corporation Law.

In December 2019, the Company entered into an indemnification agreement with the policies or procedures.


Management’s Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting

Management is responsible for establishingeach of our directors and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f)executive officers (the “Indemnification Agreements”). Our internal control over financial reportingThe Board determined that it is a process designedin the best interests of the Company and its stockholders to enter into Indemnification Agreements in order to attract and retain highly competent individuals to serve, or continue to serve, as directors and executive officers. The Indemnification Agreements, among other things, subject to certain exceptions, require the Company to indemnify, and advance expenses to, each director and executive officer to the fullest extent permitted by the laws of the State of Delaware, including indemnification of expenses such as attorneys' fees, judgments, fines and settlement amounts incurred by the director or executive officer in any action or proceeding, including any action or proceeding by or in right of the Company, arising out of such person's services as a director or executive officer.

Our Certificate of Incorporation also states that the Company has the power to purchase and maintain insurance, at its expense, to protect itself and any such director, officer, employee or agent of the Company or another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise against such expense, liability or loss, whether or not we would have the power to indemnify such person against such expense, liability or loss under the supervision of our CEODelaware General Corporation Law. We also have and CFOintend to providemaintain director and officer liability insurance, if available on reasonable assurance regardingterms.

Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the reliability of financial reporting andSecurities Act, may be permitted to directors, officers or persons controlling us under the preparationforegoing provisions, we have been informed that in the opinion of the Company’s financial statements for external purposes in accordance with U.S. GAAP.

Management evaluated, under the supervision of our CEO and CFO, the design and effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting based on the framework in Internal Control - Integrated Framework (2013) issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organization of the Treadway Commission (“COSO”). Based on this assessment, management concluded that internal control over financial reporting was effective.

Remediation of Prior Period Material Weakness
As previously disclosed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018,SEC such indemnification is against public policy as filed with the SEC on March 18, 2019, we identified two material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting. A material weakness, as definedexpressed in the ExchangeSecurities Act Rule 12b-2,and is therefore unenforceable.

ITEM 14.

PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES

Independent Auditor Fees and Services

Deloitte served as our independent accountant for a deficiency, or combination of deficiencies, in internal control over financial reporting such that there is a reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of the Company’s annual or interim financial statements will not be prevented or detected on a timely basis. During the first two quarters of 2019, we engaged in the implementation of remedial measures designed to address these material weaknesses. In the third and fourth quarters of 2019, we completed the testing of the design and operating effectiveness of the new procedures and controls. As a result, our management concluded that, as of December 31, 2019, we had remediated the previously reported material weaknesses.

We implemented the following changes in our internal control over financial reporting during 2019 that contributed to remediating the previously disclosed material weaknesses described above:
We continued to act upon the enhancements to our internal controls that we implemented in 2018 as described in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018;


We continued to improve our review procedures to address the completeness and accuracy of data used in our reviews as well as the precision of our reviews; and
We enhanced the procedures performed to obtain, generate and communicate relevant and accurate information used to support the function of internal control over financial reporting.


Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting
There were no changes in our internal controls over financial reporting, other than those stated above, during our most recent fiscal quarter that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

ITEM 9B.     OTHER INFORMATION
None.



PART III

ITEM 10.     DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

Information required by this item will be included in an amendment hereto or a definitive proxy statement to be filed with the SEC within 120 daysportion of the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019.

ITEM 11.     EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

Information Moody, Famiglietti & Andronico, LLP (“MFA”) served as our independent accountant upon the dismissal of Deloitte on April 12, 2019 and for all of fiscal 2020.  MFA continues to serve as our independent accountant.  

The following table sets forth the aggregate amount of various professional fees billed by our principal accountants:

  

Years Ended

  

December 31,

  

2020

 

2019

Audit fees

 

$441,150

 

$375,000

   Tax Fees (relating to state, federal and international tax matters)  

Audit related fees

 

 

All Other Fees

 

 

Total audit and audit-related fees

 

$441,150

 

$375,000

Audit Fees. Audit fees consist of aggregate fees for the annual financial statement audit, quarterly financial statement reviews and services in connection with filings with the SEC. All audit fees are approved by the Board.

Audit-Related Fees. Audit-related fees consist of aggregate fees for assurance and related services other than those included under “Audit Fees” above. Includes charges for statutory audits of certain of the Company’s foreign subsidiaries required by this item will be includedcountries in an amendment hereto or a definitive proxy statementwhich they are domiciled in 2020 and 2019.

Tax Fees. Tax fees include fees for professional services for tax compliance, tax advice and tax planning, primarily, fees related to tax preparation services. All tax fees are approved by the Audit Committee.

All Other Fees: Other fee include fees for products and services other than the services reported above. All other fees are approved by the Audit Committee.

Pre-Approval Policies and Procedures

Our Audit Committee has established procedures for pre-approval of audit and non-audit services as set forth in the Audit Committee Charter. The Audit Committee considers whether the audit fee disclosed above are compatible with maintaining MFA's independence and has so determined that the service provided by MFA is compatible with maintaining MFA’s independence. The Audit Committee pre-approved audit services provided to us by MFA in 2020 and those proposed to be filed with the SEC within 120 days of the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019.

provided by MFA in 2021.


ITEM 12.SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS

Information required by this item will be included in an amendment hereto or a definitive proxy statement to be filed with the SEC within 120 days of the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019.

ITEM 13.     CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS, AND DIRECTOR INDEPENDENCE

Information required by this item will be included in an amendment hereto or a definitive proxy statement to be filed with the SEC within 120 days of the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019.

ITEM 14.     PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES
Information required by this item will be included in an amendment hereto or a definitive proxy statement to be filed with the SEC within 120 days of the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019.



PART IV


ITEM 15.

 

EXHIBITS AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES

15(a)(1) 

(A) The following documents were filed or furnished as part of the Original Filing:

15(a)(1)

Financial Statements

   
  

The financial statements filed as part of this report and referencedincluded in Item 8 are presented inof the Consolidated Financial Statements and the notes thereto beginning at page 32 of this Form 10-K (Financial Statements).Original Filing.

   

15(a)(2)

 

Financial Statement Schedules

   
  

All schedules for which provision is made in the applicable rules and regulations of the SEC have been omitted as the schedules are not required under the related instructions, are not applicable, or the information required thereby is set forth in the Consolidated Financial Statements or notes thereto.

   

15(a)(3)

 Exhibits

Exhibits: The exhibits listed in Item 15 of the Original Filing

   
  

The Exhibit Index following the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in this Form 10-K lists the exhibits that are filed or furnished, as applicable, as part of this Form 10-K.




Harte Hanks, Inc. and Subsidiaries
Index to Consolidated Financial Statements

All schedules for which provision is made in the applicable rules and regulations of the SEC have been omitted as the schedules are not required under the related instructions, are not applicable, or the information required thereby is set forth in the consolidated financial statements or notes thereto.



REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
To the Board of Directors and Stockholders of Harte Hanks, Inc.

Opinion on the Financial Statements
We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheet of Harte Hanks, Inc. (the Company) as of December 31, 2019, and the related consolidated statements of comprehensive loss (income), changes in stockholders’ deficit, and cash flows for the year then ended, and the related notes (collectively referred to as the financial statements). In our opinion, the financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company as of December 31, 2019 and the results of its operations and its cash flows for the year then ended in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.

Change in Accounting Principle
As discussed in Note B to the consolidated financial statements, the Company changed the manner in which it accounts for leases in 2019.

Basis for Opinion
These financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company’s financial statements based on our audit. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (PCAOB) and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.
We conducted our audit in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. The Company is not required to have, nor were we engaged to perform, an audit of its internal control over financial reporting. As part of our audit, we are required to obtain an understanding of internal control over financial reporting, but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting. Accordingly, we express no such opinion.
Our audit included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. Our audit also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements. We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.


/S/ Moody, Famiglietti & Andronico, LLP


We have served as the Company's auditor since 2019
Tewksbury, Massachusetts
March 19, 2020









REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
To the stockholders and the Board of Directors of Harte Hanks, Inc.

Opinion on the Financial Statements
We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheet of Harte Hanks, Inc. and subsidiaries (the "Company") as of December 31, 2018, the related consolidated statements of comprehensive income (loss), changes in stockholders' deficit, and cash flows for the year then ended, and the related notes (collectively referred to as the “financial statements”). In our opinion, the financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company as of December 31, 2018, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for the year then ended, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.
Change in Accounting Principle
As discussed in Note B to the financial statements, the Company changed its method of accounting for revenue from contracts with customers in 2018 due to adoption of the new revenue standard. The Company adopted the new revenue standard using a modified retrospective approach.
Basis for Opinion
These financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company’s financial statements based on our audit. We are a public accounting firm registered with the PCAOB and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.
We conducted our audit in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. Our audit included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. Our audit also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements. We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.

/s/ DELOITTE & TOUCHE LLP
San Antonio, Texas
March 18, 2019
We began serving as the Company’s auditor in 2016. In 2019 we became the predecessor auditor.



Harte Hanks, Inc. and Subsidiaries Consolidated Balance Sheets
  December 31,
In thousands, except per share and share amounts 2019 2018
ASSETS  
  
Current assets  
  
Cash and cash equivalents $28,104

$20,882
Restricted cash
6,018


Accounts receivable (less allowance for doubtful accounts of $666 at December 31, 2019 and $430 at December 31, 2018) 38,972
 54,240
Contract assets 805
 2,362
Inventory 354
 448
Prepaid expenses 3,300
 4,088
Prepaid income tax and income tax receivable 78
 20,436
Other current assets 1,670
 2,536
Total current assets 79,301
 104,992
Property, plant and equipment  
  
Buildings and improvements 13,788
 15,737
Equipment and furniture 71,457

80,230
Software 47,609
 50,531
Software development and equipment installations in progress 12
 653
Gross property, plant and equipment 132,866
 147,151
Less accumulated depreciation and amortization (124,543) (133,559)
Net property, plant and equipment 8,323
 13,592
Right-of-use assets 18,817
 
Other assets 3,761
 6,591
Total assets $110,202
 $125,175
     
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ DEFICIT  
  
Current liabilities  
  
Accounts payable and accrued expenses 16,917
 31,052
Accrued payroll and related expenses 4,215
 6,783
Deferred revenue and customer advances 4,397
 6,034
Customer postage and program deposits 9,767
 6,729
Other current liabilities 2,619
 3,564
Short-term lease liabilities
7,616


Total current liabilities 45,531
 54,162
Long-term debt 18,700
 14,200
Pensions 70,000
 62,214
Deferred tax liability, net 244
 
Long-term lease liabilities 13,078
 
Other long-term liabilities 2,609
 4,060
Total liabilities 150,162
 134,636
     
Preferred stock, $1 par value, 1,000,000 shares authorized; 9,926 shares of Series A Convertible Preferred Stock, issued and outstanding 9,723
 9,723
     
Stockholders’ deficit  
  
Common stock, $1 par value, 25,000,000 shares authorized,12,121,484 and 12,115,055 shares issued, 6,302,936 and 6,260,075 shares outstanding at December 31, 2019 and December 31, 2018, respectively 12,121
 12,115
Additional paid-in capital 447,022
 453,868
Retained earnings 797,817
 812,704
Less treasury stock, 5,818,548 shares at cost at December 31, 2019 and 5,854,980 shares at cost at December 31, 2018 (1,243,509) (1,251,388)
Accumulated other comprehensive loss (63,134) (46,483)
Total stockholders’ deficit (49,683) (19,184)


Total liabilities, preferred stock and stockholders’ deficit $110,202
 $125,175
See Accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.


Harte Hanks, Inc. and Subsidiaries Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive (Loss) Income
  Year Ended December 31,
In thousands, except per share amounts 2019 2018
Revenues $217,577
 $284,628
Operating expenses  
  
Labor 121,853
 163,857
Production and distribution 75,900
 100,253
Advertising, selling, general and administrative 24,292
 34,212
Restructuring expense
11,799


Impairment of assets 
 4,888
Depreciation, software and intangible asset amortization 5,339
 7,452
Total operating expenses 239,183
 310,662
Operating loss (21,606) (26,034)
Other expense and (income)  
  
Interest expense, net 1,262
 1,551
Gain on sale from 3Q Digital (5,471) (30,954)
Other, net 7,114
 3,931
Total other expense and (income) 2,905
 (25,472)
Loss before income taxes (24,511) (562)
Income tax expense (benefit) 1,753
 (18,112)
Net (loss) income $(26,264) $17,550
    Less: Earnings attributable to participating securities 
 2,202
    Less: Preferred stock dividends 496
 457
(Loss) income attributable to common stockholders $(26,760) $14,891
     
(Loss) earnings per common share  
  
    Basic $(4.26) $2.39
Diluted
$(4.26)
$2.38







Weighted-average shares used to compute (loss) earnings per share attributable to common shares





    Basic
6,284

6,237
      Diluted
6,284

6,270
     
Comprehensive (loss) income, net of tax    
Net income (loss) $(26,264) $17,550
     
Adjustment to pension liability $(5,948) $(1,166)
Foreign currency translation adjustments 652
 (1,014)
Adoption of ASU 2018-02
(11,355)

Total other comprehensive loss, net of tax (16,651) (2,180)
     
Comprehensive (loss) income $(42,915) $15,370
See Accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.



Harte Hanks, Inc. and Subsidiaries Consolidated Statements of Changes in Stockholders’ Deficit
In thousands Preferred Stock 
Common
Stock
 
Additional
Paid-in
Capital
 
Retained
Earnings
 
Treasury
Stock
 
Accumulated
Other
Comprehensive
Income(loss)
 
Total
Stockholders’
Equity (Deficit)
Balance at December 31, 2017 $
 $12,075
 $457,186
 $794,583
 $(1,254,176) $(44,303) $(34,635)
Cumulative effect of accounting change






571





571
Preferred stock issued
9,723


















Exercise of stock options and release of unvested shares 
 78
 (159) 
 (34) 
 (115)
Rounding from reverse stock split



(38)
38








Stock-based compensation 
 
 (438) 
 
 
 (438)
Treasury stock issued 
 
 (2,759) 
 2,822
 
 63
Net income 
 
 
 17,550
 
 
 17,550
Other comprehensive loss 
 
 
 
 
 (2,180) (2,180)
Balance at December 31, 2018 $9,723
 $12,115
 $453,868
 $812,704
 $(1,251,388) $(46,483) $(19,184)
Effect of change in accounting principle   

 

 11,377
 

 (11,355) 22
Exercise of stock options and release of unvested shares 
 6
 (12) 
 
 
 (6)
Stock-based compensation 
 
 1,030
 
 
 
 1,030
Treasury stock issued 
 
 (7,864) 
 7,879
 
 15
Net loss 
 
 
 (26,264) 
 
 (26,264)
Other comprehensive loss 
 
 
 
 
 (5,296) (5,296)
Balance at December 31, 2019 $9,723
 $12,121
 $447,022
 $797,817
 $(1,243,509) $(63,134) $(49,683)
See Accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.



Harte Hanks, Inc. and Subsidiaries Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
  Year Ended December 31,
In thousands 2019 2018
Cash Flows from Operating Activities  
  
Net (loss) income $(26,264) $17,550
Adjustments to reconcile net (loss) income to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities  
  
Depreciation and software amortization 5,341
 7,339
Intangible asset amortization 
 113
Restructuring
5,742


Impairment of assets 
 4,888
Stock-based compensation 1,074
 (581)
Net pension cost 1,838
 1,712
Interest accretion on contingent consideration 
 742
Deferred income taxes 996
 (1,645)
Gain on sale from 3Q Digital 
 (32,760)
Other, net 
 (207)
Changes in assets and liabilities, net of dispositions:    
Decrease in accounts receivable, net and contract assets 16,825
 7,468
Decrease in inventory 94
 139
Decrease (Increase) in prepaid expenses, income tax receivable and other current assets 20,439
 (16,930)
(Decrease) increase in accounts payable (13,750) 9,248
Decrease in other accrued expenses and liabilities (238) (6,257)
Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities 12,097
 (9,181)
     
Cash Flows from Investing Activities    
Dispositions, net of cash transferred 
 3,929
Purchases of property, plant and equipment (2,895) (4,206)
Proceeds from the sale of property, plant and equipment 300
 225
Net cash used in investing activities (2,595) (52)
     
Cash Flows from Financing Activities    
Borrowings 4,500
 23,200
Repayment of borrowings 
 (9,000)
Debt financing costs (616) (591)
Issuance of common stock (6) (115)
Issuance of preferred stock, net of transaction fees 
 9,723
Payment of finance leases (807) (548)
Issuance of treasury stock 15
 63
Net cash provided by financing activities 3,086
 22,732
     
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents 652
 (1,014)
Effect of exchange rate changes on restricted cash



Net increase in cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash 13,240
 12,485
Cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash at beginning of year 20,882
 8,397
Cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash at end of year $34,122
 $20,882
Supplemental disclosures    
Cash paid for interest $875
 $199
Cash received for income taxes, net of refunds $19,405
 $119
Non-cash investing and financing activities    
Purchases of property, plant and equipment included in accounts payable and accrued expense $800
 $1,108
New finance lease obligations $
 $372
See Accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements


Harte Hanks, Inc. and Subsidiaries Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

Note A — Overview and significant Accounting Policies

Background

Harte Hanks, Inc. (“Harte Hanks,” “Company,” “we,” “our,” or “us”) is a purveyor of data-driven, omni-channel marketing and customer relationship solutions and logistics. The Company has robust capabilities that offer clients the strategic guidance they need across the customer data landscape as well as the executional know-how in database build and management, data analytics, digital media, direct mail, customer contact, client fulfillment and marketing and product logistics. Harte Hanks solves marketing, commerce and logistical challenges for some of the world’s leading brands in North America, Asia-Pacific and Europe.

The Company operates as one reportable segment. Our Chief Executive Officer is considered to be our chief operating decision maker. He reviews our operating results on an aggregate basis for purposes of allocating resources and evaluating financial performance.

Securities Purchase Agreement

On January 23, 2018, we entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement with Wipro, pursuant to which on January 30, 2018, we issued 9,926 shares of Series A Convertible Preferred Stock, par value $1 per share (“Series A Preferred Stock”), for aggregate consideration of $9.9 million. Dividends on the Series A Preferred Stock accrue at a rate of 5.0% per year or the rate that cash dividends were paid in respect to shares of Common Stock if such rate is greater than 5.0%. The Preferred Stock issued under the Securities Purchase Agreement are convertible into 1,001,614 shares of our Common Stock. Dividends are payable solely upon a Liquidation (as defined in the Certificate of Designation), and only if prior to such Liquidation such shares of Series A Preferred Stock have not been converted to Common Stock.

Along with customary protective provisions, Wipro has designated an observer to the Board of Directors. We used the proceeds from the issuance for general corporate purposes including working capital purposes.

See Note E, Convertible Preferred Stock, for further information.

Reverse Stock Split

On January 31, 2018, we executed a 1-for-10 reverse stock split (the “Reverse Stock Split”). Pursuant to the Reverse Stock Split, every 10 pre-split shares were exchanged for one post-split share of the Company’s Common Stock. No fractional shares were issued in connection with the Reverse Stock Split. Stockholders who would otherwise have held a fractional share of the Common Stock received a cash payment in lieu thereof. In addition, our authorized Common Stock was reduced from 250 million to 25 million shares. The number of authorized shares of preferred stock remains unchanged at one million shares.

Geographic Concentrations

Depending on the needs of our clients, our services are provided through an integrated approach through twenty-one facilities worldwide, of which four are located outside of the U.S.

Information about the operations in different geographic areas:
  Year Ended December 31,
In thousands 2019 2018
Revenue (1)
  
  
United States $182,034
 $243,298
Other countries 35,543
 41,330
Total revenue $217,577
 $284,628


  December 31,
In thousands 2019 2018
Property, plant and equipment (2)
  
  
United States $6,836
 $11,647
Other countries 1,102
 1,945
Total property, plant and equipment $8,323
 $13,592
(1)Geographic revenues are based on the location of the service being performed.
(2)Property, plant and equipment are based on physical location.


Related Party Transactions

Since 2016, we have conducted (and we continue to conduct) business with Wipro, whereby Wipro provides us with a variety of technology-related services, including database and software development, database support and analytics, IT infrastructure support, and digital campaign management. Additionally, we provide Wipro with agency and consulting services.

Effective January 30, 2018, Wipro became a related party when it purchased 9,926 shares of our Series A Preferred Stock (which are convertible at Wipro’s option into 1,001,614 shares, or 16% of our Common Stock as of January 30, 2018), for aggregate consideration of $9.9 million. For information pertaining to the Company’s preferred stock, See Note E, Convertible Preferred Stock.

Consolidation

The accompanying audited consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Harte Hanks, Inc. and subsidiaries. All intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. As used in this report, the terms “Harte Hanks,” “the 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, as the context may require.

Use of Estimates

The preparation of consolidated financial statements requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenue, and expenses. Actual results and outcomes could differ from those estimates and assumptions. Such estimates include, but are not limited to, estimates related to lease accounting; pension accounting; fair value for purposes of assessing long-lived assets for impairment; income taxes; stock-based compensation and contingencies. On an ongoing basis, management reviews its estimates based on currently available information. Changes in facts and circumstances could result in revised estimates and assumptions.
Operating Expense Presentation in Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive (Loss) Income

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

Revenue Recognition

We recognize revenue upon transfer of control of promised products or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration we expect to be entitled to receive in exchange for those products or services. We apply the following five-step revenue recognition model:

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 advance of the performance of services or delivery of the product 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 and postage costs of mailings are billed to our clients and are not directly reflected in our revenue.

Revenue from agency and digital services, direct mail, logistics, fulfillment and contact center is recognized as the work is performed. Fees for these services are determined by the terms set forth in the contract with the client. These are typically set at 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 and direct build costs are capitalized. Pricing for these types of arrangements are typically based on 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 are typically based on a fixed price per month or per contract.

Fair Value of Financial Instruments

FASB 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. ASC 820 also establishes a fair value hierarchy that prioritizes the inputs used in valuation methodologies into three levels:
Level 1Quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities.

  

(B) The exhibits required to be filed by Item 601 of Regulation S-K are listed in the Exhibit Index that follows and are being filed as part of this Amendment No. 1:

Level 2Observable 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.

Exhibit

  
Level 3

No.

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

Description of the assets or liabilities.Exhibit


Because of their maturities and/or variable interest rates, certain financial instruments have fair values approximating their carrying values. These instruments include cash

Acquisition and cash equivalents and restricted cash, accounts receivable, and trade payables, and long-term debt. The fair value of the assets in our funded pension plan is disclosed in Note H, Employee Benefit Plans. 


Cash Equivalents

All highly liquid investments with an original maturity of 90 days or less at the time of purchase are considered to be cash equivalents. Cash equivalents are carried at cost, which approximates fair value.

Restricted Cash

In our normal business operation, we receive cash from our customers for certain customer program service funding. As these programs impose legal restrictions on the commingling of funds, we present this cash as restricted cash.

Allowance for Doubtful Accounts

We maintain our allowance for doubtful accounts adequate to reduce accounts receivable to the amount of cash expected to be collected. The methodology used to determine the minimum allowance is based on our prior collection experience and is generally related to the accounts receivable balance in various aging categories. The balance is also influenced by specific clients’ financial strength and circumstance. Accounts that are determined to be uncollectible are written off in the period in which they are determined to be uncollectible. Periodic changes to the allowance balance are recorded as increases or decreases to bad debt expense, which is included in the “Advertising, selling, general, and administrative” line of our Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (Loss). The changes in the allowance for doubtful accounts consisted of the following:
  Year Ended December 31,
In thousands 2019 2018
Balance at beginning of year $430
 $697
Net charges to expense 351
 131
Amounts recovered against the allowance (115) (398)
Balance at end of year $666
 $430



Inventory

Inventory, consisting primarily of print materials and operating supplies, is stated at the lower of cost (first-in, first-out method) or net realizable value.

Property, Plant and Equipment

Property, plant and equipment are stated on the basis of cost. Depreciation is computed using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the assets. The general ranges of estimated useful lives are:
Dispositions

Buildings and improvements3to40 years
Software2to10 years
Equipment and furniture3to20 years

Long-lived assets such as property, plant and equipment are reviewed for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of an asset may not be recoverable. The carrying amount of a long-lived asset group is not recoverable if it exceeds the sum of the undiscounted cash flows expected to result from the use and eventual disposition of the asset group. We recorded a $4.7 million and $4.9 million impairment of long-lived assets in 2019 and 2018, respectively. 2019 impairment charges are included in the restructuring expense in our Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive (Loss) income.

For 2018, capital lease assets are included in property, plant and equipment. Capital lease assets consisted of:
In thousands
December 31, 2018
Equipment and furniture
$2,658
Less accumulated depreciation
(920)
Net book value
$1,738

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 the current portion and long-term portion of lease obligations on our 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 commencement date 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 commencement date in determining the present value of lease payments. The operating lease ROU asset also includes any lease payments made and excludes lease incentives. Our lease terms may include options to extend or terminate the lease, which are included in the lease ROU asset when it is reasonably certain that we will exercise that option. Lease expense for lease payments is recognized 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. See Note B, Recent Accounting Pronouncements - Recently adopted accounting pronouncements.

Income Taxes

Income tax expense includes U.S. and international income taxes accounted for under the asset and liability method. Certain income and expenses are not reported in tax returns and financial statements in the same year. Such temporary differences are reported as deferred tax. Deferred tax assets are reported net of valuation allowances where we have assessed that it is more likely than not that a tax benefit will not be realized.

Earnings (Loss) Per Share

Basic earnings (loss) per common share are based upon the weighted-average number of common shares outstanding during the period. Diluted earnings (loss) per common share are based upon the weighted-average number of common shares and dilutive common stock equivalents outstanding during the period. Dilutive common stock equivalents are calculated based on the assumed exercise of stock options and vesting of unvested shares using the treasury stock method.



Stock-Based Compensation

All share-based awards are recognized as operating expense in the “Labor” line of the Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive (Loss) income. Calculated expense is based on the fair values of the awards on the date of grant and is recognized over the requisite service period or performance period of the awards.

Reserve for Healthcare, Workers’ Compensation, Automobile, and General Liability

We are self-insured for the majority of our healthcare insurance. We pay actual medical claims up to a stop loss limit of $0.3 million. In the fourth quarter of 2016, we moved to a guaranteed cost program for our workers’ compensation and automobile programs. Our deductible for general liability is $0.3 million.

The reserve is estimated using current claims activity, historical experience, and claims incurred but not reported. We use loss development factors that consider both industry norms and company specific information. Our liability is recorded at the estimate of the ultimate cost of claims at the balance sheet date. At December 31, 2019 and 2018, our reserve for healthcare, workers’ compensation, net, automobile, and general liability was $2.1 million and $2.7 million, respectively. Periodic changes to the reserve for workers’ compensation, automobile and general liability are recorded as increases or decreases to insurance expense, which is included in the “Advertising, selling, general and administrative” line of our Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive (Loss) Income.  Periodic changes to the reserve for healthcare are recorded as increases or decreases to employee benefits expense, which is included in the “Labor” line of our Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (Loss).

Foreign Currencies

In most instances the functional currencies of our foreign operations are the local currencies. Assets and liabilities recorded in foreign currencies are translated in U.S. dollars at the exchange rate on the balance sheet date. Revenue and expenses are translated at average rates of exchange prevailing during a given month. Adjustments resulting from this translation are charged or credited to other comprehensive loss.

Note B - Recent Accounting Pronouncements

Recently issued accounting pronouncements not yet adopted

In December 2019, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued ASU 2019-12, which enhances and simplifies various aspects of the income tax accounting guidance, including requirements such as tax basis step-up in goodwill obtained in a transaction that is not a business combination, ownership changes in investments, and interim-period accounting for enacted changes in tax law. The standard will be effective for us in the fiscal year 2021, although early adoption is permitted. We do not expect that the adoption of this ASU will have a significant impact on our consolidated financial statements.
In April 2019, the FASB issued guidance to amend or clarify certain areas within three previously issued standards related to financial instruments which includes clarification for fair value using the measurement alternative, measuring credit losses and accounting for derivatives and hedging. The amendments in this guidance are largely effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2019 with early adoption permitted. We have not elected early adoption and do not anticipate that this guidance will have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements.

In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-14, Compensation—Retirement Benefits—Defined Benefit Plans—General (Topic 715-20): Disclosure Framework—Changes to the Disclosure Requirements for Defined Benefit Plans (ASU 2018-14), which modifies the disclosure requirements for defined benefit pension plans and other postretirement plans. ASU 2018-14 is effective for fiscal years ending after December 15, 2020, and earlier adoption is permitted. We are currently evaluating the impact of our pending adoption of ASU 2018-14 on our consolidated financial statements.

Recently adopted accounting pronouncements

Income taxes

In February 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-02, Reclassification of Certain Tax Effects from Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income. This ASU allows for reclassification of stranded tax effects on items resulting from the change in the corporate tax rate as a result of H.R. 1, originally known as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, from accumulated other comprehensive income to retained earnings. Tax effects unrelated to H.R. 1 are permitted to be released from accumulated other comprehensive income using either the specific identification approach or the portfolio approach, based on the nature of the underlying item. ASU 2018-02 is effective for interim and annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2018, with early adoption permitted. We adopted ASU 2018-02 in the first quarter of 2019. See Note I, Income Taxes, for a discussion of the impacts of this ASU.

Stock-based Compensation

In June 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-07, Compensation-Stock Compensation (Topic 718): Improvements to nonemployee share-based payment accounting, which supersedes ASC 505-50, Accounting for Distributions to Shareholders with Components of Stock and Cash, and expands the scope of ASC 718 to include all share-based payment arrangements related to the acquisition of goods and services from both non-employees and employees. As a result, most of the guidance in ASC 718 associated with employee share-based payments, including most of its requirements related to classification and measurement, applies to non-employee share-based payment arrangements. The ASU is effective for annual periods beginning after December 15, 2018, and


the interim periods within those fiscal years with early adoption permitted after the entity has adopted ASC 606. This standard was adopted as of January 1, 2019 and did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements and related disclosures.

Leases

In February 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-02, Leases (Topic 842) and subsequent amendment ASU 2018-11, which requires all operating leases to be recorded on the balance sheet unless the practical expedient is elected for short-term operating leases. 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 after the beginning of the earliest comparative period in the financial statements. Full retrospective application is prohibited. In July 2018, the FASB approved an optional transition method to initially account for the impact of the adoption with a cumulative-effect adjustment to the January 1, 2019, rather than the January 1, 2017, financial statements. This will eliminate the need to restate amounts presented prior to January 1, 2019.

We adopted the standard effective January 1, 2019, and we elected the optional transition method and the practical expedients permitted under the transition guidance within the standard. Accordingly, we accounted for our existing operating leases as operating leases under the new guidance, without reassessing (a) whether the contracts contain a lease under ASC Topic 842, (b) whether classification of the operating leases would be different in accordance with ASC Topic 842, or (c) whether the unamortized initial direct costs before transition adjustments (as of December 31, 2018) would have met the definition of initial direct costs in ASC Topic 842 at lease commencement.

The standard had a material impact on our consolidated balance sheets, but did not have an impact on our consolidated statements of comprehensive (loss) income or cash flows from operations. The cumulative effect of the changes on our retained earnings was $22 thousand associated with capital gain. The most significant impact was the recognition of right-of-use (ROU) assets and lease liabilities for operating leases. Our accounting for finance leases remained substantially unchanged. See Note D, Leases for further discussion.

Restricted Cash

In the first quarter of 2019. the Company adopted ASU 2016-18, Statement of Cash flows (Topic 230): Restricted Cash, which enhances and clarifies the guidance on the classification and presentation of restricted cash in the statement of cash flows and requires additional disclosures about restricted cash balances.

Revenue Recognition

In May 2014, the FASB issued ASU 2014-09, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606). We adopted ASC 606 effective on January 1, 2018 using the modified retrospective method. Please see Note C, Revenue from Contracts with Customers, for the required disclosures related to the impact of adopting this standard and a discussion of our updated policies related to revenue recognition and accounting for costs to obtain and fulfill a customer contract.

Note C - Revenue from Contracts with Customers

In May 2014, the FASB issued ASU 2014-09, Revenue from Contracts with Customers. Under ASC 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers, 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. The new standard requires disclosure of the nature, amount, timing, and uncertainty of revenue and cash flows arising from contracts with customers. The new 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 or service purchased. Payment terms can vary by contract, but the period between invoicing and when payment is due is not significant. At December 31, 2019 and December 31, 2018, our contracts do not include any significant financing components.



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

Disaggregation of Revenue

We disaggregate revenue by vertical market and key revenue stream. The following table summarizes revenue from contracts with customers for the twelve months ended December 31, 2019 and 2018 by our key vertical markets:
In thousands For the Year Ended December 31, 2019 For the Year Ended December 31, 2018
B2B $48,029
 $64,026
Consumer Brands 46,874
 58,382
Financial Services 45,978
 53,919
Healthcare 21,862
 19,931
Retail 41,505
 66,545
Transportation 13,329
 21,825
    Total Revenues $217,577
 $284,628

The nature of the services offered by each key revenue stream are different. The following tables summarize revenue from contracts with customers for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018 by our four major revenue streams and the pattern of revenue recognition:

  For the Year Ended December 31, 2019
In thousands Revenue for performance obligations recognized
over time
 Revenue for performance obligations recognized at a point in time Total
Agency & Digital Services $24,306

$827
 $25,133
Contact Centers 61,784


 61,784
Database Marketing Solutions 22,414

3,277
 25,691
Direct Mail, Logistics, and Fulfillment 88,839

16,130
 104,969
    Total Revenues $197,343 $20,234 $217,577

  For the Year Ended December 31, 2018
In thousands Revenue for performance obligations recognized
over time
 Revenue for performance obligations recognized at a point in time Total
Agency & Digital Services $34,621

$1,138
 $35,759
Contact Centers 78,298


 78,298
Database Marketing Solutions 31,684

3,526
 35,210
Direct Mail, Logistics, and Fulfillment 128,372

6,989
 135,361
    Total Revenues $272,975 $11,653 $284,628


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:
Agency & Digital Services

Our agency services are full-service, customer engagement agencies specializing in direct and digital communications for both consumer and business-to-business markets. Our digital solutions integrate online services within the marketing mix and include search engine management, display, digital analytics, website development and design, digital strategy, social media, email, e-commerce, and interactive relationship management. Our contracts may include a promise to purchase media or acquire search engine marketing solutions on behalf of our clients; in such cases, we have determined we are an agent, rather than principal and therefore recognize the net consideration as revenue.

Agency and digital services performance obligations are satisfied over time and often offered on a project basis. We have concluded that the best approach of measuring the progress toward completion of the project-based performance obligations is the input method based on costs or labor hours incurred to date dependent 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.

Contact Centers

We operate tele-service workstations in the U.S., 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 satisfied over time. With regard to account management and SaaS, we use a time-elapsed output method. 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 standalone selling prices.

The variable consideration in our contracts results primarily from the transaction-based fee structure of some performance obligations with their total transaction quantities to be provided unknown at the onset of a contract, which is estimated using the expected value method.
Database Marketing Solutions

Our 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, professional 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 they 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.
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 generally resolves within a short period of time since the duration of these contracts is generally less than two months.


Direct Mail, Logistics, and Fulfillment

Our services include digital printing, print on demand, advanced mail optimization, logistics and transportation optimization, tracking, commingling, shrink wrapping, and specialized mailings. We also maintain fulfillment centers where we provide custom kitting services, print on demand, product recalls, and freight optimization allowing our customers to distribute literature and other marketing materials.

The majority of 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 at a per transaction basis and our contracts provide us the right to invoice for services provided and reflects the value to the customer of the services transferred 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. For our direct mail revenue stream, our 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.

The variable consideration in our contracts results primarily from the transaction-based fee structure of some performance obligations with their total transaction quantities to be provided unknown at the onset of a contract, which is estimated using the expected value method.
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 December 31, 2019 and 2018.
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: 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. After considering the above exemptions, the transaction prices allocated to unsatisfied or partially satisfied performance obligations as of December 31, 2019 totaled $0.1 million, which is expected to be recognized in 2020.
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 delivery presentation before customer payment is required). If invoicing occurs prior to revenue recognition, the unearned revenue is presented on our Consolidated Balance Sheet as a contract liability, referred to as deferred revenue. The following table summarizes our contract balances as of December 31, 2019 and 2018:

In thousands December 31, 2019 December 31, 2018
Contract assets $805
 $2,362
Deferred revenue and customer advances 4,397
 6,034
Deferred revenue included in other long-term liabilities 886
 578



Revenue recognized during the year ended December 31, 2019 from amounts included in deferred revenue at the beginning of the period was approximately $4.3 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 expense over the expected period of benefit in a manner that is consistent with the transfer of the related goods or services to which the asset relates. We capitalized a portion of commission expense, implementation and other costs that represents the cost to obtain and fulfill a contract. The remaining unamortized contract costs were $1.9 million and $3.8 million as of December 31, 2019 and 2018. For the years presented, $0.1 million impairment was recognized in Q4 2018.

Note D - Leases

On January 1, 2019, the Company adopted Topic 842 using the modified retrospective approach with optional transition method. The Company recorded operating lease assets (right-of-use assets) of $22.8 million and operating lease liabilities of $23.9 million. There was minimal impact to retained earnings upon adoption of Topic 842. 

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 leases). Our leases have remaining lease terms of 1 year to 6 years, some of which may include options to extend the leases for up to 5 years, and some of which may include options to terminate the leases within 1 year.

As of December 31, 2019, assets recorded under finance and operating leases were approximately $1.1 million and $17.7 million respectively, and accumulated amortization associated with finance leases was $0.4 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 lease, or when that is not readily determinable, we utilized 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. Certain adjustments to the right-of-use asset may be required for items such as initial direct costs paid or incentives received.

The following table presents supplemental balance sheet information related to our financing and operating leases:
In thousands As of December 31, 2019  
  Operating Leases
 Finance Leases
 Total
Right-of-use Assets $17,679

$1,138
 $18,817
       
Liabilities      
Short-term lease liabilities 7,226

390
 7,616
Long-term lease liabilities 12,514

564
 13,078
Total Lease Liabilities $19,740
 $954
 $20,694
For the year ended December 31, 2019, the components of lease expense were as follows:
In thousands Year Ended December 31, 2019
Operating lease cost $9,251
  
Finance lease cost 
       Amortization of right-of-use assets 298
       Interest on lease liabilities 70
Total Finance lease cost 368
Variable lease cost 2,797
Total lease cost $12,416



Other information related to leases was as follows:
In thousands Year Ended December 31, 2019
Supplemental Cash Flows Information  
   
Cash paid for amounts included in the measurement of lease liabilities:  
    Operating cash flows from operating leases $17,986
    Operating cash flows from finance leases 66
    Financing cash flows from finance leases 461
   
Weighted Average Remaining Lease term  
   
Operating leases 3.29
Finance leases 3.15
   
Weighted Average Discount Rate  
Operating leases 4.71%
Finance leases 6.81%


The maturities of the Company’s finance and operating lease liabilities as of December 31, 2019 are as follows: 
In thousands Operating Leases
 Finance Leases
Year Ending December 31,    
2020 $7,934

$431
2021 5,838

238
2022 3,957

189
2023 2,193

151
2024 1,274

35
2025 123


   Total future minimum lease payments 21,319
 1,044
Less: Imputed interest 1,579

90
      Total lease liabilities $19,740
 $954


As previously disclosed in our 2018 10-K and under the previous lease accounting standard, ASC 840, Leases, the total commitment for non-cancelable operating and finance leases was $35.0 million and $1.4 million as of December 31, 2018:
In thousands Operating Leases Finance Leases
Year Ending December 31,    
2019 $9,645
 $748
2020 8,815
 307
2021 7,425
 131
2022 5,456
 133
2023 2,349
 104
Thereafter 1,328
 
   Total future minimum lease payments $35,018
 $1,423

As of December 31, 2019, wehave one additional operating lease that has not yet commenced.



Note E - Convertible Preferred Stock

Our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation authorizes us to issue 1.0 million shares of preferred stock (“Preferred Stock”). On January 30, 2018, we issued 9,926 shares of our Series A Preferred Stock to Wipro, LLC (as further described in Note A above under the heading “Securities Purchase Agreement”) at an issue price of $1.00 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 are netted against the gross proceeds of $9.9 million on our Consolidated Financial Statements.

Series A Preferred Stock has the following rights and privileges:

Liquidation Rights

In the event of a liquidation, dissolution or winding down of the Company or a Fundamental Transaction (defined in the Certificate of Designation for the Series A Preferred Stock), whether voluntary or involuntary, the holders of the Series A Preferred Stock are entitled to receive, prior to and in preference to the holders of common stock, from the assets of the Company available for distribution, an amount equal to the greater of (i) the original issue price, plus any dividends accrued but unpaid thereon, and (ii) such amount per share as would have been payable had all shares of Series A Preferred Stock been converted into Common Stock immediately before such liquidation.

Upon liquidation, after the payment of all preferential amounts required to be paid to the holders of Series A Preferred Stock, the remaining assets of the Company available for distribution to its stockholders shall be distributed among the holders of Common Stock.

Dividends

Upon liquidation, dissolution or winding down of the Company, or a Fundamental Transaction, shares of Series A Preferred Stock which have not been otherwise converted to Common Stock, shall be entitled to receive dividends that accrue at a rate of (i) 5% each year, or (ii) the rate that cash dividends were paid in respect of common stock (with Series A Preferred Stock being paid on an as-converted basis in such case) for such year if such rate is greater than 5.0%. Dividends on the Series A Preferred Stock are cumulative and accrue to the holders thereof whether or not declared by the Board of Directors. Dividends are payable solely upon a Liquidation (as defined in the Certificate of Designation), and only if prior to such Liquidation such shares of Series A Preferred Stock have not been converted to Common Stock. As of December 31, 2019, cumulative dividends payable to the holders of Series A Preferred Stock upon a Liquidation totaled $1.0 million or $96.0 per share of Series A Preferred Stock.

Conversion

At the option of the holders of Series A Preferred Stock, shares of Series A Preferred Stock may be converted into Common Stock at a rate of 100.91 shares of Common Stock for one share of Series A Preferred Stock, subject to certain future adjustments.

Voting and Other Rights

The Series A Preferred Stock does not have voting rights, except as otherwise required by law. Other rights afforded the holders of Series A Preferred Stock, under defined circumstances, include the election and removal of one member of the Board of Directors as a separate voting class, the ability to approve certain actions of the Company prior to execution, and preemptive rights to participate in any future issuances of new securities. In addition, under certain circumstances, the holder of the Series A Preferred Stock is entitled to appoint an observer to our Board of Directors. The holder of the Series A Preferred Stock has elected to exercise its observer appointment rights but not its right to appoint the board member.

We determined that the Series A Preferred Stock has contingent redemption provisions allowing redemption by the holder upon certain defined events. As the event that may trigger the redemption of the Series A Preferred Stock is not solely within our control, the Series A Preferred Stock is classified as mezzanine equity (temporary equity) in the Consolidated Balance Sheet as of December 31, 2019.

Note F — Long-Term Debt

As of December 31, 2019 and 2018, we had $18.7 million and $14.2 million of borrowing outstanding under the Texas Capital Facility (as defined herein). As of December 31, 2019, we had the ability to borrow an additional $1.6 million under the facility,

Credit Facilities

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”) and letters of credit issued by Texas Capital Bank up to $5 million. The Texas Capital Credit Facility is being used for general corporate purposes. The Texas Capital Credit Facility is secured by substantially all of the Company’s assets and its 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).

Under the Texas Capital Credit Facility, we can elect to accrue interest on outstanding principal balances at either LIBOR plus 1.95% or prime plus 0.75%. Unused commitment balances accrue interest at 0.50%. We are required to pay a quarterly fee of $0.1 million as consideration for the guarantee provided by HHS Guaranty, LLC.

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. The Company has been in compliance of all the requirements.

The Texas Capital Credit Facility originally had an expiration date of April 17, 2019, at which point all outstanding amounts would have been due. On January 9, 2018, we entered into an amendment to the Texas Capital Credit Facility that increased the borrowing capacity to $22 million and extended the maturity by one year to April 17, 2020. On May 7, 2019, we entered into an amendment


to the Texas Capital Credit Facility which further extended the maturity of the facility by one year to April 17, 2021. The Texas Capital Credit Facility remains secured by substantially all of our assets and continues to be guaranteed by HHS Guaranty, LLC.

At December 31, 2019, we had letters of credit outstanding in the amount of $2.8 million. No amounts were drawn against these letters of credit at December 31, 2019. These letters of credit exist to support insurance programs relating to workers’ compensation, automobile, and general liability.

Cash payments for interest were $0.9 million and $0.2 million for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, respectively.

Note G — Stock-Based Compensation

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 Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive (Loss) Income. For the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, we recorded total stock-based compensation expense (income) from operations of $1.1 million and $(0.6) million, respectively.

We granted equity awards to our Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operations Officer in 2019 and 2018, as a material inducement for acceptance of such positions. These option, restricted stock, and performance unit awards were not submitted for stockholder approval and were separately listed with the NYSE.

In May 2013, our stockholders approved the 2013 Omnibus Incentive Plan (“2013 Plan”), pursuant to which we may issue up to 500,000 shares of stock-based awards to directors, employees, and consultants, as adjusted for the reverse stock split. The 2013 Plan replaced the stockholder-approved 2005 Omnibus Incentive Plan (“2005 Plan”), pursuant to which we issued equity securities to directors, officers, and key employees. No additional stock-based awards will be granted under the 2005 Plan, but awards previously granted under the 2005 Plan will remain outstanding in accordance with their respective terms. In August 2018, we filed S-8 to increase the total registered shares under 2013 Plan to 553,673 shares. As of December 31, 2019 and 2018, there were 18.1 thousand and 0.2 million shares available for grant under the 2013 Plan.

Stock Options

Options granted under the 2013 Plan or as inducement awards have an exercise price equal to the market value of the common stock on the grant date. These options become exercisable in 25% increments on the first four anniversaries of their date of grant and expire on the tenth anniversary of their date of grant. Options to purchase 70 thousand shares granted under 2013 Plan awards were outstanding at December 31, 2019, with exercise prices ranging from $1.57 to $119.00 per share. There is no option outstanding to purchase inducement awards at December 31, 2019.

Options under the 2005 Plan were granted at exercise prices equal to the market value of the common stock on the grant date. All such awards have met their respective vesting dates. Options to purchase 56 thousand shares were outstanding under the 2005 Plan as of December 31, 2019, with exercise prices ranging from $9.70 to $123.10 per share.

Options granted to officers after April 2015 vest in full upon a change in control if such options are not assumed or replaced by a publicly traded successor with an equivalent award (as defined in such officers’ change in control severance agreements). Additionally, 25% of the inducement options granted to the former Chief Executive Officer will vest (if not previously vested) in the event her employment is terminated without cause, or if she terminates her employment for good reason (as such terms are defined in her employment agreement). However, following the August 2018 resignation of our former CEO, her unvested stock option was forfeited according to her separation agreement with the Company and resulted in $0.1 million credit to stock compensation expense.



The following summarizes all stock option activity during the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018:
In thousands 
Number of
Shares
 
Weighted-
Average
Exercise Price
 
Weighted- Average
Remaining Contractual
Term (Years)
 
Aggregate
Intrinsic Value (Thousands)
Options outstanding at December 31, 2017 308,967
 $60.80
    
         
Granted in 2018 14,821
 7.40
    
Exercised in 2018 
 
   
Unvested options forfeited in 2018 (61,286) 37.13
    
Vested options expired in 2018 (91,133) 68.28
    
Options outstanding at December 31, 2018 171,369
 $60.66
    
         
Granted in 2019 31,906
 1.57
    
Exercised in 2019 
 
   
Unvested options forfeited in 2019 (25,392) 10.00
    
Vested options expired in 2019 (51,187) 59.84
    
Options outstanding at December 31, 2019 126,696
 $57.48
 5.21 
         
Vested and expected to vest at December 31, 2019 126,696
 $57.48
 5.21 
         
Exercisable at December 31, 2019 83,674
 $85.45
 3.08 

The aggregate intrinsic value at year end in the table above represents the total pre-tax intrinsic value that would have been received by the option holders if all of the in-the-money options were exercised on December 31, 2019. The pre-tax intrinsic value is the difference between the closing price of our common stock on December 31, 2019 and the exercise price for each in-the-money option. This value fluctuates with the changes in the price of our common stock.

The following table summarizes information about stock options outstanding at December 31, 2019:
Range of
Exercise Prices
 
Number
Outstanding
 
Weighted-Average
Exercise Price
 
Weighted-Average
Remaining Life (Years)
 
Number
Exercisable
 
Weighted-Average
Exercise Price
$1.57
 -7.40 46,727
 $3.42
 9.32 3,705
 $7.40
$9.70
 -72.50 4,000
 72.50
 2.72 4,000
 72.50
$76.80
 -119.00 73,569
 88.86
 2.87 73,569
 88.86
$123.10
 -123.10 2,400
 123.10
 1.10 2,400
 123.10
    126,696
 $57.48
 5.21 83,674
 $85.45
The fair value of each option grant is estimated on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes Option-Pricing Model based on the following weighted-average assumptions used for grants during 2019 and 2018:
  Year Ended December 31,
  2019 2018
Expected term (in years) 5.50
 5.23
Expected stock price volatility 40.53% 55.07%
Risk-free interest rate 1.86% 2.96%
Expected term is estimated using the simplified method, which takes into account vesting and contractual term. The simplified method is being used to calculate expected term instead of historical experience due to a lack of relevant historical data resulting from changes in option vesting schedules and changes in the pool of employees receiving option grants. Expected stock price volatility is based on the historical volatility from traded shares of our stock over the expected term. The risk-free interest rate is based on the rate of a zero-coupon U.S. Treasury instrument with a remaining term approximately equal to the expected term. 

The weighted-average fair value of options granted during 2019 and 2018 was $1.67 and $3.55, respectively. As of December 31, 2019, there was $0.1 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 1.74 years.



Cash Stock Appreciation Rights

In 2016 and 2017, the Board approved grants of cash settling stock appreciation rights under the 2013 Plan. Cash stock appreciation rights vest in 25% increments on the first four anniversaries of the date of grant and expire after 10 years. Cash stock appreciation rights settle solely in cash and are treated as a liability.

The following summarizes all cash stock appreciation rights during the year ended December 31, 2019:

  Number of
Units
 
Weighted-
Average 
Grant Price
 Weighted-Average
Remaining
Contractual Term
(Years)
Cash stock appreciation rights outstanding at December 31, 2017 86,618

$9.70

9.48
       
Granted in 2018 


  
Exercised in 2018 


  
Expired in 2018
(11,090)
9.70
  
Forfeited in 2018 (62,852)
9.70
  
Cash stock appreciation rights outstanding at December 31, 2018 12,676
 $9.70
 8.48
       
Granted in 2019 
 
  
Exercised in 2019 
 
  
Expired in 2018

 
  
Forfeited in 2019 
 
  
Cash stock appreciation rights outstanding at December 31, 2019 12,676
 $9.70
 7.48
       
Vested balance at December 31, 2019 6,338

$9.70

7.48


The fair value of each cash stock appreciation right is estimated on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes Option-Pricing Model and is revalued at the end of each period. Changes in fair value are recorded to the income statement as changes to expense. As of December 31, 2019, there was no unrecognized compensation cost related to unvested cash stock appreciation right grants.

Restricted Stock Units

Restricted stock units granted as inducement awards or under the 2013 Plan vest in three equal increments on the first three anniversaries of their date of grant. Restricted stock units settle in treasury stock and are treated as equity. Outstanding restricted stock units granted to officers as inducement awards or under the 2013 Plan vest in full (to the extent not previously vested) upon a change in control if such unvested shares are not assumed or replaced by a publicly-traded successor with an equivalent award (as such terms are defined in such officers’ change-in-control severance agreements).


The following summarizes all restricted stock units’ activity during 2019 and 2018:
  
Number of
Shares
 
Weighted-
Average Grant
Date Fair Value
Unvested shares outstanding at December 31, 2017 201,222
 $15.23
     
Granted in 2018 72,549
 9.51
Vested in 2018 (56,219) 19.28
Forfeited in 2018 (110,137) 14.54
Unvested shares outstanding at December 31, 2018 107,415
 $9.98
     
Granted in 2019 383,569
 3.26
Vested in 2019 (39,858) 9.65
Forfeited in 2019 (22,835) 10.07
Unvested shares outstanding at December 31, 2019 428,291
 $3.99
The fair value of each restricted stock unit is estimated on the date of grant as the closing market price of our common stock on the date of grant. As of December 31, 2019, there was $1.1 million of total unrecognized compensation cost related to restricted stock units. This cost is expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of approximately 1.69 years.

Phantom Stock Units

In 2016 and 2017, the Board approved grants of phantom stock units under the 2013 Plan. Phantom stock units vest in 25% increments on the first four anniversaries of the date of grant. Phantom stock units settle solely in cash and are treated as a liability. Grants of phantom stock units made to officers under the 2013 Plan vest in full (to the extent not previously vested) upon a change in control if they are not assumed or replaced by a publicly-traded successor with an equivalent award (as such terms are defined in such officers’ change-in-control severance agreements).

The following summarizes all phantom stock unit activity during 2019 and 2018:
  Number of
Units
 Weighted-
Average Grant
Date Fair Value
Phantom stock units outstanding at December 31, 2017 82,037
 $15.92
     
Granted in 2018 
 
Vested in 2018 (19,992) 17.85
Forfeited in 2018 (29,234) 16.32
Phantom stock units outstanding at December 31, 2018 32,811
 $14.39
     
Granted in 2019 
 
Vested in 2019 (11,449) 16.01
Forfeited in 2019 (6,542) 13.49
Phantom stock units outstanding at December 31, 2019 14,820
 $13.55

The fair value of each phantom stock unit is estimated on the date of grant as the closing market price of our common stock on the date of grant. Changes in our stock price will result in adjustments to compensation expense and the corresponding liability over the applicable service period. As of December 31, 2019, there was $48 thousand of total unrecognized compensation cost related to phantom stock units. This cost is expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of approximately 1.30 years.



Performance Stock Units

Under the 2013 Plan and grants of inducement awards, performance stock units are a form of share-based award similar to unvested shares, except that the number of shares ultimately issued is based on our performance against specific performance goals over a roughly three-year period. At the end of the performance period, the number of shares of stock issued will be determined in accordance with the specified performance target(s) in a range between 0% and 100%. Performance stock units vest solely in common stock and are treated as equity. Upon a change in control, performance stock units granted to officers vest on a pro-rated basis (based on time elapsed from the grant) to the extent not previously settled if they are not assumed or replaced by a publicly-traded successor with an equivalent award (as such terms are defined in such officers’ change-in-control severance agreements).

The following summarizes all performance stock unit activity during 2019 and 2018:
  
Number of
Units
 
Weighted-
Average Grant-Date Fair Value
Performance stock units outstanding at December 31, 2017
163,060

$15.59
     
Granted in 2018 11,904
 8.40
Settled in 2018 
 
Forfeited in 2018 (136,435) 16.40
Performance stock units outstanding at December 31, 2018 38,529
 $10.50
     
Granted in 2019 417,035
 2.67
Settled in 2019 
 
Forfeited in 2019 (247,635) 3.36
Performance stock units outstanding at December 31, 2019 207,929
 $3.27

The fair value of each performance stock unit is estimated on the date of grant as the closing market price of our common stock on the date of grant, minus the present value of anticipated dividend payments. Periodic compensation expense is based on the current estimate of future performance against specific performance goals over a three-year period and is adjusted up or down based on those estimates. As of December 31, 2019, there was $0.5 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 6.60 years.

Cash Performance Stock Units

In 2016 and 2017, the Board of Directors approved grants of cash performance stock units under the 2013 Plan. Cash performance stock units are a form of share-based award similar to phantom stock units, except that the number of units ultimately issued is based on our performance against specific performance goals measured after a three-year period. At the end of the performance period, the number of units vesting will be determined in accordance with specified performance target(s) in a range between 0% and 100%. Cash performance stock units settle solely in cash and are treated as a liability. Upon a change in control, cash performance stock units granted to officers vest on a pro-rated basis (based on time elapsed from the grant) to the extent not previously settled if they are not assumed or replaced by a publicly-traded successor with an equivalent award (as such terms are defined in such officers’ change-in-control severance agreements).



The following summarizes all performance stock unit activity during 2019 and 2018:
  Number of
Shares
 Weighted-
Average Grant-Date Fair Value
Cash performance stock units outstanding at December 31, 2017 150,506
 $14.63
     
Granted in 2018 


Settled in 2018 


Forfeited in 2018 (146,728)
14.32
Cash performance stock units outstanding at December 31, 2018 3,778
 $26.90
     
Granted in 2019 
 
Settled in 2019 
 
Forfeited in 2019 (3,778) 26.90
Cash performance stock units outstanding at December 31, 2019 
 $

The fair value of each cash performance stock unit is estimated on the date of grant as the closing market price of our common stock on the date of grant, minus the present value of anticipated dividend payments. Periodic compensation expense is based on the current estimate of future performance against specific performance goals over a three-year period and is adjusted up or down based on those estimates. As of December 31, 2019, there was no unrecognized compensation cost related to cash performance stock units. 

Note H — Employee Benefit Plans
Prior to January 1, 1999, we provided a defined benefit pension plan for which most of our employees were eligible to participate (the “Qualified Pension Plan”). In 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 Pension Plan”) covering certain employees, which provides for incremental pension payments so that total pension payments equal those amounts that would have been payable from the principal pension plan were it not for limitations imposed by income tax regulation. The benefits under the Restoration Pension Plan were 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.

The overfunded or underfunded status of our defined benefit post-retirement plans is recorded as an asset or liability on our balance sheet. 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. We currently measure the funded status of our defined benefit plans as of December 31, the date of our year-end consolidated balance sheets.



The status of the defined benefit pension plans at year-end was as follows:
  Year Ended December 31,
In thousands 2019 2018
Change in benefit obligation  
  
Benefit obligation at beginning of year $171,761
 $187,036
Interest cost 7,254
 6,740
Actuarial (gain) loss 21,174
 (12,021)
Benefits paid (10,382) (9,994)
Benefit obligation at end of year $189,807
 $171,761
     
Change in plan assets  
  
Fair value of plan assets at beginning of year 107,862
 126,013
Actual return on plan assets 16,742
 (9,847)
Contributions 3,870
 1,690
Benefits paid (10,382) (9,994)
Fair value of plan assets at end of year $118,092
 $107,862
 ��   
Funded status at end of year $(71,715) $(63,899)

The following amounts have been recognized in the Consolidated Balance Sheets at December 31:
In thousands 2019 2018
Other current liabilities $1,715
 $1,685
Pensions 70,000
 62,214
Total $71,715
 $63,899

The following amounts have been recognized in accumulated other comprehensive loss, net of tax, at December 31:
In thousands 2019 2018
Net loss $63,887
 $46,584

Based on current estimates, we will be required to make $6.4 million contributions to our Qualified Pension Plan in 2020.

We are not required to make and do not intend to make any contributions to our Restoration Pension Plan in 2020 other than to the extent needed to cover benefit payments. We expect benefit payments under this supplemental pension plan to total approximately $1.7 million in 2020.

The following information is presented for pension plans with an accumulated benefit obligation in excess of plan assets:
In thousands 2019 2018
Projected benefit obligation $189,807
 $171,761
Accumulated benefit obligation $189,807
 $171,761
Fair value of plan assets $118,092
 $107,862

The Restoration Pension Plan had an accumulated benefit obligation of $27.6 million and $25.3 million at December 31, 2019 and 2018, respectively. 



The following table presents the components of net periodic benefit cost and other amounts recognized in other comprehensive income (loss) for both plans:
  Year Ended December 31,
In thousands 2019 2018
Net Periodic Benefit Cost (Pre-Tax)  
  
Service cost
$

$
Interest cost $7,254
 $6,740
Expected return on plan assets (4,446) (6,094)
Recognized actuarial loss 2,930
 2,754
Net periodic benefit cost 5,738
 3,400
     
Amounts Recognized in Other Comprehensive (Loss) income (Pre-Tax)  
  
Net loss 5,948
 1,166
     
Net cost recognized in net periodic benefit cost and other comprehensive (Loss) income $11,686
 $4,566
The components of net periodic benefit costs other than the service cost component are included in Other, net in our Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive (Loss) income. The estimated net loss for the defined benefit pension plans that will be amortized from accumulated other comprehensive loss into net periodic benefit cost in 2020 is $3.6 million. The period over which the net loss from the Qualified Pension Plan is amortized into net periodic benefit cost was the average future lifetime of all participants (approximately 19.7 years). The Qualified Pension Plan is frozen and almost all of the plan’s participants are not active employees.

The weighted-average assumptions used for measurement of the defined pension plans were as follows:
  Year Ended December 31,
  2019 2018
Weighted-average assumptions used to determine net periodic benefit cost  
  
Discount rate 4.35% 3.67%
Expected return on plan assets 4.25% 5.00%

  December 31,
  2019 2018
Weighted-average assumptions used to determine benefit obligations  
  
Discount rate 3.20% 4.35%
The discount rate assumptions are based on current yields of investment-grade corporate long-term bonds. The expected long-term return on plan assets is based on the expected future average annual return for each major asset class within the plan’s portfolio (which is principally comprised of equity investments) over a long-term horizon. In determining the expected long-term rate of return on plan assets, we evaluated input from our investment consultants, actuaries, and investment management firms, including their review of asset class return expectations, as well as long-term historical asset class returns. Projected returns by such consultants and economists are based on broad equity and bond indices. Additionally, we considered our historical 15-year compounded returns, which have been in excess of the forward-looking return expectations.

The funded pension plan assets as of December 31, 2019 and 2018, by asset category, are as follows:
In thousands  2019 % 2018 %
Equity securities $68,563
 58% $71,384
 66%
Debt securities 43,622
 37% 22,134
 21%
Other 5,907
 5% 14,344
 13%
Total plan assets $118,092
 100% $107,862
 100%

The fair values presented have been prepared using values and information available as of December 31, 2019 and 2018.


The following tables present the fair value measurements of the assets in our funded pension plan:
In thousands December 31,
2019
 
Quoted Prices 
in Active Markets for
Identical Assets
(Level 1)
 
Significant
Other
Observable
Inputs
(Level 2)
 
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
(Level 3)
Equity securities $68,563
 $68,563
 $
 $
Debt securities 43,622
 39,380
 4,242
 
Total investments, excluding investments valued at NAV 112,185
 107,943
 4,242
 
Investments valued at NAV (1)
 5,907
 
 
 
Total plan assets $118,092
 $107,943
 $4,242
 $
In thousands December 31, 2018 Quoted Prices 
in Active Markets for
Identical Assets
(Level 1)
 
Significant
Other
Observable
Inputs
(Level 2)
 
Significant
Unobservable
Inputs
(Level 3)
Equity securities $71,384

$71,384

$

$
Debt securities 22,134

22,134




Total investments, excluding investments valued at NAV 93,518

93,518




Investments valued at NAV (1)
 14,344






Total plan assets $107,862

$93,518

$

$
(1) Investment valued at NAV are comprised of cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments used to provide liquidity for the payment of benefits and other purposes. The commingled funds are valued at NAV based on the market value of the underlying investments, which are primarily government issued securities.

The investment policy for the Qualified Pension Plan focuses on the preservation and enhancement of the corpus of the plan’s assets through prudent asset allocation, quarterly monitoring and evaluation of investment results, and periodic meetings with investment managers.

The investment policy’s goals and objectives are to meet or exceed the representative indices over a full market cycle (3-5 years). The policy establishes the following investment mix, which is intended to subject the principal to an acceptable level of volatility while still meeting the desired return objectives:
  Target Acceptable Range Benchmark Index
Equities 65.0% 50% -70%  
U.S. Large Cap 30.0% 20% -40% S&P 500 TR
U.S. Mid Cap 10.0% 0% -15% Russell Mid Cap Index TR
U.S. Small Cap 5.0% 0% -10% Russell 2000 TR
International - Developed 15.0% 0% -25% MSCI World ex US Net
  Emerging Markets 5.0% 0% 8% MSCI EMF TR Net EmrgMrkts
Fixed Income 35.0% 1% -40% BBG BARC US Aggregate Bond Index
  Investment Grade 35.0% 1% -40%  
  International Developed Bonds 0% 0% 5%  
  High Yield 0% 0% 5%  
         

The funded pension plan provides for investment in various investment types. Investments, in general, are exposed to various risks, such as interest rate, credit, and overall market volatility risk. Due to the level of risk associated with investments, it is reasonably possible that changes in the value of investments will occur in the near term and may impact the funded status of the plan. To address the issue of risk, the investment policy places high priority on the preservation of the value of capital (in real terms) over a market cycle. Investments are made in companies with a minimum five-year operating history and sufficient trading volume to facilitate, under most market conditions, prompt sale without severe market effect. Investments are diversified across numerous market sectors and individual companies. Reasonable concentration in any one issue, issuer, industry, or geographic area is allowed if the potential reward is worth the risk.

Investment managers are evaluated by the performance of the representative indices over a full market cycle for each class of assets. The Pension Plan Committee reviews, on a quarterly basis, the investment portfolio of each manager, which includes rates


of return, performance comparisons with the most appropriate indices, and comparisons of each manager’s performance with a universe of other portfolio managers that employ the same investment style.
The expected future benefit payments for both pension plans over the next ten years as of December 31, 2019 are as follows:
In thousands  
2020 $10,414
2021 10,628
2022 10,967
2023 11,245
2024 11,378
2025-2029 57,995
Total $112,627

We also sponsored a 401(k) - retirement plan in which we matched a portion of employees’ voluntary before-tax contributions prior to 2018. Under this plan, both employee and matching contributions vest immediately. We stopped this 401(k) match program in 2018. Total 401(k) expense for these matching payments recognized was $0.0 million and $0.4 million for years ending December 31, 2019 and 2018.

Note I — Income Taxes
The components of income tax expense (benefit) are as follows:
  Year Ended December 31,
In thousands 2019 2018
Current  
  
Federal $216
 $(18,194)
State and local 504
 314
Foreign 37
 1,413
Total current $757
 $(16,467)
     
Deferred  
  
Federal $623
 $(470)
State and local (96) (181)
Foreign 469
 (994)
Total deferred $996
 $(1,645)
     
Total income tax expense (benefit) $1,753
 $(18,112)

The U.S. and foreign components of loss before income taxes were as follows:
  Year Ended December 31,
In thousands 2019 2018
United States $(29,003) $(4,873)
Foreign 4,492
 4,311
Total loss from operations before income taxes $(24,511) $(562)



The differences between total income tax expense (benefit) and the amount computed by applying the statutory federal income tax rate of 21% to (loss) income before income taxes were as follows:
  Year Ended December 31,
In thousands 2019 2018
Computed expected income tax benefit $(5,147) $(118)
Basis difference on sale of 3Q Digital 
 (11,937)
Net effect of state income taxes (509) (388)
Foreign subsidiary dividend inclusions 1,083
 2,781
Foreign tax rate differential (268) 189
Change in valuation allowance 6,085
 3,383
Loss from deemed liquidation of foreign subsidiary 
 (4,242)
Rate Benefit from Carryback of Capital Loss 
 (6,452)
Stock-based compensation shortfalls 238

437
Return to Provision 216
 (1,835)
Other, net 55
 70
Income tax expense (benefit) for the period $1,753
 $(18,112)

Total income tax expense (benefit) was allocated as follows:
  Year Ended December 31,
In thousands 2019 2018
(Loss) Income from operations $1,753
 $(18,112)
Stockholders’ equity 
 
Total $1,753
 $(18,112)

The U.S. Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “Tax Reform Act”) was enacted on December 22, 2017. The legislation significantly changed U.S. tax law by, among other things, lowering the corporate income tax rate from 35% to 21%, implementing a territorial tax system and imposing a one-time repatriation tax on deemed repatriated earnings of foreign subsidiaries. We applied the guidance in the SAB 118 when accounting for the enactment-date effects of the Tax Reform Act in 2017 and throughout 2018. At December 31, 2018, we completed our accounting for all the enactment-date income tax effects of the Tax Reform Act. We did not record any adjustments to our provisional amounts in the year ended December 31, 2018.

The Tax Reform Act subjects a U.S. shareholder to tax on Global Intangible Low Tax Income (GILTI) earned by certain foreign subsidiaries. The FASB Staff Q&A Topic 740, No. 5 “Accounting for Global Intangible Low-Taxed Income”, states that an entity can make an accounting policy election to either recognize deferred taxes for temporary basis differences expected to reverse as GILTI in future years or to provide for the tax expense related to GILTI in the year the tax is incurred as a period expense only. We elected to account for GILTI as a current period expense when incurred.


The tax effects of temporary differences that gave rise to significant portions of the deferred tax assets and deferred tax liabilities were as follows:
  Year Ended December 31,
In thousands 2019 2018
Deferred tax assets    
Deferred compensation and retirement plan $18,067
 $16,179
Accrued expenses not deductible until paid 2,331
 1,584
Lease liability
4,217


Employee stock-based compensation 736
 780
Accrued payroll not deductible until paid 196
 428
Accounts receivable, net 156
 100
Investment in foreign subsidiaries, outside basis difference 1,336
 1,322
Goodwill 649
 710
Other, net 156
 142
Foreign net operating loss carryforwards 2,364
 3,042
State net operating loss carryforwards 4,387
 3,776
Foreign tax credit carryforwards 3,653
 3,653
Federal net operating loss carryforwards 5,394
 2,507
Total gross deferred tax assets 43,642
 34,223
Less valuation allowances (38,379) (31,170)
Net deferred tax assets $5,263
 $3,053
     
Deferred tax liabilities  
  
Property, plant and equipment $(1,159) $(1,689)
Right-of-use asset (3,785) 
Prepaid Expenses (279)
(331)
Other, net (284) (281)
Total gross deferred tax liabilities (5,507) (2,301)
Net deferred tax (liabilities) assets $(244) $752


A reconciliation of the beginning and ending balance of deferred tax valuation allowance is as follows:
In thousands  
Balance at December 31, 2017 $28,350
Deferred Income Tax Expense 3,383
Return to Provision Impact
(854)
Other Comprehensive Income 291
Balance at December 31, 2018 $31,170
Deferred Income Tax Expense 6,086
Return to Provision Impact (364)
  Other Comprehensive Income 1,487
Balance at December 31, 2019 $38,379

In assessing the realizability of deferred tax assets, we consider whether it is more likely than not that some portion or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. The valuation allowance for deferred tax assets was $38.4 million and $31.2 million at December 31, 2019 and 2018, respectively. The amount of the deferred tax asset considered realizable could be adjusted if estimates of future taxable income during the carryforward period are increased, or if objective negative evidence in the form of cumulative losses is no longer present, and additional weight may be given to subjective evidence such as changes in our growth projections.

We or one of our subsidiaries file 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 years prior to 2014. For U.S. federal and foreign returns, we are no longer subject to tax examinations for years prior to 2016.



A reconciliation of the beginning and ending amount of unrecognized tax benefit is as follows:
In thousands  
Balance at December 31, 2017 $206
Settlements (206)
Balance at December 31, 2018 $
Settlements 

Balance at December 31, 2019 $

There is no balance of unrecognized tax benefits as of December 31, 2019. Any adjustments to this liability as a result of the finalization of audits or potential settlements would not be material.

Effective January 1, 2019 we adopted ASU 2018-02 which allows a reclassification from accumulated other comprehensive income to retained earnings for stranded tax effects resulting from the reduction of the U.S. federal statutory income tax rate from 35% to 21% due to the enactment of the Tax Reform Act. As a result of the adoption, we reclassified $11.4 million of stranded tax effects from accumulated other comprehensive income to retained earnings.

We have elected to classify any interest and penalties related to income taxes within income tax expense in our Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (Loss). We did not recognize any tax benefits for the reduction of accrued interest and penalties associated with the reduction of the liability for unrecognized tax benefits during the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018.  We did not have any interest and penalties accrued at December 31, 2019 or 2018.

For U.S. tax return purposes, net operating losses and tax credits are normally available to be carried forward to future years, subject to limitations as discussed below.  As of December 31, 2019, the Company has federal net operating loss carryforward of $25.7 million, of which the entire amount is not subject to expiration due to the change in carryforward periods as a result of the U.S. Tax Act.  Federal Foreign tax carryforward credit of $3.7 million will expire on various dates from 2023 to 2026. 
Deferred income taxes have not been provided on the undistributed earnings of our foreign subsidiaries as these earnings have been, and under current plans will continue to be, permanently reinvested in these subsidiaries. It is not practicable to estimate the amount of additional taxes which may be payable upon the distribution of these earnings. However, because of the provisions in the Tax Reform Act, the tax cost of repatriation is immaterial and limited to foreign withholding taxes, currency translation and state taxes.

Note J — (Loss) Earnings Per Share


In periods in which the company has net income, the company is required to calculate earnings (loss) per share (“EPS”)
using the two-class method. The two-class method is required because the company’s preferred stock is considered a participating security with objectively determinable and non-discretionary dividend participation rights. Preferred stockholders have the right to participate in dividends above their five percent dividend rate should the company declare dividends on its Common Stock at a dividend rate higher than the five percent (on an as-converted basis). Under the two-class method, undistributed and distributed earnings are allocated on a pro-rata basis to the common and the preferred stockholders. The weighted-average number of common and preferred stock outstanding during the period is then used to calculate EPS for each class of shares.

In periods in which the company has a net loss, 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-class method is not used, because the two-class calculation is anti-dilutive.




Reconciliations of basic and diluted EPS are as follows:

  Year Ended December 31,
In thousands, except per share amounts 2019 2018
Numerator:    
   Net (loss) income $(26,264)
$17,550
   Less: Preferred stock dividend 496

457
   Less: Earnings attributable to participating securities 

2,202
Numerator for basic EPS: (loss) income attributable to common stockholders (26,760) 14,891
     
Effect of dilutive securities:    
   Add back: Allocation of earnings to participating securities 
 2,202
   Less: Re-allocation of earnings to participating securities considering potentially dilutive securities 

(2,191)
Numerator for diluted EPS $(26,760) $14,902
     
Denominator:    
Basic EPS denominator: weighted-average common shares outstanding 6,284

6,237
     
Effect of dilutive securities:    
   Unvested shares 

33
Diluted EPS denominator 6,284
 6,270
     
Basic earnings (loss) per common share $(4.26) $2.39
Diluted earnings (loss) per common share $(4.26) $2.38


For the purpose of calculating the shares used in the diluted EPS calculations, 0.1 million and 0.2 million anti-dilutive options have been excluded from the EPS calculations for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018. 0.2 million and 0.1 million anti-dilutive unvested shares were excluded from the calculation of shares used in the diluted EPS calculation for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, respectively.

Note K — Comprehensive (Loss) Income

Comprehensive (loss) income for a period encompasses net (loss) income and all other changes in equity other than from transactions with our stockholders. 
Changes in accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) by component are as follows:
In thousands 
Defined Benefit
Pension Items
 
Foreign
Currency Items
 Total
Balance at December 31, 2017 $(45,418) $1,115
 $(44,303)
Other comprehensive loss, net of tax, before reclassifications 
 (1,014) (1,014)
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive income, net of tax (1,166) 
 (1,166)
Net current period other comprehensive loss, net of tax (1,166) (1,014) (2,180)
Balance at December 31, 2018 $(46,584) $101
 $(46,483)
Other comprehensive income, net of tax, before reclassifications 
 652
 652
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive (loss) income, net of tax (5,948) 
 (5,948)
  Adoption of ASU 2018-2
(11,355)


(11,355)
Net current period other comprehensive (loss) income, net of tax (17,303) 652
 (16,651)
Balance at December 31, 2019 $(63,887) $753
 $(63,134)

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

Note L — 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. 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 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 M — Disposition

On February 28, 2018, we sold our 3Q Digital Inc. subsidiary (“3Q Digital”) to an entity owned by certain former owners of the 3Q Digital business. Consideration for the sale included $5.0 million in cash proceeds, subject to certain working capital adjustments, and up to $5.0 million in additional consideration (“Contingent Payment”) if the 3Q Digital business is sold again (provided certain value thresholds are met) (“Qualified Sale”). The $35 million contingent consideration obligation of the Company that related to our acquisition of 3Q Digital in 2015 was assigned to the buyer, thereby relieving us of the obligation. In addition, the identified intangible assets with definite lives for client relationships and non-compete agreements were written-off as a component of the gain on sale.

The 3Q Digital business represented less than 10% of our total 2017 revenues. As a result of the sale, the company recognized a pre-tax gain of $31.0 million in the first quarter of 2018. The assets of 3Q Digital included net intangible assets and the liabilities (including contingent consideration) were removed from our balance sheet as a result of the disposition.

A reconciliation of accrued balances of the contingent consideration using significant unobservable inputs (Level 3) is as follows:
(in thousands) Fair Value
Accrued contingent consideration liability as of December 31, 2017
$33,887
Accretion of interest
742
Disposition
(34,629)
Accrued earnout liability as of December 31, 2018
$

On May 7, 2019, we received the $5 million Contingent Payment related to the Qualified Sale of 3Q Digital as defined in the Purchase and Sale Agreement dated February 28, 2018.

Note N — Certain Relationships and Related Party Transactions

Since 2016, we have conducted (and we continue to conduct) business with Wipro, LLC (“Wipro”), whereby Wipro provides us with a variety of technology-related services, including database and software development, database support and analytics, IT infrastructure support, leased facilities and digital campaign management. Additionally, we also provide Wipro with agency services and consulting services.

Effective January 30, 2018, Wipro became a related party when it purchased 9,926 shares of our Series A Preferred Stock (which are convertible at Wipro’s option into 1,001,614 shares, or 16% of our Common Stock), for aggregate consideration of $9.9 million. For information pertaining to the Company’s preferred stock, See Note E, Convertible Preferred Stock.

During the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, we recorded an immaterial amount of revenue for services we provided to Wipro.

During the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, we recorded $11.7 million and $12.3 million of expense, respectively, in technology-related services and lease expense for a facility Wipro provided to us.

During the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, we capitalized $1.7 million of costs ($1.4 million of which was included in the asset impairment charge for the year ended December 31, 2019) and $2.3 million ($2.1 million of which was included in the asset impairment charge for the year ended December 31, 2018), respectively, for internally developed software services received from Wipro. These remaining capitalized costs are included in Other Assets on the Consolidated Balance Sheet as of December 31, 2019.

As of December 31, 2019 and 2018, we had a trade payable due to Wipro of $1.5 million and $5.0 million, respectively. As of December 31, 2019 and 2018, we had an immaterial amount in trade receivables due from Wipro.

In the third quarter of 2019, we entered a business relationship with Snap Kitchen, the founder of which is a 7% owner of Harte Hanks. We recorded a nominal amount of revenue with them in the year ended December 31, 2019.

As described in Note F, Long-Term Debt, the Company’s Texas Capital Credit Facility is secured by HHS Guaranty, LLC, an entity formed to provide credit support for the Company by certain members of the Shelton family (descendants of one of our founders). Pursuant to the Amended and Restated Fee, Reimbursement and Indemnity Agreement, dated January 9, 2018, between HHS Guaranty, LLC and the Company, HHS Guaranty, LLC has the right to appoint one representative director to the Board of Directors. Currently, David L. Copeland serves as the HHS Guaranty, LLC representative on the Board of Directors.




Note O — Restructuring Activities

Our management team along with members of the Board have formed a project committee focused on our cost-saving initiatives and other restructuring efforts. This committee has reviewed each of our business lines and other operational areas to identify both one-time and recurring cost-saving opportunities.
In the year ended December 31, 2019, we recorded restructuring charges of $11.8 million. This comprised charges mainly related to customer database build write offs, termination fees related to certain contracts with Wipro, severance agreements, asset impairment and facility related expense. One of the larger initiatives to combine sub-scale production environments received Board approval on August 1, 2019. This resulted in the closing of three production facilities by the end of 2019 and consolidating the work currently performed at these facilities into other production facilities.
The following table summarizes the restructuring charges which are recorded in “Restructuring Expense” in the Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive (Loss) Income.
In thousands Year Ended December 31, 2019
Customer database build write off $4,036
Contract termination fee 3,101
Severance 2,098
Facility, asset impairment and other expense 2,564
Total $11,799
The following table summarizes the changes in liabilities related to restructuring activities:
In thousands Year Ended December 31, 2019
  Contract Termination Fee Severance Facility, asset impairment and other expense Total
Beginning balance: $

$

$

$
Additions: 3,101

2,168

786

6,055
Payments (1,610)
(1,738)
(786)
(4,134)
Ending balance: $1,491

$430

$

$1,921


We expect that in connection with our cost-saving and restructuring initiatives, we will incur total restructuring charges of approximately $14.0 million through 2020.


INDEX TO EXHIBITS

We are incorporating certain exhibits listed below by reference to other Harte Hanks filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which we have identified in parentheses after each applicable exhibit.
Exhibit

2.1

 
No.Description of Exhibit

Acquisition and Dispositions

Charter Documents

Credit Agreements

   
10.1(a)

3(d)

 

Credit Agreements

10.1(a)

Credit Agreement dated April 17, 2017, with Texas Capital Bank, N.A., as lender (filed as Exhibit 10.1 to the company's form 8-K dated April 21, 2017).

   

10.1(b)

 

   

10.1(c)

 

   

10.1(d)

 

   

10.1(e)

 

   

10.1(f)

 

10.1 (g)

Second Amendment to Security Agreement, dated May 11, 2020 between Harte Hanks, Inc. and Texas Capital Banks, N.A.(filed as Exhibit 10.1(c) to the company's Form 10-Q for three months ended March 31, 2020).

10.1 (h)

Second Amended and Restated Fee, Reimbursement and Indemnity Agreement, dated January 9, 2018,May 11, 2020 between Harte Hanks, Inc. and HHS Guaranty, LLCLLC(filed as Exhibit 10.1(d) to the company's Form 10-Q for three months ended March 31, 2020).

10.1 (i)

Small Business Administration Paycheck Protection Program Loan Note, dated as of April 14, 2020 (filed as Exhibit 10.410.1(e) to the company's form 8-K dated January 10, 2018)Form 10-Q for three months ended March 31, 2020).

12


Management and Director Compensatory Plans and Forms of Award Agreements



10.2(f)

 

   

10.2(g)

 

   

10.2(h)

 

   

10.2(i)

 

   

10.2(j)

 

   

10.2(k)

 

   

10.2(l)

 

   

10.2(m)

 

   

10.2(n)

 
10.2(n)

   

10.2(o)

 

   

10.2(p)

 

   

10.2(q)

 

   

10.2(r)

 

   

10.2(s)

 

   

10.2(t)

 


Executive Officer Employment-Related and Separation Agreements



10.3(a)

 

   

10.3(b)

 

   

10.3 (c)

 

   

10.3 (d)

 

   

10.3 (e)

 

   

10.3(f)

 
10.3(g)
10.3(h)

   
10.3(i)

10.3(g)

 
10.3(j)
10.3(k)


Material Agreements



Other Exhibits

 

*FiledPreviously filed or furnished herewith,with the Original Filing, as applicable

applicable.



SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, Harte Hanks, Inc. has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

HARTE HANKS, INC.

 
  

By:

/s/ Andrew Benett

 
 

Andrew Benett

 
 

Chief Executive Officer

Date:March 19, 2020

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, this report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.
/s/ Andrew Benett/s/ Laurilee Kearnes
Andrew BenettLaurilee Kearnes
Executive Chairman and Chief Executive OfficerVice President and Chief Financial Officer
Date: March 19, 2020Date: March 19, 2020
/s/ Melvin L. Keating/s/ Alfred V. Tobia, Jr.
Melvin L. Keating, DirectorAlfred V. Tobia, Jr., Chairman
Date: March 19, 2020Date: March 19, 2020

 
   
/s/ David L. Copeland

Date:

/s/ Evan Behrens
David L. Copeland, DirectorEvan Behrens, Director
Date: March 19, 2020Date: March 19, 2020
/s/ Maureen O’Connell/s/ John H. Griffin, Jr.
Maureen O’Connell, DirectorJohn H. Griffin Jr., Director
Date: March 19, 2020Date: March 19, 2020

April 30, 2021

 

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