Specifically, difficult macroeconomic conditions, such as decreases in per capita income and level of disposable income, increased and prolonged unemployment, or a decline in consumer confidence as a result of
the COVID-19
pandemic could have a material adverse effect on the demand for our vehicles. Under difficult economic conditions, potential customers may seek to reduce spending by forgoing our vehicles for other traditional options or may choose to keep their existing vehicles and cancel reservations.
There are no comparable recent events that may provide guidance as to the effect of the spread
of COVID-19
and a pandemic, and, as a result, the ultimate impact of
the COVID-19
pandemic or a similar health epidemic is highly uncertain.
We are dependent on our suppliers, a significant number of which are single or limited source suppliers, and the inability of these suppliers to deliver necessary components of our vehicles in a timely manner and at prices and volumes acceptable to us could have a material adverse effect on its business, prospects and operating results.
While we plan to obtain components from multiple sources whenever possible, many of the components used in our vehicles will be purchased by us from a single source. While we believe that we may be able to establish alternate supply relationships and can obtain or engineer replacement components for our single source components, we may be unable to do so in the short term (or at all) at prices or quality levels that are acceptable to us. In addition, we could experience delays if our suppliers do not meet agreed upon timelines or experience capacity constraints.
Any disruption in the supply of components, including chip shortages, whether or not from a single source supplier, could temporarily disrupt production of our vehicles until an alternative supplier is able to supply the required material. Changes in business conditions, unforeseen circumstances, governmental changes, and other factors beyond our control or which we do not presently anticipate, could also affect our suppliers’ ability to deliver components to us on a timely basis. Any of the foregoing could materially and adversely affect our results of operations, financial condition and prospects.
The issuance of shares of our Class A Common Stock upon exercise of our outstanding Magna Warrants would increase the number of shares eligible for future resale in the public market and result in dilution to our stockholders.
As of November 12, 2021, the Magna Warrants to purchase an aggregate of approximately 12,969,986 million shares of our Class A Common Stock were outstanding and exercisable. The exercise price of these warrants are $0.01 per share. To the extent such warrants are exercised, additional shares of Class A Common Stock will be issued, which will result in dilution to holders of our Class A Common Stock and increase the number of shares eligible for resale in the public market. Sales of substantial numbers of such shares in the public market or the fact that such warrants may be exercised could adversely affect the market price of our Class A Common Stock.
Risks Related to Our Convertible Senior Notes
The Notes are effectively subordinated to our existing and future secured indebtedness and structurally subordinated to the liabilities of our subsidiaries.
In August 2021, we entered into a purchase agreement with certain counterparties for the sale of an aggregate of $667.5 million principal amount of 2.50% convertible senior notes due in September 2026 (the “2026 Notes”) in a private offering to qualified institutional buyers pursuant to Rule 144A under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. The 2026 Notes have been designated as green bonds, whose proceeds will be allocated in accordance with the Company’s green bond framework. The 2026 Notes consisted of a $625 million initial placement and an over-allotment option that provided the initial purchasers of the 2026 Notes with the option to purchase an additional $100.0 million aggregate principal amount of the 2026 Notes, of which $42.5 million was exercised. The 2026 Notes were issued pursuant to an indenture dated August 17, 2021. The net proceeds from the issuance of the 2026 Notes were $562.2 million, net of debt issuance costs and cash used to purchase the capped call transactions (“2026 Capped Call Transactions”) discussed below. The debt issuance costs are amortized to interest expense using the effective interest rate method.
The 2026 Notes are unsecured obligations which bear regular interest at 2.50% annually and will be payable semiannually in arrears on March 15 and September 15 of each year, beginning on March 15, 2022. The 2026 Notes will mature on September 15, 2026, unless repurchased, redeemed, or converted in accordance with their terms prior to such date. The 2026 Notes are convertible into cash, shares of our Class A common stock, or a combination of cash and shares of our Class A common stock, at our election, at an initial conversion rate of 50.7743 shares of Class A common stock per $1,000 principal amount of 2026 Notes, which is equivalent to an initial conversion price of approximately $19.70 per share of our Class A common stock. The conversion rate is subject to customary adjustments for certain events as described in the indenture governing the 2026 Notes. We may redeem for cash all or any portion of the 2026 Notes, at our option, on or after September 20, 2024 if the last reported sale price of our Class A common stock has been at least 130% of the conversion price then in effect for at least 20 trading days at a redemption price equal to 100% of the principal amount of the 2026 Notes to be redeemed, plus accrued and unpaid interest to, but excluding, the redemption date.
The 2026 Notes are our senior, unsecured obligations and rank equal in right of payment with our existing and future senior, unsecured indebtedness, senior in right of payment to our existing and future indebtedness that is expressly subordinated to the Notes and effectively subordinated to our existing and future secured indebtedness, to the extent of the value of the collateral securing that indebtedness.
In addition, because none of our subsidiaries guarantee the 2026 Notes, the 2026 Notes are structurally subordinated to all existing and future indebtedness and other liabilities, including trade payables, and (to the extent we are not a holder thereof) preferred equity, if any, of our subsidiaries. As of September 30, 2021, we had approximately $667.5 million in total indebtedness. Our subsidiaries had no outstanding indebtedness as of September 30, 2021. The Indenture governing the 2026 Notes does not prohibit us or our subsidiaries from incurring additional indebtedness, including senior or secured indebtedness, in the future.
If a bankruptcy, liquidation, dissolution, reorganization, or similar proceeding occurs with respect to us, then the holders of any of our secured indebtedness may proceed directly against the assets securing that indebtedness. Accordingly, those assets will not be available to satisfy any outstanding amounts under our unsecured indebtedness, including the 2026 Notes, unless the secured indebtedness is first paid in full. The remaining assets, if any, would then be allocated pro rata among the holders of our senior, unsecured indebtedness, including the 2026 Notes. There may be insufficient assets to pay all amounts then due.
If a bankruptcy, liquidation, dissolution, reorganization, or similar proceeding occurs with respect to any of our subsidiaries, then we, as a direct or indirect common equity owner of that subsidiary (and, accordingly, holders of our indebtedness, including the 2026 Notes), will be subject to the prior claims of that subsidiary’s creditors, including trade creditors and preferred equity holders, if any. We may never receive any amounts from that subsidiary to satisfy amounts due under the 2026 Notes.
We may be unable to raise the funds necessary to repurchase the 2026 Notes for cash following a fundamental change (as defined in the Indenture) or to pay any cash amounts due upon conversion, and our other indebtedness limits our ability to repurchase the 2026 Notes or pay cash upon their conversion.
Noteholders may require us to repurchase their 2026 Notes following a fundamental change (as defined in the Indenture) at a cash repurchase price generally equal to the principal amount of the Notes to be repurchased, plus accrued and unpaid special interest, if any. In addition, upon conversion, we will satisfy part or all of our conversion obligation in cash unless we elect to settle conversions solely in shares of our Class A common stock. We may not have enough available cash or be able to obtain financing at the time we are required to repurchase the 2026 Notes or pay the cash amounts due upon conversion. In addition, applicable law, regulatory authorities and the agreements governing our other indebtedness may restrict our ability to repurchase the Notes or pay the cash amounts due upon conversion. Our failure to repurchase 2026 Notes or to pay the cash amounts due upon conversion when required will constitute a default under the Indenture.
A default under the Indenture or a fundamental change (as defined in the Indenture) itself could also lead to a default under agreements governing our other indebtedness, which may result in that other indebtedness becoming immediately payable in full. We may not have sufficient funds to satisfy all amounts due under the other indebtedness and the 2026 Notes.
Our indebtedness and liabilities could limit the cash flow available for our operations, expose us to risks that could adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations and impair our ability to satisfy our obligations under the Notes.
As of September 30, 2021, we had $667.5 million indebtedness. We may also incur additional indebtedness to meet future financing needs. Our indebtedness could have significant negative consequences for our stockholders and our business, results of operations and financial condition by, among other things:
| • | | increasing our vulnerability to adverse economic and industry conditions; |
| • | | limiting our ability to obtain additional financing; |
| • | | requiring the dedication of a substantial portion of our cash flow from operations to service our indebtedness, which will reduce the amount of cash available for other purposes; |
| • | | limiting our flexibility to plan for, or react to, changes in our business; |
| • | | diluting the interests of our existing stockholders as a result of issuing shares of our Class A common stock upon conversion of the Notes; and |
| • | | placing us at a possible competitive disadvantage with competitors that are less leveraged than us or have better access to capital. |
Our business may not generate sufficient funds, and we may otherwise be unable to maintain sufficient cash reserves, to pay amounts due under our indebtedness, including the Notes, and our cash needs may increase in the future.
The accounting method for the 2026 Notes could adversely affect our reported financial condition and results.
In August 2020, the Financial Accounting Standards Board published an Accounting Standards Update, which we refer to as ASU
2020-06,
which amends the accounting standards for convertible debt instruments that may be settled entirely or partially in cash upon conversion. ASU
2020-06
eliminates requirements to separately account for liability and equity components of such convertible debt instruments and eliminates the ability to use the treasury stock method for calculating diluted earnings per share for convertible instruments whose principal amount may be settled using shares. Instead, ASU
2020-06
requires (i) the entire amount of the security to be presented as a liability on the balance sheet and (ii) application of the
“if-converted”
method for calculating diluted earnings per share. Under the
“if-converted”
method, diluted earnings per share will generally be calculated assuming that all the 2026 Notes were converted solely into shares of common stock at the beginning of the reporting period, unless the result would be anti-dilutive, which could adversely affect our diluted earnings per share. However, if the principal amount of the convertible debt security being converted is required to be paid in cash and only the excess is permitted to be settled in shares, the
if-converted
method will produce a similar result as the “treasury stock” method prior to the adoption of ASU
2020-06
for such convertible debt security.
We early adopted ASU
2020-06
as of January 1, 2021 and as such we did not bifurcate the liability and equity components of the 2026 Notes on our balance sheet and used the
if-converted
method of calculating diluted earnings per share. In order to qualify for the alternative treatment of calculating diluted earnings per share under the
if-converted
method, we would have to irrevocably fix the settlement method for conversions to combination settlement with a specified dollar amount of at least $1,000, which would impair our flexibility to settle conversions of notes, require us to settle conversions in cash in an amount equal to the principal amount of notes converted and could adversely affect our liquidity.
Furthermore, if any of the conditions to the convertibility of the 2026 Notes are satisfied, then, under certain conditions, we may be required under applicable accounting standards to reclassify the liability carrying value of the Notes as a current, rather than a noncurrent, liability. This reclassification could be required even if no noteholders convert their Notes and could materially reduce our reported working capital.
The Capped Call transactions may affect the value of the 2026 Notes and our common stock.
In connection with the 2026 Notes, we entered into Capped Call transactions with certain financial institutions, which we refer to as the option counterparties. The Capped Call transactions are expected generally to reduce the potential dilution to our common stock upon any conversion of the 2026 Notes and/or offset any potential cash payments we are required to make in excess of the principal amount upon conversion of any 2026 Notes, with such reduction and/or offset subject to a cap.
In connection with establishing their initial hedges of the Capped Call transactions, the option counterparties and/or their respective affiliates purchased shares of our common stock and/or entered into various derivative transactions with respect to our Class A common stock. This activity could have increased (or reduced the size of any decrease in) the market price of our Class A common stock or the 2026 Notes at that time.
In addition, the option counterparties and/or their respective affiliates may modify their hedge positions by entering into or unwinding various derivatives with respect to our common stock and/or purchasing or selling our common stock in secondary market transactions (and are likely to do so following any conversion of 2026 Notes, any repurchase of the 2026 Notes by us on any fundamental change (as defined in the indenture governing the 2026 Notes) repurchase date, any redemption date, or any other date on which the 2026 Notes are retired by us). This activity could also cause or avoid an increase or a decrease in the market price of our Class A common stock or the 2026 Notes.
The potential effect, if any, of these transactions and activities on the market price of our common stock or the 2026 Notes will depend in part on market conditions and cannot be ascertained at this time. Any of these activities could adversely affect the value of our Class A common stock.
We are subject to counterparty risk with respect to the Capped Call transactions, and the Capped Calls may not operate as planned.
The option counterparties are financial institutions, and we will be subject to the risk that they might default under the Capped Call transactions. Our exposure to the credit risk of the option counterparties will not be secured by any collateral. Global economic conditions have from time to time resulted in the actual or perceived failure or financial difficulties of many financial institutions. If an option counterparty becomes subject to insolvency proceedings, we will become an unsecured creditor in those proceedings with a claim equal to our exposure at that time under our transactions with that option counterparty. Our exposure will depend on many factors, but, generally, the increase in our exposure will be correlated with increases in the market price or the volatility of our common stock. In addition, upon a default by an option counterparty, we may suffer adverse tax consequences and more dilution than we currently anticipate with respect to our Class A common stock. We can provide no assurances as to the financial stability or viability of any option counterparty.
In addition, the Capped Call transactions are complex and they may not operate as planned. For example, the terms of the Capped Call transactions may be subject to adjustment, modification, or, in some cases, renegotiation if certain corporate or other transactions occur. Accordingly, these transactions may not operate as we intend if we are required to adjust their terms as a result of transactions in the future or upon unanticipated developments that may adversely affect the functioning of the Capped Call transactions.
The issuance or sale of shares of our common stock, or rights to acquire shares of our common stock, could depress the trading price of our common stock and our notes.
We may conduct future offerings of our common stock, preferred stock or other securities that are convertible into or exercisable for our common stock to finance our operations or fund acquisitions, or for other purposes. If we issue additional shares of our common stock or rights to acquire shares of our common stock, if any of our existing stockholders sells a substantial amount of our common stock, or if the market perceives that such issuances or sales may occur, then the trading price of our common stock, and, accordingly, our 2026 Notes may significantly decline. In addition, our issuance of additional shares of common stock will dilute the ownership interests of our existing common stockholders, including noteholders who have received shares of our common stock upon conversion of their 2026 Notes.