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Excrept from filing document 2024-10-31

Portions of the Registrant s definitive proxy statement related to its 2025 Annual Meeting of Stockholders to be filed pursuant to Regulation 14A within 120 days after Registrant s fiscal year end of October 31 2024 are incorporated by reference into Part III of this Report
This Annual Report on Form 10 K including Business in Item 1 and Management s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations in Item 7 contains forward looking statements based on current expectations and assumptions that involve risks and uncertainties If the risks or uncertainties ever materialize or the assumptions prove incorrect they could affect the business and results of operations of HP Inc and its consolidated subsidiaries which may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward looking statements and assumptions All statements other than statements of historical fact are statements that could be deemed forward looking statements including but not limited to projections of net revenue margins expenses effective tax rates net earnings net earnings per share cash flows benefit plan funding deferred taxes share repurchases foreign currency exchange rates or other financial items any projections of the amount timing or impact of cost savings or restructuring and other charges planned structural cost reductions and productivity initiatives any statements of the plans strategies and objectives of management for future operations including but not limited to our business model and transformation our sustainability goals our go to market strategy the execution of restructuring plans and any resulting cost savings including the Fiscal 2023 Plan as defined herein net revenue or profitability improvements or other financial impacts any statements concerning the expected development demand performance market share or competitive performance relating to products or services any statements concerning potential supply constraints component shortages manufacturing disruptions or logistics challenges any statements regarding current or future macroeconomic trends or events and the impact of those trends and events on HP and its financial performance any statements regarding pending investigations claims disputes or other litigation matters any statements of expectation or belief as to the timing and expected benefits of acquisitions and other business combination and investment transactions and any statements of assumptions underlying any of the foregoing
the development and transition of new products and services and the enhancement of existing products and services to meet evolving customer needs and respond to emerging technological trends including artificial intelligence
the impact of macroeconomic and geopolitical trends changes and events including the ongoing military conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East or tensions in the Taiwan Strait and South China Sea and the regional and global ramifications of these events
the need to manage and reliance on third party suppliers including with respect to supply constraints and component shortages and the need to manage HP s global multi tier distribution network and potential misuse of pricing programs by HP s channel partners adapt to new or changing marketplaces and effectively deliver HP s services
challenges to HP s ability to accurately forecast inventories demand and pricing which may be due to HP s multi tiered channel sales of HP s products to unauthorized resellers or unauthorized resale of HP s products or our uneven sales cycle
the results of our restructuring plans including the Fiscal 2023 Plan including estimates and assumptions related to the cost including any possible disruption of HP s business and the anticipated benefits of our restructuring plans
other risks that are described herein including but not limited to the items discussed in Risk Factors in Item 1A of Part I of this report and that are otherwise described or updated from time to time in HP s other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission the SEC
HP s Future Ready Plan includes HP s efforts to take advantage of future growth opportunities including but not limited to investments to drive growth investments in our people improving product mix driving structural cost savings and other productivity measures Structural cost savings represent gross reductions in costs driven by operational efficiency digital transformation and portfolio optimization These initiatives include but are not limited to workforce reductions platform simplification programs consolidation and productivity measures undertaken by HP which HP expects to be sustainable in the longer term These structural cost savings are net of any new recurring costs resulting from these initiatives and exclude one time investments to generate such savings HP s expectations on the longer term sustainability of such structural cost savings are based on its current business operations and market dynamics and could be significantly impacted by various factors including but not limited to HP s evolving business models future investment decisions market environment and technology landscape
Forward looking and other statements in this report may also address our corporate sustainability or responsibility progress plans and goals including environmental matters and the inclusion of such statements is not an indication that these contents are necessarily material to HP investors or other stakeholders or required to be disclosed in HP s filings in each case under U S securities or any other laws or requirements that may be applicable to HP In addition historical current and forward looking sustainability related statements may be based on standards for measuring progress that are still developing internal controls and processes that continue to evolve and assumptions that are subject to change in the future
HP is a global technology leader and creator of solutions that enable people to bring their ideas to life and connect to the things that matter most Operating in more than 170 countries HP delivers innovative and sustainable devices services and subscriptions for personal computing printing 3D printing hybrid work gaming and other related technologies
We believe artificial intelligence AI is playing a critical role in the transformation of how people live and work and customers are beginning to recognize the benefits in security speed and cost Our high performing product portfolio includes HP s new line of AI PCs and workstations built with the computing power to enable local AI processing for enhanced performance and features as well as intelligent print features incorporated into our home office and graphics solutions
Our broad range of security capabilities are designed to protect an increasingly distributed user base through security enhanced PCs and printers hardware enforced endpoint security software for both HP and non HP PCs and endpoint security services Our security solutions provide layered resiliency using enhanced features such as containment and isolation technology as well as the use of AI deep learning to identify and remove malware threats
Personal Systems offers desktops notebooks and workstations including HP s portfolio of AI PCs and workstations thin clients retail point of sale POS systems displays hybrid systems software solutions including endpoint security and services Personal Systems includes support and deployment configurations and extended warranty services and maintains multi operating system and multi architecture strategies using Microsoft Windows and Google Chrome operating systems and predominantly uses processors from Intel AMD and NVIDIA
consists of endpoint computing devices and hybrid systems for use by enterprise public sector which includes education and small and medium sized business SMB customers These devices include our Pro and Elite commercial PC portfolio our Z line of workstations thin clients retail POS systems and HP s Dragonfly and Chromebook PCs HP offers a range of secure services and solutions to commercial customers to help them manage the lifecycle of their PCs and mobility installed base
consists of devices accessories and services which are optimized for consumer usage focusing on gaming learning and working remotely consuming multi media for entertainment managing personal life activities sharing information and staying connected informed and secure These devices include our new Omni consumer PC portfolio the Omen and Victus gaming lines and HP s Spectre Envy Pavilion and Chromebook PCs
Printing provides consumer and commercial printer hardware supplies services and solutions Printing is also focused on Graphics and 3D Printing and Personalization in the commercial and industrial markets Our global business capabilities within Printing are described below
offers a portfolio of additive manufacturing solutions and supplies to help customers succeed in their additive and digital manufacturing journey HP offers complete solutions in collaboration with an ecosystem of partners
comprises a set of highly innovative consumable products ranging from ink and laser cartridges to media industrial graphics supplies and 3D printing and personalization supplies for recurring use in consumer and commercial hardware
We encounter strong competition in all areas of our business activity We compete on the basis of technology innovation performance price quality reliability brand reputation distribution range of products and services ease of use of our products account relationships customer training service support and solutions including subscription based offerings and financing security availability of application software and our sustainable impact
The markets for each of our key business segments are characterized by strong competition among major corporations with long established positions and a large number of new and rapidly growing firms Most product life cycles are short and to remain competitive we must develop new products and services periodically enhance our existing products and services and compete effectively based on the factors listed above In addition we compete with many of our current and potential partners including OEMs that design manufacture and often market their products under their own brand names Our successful management of these competitive partner relationships will be critical to our future success Moreover we anticipate that we will have to continue to adjust prices on many of our products and services to stay competitive
The markets in which Personal Systems operates are highly competitive and are characterized by price competition and introduction of new products and solutions Our primary competitors are Acer Inc Apple Inc ASUSTeK Computer Inc Dell Inc Huawei Technologies Co Ltd Lenovo Group Limited Logitech International S A Microsoft Corporation Samsung Electronics Co Ltd and Toshiba Corporation In certain geographies we also experience competition from local companies and from generically branded or white box manufacturers Our competitive advantages include our broad product portfolio our innovation and research and development capabilities including security features our innovative design work our brand and procurement leverage our ability to cross sell our portfolio of offerings our extensive service and support offerings the accessibility of our products and the execution of our broad based distribution strategy from retail and commercial channels to direct sales
The markets for printer hardware and associated supplies are highly competitive Printing s key customer segments each face competitive market pressures in pricing and the introduction of new products Our primary competitors include Brother Industries Ltd Canon Inc Lexmark International Inc Pantum Seiko Epson Corporation The Ricoh Company Ltd and Xerox Corporation Ltd In addition independent suppliers offer non original supplies including imitation refill and remanufactured alternatives which are often available for lower prices but which can also offer lower print quality and reliability compared to HP original inkjet and toner supplies These and other competing products are often sold alongside our products through online or omnichannel resellers
retailers or distributors or such resellers retailers and distributors may highlight the availability of lower cost non original supplies Our competitive advantages include our comprehensive high quality solutions for the home office and publishing environments our innovation and research and development capabilities including security features sustainability our brand and the accessibility of our products through a broad based distribution strategy from retail and commercial channels to direct sales
We manage our business and report our financial results based on the business segments described above Our customers are organized by consumer and commercial groups and purchases of HP products solutions and services may be fulfilled directly by HP or indirectly through a variety of partners utilizing their own physical or internet stores or an omnichannel combination of the two including
system integrators and other business intermediaries that provide various levels of services including systems integration work and as a service solutions and typically partner with us on client solutions that require our products and services
The mix of our business conducted by direct sales or channel sales differs by business and geographic market We believe that customer buying patterns and different geographic market conditions require us to tailor our sales marketing and distribution efforts to the geographic market and sub geographic specificities for each of our businesses We are focused on driving the depth and breadth of our market coverage while identifying efficiencies and productivity gains in both our direct and indirect routes to market Our businesses collaborate to accomplish strategic and process alignment where appropriate For example we typically assign an account manager to manage relationships across our business with large enterprise customers The account manager is supported by a team of specialists with product and services expertise and drives both direct and indirect sales to their assigned customers For other customers and for consumers we typically manage both direct online sales as well as channel relationships with retailers mainly targeting consumers and SMBs and commercial resellers mainly targeting SMBs mid market accounts public sector and large enterprises
We utilize outsourced manufacturers OMs around the world to manufacture HP designed products to generate cost efficiencies reduce time to market and maintain flexibility in our supply chain and manufacturing processes We also manufacture finished products from components and sub assemblies that we acquire from a wide range of vendors
We utilize two primary methods of fulfilling demand for products building products to order and configuring products to order Building products to order maximizes manufacturing and logistics efficiencies by producing high volumes of basic product configurations Alternatively configuring products to order enables products to match a customer s hardware and software customization requirements
Like other participants in the information technology IT industry we ordinarily acquire materials and components through a combination of blanket and scheduled purchase orders to support our demand requirements for periods averaging 90 to 120 days We also may acquire component inventory in times of growth or in anticipation of significant price volatility or supply constraints for certain components that are not available from multiple sources Additionally while most of our products have existing or readily available alternative sources of supply some of our components are obtained from a single source due to technology availability price quality or other considerations
Innovation across products services business models and processes is a key element of our culture and success We are focused on developing products services and solutions that anticipate customers changing needs and desires and emerging technological trends including accelerating the delivery of AI throughout our product portfolio We continue to invest in innovation in both the areas where we believe we can make a unique contribution and where strategic partnerships will leverage our cost structure and maximize our customers experiences
We seek patent protection for inventions likely to be incorporated into our products and services or where obtaining such proprietary rights will maintain or improve our competitive position As of October 31 2024 our worldwide patent portfolio included over 22 000 patents which expire at various dates generally 20 years from their original filing dates
We believe that our patents and patent applications are important for maintaining the competitive differentiation of our products and services enhancing our freedom of action to sell our products and services in markets in which we choose to participate and maximizing our return on research and development investments No single patent is essential to HP as a whole or to any of HP s business segments
In addition to developing our patent portfolio we license intellectual property IP from third parties We have also granted and continue to grant to others licenses and other rights under our patents when we consider these arrangements to be in our interest These license arrangements include a number of cross licenses with third parties
We experience some seasonal trends in the sale of our products and services For example European sales are often weaker in the summer months and consumer sales are often stronger in the fourth calendar quarter Demand during the spring and early summer months also may be adversely impacted by market anticipation of seasonal trends Historical seasonal patterns may be impacted by supply constraints shifts in customer behavior and the evolving impacts of macroeconomic challenges
At HP we believe how we do things is just as important as what we do Our Sustainable Impact goals reflect our efforts to tackle key issues in Climate Human Rights and Digital Equity For more information on our sustainability goals programs and performance including our methodology for calculating progress towards our GHG and other sustainability goals we refer you to our annual Sustainable Impact Report available on our website which is not incorporated by reference herein
Our operations are subject to regulation under various federal state local and foreign laws concerning the environment including laws addressing the discharge of pollutants into the air and water the management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes and the cleanup of contaminated sites
We proactively evaluate and at times replace materials in our products and supply chain taking into account among other things published lists of substances of concern new and upcoming legal requirements customer preferences and scientific analysis that indicates a potential impact to human health or the environment
We are committed to complying with all environmental laws applicable to our operations products and services and to reducing our environmental impact across all aspects of our business This commitment is reflected and outlined in our Sustainable Impact goals our comprehensive environmental health and safety policy strict environmental management of our operations and worldwide environmental programs and services
HP employs approximately 58 000 employees in 59 countries Together they power HP innovation by applying their diverse skills and perspectives to create transformative solutions for our partners and customers worldwide Our aim is to attract and retain exceptional talent by providing engaging work experiences that help our employees thrive We promote ongoing learning and development offer comprehensive compensation and benefits and focus on health safety and well being to set employees up to do their best work and achieve their career aspirations To deliver on these priorities HP senior leaders are accountable for meeting management by objective MBO goals for employee engagement diversity and inclusion and leadership development
We regularly collect feedback from employees to better understand and improve their workplace experiences and to identify ways to strengthen our culture In fiscal year 2024 90 of employees participated in our annual survey and we continued to see strong overall engagement exceeding top quartile benchmarks for most of the external comparisons we track We saw similar strength in our internal inclusion index and employees demonstrated their engagement by providing a high volume of written comments in this year s survey Beyond the annual survey we regularly seek out employee feedback through a variety of pulse polls and take action to address their ideas suggestions and concerns
We have a multi faceted talent learning and skill development strategy First we emphasize diversity of backgrounds experience and perspectives in our senior talent pipeline and invest in targeted approaches such as leadership assessments external education opportunities coaching job rotations and immersive experiential learning to ensure our executives are equipped to lead HP both now and in the future We also support talent through an extensive portfolio of internal and external development programs designed to accelerate their career growth Additionally we prepare new people managers with development experiences designed among other things to build coaching skills and champion inclusion
We are committed to the continuous growth of employees We provide enterprise wide skill development solutions and resources that focus on the critical skills all employees need to perform at their best in their jobs today and in the future In partnership with industry thought partners and internal experts HP offers learning opportunities in key areas such as software development artificial intelligence data science product management communications change agility and strategic thinking HP prioritizes skill development experiences that accommodate employee specific needs and demanding schedules with an emphasis on learning that drives immediate application and measurable behavior change
In addition to skill development resources HP also offers formal education assistance through our Degree Assistance Program which provides employees with the opportunity to participate in higher academic education
At HP hybrid work balances workplace flexibility with time working together to collaborate and connect in person at our sites Our goal is to provide the ability to work seamlessly across a diverse ecosystem of workplaces enabled
We strive to create an inclusive workplace where everyone can bring their unique perspectives to work and reach their full potential This commitment is at the heart of our innovation model where people with diverse backgrounds knowledge and experiences collaborate to create breakthrough technologies and deliver valued solutions to our customers
We also strive to ensure equal opportunities and access for all employees We continue to work on removing barriers through external hiring and outreach and by providing internal programs and development opportunities and training for managers on inclusive leadership
People should be paid equitably for what they do and how they do it regardless of their gender race or other protected characteristics We benchmark and set pay ranges based on relevant market data and consider factors such as an employee s role experience skills and performance We also regularly review our compensation practices both in terms of our overall workforce and individual employees to make sure our pay is fair and equitable
Since 2016 we have reviewed employees compensation with the support of independent third party experts to ensure consistent pay practices In fiscal year 2024 we continued to expand our annual pay equity assessment to include additional countries representing a majority of our global workforce The independent analysis did not reveal any systemic issues and we addressed areas of potential concern as part of our off cycle compensation process
The holistic wellbeing of our employees is vital to HP s success Our environmental health and safety leadership team uses our global injury and illness reporting system to assess worldwide and regional trends as a part of quarterly reviews We focus on reducing and effectively managing risks at HP owned and partner owned manufacturing facilities and injury rates continue to be low
We sponsor a global wellness program designed to enhance wellbeing for all HP employees Throughout the year we encourage healthy behaviors across our five pillars of wellness physical financial emotional life balance and social community through regular communications educational sessions voluntary progress tracking wellness challenges and other incentives In addition to our regular annual wellbeing programs we provide specialized programs and campaigns in line with employee needs at the time Our campaign this year Elevate Your Everyday encouraged employees to challenge themselves to embrace new experiences and opportunities for personal development all with the help of HP provided mindfulness apps targeted mental health support individual assessments and expanded financial wellbeing programs
Mr Cho has served as President Personal Systems since June 2018 From 2014 to 2018 Mr Cho served as Global Head and General Manager of Commercial Personal Systems Prior to that role Mr Cho served as the Vice President and General Manager of the LaserJet Supplies team from 2010 to 2014
Ms Jacobs has served as Chief Legal Officer and General Counsel since October 2022 Previously Ms Jacobs served as Senior Executive Vice President General Counsel and Corporate Secretary of Yahoo a leading internet media and technology company from September 2021 to October 2022 Prior to Yahoo Ms Jacobs served as Executive Vice President and General Counsel of Verizon Media a global media and technology company from June 2017 to September 2021 Prior to Verizon Media Ms Jacobs spent over 16 years in various senior legal roles at AOL a global internet media and technology company including serving as AOL s Executive Vice President General Counsel and Corporate Secretary from May 2010 to June 2017
Ms Liebman has served as Global Controller since December 2023 and as Senior Vice President and Finance Chief Operations Officer at HP since February 2023 Prior to rejoining HP she served as Senior Vice President at NTT Data Services a provider of IT and business services from March 2019 to January 2023 Before that she spent over 21 years at HP in various roles including Chief Audit Executive and Vice President of Enterprise Services Financial Operations
Mr Lores has served as President and Chief Executive Officer since November 2019 Throughout his over 30 year tenure with the company Mr Lores held leadership positions across the organization serving as President Printing Solutions and Services from November 2015 to November 2019 and prior to that role leading the Separation Management Office for HP Inc Previously Mr Lores was the Senior Vice President and General Manager for Business Personal Systems Before his Business Personal Systems role Mr Lores was Senior Vice President of Customer Support and Services
Mr McQuarrie has served as Chief Commercial Officer since November 2022 Previously Mr McQuarrie served as Senior Vice President General Manager Personal Systems Category from November 2021 to November 2022 Global Head of Customer Support from November 2019 to November 2021 and Global Head of Print Business Management from January 2017 to October 2019 Prior to joining HP Mr McQuarrie served in various sales leadership positions at global personal computer and technology companies Lenovo 2008 to 2016 and Dell 1998 to 2007
Ms Olson has served as President of Imaging Printing and Solutions since November 2024 and has over 28 years of experience at the Company Previously she served as Senior Vice President Managing Director North America Market and prior to that as Senior Vice President Chief Operating Officer Worldwide Print
Ms Parkhill has served as Chief Financial Officer since August 2024 Previously she served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Medtronic plc a healthcare technology company a position she held since June 2016
Prior to Medtronic Ms Parkhill served as Vice Chairman and Chief Financial Officer of Comerica Incorporated a financial services company from 2011 to 2016 Ms Parkhill was a member of Comerica s Management Executive Committee and the Comerica Bank Board of Directors Prior to joining Comerica Ms Parkhill worked for J P Morgan Chase Co a financial services company in various capacities from 1992 to 2011 including serving as Chief Financial Officer of the Commercial Banking business from 2007 to 2011
Our Annual Report on Form 10 K Quarterly Reports on Form 10 Q Current Reports on Form 8 K and amendments to reports filed or furnished pursuant to Sections 13 a and 15 d of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 as amended are available free of charge on our website at http investor hp com as soon as reasonably practicable after HP electronically files such reports with or furnishes those reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission HP s Corporate Governance Guidelines Board of Directors committee charters including the charters of the Audit Committee Finance Investment and Technology Committee HR and Compensation Committee and Nominating Governance and Social Responsibility Committee and code of ethics entitled Integrity at HP none of which are incorporated by reference herein are also available at that same location on our website If the Board grants any waivers from Integrity at HP to any of our directors or executive officers or if we amend Integrity at HP we will if required disclose these matters via updates to our website at http investor hp com on a timely basis We encourage investors to visit our website from time to time as information is updated and new information is posted The content of our website is not incorporated by reference into this Annual Report on Form 10 K or in any other report or document we file with the SEC and any references to our website are intended to be inactive textual references only
Microsoft and Windows are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and or other countries Intel is a trademark of Intel Corporation or its subsidiaries in the United States and or other countries AMD is a trademark of Advanced Micro Devices Inc Google and Google Chrome are trademarks of Google LLC NVIDIA is a trademark of NVIDIA Corporation in the United States and or other countries All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners
The following discussion of risk factors contains forward looking statements These risk factors may be important for understanding any statement in this Form 10 K or elsewhere The following information should be particularly read in conjunction with Part I Item I Business and Part II Item 7 Management s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations and the Consolidated Financial Statements and related notes in Part II Item 8 Financial Statements and Supplementary Data of this Form 10 K
The risks we describe in this Form 10 K or in our other SEC filings or additional risks and uncertainties not presently known to us or that we currently believe to be immaterial could in ways we may not be able to accurately predict recognize or control have a material adverse effect on our business reputation financial position results of operations cash flows and stock price and they could cause our future results to be materially different than we presently anticipate
To execute our strategy we must among other things optimize our cost structure make long term investments develop or acquire and appropriately protect intellectual property commit significant research and development and other resources evolve our go to market strategy and business model to meet changing market dynamics forces and demand In addition we need to innovate develop and execute on evolutionary strategies in a rapidly changing and increasingly hybrid environment seize on disruptive opportunities and effectively respond to secular trends and shifts in customer preferences Our financial performance will depend in part on our ability to remain competitive in offerings geared towards new or emerging market trends such as artificial intelligence and hybrid consumption For example in fiscal year 2024 we experienced continued demand softness in printing products and solutions and we believe we and others in our industry face continuing secular challenges related to among other things decreased demand for printing products and solutions as a result of increased digitization and hybrid work and increasing competition from generic alternatives We also need to ensure our existing offerings in this space such as managed services and print software remain sufficiently differentiated Our efforts to mitigate the impact of these challenges such as by seeking to increase our margin and market share and drive demand in subscription services and other recurring revenue based business models may not be successful and shifting to recurring revenue based business may require us to forego upfront revenue In addition we may be unable to successfully execute our strategy sufficiently invest in prioritize research and development market and scale or accurately project the financial performance of our key growth areas other strategic growth initiatives and existing offerings accurately predict technological or business trends or control costs Moreover the process of developing new high technology products services and solutions and enhancing existing products services and solutions including through the introduction of AI capabilities is complex costly and uncertain and we may be unable to anticipate or respond to customers changing needs accurately identify emerging technological trends or accurately project the demand pricing or other market dynamics of such trends Our ability to successfully offer our products services and solutions in this rapidly evolving market requires an effective planning forecasting and management process to enable us to effectively calibrate and adjust our business and business models in response to fluctuating market opportunities and conditions This effort includes execution of effective go to market plans which may require us to evolve our talent and capabilities incentive plans especially for evolution to recurring revenue business and coverage models In addition we may be unable to appropriately prioritize and balance our initiatives or effectively manage change throughout our organization
Our industry is subject to rapid and substantial innovation technological change and customer preferences Even if we successfully develop new products solutions and technologies future products solutions and technologies including those created by our competitors may eventually supplant ours if we are unable to keep pace with technological advances and end user requirements and preferences and timely enhancement of our existing products and technologies or develop new ones As a result we could lose market share and certain of our products solutions and technologies may be rendered uneconomical or obsolete
After we develop a product we must be able to quickly manufacture appropriate volumes while also managing costs and preserving or improving margins To accomplish this we must accurately forecast volumes mixes of products and configurations that meet customer and legal requirements and we may not succeed in doing so within a given product s lifecycle or at all Any delay in the development production or marketing of a new product service or solution could result in us not being among the first to market which could further harm our competitive position Moreover new products and services may not be profitable and even if they are profitable the operating margins may not be as high as the historical or anticipated margins
We expect the proliferation of AI to have a significant impact on our industry and the markets in which we compete and the development and use of AI presents competitive reputational and liability risks
We believe the proliferation of AI especially as it relates to our product and solutions offerings will have a significant impact on customer preferences and market dynamics in our industry and our ability to effectively compete in this space will be critical to our financial performance We also believe that the effective use of AI in our internal operations is important to our long term success We are working to incorporate AI capabilities into our consumer and commercial products and solutions as well as across the company in our own internal operations and our research into and continued development of such technologies remain ongoing As with many innovations AI presents risks challenges and unintended consequences that could affect its rate and success of adoption and therefore our business and there is no guarantee that our use of AI or incorporation of AI capabilities into our products and solutions will benefit our business operations or result in products and solutions that are preferred by our customers We have invested and expect to continue to invest significant resources to build and support our AI products If our AI products fail to operate as anticipated or as well as competing products or otherwise do not meet customer needs or if we are unable to bring AI enabled products and solutions to market as effectively or with the same speed or in the same volumes as our competitors we may fail to recoup our investments in AI or improve our financial performance our competitive position may be harmed and our business and reputation may be adversely impacted Moreover our actions to drive demand to AI products may result in cannibalization of demand for our traditional non AI products
In addition AI algorithms may be flawed Datasets may be insufficient or contain biased information AI models deployed by us or our partners may lead to unexpected or unintended outcomes that could erode trust in our AI products and solutions and potentially cause harm to individuals or society These deficiencies and other failures of AI systems could subject us to competitive harm regulatory action legal liability including under new proposed legislation regulating AI in jurisdictions such as the U S and European Union new applications of existing data protection privacy intellectual property and other laws and brand or reputational harm Additionally our obligations to comply with the evolving legal and regulatory landscape could entail significant costs or limit our ability to incorporate certain AI capabilities into our products and solutions Some AI capabilities also present ethical issues and we may be unsuccessful in identifying or resolving issues before they arise If we enable or offer AI products or solutions or implement AI capabilities in our internal operations that are controversial because of their impact on human rights the environment privacy employment or other social economic or political issues we may experience brand or reputational harm or greater employee attrition
We have at times operated in a supply constrained environment and have faced and may face in the future component shortages logistics challenges and manufacturing disruptions that impact our revenues profitability and cash flows We are heavily dependent on third party suppliers and their ability to deliver sufficient key components products and services at reasonable prices and in time for us to meet schedules for the delivery of our products and services In addition our operations depend on our ability to anticipate and our suppliers ability to fulfill our needs for sufficient key components products and services including sourcing matched sets Given the wide variety of products and services we offer the large and diverse distribution of our suppliers and contract manufacturers and the long lead times required to manufacture assemble and deliver certain components and products problems have and could continue to arise in production planning and inventory management Third party suppliers may have limited financial resources to withstand challenging business conditions particularly as a result of increased interest rates or emerging market volatility and our business could be negatively impacted if key suppliers are forced to cease or limit their operations Changes or additions to our supply chain require considerable time and resources and involve significant risks and uncertainties
We also have experienced and may experience in the future gross margin declines in certain businesses reflecting the effect of competitive pricing pressures and increases in component and manufacturing costs resulting from higher labor and material costs borne by our manufacturers and suppliers that we are unable to pass on to our customers Our business may be disrupted if we are unable to obtain equipment parts or components from our suppliers and our suppliers from their suppliers due to the insolvency of key suppliers or the inability of key suppliers to obtain credit or if any of our distributors lack sufficient financial resources to withstand economic weakness In addition our ongoing efforts to optimize the efficiency of our supply chain for cost or redundancy could cause supply disruptions and be more expensive time consuming and resource intensive than expected Furthermore certain of our suppliers and OMs may decide to discontinue business with us or limit the allocation of products to us which could result in our inability to fill our supply needs jeopardizing our ability to fulfill our contractual obligations which could in turn result in a decrease in sales profitability and cash flows contract penalties or terminations and damage to customer relationships
We have at times experienced and may in the future experience a shortage of or a delay in receiving certain components as a result of strong demand capacity constraints supplier financial weaknesses disputes with suppliers some of whom are also our customers disruptions in the operations of component suppliers supplier ability to demonstrate regulatory compliance regulatory restrictions on specific components in certain markets other problems experienced by suppliers or problems we face during the transition to new suppliers For example a market shortage of integrated circuits and panels and other component supply has at times affected and may affect in the future lead times the cost of that supply and our ability to meet customer demand for our products Additionally our Personal Systems business relies heavily upon OMs to manufacture our products and we are therefore dependent upon the continuing operations of those OMs We represent a substantial portion of the business for certain OMs and changes to the nature or volume of our business transactions with a particular OM could adversely affect the OM and lead to shortages or delays in receiving component products from that OM Increased demand for particular components due to industry trends including components required for the operation of AI may lead to shortages delays and price increases Our anticipation of these and other supply chain dynamics may result in us purchasing components in greater volumes and on earlier schedules in order to secure an adequate supply which could adversely affect our working capital and cash flow If shortages or delays in component products occur the price of certain components may increase we may be exposed to quality issues or the components may not be available at all We may not be able to secure enough components at reasonable prices or of acceptable quality to build products or provide services in a timely manner in the quantities needed or according to our specifications Accordingly we may lose time sensitive sales incur additional freight costs or be unable to pass on price increases to our customers due to such component shortages or delays If we cannot adequately address a component supply issue we may have to re engineer some product or service offerings which could result in further costs and delays
In order to secure components for our products or services we have and may continue to make advance payments to suppliers or enter into non cancelable commitments with vendors In addition we have and may continue to strategically purchase components in advance of demand to take advantage of favorable pricing or to address concerns about future availability which could adversely affect our working capital and cash flow If we fail to anticipate customer demand an oversupply could result in excess or obsolete components
As a result of binding long term price or purchase commitments with vendors we may be obligated to purchase components or services at prices that are higher than those available in the current market and may be limited in our ability to respond to changing market conditions If we commit to purchasing components or services for prices in excess of the then current market price we may be at a disadvantage to competitors who have access to components or services at lower prices our gross margin could suffer and we could incur additional charges relating to inventory obsolescence In addition many of our competitors obtain products or components from the same OMs and suppliers that we utilize Our competitors may obtain better pricing more favorable contractual terms and conditions or more favorable allocations of products and components and our ability to engage in relationships with certain OMs and suppliers could be limited The practice employed by our Personal Systems business of purchasing product components and transferring those components to OMs may create large supplier receivables with the OMs that depending on the financial condition of the OMs may create collectability risks In addition to secure components we may accept contractual terms and conditions that are less favorable to us
We also rely on third party suppliers for the provision of contingent workers and our failure to effectively manage this workforce could adversely affect our financial results Our ability to manage the costs associated with engaging a contingent workforce may be impacted by evolving local labor rights laws
Our brand perception customer loyalty and legal compliance could be adversely impacted by a supplier s improper practices or failure to comply with our requirements for environmentally socially or legally responsible practices and sourcing including sub tier sourcing
We obtain a significant number of components from a single source due to technology availability price quality or other considerations For example we rely on Canon for certain laser printer engines and laser toner cartridges and certain key suppliers for application specific integrated circuits ASICs We also rely on Intel AMD and NVIDIA to provide us with a sufficient supply of processors for the majority of our PCs and workstations Some of those processors may be customized for our products New products that we introduce may utilize custom components obtained initially from only one source until we have determined whether there is a need for additional suppliers Replacing a single source supplier could delay production of some products as replacement suppliers may be subject to capacity constraints or other output limitations For some components alternative sources may not exist or may be unable to produce the quantities of those components necessary to satisfy our production requirements In certain circumstances we purchase components from single source suppliers under short term agreements that contain favorable pricing and other terms but that may be unilaterally modified or terminated by the supplier with limited notice and with little or no penalty The performance of single source suppliers under those agreements and the renewal or extension of those agreements upon similar terms may affect the quality quantity and price of our components The loss of deterioration of our relationship with or limits in allocation by a single source supplier or any unilateral modification to the contractual terms under which we are supplied components by a single source supplier could adversely affect our business and financial performance An adverse litigation outcome including an injunction in an IP litigation against a single source supplier could also significantly impact our ability to make and sell products utilizing that supplier s components
Our manufacturing facilities and suppliers have historically been and continue to be geographically concentrated in certain regions which could exacerbate the risks noted above While we are undertaking initiatives to diversify our manufacturing and supply chain footprint such initiatives require significant investment and time and have been and can continue to be subject to regulatory continuity operational geopolitical and other hurdles and there can be no assurance that these initiatives will be successful
The success of our services business such as our managed print services digital services consumer subscriptions and other workforce services in both Printing and Personal Systems depends to a significant degree on attracting retaining and maintaining or increasing the level of revenues from our customers Our standard services agreements are generally renewable at a customer s option and or subject to early termination rights We may not be able to retain or renew services contracts with our customers or our customers may reduce the scope of the services for which they contract Factors that may influence contract termination non renewal or reduction include business downturns dissatisfaction with our services or products our retirement or lack of support for our services our customers selecting alternative technologies the cost of our services as compared to our competitors general market conditions a lower than investment grade credit rating or other reasons We may not be able to replace the revenue and earnings from lost customers or reductions in services While our services agreements may include penalties for early termination these penalties may not fully cover our investments in these businesses Our customers could also delay or terminate implementations or use of our services or choose not to invest in additional services from us in the future In addition the pricing and other terms of certain services agreements require us to make estimates and assumptions at the time we enter into these contracts that could differ from actual results Any increased or unexpected costs or unanticipated delays in connection with the performance of these contracts which may increase as services become more customized could make these agreements less profitable or unprofitable Certain service oriented business models such as the device as a service model under which customers rent a hardware device for a periodic fee within a managed solution that provides professional services software support monitoring and other services may not generate net new sales for customers who previously purchased our hardware transactionally The device as a service model also requires the participation of a third party financing provider and we may face challenges in finding such providers who are willing to provide financing on acceptable terms or at all In addition from time to time we offer new services for which customer demand and adoption rates are difficult to predict and we may not be able to scale these services as we expect As a result we may not generate the revenues profits or cash flows we may have anticipated from our services business within the expected timelines if at all
We encounter aggressive competition in all areas of our business and our competitors have targeted and are expected to continue targeting our key market segments We compete on the basis of our technology innovation performance price quality reliability brand reputation distribution range of products and services ease of use account relationships customer training service and support security availability of application software and internet infrastructure offerings and our sustainability performance We have faced and may continue to face declines in market share for our products If our products services support and cost structure do not enable us to compete successfully our results of operations cash flows and business prospects could be affected
We have a large portfolio of products and must allocate our financial personnel and other resources across our products while competing with companies that have smaller portfolios or specialize in one or more of our product lines Because of the size and scope of our portfolio we may invest a greater percentage of our revenues including on research and development than some of our competitors As a result we may invest less in certain areas of our business than our competitors and our competitors may have greater financial technical and marketing resources available for their products and services compared to the resources allocated to
our competing products and services or greater economies of scale which could in turn result in our loss of market share Our actions to mitigate the impact of these dynamics such as reducing the size of our product portfolio may not be successful In addition if we cannot proportionately decrease our cost structure on a timely basis in response to competitive pricing pressures our gross margin profitability and cash flows could be adversely affected
Our alliance partners in certain areas may be or may become our competitors in others In addition these partners also may acquire or form alliances with our competitors which could reduce their business with us
We have faced and expect to continue to face aggressive price competition and have lowered and may in the future need to lower the prices of many of our products and services to stay competitive while at the same time trying to maintain or improve our market share revenue and gross margin Competitors who have a greater presence in some of the lower cost markets in which we compete or who can obtain better pricing more favorable contractual terms and conditions and or more favorable allocations of products and components have been able to offer and may continue to be able to offer lower prices than we are able to offer Price competition often increases during periods of lower demand including as a result of declining macroeconomic conditions The sales prices for our products may also decline as a result of discounts a change in or mix of products and services anticipation of the introduction of new products and services by us or by our competitors promotional programs product and related warranty costs or broader macroeconomic factors We may also provide pricing discounts to large customers which may result in lower margins for the period in which the sales occur In addition currency fluctuations particularly weakness in the Japanese Yen has and may continue to exacerbate pricing competition for our print products and services
Industry consolidation may also affect competition by creating larger more homogeneous and potentially stronger competitors in the markets in which we operate Our competitors may also affect our business by entering into exclusive arrangements with our existing or potential customers or suppliers Furthermore non original supplies including imitation refill or remanufactured alternatives which are often available at lower prices compete with our Printing Supplies business We may not be able to prevent the use of imitation print supplies with our printers using technological protection measures including due to regulatory issues or other legal challenges In addition online and omnichannel retailers resellers and distributors often sell our products alongside competing products including non original supplies or they may highlight the availability of lower cost non original supplies We expect this competition will continue
In the course of conducting our business we must address quality and security issues associated with our products and services including potential flaws in our engineering design and manufacturing processes unsatisfactory performance under service contracts and unsatisfactory performance or malicious acts by third parties Many of our products and services including those which incorporate AI capabilities are dependent on third party software including from Microsoft and Google to function as intended and product issues also sometimes result from the interaction between our products and third party products and software Our business is also exposed to the risk of defects in third party components or materials included in our products including security vulnerabilities The products and services that we offer are complex and our regular testing and quality control efforts may not be completely effective in controlling or detecting all quality and security issues or errors particularly with respect to undiscovered defects or security vulnerabilities in components manufactured by third parties
If we are unable to determine the cause or find an effective solution to address quality or security issues with our products we may delay shipment to customers which would delay revenue recognition and receipt of customer payments We have and may again in the future write off some or all of the value of non performing inventory In addition after products are delivered quality and security issues may require us to repair or replace such products Addressing these issues can be expensive and may result in additional warranty repair replacement and other costs In the event of security vulnerabilities or other issues with third party components we may have to rely on third parties to provide mitigation which may be ineffective Further adapting our products and services to meet new regulatory requirements can be costly and cause uncertainties and business disruption Quality and security issues including those resulting from defects or security vulnerabilities in third party components can impair our relationships with new or existing customers and adversely affect our brand and reputation The proliferation of social media may increase the likelihood speed and magnitude of negative brand and reputation events
We are subject to third party claims that we or customers indemnified by us are infringing upon such parties IP rights We have seen an increasing trend of patent assertion entities and operating companies with licensing businesses engaging in claims of infringement and assertion of patents to extract settlements to avoid significant business disruption including the assertion of patents related to standardized technologies such as Wi Fi or video The patent litigation environment has also become more challenging due to the emergence of venues adopting procedural and substantive rules and practices that make them more favorable for patent asserters including the availability of preliminary and permanent injunctions for non competitors If we cannot or do not license allegedly infringed IP at all or on reasonable terms or if we are required to substitute technology from another source our operations could be adversely affected Even if we believe that IP claims are without merit they can be time consuming and costly to defend against and may divert management s attention and resources away from our business Claims of IP infringement have and may require us to redesign affected products enter into costly settlements or license agreements pay damage awards or face a temporary or permanent injunction prohibiting us from importing marketing or selling certain products Additionally claims of IP infringement may adversely impact our brand and reputation and imperil new and existing customer relationships
In certain countries primarily in Europe proceedings are ongoing or have been concluded in which groups representing copyright owners seek to impose upon and collect from us levies upon IT equipment such as PCs and printers There have also been efforts to introduce modify or extend existing levy schemes and to increase the amount of the levies that can be collected from us The total amount of the copyright levies depends on several factors and could be substantial The ultimate impact of these copyright levies or similar fees and our ability to recover such amounts through increased prices remains uncertain
The terms of the separation of Hewlett Packard Enterprise and us include licenses and other arrangements to provide for certain ongoing use of intellectual property in the operations of both Hewlett Packard Enterprise and us For example through a joint brand holding structure both Hewlett Packard Enterprise and we retain the ability to make ongoing use of certain variations of the legacy Hewlett Packard and HP branding respectively As a result of this continuing shared use of the legacy branding there is a risk that conduct or events adversely affecting the reputation of Hewlett Packard Enterprise could also adversely affect our reputation
Our net revenue gross margin profit and cash flow generation vary among our portfolio of products and services customer groups and geographic markets and therefore will likely vary in future periods Overall gross margins and profitability in any given period are dependent on the product service customer and geographic mix reflected in that period s net revenue which in turn depends on the overall demand for our products and services We have experienced and may in the future experience delays or reductions in spending by our customers or potential customers which could have a material adverse effect on demand for our products and services and could result in a significant decline in net revenue For example we observed continued market uncertainty cautious commercial spending on information technology hardware lower discretionary consumer spending secular declines in demand for certain products or solutions including printing products and solutions inflationary pressures and foreign currency fluctuations In addition net revenue declines in some of our businesses may affect net revenue in our other businesses as we may lose cross selling opportunities Moreover newer geographic markets can be relatively less profitable due to our investments associated with entering those markets and local pricing pressures as well as difficulty establishing and maintaining the operating infrastructure necessary to support the high growth rate associated with some of those markets Our efforts to address the challenges facing our business could increase the level of variability in our financial results because the rate at which we are able to realize the benefits from those efforts may vary from period to period These factors could also make it difficult to accurately forecast revenues and operating results and could negatively affect our ability to provide accurate forecasts to suppliers and manufacturers manage our relationships and other expenses and to make decisions about future investments
We use a variety of distribution methods to sell our products and services around the world including third party resellers and distributors and both direct and indirect sales to enterprise accounts and consumers Successfully managing our global multi tier distribution network including the interaction of our direct sales and indirect channel sales efforts to reach potential customer segments for our products and services is a complex process Moreover since each distribution method has distinct risks and gross margins we may fail to implement the most advantageous balance in the delivery model for our products and services
Conflicts might arise between our various distribution channels we may experience the loss or deterioration of an alliance or distribution arrangement or a reduced assortment of our products we may not be able to limit the potential misuse of pricing programs by our channel partners and we may fail to optimize the use of our pricing programs Moreover some of our channel partners and distributors may have insufficient financial resources and may not be able to withstand changes in business conditions including economic weakness industry consolidation and market trends They may also have difficulty selling our products under new business models Many of our significant distributors operate on narrow margins and have been negatively affected by business pressures in the past Additionally in certain regions we rely on a limited number of distributors which could exacerbate these risks Trade receivables that are not covered by collateral or credit insurance are outstanding with our distribution and retail channel partners Net revenue from indirect sales could suffer and we could experience disruptions in distribution if our distributors financial conditions abilities to borrow funds or operations weaken or if our distributors cannot successfully compete in the online or omnichannel marketplace
Our inventory management is complex as we continue to sell a significant mix of products through distributors We must manage both owned and channel inventory effectively particularly with respect to sales to distributors which involves forecasting demand and pricing and factoring in supply chain challenges and order cancellations Our forecasts do not always accurately predict demand and distributors have and may continue to increase orders during periods of product shortages cancel orders if their inventory is too high or delay orders in anticipation of new products Distributors also may adjust their orders in response to the supply of our products and the products of our competitors and seasonal fluctuations in end user demand Our reliance upon indirect distribution methods including a multi tiered channel may reduce our visibility into inventories demand and pricing trends Elevated channel inventory can result in adverse impacts to demand and pricing for our products the extent and timing of which are difficult to predict with precision or sometimes at all Accordingly our distribution model makes forecasting and managing multi tiered channel inventory more difficult
If we were to expand direct distribution initiatives channel and indirect distributors could consider such initiatives in conflict with their business interests and reduce their investment in the distribution and sale of our products or cease all sales of our products Sales of our products by channel partners to unauthorized resellers or unauthorized resale of our products has and could continue to make our forecasting and channel inventory management more difficult and impact pricing in the market For example in the past we have had channel partners sell products outside of their agreed territory and misrepresent sales to unauthorized resellers as sales to end users frustrating our efforts to estimate channel inventory or maintain consistent pricing and negatively impacting gross margins Moreover our use of indirect distribution channels may limit our willingness or ability to adjust prices quickly and otherwise to respond to pricing changes by competitors In addition factors in different markets may cause differential discounting among the geographies where our products are sold which makes it difficult to achieve global consistency in pricing and creates the opportunity for grey marketing In addition our global channel partners may fail to comply with applicable legal and regulatory requirements
Our quarterly sales often have reflected a pattern in which a disproportionate percentage of each quarter s total sales occurs towards the end of the quarter This uneven sales pattern makes predicting net revenue earnings cash flow from operations and working capital for each financial period difficult increases the risk of unanticipated variations in our quarterly results and financial condition and places pressure on our inventory management and logistics systems If orders fall short of predicted demand this results in excess inventory Alternatively if orders exceed predicted demand we may not be able to fulfill all of the orders received in each quarter and such orders may be canceled by the customer Depending on when they occur in a quarter developments such as a systems failure component pricing movements component shortages supply disruptions logistics challenges or declines in demand could adversely impact our inventory levels our results of operations and cash flows in a manner that is disproportionate to the number of days in the quarter affected
We experience seasonal trends in the sale of our products that may produce variations in our quarterly results and financial condition For example sales to governments particularly sales to the U S government are often stronger in the third calendar quarter and many customers whose fiscal year is the calendar year spend their remaining capital budget authorizations in the fourth calendar quarter Consumer sales are often higher in the fourth calendar quarter due in part to seasonal holiday demand and our fourth fiscal quarter ending October 31 has typically been our strongest quarter by revenues European sales are often weaker during the summer months Demand during the spring and early summer may also be adversely impacted by market anticipation of seasonal trends However historical seasonal patterns may not continue in the future and such patterns have been and may be impacted by supply constraints macroeconomic conditions such as an economic slowdown or inflationary pressures shifts in customer behavior and the impacts of pandemics or other public health crises Moreover to the extent that we introduce new products in anticipation of seasonal demand trends our discounting of existing products may adversely affect our gross margins Many of the factors that create and affect seasonal trends are beyond our control
In order to be successful we must attract hire retain train motivate develop and deploy qualified executives engineers technical staff and other key employees Identifying developing internally or hiring externally training and retaining qualified executives engineers and qualified sales representatives are critical to our future and competition for experienced employees in the technology industry can be intense Equity based compensation is essential for attracting and retaining qualified employees and lack of positive performance in our stock price may adversely affect our ability to attract or retain key employees In addition workforce dynamics are constantly evolving and we may not be able to manage changing workforce dynamics successfully Moreover changes in immigration policies may impair our ability to recruit and hire technical and professional talent globally Further changes in our management team may be disruptive to our business and we may be unable to successfully transition and assimilate key new hires or promoted employees or successfully execute succession plans
We rely upon patent copyright trademark trade secret and other IP laws in the United States similar laws in other countries and agreements with our employees customers suppliers and other parties to establish and maintain IP rights in the products and services we sell provide or otherwise use in our operations However our IP rights could be challenged invalidated infringed or circumvented or such IP rights may not be sufficient to permit us to take advantage of current market trends or to otherwise provide competitive advantages either of which could result in costly product redesign efforts discontinuance of certain product offerings or other harm to our competitive position In addition we may choose to not apply for patent protection or may fail to apply for patent protection in a timely fashion Further the laws of certain countries do not protect proprietary rights to the same extent as the laws of the United States Therefore in certain jurisdictions we may be unable to protect our proprietary technology adequately against unauthorized third party copying or use which could adversely affect our ability to sell products or services and our competitive position
In addition certain of our businesses and products rely on key technologies developed or licensed by third parties We may not be able to obtain or continue to obtain licenses and technologies from these third parties at all or on reasonable terms or such third parties may demand cross licenses to our IP Third party components may become obsolete defective or incompatible with future versions of our products our relationship with the third party may deteriorate or our agreements may expire or be terminated We may face legal or business disputes with licensors that may threaten or lead to the disruption of inbound licensing relationships In order to remain in compliance with the terms of our licenses we must monitor and manage our use of third party components including both proprietary and open source license terms that may require the licensing or public disclosure of our IP without compensation or on undesirable terms Some of these licenses may not be available to us in the future on terms that are acceptable or that allow our product offerings to remain competitive In addition it is possible that as a consequence of a merger or acquisition third parties may obtain licenses to some of our IP rights or our business may be subject to certain restrictions that were not in place prior to such transaction Because the availability and cost of licenses from third parties depends upon the willingness of third parties to deal with us on the terms we request there is a risk that third parties who license to our competitors will either refuse to license to us or refuse to license to us on terms equally favorable to those granted to our competitors Consequently we may lose a competitive advantage with respect to these IP rights or we may be required to enter into costly arrangements in order to terminate or limit these rights Finally we may rely on third parties to enforce certain IP rights
System security risks data protection breaches cyberattacks system outages and systems integration issues could disrupt our internal operations or services provided to customers and could reduce our revenue increase our expenses damage our reputation and adversely affect our cash flows and stock price
We are exposed to cyberattacks seeking to penetrate our network security and misappropriate or compromise our confidential information or that of third parties create system disruptions or cause shutdowns Such attacks may involve the deployment of ransomware and other malicious software programs that attack our products or otherwise exploit security vulnerabilities or attempt to fraudulently induce our employees customers or others to disclose passwords other sensitive information or provide access to our systems or data Such risks extend not only to our own products services systems and networks but also to those of customers suppliers contractors business partners vendors and other third parties particularly as all parties increasingly digitize their operations We engage a significant number of these third parties to assist us with various business functions that require the use storage processing and deletion of data While we make efforts to assess and validate the implementation of cybersecurity requirements and controls by these third parties with respect to the services provided and the data handled on our behalf there remains a risk of misappropriation compromise or breach of data outside of our direct control In addition hardware and operating system software and applications that we produce or procure from third parties may contain defects or vulnerabilities in design or manufacture including bugs that could unexpectedly interfere with the operation of the product Breaches of our facilities network or data security could disrupt the security of our systems and business applications impair our ability to provide services to our customers and protect the privacy of their data result in product development delays compromise confidential or technical business information harm our reputation or competitive position result in theft or misuse of our IP or other assets require us to allocate more resources to improve technologies or otherwise adversely affect our business and financial results
Additionally the costs to combat cyber or other security threats can be significant and our efforts to address these problems may not be successful and could result in interruptions delays cessation of service and loss of existing or potential customers that may impede our sales manufacturing distribution or other critical functions Media or other reports of perceived vulnerabilities in our network security regardless of their immediacy or accuracy could adversely impact our brand and reputation and materially affect our business and financial results
While we have implemented security measures and internal controls designed to protect against cyber and other security threats such measures cannot provide absolute security and may not be successful in preventing future security breaches Moreover these threats are constantly evolving thereby making it more difficult to successfully defend against them or to implement adequate preventative measures Certain vulnerabilities are difficult to detect even using our best efforts which may allow those vulnerabilities to persist in our systems over long periods of time In the past we have experienced data security incidents resulting from unauthorized access to or use of our systems or those of third parties which to date have not had a material impact on our operations however there remains the possibility of a future data security incident that results in a material impact to the Company Additionally it may be difficult to determine the best way to investigate mitigate contain and remediate the harm caused by a data security incident Such efforts may not be successful and we may make errors or fail to take necessary actions It may take considerable time for us to investigate and evaluate the full impact of incidents particularly for sophisticated attacks These factors may inhibit our ability to provide prompt full and reliable information about the incident to our customers partners regulators and the public Remote work and remote access to our systems has increased significantly which also increases our cybersecurity attack surface We have also seen an increase in cyberattack volume frequency and sophistication driven by the global enablement of remote workforces Geopolitical tensions or conflicts may further heighten the risk of cybersecurity attacks The emergence and maturation of AI capabilities may also lead to new and or more sophisticated methods of attack including fraud that relies upon deep fake impersonation technology or other forms of generative automation that may scale up the efficiency or effectiveness of cybersecurity attacks While we carry cyber insurance we cannot be certain that our coverage will be adequate for liabilities actually incurred that insurance will continue to be available to us on economically reasonable terms or at all or that any insurer will not deny coverage as to any future claim
Because we process proprietary information and sensitive or confidential data relating to our business including data relating to employees independent contractors and other personnel our customers and third parties breaches of our security measures or accidental loss inadvertent disclosure or unapproved dissemination of such data can expose us our customers third parties and the individuals affected to a risk of loss alteration or misuse of such information A breach could also damage our brand and reputation or otherwise harm our business and could result in government enforcement actions litigation civil monetary penalties or fines and other potential liability for us We are subject to federal state and international laws relating to privacy and data protection particularly in the U S European Union such as the General Data Protection Regulation GDPR and China and other countries legislative and regulatory bodies are increasingly proposing new or more stringent requirements relating to privacy and data protection These laws and regulations continue to evolve are increasing in complexity and number and increasingly conflict among the various countries in which we operate which has resulted in greater compliance risk and cost for us In addition the cost and operational consequences of implementing new privacy and data protection measures could be significant
Portions of our IT infrastructure including those provided by third parties have experienced and may experience in the future interruptions outages delays or cessations of service or may produce errors in connection with systems integrations migration work or other causes which could result in business disruptions The process of remediating these issues could be more expensive time consuming disruptive and resource intensive than planned Further such disruptions could adversely impact our ability to fulfill orders and respond to customer requests and interrupt other processes resulting in delayed sales lower margins lost customers or reputational damage
We have undertaken and may undertake in the future restructuring plans in order to realign our cost structure and to achieve operating efficiencies that we expect to reduce costs including the plan announced in November 2022 Implementation of any restructuring plan may be costly and disruptive to our business and we may not be able to obtain the anticipated cost savings operational improvements and estimated workforce reductions within the projected timing or at all Additionally as a result of restructuring initiatives we may experience a loss of continuity loss of accumulated knowledge and or inefficiency loss of key employees and or other retention issues during transitional periods Restructuring can require a significant amount of time and focus which may divert attention from operating and growing our business Moreover projections of any cost savings or other benefits associated with our restructuring plans are based on current business operations and market dynamics and could be significantly impacted by various factors including but not limited to our evolving business models future investment decisions market environment and technology landscape For more information about our restructuring plans see Note 3 Restructuring and Other Charges to our Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 8
As part of our business strategy we may acquire companies or businesses divest businesses or assets enter into strategic alliances and joint ventures and make investments to further our business Risks associated with these transactions include the following
We may not fully realize the anticipated benefits of any particular transaction in the timeframe we expected or at all such transaction may be less profitable than anticipated or unprofitable we may not identify all factors to estimate accurately our costs timing or other matters and realizing the benefits of a particular transaction may depend upon competition market trends additional costs or investments and the actions of advisors suppliers or other third parties
Certain transactions have resulted and in the future may result in significant costs and expenses including those related to compensation and benefit costs goodwill and impairment charges charges from elimination of duplicative facilities and contracts inventory adjustments assumed litigation and other liabilities advisory fees and payments to executive officers and key employees under retention plans
Our due diligence may fail to identify significant issues with the target s product quality financial disclosures accounting practices or internal controls including as a result of being dependent on the veracity and completeness of statements and disclosures made or actions taken by third parties or the assumptions or judgments we make with respect to our due diligence may be incorrect
In addition if we fail to identify successfully complete and integrate transactions that further our strategic objectives we may be required to expend resources to develop products services and technology internally which may put us at a competitive disadvantage
In the case of a divestiture we may have difficulty finding buyers or alternative exit strategies on acceptable terms in a timely manner We may also dispose of a business at a price or on terms that are less desirable than we had anticipated In addition we may experience fewer benefits than expected and the impact of the divestiture on our financial performance may be larger than projected
The business combination and investment transactions in which we engage may be large or complex and we must manage post closing issues such as the integration of the acquired business Integrations involve significant challenges and are often time consuming and expensive and could significantly disrupt our business and the acquired business These challenges include successfully combining product and service offerings entering or expanding into markets retaining key employees integrating employees facilities technology products processes operations including supply and manufacturing operations sales and distribution channels business models and business systems and retaining customers and distributors
We have established and publicly announced ESG goals including our commitments to address climate change human rights and digital equity These statements reflect our current plans and aspirations and are not guarantees that we will be able to achieve them Our failure to adequately update accomplish or accurately track and report on these goals on a timely basis or at all or a decision to amend retire or stop reporting on certain goals or positions we take or do not take on social issues could adversely affect our reputation financial performance and growth and expose us to increased scrutiny from the investment community special interest groups customers and enforcement authorities In addition there exists certain anti ESG sentiment among some individuals and government institutions and we may also face scrutiny reputational risk lawsuits or market access restrictions from these parties regarding our ESG initiatives
Our ability to achieve any ESG objective is subject to numerous risks some of which are outside of our control Examples of such risks include the availability and cost of low or non carbon based energy sources the evolving regulatory requirements affecting product circularity ESG standards or disclosures the evolving consumer protection laws applicable to ESG matters the availability of materials and suppliers that can meet our sustainability diversity and other ESG goals and the availability of funds to invest in ESG initiatives in times where we are seeking to reduce costs
Standards for tracking and reporting ESG matters continue to evolve Our selection of voluntary disclosure frameworks and standards and the interpretation or application of those frameworks and standards may change from time to time or differ from those of others Methodologies for reporting ESG data may be updated and previously reported ESG data may be adjusted to reflect improvement in availability and quality of third party data changing assumptions changes in the nature and scope of our operations and other changes in circumstances Our processes and controls for reporting ESG matters across our operations and supply chain are evolving along with multiple disparate standards for identifying measuring and reporting ESG metrics including ESG related disclosures that are or may become required by the SEC European and other regulators including but not limited to the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive the EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive the state of California s new climate change disclosure requirements and climate change disclosure requirements from the SEC and such standards may change over time which could result in significant revisions to our current goals reported progress in achieving such goals or ability to achieve such goals in the future If our ESG practices do not meet evolving government investor or other stakeholder expectations and standards then our reputation or our attractiveness as an investment business partner acquiror product or service provider or employer could be negatively impacted and we could be subject to litigation or regulatory proceedings
Certain provisions in our certificate of incorporation and bylaws and the Delaware General Corporation Law may discourage delay or prevent changes of control of HP judged as undesirable by our Board of Directors These provisions include authorizing blank check preferred stock which we could issue with voting liquidation dividend and other rights superior to our common stock limiting the liability of and providing indemnification to our directors and officers specifying that our stockholders may take action only at a duly called annual or special meeting of stockholders and otherwise in accordance with our bylaws and limiting the ability of our stockholders to call special meetings requiring advance notice of proposals by our stockholders for business to be conducted at stockholder meetings and for nominations of candidates for election to our Board of Directors and controlling the procedures for our Board of Directors and stockholder meetings and election appointment and removal of our directors These provisions could deter or delay hostile takeovers proxy contests and changes in control or our management or limit the opportunity for our stockholders to receive a premium for their shares of our stock
Approximately 65 of our net revenue for fiscal year 2024 came from outside the United States In addition we operate in emerging markets which can be more volatile Our future business and financial performance could suffer due to a variety of international factors including
instability in a country s or region s economic regulatory or political conditions including inflation recession interest rate fluctuations changes or uncertainty in fiscal or monetary policy actual or anticipated military or political conflicts health emergencies or pandemics
the imposition by governments of additional taxes tariffs or other restrictions on foreign trade or changes in restrictions on trade between the United States and other countries where HP products are manufactured or sold including China
trade sanctions embargoes country localization requirements and import restrictions and other policies and regulations affecting production shipping pricing and marketing of products including policies adopted by any country that may favor domestic companies and technologies over foreign competitors
changes or uncertainty in international national or local legal environments including tax data handling privacy artificial intelligence intellectual property consumer protection environmental and antitrust laws
import export or other business licensing requirements or requirements relating to making foreign direct investments which could increase our cost of doing business prevent us from shipping products affect our ability to obtain favorable terms for components increase our operating costs or lead to penalties or restrictions
compliance with the U S Foreign Corrupt Practices Act U S export control and trade sanction laws and similar anti corruption and international trade laws and adverse consequences for any failure to comply including compliance by recently acquired companies which may have less robust internal compliance procedures and
fluctuations in freight costs limitations on shipping and receiving capacity and other disruptions in the transportation and shipping infrastructure at important geographic points for our products and shipments
The factors described above also could disrupt our product and component manufacturing and key suppliers located outside of the United States and our supply chain For example we rely on manufacturers in Taiwan to produce notebook computers and other suppliers in Asia for product assembly and manufacture and have manufacturing operations in Israel which support our Industrial Graphics business The impact of certain geopolitical conflicts including any escalation or expansion thereof such as the ongoing military conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East or tensions in the Taiwan Strait and South China Sea and any broadening of ancillary geopolitical economic and other effects could adversely impact these operations and could heighten the other risks identified in this report
Our business and financial performance depend on worldwide economic conditions and the demand for our products and services Ongoing economic weakness including an economic slowdown or recession uncertainty in markets throughout the world and other adverse economic conditions including inflation changes in monetary policy increased interest rates tariffs exchange rates and an evolving global trade environment have resulted in and may continue to result in decreased demand for our products and services and challenges in managing inventory levels and accurately forecasting revenue gross margin cash flows and expenses For example during fiscal year 2024 we observed continued market uncertainty cautious commercial spending on information technology hardware including in China lower discretionary consumer spending increasing commodity costs inflationary pressures and foreign currency fluctuations Changes in government spending limits may continue to reduce demand for our products and services from governments or organizations that receive government funding Moreover U S government contracts are subject to congressional funding which at times has been and may in the future be unavailable or delayed which could impact our business
Prolonged or more severe economic weakness and uncertainty could also cause our expenses to vary materially from our expectations Financial turmoil affecting the banking system and financial markets or significant financial services institution failures could negatively impact our treasury operations or those of our suppliers vendors or customers rapidly and without notice Poor financial performance of asset markets and the adverse effects of fluctuating exchange rates could lead to higher pension and post retirement benefit expenses Interest and other expenses could vary materially from expectations depending on interest rates borrowing costs exchange rates costs of hedging and the fair value of derivative instruments Economic downturns also may lead to future restructuring actions and associated expenses
Currencies other than the U S dollar including the euro the British pound Indian rupee Chinese yuan renminbi and the Japanese yen can have an impact on our results as expressed in U S dollars Global events trade disputes economic sanctions inflation increasing interest rates and emerging market volatility and the resulting uncertainty may cause currencies to fluctuate which may contribute to variations in our sales in impacted jurisdictions Because most of our revenues are generated outside the United States fluctuations in currency exchange rates have adversely affected and could in the future adversely affect our net revenue growth In addition currency variations can adversely affect margins on sales of our products in countries outside of the United States and products that include components obtained from suppliers located outside of the United States as well as our ability to increase prices In addition currency fluctuations particularly weakness in the Japanese Yen has and may continue to exacerbate pricing competition for our print products and services From time to time we may use derivative contracts designated as cash flow hedges to protect against foreign currency exchange rate risks However our hedging strategies may be ineffective may not offset any or more than a portion of the adverse financial impact resulting from currency variations or may result in losses
Our worldwide operations could be disrupted by natural disasters telecommunications failures cybersecurity incidents or other disruptions impacting information technology systems manufacturing equipment failures power or water shortages fires extreme weather conditions and other disasters or catastrophic events for which we are predominantly self insured Terrorist acts or armed conflicts for which we are predominantly uninsured may also disrupt our operations Global pandemics such as COVID 19 or other public health crises may adversely affect among other things our supply chain and associated costs demand for our products and services our operations and sales marketing and distribution efforts our research and development capabilities our engineering design and manufacturing processes and other important business activities These events could result in significant losses adversely affect our competitive position increase our costs require substantial expenditures and recovery time make it difficult or impossible to provide services or deliver products to our customers or to receive components from our suppliers create delays and inefficiencies in our supply chain and result in the need to impose employee travel restrictions Our operations and those of our suppliers and distributors could be adversely affected if manufacturing logistics or other operations in key locations are disrupted for any reason such as those described above or other economic business labor environmental public health regulatory or political reasons In addition even if our operations are unaffected or recover quickly if our customers cannot timely resume their own operations they may reduce or cancel their orders or these events could otherwise result in a decrease in demand for our products
There are climate related risks wherever our business is conducted Global climate change is resulting and is projected to continue to result in natural disasters and adverse weather such as drought wildfires storms sea level rise flooding heat waves and cold waves occurring more frequently or with greater intensity Such extreme climate related events are driving changes in market dynamics stakeholder expectations local national and international climate change policies and regulations which could result in disruptions to us our suppliers vendors customers and logistics hubs and impact employees abilities to live in certain areas commute or to work from home effectively These disruptions could make it more difficult and costly for us to deliver our products and services obtain components or other supplies through our supply chain maintain or resume operations or perform other critical corporate functions and could reduce customer demand for our products and services Furthermore climate change has reduced the availability and increased the cost of insurance for these negative impacts of natural disasters and adverse weather conditions by contributing to an increase in the incidence and severity of such natural disasters
The increasing concern over climate change has resulted and we expect will continue to result in transition risks such as shifting customer preferences and regulations including with regard to our products and their environmental impact These demands have and we expect will continue to cause us to incur additional costs and make other changes to our operations If we fail to manage transition risks effectively customer demand for our products and services could diminish and our profitability and cash flow could suffer Additionally concerns over climate change have resulted in and are expected to continue to result in the adoption of regulatory requirements designed to address climate change such as imposing a price on carbon emissions requirements of increased circularity in products product efficiency and environmental certification requirements and climate related disclosures As a result we have experienced and expect to continue to experience increased compliance burdens and costs increased indirect costs resulting from our suppliers passing on compliance costs to us and certain of our products may be rendered obsolete financially unviable or face market access issues Further anti ESG government initiatives may conflict with other regulatory requirements or our stakeholders expectations The impacts of climate change whether involving physical risks or transition risks are expected to be widespread and may materially adversely affect our business and financial results
Our credit risk is evaluated by the major independent rating agencies A downgrade of our current credit rating could increase the cost of borrowing under our credit facilities reduce access to capital markets and or market capacity for our commercial paper or require the posting of additional collateral under some of our derivative contracts In addition a downgrade of our credit rating could have an adverse impact on our subscription other recurring revenue business and other offerings and our strategy related to such businesses due to higher borrowing costs and customer preferences when deciding to purchase our subscription based and other offerings We have in the past and may from time to time in the future take actions to manage our capital structure including reducing our outstanding debt in order to maintain our credit rating Such actions may reduce the funds we would otherwise have available for working capital capital expenditures dividends stock repurchases acquisitions and other general corporate purposes We cannot be assured that we will be able to maintain our current credit ratings and any additional actual or anticipated changes or downgrades in our credit ratings including any announcement that our ratings are under further review for a downgrade may impact us in a similar manner and have a negative impact on our liquidity capital position access to capital markets and our subscription based and other offerings
In addition to our current debt we may also incur additional indebtedness Our debt level and related debt service obligations could have the effect among others of reducing our flexibility to respond to changing business and economic conditions and reducing funds available for working capital capital expenditures dividends stock repurchases acquisitions and other general corporate purposes We may also be required to raise additional financing for working capital capital expenditures debt service obligations debt refinancing future acquisitions or for other general corporate purposes which will depend on among other factors our financial position and performance as well as prevailing market conditions and other factors beyond our control Consequently we may not be able to obtain additional financing or refinancing on terms acceptable to us or at all which could adversely impact our ability to service our outstanding indebtedness or to repay our outstanding indebtedness as it becomes due and could adversely impact our business and financial condition Additionally further indebtedness may increase the risk of a future downgrade in our credit ratings which could increase future debt costs limit the future availability of debt financing and adversely affect our subscription based business
Although historically we have announced regular cash dividend payments and we have adopted a share repurchase program we are not obligated to pay cash dividends or to repurchase a specified number or dollar value of shares under our share repurchase program or at all The declaration and payment of any future dividends is at the discretion of our Board of Directors The level of dividends and amount timing and purchases under our share repurchase program if any are influenced by many factors and may fluctuate based on our operating results cash flows and priorities for the use of cash the market price of our common stock and with respect to share repurchases our possession of potentially material nonpublic information
We make estimates and assumptions in connection with the preparation of our financial statements and any changes to those estimates and assumptions could adversely affect our results of operations cash flows and financial condition
In connection with the preparation of our financial statements we use certain estimates and assumptions based on historical experience and other factors Our most critical accounting estimates are described in the section entitled Management s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations in Item 7 of this report For example we make significant estimates and assumptions when accounting for revenue recognition taxes on earnings and goodwill and when making decisions related to provisions for legal proceedings and other contingencies We also estimate sales and marketing program incentives based on a number of factors including historical experience expected customer behavior and market conditions These estimates and assumptions are subject to significant uncertainties some of which are beyond our control Should any of these estimates and assumptions change or prove to have been incorrect it could adversely affect our results of operations cash flows and financial condition
We have identified a material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting that could if not remediated result in material misstatements in our financial statements and cause us to fail to meet our reporting and financial obligations
As more fully disclosed in Item 9A Controls and Procedures under the supervision and with the participation of our management including our principal executive officer and principal financial officer we conducted an evaluation of the effectiveness of the design and operation of our disclosure controls and procedures and internal control over financial reporting Based on that evaluation we have concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures were not effective as of October 31 2024 due to a material weakness in internal control over financial reporting A material weakness is a deficiency or a combination of deficiencies in our 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
We identified a material weakness in internal control over financial reporting that resulted from undue reliance on information generated from certain software solutions affecting various financial statement accounts without effectively designed and operating IT general controls specifically around user access change management and job schedule monitoring IT operations This material weakness did not result in any material misstatement of our financial statements While this material weakness did not result in a material misstatement of our financial statements this control deficiency was not remediated as of October 31 2024 and there is a reasonable possibility that it could have resulted in a material misstatement in the Company s annual or interim consolidated financial statements that would not be detected Accordingly we have determined that this control deficiency constituted a material weakness While the Company s management under the oversight of the Audit Committee has taken steps to implement our remediation plan as described more fully in Item 9A Controls and Procedures the material weakness will not be considered remediated until the enhanced controls operate for a sufficient period of time and management has concluded through testing that the related controls are effective Furthermore we can give no assurance that the measures we take will remediate the material weakness
We can give no assurance that additional material weaknesses will not arise in the future Any failure to remediate the material weakness or the development of new material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting could result in material misstatements in our financial statements and cause us to fail to meet our reporting and financial obligations which in turn could have a negative impact on our financial condition results of operations or cash flows restrict our ability to access the capital markets require significant resources to correct the material weaknesses or deficiencies subject us to fines penalties or judgments harm our reputation or otherwise cause a decline in investor confidence and cause a decline in the market price of our stock
Our internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements because of its inherent limitations including the possibility of human error failure or interruption of information technology systems the circumvention or overriding of controls or fraud Even effective internal controls can provide only reasonable assurance with respect to the preparation and fair presentation of financial statements If we fail to maintain the adequacy of our internal controls including any failure to implement required new or improved controls or if we experience difficulties in their implementation our business and operating results could be harmed and the company could fail to meet its financial reporting obligations
We are subject to various federal state local and foreign laws and regulations There can be no assurance that such laws and regulations will not be interpreted and changed in ways that will require us to modify our business models and objectives or affect our returns on investments by restricting existing activities and products subjecting them to escalating costs or increased restrictions or prohibiting them outright In particular we face increasing complexity in our product design and procurement operations as we adjust to new and future requirements relating to the composition of our products their safe use the energy consumption associated with those products climate change laws and regulations and product repairability reuse recyclability and take back legislation In addition there is existing and proposed legislation related to human rights environmental and social responsibility including tracing requirements related to forced labor prohibitions for our operations supply chain partners and our products and services Moreover we are becoming increasingly subject to laws regulations and international treaties relating to climate change such as carbon pricing or product energy efficiency requirements or more prescriptive reporting requirements Additionally the rapid evolution and increased adoption of AI technologies and our obligations to comply with emerging laws and regulations may require us to develop additional AI specific governance programs which could entail significant costs or limit our ability to incorporate certain AI capabilities into our products and solutions
As these new laws regulations treaties and similar initiatives and programs are adopted and implemented we will be required to comply or potentially face market access limitations or restrictions on our products entering certain jurisdictions sanctions or other penalties including fines Such burdens or costs may result in an adverse effect on our financial condition results of operations and cash flows We could also face significant compliance and operational burdens and incur significant costs in our efforts to comply with or rectify non compliance with these laws or regulations Our potential exposure also includes third party property damage personal injury claims and clean up costs Further liability under some environmental laws relating to contaminated sites can be imposed retroactively on a joint and several basis and without any finding of noncompliance or fault
We face legal claims or regulatory matters involving stockholder consumer competition commercial IP employment and other issues on a global basis There is an increasingly active litigation and regulatory environment including but not limited to employment and patent monetization claims in the United States Germany and Brazil and litigation and regulatory matters focused on consumer protection privacy and competition regulation globally Patent monetization campaigns have become increasingly aggressive including those by patent holders for standardized technology such as WiFi and video and other standardized technology in PCs who have sued in venues that allow injunctions despite commitments to license patents on fair and reasonable terms If we are unsuccessful in defending against such claims we may be exposed to exorbitant licensing demands in order to avoid potential disruptions to our business As described in Note 14 Litigation and Contingencies to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 8 we are engaged in a number of litigation and regulatory matters that may have a material adverse impact on our business financial condition cash flows or results of operations if decided adversely to or settled by us Litigation and regulatory proceedings are inherently uncertain and adverse rulings have occurred and may occur including awards of monetary damages imposition of fines issuance of injunctions or cease and desist orders directing us to cease engaging in certain business practices cease manufacturing or selling certain products requiring the compulsory licensing of patents or requiring other remedies In addition regardless of the outcome litigation and regulatory proceedings can be costly time consuming disruptive to our operations and distracting to management
We and Hewlett Packard Enterprise entered into a separation and distribution agreement and various other agreements in connection with the separation of the two businesses The separation and distribution agreement provides for cross indemnities between HP and Hewlett Packard Enterprise for liabilities allocated to the respective party pursuant to the terms of such agreement If Hewlett Packard Enterprise or its successor entities including spun off businesses to which obligations have been transferred are unable to satisfy their obligations under these agreements we could incur operational difficulties or losses
Our contracts with our customers may include unique and specialized performance requirements In particular our contracts with federal state provincial and local governmental customers are subject to procurement regulations contract provisions and other specific requirements relating to their formation administration and performance In addition contracts with customers may also include a requirement to comply with customer codes of conduct which may have terms that conflict with our code of conduct business policies and strategic objectives Any failure by us to comply with the specific provisions in our customer contracts or any violation of government contracting regulations could result in loss of business or the imposition of civil and criminal penalties which may include termination of contracts forfeiture of profits suspension of payments and in the case of our government contracts fines and suspension from future government contracting Such failures could also cause reputational damage to our business and affect our ability to compete for new contracts If our customer contracts are terminated if we are suspended or disbarred from government work or if our ability to compete for new contracts is adversely affected our financial performance could suffer Our partner contracts
also contain terms relating to new partner business models and tools creation that could raise issues for which laws or regulations are currently changing or emerging This could affect us in ways that are not currently fully known or measurable
We are subject to income taxes in the United States and approximately 61 other countries and we are subject to routine corporate income tax audits in many of these jurisdictions We believe that the positions taken on our tax returns are fully supported but tax authorities may challenge these positions and our positions may not be fully sustained on examination by the relevant tax authorities We regularly assess the likely outcomes of these audits in order to determine the appropriateness of our tax provision and we believe we have provided adequate reserves for all tax deficiencies or reductions in tax benefits that could reasonably result from an audit Our accrual for uncertain tax positions is attributable primarily to uncertainties concerning the tax treatment of our domestic operations including the allocation of income among different jurisdictions intercompany transactions pension and related interest We adjust our uncertain tax positions to reflect the impact of negotiations settlements rulings advice of legal counsel and other information and events pertaining to a particular audit Determining the appropriate provision for potential deficiencies or reductions in tax benefits that could reasonably result from an audit requires management judgments and estimates and income tax audits are inherently unpredictable We may not accurately predict the outcomes of these audits and the amounts ultimately paid upon resolution of audits could be materially different from the amounts previously included in our income tax provision and therefore could have a material impact on our income tax provision net income and cash flows
Our effective tax rate in the future could be adversely affected by changes to our operating structure changes in the mix of earnings in countries with differing statutory tax rates changes in the valuation of deferred tax assets and liabilities or changes in tax laws or in their interpretation or enforcement In addition changes in tax law and regulation in the U S or elsewhere could significantly impact our tax rate the carrying value of deferred tax assets or our deferred tax liabilities In addition our effective tax rate could also be materially affected by the Organisation for Economic Co operation and Development s the OECD the European Commission s and other certain major jurisdictions heightened interest in and taxation of large multi national companies For instance the OECD has enacted model rules for a new global minimum tax framework BEPS Pillar Two and various governments around the world have enacted or are in the process of enacting legislation on these rules
HP s work to defend against cybersecurity threats is occurring against the backdrop of an evolving global threat landscape Like other Fortune 500 companies we face a substantial number of cybersecurity threats ranging from common cyberattacks such as phishing to more evolved threats that incorporate the use of AI Our products and processes pose an attractive challenge for the most advanced of threat actors including but not limited to those who are state sponsored As a global corporation with a wide range of systems and networks in place and with customers who threat actors might also wish to target we could face attacks not only on our own structures but also on those of our many third party providers and partners In response to this threat environment we have implemented a comprehensive cybersecurity program to assess identify and manage risks from cybersecurity threats Our holistic approach is designed to integrate cybersecurity across the value chain including in the design development and delivery of our products services solutions and operations
Our Chief Information Security Officer CISO has responsibility for HP s global cybersecurity program including infrastructure and technology platforms overseeing governance regulatory and compliance operations strategy and architecture The CISO reports to our Chief Financial Officer This role is responsible for building out a cybersecurity organization that is designed to enable robust security coupled with productivity for more than 70 000 global employees contractors and partners The CISO supports HP s business acceleration and transformation by identifying and managing cybersecurity risks balancing them with business priorities and using a contemporary security posture to support HP s position as an industry leader As part of this the CISO receives reports on cybersecurity threats from a number of experienced information security officers responsible for various parts of the business on an ongoing basis and in conjunction with management regularly reviews risk management measures implemented by the Company to identify and mitigate data protection and cybersecurity risks
Our cybersecurity organization collaborates heavily with technology business and legal stakeholders to enable secure business strategy maintain and grow proper security oversight enhance security monitoring and response and quantify and reduce risks and compliance gaps There are six key focus areas within the cybersecurity organization enterprise security operations architecture and security engineering identity access management IT risk management and compliance governance risk and compliance and strategy and program delivery Additionally we aim to incorporate a broad range of industry standard cybersecurity best practices throughout our cybersecurity organization These include among other things
an incident response plan that sets out a coordinated approach to investigating containing documenting and mitigating incidents including reporting findings and keeping senior management and other key stakeholders informed and involved as appropriate
systems and processes designed to oversee identify and reduce the potential impact of a security incident at a third party vendor service provider or customer or otherwise implicating the third party technology and systems we use and
On an annual basis the cybersecurity organization also enlists the aid of an independent third party to assess our alignment with the National Institute of Standards Technology s Cyber Security Framework The assessment examines our information cybersecurity program and its associated controls and delivers a report that documents assessment results and provides recommendations for further enhancements The cybersecurity organization is responsible for presenting an overview of the Cybersecurity Risk Assessment Report to the Board of Directors on at least an annual basis and the HP executive leadership team is heavily involved in implementing and resolving recommendations From time to time we also engage assessors consultants auditors or other third parties to assist with assessing identifying and managing cybersecurity risks
Our cybersecurity risks are evaluated by senior leadership including as part of our enterprise risk assessments that are reviewed by the Audit Committee and our Board of Directors and our Internal Audit function which is an objective independent assurance and advisory organization that helps HP achieve business objectives and conducts regular assessments audits and testing of the cybersecurity program and its associated controls
As of the date of this Form 10 K risks from cybersecurity threats including as a result of any previous cybersecurity incidents have not materially affected us including our business strategy results of operations or financial condition However there can be no guarantee that we will not experience such an event moving forward and if realized these risks are reasonably likely to materially affect us Additional information on cybersecurity risks we face can be found in Risk Factors in Item 1A of Part I of this report under the heading System security risks data protection breaches cyberattacks system outages and systems integration issues could disrupt our internal operations or services provided to customers and could reduce our revenue increase our expenses damage our reputation and adversely affect our cash flows and stock price which should be read in conjunction with the foregoing information
Our Board in coordination with the Audit Committee oversees the Company s enterprise risk management process including the management of risks arising from cybersecurity threats Our Board has delegated the primary responsibility to oversee cybersecurity matters to the Audit Committee The Board and Audit Committee regularly review the measures implemented by the Company to identify and mitigate data protection and cybersecurity risks As part of such reviews the Board and Audit Committee regularly receive reports and presentations from management regarding our information and technology security program including the CISO which address a wide range of topics including recent developments evolving standards vulnerability assessments third party and independent reviews the threat environment technological trends and information security considerations arising with respect to the Company s peers and third parties We have protocols by which certain cybersecurity incidents that meet established reporting thresholds are escalated within the Company and where appropriate reported promptly to the Board and Audit Committee as well as ongoing updates regarding any such incident until it has been addressed
We believe that our existing properties are in good condition and are suitable for the conduct of our business Each of our segments Personal Systems Printing and Corporate Investments uses each of the properties at least in part and we retain the flexibility to use each of the properties in whole or in part for each of the segments
The Company s share repurchase program which does not have a specific expiration date authorizes repurchases in the open market or in private transactions On August 27 2024 HP s Board of Directors increased HP s total share repurchase authorization to 10 0 billion inclusive of the amount remaining under previously authorized share repurchases In the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2024 we returned 0 9 billion to shareholders through the repurchase of 25 4 million shares on the open market
The graph below shows the cumulative total stockholder return assuming the investment of 100 at the market close on October 31 2019 and the reinvestment of dividends thereafter in each of HP common stock the S P 500 Index and the S P Information Technology Index The comparisons in the graph below are based on historical data and are not indicative of or intended to forecast future performance of our common stock
The discussion of financial condition and results of our operations that follows provides information that will assist the reader in understanding our Consolidated Financial Statements the changes in certain key items in those financial statements from year to year and the primary factors that accounted for those changes as well as how certain accounting principles policies and estimates affect our Consolidated Financial Statements This discussion should be read in conjunction with our Consolidated Financial Statements and the related notes that appear elsewhere in this document This section generally discusses the results of operations for the fiscal year ended October 31 2024 compared to the fiscal year ended October 31 2023 For a discussion of fiscal year ended October 31 2023 compared to the fiscal year ended October 31 2022 please refer to Part II Item 7 Management s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations in our Annual Report on Form 10 K for the fiscal year ended October 31 2023
HP delivers innovative and sustainable devices services and subscriptions for personal computing printing 3D printing hybrid work gaming and other related technologies We have three reportable segments Personal Systems Printing and Corporate Investments The Personal Systems segment offers commercial and consumer desktops notebooks and workstations including HP s portfolio of AI PCs and workstations thin clients retail POS systems displays hybrid systems software solutions including endpoint security and services The Printing segment provides consumer and commercial printer hardware supplies solutions and services Corporate Investments include certain business incubation and investment projects
investing in endpoint services and solutions We are focused on services including Device as a Service as the market shifts to subscription based solutions and accelerating in attractive adjacencies such as hybrid systems and
offering innovative intelligent printing experiences and subscription based solutions designed to securely serve consumer and SMB customers through our Instant Ink Services and HP All In Plan as well as large enterprises through our Managed Print Services solutions
We have focused on growing our hybrid systems gaming workforce solutions consumer subscriptions industrial graphics and our 3D and personalization businesses at a rate faster than our core business with accretive margins in the longer term We believe our ability to innovate will help us gain momentum in growth areas like hybrid systems and gaming and we see significant opportunities to drive greater recurring revenues across Personal Systems and Printing Our Workforce Solutions organization drives integration across our commercial services software and security portfolio We continue to build on strong portfolios like Instant Ink to grow our Consumer Subscription business In Industrial Graphics we are driving the shift from analog to digital in segments like labels and packaging In 3D and Personalization we are creating end to end solutions that we believe can capture more value with our differentiated technology
We believe we are well positioned to lead the future of work with our competitive product lineup and enhanced portfolio of hybrid systems remote computing solutions and intelligent print solutions We are driving innovation by accelerating the delivery of AI across our product portfolio and focusing on growth opportunities in commercial solutions and premium consumer and gaming markets We are consolidating all our software resources under the Technology and Innovation Organization to evolve from a transactional hardware company to a more experience led organization further strengthening our ability to capture these opportunities
We continue to experience challenges that are representative of the trends and uncertainties that may affect our industry generally and our business and financial results specifically and we expect these challenges to continue in the short term One set of challenges relates to the current macroeconomic environment and the adverse impact on demand for certain of our products A second set of challenges relates to changes in the competitive landscape Our primary competitors are exerting competitive pressure in targeted areas and are entering new markets our emerging competitors are introducing new technologies and business models and our alliance partners in some businesses are increasingly becoming our competitors in others A third set of challenges relates to business model changes and our go to market execution in an evolving distribution and reseller landscape with increasing online and omnichannel presence Specific challenges we face at the segment level are set forth below
In Printing we face challenges from changing customer behaviors as well as competitors with a favorable foreign currency environment and non original supplies which includes imitation refill or remanufactured alternatives We also obtain many Printing components from single source suppliers due to technology availability price quality or other considerations
To address these challenges we continue to pursue innovation with a view towards developing new products and services aligned with generating market demand and meeting the needs of our customers and partners In addition we continue to work on improving our operations and adapting our business models with a particular focus on enhancing our end to end processes analytics efficiencies and simplification of our product portfolio We also continue to work on optimizing our sales coverage models aligning our sales incentives with our strategic goals improving channel execution and inventory production and backlog management strengthening our capabilities in our areas of strategic focus effective cost management strengthening our pricing strategy and developing and capitalizing on market opportunities
Our business and financial performance depend significantly on worldwide economic conditions We face global macroeconomic challenges such as ongoing geopolitical conflicts including the military conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East and tensions in the Taiwan Strait and South China Sea uncertainty in the markets volatility in exchange rates inflationary trends and evolving dynamics in the global trade environment We also experience seasonality in the sale of our products and services which may be affected by general economic conditions
During fiscal year 2024 we experienced continued industry wide demand softness in Printing and a competitive pricing environment particularly from our Japanese competitors benefiting from a favorable foreign currency environment In Personal Systems we faced a competitive pricing environment variability in commodity costs and demand softness in certain regions We experienced gradual market recovery in Commercial PS resulting in overall PC unit growth in fiscal year 2024 and net revenue growth in Personal Systems in the second half of fiscal year 2024
We are also exposed to fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates We have a large global presence with approximately 65 of our net revenue from outside the United States For a further discussion of trends uncertainties and other factors that could impact our operating results see the section entitled Risk Factors in Item 1A of Part I in this Annual Report on Form 10 K
In November 2022 we announced our Future Ready Plan the Fiscal 2023 Plan or Future Ready to become a more digitally enabled company focus investments on key growth opportunities and simplify our operating model The Fiscal 2023 Plan is expected to run through end of fiscal 2025 The three key elements of our Fiscal 2023 Plan are digital transformation portfolio optimization and operational efficiency We accelerated our cumulative savings target for fiscal year 2024 and are on track to achieve our overall program savings
Since announcing our Fiscal 2023 Plan we have enhanced our digital capabilities in Workforce Solutions and continued to leverage AI to positively impact our products solutions and operations Additionally we are reducing portfolio complexity improving continuity of supply and increasing our forecast accuracy across our business to drive reduction in our cost of sales and operating expenses We also continued to reduce our structural cost through headcount reductions and are on track to achieve our overall headcount reduction goal We expect to continue to invest some of the savings into our growth areas and our people
See Risk Factors Strategic and Operational Risk Factors We may not achieve some or all of the expected benefits of our restructuring plans and our restructuring may adversely affect our business in Item 1A which is incorporated herein by reference For more information on our Fiscal 2023 Plan see Note 3 Restructuring and Other Charges to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 8 of Part II of this report which is incorporated herein by reference
Our Consolidated Financial Statements are prepared in accordance with United States U S generally accepted accounting principles GAAP which require management to make estimates judgments and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets liabilities net revenue and expenses and the disclosure of contingent liabilities Critical accounting estimates are those that involve a significant level of estimation uncertainty and have had or are reasonably likely to have a material impact on our financial condition or results of operations Management bases its estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions that it believes to be reasonable under the circumstances the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying amount of assets and liabilities Management believes that the accounting estimates employed and the resulting amounts are reasonable however actual results may differ from these estimates
A summary of our significant accounting policies is included in Note 1 Summary of Significant Accounting Policies to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 8 which is incorporated herein by reference Management believes the following accounting policies reflect the critical accounting estimates used in the preparation of our Consolidated Financial Statements
We recognize revenue depicting the transfer of promised goods or services to customers in an amount that may include variable consideration When the transaction price includes a variable amount we estimate the amount using either the expected value or most likely amount method At the time of revenue recognition we reduce the transaction price by the estimated variable consideration e g customer and distributor programs and incentive offerings rebates promotions other volume based incentives and expected returns We use estimates to determine the expected variable consideration for such programs based on historical experience expected consumer behavior and market conditions
As a result of certain employment actions and capital investments we have undertaken income from manufacturing activities in certain jurisdictions is subject to reduced tax rates and in some cases is wholly exempt from taxes for fiscal years through 2029
Material changes in our estimates of cash working capital and long term investment requirements in the various jurisdictions in which we do business could impact how future earnings are repatriated to the United States and our related future effective tax rate
We record a valuation allowance to reduce deferred tax assets to the amount that we are more likely than not to realize In determining the need for a valuation allowance we consider future market growth forecasted earnings future taxable income the mix of earnings in the jurisdictions in which we operate and prudent and feasible tax planning strategies In the event we were to determine that it is more likely than not that we will be unable to realize all or part of our deferred tax assets in the future we would increase the valuation allowance and recognize a corresponding charge to earnings or other comprehensive income in the period in which we make such a determination Likewise if we later determine that we are more likely than not to realize the deferred tax assets we would reverse the applicable portion of the previously recognized valuation allowance In order for us to realize our deferred tax assets we must be able to generate sufficient taxable income in the jurisdictions in which the deferred tax assets are located
We are subject to income taxes in the United States and approximately 61 other countries and we are subject to routine corporate income tax audits in many of these jurisdictions We believe that positions taken on our tax returns are fully supported but tax authorities may challenge these positions and our positions may not be fully sustained on examination by the relevant tax authorities Accordingly our income tax provision includes amounts intended to satisfy assessments that may result from these challenges Our accrual for uncertain tax positions is attributable primarily to uncertainties concerning the tax treatment of our domestic operations including the allocation of income among different jurisdictions intercompany transactions pension and related interest We adjust our uncertain tax positions to reflect the impact of negotiations settlements rulings advice of legal counsel and other information and events pertaining to a particular audit Determining the appropriate provision for potential deficiencies or reductions in tax benefits that could reasonably result from an audit requires management judgments and estimates and income tax audits are inherently unpredictable We may not accurately predict the outcomes of these audits and the amounts ultimately paid on resolution of an audit could be materially different from the amounts previously included in our income tax provision and therefore could have a material impact on our provision for taxes net earnings and cash flows For a further discussion on taxes on earnings refer to Note 6 Taxes on Earnings to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 8 which is incorporated herein by reference
We are involved in various lawsuits claims investigations and proceedings including those consisting of IP commercial securities employment employee benefits and environmental matters that arise in the ordinary course of business We record a liability when we believe that it is both probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount of loss can be reasonably estimated Significant judgment is required to determine both the probability of having incurred a liability and the estimated amount of the liability We review these matters at least quarterly and adjust these liabilities to reflect the impact of negotiations settlements rulings advice of legal counsel and other updated information and events pertaining to a particular case Litigation is inherently unpredictable However we believe we have valid defenses with respect to legal matters pending against us Nevertheless cash flows or results of operations could be materially affected in any particular period by the resolution of one or more of these contingencies We believe we have recorded adequate provisions for any such matters and as of October 31 2024 it was not reasonably possible that a material loss had been incurred in excess of the amounts recognized in our financial statements
For a summary of recent accounting pronouncements applicable to our consolidated financial statements see Note 1 Summary of Significant Accounting Policies to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 8 which is incorporated herein by reference
Revenue from our international operations has historically represented and we expect will continue to represent a majority of our overall net revenue As a result our net revenue growth has been impacted and we expect it will continue to be impacted by fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates In order to provide a framework for assessing performance excluding the impact of foreign currency fluctuations we supplement the year over year percentage change in net revenue with the year over year percentage change in net revenue on a constant currency basis which excludes the effect of foreign currency exchange fluctuations calculated by translating current period revenues using monthly exchange rates from the comparative period and excluding any hedging impact recognized in the current period and without adjusting for any repricing or demand impacts from changes in foreign currency exchange rates This information is provided so that net revenue can be viewed with and without the effect of fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates which is consistent with how management evaluates our net revenue results and trends as management does not believe that the excluded items are reflective of ongoing operating results The constant currency measures are provided in addition to and not as a substitute for the year over year percentage change in net revenue on a GAAP basis Other companies may calculate and define similarly labeled items differently which may limit the usefulness of this measure for comparative purposes
Products net revenue includes revenue from the sale of hardware supplies subscriptions and software licenses Services net revenue includes revenue from our service offerings and support on hardware devices
In fiscal year 2024 total net revenue decreased 0 3 decreased 0 2 on a constant currency basis as compared to the prior year period Net revenue from the United States decreased 0 2 and remained at 18 8 billion and outside of the United States decreased 0 3 to 34 8 billion The decrease in products net revenue was primarily driven by lower hardware units in Printing and competitive pricing in Printer hardware and Personal Systems partially offset by market recovery in Commercial PS and higher net revenue in key growth areas Services net revenue remained flat
In fiscal year 2024 gross margin increased by 0 7 percentage points primarily driven by products gross margin due to lower supply chain costs and cost savings including Future Ready transformation savings partially offset by competitive pricing in Printer hardware and Personal Systems and mix shifts towards Personal Systems while services gross margin decreased
SG A expense increased 5 6 in fiscal year 2024 primarily due to higher litigation costs and go to market initiatives partially offset by disciplined cost management including Future Ready transformation savings
Restructuring and other charges relate primarily to the Fiscal 2023 Plan For more information see Note 3 Restructuring and Other Charges to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 8 of Part II of this report which is incorporated herein by reference
Acquisition and divestiture charges primarily include direct third party professional and legal fees and integration and divestiture related costs as well as non cash adjustments to the fair value of certain acquired assets such as inventory and certain compensation charges related to cash settlement of restricted stock units and performance based restricted stock units from acquisitions Acquisition and divestiture charges decreased by 157 million in the fiscal year 2024 primarily due to reduced integration activities associated with the fiscal year 2022 Poly acquisition
Interest and other net increased 20 million in the fiscal year 2024 primarily due to the net gain on extinguishment of debt as well as retirement benefits associated with our Enhanced Early Retirement EER program recorded in the prior year period partially offset by lower interest expense on debt
Our effective tax rate was 15 4 in fiscal year 2024 The effective tax rate differs from the U S federal statutory rate of 21 primarily due to impacts of changes in valuation allowances and favorable tax rates associated with certain earnings from HP s operations in lower tax jurisdictions throughout the world
For a reconciliation of our effective tax rate to the U S federal statutory rate of 21 in fiscal year 2024 and further explanation of our provision for income taxes see Note 6 Taxes on Earnings to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 8 which is incorporated herein by reference
In fiscal year 2024 we recorded 214 million of net income tax benefits related to non recurring items in the provision for taxes This amount included 198 million related to changes in valuation allowances 60 million related to restructuring charges 14 million related to the filing of tax returns in various jurisdictions and 11 million related to acquisition charges These benefits were partially offset by 39 million of uncertain tax position charges and 25 million related to changes in tax rates
In December 2021 the Organisation for Economic Co operation and Development the OECD introduced model rules for a global minimum tax framework known as BEPS Pillar Two Numerous governments worldwide have enacted or are in the process of enacting legislation to implement this framework Where applicable these rules will take effect for us beginning in the fiscal year 2025 and we plan to treat the tax as a period cost We do not anticipate a material impact on our effective tax rate or cash tax payments in these jurisdictions for fiscal year 2025 Our assessment for subsequent fiscal years may be influenced by additional legislative guidance and the enactment of further provisions within the BEPS Pillar Two framework
During the first quarter of fiscal year 2024 HP realigned its business unit financial reporting more closely with its customer market segmentation Future changes to this organizational structure may result in changes to the segments disclosed For more information on our segments see Note 2 Segment Information to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 8 which is incorporated herein by reference
Weighted Net Revenue Change Percentage Points measures contribution of each business unit towards overall segment revenue growth It is calculated by dividing the change in revenue of each business unit from the prior year period by total segment revenue for the prior year period
Personal Systems net revenue increased 1 4 increased 1 3 on a constant currency basis in the fiscal year 2024 as compared to the prior year period The net revenue increase was primarily due to a 3 3 increase in PC unit volume driven by Commercial PS partially offset by a 1 4 decrease in average selling price ASPs The decrease in ASPs is primarily due to competitive pricing partially offset by favorable mix shifts
Commercial PS revenue increased 3 1 primarily driven by a 5 7 increase in units due to market recovery partially offset by a 1 6 decrease in ASPs The decrease in ASPs was driven by unfavorable mix shifts and competitive pricing
Consumer PS net revenue decreased 2 4 driven by a 2 5 decrease in ASPs and a 0 3 decrease in units due to demand softness especially in China The decrease in ASPs was driven by competitive pricing and unfavorable mix shifts partially offset by favorable foreign currency impacts
Personal Systems earnings from operations as a percentage of net revenue increased by 0 1 percentage points driven by an increase in gross margin partially offset by an increase in operating expenses as a percentage of revenue Gross margin increased primarily due to lower supply chain cost favorable mix shifts as well as Future Ready transformation savings partially offset by competitive pricing Operating expenses as a percentage of revenue increased primarily due to higher litigation costs go to market initiatives and continued investments in innovation partially offset by disciplined cost management including Future Ready transformation savings
Weighted Net Revenue Change Percentage Points measures the contribution of each business unit towards overall segment revenue growth It is calculated by dividing the change in revenue of each business unit from the prior period by total segment revenue for the prior year period
Printing net revenue decreased 3 8 decreased 3 2 on a constant currency basis for fiscal year 2024 as compared to the prior year period The decline in net revenue was primarily driven by Commercial Printing Consumer Printing and Supplies as well as unfavorable foreign currency impacts Net revenue for Supplies decreased 1 4 primarily due to decline in the installed base and usage as well as foreign currency impacts partially offset by disciplined pricing Printer unit volume decreased 7 2 due to demand weakness and hardware ASPs decreased 3 2 Printer hardware ASPs decreased primarily due to competitive pricing particularly from our Japanese competitors benefiting from a favorable foreign currency environment and mix shifts
Net revenue for Commercial Printing decreased by 7 8 primarily due to an 8 8 decrease in printer unit volume and a 1 8 decrease in ASPs The decrease in ASPs was primarily driven by competitive pricing partially offset by favorable mix shifts
Net revenue for Consumer Printing decreased 9 4 primarily due to a 6 2 decrease in printer unit volume and a 3 3 decrease in ASP s The decrease in ASPs was primarily driven by competitive pricing partially offset by favorable mix shifts
Printing earnings from operations as a percentage of net revenue increased by 0 1 percentage points driven by an increase in gross margin partially offset by higher operating expenses as a percentage of revenue The increase in gross margin was primarily driven by favorable mix shifts as well as cost savings including Future Ready transformation savings partially offset by competitive pricing Operating expenses as a percentage of revenue increased primarily due to higher go to market initiatives partially offset by disciplined cost management including Future Ready transformation savings
use cash generated by operations as our primary source of liquidity We believe that current cash cash flow from operating activities new borrowings available commercial paper authorization and the credit facility will be sufficient to meet HP s operating cash requirements planned capital expenditures interest and principal payments on all borrowings pension and post retirement funding requirements authorized share repurchases and annual dividend payments for the foreseeable future Additionally if suitable acquisition opportunities arise the Company may obtain all or a portion of the required financing through additional borrowings While our access to capital markets may be constrained and our cost of borrowing may increase under certain business market and economic conditions our access to a variety of funding sources to meet our liquidity needs is designed to facilitate continued access to capital resources under all such conditions Our liquidity is subject to various risks including the risks identified in the section entitled Risk Factors in Item 1A and market risks identified in the section entitled Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk in Item 7A which are incorporated herein by reference
Amounts held outside of the U S are generally utilized to support non U S liquidity needs and may from time to time be distributed to the U S Repatriations of amounts held outside the U S generally will not be taxable from a U S federal tax perspective but may be subject to state income or foreign withholding tax upon repatriation As we evaluate the future cash needs of our operations we may revise the amount of foreign earnings considered to be permanently reinvested in our foreign subsidiaries and how to utilize such funds including reducing our gross debt level or other uses
Net cash provided by operating activities increased by 0 2 billion for fiscal year 2024 due to favorable working capital impacts partially offset by changes in receivables from contract manufacturers due to higher manufacturing activity and amounts collected and held on behalf of a third party for trade receivables previously sold
The cash conversion cycle is the sum of days of DSO and DOS less DPO Items which may cause the cash conversion cycle in a particular period to differ from historical trends include but are not limited to changes in business mix changes in payment terms timing and extent of receivables factoring seasonal trends and the timing of revenue recognition and inventory purchases within the period
DSO measures the average number of days our receivables are outstanding DSO is calculated by dividing ending accounts receivable net of allowance for credit losses by a 90 day average of net revenue The increase in DSO was primarily due to unfavorable revenue linearity
DOS measures the average number of days from procurement to sale of our product DOS is calculated by dividing ending inventory by a 90 day average of cost of goods sold The increase in DOS is primarily due to strategic buys in Personal Systems and higher in transit shipments
DPO measures the average number of days our accounts payable balances are outstanding DPO is calculated by dividing ending accounts payable by a 90 day average of cost of goods sold The increase in DPO as compared to prior year period was primarily due to higher manufacturing volumes in Personal Systems as well as favorable changes in payment terms
Net cash used in financing activities increased by 0 2 billion in fiscal year 2024 compared to the prior year period primarily due to higher share repurchases of 2 0 billion partially offset by lower net debt repayment of 1 6 billion and collateral returned for derivative instruments of 0 2 billion in the prior year period
In fiscal year 2024 HP returned 3 2 billion to shareholders in the form of share repurchases of 2 1 billion and cash dividends of 1 1 billion On August 27 2024 HP s Board of Directors increased HP s total share repurchase authorization to 10 0 billion inclusive of the amount remaining under previously authorized share repurchases As of October 31 2024 HP had approximately 9 3 billion remaining under the share repurchase authorizations approved by HP s Board of Directors
We maintain debt levels that we establish through consideration of a number of factors including cash flow expectations cash requirements for operations investment plans including acquisitions share repurchase activities our cost of capital and targeted capital structure
Short term debt increased by 1 2 billion and long term debt decreased by 1 0 billion for fiscal year 2024 as compared to prior year period These changes are due to reclassification of Global Notes due in June 2025 to short term
Our weighted average interest rate reflects the effective interest rate on our borrowings prevailing during the period and reflects the effect of interest rate swaps For more information on our interest rate swaps see Note 10 Financial Instruments in the Consolidated Financial Statements and notes thereto in Item 8 Financial Statements and Supplementary Data which is incorporated herein by reference
As of October 31 2024 we maintained a 5 0 billion sustainability linked senior unsecured committed revolving credit facility maturing August 1 2029 Funds borrowed under the revolving credit facility may be used for general corporate purposes
In February 2024 we filed an automatically effective shelf registration statement with the SEC which enables us to offer for sale at any time and from time to time in one or more offerings an unspecified amount of debt securities common stock preferred stock depository shares and warrants
Our credit risk is evaluated by major independent rating agencies based upon publicly available information as well as information they obtain during our ongoing discussions While we currently do not have any rating downgrade triggers that would accelerate the maturity of a material amount of our debt a downgrade from our current credit rating may increase the cost of borrowing under our credit facilities reduce market capacity for our commercial paper require the posting of additional collateral under some of our derivative contracts and may have a negative impact on our liquidity and capital position and our contractual business going forward depending on the extent of such downgrade See Risk Factors Macroeconomic Industry and Financial Risks Failure to maintain our credit ratings could adversely affect our liquidity capital position borrowing costs and access to capital markets as well as our subscription based and other offerings
in Item 1A which is incorporated herein by reference We can access alternative sources of funding including drawdowns under our credit facility if necessary to offset potential reductions in the market capacity for our commercial paper
Amounts represent the expected interest payments relating to our short term and long term debt We have outstanding interest rate swap agreements accounted for as fair value hedges that have the economic effect of changing fixed interest rates associated with some of our U S Dollar Global Notes to variable interest rates The impact of our outstanding interest rate swaps as of October 31 2024 was factored into the calculation of the future interest payments on debt
Purchase obligations include agreements to purchase goods or services that are enforceable and legally binding on us and that specify all significant terms including fixed or minimum quantities to be purchased fixed minimum or variable price and volume provisions and the approximate timing of the transaction These purchase obligations are related principally to inventory and other items Purchase obligations exclude agreements that are cancellable without penalty Purchase obligations also exclude open purchase orders that are routine arrangements entered into in the ordinary course of business as they are difficult to quantify in a meaningful way Even though open purchase orders are considered enforceable and legally binding the terms generally allow us the option to cancel reschedule and adjust terms based on our business needs prior to the delivery of goods or performance of services
In fiscal year 2025 we expect to contribute approximately 36 million to our non U S pension plans 30 million to cover benefit payments to U S non qualified pension plan participants and 4 million to cover benefit claims for our post retirement benefit plans Our policy is to fund our pension plans so that we meet the minimum contribution required by local government funding and taxing authorities Expected contributions and payments to our pension and post retirement benefit plans are excluded from the contractual obligations table because they do not represent contractual cash outflows as they are dependent on numerous factors which may result in a wide range of outcomes For more information on our retirement and post retirement benefit plans see Note 4 Retirement and Post Retirement Benefit Plans to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 8 which is incorporated herein by reference
As a result of our approved restructuring plans we expect to make future cash payments of approximately 0 2 billion in the fiscal year 2025 For more information on our restructuring activities that are part of our cost improvements see Note 3 Restructuring and Other Charges to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 8 which is incorporated herein by reference
As of October 31 2024 we had approximately 1 0 billion of recorded liabilities including related interest and penalties pertaining to uncertain tax positions We are unable to make a reasonable estimate as to when cash settlement with the tax authorities might occur due to the uncertainties related to these tax matters Payments of these liabilities would result from settlements with taxing authorities For more information on our uncertain tax positions see Note 6 Taxes on Earnings to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 8 which is incorporated herein by reference
As part of our ongoing business we have not participated in transactions that generate material relationships with unconsolidated entities or financial partnerships such as entities often referred to as structured finance or special purpose entities which would have been established for the purpose of facilitating off balance sheet arrangements or other contractually narrow or limited purposes
We have third party short term financing arrangements intended to facilitate the working capital requirements of certain customers and HP For more information on our third party short term financing arrangements see Note 7 Supplementary Financial Information to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 8 which is incorporated herein by reference
In the normal course of business we are exposed to foreign currency exchange rate and interest rate risks that could impact our financial position cash flows and results of operations Our risk management strategy with respect to these market risks may include the use of derivative instruments We use derivative contracts only to manage existing underlying exposures Accordingly we do not use derivative contracts for speculative purposes Our risks risk management strategy and a sensitivity analysis estimating the effects of changes in fair value for each of these exposures are outlined below
Actual gains and losses in the future may differ materially from the sensitivity analyses based on changes in the timing and amount of foreign currency exchange rate and interest rate movements and our actual exposures and derivatives in place at the time of the change as well as the effectiveness of the derivative to hedge the related exposure
We are exposed to foreign currency exchange rate risk inherent in our sales commitments anticipated sales anticipated purchases and assets and liabilities denominated in currencies other than the U S dollar We transact business in over 40 currencies worldwide of which the most significant foreign currencies to our operations for fiscal year 2024 were Euro Chinese yuan renminbi Japanese yen and British pound For most currencies we are a net receiver of the foreign currency and therefore benefit from a weaker U S dollar and are adversely affected by a stronger U S dollar relative to the foreign currency Even where we are a net receiver of the foreign currency a weaker U S dollar may adversely affect certain expense figures if taken alone
We use a combination of forward contracts and at times options designated as cash flow hedges to protect against the foreign currency exchange rate risks inherent in our forecasted net revenue and to a lesser extent in cost of sales We also use other derivatives not designated as hedging instruments consisting primarily of forward contracts to hedge foreign currency balance sheet exposures Alternatively we may choose not to hedge the risk associated with our foreign currency exposures primarily if such exposure acts as a natural hedge for offsetting amounts denominated in the same currency or if the currency is too difficult or too expensive to hedge
We have performed sensitivity analyses as of October 31 2024 and 2023 using a modeling technique that measures the change in the fair values arising from a hypothetical 10 adverse movement in the levels of foreign currency exchange rates relative to the U S dollar with all other variables held constant The analyses cover all of our foreign currency derivative contracts offset by underlying exposures The foreign currency exchange rates we used in performing the sensitivity analysis were based on market rates in effect as of October 31 2024 and 2023 The sensitivity analyses indicated that a hypothetical 10 adverse movement in foreign currency exchange rates would result in a foreign exchang
We issue long term debt in either U S dollars or foreign currencies based on market conditions at the time of financing We may use interest rate and or currency swaps to modify the market risk exposures in connection with the debt to achieve a floating interest expense and or U S dollar principal outflows The swap transactions generally involve the exchange of fixed for floating interest payments However we may choose not to swap fixed for floating interest payments or may terminate a previously executed swap if we believe a larger proportion of fixed rate debt would be beneficial
In order to hedge the fair value of certain fixed rate investments we may enter into interest rate swaps that convert fixed interest returns into variable interest returns We may use cash flow hedges to hedge the variability in
We have performed sensitivity analyses as of October 31 2024 and 2023 using a modeling technique that measures the change in the fair values arising from a hypothetical 10 adverse movement in the levels of interest rates across the entire yield curve with all other variables held constant The analyses cover our debt investments and interest rate swaps The analyses use actual or approximate maturities for the debt investments and interest rate swaps The discount rates used were based on the market interest rates in effect as of October 31 2024 and 2023 The sensitivity analyses indicated that a hypothetical 10 adverse movement in interest rates would have resulted in a loss in the fair values of our debt and investments net of interest rate swaps of 164 million and 196 million as of October 31 2024 and October 31 2023 respectively
We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of HP Inc and subsidiaries the Company as of October 31 2024 and 2023 the related consolidated statements of earnings comprehensive income stockholders deficit and cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended October 31 2024 and the related notes collectively referred to as the consolidated financial statements In our opinion the consolidated financial statements present fairly in all material respects the financial position of the Company at October 31 2024 and 2023 and the results of its operations and its cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended October 31 2024 in conformity with U S generally accepted accounting principles
We also have audited in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board United States PCAOB the Company s internal control over financial reporting as of October 31 2024 based on criteria established in Internal Control Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission 2013 framework and our report dated December 12 2024 expressed an adverse opinion thereon
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 audits 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 audits 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 audits 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 audits 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 audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion
The critical audit matter communicated below is a matter arising from the current period audit of the financial statements that was communicated or required to be communicated to the audit committee and that 1 relates to accounts or disclosures that are material to the financial statements and 2 involved our especially challenging subjective or complex judgments The communication of the critical audit matter does not alter in any way our opinion on the consolidated financial statements taken as a whole and we are not by communicating the critical audit matter below providing a separate opinion on the critical audit matter or on the account or disclosure to which it relates
As described in Note 1 of the consolidated financial statements the Company reduces revenue for customer and distributor programs and incentive offerings including rebates promotions and other volume based incentives The Company uses estimates to determine the expected variable consideration for such programs based on factors like historical experience expected customer behavior and market conditions Estimated variable consideration is presented within other current liabilities on the consolidated balance sheet and totaled 3 1 billion at October 31 2024
Auditing the Company s measurement of variable consideration is especially challenging because the calculation is complex and reflects management s assumptions about expected future claims activity and changes in those assumptions can have a material effect on the amount of variable consideration recognized
Our audit procedures included among others developing an independent estimate of the variable consideration and comparing our estimate to the recorded balance We performed this predictive analysis at both an aggregated and disaggregated level We also inspected the terms and conditions of the incentive offerings In addition we compared previous estimates of variable consideration to actual payments
We have audited HP Inc and subsidiaries internal control over financial reporting as of October 31 2024 based on criteria established in Internal Control Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission 2013 framework the COSO criteria In our opinion because of the effect of the material weakness described below on the achievement of the objectives of the control criteria HP Inc and subsidiaries the Company has not maintained effective internal control over financial reporting as of October 31 2024 based on the COSO criteria
A material weakness is 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 The following material weakness has been identified and included in management s assessment Management has identified a material weakness related to ineffective design and operation of information technology IT general controls in the areas of user access change management and job schedule monitoring IT operations for certain IT applications supporting the company s internal control over financial reporting As a result the application controls and IT dependent manual controls that rely upon information from the impacted IT applications were also deemed ineffective
We also have audited in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board United States PCAOB the consolidated balance sheets of the Company as of October 31 2024 and 2023 the related consolidated statements of earnings comprehensive income stockholders deficit and cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended October 31 2024 and the related notes This material weakness was considered in determining the nature timing and extent of audit tests applied in our audit of the 2024 consolidated financial statements and this report does not affect our report dated December 12 2024 which expressed an unqualified opinion thereon
The Company s management is responsible for maintaining effective internal control over financial reporting and for its assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting included in the accompanying Management s Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company s internal control over financial reporting 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 effective internal control over financial reporting was maintained in all material respects
Our audit included obtaining an understanding of internal control over financial reporting assessing the risk that a material weakness exists testing and evaluating the design and operating effectiveness of internal control based on the assessed risk and performing such other procedures as we considered necessary in the circumstances We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion
A company s internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles A company s internal control over financial reporting includes those policies and procedures that 1 pertain to the maintenance of records that in reasonable detail accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the company 2 provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles and that receipts and expenditures of the company are being made only in accordance with authorizations of management and directors of the company and 3 provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition use or disposition of the company s assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements
Because of its inherent limitations internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements Also projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate
HP s management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting HP s internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with U S generally accepted accounting principles HP s internal control over financial reporting includes those policies and procedures that i pertain to the maintenance of records that in reasonable detail accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of HP ii provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles and that receipts and expenditures of HP are being made only in accordance with authorizations of management and directors of HP and iii provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition use or disposition of HP s assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements
Because of its inherent limitations internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements Also projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate
HP s management assessed the effectiveness of HP s internal control over financial reporting as of October 31 2024 utilizing the criteria set forth by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission COSO in Internal Control Integrated Framework 2013 framework
A material weakness is a deficiency or a 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
As previously reported in the Company s Annual Report on Form 10 K for the fiscal year ended October 31 2023 we identified a material weakness in internal control over financial reporting The material weakness resulted from undue reliance on information generated from certain software solutions affecting net revenue without effectively designed and operating information technology IT general controls specifically around user access and change management As of October 31 2024 the Company has concluded that the previously identified material weakness was not remediated and that IT general control deficiencies exist in the areas of user access change management and job schedule monitoring IT operations for certain IT applications affecting various financial statement line items as well as net revenue As a result of the material weakness the application controls and IT dependent manual controls that rely upon information from affected IT applications were also deemed ineffective This material weakness did not result in any material misstatement of our financial statements
While this material weakness did not result in a material misstatement of our financial statements this control deficiency was not remediated as of October 31 2024 and there is a reasonable possibility that it could have resulted in a material misstatement in the Company s annual or interim consolidated financial statements that would not be detected Accordingly we determined that this control deficiency constituted a material weakness
The effectiveness of HP s internal control over financial reporting as of October 31 2024 has been audited by Ernst Young LLP HP s independent registered public accounting firm as stated in their report which appears in Part II Item 8 of this Annual Report on Form 10 K
The Consolidated Financial Statements include the accounts of HP and its subsidiaries and affiliates in which HP has a controlling financial interest or is the primary beneficiary All intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated
The preparation of financial statements in accordance with U S GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in HP s Consolidated Financial Statements and accompanying notes Actual results may differ materially from those estimates
HP predominantly uses the U S dollar as its functional currency Assets and liabilities denominated in non U S dollars are remeasured into U S dollars at current exchange rates for monetary assets and liabilities and at historical exchange rates for non monetary assets and liabilities Net revenue costs and expenses denominated in non U S dollars are recorded in U S dollars at monthly average exchange rates prevailing during the period HP includes gains or losses from foreign currency remeasurement in Interest and other net in the Consolidated Statements of Earnings Certain foreign subsidiaries designate the local currency as the functional currency and HP records the translation of their assets and liabilities into U S dollars at the balance sheet dates as translation adjustments and includes them as a component of Accumulated other comprehensive loss
In September 2022 the Financial Accounting Standards Board FASB issued guidance that enhances the transparency about the use of supplier finance programs Under the new guidance companies that use a supplier finance program in connection with the purchase of goods or services are required to disclose information about those programs to allow users of financial statements to understand the nature activity during the period changes from period to period and potential magnitude HP adopted this guidance in the first quarter of fiscal year 2024 except for the disclosure on roll forward information which will be adopted in fiscal year 2025 in line with the effective adoption dates prescribed by the FASB See Note 7 Supplementary Financial Information for additional disclosure related to HP s supplier finance programs
In November 2024 the FASB issued guidance that requires disaggregation of specific expense categories in disclosures within the footnotes to the financial statements on an annual and interim basis HP is required to adopt this guidance for its annual period ending October 31 2028 and all interim periods thereafter on a prospective basis Early adoption is permitted HP is currently evaluating the impact of this guidance on its disclosures
In December 2023 the FASB issued guidance that enhances the transparency of income tax disclosures by expanding annual disclosure requirements related to the rate reconciliation and income taxes paid HP is required to adopt this guidance for its annual period ending October 31 2026 Early adoption is permitted HP is currently evaluating the impact of this guidance on its disclosures
In November 2023 the FASB issued guidance that updates reportable segment disclosure requirements primarily through enhanced disclosures about significant segment expenses and information used to assess segment performance on an annual and interim basis HP is required to adopt this guidance for its annual period ending October 31 2025 and all interim periods thereafter Early adoption is permitted HP is currently evaluating the impact of this guidance on its disclosures
HP recognizes revenues at a point in time or over time depicting the transfer of promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which HP expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services HP follows the five step model for revenue recognition as summarized below
A contract with customer exists when i it is approved and signed by all parties ii each party s rights and obligations can be identified iii payment terms are defined iv it has commercial substance and v the customer has the ability and intent to pay HP evaluates customers ability to pay based on various factors like historical payment experience financial metrics and customer credit scores While the majority of our sales contracts contain standard terms and conditions there are certain contracts with non standard terms and conditions
HP evaluates each performance obligation in an arrangement to determine whether it is distinct such as hardware and or service A performance obligation constitutes distinct goods or services when the customer can benefit from such goods or services either on its own or together with other resources that are readily available to the customer and the performance obligation is distinct within the context of the contract
Transaction price is the amount of consideration to which HP expects to be entitled in exchange for transferring goods or services to the customer If the transaction price includes a variable amount HP estimates the amount it expects to be entitled to using either the expected value or the most likely amount method HP reduces the transaction price at the time of revenue recognition for customer and distributor programs and incentive offerings rebates promotions other volume based incentives and expected returns HP uses estimates to determine the expected variable consideration for such programs based on factors like historical experience expected consumer behavior and market conditions HP has elected the practical expedient of not accounting for significant financing components if the period between revenue recognition and when the customer pays for the product or service is one year or less
When a sales arrangement contains multiple performance obligations such as hardware and or services HP allocates revenue to each performance obligation in proportion to their selling price The selling price for each performance obligation is based on its Standalone Selling Price SSP HP establishes SSP using the price charged for a performance obligation when sold separately observable price and in some instances using the price established by management having the relevant authority When observable price is not available HP establishes SSP maximizing the use of observable inputs based on management judgment while considering internal factors such as historical discounting trends for products and services pricing practices and other observable factors
Revenue is recognized when or as a performance obligation is satisfied by transferring control of a promised good or service to a customer HP generally invoices the customer upon delivery of the goods or services and the payments are due as per contract terms For fixed price support or maintenance contracts that are in the nature of stand ready obligations payments are generally received in advance from customers and revenue is recognized on a straight line basis over the duration of the contract
HP reports revenue net of any taxes collected from customers and remitted to government authorities and the collected taxes are recorded as other current liabilities until remitted to the relevant government authority HP includes costs related to shipping and handling in Cost of net revenue
HP records revenue on a gross basis when HP is a principal in the transaction and on a net basis when HP is acting as an agent between the customer and the vendor HP considers several factors to determine whether it is acting as a principal or an agent most notably whether HP is the primary obligor to the customer has established its own pricing and has inventory and credit risks
HP transfers control of the products to the customer at the time the product is delivered to the customer and recognizes revenue accordingly unless customer acceptance is uncertain or significant obligations to the customer remain unfulfilled HP records revenue from the sale of equipment under sales type leases as revenue at the commencement of the lease
HP recognizes revenue from fixed price support maintenance and other service contracts over time depicting the pattern of service delivery and recognizes the costs associated with these contracts as incurred
Contract assets are rights to consideration in exchange for goods or services that HP has transferred to a customer when such right is conditional on something other than the passage of time Such contract assets are not material to HP s Consolidated Financial Statements
Contract liabilities are recorded as deferred revenues when amounts invoiced to customers are more than the revenues recognized or when payments are received in advance for fixed price support or maintenance contracts The short term and long term deferred revenues are reported within the Other current liabilities and Other non current liabilities respectively
Incremental direct costs of obtaining a contract primarily consist of sales commissions HP has elected the practical expedient to expense as incurred the costs to obtain a contract with a benefit period equal to or less than one year For contracts with a period of benefit greater than one year HP capitalizes incremental costs of obtaining a contract with a customer and amortizes these costs over their expected period of benefit provided such costs are recoverable
Fulfillment costs consist of set up and transition costs related to other service contracts These costs generate or enhance resources of HP that will be used in satisfying the performance obligation in the future and are capitalized and amortized over the expected period of the benefit provided such costs are recoverable
At the inception of a contract HP assesses whether the contract is or contains a lease The assessment is based on 1 whether the contract involves the use of a distinct identified asset 2 whether HP obtains the right to substantially all the economic benefit from the use of the asset throughout the period and 3 whether HP has the right to direct the use of the asset
All significant lease arrangements are recognized at lease commencement Leases with a lease term of 12 months or less at inception are not recorded on the Consolidated Balance Sheets and are expensed on a straight line basis over the lease term in the Consolidated Statement of Earnings HP determines the lease term by assuming the exercise of renewal options that are reasonably certain As most of the leases do not provide an implicit interest rate HP uses the unsecured borrowing rate and risk adjusts that rate to approximate a collateralized rate at the commencement date to determine the present value of future payments that are reasonably certain
HP determines stock based compensation expense based on the measurement date fair value of the award HP recognizes compensation cost only for those awards expected to meet the service and performance vesting conditions on a straight line basis over the requisite service period of the award HP determines compensation costs at the aggregate grant level for service based awards and at the individual vesting tranche level for awards with performance and or market conditions HP estimates the forfeiture rate based on its historical experience
HP has various defined benefit other contributory and non contributory retirement and post retirement plans HP generally amortizes unrecognized actuarial gains and losses on a straight line basis over the average remaining estimated service life of participants In limited cases HP amortizes actuarial gains and losses using the corridor approach See Note 4 Retirement and Post Retirement Benefit Plans for a full description of these plans and the accounting and funding policies
Costs to produce advertising are expensed as incurred during production Costs to communicate advertising are expensed when the advertising is first run Such costs totaled approximately 628 million 611 million and 696 million in fiscal years 2024 2023 and 2022 respectively
HP records charges associated with management approved restructuring plans to reorganize one or more of HP s business segments to remove duplicative headcount and infrastructure associated with business acquisitions or to simplify business processes and accelerate innovation Restructuring charges can include severance costs to reduce a specified number of employees enhanced early retirement incentives infrastructure charges to vacate facilities and consolidate operations and contract cancellation costs HP records restructuring charges based on estimated employee terminations committed early retirements and site closure and consolidation plans HP accrues for severance and other employee separation costs under these actions when it is probable that benefits will be paid and the amount is reasonably estimable The rates used in determining severance accruals are based on existing plans historical experiences and negotiated settlements Other charges include non recurring costs including those as a result of information technology rationalization efforts and transformation program management costs and are distinct from ongoing operational costs These costs primarily relate to third party professional services and other non recurring costs
HP recognizes deferred tax assets and liabilities for the expected tax consequences of temporary differences between the tax bases of assets and liabilities and their reported amounts using enacted tax rates in effect for the year the differences are expected to reverse HP records a valuation allowance to reduce the deferred tax assets to the amount that is more likely than not to be realized
HP records accruals for uncertain tax positions when HP believes that it is not 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 HP makes adjustments to these accruals when facts and circumstances change such as the closing of a tax audit or the refinement of an estimate The provision for income taxes includes the effects of adjustments for uncertain tax positions as well as any related interest and penalties
HP records allowance for credit losses for the current expected credit losses inherent in the asset over its expected life The allowance for credit losses is maintained based on the relevant information about past events including historical experience current conditions and reasonable and supportable forecasts that affect the collectability of the reported amount
HP records a specific reserve for individual accounts when HP becomes aware of specific customer circumstances such as in the case of a bankruptcy filing or deterioration in the customer s operating results or financial position If there are additional changes in circumstances related to the specific customer HP further adjusts estimates of the recoverability of receivables HP assesses collectability by pooling receivables where similar risk characteristics exist
HP maintains an allowance for credit losses for all other customers based on a variety of factors including the use of third party credit risk models that generate quantitative measures of default probabilities based on market factors financial condition of customers length of time receivables are past due trends in the weighted average risk rating for the portfolio macroeconomic conditions information derived from competitive benchmarking significant one time events and historical experience The past due or delinquency status of a receivable is based on the contractual payment terms of the receivable
HP utilizes certain third party arrangements in the normal course of business as part of HP s cash and liquidity management and also to provide liquidity to certain partners to facilitate their working capital requirements These financing arrangements which in certain cases provide for partial recourse result in the transfer of HP s trade receivables to a third party HP reflects amounts transferred to but not yet collected from the third party in Accounts receivable in the Consolidated Balance Sheets For arrangements involving an element of recourse the fair value of the recourse obligation is measured using market data from similar transactions and reported as a current liability in the Consolidated Balance Sheets
Financial instruments that potentially subject HP to significant concentrations of credit risk consist principally of cash and cash equivalents investments receivables from trade customers and contract manufacturers and derivatives
HP maintains cash and cash equivalents investments derivatives and certain other financial instruments with various financial institutions These financial institutions are located in many different geographic regions and HP s policy is designed to limit exposure from any particular institution As part of its risk management processes HP performs periodic evaluations of the relative credit standing of these financial institutions HP has not sustained material credit losses from instruments held at these financial institutions HP utilizes derivative contracts to protect against the effects of foreign currency interest rate and on certain investment exposures Such contracts involve the risk of non performance by the counterparty which could result in a material loss The likelihood of which HP deems to be remote
HP sells a significant portion of its products through third party distributors and resellers and as a result maintains individually significant receivable balances with these parties If the financial condition or operations of these distributors and resellers aggregated business deteriorates substantially HP s operating results could be adversely affected The ten largest distributor and reseller receivable balances which were concentrated primarily in North America and Europe collectively represented approximately 38 and 41 of gross accounts receivable as of October 31 2024 and 2023 respectively One customer TD Synnex Corp accounted for 9 7 of gross accounts receivable as of October 31 2024 and 13 2 of gross accounts receivable as of October 31 2023 Credit risk with respect to other accounts receivable is generally diversified due to HP s large customer base and their dispersion across many different industries and geographic markets HP performs ongoing credit evaluations of the financial condition of its third party distributors resellers and other customers and may require collateral such as letters of credit and bank guarantees in certain circumstances
HP utilizes outsourced manufacturers around the world to manufacture HP designed products HP may purchase product components from suppliers and sell those components to its outsourced manufacturers thereby creating receivable balances from the outsourced manufacturers The three largest outsourced manufacturer receivable balances collectively represented 89 and 58 of HP s supplier receivables of 0 8 billion and 0 3 billion as of October 31 2024 and 2023 respectively HP includes the supplier receivables in Other current assets in the Consolidated Balance Sheets on a gross basis HP s credit risk associated with these receivables is mitigated wholly or in part by the amount HP owes to these outsourced manufacturers as HP generally has the legal right to offset its payables to the outsourced manufacturers against these receivables HP does not reflect the sale of these components in net revenue and does not recognize any profit on these component sales until the related products are sold by HP at which time any profit is recognized as a reduction to cost of products net revenue
HP obtains a significant number of components from single source suppliers like Canon due to technology availability price quality or other considerations The loss of a single source supplier the deterioration of HP s relationship with a single source supplier or any unilateral modification to the contractual terms under which HP is supplied components by a single source supplier could adversely affect HP s net revenue cash flows and gross margins
HP records inventory at the lower of cost or market net realizable value on a first in first out basis Cost is computed using standard cost which approximates actual cost Adjustments if required to reduce the cost of inventory to market are made for estimated excess obsolete or impaired balances after considering judgments related to future demand and market conditions
HP reflects property plant and equipment at cost less accumulated depreciation HP capitalizes additions and improvements and expenses maintenance and repairs as incurred Depreciation expense is recognized on a straight line basis over the estimated useful lives of the assets Estimated useful lives are five to 40 years for buildings and improvements and three to 15 years for machinery and equipment HP depreciates leasehold improvements over the life of the lease or the asset whichever is shorter HP depreciates equipment held for lease over the initial term of the lease to the equipment s estimated residual value On retirement or disposition the asset cost and related accumulated depreciation are removed from the Consolidated Balance Sheets with any gain or loss recognized in the Consolidated Statements of Earnings
HP capitalizes external costs and directly attributable internal costs to acquire or create internal use software which are incurred subsequent to the completion of the preliminary project stage These costs relate to activities such as software design configuration coding testing and installation Costs related to post implementation activities such as training and maintenance are expensed as incurred Once the software is substantially complete and ready for its intended use capitalized development costs are amortized straight line over the estimated useful life of the software generally not to exceed five years
HP also enters into certain cloud based software hosting arrangements that are accounted for as service contracts For internal use software obtained through a hosting arrangement that is in the nature of a service contract HP incurs certain implementation costs such as integrating configuring and software customization which are consistent with costs incurred during the application development stage for on premise software HP applies the same guidance to determine costs that are eligible for capitalization For these arrangements HP amortizes the capitalized development costs straight line over the fixed non cancellable term of the associated hosting arrangement plus any reasonably certain renewal periods HP also applies the same impairment model to both internal use software and capitalized implementation costs in a software hosting arrangement that is in the nature of a service contract
HP reviews goodwill for impairment annually during its fourth quarter and whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate the carrying amount of goodwill may not be recoverable HP can elect to perform a qualitative assessment to test a reporting unit s goodwill for impairment or directly perform the quantitative impairment test Based on the qualitative assessment if HP determines that the fair value of a reporting unit is more likely than not i e a likelihood of more than 50 percent to be less than its carrying amount a quantitative impairment test will be performed
If a quantitative impairment test is performed HP compares the fair value of each reporting unit to its carrying amount The fair values are derived most significantly from the income approach with lesser weight attributed to the market approach Under the income approach HP estimates the fair value of a reporting unit based on the present value of estimated future cash flows Cash flow projections are based on management s estimates of revenue growth rates and operating margins taking into consideration industry and market conditions The discount rate is based on the weighted average cost of capital adjusted for the relevant risk associated with business specific characteristics and the uncertainty related to the reporting unit s ability to execute on the projected cash flows Under the market approach HP estimates fair value based on market multiples of earnings derived from comparable publicly traded companies with similar operating and investment characteristics as the reporting unit HP weights the fair value derived from the market approach depending on the level of comparability of these publicly traded companies to the reporting unit When market comparables are not meaningful or not available HP estimates the fair value of a reporting unit using only the income approach
If the fair value of a reporting unit exceeds the carrying amount of the net assets assigned to that reporting unit goodwill is not impaired If the fair value of the reporting unit is less than its carrying amount goodwill is impaired and the excess of the reporting unit s carrying value over the fair value is recognized as an impairment loss
HP determines the appropriate classification of its investments at the time of purchase and re evaluates the classifications at each balance sheet date Debt and marketable equity securities are generally considered available for sale All highly liquid investments with maturities of three months or less at the date of purchase are classified as cash equivalents Marketable debt securities with maturities of twelve months or less are classified as short term investments and marketable debt securities with maturities greater than twelve months are classified based on their availability for use in current operations Marketable equity securities including mutual funds are classified as either short or long term based on the nature of each security and its availability for use in current operations
Available for sale debt securities are reported at fair value with unrealized gains and losses net of applicable taxes in Accumulated other comprehensive loss Unrealized gains and losses on equity securities credit losses and impairments on available for sale debt securities are recorded in Consolidated Statements of Earnings Realized gains and losses on available for sale securities are calculated at the individual security level and included in Interest and other net in the Consolidated Statements of Earnings
HP monitors its investment portfolio for potential impairment and credit losses on a quarterly basis If HP intends to sell a debt security or it is more likely than not that HP will be required to sell the security before recovery then a decline in fair value below cost is recorded as an impairment charge in Interest and other net and a new cost basis in the investment is established
In other cases if the carrying amount of an investment in debt securities exceeds its fair value and the decline in value is determined to be due to credit related reasons HP records a credit loss allowance limited by the amount that fair value is less than the amortized cost basis HP recognizes the corresponding charge in Interest and other net and the remaining unrealized loss if any in Accumulated other comprehensive loss in the Consolidated Balance Sheets Factors that HP considers while determining the credit loss allowance includes but is not limited to severity and the reason for the decline in value interest rate changes and counterparty long term ratings
HP uses derivative instruments primarily forward contracts option contracts interest rate swaps total return swaps treasury rate locks and forward starting swaps to hedge certain foreign currency interest rate and return on certain investment exposures HP also may use other derivative instruments not designated as hedges such as forwards used to hedge foreign currency balance sheet
exposures HP does not use derivative instruments for speculative purposes See Note 10 Financial Instruments for a full description of HP s derivative instrument activities and related accounting policies
HP is involved in various lawsuits claims investigations and proceedings that arise in the ordinary course of business HP records a liability for contingencies when it believes it is both probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount of the loss can be reasonably estimated See Note 14 Litigation and Contingencies for a full description of HP s loss contingencies and related accounting policies
HP s operations are organized into three reportable segments Personal Systems Printing and Corporate Investments HP s organizational structure is based on many factors that the chief operating decision maker CODM uses to evaluate view and run the business operations which include but are not limited to customer base and homogeneity of products and technology The segments are based on this organizational structure and information reviewed by HP s CODM to evaluate segment results The CODM uses earnings from operations to evaluate the performance of the overall business and to allocate resources to each of the segments
The accounting policies HP uses to derive segment results are substantially the same as those used by HP in preparing these financial statements HP derives the results of the business segments directly from its internal management reporting system
HP does not allocate certain operating expenses which it manages at the corporate level to its segments These unallocated amounts include expenses such as certain corporate governance costs and infrastructure investments stock based compensation expense restructuring and other charges acquisition and divestiture charges amortization of intangible assets and Russia exit charges
Effective at the beginning of its first quarter of fiscal year 2024 HP realigned its business unit financial reporting more closely with its customer market segmentation The realignment resulted in the transfer of LaserJet printers net revenues from Consumer Printing to Commercial Printing HP reflected this change to its business unit information in prior reporting periods on an as if basis which resulted in the reclassification of net revenues from Consumer Printing to Commercial Printing The reporting change had no impact to previously reported segment net revenue consolidated net revenue earnings from operations net earnings or net earnings per share EPS
HP allocates assets to its business segments based on the segments primarily benefiting from the assets Total assets by segment and the reconciliation of segment assets to HP consolidated assets were as follows
Net revenue by country is based upon the sales location that predominately represents the customer location Other than the United States no country represented more than 10 of HP net revenue in any fiscal year presented
Includes reclassification of liability related to the EER plan of 139 for certain healthcare and medical savings account benefits to pension and post retirement plans See Note 4 Retirement and Post Retirement Benefit Plans for further information
On November 18 2022 HP s Board of Directors approved the Future Ready Plan intended to enable digital transformation portfolio optimization and operational efficiency which HP expects will be implemented through fiscal year 2025 HP expects workforce reductions of approximately 7 000 employees HP estimates that it will incur pre tax charges of approximately 1 0 billion of which approximately 0 7 billion primarily in labor costs related to workforce reductions and the remaining costs will relate to non labor actions and other charges
Other charges include non recurring costs including those as a result of information technology rationalization efforts and transformation program management costs and are distinct from ongoing operational costs These costs primarily relate to third party professional services and other non recurring costs HP incurred 68 million 83 million and 25 million of other charges in fiscal year 2024 2023 and 2022 respectively
HP reduces the benefit payable to certain U S employees under the Pension Plan for service before 1993 if any by any amounts due to the employee under HP s frozen defined contribution Deferred Profit Sharing Plan DPSP As of October 31 2024 and 2023 the fair value of HP s DPSP plan assets was 297 million and 311 million respectively The DPSP obligations are equal to the plan assets and are recognized as an offset to the Pension Plan when HP calculates its defined benefit pension cost and obligations
HP sponsors retiree health and welfare benefit plans of which the most significant are in the United States Under the HP Inc Retiree Welfare Benefits Plan certain pre 2003 retirees and grandfathered participants with continuous service to HP since 2002 are eligible to receive partially subsidized medical coverage based on years of service at retirement HP s share of the premium cost is capped for all subsidized medical coverage provided under the HP Inc Retiree Welfare Benefits Plan HP currently leverages the employer group waiver plan process to provide HP Inc Retiree Welfare Benefits Plan post 65 prescription drug coverage under Medicare Part D thereby giving HP access to federal subsidies to help pay for retiree benefits
Certain employees not grandfathered for partially subsidized medical coverage under the above programs and employees hired after 2002 but before August 2008 are eligible for credits under the HP Inc Retiree Welfare Benefits Plan Credits offered after September 2008 are provided in the form of matching credits on employee contributions made to a voluntary employee beneficiary association upon attaining age 45 or as part of early retirement programs On retirement former employees may use these credits for the reimbursement of certain eligible medical expenses including premiums required for coverage
U S employees are automatically enrolled in the HP Inc 401 k Plan when they meet eligibility requirements unless they decline participation The employer matching contributions in the HP Inc 401 k Plan is 100 of the first 4 of eligible compensation contributed by employees and the employer match is vested after three years of employee service Generally an employee must be employed by HP Inc on the last day of the calendar year to receive a match
The cumulative net actuarial losses for our defined pension plans and retiree welfare plans increased year over year These loss increases were primarily due to decreases in discount rates and other assumption changes The increase in losses was partially offset due to higher than expected return on assets
The following table summarizes the pre tax net actuarial loss gain and prior service cost credit recognized in Accumulated other comprehensive income loss for the defined benefit and post retirement benefit plans
The table below sets forth the fair value of plan assets by asset category within the fair value hierarchy as of October 31 2024 Refer to Note 9 Fair Value for details on fair value hierarchy Certain investments that are measured at fair value using the Net Asset Value NAV per share as a practical expedient have not been categorized in the fair value hierarchy The fair value amounts presented in this table provide a reconciliation of the fair value hierarchy to the total value of plan assets
The fair value of corporate government and asset backed debt securities is based on observable inputs of comparable market transactions Also included in this category is debt issued by national state and local governments and agencies
Department of Labor 103 12 IE Investment Entity designation is for plan assets held by two or more unrelated employee benefit plans which includes limited partnerships and venture capital partnerships Certain common collective trusts and interests in 103 12 entities are valued using NAV as a practical expedient
Includes cash and cash equivalents such as short term marketable securities Cash and cash equivalents include money market funds which are valued based on NAV Other assets were classified in the fair value hierarchy based on the lowest level input e g quoted prices and observable inputs that is significant to the fair value measure in its entirety
These investments include alternative investments which primarily consist of private equities and hedge funds The valuation of alternative investments such as limited partnerships and joint ventures may require significant management judgment For alternative investments valuation is based on NAV as reported by the asset manager or investment company and adjusted for cash flows if necessary In making such an assessment a variety of factors are reviewed by management including but not limited to the timeliness of NAV as reported by the asset manager and changes in general economic and market conditions subsequent to the last NAV reported by the asset manager
Private equities include limited partnerships such as equity buyout venture capital real estate and other similar funds that invest in the United States and internationally where foreign currencies are hedged
Hedge funds include limited partnerships that invest both long and short primarily in common stocks and credit relative value event driven equity distressed debt and macro strategies Management of the hedge funds has the ability to shift investments from value to growth strategies from small to large capitalization stocks and bonds and from a net long position to a net short position
Refer to the fair value hierarchy table above for actual assets allocations across the benefit plans The weighted average target asset allocations across the benefit plans represented in the fair value tables above were as follows
HP s investment strategy is to seek a competitive rate of return relative to an appropriate level of risk depending on the funded status of each plan and the timing of expected benefit payments The majority of the plans investment managers employ active investment management strategies with the goal of outperforming the broad markets in which they invest Risk management practices include diversification across asset classes and investment styles and periodic rebalancing toward asset allocation targets A number of the plans investment managers are authorized to utilize derivatives for investment or liability exposures and HP may utilize derivatives to affect asset allocation changes or to hedge certain investment or liability exposures
The target asset allocation selected for each U S plan pension and post retirement reflects a risk return profile HP believes is appropriate relative to each plan s liability structure and return goals HP conducts periodic asset liability studies for U S plans to model various potential asset allocations in comparison to each plan s forecasted liabilities and liquidity needs Due to the strong funded status for the U S Pension Plan consistent with our policy steps have been taken to de risk the portfolio by reallocation of assets to liability hedging fixed income investments
Outside the United States asset allocation decisions are typically made by an independent board of trustees for the specific plan As in the United States investment objectives are designed to generate returns that will enable the plan to meet its future obligations HP reviews the investment strategy and where appropriate can offer some assistance in the selection of investment managers with final decisions on asset allocation and investment managers made by the board of trustees for the specific plan
The expected long term rate of return on plan assets reflects the expected returns for each major asset class in which the plan invests and the weight of each asset class in the target mix Expected asset returns reflect the current yield on government bonds risk premiums for each asset class and expected real returns which considers each country s specific inflation outlook Because HP s investment policy is to employ primarily active investment managers who seek to outperform the broader market the expected returns are adjusted to reflect the expected additional returns net of fees
As part of the Fiscal 2023 Plan HP announced a voluntary EER program for its U S employees in January 2023 Voluntary participation in the EER program was limited to employees at least 55 years old with 10 or more years of service at HP Employees accepted into the EER program left HP on dates ranging from March 15 2023 to October 31 2023 The U S defined benefit pension plan was amended to provide that the EER benefit was to be paid from the plan for eligible electing EER participants The retirement incentive benefit was calculated as a lump sum based on years of service at HP at the time of retirement ranging from 20 to 52 weeks of pay As a result of this retirement incentive HP recognized a special termination benefit STB expense of 105 million for the year ended October 31 2023 as a restructuring charge This expense is the present value of all additional benefits that HP will distribute from the pension plan assets
All employees participating in the EER program were offered the opportunity to continue health care coverage at the active employee contribution rates for up to 36 months following retirement but not beyond age 65 when Medicare is available In addition HP provided up to 12 000 in employer credits under the Retirement Medical Savings Account program HP recognized an additional STB expense of 34 million as restructuring and other charges for the year ended October 31 2023 for the health care incentives
Our policy is to fund our pension plans so that we meet at least the minimum contribution required by local government funding and taxing authorities In fiscal year 2025 we expect to contribute approximately 36 million to non U S pension plans 30 million to cover benefit payments to U S non qualified plan participants and 4 million to cover benefit claims for our post retirement benefit plans
Cash received from option exercises under the HP Inc 2004 Stock Incentive Plan the 2004 SIP and the HP Inc 2021 Employee Stock Purchase Plan the 2021 ESPP was 72 million 51 million and 53 million in fiscal year 2024 2023 and 2022 respectively The benefit realized for the tax deduction from option exercises in fiscal years 2024 2023 and 2022 was 1 million 2 million and 4 million respectively
HP s stock based incentive compensation plan includes equity plan adopted in 2004 as amended and restated principal equity plan Stock based awards granted under the equity plan includes restricted stock awards stock options and performance based awards Employees meeting certain employment qualifications are eligible to receive stock based awards The aggregate number of shares of HP s stock authorized for issuance under the principal equity plan is 668 8 million
Restricted stock awards are non vested stock awards that may include grants of restricted stock or restricted stock units Restricted stock awards and cash settled awards are generally subject to forfeiture if employment terminates prior to the lapse of the restrictions Such awards generally vest one to three years from the date of grant During the vesting period ownership of the restricted stock cannot be transferred Restricted stock has the same dividend and voting rights as common stock and is considered to be issued and outstanding upon grant The dividends paid on restricted stock are non forfeitable Restricted stock units do not have the voting rights of common stock and the shares underlying restricted stock units are not considered issued and outstanding upon grant However shares underlying restricted stock units are included in the calculation of diluted net EPS Restricted stock units have forfeitable dividend equivalent rights equal to the dividend paid on common stock HP expenses the fair value of restricted stock awards ratably over the period during which the restrictions lapse The majority of restricted stock units issued by HP contain only service vesting conditions HP also grants performance adjusted restricted stock units which vest only on the satisfaction of both service and the achievement of certain performance goals including market conditions prior to the expiration of the awards
Stock options granted under the principal equity plan are generally non qualified stock options but the principal equity plan permits some options granted to qualify as incentive stock options under the U S Internal Revenue Code Stock options generally vest over three to four years from the date of grant The exercise price of a stock option is equal to the closing price of HP s stock on the option grant date The majority of stock options issued by HP contain only service vesting conditions HP grants performance contingent stock options that vest only on the satisfaction of both service and market conditions prior to the expiration of the awards No stock option awards were granted during the fiscal year 2024 The expenses associated with stock options were not material for any of the periods presented As of October 31 2024 the total unrecognized pre tax stock based compensation expense related to stock options was 2 million which is expected to be recognized over a weighted average vesting period of 0 9 years
HP uses the closing stock price on the grant date to estimate the fair value of service based restricted stock units HP estimates the fair value of restricted stock units subject to performance adjusted vesting conditions using a combination of the closing stock price on the grant date and a Monte Carlo simulation model The assumptions used to measure the fair value of restricted stock units subject to performance adjusted vesting conditions in the Monte Carlo simulation model were as follows
The total grant date fair value of restricted stock units vested in fiscal years 2024 2023 and 2022 was 471 million 442 million and 314 million respectively As of October 31 2024 total unrecognized pre tax stock based compensation expense related to non
Pursuant to the terms of the 2021 ESPP employees purchase stock under the 2021 ESPP at a price equal to 95 of HP s closing stock price on the purchase date No stock based compensation expense was recorded in connection with those purchases because the criteria of a non compensatory plan were met The aggregate number of shares of HP s stock authorized for issuance under the 2021 ESPP was 50 million
The effective tax rate differs from the U S federal statutory rate of 21 for fiscal year 2024 primarily due to impacts of changes in valuation allowances and favorable tax rates associated with certain earnings from HP s operations in lower tax jurisdictions throughout the world
In fiscal year 2024 HP recorded 214 million of net income tax benefits related to non recurring items in the provision for taxes This amount included 198 million related to changes in valuation allowances 60 million related to restructuring charges 14 million related to the filing of tax returns in various jurisdictions and 11 million related to acquisition charges These benefits were partially offset by 39 million of uncertain tax position charges and 25 million related to changes in tax rates
In fiscal year 2023 HP recorded 1 1 billion of net income tax benefits related to non recurring items in the provision for taxes This amount included 726 million of tax effects related to internal reorganization 255 million related to changes in valuation allowances 101 million related to restructuring charges 58 million related to the filing of tax returns in various jurisdictions and 42 million related to acquisition charges These benefits were partially offset by income tax charges of 60 million related to audit settlements in various jurisdictions 27 million of uncertain tax position charges and 25 million related to extinguishment of debt
In fiscal year 2022 HP recorded 456 million of net income tax charges related to non recurring items in the provision for taxes This amount included 649 million of tax effects related to internal reorganization 107 million of uncertain tax position charges 55 million related to withholding taxes on undistributed foreign earnings 51 million related to audit settlements in various jurisdictions and 26 million of other net tax charges These charges were partially offset by income tax benefits of 189 million related to the filing of tax returns in various jurisdictions 156 million related to changes in valuation allowances 44 million related to restructuring charges and 43 million related to Poly acquisition charges In fiscal year 2022 HP recorded excess tax benefits of 33 million associated with stock options restricted stock units and performance adjusted restricted stock
As a result of certain employment actions and capital investments HP has undertaken income from manufacturing and services in certain countries is subject to reduced tax rates and in some cases is wholly exempt from taxes through 2029 The gross income tax benefits attributable to these actions and investments were estimated to be 217 million 0 22 diluted net EPS in fiscal year 2024 190 million 0 19 diluted net EPS in fiscal year 2023 and 313 million 0 30 diluted net EPS in fiscal year 2022
As of October 31 2024 the amount of gross unrecognized tax benefits was 1 2 billion of which up to 853 million would affect HP s effective tax rate if realized Total gross unrecognized tax benefits increased by 80 million for the twelve months ended October 31 2024 HP recognizes interest income from favorable settlements and interest expense and penalties accrued on unrecognized tax benefits in the provision for taxes in the Consolidated Statements of Earnings As of October 31 2024 2023 and 2022 HP had accrued 135 million 102 million and 64 million respectively for interest and penalties
HP engages in continuous discussions and negotiations with taxing authorities regarding tax matters in various jurisdictions HP expects complete resolution of certain tax years with various tax authorities within the next 12 months HP believes it is reasonably possible that its existing gross unrecognized tax benefits may be reduced by up to 190 million within the next 12 months affecting HP s effective tax rate if realized
HP is subject to income tax in the United States and approximately 61 other countries and is subject to routine corporate income tax audits in many of these jurisdictions In addition HP is subject to numerous ongoing audits by federal state and foreign tax authorities The IRS is conducting an audit of HP s 2018 and 2019 income tax returns
With respect to major state and foreign tax jurisdictions HP is no longer subject to tax authority examinations for years prior to 2007 No material tax deficiencies have been assessed in major state or foreign tax jurisdictions related to ongoing audits as of October 31 2024
HP believes it has provided adequate reserves for all tax deficiencies or reductions in tax benefits that could result from federal state and foreign tax audits HP regularly assesses the likely outcomes of these audits in order to determine the appropriateness of HP s
tax provision HP adjusts its uncertain tax positions to reflect the impact of negotiations settlements rulings advice of legal counsel and other information and events pertaining to a particular audit However income tax audits are inherently unpredictable and there can be no assurance that HP will accurately predict the outcome of these audits The amounts ultimately paid on resolution of an audit could be materially different from the amounts previously included in the Provision for taxes and therefore the resolution of one or more of these uncertainties in any particular period could have a material impact on net income or cash flows
HP has not provided for U S federal income and foreign withholding taxes on 5 1 billion of undistributed earnings from non U S operations as of October 31 2024 because HP intends to reinvest such earnings indefinitely outside of the United States Determination of the amount of unrecognized deferred tax liability related to these earnings is not practicable
Gross deferred tax assets as of October 31 2024 2023 and 2022 were reduced by valuation allowances of 6 7 billion 7 0 billion and 7 6 billion respectively In fiscal year 2024 the deferred tax asset valuation allowance decreased by 306 million primarily due to an increase in the expected utilization of foreign net operating losses In fiscal year 2023 the deferred tax asset valuation allowance decreased by 598 million primarily due to internal reorganization impacting foreign net operating losses and U S deferred tax assets that are anticipated to be realized at a lower effective rate than the federal statutory rate In fiscal year 2022 the deferred tax asset valuation allowance decreased by 157 million primarily due to a reduction in the expected utilization of foreign net operating losses U S deferred tax assets that are anticipated to be realized at a lower effective tax rate than the federal statutory tax rate and the impact of the acquisition of Poly on the company s deferred tax assets
HP utilizes certain third party arrangements in the normal course of business as part of HPs cash and liquidity management and also to provide liquidity to certain partners to facilitate their working capital requirements These financing arrangements which in certain circumstances may contain partial recourse result in a transfer of HP s receivables and risk to the third party As these transfers qualify as true sales under the applicable accounting guidance the receivables are de recognized from the Consolidated Balance Sheets upon transfer and HP receives a payment for the receivables from the third party within a mutually agreed upon time period For arrangements involving an element of recourse the recourse obligation is measured using market data from the similar transactions and reported as a current liability in the Consolidated Balance Sheets The recourse obligations as of October 31 2024 and 2023 were not material
As of October 31 2024 the estimated value of transaction price allocated to remaining performance obligations was 3 9 billion HP expects to recognize approximately 1 7 billion of the unearned amount in next 12 months and 2 2 billion thereafter
As of October 31 2024 deferred contract fulfillment and acquisition costs balances were 36 million and 50 million respectively included in Other current assets and Other non current assets in the Consolidated Balance Sheets During the fiscal year ended October 31 2024 the Company amortized 86 million of these costs
As of October 31 2023 deferred contract fulfillment and acquisition costs balances were 35 million and 44 million respectively included in Other current assets and Other non current assets in the Consolidated Balance Sheets During the fiscal year ended October 31 2023 the Company amortized 88 million of these costs
As of October 31 2024 and 2023 HP s contract liabilities balances were 2 9 billion and 2 7 billion respectively included in Other current liabilities and Other non current liabilities in the Consolidated Balance Sheets
The increase in the contract liabilities balance for the fiscal year 2024 was primarily driven by sales of fixed price support and maintenance services partially offset by 1 4 billion of revenue recognized that were included in the contract liabilities balance as of October 31 2023
As of October 31 2023 and 2022 HP s contract liabilities balances were 2 7 billion and 2 5 billion respectively included in Other current liabilities and Other non current liabilities in the Consolidated Balance Sheets
The increase in the contract liabilities balance for the fiscal year 2023 was primarily driven by sales of fixed price support and maintenance services partially offset by 1 3 billion of revenue recognized that were included in the contract liabilities balance as of October 31 2022
HP facilitates voluntary supplier finance programs to provide certain suppliers the opportunity to sell their right to HP s payment obligations to participating financial institutions Under this program HP agrees to pay the participating financial institutions the stated amount of confirmed invoices from its designated suppliers on the original maturity dates of the invoices Participation by suppliers in these programs have no impact on the payment terms and amounts due from HP HP does not have an economic interest in a supplier s participation in the program and is not a party to the agreement between the supplier and the financial institutions In connection with these programs HP does not pledge assets or other forms of guarantees as security for the committed payment to the participating financial institutions For certain programs HP pays a monthly service fee to a third party administrato
that provides the supplier finance platform and related support HP and the participating financial institutions may terminate the agreement upon at least 30 days notice As of October 31 2024 and October 31 2023 HP had 7 8 billion and 6 6 billion respectively in obligations outstanding i e unpaid invoices that were confirmed as valid under the supplier finance programs Of the amounts confirmed as valid under the program and outstanding the amounts owed to participating financial institutions were 0 9 billion as of both October 31 2024 and October 31 2023 respectively These obligations are included within the Accounts payable line item of HP s Consolidated Balance Sheet
Goodwill is tested for impairment at the reporting unit level As of October 31 2024 our reporting units are consistent with the reportable segments identified in Note 2 Segment Information Personal Systems had a negative carrying amount of net assets as of October 31 2024 2023 and 2022 primarily as a result of a favorable cash conversion cycle
HP uses valuation techniques that are based upon observable and unobservable inputs Observable inputs are developed using market data such as publicly available information and reflect the assumptions market participants would use while unobservable inputs are developed using the best information available about the assumptions market participants would use Assets and liabilities are classified in the fair value hierarchy based on the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement
Level 2 Quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets quoted prices for identical or similar assets or liabilities in markets that are not active inputs other than quoted prices that are observable for the asset or liability and market corroborated inputs
Government debt includes instruments such as U S treasury notes U S agency securities and non U S government bonds Money market funds invested in government debt and traded in active markets are included in Level 1
Cash Equivalents and Investments HP holds time deposits money market funds mutual funds other debt securities primarily consisting of corporate and foreign government notes and bonds and common stock and equivalents HP values cash equivalents and equity investments using quoted market prices alternative pricing sources including net asset value or models utilizing market observable inputs The fair value of debt investments is based on quoted market prices or model driven valuations using inputs primarily derived from or corroborated by observable market data and in certain instances valuation models that utilize assumptions which cannot be corroborated with observable market data
Derivative Instruments HP uses industry standard valuation models to measure fair value Where applicable these models project future cash flows and discount the future amounts to present value using market based observable inputs including interest rate curves HP and counterparty credit risk foreign exchange rates and forward and spot prices for currencies and interest rates See Note 10 Financial Instruments for a further discussion of HP s use of derivative instruments
Short and Long Term Debt HP estimates the fair value of its debt primarily using an expected present value technique which is based on observable market inputs using interest rates currently available to companies of similar credit standing for similar terms and remaining maturities and considering its own credit risk The portion of HP s debt that is hedged is reflected in the Consolidated Balance Sheets as an amount equal to the debt s carrying amount and a fair value adjustment representing changes in the fair value of the hedged debt obligations arising from movements in benchmark interest rates The fair value of HP s short and long term debt was 9 4 billion as compared to its carrying amount of 9 7 billion as of October 31 2024 The fair value of HP s short and long term debt was 8 5 billion as compared to its carrying value of 9 5 billion at October 31 2023 If measured at fair value in the Consolidated Balance Sheets short and long term debt would be classified in Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy
Other Financial Instruments For the balance of HP s financial instruments primarily accounts receivable accounts payable and financial liabilities included in Other current liabilities on the Consolidated Balance Sheets the carrying amounts approximate fair value due to their short term maturities If measured at fair value in the Consolidated Balance Sheets these other financial instruments would be classified as Level 2 or Level 3 of the fair value hierarchy
HP s non financial assets such as intangible assets goodwill and property plant and equipment are recorded at fair value in the period an impairment charge is recognized If measured at fair value in the Consolidated Balance Sheets these would generally be classified within Level 3 of the fair value hierarchy
All highly liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less at the date of acquisition are considered cash equivalents As of October 31 2024 and 2023 the carrying amount of cash equivalents approximated fair value due to the short period of time to maturity Interest income related to cash cash equivalents and debt securities was approximately 78 million in fiscal year 2024 67 million in fiscal year 2023 and 46 million in fiscal year 2022 The estimated fair value of the available for sale investments may not be representative of values that will be realized in the future
Non marketable equity securities in privately held companies are included in Other current and non current assets in the Consolidated Balance Sheets These amounted to 107 million and 111 million as of October 31 2024 and 2023 respectively
HP determines credit losses on cash equivalents and available for sale debt securities at the individual security level All instruments are considered investment grade No credit related or noncredit related impairment losses were recorded in fiscal year 2024
HP uses derivative instruments primarily forward contracts interest rate swaps total return swaps treasury rate locks forward starting swaps and option contracts to offset business exposure to foreign currency and interest rate risk on expected future cash flows and on certain existing assets and liabilities HP may designate its derivative contracts as fair value hedges or cash flow hedges and classifies the cash flows with the activities that correspond to the underlying hedged items Additionally for derivatives not designated as hedging instruments HP categorizes those economic hedges as other derivatives HP recognizes all derivative instruments at fair value in the Consolidated Balance Sheets
As a result of its use of derivative instruments HP is exposed to the risk that its counterparties will fail to meet their contractual obligations Master netting agreements mitigate credit exposure to counterparties by permitting HP to net amounts due from HP to counterparty against amounts due to HP from the same counterparty under certain conditions To further limit credit risk HP has collateral security agreements that allow HP s custodian to hold collateral from or require HP to post collateral to counterparties when the net fair value of financial instruments fluctuates The Company includes gross collateral posted and received in other current assets and other current liabilities in the Consolidated Balance Sheets respectively The fair value of derivatives with credit contingent features in a net liability position was 59 million and 91 million as of October 31 2024 and 2023 respectively all of which were fully collateralized within two business days
Under HP s derivative contracts the counterparty can terminate all outstanding trades following a covered change of control event affecting HP that results in the surviving entity being rated below a specified credit rating This credit contingent provision did not affect HP s financial position or cash flows as of October 31 2024 and 2023
HP enters into fair value hedges such as interest rate swaps to reduce the exposure of its debt portfolio to changes in fair value resulting from changes in benchmark interest rates on HP s future interest payments
For derivative instruments that are designated and qualify as fair value hedges HP recognizes the change in fair value of the derivative instrument as well as the offsetting change in the fair value of the hedged item in Interest and other net in the Consolidated Statements of Earnings in the period of change
HP uses forward contracts option contracts treasury rate locks and forward starting swaps designated as cash flow hedges to protect against the foreign currency exchange and interest rate risks inherent in its forecasted products net revenue cost of products net revenue operating expenses and debt issuance HP s foreign currency cash flow hedges mature predominantly within twelve months however hedges related to long term procurement arrangements contractual pricing and or business unit specific exposures may extend several years
For derivative instruments that are designated and qualify as cash flow hedges HP initially records changes in fair value of the derivative instrument in Accumulated other comprehensive loss as a separate component of Stockholders deficit in the Consolidated Balance Sheets and subsequently reclassifies these amounts into earnings in the period during which the hedged transaction is recognized in earnings HP reports the changes in the fair value of the derivative instrument in the same financial statement line item as changes in the fair value of the hedged item
During fiscal 2024 HP entered into a series of forward starting swap agreements with notional amounts totaling 500 million to hedge the exposure to variability in future cash flows resulting from changes in interest rates related to the anticipated issuance of long term debt These agreements were designated as cash flow hedges
Other derivatives not designated as hedging instruments consist primarily of forward contracts used to hedge foreign currency denominated balance sheet exposures HP also uses total return swaps to hedge its executive deferred compensation plan liability
For derivative instruments not designated as hedging instruments HP recognizes changes in fair value of the derivative instrument as well as the offsetting change in the fair value of the hedged item in Interest and other net in the Consolidated Statements of Earnings in the period of change
For interest rate swaps designated as fair value hedges HP measures hedge effectiveness by offsetting the change in fair value of the hedged item with the change in fair value of the derivative For foreign currency options forward contracts and forward starting swaps designated as cash flow hedges HP measures hedge effectiveness by comparing the cumulative change in fair value of the hedge contract with the cumulative change in fair value of the hedged item both of which are based on forward rates
HP recognizes all derivative instruments on a gross basis in the Consolidated Balance Sheets HP does not offset the fair value of its derivative instruments against the fair value of cash collateral posted under its collateral security agreements As of October 31 2024 and 2023 information related to the potential effect of HP s master netting agreements and collateral security agreements was as follows
Represents the cash collateral posted by counterparties as of the respective reporting date for HP s asset position net of derivative amounts that could be offset as of generally two business days prior to the respective reporting date
Represents the collateral posted by HP including any re use of counterparty cash collateral as of the respective reporting date for HP s liability position net of derivative amounts that could be offset as of generally two business days prior to the respective reporting date
As of October 31 2024 HP expects to reclassify an estimated accumulated other comprehensive gain of approximately 21 million net of taxes to earnings within the next twelve months associated with cash flow hedges along with the earnings effects of the related forecasted transactions The amounts ultimately reclassified into earnings could be different from the amounts previously included in Accumulated other comprehensive loss based on the change of market rate and therefore could have different impact on earnings
HP allocated an amount equal to the net proceeds to finance or refinance in whole or in part environmentally and socially responsible eligible projects in the following eight areas renewable energy green buildings energy efficiency clean transportation pollution prevention and control eco efficient and or circular economy products production technologies and processes environmentally sustainable management of living natural resources and land use and socioeconomic advancement and empowerment
As disclosed in Note 10 Financial Instruments HP uses interest rate swaps to mitigate some of the exposure of its debt portfolio to changes in fair value resulting from changes in benchmark interest rates Interest rates shown in the table of long term debt have not been adjusted to reflect the impact of any interest rate swaps
As of October 31 2024 aggregate future maturities of debt at face value excluding unamortized debt issuance cost of 47 million discounts on debt issuance of 11 million and fair value adjustment related to hedged debt of 21 million including other borrowings were as follows
As of October 31 2024 HP maintained a U S commercial paper program for the issuance of U S dollar denominated commercial paper up to a maximum aggregate principal amount of 6 0 billion The principal amount outstanding under this program and certain short term borrowings at any time cannot exceed a 6 0 billion authorization by HP s Board of Directors
As of October 31 2024 HP maintained a 5 0 billion 5 year sustainability linked senior unsecured committed revolving credit facility the New Revolving Facility which HP entered into on August 1 2024 Commitments under the New Revolving Facility will be available until August 1 2029 Commitment fees interest rates and other terms of borrowing under the New Revolving Facility vary based on HP s external credit ratings and certain sustainability metrics Funds borrowed under the New Revolving Facility may be used for general corporate purposes As of October 31 2023 HP had maintained a 5 0 billion sustainability linked senior unsecured committed revolving credit facility for general corporate purposes I
Additionally commitments under the previous 5 0 billion sustainability linked senior unsecured committed revolving credit facility were terminated concurrently with the execution of the New Revolving Facility
HP s share repurchase program authorizes both open market and private repurchase transactions In fiscal year 2024 HP executed share repurchases of 62 7 million shares and settled total shares for 2 1 billion In fiscal year 2023 HP executed share repurchases of 3 6 million shares and settled total shares for 0 1 billion In fiscal year 2022 HP executed share repurchases of 124 0 million shares and settled total shares for 4 3 billion Share repurchases executed during fiscal year 2024 included 0 1 million shares settled in November 2024
The shares repurchased in fiscal years 2024 2023 and 2022 were all open market repurchase transactions As of October 31 2024 HP had approximately 9 3 billion remaining under the share repurchase authorizations approved by HP s Board of Directors
HP calculates basic net EPS using net earnings and the weighted average number of shares outstanding during the reporting period Diluted net EPS includes any dilutive effect of restricted stock units stock options performance based awards and shares purchased under the 2021 employee stock purchase plan
HP excludes from the calculation of diluted net EPS stock options and restricted stock units where the assumed proceeds exceed the average market price because their effect would be anti dilutive The assumed proceeds of a stock option include the sum of its exercise price and average unrecognized compensation cost The assumed proceeds of a restricted stock unit represent unrecognized compensation cost
HP is involved in lawsuits claims investigations and proceedings including those identified below consisting of IP commercial securities employment employee benefits and environmental matters that arise in the ordinary course of business HP accrues a liability when management believes that it is both probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount of loss can be reasonably estimated HP believes it has recorded adequate provisions for any such matters and as of October 31 2024 it was not reasonably possible that a material loss had been incurred in excess of the amounts recognized in HP s financial statements HP reviews these matters at least quarterly and adjusts its accruals to reflect the impact of negotiations settlements rulings advice of legal counsel and other information and events pertaining to a particular case Pursuant to the separation and distribution agreement entered into with Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company Hewlett Packard Enterprise HP shares responsibility with Hewlett Packard Enterprise for certain matters as indicated below and Hewlett Packard Enterprise has agreed to indemnify HP in whole or in part with respect to certain matters Based on its experience HP believes that any damage amounts claimed in the specific matters discussed below are not a meaningful indicator of HP s potential liability Litigation is inherently unpredictable However HP believes it has valid defenses with respect to legal matters pending against it Nevertheless cash flows or results of operations could be materially affected in any particular period by the resolution of one or more of these contingencies
Proceedings are ongoing or have been concluded involving HP in certain European countries challenging the imposition or the modification of levies regimes upon IT equipment such as PCs or printers or the restrictions to exonerate the application of private copying levies on devices purchased by business users The levies are generally based upon the number of products sold and the per product amounts of the levies which vary Some European countries are expected to implement legislation to introduce or extend existing levy schemes to digital devices HP other companies and various industry associations have opposed the extension of levies to the digital product and certain requirements for business sales exemptions and have advocated alternative models of compensation to rights holders
Based on the exemption of levies on business sales and industry opposition to increasing levies to digital products HP s assessments of the merits of various proceedings and HP s estimates of the number of units impacted and the amounts of the levies HP has accrued amounts that it believes are adequate to address the ongoing disputes
On April 30 and May 10 2010 the India Directorate of Revenue Intelligence the DRI issued show cause notices to Hewlett Packard India Sales Private Limited HP India a subsidiary of HP seven HP India employees and one former HP India employee alleging that HP India underpaid customs duties while importing products and spare parts into India and seeking to recover an aggregate of approximately 370 million plus penalties and interest Prior to the issuance of the notices HP India deposited approximately 16 million with the DRI and agreed to post a provisional bond in exchange for the DRI s agreement to not seize HP India products and spare parts or interrupt business by HP India
On April 11 2012 the Bangalore Commissioner of Customs issued an order on the products related notice affirming certain duties and penalties against HP India and the named individuals of approximately 386 million of which HP India had already deposited 9 million On December 11 2012 HP India voluntarily deposited an additional 10 million in connection with the products related notice The differential duty demand is subject to interest On April 20 2012 the Commissioner issued an order on the parts related notice affirming certain duties and penalties against HP India and certain of the named individuals of approximately 17 million of which HP India had already deposited 7 million After the order HP India deposited an additional 3 million in connection with the parts related notice so as to avoid certain penalties
filed appeals of the Commissioner s orders before the Customs Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal the Customs Tribunal along with applications for waiver of the pre deposit of remaining demand amounts as a condition for hearing the appeals The Customs Department has also filed cross appeals before the Customs Tribunal On January 24 2013 the Customs Tribunal
2016 and January 2019 On January 20 2021 the Customs Tribunal held a virtual hearing during which the judge allowed HP s application for a physical hearing on the merits as soon as practicable which will be scheduled when physical hearings resume at court Pursuant to the separation and distribution agreement Hewlett Packard Enterprise has agreed to indemnify HP in part base
In September 2020 Koninklijke Philips N V and Philips North America LLC collectively Philips filed a complaint against HP for patent infringement in federal court for the District of Delaware and filed a companion complaint with the U S International Trade Commission ITC pursuant to Section 337 of the Tariff Act against HP and 8 other sets of respondents Both complaints allege that certain digital video capable devices and components thereof infringe four of Philips patents In October 2020 the ITC instituted an investigation and Philips later withdrew two of the four patents On March 23 2022 the ITC rendered a final determination that no violation of Section 337 has occurred Philips did not appeal and elected to resume litigation with its case in federal court Philips seeks unspecified damages and an injunction against HP and the prior stay has been lifted
On November 5 2020 York County on behalf of the County of York Retirement Fund filed a putative class action complaint against HP Dion Weisler and Catherine Lesjak in federal court in the Northern District of California The court appointed Maryland Electrical Industry Pension Fund as Lead Plaintiff Lead Plaintiff filed a consolidated complaint which additionally names as defendants Enrique Lores and Richard Bailey The complaint alleges among other things that from November 5 2015 to June 21 2016 HP and the named current and former officers violated Sections 10 b and 20 a of the Exchange Act by concealing material information and making false statements about HP s printing supplies business Securities Class Action Plaintiffs seek compensatory damages and other relief HP and the named officers filed a motion to dismiss the complaint for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted On March 3 2022 the court granted the motion to dismiss with prejudice Plaintiffs appealed the decision On April 11 2023 the appellate court reversed the district court s decision and remanded the case to the district court for further proceedings consistent with the appellate opinion including consideration of HP s other arguments for dismissal On July 21 2023 HP and the named officers filed a renewed motion to dismiss On March 27 2024 the district court issued an order granting in part and denying in part the motion to dismiss On August 8 2024 the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit granted HP s petition for permission to appeal On October 28 2024 HP filed its appeal On May 17 2021 stockholder Scott Franklin filed a derivative complaint against certain current and former officers and directors in federal court in the District of Delaware Plaintiff purports to bring the action on behalf of HP which he has named as a nominal defendant and he makes substantially the same factual allegations as in the York County securities complaint bringing claims for breach of fiduciary duty and violations of securities laws The derivative plaintiff seeks compensatory damages governance reforms and other relief By court order following stipulations by the parties the case was transferred to the Northern District of California and the case was stayed pending a ruling on the motion to dismiss in York County and exhaustion of all related appeals On January 13 2022 stockholder Gerald Lovoi filed a derivative complaint in federal court in the Northern District of California against the same current and former officers and directors named in the Franklin action The complaint alleges the same basic claims based on the same alleged conduct as the Franklin action and seeks similar relief By stipulation of the parties the Lovoi action was stayed pending a ruling on the motion to dismiss in York County and exhaustion of all related appeals On May 31 2024 the court adopted a stipulation in which the derivative plaintiffs and defendants agreed to consolidate the derivative proceedings close the Lovoi action and extend the current stay through summary judgment in the Securities Class Action
Since 2016 HP has from time to time been named in civil litigation or been the subject of government investigations involving supplies authentication protocols used in certain HP printers in multiple geographies including but not limited to the United States Italy Israel the Netherlands Australia and New Zealand The supplies authentication protocols are often referred to as Dynamic Security The core allegations in these proceedings claim misleading or inadequate consumer notifications and permissions pertaining to the use of Dynamic Security the installation of firmware updates or the potential inability of cartridges with clone chips or circuitry to work in HP printers with Dynamic Security Plaintiffs base or have based their claims on various legal theories including but not limited to unfair competition computer trespass and similar statutory claims Among other relief Plaintiffs have sought or seek money damages and in certain cases have or may seek injunctive relief against the use or operation of Dynamic Security or relief requiring interoperability If HP is not successful in its defense of these cases or investigations it could be subject to damages penalties significant settlement demands or injunctive relief that may be costly or may disrupt operations Certain of these proceedings in the United States Italy the Netherlands Israel Australia and New Zealand have been resolved have concluded or have concluded subject only to HP s pending appeal Civil litigation filed by Digital Revolution B V trading as 123Inkt against HP Nederlands B V et al Netherlands in March 2020 including its competition claim remains pending Both parties appealed and the court of appeal issued a judgment on November 19 2024 rejecting competition claims against HP and providing that use of Dynamic Security by HP is not unlawful In addition two putative class actions have been filed against HP in federal court in California in December 2020 April 2022 and one in federal court in Illinois in January 2024 arising out of the use of Dynamic Security firmware updates in HP Laserjet printers in HP Inkjet printers and in both respectively Plaintiffs in these cases seek compensatory damages restitution injunctive relief against alleged unfair and anticompetitive business practices and other relief In the April 2022 case plaintiffs have filed a stipulation on October 30 2024 to have the case dismissed with prejudice for their individual claims and without prejudice for the class claims In the December 2020 case the parties have finalized a settlement agreement which plaintiffs submitted to the court on October 31 2024 along with a motion seeking preliminary approval The January 2024 case is in its early stages
In 2015 four former Hewlett Packard Company subsidiaries that became subsidiaries of Hewlett Packard Enterprise at the time of the Separation Autonomy Corporation Limited Hewlett Packard Vision BV Autonomy Systems Limited and Autonomy Inc hereinafter the Claimants initiated civil proceedings in the U K High Court of Justice against two members of Autonomy s former management Michael Lynch and Sushovan Hussain for breach of their fiduciary duties in causing Autonomy group companies to engage in improper transactions and accounting practices before and in connection with the 2011 acquisition of Autonomy Trial concluded in January 2020 In May 2022 the court issued its liability judgment finding that the Claimants had succeeded on substantially all claims and that Messrs Lynch and Hussein engaged in fraud and dismissing a counterclaim filed by Mr Lynch The court deferred the issue of damages to further proceedings but indicated that damages awarded may be substantially less than was claimed In February 2024 the court held a two week trial on damages the Claimants sought recovery for 4 billion in losses and the court took the issue under advisement Litigation is unpredictable and there can be no assurance of a recovery of damages or as to how any award of damages will compare with the amount claimed The amount ultimately awarded if any would be recorded in the period received No adjustment has been recorded in the financial statements in relation to this potential award Pursuant to the terms of the separation and distribution agreement HP and Hewlett Packard Enterprise will share equally in any recovery
On October 31 2023 Nokia filed a complaint for patent infringement against HP in federal court for the District of Delaware asserting ten patents and filed two companion complaints with the U S International Trade Commission ITC pursuant to Section 337 of the Tariff Act against HP asserting seven of the ten patents asserted in the federal court case The complaints allege that HP products that are compliant with certain video coding technology standards including Advanced Video Coding H 264 or High Efficiency Video Coding H 265 standards infringe Nokia s patents In November 2023 the ITC instituted investigations on Nokia s complaints On December 11 2023 HP filed counterclaims against Nokia in the Delaware action including claims that Nokia violated its commitments to license standard essential patents on fair reasonable and non discriminatory FRAND terms and seeking a court determination of the proper FRAND rate Nokia s patent litigation against HP also includes a lawsuit filed in November 2023 against HP and six of its subsidiaries in the European Unified Patent Court UPC in Germany 2 lawsuits filed in November 2023 but served in January 2024 against HP and its German subsidiary in state court in Munich Germany and a lawsuit filed on December 1 2023 against a subsidiary HP Brasil Indústria e Comércio de Equipamentos Eletrônicos Ltda HP Brazil in the state court in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil In Brazil Nokia alleged that HP s products contain skip mode technology compatible with H 264 video standards that infringes one of Nokia s Brazilian patents On December 4 2023 before HP had received service of the lawsuit the court granted Nokia an ex parte preliminary injunction against HP Brazil s commercialization of such products in Brazil HP appealed the injunction and asked the appellate court to suspend its enforcement On August 14 2024 the Brazilian appellate court denied HP s interlocutory appeal of the preliminary injunction leaving it unchanged because HP allegedly faces no immediate harm On January 31 2024 HP Brazil filed its defense and separately filed a nullity action to invalidate the patent From July 24 31 2024 the ITC held the hearing in the first investigation In the second ITC investigation the hearing was held September 9 13 2024 In October Nokia and HP reached agreement to resolve all patent litigation between the parties and all pending proceedings are in the process of being dismissed
In November 2022 R2 Semiconductor Inc R2 filed a lawsuit in the Dusseldorf Regional Court in Germany against Intel Deutschland GmbH HP Deutschland GmbH and certain other Intel customers R2 asserts one European patent is infringed by HP s products that contain certain Intel processors R2 seeks an injunction prohibiting the sale of the alleged infringing products Intel has agreed to defend and indemnify HP and its affiliates against certain losses incurred by HP in connection with the alleged infringement The Dusseldorf Regional Court conducted a trial on December 7 2023 and issued an adverse judgment on February 7 2024 The Court s judgment imposes an injunction prohibiting sales of the accused products in Germany an order to stop all other infringing actions and an order to issue a communication to commercial customers recalling the relevant products sold since March 5 2020 which could take effect upon notice of R2 s payment of the required sureties and remain in place unless stayed or overturned on appeal or the parties reach an agreement On February 8 2024 HP filed an appeal and request for a stay of the judgment pending appeal On April 3 2024 R2 filed a lawsuit in France in the first instance court in Paris Tribunal judiciare de Paris against Intel Corporation Intel Corporation SAS Intel Deutschland GmbH HP France SAS and certain other Intel customers R2 asserts the same European patent is infringed In August 2024 Intel finalized agreements with R2 and related parties resolving all litigation All pending litigation against HP has been dismissed
Access Advance LLC Access Advance is an independent licensing administrator formed to license allegedly essential patents for standards based video codecs which it licenses through various licensing pools In late 2023 three members of Access Advance s HEVC Advance patent pool Dolby Mitsubishi Electric Mitsubishi and Konikijke Philips N V Philips each filed patent infringement lawsuits against HP and various affiliates in Germany and Europe The complaints alleged that HP products that are compliant with the High Efficiency Video Coding H 265 standard infringe the pool members respective patents sought an injunction and alleged that HP has failed to act as a willing licensee of HEVC essential patents based on HP s negotiations with Access Advance In July 2024 HP filed a countersuit against Access Advance Mitsubishi Philips and Dolby in Massachusetts state court alleging that they breached their obligations to license their patents on reasonable and nondiscriminatory terms and asked the court to order the defendants to offer a license to their patents on such terms In October 2024 Access Advance and HP reached agreement to resolve all pending litigation which is in the process of being dismissed An immaterial issue with Access Advance will be decided by a third party
HP is and may become a party to proceedings brought by U S state or other governmental entities or private third parties under federal state local or foreign environmental laws including the Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act CERCLA known as Superfund or state laws similar to CERCLA HP is also conducting environmental investigations or remediation at several current or former operating sites and former disposal sites pursuant to administrative orders or consent agreements with environmental agencies
In the ordinary course of business HP may issue performance guarantees to certain of its clients customers and other parties pursuant to which HP has guaranteed the performance obligations of third parties Some of those guarantees may be backed by standby letters of credit or surety bonds In general HP would be obligated to perform over the term of the guarantee in the event a specified triggering event occurs as defined by the guarantee HP believes the likelihood of having to perform under a material guarantee is remote
On November 1 2015 Hewlett Packard Company completed the separation of Hewlett Packard Enterprise Hewlett Packard Company s former enterprise technology infrastructure software services and financing businesses The separation and distribution agreement provides for cross indemnities between HP and Hewlett Packard Enterprise for liabilities allocated to the respective party pursuant to the terms of such agreement For information on cross indemnifications with Hewlett Packard Enterprise for litigation matters see Note 14 Litigation and Contingencies
In the ordinary course of business HP enters into contractual arrangements under which HP may agree to indemnify a third party to such arrangement from any losses incurred relating to the services they perform on behalf of HP or for losses arising from certain events as defined within the particular contract which may include for example litigation or claims relating to past performance HP also provides indemnifications to certain vendors and customers against claims of intellectual property infringement made by third parties arising from the vendors and customers use of HP s software products and services and certain other matters Some indemnifications may not be subject to maximum loss clauses Historically payments made related to these indemnifications have been immaterial
HP records tax indemnification receivables from various third parties for certain tax liabilities that HP is jointly and severally liable for but for which it is indemnified by those same third parties under existing legal agreements HP records a tax indemnification payable to various third parties under these agreements when management believes that it is both probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount can be reasonably estimated The actual amount that the third parties pay or may be obligated to pay HP could vary depending on the outcome of certain unresolved tax matters which may not be resolved for several years
HP accrues the estimated cost of product warranties at the time it recognizes revenue HP engages in extensive product quality programs and processes including actively monitoring and evaluating the quality of its component suppliers however contractual warranty terms repair costs product call rates average cost per call current period product shipments and ongoing product failure rates as well as specific product class failures outside of HP s baseline experience affect the estimated warranty obligation
As of October 31 2024 HP had unconditional purchase obligations of 1 4 billion These unconditional purchase obligations include agreements to purchase goods or services that are enforceable and legally binding on HP and that specify all significant terms including fixed or minimum quantities to be purchased fixed minimum or variable price and volume provisions and the approximate timing of the transaction These unconditional purchase obligations are primarily related to inventory and service support Unconditional purchase obligations exclude agreements that are cancellable without penalty
As a lessee HP determines at lease inception whether or not an arrangement contains a lease A significant portion of the operating lease portfolio includes real estate leases Additionally HP has identified embedded operating leases within certain outsourced supply chain contracts Leasing arrangements have a remaining lease term ranging from 2 to approximately 11 years with varying renewal and termination options Substantially all of HP s leases are considered operating leases Finance leases short term leases and sub lease income were not material as of October 31 2024 and 2023 or for the fiscal years ended October 31 2024 and 2023 respectively
Lease terms include options to extend or terminate the lease when it is reasonably certain that HP will exercise such options HP generally considers the economic life of the ROU assets to be comparable to the useful life of similar owned assets HP s leases generally do not provide a residual guarantee
Operating leases are included in Other non current assets Other current liabilities and Other non current liabilities Finance leases are included in Property plant and equipment net Notes payable and short term borrowings and Long term debt in the Consolidated Balance Sheets
As most of the leases do not provide an implicit interest rate HP uses the incremental borrowing rate based on the information available at the commencement date of a lease in determining the present value of lease payments The incremental borrowing rate is determined based on the rate of interest that HP would have to pay to borrow an amount equal to the lease payments on a collateralized basis over a similar term HP uses the unsecured borrowing rate and risk adjusts that rate to approximate a collateralized rate
HP has elected the practical expedient to combine lease and non lease components as a single lease element for its real estate leases and certain outsourced warehousing contracts in calculating the ROU assets and lease liabilities Where HP chooses not to combine the lease and non lease components HP allocates contract consideration to the lease and non lease components based on relative standalone prices
All lease expenses including variable lease costs are primarily included in Cost of net revenue and Selling general and administrative expenses in the Consolidated Statements of Earnings based on the use of the facilities
Variable lease expense relates primarily to leased real estate utilized for office space and outsourced warehousing These costs primarily include adjustments for inflation payments dependent on a rate or index or usage of asset and common area maintenance charges These costs are not included in the lease liability and are recognized in the period in which they are incurred
The following table presents supplemental information relating to the cash flows arising from lease transactions Cash payments made from variable lease costs and short term leases are not included in the measurement of operating lease liabilities and as such are excluded from the amounts below
As a lessor HP records revenue under sales type leases at the commencement of the lease Revenue recognized from sales type leases constituted less than one percent of product net revenue for fiscal years 2024 2023 and 2022 respectively As of October 31 2024 and 2023 the net investment in leases balance were 705 million and 527 million respectively
Under the supervision and with the participation of our management including our principal executive officer and principal financial officer we conducted an evaluation of the effectiveness of the design and operation of our disclosure controls and procedures as defined in Rules 13a 15 e and 15d 15 e under the Exchange Act as of the end of the period covered by this report the Evaluation Date Based on this evaluation our principal executive officer and principal financial officer concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures were not effective as of the Evaluation Date due to the unremediated material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting described below
See Management s Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting and the Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm on our internal control over financial reporting in Item 8 which are incorporated herein by reference
As previously reported in the Company s Annual Report on Form 10 K for the fiscal year ended October 31 2023 we identified a material weakness in internal control over financial reporting The material weakness resulted from undue reliance on information generated from certain software solutions affecting net revenue without effectively designed information technology IT general controls specifically around user access and change management As of October 31 2024 the Company has concluded that the previously identified material weakness was not remediated and that IT general control deficiencies exist in the areas of user access change management and job schedule monitoring IT operations for certain applications affecting various financial statement line items as well as net revenue As a result of the material weakness the application controls and IT dependent manual controls that rely upon information from affected IT applications were also deemed ineffective
This material weakness did not result in any material misstatement of our financial statements While this material weakness did not result in a material misstatement of our financial statements there is a reasonable possibility that it could have resulted in a material misstatement in the Company s annual or interim consolidated financial statements that would not be detected Accordingly we determined that it constituted a material weakness
With respect to the material weakness above management under the oversight of the Audit Committee is in the process of designing appropriate IT general controls specific to the impacted software solutions While we have taken steps to implement our remediation plan the material weakness will not be considered remediated until the enhanced controls operate for a sufficient period of time and management has concluded through testing that the related controls are effective The Company will monitor the effectiveness of its remediation plan and refine its remediation plan as appropriate
Other than the material weakness described above there have been no change in our internal control over financial reporting as defined in Rules 13a 15 f and 15d 15 f under the Exchange Act during the most recent fiscal quarter that has materially affected or is reasonably likely to materially affect our internal control over financial reporting
Our directors and officers as defined in Exchange Act Rule 16a 1 f may from time to time enter into plans or other arrangements for the purchase or sale of our shares that are intended to satisfy the affirmative defense conditions of Rule 10b5 1 c or may represent a non Rule 10b5 1 trading arrangement under the Exchange Act During the three months ended October 31 2024 no such plans or other arrangements were adopted or terminated
The following information is included in HP s Proxy Statement related to its 2025 Annual Meeting of Stockholders to be filed within 120 days after HP s fiscal year end of October 31 2024 the Proxy Statement and is incorporated herein by reference
Information regarding directors of HP who are standing for reelection and any persons nominated to become directors of HP is set forth under Corporate Governance and Board of Directors Board Proposal No 1 Election of Directors
Information regarding HP s Audit Committee and designated audit committee financial experts is set forth under Corporate Governance and Board of Directors Board Proposal No 1 Election of Directors How We Are Organized Audit Committee
Information on HP s code of business conduct and ethics for directors officers and employees also known as Integrity at HP is set forth in the section entitled Code of Conduct under Corporate Governance and Board of Directors Board Proposal No 1 Election of Directors and information on HP s Corporate Governance Guidelines is set forth in the sections entitled How We Are Selected and Director Independence under Corporate Governance and Board of Directors Board Proposal No 1 Election of Directors
The Company has insider trading policies and procedures that govern the purchase sale and other dispositions of its securities by directors officers employees and contractors as well as by the Company itself We believe these policies and procedures are reasonably designed to promote compliance with insider trading laws rules and regulations and applicable listing standards A copy of our Insider Trading Policy is filed with this Annual Report on Form 10 K as Exhibit 19
The report of HP s HR and Compensation Committee is set forth under Executive Compensation Board Proposal No 3 Advisory Vote to Approve Executive Compensation HR and Compensation Committee Report on Executive Compensation
Information regarding security ownership of certain beneficial owners directors and executive officers is set forth under Ownership of Our Stock Common Stock Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management
Information regarding HP s equity compensation plans including both stockholder approved plans and non stockholder approved plans is set forth in the section entitled Equity Compensation Plan Information
Information regarding transactions with related persons is set forth under Corporate Governance and Board of Directors Board Proposal No 1 Election of Directors Related Person Transactions Policies and Procedures
Information regarding principal accounting fees and services is set forth under Audit Matters Board Proposal No 2 Ratification of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm Principal Accountant Fees and Services in the Proxy Statement which information is incorporated herein by reference
Indenture dated June 1 2000 between the Registrant and The Bank of New York Mellon Trust Company National Association as successor in interest to J P Morgan Trust Company National Association formerly known as Chase Manhattan Bank and Trust Company National Association as Trustee
First Amendment to the Registrant s Severance and Long Term Incentive Change in Control Plan for Executive Officers as amended and restated effective February 28 2020 as amended effective December 7 2020
Second Amendment to Registrant s Severance and Long Term Incentive Change in Control Plan for Executive Officers as amended and restated effective February 28 2020 for Performance Contingent Stock Options generally granted on or after December 7 2022
Certain schedules and exhibits to this agreement have been omitted pursuant to Item 601 a 5 of Registration S K A copy of any omitted schedule and or exhibit will be furnished supplementally to the SEC upon request
The registrant agrees to furnish to the Commission supplementally upon request a copy of 1 any instrument with respect to long term debt not filed herewith as to which the total amount of securities authorized thereunder does not exceed 10 of the total assets of the registrant and its subsidiaries on a consolidated basis and 2 any omitted schedules to any material agreements set forth above
Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15 d of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized
KNOW ALL PERSONS BY THESE PRESENTS that each person whose signature appears below constitutes and appoints Karen L Parkhill Julie Jacobs and Rick Hansen or any of them his or her attorneys in fact for such person in any and all capacities to sign any amendments to this report and to file the same with exhibits thereto and other documents in connection therewith with the Securities and Exchange Commission hereby ratifying and confirming all that either of said attorneys in fact or substitute or substitutes may do or cause to be done by virtue hereof
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

Company Name	HP INC Vist SEC web-site
Category	COMPUTER & OFFICE EQUIPMENT
Trading Symbol	HPQ