Microchip Technology Inc.: 10-K Risk Factor Changes

We rely on outside wafer foundries for a significant portion of our wafer fabrication needs. Specifically, during fiscal 2025 and fiscal 2024, approximately 64% of our net sales came from products that were produced at outside wafer foundries. We also use several contractors for a portion of the assembly and testing of our products. Specifically, during fiscal 2025, approximately 33% of our assembly requirements and 33% of our test requirements were performed by third-party contractors compared to approximately 41% of our assembly requirements and 29% of our test requirements during fiscal 2024. Due to the amount of inventory of our products that we are holding, we have recently taken actions to decrease our capacity allocation from our wafer fabrication, assembly and test subcontractors. In the event that we need to increase capacity allocation from our wafer fabrication, assembly and test subcontractors in the future there can be no assurance that we will be able to secure the necessary allocation of capacity from our wafer foundries and other contractors, or that such capacity will be available on acceptable terms. As our manufacturing subcontractors move to more advanced process technologies over time, we may find that they do not invest in some of the trailing edge process technologies on which a large portion of our products are manufactured. If this occurs, it may limit the amounts of net sales that we can achieve or require us to make significant investments to be able to manufacture these products in our own facilities or at other foundries and assembly and testing contractors. We expect that our reliance on third party contractors may increase over time as our business grows, and any inability to secure necessary external capacity could adversely affect our operating results. Transitioning production of products to new manufacturers may result in delayed product launches, reduced yields, or decreased product performance. If we encounter issues with product quality, insufficient capacity from a third-party manufacturer, or if we discontinue using a particular manufacturer or contractor, we may face challenges in securing an alternative supply for specific products in a timely manner. This could lead to significant delays in product shipments, potentially having an adverse impact on our results of operations. If our reliance on third-party contractors increases over time, our inability to secure necessary external capacity could adversely affect our operating results. In August 2022, the U.S. government passed the CHIPS Act to provide billions of dollars of cash incentives and a new investment tax credit to increase domestic manufacturing capacity in our industry. We expect to receive the cash benefit associated with the investment tax credit for qualifying capital expenditures in future periods and applied for other incentives provided by the legislation; however, we have not concluded negotiations with the U.S. Department of Commerce and there can be no assurance that we will pursue or receive any such other incentives, what the amount and timing of any incentive we receive will be, as to which other companies will receive incentives and whether the legislation will have a positive or negative impact on our competitive position. If we conclude our CHIPS Act negotiations and receive a CHIPS Act grant, the restrictions and operational requirements that are imposed on CHIPS Act grant recipients could add complexity to our operations and increase our costs. Our use of third parties reduces our control over the subcontracted portions of our business. Our future operating results could suffer if a significant contractor were to experience production difficulties, insufficient capacity, decreased manufacturing, reduced availability of labor, assembly and test yields, or increased costs due to disruptions such as political upheaval, transit disruptions, infrastructure disruption or pandemics. Additionally, our future operating results could suffer if our wafer foundries and other contractors increase the prices of the products and services that they provide to us. If third parties do not timely deliver products or services in accordance with our quality standards, we may be unable to qualify alternate manufacturing sources in a timely manner or on favorable terms, or at all. Additionally, these subcontractors could abandon processes that we need, or fail to adopt technologies that we desire to control costs. In such event, we could experience an interruption in production, an increase in manufacturing costs or a decline in product reliability, and our business and operating results could be adversely affected. Further, use of subcontractors increases the risks of misappropriation of our intellectual property. 17 17 17 Table of Contents Table of Contents Certain of our SuperFlash and other technology licensees rely on wafer foundries. If our licensees experienced disruption in supply at such foundries, this would reduce the revenue from our technology licensing business and would harm our operating results.

We rely on outside wafer foundries for a significant portion of our wafer fabrication needs. Specifically, during fiscal 2024 and fiscal 2023, approximately 64% and 63%, respectively, of our net sales came from products that were produced at outside wafer foundries. We also use several contractors for a portion of the assembly and testing of our products. Specifically, during fiscal 2024, approximately 41% of our assembly requirements and 29% of our test requirements were performed by third-party contractors compared to approximately 41% of our assembly requirements and 33% of our test requirements during fiscal 2023. Due to increased demand for our products, we took actions in fiscal 2023 and fiscal 2022 to increase our capacity allocation from our wafer fabrication, assembly and test subcontractors. As product demand softened in fiscal 2024, we took actions to selectively reduce our purchases from foundries. In the event of future increases in demand, there can be no assurance that we will be able to secure the necessary allocation of capacity from our wafer foundries and other contractors, that any such capacity will have the ability to manufacture the process technologies that we need, or that such capacity will be available on acceptable terms. Although we are continuing to expand our internal wafer fabrication, assembly and test capacity, we expect that our reliance on third-party contractors may increase over time as our business grows, and 15 15 15 Table of Contents Table of Contents any inability to secure necessary external capacity could adversely affect our operating results. As our manufacturing subcontractors move to more advanced process technologies over time, we may find that they do not invest in some of the trailing edge process technologies on which a large portion of our products are manufactured. If this occurs, it may limit the amounts of net sales that we can achieve or require us to make significant investments to be able to manufacture these products in our own existing facilities, at new facilities or at other foundries and assembly and testing contractors. In August 2022, the U.S. government passed the CHIPS Act to provide billions of dollars of cash incentives and a new investment tax credit to increase domestic manufacturing capacity in our industry. We expect to receive the cash benefit associated with the investment tax credit for qualifying capital expenditures in future periods and have applied for other incentives provided by the legislation; however, there can be no assurance that we will receive any such other incentives, what the amount and timing of any incentive we receive will be, as to which other companies will receive incentives and whether the legislation will have a positive or negative impact on our competitive position. If we do receive a CHIPS Act grant, the restrictions and operational requirements that are imposed on CHIPS Act grant recipients could add complexity to our operations and increase our costs. Our use of third parties reduces our control over the subcontracted portions of our business. Our future operating results could suffer if a significant contractor were to experience production difficulties, insufficient capacity, decreased manufacturing, reduced availability of labor, assembly and test yields, or increased costs due to disruptions such as political upheaval, infrastructure disruption or pandemics. Additionally, our future operating results could suffer if our wafer foundries and other contractors increase the prices of the products and services that they provide to us. If third parties do not timely deliver products or services in accordance with our quality standards, we may be unable to qualify alternate manufacturing sources in a timely manner or on favorable terms, or at all. Additionally, these subcontractors could abandon processes that we need, or fail to adopt technologies that we desire to control costs. In such event, we could experience an interruption in production, an increase in manufacturing costs or a decline in product reliability, and our business and operating results could be adversely affected. Further, use of subcontractors increases the risks of misappropriation of our intellectual property. Certain of our SuperFlash and other technology licensees rely on wafer foundries. If our licensees experienced disruption in supply at such foundries, this would reduce the revenue from our technology licensing business and would harm our operating results.

•interruptions in and unauthorized access to our IT systems and security breaches or incidents impacting our systems, or data that we or our service providers maintain or otherwise process including, but not limited to, data belonging to us or our customers, suppliers, contractors or employees; •exposure of our customers' business and proprietary confidential information due to security vulnerabilities of our products; •risks related to use of artificial intelligence (AI); •risks related to compliance with laws and regulations regarding privacy, data protection, cybersecurity, and handling of government-regulated data (e.g., controlled unclassified information, classified data, export-controlled data); •risks related to legal proceedings, investigations or claims; •risks related to contractual relationships with our customers and suppliers; and •protecting and enforcing our intellectual property rights.

•interruptions in and unauthorized access to our IT systems and security breaches or incidents impacting our systems, or data that we or our service providers maintain or otherwise process; •exposure of our customers' business and proprietary confidential information due to security vulnerabilities of our products; •risks related to use of artificial intelligence (AI); •risks related to compliance with laws and regulations regarding privacy, data protection and cybersecurity; •risks related to legal proceedings, investigations or claims; •risks related to contractual relationships with our customers; and •protecting and enforcing our intellectual property rights.

•impact of various factors on our future trading price of our common stock; •fluctuations in the amount and timing of our common stock repurchases; •our ability to effectively manage current or future debt; •our ability to generate sufficient cash flows or obtain access to external financing; •impact of conversion of our convertible debt, Depositary Shares, and Series A Preferred Stock on the ownership interest of our existing stockholders and market price of our common stock; and •fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates. 14 14 14 Table of Contents Table of Contents

•impact of various factors on our future trading price of our common stock; •fluctuations in the amount and timing of our common stock repurchases; •our ability to effectively manage current or future debt; •our ability to generate sufficient cash flows or obtain access to external financing; •impact of conversion of our convertible debt on the ownership interest of our existing stockholders; and •fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates.

We are subject to examination of our U.S. and certain foreign income tax returns for fiscal 2007 and later. We regularly assess the likelihood of adverse outcomes of these examinations to determine the adequacy of our provision for income taxes and have reserved for potential adjustments that may result from current or future examinations. There can be no assurance that the final determination of any of these or any future examinations will not have an adverse effect on our effective tax rates, financial position and results of operations. In September 2021, we received a Statutory Notice of Deficiency (2007 to 2012 Notice) from the United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for fiscal 2007 through fiscal 2012. The disputed amounts largely relate to transfer pricing matters. In 33 33 33 Table of Contents Table of Contents December 2021, we filed a petition in the U.S. Tax Court challenging the 2007 to 2012 Notice. In September 2023, we received a Revenue Agent Report (RAR) from the IRS for fiscal 2013 and fiscal 2016. In October 2023, we received a Statutory Notice of Deficiency (2014 to 2015 Notice) from the IRS for fiscal 2014 and fiscal 2015. The disputed amounts for fiscal 2013 to fiscal 2016 largely relate to transfer pricing matters. In December 2023, we filed a petition in the U.S. Tax Court challenging the 2014 to 2015 Notice. In May 2023, we received a proposed income adjustment from the Malaysian Inland Revenue Board (IRB) for fiscal 2020. In December 2023, we received a Notice of Assessment from the IRB asserting the same proposed income adjustment. In March 2025, we entered into a Consent Judgment before the High Court, agreeing that the dispute will be heard before the Special Commissioners of Income Tax (SCIT). It was also agreed that the payment on the taxes assessed is stayed and the IRB will pause all enforcement and proceedings against the collection of the taxes assessed until the appeal before the SCIT is concluded. If the adjustment is upheld by the highest court that has jurisdiction over this matter in Malaysia, it could result in income taxes and penalties up to $410.0 million. The disputed amounts largely relate to the characterization of certain assets. The timing of adjudicating this matter is uncertain but could occur in the next 12 months. In January 2025, we received several assessments from the German Tax Authorities (GTA) regarding the German extraterritorial taxation of royalty payments between nonresidents (referred to as offshore receipts in respect of intangible property or ORIP) and intellectual property transfers by nonresidents (referred to as extraterritorial capital gains taxation or ETT). If the assessment is upheld, it could result in income taxes and penalties up to $92.0 million. The timing of adjudicating this matter is uncertain but could occur in the next 12 months. The ultimate outcome of disputes of this nature is uncertain, and if the IRS, IRB, and GTA were to prevail on their assertions, the assessed tax, penalties, and deficiency interest could have a material adverse impact on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

We are subject to examination of our U.S. and certain foreign income tax returns for fiscal 2007 and later. We regularly assess the likelihood of adverse outcomes of these examinations to determine the adequacy of our provision for income taxes and have reserved for potential adjustments that may result from current or future examinations. There can be no assurance that the final determination of any of these or any future examinations will not have an adverse effect on our effective tax rates, financial position and results of operations. In September 2021, we received a Statutory Notice of Deficiency (2007 to 2012 Notice) from the United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for fiscal 2007 through fiscal 2012. The disputed amounts largely relate to transfer pricing matters. In December 2021, we filed a petition in the U.S. Tax Court challenging the 2007 to 2012 Notice. In September 2023, we received a Revenue Agent Report (RAR) from the IRS for fiscal 2013 and fiscal 2016. In October 2023, we received a Statutory Notice of Deficiency (2014 to 2015 Notice) from the IRS for fiscal 2014 and fiscal 2015. The disputed amounts for fiscal 2013 to fiscal 2016 largely relate to transfer pricing matters. In December 2023, we filed a petition in the U.S. Tax Court challenging the 2014 to 2015 Notice. In May 2023, we received a proposed income adjustment from the Malaysian Inland Revenue Board (IRB) for fiscal 2020. In December 2023, we received a Notice of Assessment from the IRB asserting the same proposed income adjustment. If the adjustment is upheld by the highest court that has jurisdiction over this matter in Malaysia, it could result in income taxes and penalties up to $410.0 million. The disputed amounts largely relate to the characterization of certain assets. Depending on 32 32 32 Table of Contents Table of Contents the outcome of the IRB audit, we may need to adjudicate this matter in Malaysia, and if we do, we may be required to pay the assessment and then, upon a series of favorable court rulings, request a refund of the amount. The timing of adjudicating this matter is uncertain but could commence in the next 12 months. The ultimate outcome of disputes of this nature is uncertain, and if the IRS and IRB were to prevail on their assertions, the assessed tax, penalties, and deficiency interest could have a material adverse impact on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

The market price of our common stock has fluctuated significantly in the recent past and is likely to fluctuate in the future. The future trading price of our common stock could be subject to wide fluctuations in response to a variety of factors, many of which are beyond our control, including, but not limited to: •global economic and financial uncertainty due to changes in tariffs, interest rates, persistent inflation, instability in the banking sector, war or other conflicts, public health concerns or other factors; •political events, trends, and unexpected developments occurring nationally, globally, or in any of our key sales regions; •quarterly variations in our operating results, financial condition, including our liquidity, or the operating results of other technology companies; •changes in our financial guidance or our failure to meet such guidance; 37 37 37 Table of Contents Table of Contents •changes in analysts' estimates of our financial performance or buy/sell recommendations; •general conditions in the semiconductor industry; •the amount and timing of repurchases of shares of our common stock; •our ability to realize the expected benefits of our completed or future acquisitions; •announcements of restructurings, reductions in force, departure of key employees, and/or consolidations of operations; and •actual or anticipated announcements of technical innovations or new products by us or our competitors. In addition, the stock market has recently and in the past experienced significant price and volume fluctuations that have affected the market prices for many companies and that often have been unrelated to their operating performance. These broad market fluctuations and other factors have harmed and may harm the market price of our common stock. The foregoing factors could also cause the market price of our Convertible Debt, Series A Preferred Stock or Depositary Shares to decline or fluctuate substantially. In the past, following volatile periods in the price of their stock, many companies became the target of securities class action litigation. If we are sued in a securities class action, we could incur substantial costs, and it could divert management's attention and resources and have an adverse impact on our financial performance and the price of our common stock or Series A Preferred Stock.

The market price of our common stock has fluctuated significantly in the recent past and is likely to fluctuate in the future. The future trading price of our common stock could be subject to wide fluctuations in response to a variety of factors, many of which are beyond our control, including, but not limited to: •global economic and financial uncertainty due to higher interest rates, higher inflation, instability in the banking sector, public health concerns or other factors; •quarterly variations in our operating results or the operating results of other technology companies; •changes in our financial guidance or our failure to meet such guidance; •changes in analysts' estimates of our financial performance or buy/sell recommendations; •general conditions in the semiconductor industry; •the amount and timing of repurchases of shares of our common stock; •our ability to realize the expected benefits of our completed or future acquisitions; and •actual or anticipated announcements of technical innovations or new products by us or our competitors. In addition, the stock market has recently and in the past experienced significant price and volume fluctuations that have affected the market prices for many companies and that often have been unrelated to their operating performance. These broad market fluctuations and other factors have harmed and may harm the market price of our common stock. The foregoing factors could also cause the market price of our Convertible Debt to decline or fluctuate substantially.

As of March 31, 2025, the principal amount of our outstanding indebtedness was $5.66 billion. At March 31, 2025, we had no outstanding borrowings under our Revolving Credit Facility which provides up to $2.25 billion of revolving loan commitments that terminate in 2030 and $175.0 million in outstanding principal amount of our Commercial Paper. At March 31, 2025, we had $4.20 billion in aggregate principal amount of Senior Notes and $1.29 billion in aggregate principal of Convertible Debt outstanding. With respect to such balance of Senior Notes, our 4.250% 2025 Notes in the principal amount of $1.20 billion matures on September 1, 2025, and we intend to finance the repayment of such notes using available borrowings under our Revolving Credit Facility or our Commercial Paper program. Since interest rates have increased since we issued our 4.250% 2025 Notes, we expect our interest expense will increase if we refinance such notes using our Revolving Credit Facility or our Commercial Paper Program or other instruments. Also, if we refinance such fixed rate notes with variable rate debt, changes in interest rates will have a more significant impact on our interest expense in future periods. There can be no assurance that we will be able to refinance our current or future debt on reasonable terms, if at all.

As of March 31, 2024, the principal amount of our outstanding indebtedness was $6.02 billion. At March 31, 2024, we had no outstanding borrowings under our Revolving Credit Facility which provides up to $2.75 billion of revolving loan commitments that terminate in 2026, $750.0 million in outstanding borrowings under our 2025 Term Loan Facility, and $1.36 billion in outstanding principal amount of our Commercial Paper. At March 31, 2024, we had $3.20 billion in aggregate principal amount of Senior Notes and $710.2 million in aggregate principal of Convertible Debt outstanding. With respect to such balance of Senior Notes, our 0.983% 2024 Notes in the principal amount of $1.00 billion mature on September 1, 2024, and we intend to finance the repayment of such notes using available borrowings under our Revolving Credit Facility or our Commercial Paper program or by issuing senior notes or convertible debt. Since interest rates have increased significantly since we issued our 0.983% 2024 Notes, we expect our interest expense will increase as a result of the refinancing of such notes. Also, if we refinance such fixed rate notes with variable rate debt, changes in interest rates will have a more significant impact on our interest expense in future periods. There can be no assurance that we will be able to refinance our current or future debt on reasonable terms, if at all.

We do not typically enter into long-term contracts with our non-distributor customers, and therefore we cannot be certain about future order levels from our customers. Further, except for a few LTSAs, that are still in place, the customer contracts that we enter into generally do not require any specified level of purchases and allow customers to cancel orders or terminate the contract with limited restrictions. Under our LTSAs, customers may cancel orders in the event of price increases. While we had approximately 109,000 customers, and our ten largest direct customers accounted for approximately 12% of our total revenue in fiscal 2025, and four of our top ten direct customers are contract manufacturers that perform manufacturing services for many customers, cancellation of customer contracts could have an adverse impact on our revenue and profits. For example, due to uncertainty related to the COVID-19 pandemic, we experienced an increase in order cancellations and requests to reschedule deliveries to future dates in the first quarter of fiscal 2021. Also, many of our customers felt the effects of slowing economic activity and increasing business uncertainty, and customer requests to push-out or cancel backlog and our accommodation of their requests increased in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2023 and continued in fiscal 2024 and the first half of fiscal 2025. Certain customer contracts differ from our standard terms of sale due to the negotiating leverage held by the customer. For example, under certain contracts we have committed to supply products on scheduled delivery dates, or extended our obligations for liabilities such as warranties or indemnification for quality issues or intellectual property infringement. If we are unable to supply the customer as contractually required, the customer may incur additional production costs, lost revenues due to delays in their manufacturing schedule, or quality-related issues. We may be liable for costs and damages associated with customer claims, and we may be obligated to defend the customer against claims of intellectual property infringement and pay associated legal fees. While we try to minimize the number of contracts which contain such provisions, manage the risks of such liabilities, and set caps on our liability exposure, sometimes we are unable to do so. In order to win important designs, avoid losing business to competitors, maintain existing business, or be permitted to bid on new business, we have, and may in the future, have to agree to uncapped liability for such items as intellectual property infringement or product failure, or have to agree to liquidated damage provisions. This exposes us to risk of liability far exceeding the purchase price of the products sold under such contracts, the lifetime revenues we receive under such contracts, or potential consequential damages. Further, where we do not have negotiated customer contracts, our customer's order terms may govern the transaction and contain terms unfavorable to us. These risks could result in a material adverse impact on our results of operations and financial condition.

With the exception of orders placed under our Preferred Supply Program and LTSAs, we do not typically enter into long-term contracts with our non-distributor customers, and therefore we cannot be certain about future order levels from our customers. When we enter into customer contracts (other than under our original Preferred Supply Program and LTSAs), the contracts are generally cancelable based on standard terms and conditions. Under our original Preferred Supply Program and LTSAs, customers may cancel contracts in the event of price increases. Preferred Supply Program orders placed during or after August 2023 can be cancelled or rescheduled if our planned delivery date is greater than six months from the request date. We discontinued our Preferred Supply Program for new orders effective February 1, 2024 because the business conditions that led us to implement the Preferred Supply Program had changed. This change does not impact our LTSAs. While we had approximately 123,000 customers, and our ten largest direct customers accounted for approximately 12% of our total revenue in fiscal 2024, and four of our top ten direct customers are contract manufacturers that perform manufacturing services for many customers, cancellation of customer contracts could have an adverse impact on our revenue and profits. For example, due to uncertainty related to the COVID-19 pandemic, we experienced an increase in order cancellations and requests to reschedule deliveries to future dates in the first quarter of fiscal 2021. Also, many of our customers felt the effects of slowing economic activity and increasing business uncertainty, and customer requests to push-out or cancel backlog and our accommodation of their requests increased in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2023 and continued in fiscal 2024. Certain customer contracts differ from our standard terms of sale. For some of the markets that we sell into, such as the automotive and personal computer markets, our customers may have negotiating leverage over us as a result of their market size. For example, under certain contracts we have committed to supply products on scheduled delivery dates, or extended our obligations for liabilities such as warranties or indemnification for quality issues or intellectual property infringement. If we are unable to supply the customer as contractually required, the customer may incur additional production costs, lost revenues due to delays in their manufacturing schedule, or quality-related issues. We may be liable for costs and damages associated with customer claims, and we may be obligated to defend the customer against claims of intellectual property infringement and pay associated legal fees. While we try to minimize the number of contracts which contain such provisions, manage the risks of such liabilities, and set caps on our liability exposure, sometimes we are unable to do so. In order to win important designs, avoid losing business to competitors, maintain existing business, or be permitted to bid on new business, we have, and may in the future, have to agree to uncapped liability for such items as intellectual property infringement or product failure, or have to agree to liquidated damage provisions. This exposes us to risk of liability far exceeding the purchase price of the products sold under such contracts, the lifetime revenues we receive under such contracts, or potential consequential damages. Further, where we do not have negotiated customer contracts, our customer's order terms may govern the transaction and contain terms unfavorable to us. These risks could result in a material adverse impact on our results of operations and financial condition.

Our net sales in any given quarter depend upon a combination of shipments from backlog, and orders that are both received and shipped in the same quarter, which we call turns orders. We measure turns orders at the beginning of a quarter based on the orders needed to meet the shipment targets that we set entering the quarter. Historically, our ability to respond quickly to customer orders has been part of our competitive strategy, resulting in customers placing orders with relatively short delivery schedules. Shorter lead times generally mean that turns orders as a percentage of our business are relatively high in any particular quarter and reduce our visibility on future shipments. Turns orders correlate to overall semiconductor industry conditions and product lead times, and in light of current industry conditions, turns orders are once again key to our ability to meet our business objectives. Because turns orders can be difficult to predict, especially in times of economic volatility and changes in tariffs, as experienced in current and recent quarters, where customers may change order levels within the quarter, varying levels of turns orders make it more difficult to forecast net sales. The level of turns orders has in the past and may in the future decrease in periods where customers are holding excess inventory of our products. We believe our customers increased their order levels in previous periods of tight supply to help ensure they had sufficient inventory of our products to meet their needs, and then they were unable to sell their products at their forecasted levels which reduced our level of turns orders. As a significant portion of our products are manufactured at foundries, foundry lead times may affect our ability to satisfy certain turns orders. If we do not achieve a sufficient level of turns orders in a particular quarter relative to our revenue targets or effectively manage our production based on changes in order forecasts, our revenue and operating results will likely suffer. Starting in the first quarter of calendar 2022, we began entering into LTSAs, which offer our customers the ability to receive prioritized capacity. LTSAs are not a guarantee of supply; however, they were designed to provide the highest priority for those orders which were under this program, and the capacity priority was on a first-come, first-served basis until the available capacity was booked. For example, in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2023, in fiscal 2024 and in fiscal 2025, we accommodated requests by customers to push-out certain orders to help them manage inventory levels and, in some cases, to help other customers that are experiencing supply shortages. However, in the event that we decide to not accommodate a request to push out orders and customers under this program still attempt to cancel or reschedule orders, or refuse shipment, we may be unable to recover damages from customers that default under this program. Additionally, this program has resulted in some customers holding excess inventory of our products and thus decreased their need to place new orders, including turns orders, in recent periods. We built inventories in response to customer demand, and the cancellation or deferral of product orders has resulted in excess inventory, which has resulted in write-downs of inventory and an adverse effect on our gross margins in recent periods.

Our net sales in any given quarter depend upon a combination of shipments from backlog, and orders that are both received and shipped in the same quarter, which we call turns orders. We measure turns orders at the beginning of a quarter based on the orders needed to meet the shipment targets that we set entering the quarter. Historically, our ability to respond quickly to customer orders has been part of our competitive strategy, resulting in customers placing orders with relatively short delivery schedules. Shorter lead times generally mean that turns orders as a percentage of our business are relatively high in any particular quarter and reduce our visibility on future shipments. Turns orders correlate to overall semiconductor industry conditions and product lead times. Although our backlog had been strong in fiscal 2022, fiscal 2023 and the first half of fiscal 2024, due to favorable business conditions and the impact of our Preferred Supply Program and our LTSAs, the business conditions that led us to implement the Preferred Supply Program changed and, as a result, on February 1, 2024, we discontinued the Preferred Supply Program for new orders. This change in our Preferred Supply Program does not impact our LTSAs. With the cancellation of the Preferred Supply Program, turns orders are once again key to our ability to meet our business objectives. Because turns orders can be difficult to predict, especially in times of economic volatility where customers may change order levels within the quarter, varying levels of turns orders make it more difficult to forecast net sales. The level of turns orders has in the past and may in the future decrease in periods where customers are holding excess inventory of our products. Our customers may have increased their order levels in previous periods of tight supply to help ensure they have sufficient inventory of our products to meet their needs, or they may have been unable to sell their products at their forecasted levels which would reduce our level of turns orders. As a significant portion of our products are manufactured at foundries, foundry lead times may affect our ability to satisfy certain turns orders. If we do not achieve a sufficient level of turns orders in a particular quarter relative to our revenue targets or effectively manage our production based on changes in order forecasts, our revenue and operating results will likely suffer. In February 2021, we announced our Preferred Supply Program and, starting in the first quarter of calendar 2022, we began entering into LTSAs, which offer our customers the ability to receive prioritized capacity. To participate in the original 17 17 17 Table of Contents Table of Contents Preferred Supply Program, customers were expected to place 12 months of orders, which could not be cancelled or rescheduled by the customer except in the event of price increases. In August 2023, we modified our Preferred Supply Program to allow orders for six months of continuous backlog, and those orders could be cancelled or rescheduled if our planned delivery date was greater than six months from the request date. The capacity priority under the Preferred Supply Program began for shipments in July 2021, and ended upon delivery of orders that were placed under the Preferred Supply Program prior to February 1, 2024. The Preferred Supply Program and the LTSAs are not a guarantee of supply; however, they were designed to provide the highest priority for those orders which are under these programs, and the capacity priority was on a first-come, first-served basis until the available capacity was booked. A significant portion of our backlog was booked under these programs while the programs were in effect. There can be no assurance that these programs will continue to be successful or that they will provide the benefits we expect to our business. For example, in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2023 and in fiscal 2024, we accommodated requests by customers to push-out certain orders to help them manage inventory levels and, in some cases, to help other customers that are experiencing supply shortages. However, in the event that we decide to not accommodate a request to push out orders and customers under these programs still attempt to cancel or reschedule orders, or refuse shipment, we may have to take legal or other action to enforce the terms of the programs, and any such actions could result in damage to our customer relationships or cause us to incur significant costs. We may be unable to recover damages from customers that default under these programs. Additionally, these programs have resulted in some customers holding excess inventory of our products and thus decreased their need to place new orders, including turns orders, in recent periods.

We must attract and retain qualified personnel to be successful, and competition for qualified personnel and available labor may intensify for a variety of reasons, including the increase in work-from-home arrangements, the wage inflation in our industry, and the demand for employees with expertise in developing fields such as AI. 25 25 25 Table of Contents Table of Contents Our business relies on the ability to attract and retain skilled employees across various functions, including management, technical, marketing, sales, research and development, manufacturing, and operations. Our failure to attract and retain hardware and software engineers, as well as sales and marketing personnel, could delay product development and introduction, thereby adversely affecting our net sales. We depend on a direct labor force at our manufacturing facilities, and any inability to maintain this workforce could adversely affect our operations. This could lead to delays in production and shipments, hinder our ability to meet customer demand, and ultimately adversely impact our business, financial condition, and operational results. As the integration of AI becomes more prevalent, there is an anticipated shift in the skills required within the workforce, making AI literacy increasingly important for our employees. Competition for personnel with AI expertise may be intense and costly. In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025, we began a global reduction of our work force that could negatively affect employee morale, and diminish our attractiveness as an employer. If we lose existing qualified personnel or are unable to hire new qualified personnel, as needed, it could impair our ability to compete effectively. Furthermore, changes in immigration laws and regulations, or more robust enforcement of new or existing laws, may hinder our ability to attract and retain qualified engineering personnel. In the U.S., where a portion of our research and development teams are based, stricter immigration controls could adversely affect the employment status of non-U.S. engineers and other key technical employees, as well as our ability to hire new non-U.S. employees. U.S. immigration policies may also make it more challenging to recruit and retain highly skilled foreign national graduates from U.S. universities. Our success depends on the contributions of our senior management team. We have experienced transitions with respect to certain members of our senior management due to retirements or other reasons in the past and may do so in the future. Effective succession planning is important for our long-term success and we have a program designed to address this risk. Because we have no employment agreements with our U.S. senior management team, they could leave with little or no notice, which could make it more difficult for us to execute our planned business strategy. The inability to find suitable replacements for senior management could harm our ability to implement our business strategy and respond to the rapidly changing market conditions in which we operate.

We must attract and retain qualified personnel to be successful, and competition for qualified personnel and available labor may intensify for a variety of reasons, including the increase in work-from home arrangements brought about by COVID-19, and the wage inflation in our industry. Also, long-term labor conditions may intensify due to the expected construction of new wafer fabrication facilities by foundries and third parties in locations near our existing facilities. Our ability to attract and retain skilled employees such as management, technical, marketing, sales, research and development, manufacturing, and operational personnel is critical to our business. We rely on a direct labor force at our manufacturing facilities. Any inability to maintain our labor force at our facilities may disrupt our operations, delay production, shipments and revenue and result in us being unable to timely satisfy customer demand, and ultimately could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Our inability to attract and retain hardware and software engineers and sales and marketing personnel, could delay the development and introduction of, and harm our ability to sell, our products. We have no employment agreements with any member of our senior management team, and it is possible that they could leave with little or no notice, which could make it more difficult for us to execute our planned business strategy. Our inability to retain, attract or motivate personnel could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

The conversion of some or all of our shares of Series A Preferred Stock or Depositary Shares, the payment of dividends on our Series A Preferred Stock in the form of common stock or the conversion of our outstanding Convertible Debt will dilute the ownership interest of our existing stockholders to the extent we deliver common stock upon conversion of such debt. Following our irrevocable settlement election made on April 1, 2022, upon conversion, we are required to satisfy our conversion obligation with respect to such converted Convertible Debt by delivering cash equal to the principal amount of such converted Convertible Debt and cash and shares of common stock or any combination, at our option, with respect to any conversion value in excess thereof (i.e., the conversion spread). There would be no adjustment to the numerator in the net income per common share computation for the cash settled portion of the Convertible Debt as that portion of the debt instrument will always be settled in cash. The conversion spread will be included in the denominator for the computation of diluted net income per common share. Any sales in the public market of any common stock issuable upon conversion of our Convertible Debt, Series A Preferred Stock or Depositary Shares or the payment of dividends on our Series A Preferred Stock in the form of common stock could adversely affect prevailing market prices of our common stock. In addition, the existence of the Convertible Debt, Series A Preferred Stock or Depositary Shares may encourage short selling by market participants because the conversion of the Convertible Debt, Series A Preferred Stock or Depositary Shares, as applicable, could be used to satisfy short positions, or anticipated conversion of the Convertible Debt, Series A Preferred Stock or Depositary Shares into shares of our common stock could depress the price of our common stock.

The conversion of some or all of our outstanding Convertible Debt will dilute the ownership interest of our existing stockholders to the extent we deliver common stock upon conversion of such debt. Following our irrevocable settlement election made on April 1, 2022, upon conversion, we are required to satisfy our conversion obligation with respect to such converted Convertible Debt by delivering cash equal to the principal amount of such converted Convertible Debt and cash and shares of common stock or any combination, at our option, with respect to any conversion value in excess thereof (i.e., the conversion spread). There would be no adjustment to the numerator in the net income per common share computation for the cash settled portion of the Convertible Debt as that portion of the debt instrument will always be settled in cash. The conversion spread will be included in the denominator for the computation of diluted net income per common share. Any sales in the public market of any common stock issuable upon conversion of our Convertible Debt could adversely affect prevailing market prices of our common stock. In addition, the existence of the Convertible Debt may encourage short selling by market participants because the conversion of the Convertible Debt could be used to satisfy short positions, or anticipated conversion of the Convertible Debt into shares of our common stock could depress the price of our common stock.

From time to time, we have received, and may in the future receive, economic incentive grants, tax benefits, and allowances from national, state and local governments, agencies and research organizations targeted at increasing employment, production or investment at specific locations. Tax arrangements and subsidy grant agreements typically contain economic incentive, headcount, capital and research and development expenditures and other covenants that must be met to receive and retain benefits, and these programs can be subjected to periodic review by the relevant governments. The CHIPS Act and its associated regulations, for example, may contain certain restrictions on grant recipient technology licensing activities and the expansion of certain facilities. Compliance with these restrictions could add complexity to our operations and increase our costs. In addition, noncompliance with the conditions of the grants or arrangements could result in our forfeiture of all or a portion of any future amounts to be received, as well as the repayment of all or a portion of amounts received to date. We may be unable to obtain future incentives to continue to fund a portion of our capital expenditures and operating costs, without which our cost structure would be adversely impacted. Further, any decrease in amounts received could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, or financial condition.

From time to time, we have received, and may in the future receive, economic incentive grants, tax benefits, and allowances from national, state and local governments, agencies and research organizations targeted at increasing employment, production or investment at specific locations. Tax arrangements and subsidy grant agreements typically contain economic incentive, headcount, capital and research and development expenditures and other covenants that must be met to receive and retain benefits, and these programs can be subjected to periodic review by the relevant governments. The CHIPS Act and its associated regulations, for example, may contain certain restrictions on grant recipient technology licensing activities and the expansion of certain facilities. Compliance with these restrictions could add complexity to our operations and increase our costs. In addition, noncompliance with the conditions of the grants or arrangements could result in our forfeiture of all or a portion of any future amounts to be received, as well as the repayment of all or a portion of amounts received to date. We may be unable to obtain future incentives to continue to fund a portion of our capital expenditures and operating costs, without which our cost structure would be adversely impacted. Further, any decrease in amounts received could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, or financial condition.