Danaher (DHR) Risk Factors

Our Amended and Restated By-laws (the "By-laws") provide that unless the Company selects or consents to the selection of an alternative forum, the sole and exclusive forum for any complaint asserting any internal corporate claims, to the fullest extent permitted by law and subject to applicable jurisdictional requirements, will be the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware (or, if the Court of Chancery does not have, or declines to accept, jurisdiction, another state court or a federal court located within the State of Delaware) (collectively, "Delaware Courts"). Current and former stockholders are deemed to have consented to the personal jurisdiction of the Delaware Courts in connection with any action to enforce such exclusive forum provision and to service of process in any such action. These provisions of the By-laws are not a waiver of, and do not relieve anyone of duties to comply with, federal securities laws including those specifying the exclusive jurisdiction of federal courts under the Exchange Act and concurrent jurisdiction of federal and state courts under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. To the extent that the exclusive forum provisions of our By-laws limit a current or former stockholder's ability to select a judicial forum other than the Delaware Courts, they might discourage the specified legal actions, might cause current or former stockholders to incur additional litigation-related expenses and might result in outcomes unfavorable to current or former stockholders. Alternatively, a court might determine that these provisions of the By-laws are inapplicable or unenforceable in any particular action, in which case we may incur additional litigation-related expenses in such action, and the action may result in outcomes unfavorable to us, which could have an adverse impact on our business and financial statements.

We rely on information technology systems, some of which are provided and/or managed by third-parties, to process, transmit and store electronic information (including sensitive data such as confidential business information and personal data relating to employees, customers, other business partners and patients), and to manage or support a variety of critical business processes and activities (such as receiving and fulfilling orders, billing, collecting and making payments, shipping products, providing services and support to customers and fulfilling contractual obligations). In addition, some of our remote monitoring products and services incorporate software and information technology that house personal data and some products or software we sell to customers connect to our systems for maintenance or other purposes. These systems, products and services (including those we acquire through business acquisitions) are susceptible to being damaged, disrupted or shut down due to attacks by computer hackers, computer viruses, ransomware, human error or malfeasance (including by employees), power outages, hardware failures, telecommunication or utility failures, catastrophes, war, conflicts or other unforeseen events, and in any such circumstances our system redundancy and other disaster recovery planning may be ineffective or inadequate. Certain attacks also target hardware, software and information installed, stored or transmitted in our products after such products have been purchased and incorporated into third-party products, facilities or infrastructure. Security breaches of systems provided or enabled by us, regardless of whether the breach is attributable to a vulnerability in our products or services, or security breaches of third-party suppliers we rely on to process, store or transmit electronic information, can result in the misappropriation, destruction or unauthorized disclosure of confidential information or personal data belonging to us or to our employees, partners, customers, patients or suppliers. Like most multinational corporations, our information technology systems and data have been subject to computer viruses, malicious codes, unauthorized access and other cyber-attacks and we expect the sophistication and frequency of such attacks to continue to increase. Unauthorized tampering, adulteration or interference with our products may also adversely affect product functionality and result in loss of data, risk to patient safety and product recalls or field actions. In addition, the rapid evolution and increased adoption of artificial intelligence technologies may intensify our cybersecurity risks. The attacks, breaches, misappropriations and other disruptions and damage described above have the ability to interrupt our operations or the operations of our customers and partners, delay production and shipments, result in theft of our and our customers' intellectual property and trade secrets, result in disclosure of personal data, damage customer, patient, business partner and employee relationships and our reputation and result in defective products or services, legal claims and proceedings, liability and penalties under privacy and other laws and increased costs for security and remediation, in each case resulting in an adverse effect on our business and financial statements. Our liability insurance may not be sufficient in type or amount to cover us against claims related to security breaches, cyber-attacks and other related breaches. In addition, any businesses that we acquire may further expose us to the risks set forth above. In addition, our information technology systems require an ongoing commitment of significant resources to maintain and enhance existing systems and develop new systems to keep pace with continuing changes in information processing technology, evolving legal and regulatory standards, evolving customer expectations, changes in the techniques used to obtain unauthorized access to data and information systems, and the information technology needs associated with our changing products and services. There can be no assurance that we will be able to successfully maintain, enhance and upgrade our systems as necessary to effectively address these requirements. Further, more of our employees work remotely now compared to before the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, which exposes us to greater cybersecurity and data privacy risks. Any inability to maintain reliable information technology systems and appropriate controls with respect to global data privacy and security requirements and prevent data breaches can result in adverse regulatory and business consequences and litigation. As a global organization, we are subject to data privacy and security laws, regulations and customer-imposed controls in numerous jurisdictions as a result of having access to and processing confidential, personal and/or sensitive data in the course of our business. For example, entities that are found to be in violation of HIPAA as the result of a breach of unsecured patient health information, a complaint about privacy practices or an audit by HHS, may be subject to significant civil, criminal and administrative fines and penalties and/or additional reporting and oversight obligations. Failure to comply with the requirements of the GDPR and the applicable national data protection laws of the EU member states and other states subject to the GDPR may result in fines of up to €20 million or up to 4% of total worldwide annual turnover for the preceding financial year, whichever is higher, and other administrative penalties. Please see "Item 1. Business-Regulatory Matters" for additional information. Government investigations and enforcement actions can be costly and interrupt the regular operation of our business, and data breaches or violations of data privacy laws can result in civil and criminal, monetary and non-monetary penalties and damage to customer, patient, business partner and employee relationships and to our reputation, any of which may adversely affect our business and financial statements. In addition, compliance with the varying data privacy regulations across the U.S. and around the world has required significant expenditures and may require additional expenditures, and may require further changes in our products or business models that increase competition or reduce revenue.

Our facilities, supply chains, distribution systems and information technology systems are subject to catastrophic loss due to fire, flood, cyber-attack, earthquake, hurricane, power shortage or outage, public health crisis (including epidemics and pandemics) and the reaction thereto, war, terrorism, riot, public protest or other natural or man-made disasters, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the damage caused to our facilities by Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico in 2017. If any of these facilities, supply chains or systems were to experience a catastrophic loss, it could disrupt our operations, delay production and shipments, result in defective products or services, diminish demand, damage customer relationships and our reputation and result in legal exposure and significant repair or replacement expenses. The third-party insurance coverage that we maintain varies from time to time in both type and amount depending on cost, availability and our decisions regarding risk retention, and may be unavailable or insufficient to protect us against such losses.

Our business is sensitive to general economic conditions, such as the elevated inflation and interest rates experienced in domestic and international markets in 2022 and 2023. Our operational costs, including the cost of energy, materials, labor, distribution and our other operational and facilities costs are subject to market conditions, including inflationary pressures. In addition to inflation and higher interest rates, slower economic growth in the domestic and/or international markets, actual or anticipated default on sovereign debt, volatility in the currency and credit markets, high levels of unemployment or underemployment, labor availability constraints, reduced levels of capital expenditures, changes or anticipation of potential changes in government trade, fiscal, tax and monetary policies (including as a result of upcoming elections in the U.S.), changes in capital requirements for financial institutions, government budget negotiation dynamics, sequestration or government shut-downs, austerity measures and other challenges that affect economies of the world have in the past adversely affected, and may in the future adversely affect, the Company and its distributors, customers and suppliers, including having the effect of: - reducing demand for our products and services (in this Annual Report, references to products and services also includes software), limiting the financing available to our customers and suppliers, increasing order cancellations and resulting in longer sales cycles and slower adoption of new technologies;- increasing the difficulty in collecting accounts receivable and the risk of excess and obsolete inventories;- increasing price competition in our served markets;- supply interruptions, delays or cost increases, which can disrupt our ability to produce or deliver our products and/or increase our costs;- increasing the risk of impairment of goodwill and other long-lived assets, and the risk that we may not be able to fully recover the value of other assets such as real estate and tax assets;- increasing the risk that counterparties to our contractual arrangements will become insolvent or otherwise unable to fulfill their contractual obligations which, in addition to increasing the risks identified above, could result in preference actions against us; and - adversely impacting market sizes and growth rates. If growth in any key economy of the world or in any of the markets we serve slows for a significant period, if there is significant deterioration in any such economy or such markets or if economic improvements do not benefit the markets we serve, our business and financial statements can be adversely affected.

In 2023 approximately 60% of our sales from continuing operations were derived from customers outside the U.S. In addition, many of our manufacturing operations, suppliers and employees are located outside the U.S. Since our growth strategy depends in part on our ability to further penetrate markets outside the U.S. and increase the localization of our products and services, we plan to continue to increase our sales and presence outside the U.S., particularly in the high-growth markets. Our non-U.S. business (and particularly our business in high-growth markets) is subject to risks that include: - public health crises and epidemics, such as COVID-19;- interruption in the transportation of materials to us and finished goods to our customers;- increases in materials, energy, labor or other manufacturing-related costs or higher supply chain logistics costs;- differences in terms of sale, including longer payment terms than are typical in the U.S.;- local product preferences or requirements;- changes in a country's or region's political, legal, social, compliance, business or economic conditions, such as the devaluation of particular currencies or military conflict;- trade protection measures, tariffs, embargoes and import or export restrictions and requirements;- unexpected changes in laws or regulatory requirements, including changes in tax laws;- capital controls and limitations on ownership and on repatriation of earnings and cash;- the potential for nationalization of enterprises;- changes in local healthcare delivery, payment and reimbursement policies and programs;- complex data privacy and cybersecurity requirements;- limitations on legal rights and our ability to enforce such rights, including differing protection of intellectual property;- difficulty in staffing and managing widespread operations;- workforce instability and differing labor or employment regulations;- difficulties in implementing restructuring actions on a timely or comprehensive basis; and - greater uncertainty, risk, expense and delay in commercializing products in certain foreign jurisdictions, including with respect to product and other regulatory approvals. International business risks have in the past and may in the future negatively affect our business and financial statements. In 2023 we generated approximately 13% of our sales from continuing operations from China. Accordingly, political, economic, legal, compliance, social and business conditions in China generally can adversely influence our business and financial statements. Additionally, China's government continues to play a significant role in regulating industry development by imposing sector-specific policies, and it maintains control over China's economic growth through setting monetary policy and determining treatment of particular industries or companies. Further, considerable uncertainty exists regarding the long-term effects of the expansionary monetary and fiscal actions by certain central banks and financial authorities of some of the world's leading economies. Uncertainty or adverse changes to conditions in China or the policies of China's government or its laws and regulations can adversely affect the overall economic growth of China, or of the particular industries in which we participate, and can adversely affect our business and financial statements.

Military conflicts (such as the conflict between Russia and Ukraine and the conflict in Israel and surrounding areas) can adversely affect our business and financial statements. For example, consequences of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine have included sanctions, embargoes, regional instability, geopolitical shifts and adverse impacts on energy supplies and prices, and such conflict or other conflicts may cause similar adverse effects in the future. In addition to suspending sales prohibited by sanctions, the Company has suspended the shipment of products to Russia with the exception of products for the purposes of diagnosing and treating patients and producing vaccines and therapeutics. Military conflicts also heighten other risks disclosed in this Annual Report, any of which can adversely affect our business and financial statements. Such risks include, but are not limited to, adverse effects on macroeconomic conditions, including increased inflation, constraints on the availability of commodities, supply chain disruption and decreased business spending; disruptions to our or our business partners' global technology infrastructure, including through cyber-attack or cyber-intrusion; adverse changes in international trade policies and relations; claims, litigation and regulatory enforcement; potential retaliatory actions by governments against companies, such as nationalization of foreign businesses; adverse impacts on our ability to implement and execute our business strategy; terrorist activities; our exposure to foreign currency fluctuations; reputational risk; and constraints, volatility, or disruption in the capital markets. In 2023, Russia, Ukraine and Israel sales combined accounted for less than 1% of the Company's sales.

Sales and purchases in currencies other than the U.S. dollar expose us to fluctuations in foreign currencies relative to the U.S. dollar, which have in the past and may in the future adversely affect our financial statements. Increased strength of the U.S. dollar increases the effective price of our products sold in U.S. dollars into other countries, which can adversely affect sales or require us to lower our prices. Decreased strength of the U.S. dollar adversely affects the cost of materials, products and services we purchase overseas. Sales and expenses of our non-U.S. businesses are also translated into U.S. dollars for reporting purposes and the strengthening of the U.S. dollar generally results in unfavorable translation effects. In addition, certain of our businesses invoice customers in a currency other than the business' functional currency, and movements in the invoiced currency relative to the functional currency can also result in unfavorable translation effects. The Company also faces exchange rate risk from its investments in subsidiaries owned and operated in foreign countries.

Our businesses operate in industries that are intensely competitive and have been subject to increasing consolidation. Because of the range of the products and services we sell and the variety of markets we serve, we encounter a wide variety of competitors; refer to "Item 1. Business-Competition" for additional details. In order to compete effectively, we must retain longstanding relationships with major customers and continue to grow our business by establishing relationships with new customers, continually developing new products and services to maintain and expand our brand recognition and leadership position in various product and service categories and penetrating new markets, including high-growth markets. Our ability to compete can also be impacted by changing customer preferences and requirements (for example increased demand for products incorporating digital capabilities or more environmentally-friendly products and supplier practices) as well as changes in the way healthcare services are delivered (including the movement of some care from acute to non-acute settings and increased focus on chronic disease management). Cost containment efforts by governments and the private sector, particularly in the healthcare industry, are also resulting in increased emphasis on products that reduce costs and improve efficiency and effectiveness. In addition, significant shifts in industry market share have occurred and may in the future occur in connection with product problems, safety alerts and publications about products, reflecting the competitive significance of product quality, product efficacy and quality systems in our industry. Our failure to compete effectively and/or pricing pressures resulting from competition may adversely impact our business and financial statements, and our expansion into new markets may result in greater-than-expected risks, liabilities and expenses. In addition, the Company's competitors and customers have from time to time introduced, and may in the future introduce, private label, generic or low-cost products that compete with the Company's products at lower price points. New, disruptive technologies may emerge that displace the Company's existing technologies. Competitors' products can capture significant market share or lead to a decrease in market prices overall, resulting in an adverse effect on the Company's business and financial statements.