QXO Inc (QXO) Risk Analysis

Pursuant to private placements, certain institutional and accredited investors acquired shares of our common stock at a purchase price of $9.14 per share and Pre-Funded Warrants to purchase shares of our common stock at a purchase price of $9.13999 per Pre-Funded Warrant. Furthermore, certain investors purchased Convertible Preferred Stock that is convertible into shares of our common stock at an initial conversion price of $4.566. Because the current market price of our common stock as of the date of this Annual Report is higher than the effective purchase price such investors paid for their securities, there may be a higher likelihood that such investors will sell their shares in the near term. Public investors who purchased our common stock on Nasdaq or, following the transfer of our listing in January 2025, NYSE may not experience a similar rate of return due to differences in the purchase prices they have paid and the purchase prices paid by such investors.

Our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brad Jacobs, beneficially owns or controls approximately 31.4% of the voting power of our capital stock (including the voting power attributable to our preferred stock). This concentration of ownership and voting power allows Mr. Jacobs to exert significant influence over our decisions, including matters requiring approval by our stockholders (such as, subject to certain limitations, the election of directors and the approval of mergers or other extraordinary transactions), regardless of whether or not other stockholders believe that the transaction is in their own best interests. In addition, under our Fifth Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (the "Charter"), JPE, which is controlled by Mr. Jacobs, is currently entitled to designate a majority of persons to the Board in connection with each meeting of stockholders at which directors are to be elected because the investors (the "Investors") party to the Investment Agreement (as defined below) beneficially own or control approximately 49.2% of the voting power of our capital stock when calculated on a fully-diluted, as-converted basis, assuming the exercise of the Company Warrants. JPE currently holds 900,000 shares of Convertible Preferred Stock and 197,109,065 Warrants, which may be converted or exchanged into an aggregate of 394,218,132 shares of common stock. So long as the Investors party to the Investment Agreement collectively own or control (together with their affiliates) Convertible Preferred Stock, shares of common stock or other voting securities, or Warrants exercisable for such securities, representing, in the aggregate, at least 45% of the total voting power of the capital stock of the Company, calculated on a fully-diluted, as-converted basis, JPE will continue to be entitled to designate a majority of persons to our Board. JPE's right to designate persons to the Board will generally decrease proportionally together with a decrease in the Investors' ownership or control (together with affiliates) of Convertible Preferred Stock, shares of common stock or other voting securities, or Warrants exercisable for such securities, calculated on a fully diluted, as-converted basis. Accordingly, Mr. Jacobs may be able to exercise significant influence over our business policies and affairs. Such concentration of voting power and designation rights could also have the effect of delaying, deterring or precluding a change of control or other business combination that might otherwise be beneficial to our stockholders, could deprive our stockholders of an opportunity to receive a premium for their common stock as part of a sale of our company and might ultimately affect the market price of our common stock.

Our Charter and amended and restated bylaws contain, and the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware (the "DGCL") contains, provisions which could have the effect of rendering more difficult, delaying, or preventing an acquisition deemed undesirable by our Board. These provisions provide for the following: - the right of JPE to designate a majority of our Board;- the ability of our remaining directors to fill vacancies on our Board;- limitations on stockholders' ability to call a special stockholder meeting or act by written consent;- rules regarding how stockholders may present proposals or nominate directors for election at stockholder meetings;- the right of our Board to issue preferred stock without stockholder approval; and - the limitation of liability of, and provision of indemnification to, our directors and officers. These provisions, alone or together, could delay or prevent hostile takeovers and changes in control or changes in our management. In addition, we are subject to Section 203 of the DGCL, which could have the effect of delaying or preventing a change of control that you may favor. Section 203 provides that, subject to limited exceptions, persons that acquire, or are affiliated with persons that acquire, more than 15% of the outstanding voting stock of a Delaware corporation may not engage in a business combination with that corporation, including by merger, consolidation or acquisitions of additional shares, for a three-year period following the date on which that person or any of its affiliates becomes the holder of more than 15% of the corporation's outstanding voting stock. Any provision of our Charter, our amended and restated bylaws, or the DGCL that has the effect of delaying or deterring a change in control could limit the opportunity for our stockholders to receive a premium for their shares of our common stock, and could also affect the price that some investors are willing to pay for our common stock.

Our Charter provides that, unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, a state court located within the State of Delaware is the sole and exclusive forum for: i) any derivative action or proceeding brought on our behalf, ii) any action asserting a claim for or based on a breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any of our directors, officers or employees to us or our stockholders, including a claim alleging the aiding and abetting of such a breach of fiduciary duty, iii) any action asserting a claim against us or any of our directors, officers or employees arising pursuant to any provision of the DGCL or of our Charter or our amended and restated bylaws (as either may be amended and/or restated from time to time), iv) any action asserting a claim related to or involving us that is governed by the internal affairs doctrine, or v) any action asserting an "internal corporate claim" as defined under the DGCL. The exclusive forum provision does not apply to claims arising under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"), the Exchange Act or other federal securities laws for which there is exclusive federal or concurrent federal and state jurisdiction. Unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, the federal district courts of the United States shall be the exclusive forum for the resolution of any complaint asserting a cause of action arising under the Securities Act, the Exchange Act or such other federal securities laws. Any person or entity purchasing or otherwise acquiring any interest in shares of our capital stock will be deemed to have notice of and, to the fullest extent permitted by law, to have consented to the provisions of our Charter described above. Although we believe this exclusive forum provision benefits us by providing increased consistency in the application of Delaware law and federal securities laws in the types of lawsuits to which each applies, the choice of forum provision may limit a stockholder's ability to bring a claim in a judicial forum that it finds favorable for disputes with us or our directors, officers, other employees or stockholders, which may discourage such lawsuits against us and our directors, officers, other employees or stockholders. However, the enforceability of similar forum provisions in other companies' certificates of incorporation has been challenged in legal proceedings. If a court were to find the exclusive choice of forum provision contained in our Charter to be inapplicable or unenforceable in an action, we may incur additional costs associated with resolving such action in other jurisdictions, which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

The trading price of our common stock may be highly volatile and could be subject to wide fluctuations in response to various factors, some of which are beyond our control and may not be related to our operating performance. Our common stock has a concentrated ownership among our significant stockholders and, as a result, our common stock may be less liquid and have greater stock price volatility than the common stock of companies with broader public ownership. Since June 13, 2024, when we first sold common stock pursuant to the Purchase Agreements at a price of $9.14 per share, and until we filed our registration statement on Form S-3, the reported closing sale price of our common stock had been highly volatile, ranging from $41.74 to $205.40, in each case substantially higher than the price at which we sold common stock in connection with the private placements pursuant to purchase agreements we entered into on June 13, 2024 and July 22, 2024. While the market prices of our common stock may respond to developments regarding our liquidity, operating performance and prospects, and developments regarding our industry, we believe that historical market prices also reflected market and trading dynamics unrelated to our underlying business, or macro or industry fundamentals, and we do not know if these dynamics will occur again. Under the circumstances, we caution you that investing in our common stock is subject to a high degree of risk. Our stock price could continue to be subject to wide fluctuations in response to a variety of other factors, which include: - whether we achieve our anticipated corporate objectives;- changes in financial or operational estimates or projections;- termination of lock-up agreements or other restrictions on the ability of our stockholders and other security holders to sell our securities; and - general economic or political conditions in the United States or elsewhere. In addition, the stock market in general has experienced extreme price and volume fluctuations that have often been unrelated or disproportionate to the operating performance of the affected companies. Such rapid and substantial price volatility, including any stock run-up, may be unrelated to our actual or expected operating performance and financial condition or prospects, making it difficult for prospective investors to assess the rapidly changing value of our common stock. This volatility may prevent you from being able to sell your shares of common stock at or above the price you paid for them.

Sales of a substantial number of shares of our common stock in the public market, or the perception that these sales might occur, could depress the market price of our common stock and could impair our ability to raise capital through the sale of additional equity securities. We are unable to predict the effect that sales may have on the prevailing market price of our common stock. Sales of our common stock by current stockholders may make it more difficult for us to sell equity or equity-related securities in the future at a time and price that we deem reasonable or appropriate, and make it more difficult to sell shares of our common stock. We have filed a registration statement registering 789,549,465 shares of common stock held by, or issuable upon conversion or exercise of securities held by, stockholders party to certain agreements with the Company providing them with registration rights. Substantial sales of securities by these stockholders, or the perception that substantial sales will be made in the public market, could have a material adverse effect on the market price for our common stock. In addition, pursuant to the Company's registration rights agreement with JPE and certain other investors party thereto, JPE has certain demand registration rights that may require us to conduct underwritten offerings of shares. Any shares of common stock sold in these offerings will be freely tradable. In the event such registration rights are exercised and a large number of shares of common stock is sold, such sales could reduce the trading price of our common stock. These sales also could impede our ability to raise future capital. We have also registered on Form S-8 all shares of common stock that are issuable under our 2024 Omnibus Incentive Compensation Plan. As a consequence, these shares can be freely sold in the public market upon issuance. Any sales of shares by these stockholders could have a negative impact on the trading price of our common stock and result in dilution.

There has been limited trading volume of our common stock since we began trading on Nasdaq and, following the transfer of our listing in January 2025, the NYSE. An active, liquid trading market for our common stock may not be sustained. The lack of an active market may reduce the market price of our common stock, and you may not be able to sell your shares at an attractive price, or at all. An inactive market may also impair our ability to raise capital by selling shares of our common stock in the future and may impair our ability to enter into strategic collaborations or acquire companies by using our shares of common stock as consideration.