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Workhorse Group Inc. – ‘10-K’ for 12/31/18

On:  Monday, 3/18/19, at 8:36am ET   ·   For:  12/31/18   ·   Accession #:  1213900-19-4319   ·   File #:  1-37673

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  As Of               Filer                 Filing    For·On·As Docs:Size             Issuer                      Filing Agent

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UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

☒  ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2018

OR

☐ TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE EXCHANGE ACT

Commission file number: 000-53704

WORKHORSE GROUP INC.

(Name of registrant as specified in its charter)

SECURITIES REGISTERED PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(b) OF THE EXCHANGE ACT:

SECURITIES REGISTERED PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(g) OF THE EXCHANGE ACT:

None.

Indicate by check mark if the Registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes ☐     No  ☒

Indicate by check mark if the Registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes ☐     No  ☒

Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the Registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ☒     No  ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files). Yes ☒     No ☐

Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K (§229.405 of this chapter) is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of Registrant’s knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes ☐     No  ☒

As of June 30, 2018, the last business day of the Registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter, the market value of our common stock held by non-affiliates was $64,864,154.

The number of shares of the Registrant’s common stock, $0.001 par value per share, outstanding as of March 18, 2019, was 61,496,990.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Forward-Looking Statements

The discussions in this Annual Report contain forward-looking statements reflecting our current expectations that involve risks and uncertainties. When used in this Report, the words “anticipate”, expect”, “plan”, “believe”, “seek”, “estimate” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These are statements that relate to future periods and include, but are not limited to, statements about the features, benefits and performance of our products, our ability to introduce new product offerings and increase revenue from existing products, expected expenses including those related to selling and marketing, product development and general and administrative, our beliefs regarding the health and growth of the market for our products, anticipated increase in our customer base, expansion of our products functionalities, expected revenue levels and sources of revenue, expected impact, if any, of legal proceedings, the adequacy of liquidity and capital resource, and expected growth in business. Forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, market acceptance for our products, our ability to attract and retain customers for existing and new products, our ability to control our expenses, our ability to recruit and retain employees, legislation and government regulation, shifts in technology, global and local business conditions, our ability to effectively maintain and update our product and service portfolio, the strength of competitive offerings, the prices being charged by those competitors and the risks discussed elsewhere herein and our ability to raise capital under acceptable terms. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof. We expressly disclaim any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in our expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based.

All references in this Form 10-K that refer to the “Company”, “Workhorse Group”, “Workhorse”, “we,” “us” or “our” are to Workhorse Group Inc. and unless otherwise differentiated, its wholly-owned subsidiaries, Workhorse Technologies Inc., Workhorse Motor Works Inc. Workhorse Properties Inc. and Surefly Inc.

PART I

ITEM 1. BUSINESS

Overview

We are a technology company focused on providing sustainable and cost-effective solutions to the commercial transportation sector. As an American manufacturer, we design and build high performance battery-electric vehicles and aircraft that make movement of people and goods more efficient and less harmful to the environment. As part of our solution, we also develop cloud-based, real-time telematics performance monitoring systems that enable fleet operators to optimize energy and route efficiency. Although we operate as a single unit through our subsidiaries, we approach our development through two divisions, Automotive and Aviation. We are currently focused on our core competency of bringing the N-GEN electric cargo van to market and fulfilling our existing backlog of orders. We are also exploring other opportunities in monetizing our intellectual property which could include a sale, license or other arrangement of assets that are outside of our core focus. We cannot guarantee that we will be successful in such efforts to monetize our non-core assets.

Automotive

We are an Original Equipment Manufacturer (“OEM”) of Class 3-6 commercial-grade, medium-duty truck chassis, to be marketed under the Workhorse® brand. All Workhorse last mile delivery vans are assembled in the Union City assembly facility. We will be expanding our product portfolio with the N-GEN electric cargo van in 2019, as well as the W-15 range-extended electric pickup truck sequential to that.

We believe our battery-electric and range-extended battery electric commercial vehicles offer fleet operators significant benefits, which include:

The Company currently sells and leases its vehicles to fleet customers directly and through its primary distributor Ryder System, Inc. Ryder also is the exclusive maintenance provider for Workhorse, which provides fleet operators with access to Ryder’s network of 800 maintenance facilities and nearly 6,000 trained service technicians across North America.

Cargo Vans for Last Mile Delivery and Commercial Work Use

Workhorse delivery vans are produced at our Union City, Indiana plant and are in use by our customers on daily routes across the United States. To date, we have built and delivered over 360 electric and range extended medium-duty delivery trucks to our customers. To our knowledge, we are the only American commercial electric vehicle OEM to achieve such a milestone. Our delivery customers include companies such as UPS, FedEx Express, Alpha Baking, W.B. Mason and Ryder System.

In addition to improved fuel economy, we anticipate that the performance of our vehicles on-route will reduce long-term vehicle maintenance expense by approximately 50% as compared to fossil-fueled trucks. Over a 20-year vehicle life, we estimate that our E-GEN Range-Extended Electric delivery vans will save over $150,000 in fuel and maintenance savings. Due to this positive return-on-investment, we charge a premium price for our vehicles when selling to major fleet operators. We expect that fleet operators will be able to achieve a four-year or better total cost of ownership breakeven (without government incentives), which we believe justifies the higher acquisition cost of our vehicles.

Our goal is to continue to increase sales and production of our existing vehicle portfolio, while executing on a cost-down strategy in order to achieve sustained gross margin profitability of the last mile-delivery van platform. It is our intention that this strategy, in combination with the development and launch of the N-GEN cargo van and W-15 pickup truck platforms, which targets high-volume market segments, will drive further cost-down volume synergies across our supply chain.

U.S. Post Office Replenishment Program / Next Generation Delivery Vehicle Project

Workhorse, with our partner VT Hackney, is one of five awardees that the United States Postal Service (“USPS”) selected to build prototype vehicles for the USPS Next Generation Delivery Vehicle (“NGDV”) project. Presently, there are only four awardees still pursuing the NGDV project. The USPS has stated that the number of vehicles to be replaced in the project is approximately 180,000. In September 2017, Workhorse delivered six vehicles for prototype testing under the NGDV Acquisition Program in compliance with the terms set forth in their USPS prototype contract. The vehicles have completed the required testing protocol as specified by the USPS.

N-GEN Electric Cargo Van

In 2017, Workhorse announced the development of its N-GEN electric cargo van, which leverages the existing ultra-low floor, long-life commercial delivery vehicle platform that was developed for the USPS, as well as our extensive customer experience gained from working with our E-GEN and E-100 customers. The N-GEN incorporates lightweight materials, all-wheel drive, best in class turning radius, 360^o cameras, collision avoidance systems and an optional roof mounted HorseFly™ delivery drone. 

The Workhorse N-GEN electric cargo van platform will be available in 450, 700 and 1,000 cubic feet configurations. We intend to initially launch the 450 cubic foot and 1,000 cubic foot configurations with the goal of competing with conventional market leaders, including the Mercedes Sprinter, Ford Transit and Dodge ProMaster gasoline/diesel vans for both last-mile delivery and other service-oriented applications such as telecommunications. We expect these vehicles to achieve a fuel economy of approximately 60 miles per gallon equivalent (“MPGe”) and offer fleet operators the most favorable total cost-of-ownership of any comparable conventional van utilizing an internal combustion engine that is available today.

W-15 Range-Extended Electric Pickup Truck

In May 2017, we unveiled a working prototype of our W-15 range-extended electric pickup truck to address the specific needs of commercial fleet work truck operators, including utilities, municipalities, construction, airports and service businesses. We believe that the W-15 has the potential to transform the pickup truck market for fleet operators in the United States, estimated at 250,000 new vehicle purchases per year. The performance specifications of the Workhorse W-15 pickup include a true all-wheel drivetrain and two electric motors that generate up to 460 horsepower and provide a top acceleration time from 0 to 60 MPH of 5.6 seconds. The W-15 also has a fuel-economy rating of 75 MPGe and a range of 80 miles in all-electric operation. A gasoline-powered range extender also comes as on option on the truck to extend the driving range to 300 miles on a single tank of gas by continuously charging the batteries during operation.

We have secured letters-of-intent for more than 5,500 trucks, amounting to nearly $300 million from corporate fleets representing the utility, municipality and automotive logistics sectors. We have established a Leadership Council comprised of seasoned fleet experts from our LOI partners.

We intend to produce the W-15 at our existing 250,000 square foot facility in Union City, Indiana. This plant has the capability to produce more than 60,000 vehicles per year. The battery packs for all Workhorse vehicles will be built in our Loveland, Ohio battery pack plant using Panasonic cells produced in Japan.

Aviation

Delivery Drones

Our HorseFly delivery drone is a custom-designed, purpose-built drone that is fully integrated with our electric trucks. Workhorse was granted a patent on this architecture with the description “Package Delivery By Means Of An Automated Multi-Copter UAS/UAV Dispatched From A Conventional Delivery Vehicle.” We believe we are the only company in the world with a working drone/truck system. The HorseFly delivery drone and truck system is designed to work within the FAA Rule 107 that permits the use of commercial drones in U.S. airspace under certain conditions.

To date, we have conducted two demonstration deliveries with large multi-national corporations, including UPS. UPS conducted a successful real-world test with us in February 2017 and it received worldwide news coverage. The knowledge we have gained in building electric delivery trucks for last-mile delivery has led us to believe that a drone/truck delivery system can have significant cost savings in the growing last mile delivery market.

UPS has estimated in a press release dated February 21, 2017 that a reduction of just one mile per driver per day over one year can save UPS up to $50 million. Rural delivery routes are the most expensive to serve due to the time and vehicle expenses required to complete each delivery. In this test, the drone made one delivery while the driver continued down the road to make another. We believe that this truck/drone architecture represents significant cost savings for delivery fleets and that we are first to market with such a system. We continue to work closely with the FAA as we strive to bring the system to the point of daily drone deliveries across rural America.

SureFly™ Multicopter

SureFly is our entry into the emerging vertical take-off and landing (“VTOL”) market. It is designed to be a two-person, 400-pound payload aircraft with a hybrid internal combustion/electric power generation system. Our approach in the design is to build the safest and simplest to fly rotary wing aircraft in the world. We believe it is a practical answer to personal flight, and has additional applications in the commercial transportation segments, including air taxi services, agriculture and others.

The FAA to date has granted 14 separate Experimental Airworthiness Certifications, registered as N834LW, for the aircraft. These certifications come after an extensive design review and inspection of the aircraft with each renewed certificate.

Our SureFly team continues to further develop the SureFly platform and routinely performs test cards, including testing the aircraft’s power systems, executing high-power ground tests and manned flights.

Technology

Batteries Are Key

The battery pack is key to the design, development, and manufacture of advanced electric-vehicle powertrains. Where some other electric vehicle (“EV”) manufacturers purchase their batteries in a plug-and-play pack, we build our own battery packs. This keeps the intellectual property related to the design and production of the pack in-house and avoids the issues that occur when a battery supplier fails. It also enables us to pay less for our battery packs than our competitors, thus our all-electric truck is less expensive than competitive vehicles. We use Panasonic 18650 cells and design the pack around these commodity cells.

In-House Software Development is Essential

Our powertrains encompass the complete motor assemblies, computers, and software required for vehicle electrification. We use off-the-shelf proven components and combine them with our proprietary software.

Innovation is the Future

Additionally, we have developed a cloud-based, remote management system to manage and track the performance of all of the vehicles that we deploy in order to provide a 21st Century solution for fleet managers.

The telematics system and associated hardware installed in the Workhorse vehicles is designed to monitor the controller area network traffic for specific signals. These signals are uploaded along with GPS data to a Workhorse server facility where the data signals are tracked at ten second intervals while driving and during the electricity generating process and at sixty seconds during a plug-in charge. The real-time data is stored in a database as it arrives and delivers updates to clients connected through the web interface.

As a parameter-based system, we can set route-specific parameters to better manage the battery-provided power with the additional power generated through the regenerative braking process (not applicable to E-100). In an upcoming release, we will add the ability to integrate Metron Telematics with the client’s internal telematics system and automatically update the parameters each day with information about the route. This enhancement will result in a “SMART-GEN” vehicle that will maximize efficiency by automating the process to determine the ideal times and locations to use the E-GEN to add electricity to the batteries.

Locations and Facilities

Our company headquarters and R & D facility is located at 100 Commerce Drive, Loveland, Ohio, a Cincinnati suburb. We occupy a 45,000 sq. ft. facility that allows for the manufacture of 5,000 electric powertrain kits per year. Powertrains are delivered to the Workhorse facility in Indiana.

Our truck assembly facility is located in Union City, Indiana. This facility consists of three buildings with 250,000 square feet of manufacturing and office space on 47 acres.

In March of 2013, we purchased the former Workhorse Custom Chassis assembly plant in Union City, Indiana. With this acquisition, we became an OEM of Class 3-6 commercial-grade, medium-duty truck chassis marketed under the Workhorse® brand.

Ownership and operation of this plant enables us to build new chassis with gross vehicle weight capacity of between 10,000 and 26,000 pounds.

Our approach is to provide battery-electric powertrains utilizing proven, automotive-grade, mass-produced parts coupled with in-house control software that it has developed over the last five years.

The Workhorse Custom Chassis acquisition included other important assets including the Workhorse brand and logo, intellectual property, and schematics.

Marketing

Our sales team is focused on the goal of securing purchase orders from commercial transportation companies. These purchases will give us additional data toward chassis demand related to electric and extended range electric vehicles.

Our priority is to establish the commercial delivery van as our core business. We intend to be the best choice for a vehicle in this segment regardless of the fuel type that the customer chooses. Our sales plan is to meet with the top potential customers and obtain purchase orders for new electric and extended range electric vehicles for their production vehicle requirements.

As the last mile delivery service space expands and non-traditional customers enter, Workhorse is reaching to those potential new customers as part of their supply chain enhancement. This market is comprised of a higher quantity of smaller delivery vehicles, such as the Workhorse N-GEN platform.

Finally, since our competitive advantage in the marketplace is our ability to provide purpose-built solutions to customers that have unique requirements at relatively low-volume, we have submitted proposals to companies for purpose-built vehicle applications.

Strategic Relationships

Panasonic: Workhorse Group has signed an agreement with the rechargeable battery division of Panasonic Industrial Devices Sales Co. of America for the supply of 18650 cylindrical Panasonic lithium-ion batteries for Workhorse’s battery-electric, medium-duty trucks.

Ryder: On April 27, 2017, the Company entered into an agreement with Ryder to serve as the primary distributor, except with respect to certain exclusive accounts, in the United States, Mexico and Canada. Ryder will also serve as the sole and exclusive provider of certain repair services and the sole and exclusive distributor of certain vehicle parts in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

BMW: Workhorse has partnered with BMW where BMW provides the internal combustion engine used in the range extended vehicle applications as a source for on board battery recharging. BMW provides the engine, service support and technical advice necessary for vehicle certification. The engine currently used in production is the same engine used in the i3 passenger car.

Prefix: Michigan-based Prefix Corporation began in 1979 developing innovative design and engineering solutions for the automotive industry. Workhorse relies on Prefix’s complementary capabilities in the areas of complete prototype design, build and finishing to more rapidly advance product development.

Duke Energy Corp.: Workhorse continues working in partnership with Duke Energy (NYSE:DUK). On November 28, 2018, as the first step in the relationship, a subsidiary of Duke Energy purchased 615,000 Panasonic battery cells for approximately $1.3 million from Workhorse. The transaction is intended as an initial step toward an arrangement between Duke Energy and Workhorse in creating an innovative battery leasing program designed to provide customers a cost competitive electric vehicle product alternative. Through this relationship, Duke Energy intends to explore further development of eFleet solutions to Workhorse customers which may include single-point management and financing of all the Behind the Meter infrastructure necessary to support depot wide electrification, vehicle/battery leasing and distributed energy resources. Duke Energy and Workhorse believe a seamless/integrated solution will help reduce the overall costs of converting fleets to electric power enabling faster adoption of electric vehicles into commercial fleets.

Research and Development

The majority of our research and development is conducted in-house at our facilities near Cincinnati, Ohio. Additionally, we contract with engineering firms to assist with validation and certification requirements as well as specific vehicle integration tasks.

Competitive Companies

The commercial vehicle market, specifically in the last mile delivery segment, is highly competitive and we expect it to become even more so in the future as additional companies launch competing vehicle offerings. However, the commercial alternative fueled vehicle market is less developed and less competitive. There are two primary competitors in the medium-duty vehicle segment in the US market: Ford and Freightliner. Neither has disclosed any plans to offer 100% EVs or electric range extended vehicles in this segment. Ford is a vertically integrated company building a complete vehicle or chassis. They provide a chassis as a strip-chassis (which is similar to the Workhorse product) or they provide it with a cab. Freightliner provides a chassis as a strip-chassis, which is similar to the Workhorse Truck chassis.

Chanje is a California-based, privately held electric vehicle and energy solutions company that specializes in the last mile industry. Chanje introduced its first vehicle in the last quarter of 2017.

Motiv Power Systems is a manufacturer of all-electric powertrain control systems for commercial vehicles, based in Foster City, California. They also produce software for the systems and install them in vehicles that have already been manufactured.

We believe the most dramatic difference between Workhorse and the other competitors in the medium-duty truck market is our ability to offer customers purpose-built solutions that meet the needs of their unique requirements at a competitive price. While there are many electric car companies from abroad, there are only a few foreign companies that have vehicles in the category of medium-duty trucks.

We believe that the primary competitive factors within the medium-duty commercial vehicle market are:

GOVERNMENT REGULATION

Our electric vehicles are designed to comply with a significant number of governmental regulations and industry standards, some of which are evolving as new technologies are deployed. Government regulations regarding the manufacture, sale and implementation of products and systems similar to our electric vehicles are subject to future change. We cannot predict what impact, if any, such changes may have upon our business.

Emission and fuel economy standards

Government regulation related to climate change is in effect at the U.S. federal and state levels. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (“NHTSA”) issued a final rule for greenhouse gas emissions and fuel economy requirements for trucks and heavy-duty engines on August 9, 2011, which is applicable in model years 2018 through 2020. NHTSA and EPA also issued a final rule on August 16, 2016 increasing the stringency of these standards for model years 2021 through 2027.

The rules provide emission standards for CO2 and fuel consumption standards for three main categories of vehicles: (i) combination tractors, (ii) heavy-duty pickup trucks and vans and (iii) vocational vehicles. We believe that the Workhorse vehicles would be considered “vocational vehicles” and “heavy-duty pickup trucks and vans” under the rules. According to the EPA and NHTSA, vocational vehicles consist of a wide variety of truck and bus types, including delivery, refuse, utility, dump, cement, transit bus, shuttle bus, school bus, emergency vehicles, motor homes and tow trucks, and are characterized by a complex build process, with an incomplete chassis often built with an engine and transmission purchased from other manufacturers, then sold to a body manufacturer.

The EPA and NHTSA rule also establishes multiple flexibility and incentive programs for manufacturers of alternatively fueled vehicles, such as the Workhorse vehicles, including an engine Averaging, Banking and Trading (“ABT”) program, a vehicle ABT program and additional credit programs for early adoption of standards or deployment of advanced or innovative technologies. The ABT programs will allow for emission and/or fuel consumption credits to be averaged, banked or traded within defined groupings of the regulatory subcategories. The additional credit programs will allow manufacturers of engines and vehicles to be eligible to generate credits if they demonstrate improvements in excess of the standards established in the rule prior to the model year the standards become effective or if they introduce advanced or innovative technology engines or vehicles.

The Clean Air Act requires that we obtain a Certificate of Conformity issued by the EPA and a California Executive Order issued by the California Air Resource Board (“CARB”) with respect to emissions for our vehicles. The Certificate of Conformity is required for vehicles sold in states covered by the Clean Air Act’s standards and the Executive Order is required for vehicles sold in states that have sought and received a waiver from the EPA to utilize California standards. The California standards for emissions control for certain regulated pollutants for new vehicles and engines sold in California are set by CARB. States that have adopted the California standards as approved by EPA also recognize the Executive Order for sales of vehicles.

Manufacturers who sell vehicles in states covered by federal requirements under the Clean Air Act without a Certificate of Conformity may be subject to penalties of up to $44,539 per violation and be required to recall and remedy any vehicles sold with emissions in excess of Clean Air Act standards. In 2013, we received approval from CARB to sell the E-100 in California based on our own emissions tests.

Vehicle safety and testing

The National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966 (the “Safety Act”) regulates motor vehicles and motor vehicle equipment in the United States in two primary ways. First, the Safety Act prohibits the sale in the United States of any new vehicle or equipment that does not conform to applicable motor vehicle safety standards established by NHTSA. Meeting or exceeding many safety standards is costly, in part because the standards tend to conflict with the need to reduce vehicle weight in order to meet emissions and fuel economy standards. Second, the Safety Act requires that defects related to motor vehicle safety be remedied through safety recall campaigns. A manufacturer is obligated to recall vehicles if it determines that the vehicles do not comply with a safety standard. Should we or NHTSA determine that either a safety defect or noncompliance exists with respect to any of our vehicles, the cost of such recall campaigns could be substantial.

Battery safety and testing

Our battery pack configurations are designed to conform to mandatory regulations that govern transport of “dangerous goods,” which includes lithium-ion batteries, which may present a risk in transportation. The governing regulations, which are issued by the Pipeline and Hazardous Safety Administration and are based on the UN Recommendations on the Safe Transport of Dangerous Goods Model Regulations, and related UN Manual of Tests and Criteria. The requirements for shipments of these goods vary by mode of transportation, such as ocean vessel, rail, truck and air.

Our battery suppliers have completed the applicable transportation test for our prototype and production battery packs demonstrating our compliance with the UN Manual of Tests and Criteria, including:

Vehicle dealer and distribution regulation

Certain states’ laws require motor vehicle manufacturers and dealers to be licensed in such states in order to conduct manufacturing and sales activities. To date, we are registered as a motor vehicle manufacturer in Indiana and Ohio and as a dealer in California, New York and Chicago. We have not yet sought formal clarification of our ability to manufacture or sell our vehicles in any other states.

Intellectual Property

We have four pending trademark applications and 12 issued trademark registrations (US and foreign). We also intend to pursue additional trademark registrations. We have five pending (three non-provisional and two provisional) U.S. and foreign patent applications, and eight existing patents, two of which are design patents. We also plan to pursue appropriate foreign patent protection on those inventions, if available. The following is a summary of our patents:

Employees

We currently have 74 full-time and seven part-time employees located in Loveland, Ohio and 24 full-time employees located in Union City, Indiana. We also contract for hire with approximately three outside consultants and contractors.

ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS

Our results of operations have not resulted in profitability and we may not be able to achieve profitability going forward.

We have incurred net losses amounting to $141.6 million for the period from inception (February 20, 2007) through December 31, 2018.  We have had net losses in each quarter since our inception. We expect that we will continue to incur net losses in the first part of 2019. We may incur significant losses in the future for a number of reasons, including the other risks described in this report, and we may encounter unforeseen expenses, difficulties, complications, delays and other unknown events. Accordingly, we may not be able to achieve or maintain profitability. Our management is developing plans to alleviate the negative trends and conditions described above and there is no guarantee that such plans will be successfully implemented. Our business plan is focused on providing sustainable and cost-effective solutions to the commercial transportation sector but is still unproven. There is no assurance that even if we successfully implement our business plan, that we will be able to curtail our losses. If we incur additional significant operating losses, our stock price may decline, perhaps significantly.

We have yet to achieve positive cash flow and, given our projected funding needs, our ability to generate positive cash flow is uncertain.

We have had negative cash flow from operating activities of $21.8 million and $38.7 million for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively. We anticipate that we will continue to have negative cash flow from operating and investing activities for in the first part of 2019 as we expect to incur research and development, sales and marketing, and general and administrative expenses and make modest capital expenditures in our efforts to increase sales and ramp up operations at our Union City facility. Our business also will at times require significant amounts of working capital to support our growth of additional platforms. An inability to generate positive cash flow for the near term may adversely affect our ability to raise needed capital for our business on reasonable terms, diminish supplier or customer willingness to enter into transactions with us, and have other adverse effects that may decrease our long-term viability.

We need access to additional financing in 2019 and beyond, which may not be available to us on acceptable terms or at all. If we cannot access additional financing when we need it and on acceptable terms, our business may fail.

Our business plan to design, produce, sell and service commercial electric vehicles through our Union City facility will require continued capital investment in 2019. Our research and development activities will also require continued investment. For the year ended December 31, 2018, our independent registered public accounting firm issued a report on our 2018 financial statements that contained an explanatory paragraph stating that the lack of sales, negative working capital and stockholders’ deficit, raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. For example, our existing capital resources will be insufficient to fund our operations through the first half of 2019. Although we have entered into a Credit Agreement with Marathon Asset Management, LP (“Marathon”), which provides us with a $25 million credit line to be used for vehicle production and are subject to the receipt of confirmed purchase orders, we expect that we will need funding to be used in our research and development activities and operational expenses. The additional funding will allow us to continue to deliver vehicles associated with existing and expected orders, further expand our N-GEN platform resulting in “production ready vehicles”. Unless and until we are able to generate a sufficient amount of revenue, reduce our costs and/or enter a strategic relationship, we expect to finance future cash needs through public and/or private offerings of equity securities and/or debt financings. As discussed above, we have committed debt funding through our Credit Agreement with Marathon to support inventory purchases for confirmed customer purchase orders, but do not currently have any committed future funding for other operating costs. If we are not able to obtain additional financing and/or substantially increase revenue from sales, we will be unable to continue as a going concern. As a result, we may have to liquidate our assets and may receive less than the value at which those assets are carried on our consolidated financial statements, and investors will likely lose a substantial part or all of their investment. We cannot be certain that additional financing will be available to us on favorable terms when required, or at all, particularly given that we do not now have a committed credit facility with any government or financial institution. Further, if there remains doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern, investors or other financing sources may be unwilling to provide additional funding on acceptable terms or at all. If we cannot obtain additional financing when we need it and on terms acceptable to us, we will not be able to continue as a going concern.

The development of our business in the near future is contingent upon the implementation of orders from UPS and other key customers for the purchase of Workhorse vehicles and if we are unable to perform under these orders, our business may fail.

On June 4, 2014, the Company entered into a Vehicle Purchase Agreement with United Parcel Service Inc. (“UPS”) which outlined the relationship by which the Company would sell vehicles to UPS. To date, we have received six separate orders totaling up to 1,405 vehicles from UPS. The sixth and most recent order is from Q1 2018. We have entered into various purchase orders with UPS relating to the delivery of the vehicles ordered. There is no guarantee that the Company will be able to perform under these orders and if it does perform, that UPS will purchase additional vehicles from the Company. Also, there is no assurance that UPS will not terminate its agreement with the Company pursuant to the termination provisions therein. Further, if the Company is not able to raise the required capital to purchase required parts and pay certain vendors, the Company may not be able to comply with UPS’s deadlines. Accordingly, despite the receipt of the orders from UPS, there is no assurance, due to the Company’s financial constraints and status as a development stage company, that the Company will be able to deliver such vehicles or that it will receive additional orders whether from UPS or other potential customers.

If we are unable to perform under our orders with UPS, the Company business will be significantly negatively impacted.

Our limited operating history makes it difficult for us to evaluate our future business prospects and make decisions based on those estimates of our future performance.

As we begin to fully implement our manufacturing capabilities, it is difficult, if not impossible, to forecast our future results based upon our historical data. Because of the uncertainties related to our lack of historical operations, we may be hindered in our ability to anticipate and adapt to increases or decreases in revenues or expenses.  If we make poor budgetary decisions as a result of unreliable historical data, we could be less profitable or incur losses, which may result in a decline in our stock price.

We offer no financing on our vehicles. As such, our business is dependent on cash sales, which may adversely affect our growth prospects.

While most of our current customers are well-established companies with significant purchasing power, many of our potential smaller and medium-sized customers may need to rely on credit or leasing arrangements to gain access to our vehicles. Unlike some of our competitors who provide credit or leasing services for the purchase of their vehicles, we do not provide, and currently do not have commercial arrangements with a third party that provides, such financial services. We believe the current limited availability of credit or leasing solutions for our vehicles could adversely affect our revenues and market share in the commercial electric vehicle market.

Our business, prospects, financial condition and operating results will be adversely affected if we cannot reduce and adequately control the costs and expenses associated with operating our business, including our material and production costs.

We incur significant costs and expenses related to procuring the materials, components and services required to develop and produce our electric vehicles. We have secured supply agreements for our critical components including our batteries. However, these are dependent on volume to ensure that they are available at a competitive price. We continually work on cost-down initiatives to reduce our cost structure so that we may effectively compete. If we do not reduce our costs and expenses, our net losses will continue which will negatively impact our business and stock price.

Increases in costs, disruption of supply or shortage of lithium-ion cells could harm our business.

We may experience increases in the cost or a sustained interruption in the supply or shortage of lithium-ion cells. Any such increase, supply interruption or shortage could materially and negatively impact our business, prospects, financial condition and operating results. The prices for these lithium-ion cells can fluctuate depending on market conditions and global demand for these materials and could adversely affect our business and operating results. We are exposed to multiple risks relating to lithium-ion cells including:

Our business is dependent on the continued supply of battery cells for the battery packs used in our vehicles. While we believe several sources of the battery cells are available for such battery cells, we have fully qualified only Panasonic for the supply of the cells used in such battery packs and have very limited flexibility in changing cell suppliers. Any disruption in the supply of battery cells could disrupt production of our vehicles until such time as a different supplier is fully qualified. Furthermore, fluctuations or shortages in petroleum, tariff or trade issues and other economic or tax conditions may cause us to experience significant increases in freight charges. Substantial increases in the prices for the battery cells or prices charged to us, would increase our operating costs, and could reduce our margins if we cannot recoup the increased costs through increased vehicle prices. Any attempts to increase vehicle prices in response to increased costs in our battery cells could result in cancellations of vehicle orders and therefore materially and adversely affect our brand, image, business, prospects and operating results.

The demand for commercial electric vehicles depends, in part, on the continuation of current trends resulting from dependence on fossil fuels. Extended periods of low diesel or other petroleum-based fuel prices could adversely affect demand for our vehicles, which would adversely affect our business, prospects, financial condition and operating results.

We believe that much of the present and projected demand for commercial electric vehicles results from concerns about volatility in the cost of petroleum-based fuel, the dependency of the United States on oil from unstable or hostile countries, government regulations and economic incentives promoting fuel efficiency and alternative forms of energy, as well as the belief that climate change results in part from the burning of fossil fuels. If the cost of petroleum-based fuel decreased significantly, the outlook for the long-term supply of oil to the United States improved, the government eliminated or modified its regulations or economic incentives related to fuel efficiency and alternative forms of energy, or if there is a change in the perception that the burning of fossil fuels negatively impacts the environment, the demand for commercial electric vehicles could be reduced, and our business and revenue may be harmed.

Diesel and other petroleum-based fuel prices have been extremely volatile, and we believe this continuing volatility will persist. Lower diesel or other petroleum-based fuel prices over extended periods of time may lower the perception in government and the private sector that cheaper, more readily available energy alternatives should be developed and produced. If diesel or other petroleum-based fuel prices remain at deflated levels for extended periods of time, the demand for commercial electric vehicles may decrease, which would have an adverse effect on our business, prospects, financial condition and operating results.

Our future growth is dependent upon the willingness of operators of commercial vehicle fleets to adopt electric vehicles and on our ability to produce, sell and service vehicles that meet their needs. This often depends upon the cost for an operator adopting electric vehicle technology as compared to the cost of traditional internal combustion technology.

Our growth is dependent upon the adoption of electric vehicles by operators of commercial vehicle fleets and on our ability to produce, sell and service vehicles that meet their needs. The entry of commercial electric vehicles into the medium-duty commercial vehicle market is a relatively new development, particularly in the United States, and is characterized by rapidly changing technologies and evolving government regulation, industry standards and customer views of the merits of using electric vehicles in their businesses. This process has been slow as without including the impact of government or other subsidies and incentives, the purchase prices for our commercial electric vehicles currently is higher than the purchase prices for diesel-fueled vehicles. Our growth has also been negatively impacted by the relatively low price of oil over the last few years.

If the market for commercial electric vehicles does not develop as we expect or develops more slowly than we expect, our business, prospects, financial condition and operating results will be adversely affected.

As part of our sales efforts, we must educate fleet managers as to the economical savings we believe they will benefit from during the life of the vehicle. As such, we believe that operators of commercial vehicle fleets should consider a number of factors when deciding whether to purchase our commercial electric vehicles (or commercial electric vehicles generally) or vehicles powered by internal combustion engines, particularly diesel-fueled or natural gas-fueled vehicles. We believe these factors include:

If, in weighing these factors, operators of commercial vehicle fleets determine that there is not a compelling business justification for purchasing commercial electric vehicles, particularly those that we produce and sell, then the market for commercial electric vehicles may not develop as we expect or may develop more slowly than we expect, which would adversely affect our business, prospects, financial condition and operating results.

If our customers are unable to efficiently and effectively integrate our electric vehicles into their existing commercial fleets our sales may suffer and our business, prospects, financial condition and operating results may be adversely affected.

Our sales strategy involves a comprehensive plan for the pilot and roll-out of our electric vehicles, as well as the ongoing replacement of existing commercial vehicles with our electric vehicles, that is tailored to the individual needs of our customers. If we are unable to develop and execute fleet integration strategies or fleet management support services that meet our customers’ unique circumstances with minimal disruption to their businesses, our customers may not realize the economic benefits they expect from our electric vehicles. If this were to occur, our customers may not order additional vehicles from us, which could adversely affect our business, prospects, financial condition and operating results.

We currently do not have long-term supply contracts with guaranteed pricing which exposes us to fluctuations in component, materials and equipment prices. Substantial increases in these prices would increase our operating costs and could adversely affect our business, prospects, financial condition and operating results.

Because we currently do not have long-term supply contracts with guaranteed pricing, we are subject to fluctuations in the prices of the raw materials, parts and components and equipment we use in the production of our vehicles. Substantial increases in the prices for such raw materials, components and equipment would increase our operating costs and could reduce our margins if we cannot recoup the increased costs through increased vehicle prices. Any attempts to increase the announced or expected prices of our vehicles in response to increased costs could be viewed negatively by our customers and could adversely affect our business, prospects, financial condition and operating results.

If we are unable to scale our operations at our Union City facility in an expedited manner from our limited low volume production to high volume production, our business, prospects, financial condition and operating results will be adversely affected.

We are currently assembling our orders at our Union City facility which has been acceptable for our historical orders. To satisfy increased demand, we will need to quickly scale operations in our Union City facility as well as scale our supply chain including access to batteries. Such a substantial and rapid increase in operations may strain our management capabilities. Our business, prospects, financial condition and operating results could be adversely affected if we experience disruptions in our supply chain, if we cannot obtain materials of sufficient quality at reasonable prices or if we are unable to scale our Union City facility.

We depend upon key personnel and need additional personnel. The loss of key personnel or the inability to attract additional personnel may adversely affect our business and results of operations.

Our success depends on the continuing services of our CEO, Duane Hughes and top management. On February 4, 2019, Mr. Hughes and the Company entered into an Executive Retention Agreement whereby Mr. Hughes was retained as Chief Executive Officer in consideration of an annual salary of $350,000. Further, on various separate dates, the Company entered Executive Retention Agreements with Rob Willison as President and Chief Operating Officer, Paul Gaitan as Chief Financial Officer and Julio Rodriguez as Chief Information Officer. The loss of any of these individuals could have a material and adverse effect on our business operations. Additionally, the success of our operations will largely depend upon our ability to successfully attract and maintain competent and qualified key management personnel. As with any company with limited resources, there can be no guarantee that we will be able to attract such individuals or that the presence of such individuals will necessarily translate into profitability for our company. Our inability to attract and retain key personnel may materially and adversely affect our business operations. Any failure by our management to effectively anticipate, implement, and manage the changes required to sustain our growth would have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

We face intense competition. Some of our competitors have substantially greater financial or other resources, longer operating histories and greater name recognition than we do and could use their greater resources and/or name recognition to gain market share at our expense or could make it very difficult for us to establish market share.

Companies currently competing in the fleet logistics market offering alternative fuel medium-duty trucks include Ford Motor Company and Freightliner. Ford and Freightliner are currently selling alternative fuel fleet vehicles including hybrids. Ford and Freightliner have substantially more financial resources, established market positions, long-standing relationships with customers and dealers, and who have more significant name recognition, technical, marketing, sales, financial and other resources than we do. Although we believe that HorseFly, our unmanned aerial system (“UAS”), is unique in the marketplace in that it currently does not have any competitors when it comes to a UAS that works in combination with a truck, there are better financed competitors in this emerging industry, including Google and Amazon. While we are seeking to partner with existing delivery companies to improve their efficiencies in the last mile of delivery, our competitors are seeking to redefine the delivery model using drones from a central location requiring extended flight patterns. Our competitors’ new aerial delivery model would essentially eliminate traditional package delivery companies. Our model is focused on coupling our delivery drone with delivery trucks supplementing the existing model and providing shorter term flight patterns. Google and Amazon have more significant financial resources, established market positions, long-standing relationships with customers, more significant name recognition and a larger scope of resources including technical, marketing and sales than we do.

The market for personal VTOL aircraft is new, rapidly evolving, characterized by rapidly changing technologies, price competition, additional competitors, evolving government regulation and industry standards, frequent new vehicle announcements and changing consumer demands and behaviors. The market is highly competitive, and the SureFly design is competing with experimental aircraft from large original equipment manufacturers, or OEMs, small OEMs, other aviation related companies, technology companies and entrepreneurs. Currently, there are several VTOL aircraft being developed that have some similarity to SureFly, including eHang and Volocopter.

The resources available to our competitors to develop new products and introduce them into the marketplace exceed the resources currently available to us. As a result, our competitors may be able to compete more aggressively and sustain that competition over a longer period than we can. This intense competitive environment may require us to make changes in our products, pricing, licensing, services, distribution, or marketing to develop a market position. Each of these competitors has the potential to capture significant market share in our target markets which could have an adverse effect on our position in our industry and on our business and operating results.

If we are unable to keep up with advances in electric vehicle technology, we may suffer a decline in our competitive position.

There are companies in the electric vehicle industry that have developed or are developing vehicles and technologies that compete or will compete with our vehicles. We cannot assure that our competitors will not be able to duplicate our technology or provide products and services similar to ours more efficiently. If for any reason we are unable to keep pace with changes in electric vehicle technology, particularly battery technology, our competitive position may be adversely affected. We plan to upgrade or adapt our vehicles and introduce new models to continue to provide electric vehicles that incorporate the latest technology. However, there is no assurance that our research and development efforts will keep pace with those of our competitors.

Our electric vehicles compete for market share with vehicles powered by other vehicle technologies that may prove to be more attractive than ours.

Our target market currently is serviced by manufacturers with existing customers and suppliers using proven and widely accepted fossil fuel technologies. Additionally, our competitors are working on developing technologies that may be introduced in our target market. If any of these alternative technology vehicles can provide lower fuel costs, greater efficiencies, greater reliability or otherwise benefit from other factors resulting in an overall lower total cost of ownership, this may negatively affect the commercial success of our vehicles or make our vehicles uncompetitive or obsolete.

We currently have a limited number of customers, with whom we do not have long-term agreements, and expect that a significant portion of our future sales will be from a limited number of customers. The loss of any of these customers could materially harm our business.

A significant portion of our projected future revenue is expected to be generated from a limited number of fleet customers. Additionally, much of our business model is focused on building relationships with a few large fleet customers. Currently, we have no contracts with customers that include long-term commitments or minimum volumes that ensure future sales of vehicles. As such, a customer may take actions that negatively affect us for reasons that we cannot anticipate or control, such as reasons related to the customer’s financial condition, changes in the customer’s business strategy or operations or as the result of the perceived performance or cost-effectiveness of our vehicles. The loss of or a reduction in sales or anticipated sales to our most significant customers would have a material adverse effect on our business, prospects, financial condition and operating results.

Changes in the market for electric vehicles could cause our products to become obsolete or lose popularity.

The modern electric vehicle industry is in its infancy and has experienced substantial change in the last few years. To date, demand for electric vehicles has been slower than forecasted by industry experts. As a result, growth in the electric vehicle industry depends on many factors outside our control, including, but not limited to:

We cannot assume that growth in the electric vehicle industry will continue. Our business will suffer if the electric vehicle industry does not grow or grows more slowly than it has in recent years or if we are unable to maintain the pace of industry demands.

President Trump’s administration may create regulatory uncertainty for the alternative energy sector and may materially harm our business, financial condition and operating results.

President Trump’s administration may create regulatory uncertainty in the alternative energy sector. During the election campaign, President Trump made comments suggesting that he was not supportive of various clean energy programs and initiatives designed to curtail global warming. Since taking office, President Trump has released his America First Energy Plan which relies on fossil fuels, cancelled U.S. participation in the Paris Climate Agreement and signed several executive orders relating to oil pipelines. It remains unclear what specifically President Trump would or would not do with respect to these programs and initiatives, and what support he would have for any potential changes to such legislative programs and initiatives in the Unites States Congress. If President Trump and/or the United States Congress take action or publicly speak out about the need to eliminate or further reduce legislation, regulations and incentives supporting alternative energy or take action to further support the use of fossil fuels, such actions may result in a decrease in demand for alternative energy in the United States and may materially harm our business, financial condition and operating results.

The unavailability, reduction, elimination or adverse application of government subsidies, incentives and regulations could have an adverse effect on our business, prospects, financial condition and operating results.

We believe that, currently, the availability of government subsidies and incentives including those available in California and other areas is an important factor considered by our customers when purchasing our vehicles, and that our growth depends in part on the availability and amounts of these subsidies and incentives. Any reduction, elimination or discriminatory application of government subsidies and incentives because of budgetary challenges, policy changes, the reduced need for such subsidies and incentives due to the perceived success of electric vehicles or other reasons may result in the diminished price competitiveness of the alternative fuel vehicle industry.

We may be unable to keep up with changes in electric vehicle technology and, as a result, may suffer a decline in our competitive position.

Our current products are designed for use with, and are dependent upon, existing electric vehicle technology. As technologies change, we plan to upgrade or adapt our products to continue to provide products with the latest technology. However, our products may become obsolete or our research and development efforts may not be sufficient to adapt to changes in or to create the necessary technology. Thus, our potential inability to adapt and develop the necessary technology may harm our competitive position.

The failure of certain key suppliers to provide us with components could have a severe and negative impact upon our business.

We have secured supply agreements for our critical components, including our batteries. However, the agreements are dependent on volume to ensure that they are available at a competitive price. Further, we rely on a small group of suppliers to provide us with components for our products. If these suppliers become unwilling or unable to provide components or if we are unable to meet certain volume requirements in our existing supply agreements, there are a limited number of alternative suppliers who could provide them and the price for them could be substantially higher. Changes in business conditions, wars, governmental changes, and other factors beyond our control or which we do not presently anticipate could negatively affect our ability to receive components from our suppliers. Further, it could be difficult to find replacement components if our current suppliers fail to provide the parts needed for these products. A failure by our major suppliers to provide these components could severely restrict our ability to manufacture our products and prevent us from fulfilling customer orders in a timely fashion.

Product liability or other claims could have a material adverse effect on our business.

The risk of product liability claims, product recalls, and associated adverse publicity is inherent in the manufacturing, marketing, and sale of electrical vehicles. Although we have product liability insurance for our consumer and commercial products, that insurance may be inadequate to cover all potential product claims. We also carry liability insurance on our products. Any product recall or lawsuit seeking significant monetary damages either in excess of our coverage, or outside of our coverage, may have a material adverse effect on our business and financial condition. We may not be able to secure additional product liability insurance coverage on acceptable terms or at reasonable costs when needed. A successful product liability claim against us could require us to pay a substantial monetary award. Moreover, a product recall could generate substantial negative publicity about our products and business and inhibit or prevent commercialization of other future product candidates. We cannot provide assurance that such claims and/or recalls will not be made in the future.

We may have to devote substantial resources to implementing a retail product distribution network.

Dealers are often hesitant to provide their own financing to contribute to our product distribution network. Thus, we anticipate that we may have to provide financing or other consignment sale arrangements for dealers. A capital investment such as this presents many risks, foremost among them being that we may not realize a significant return on our investment if the network is not profitable. Our inability to collect receivables from dealers could cause us to suffer losses. Additionally, the amount of time that our management will need to devote to this project may divert them from performing other functions necessary to assure the success of our business. We have established a non-exclusive distribution agreement with Ryder to lower this risk.

Regulatory requirements may have a negative impact upon our business.

While our vehicles are subject to substantial regulation under federal, state, and local laws, we believe that our vehicles are or will be materially in compliance with all applicable laws. However, to the extent the laws change, or if we introduce new vehicles in the future, some or all of our vehicles may not comply with applicable federal, state, or local laws. Further, certain federal, state, and local laws and industrial standards currently regulate electrical and electronics equipment. Although standards for electric vehicles are not yet generally available or accepted as industry standards, our products may become subject to federal, state, and local regulation in the future. Compliance with these regulations could be burdensome, time consuming, and expensive.

Our products are subject to environmental and safety compliance with various federal and state regulations, including regulations promulgated by the EPA, NHTSA, FAA and various state boards, and compliance certification is required for each new model year. The cost of these compliance activities and the delays and risks associated with obtaining approval can be substantial. The risks, delays, and expenses incurred in connection with such compliance could be substantial.

Our success may be dependent on protecting our intellectual property rights.

We rely on trade secret protections to protect our proprietary technology as well as several registered patents and five patent applications. Our patents relate to the vehicle chassis assembly, vehicle header and drive module and manifold for electric motor drive assembly. Our existing patent applications relates to the onboard generator drive system for electric vehicles, the delivery drone, and the manned multicopter. Our success will, in part, depend on our ability to obtain additional trademarks and patents. We are working on obtaining patents and trademarks registered with the United States Patent and Trademark Office but have not finalized any as of this date. Although we have entered into confidentiality agreements with our employees and consultants, we cannot be certain that others will not gain access to these trade secrets. Others may independently develop substantially equivalent proprietary information and techniques or otherwise gain access to our trade secrets.

Our business may be adversely affected by union activities.

Although none of our employees are currently represented by a labor union, it is common throughout the automotive industry for many employees at automotive companies to belong to a union, which can result in higher employee costs and increased risk of work stoppages. Our employees may join or seek recognition to form a labor union, or we may be required to become a union signatory. Our production facility in Union City, Indiana was purchased from Navistar. Prior employees of Navistar were union members and our future work force at this facility may be inclined to vote in favor of forming a labor union. Furthermore, we are directly or indirectly dependent upon companies with unionized work forces, such as parts suppliers and trucking and freight companies, and work stoppages or strikes organized by such unions could have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition or operating results. If a work stoppage occurs, it could delay the manufacture and sale of our trucks and have a material adverse effect on our business, prospects, operating results or financial condition. The mere fact that our labor force could be unionized may harm our reputation in the eyes of some investors and thereby negatively affect our stock price. Consequently, the unionization of our labor force could negatively impact our company’s health.

We may be exposed to liability for infringing upon the intellectual property rights of other companies.

Our success will, in part, depend on our ability to operate without infringing on the proprietary rights of others. Although we have conducted searches and are not aware of any patents and trademarks which our products or their use might infringe, we cannot be certain that infringement has not or will not occur. We could incur substantial costs, in addition to the great amount of time lost, in defending any patent or trademark infringement suits or in asserting any patent or trademark rights, in a suit with another party.

Our electric vehicles make use of lithium-ion battery cells, which, if not appropriately managed and controlled, have occasionally been observed to catch fire or vent smoke and flames. If such events occur in our electric vehicles, we could face liability associated with our warranty, for damage or injury, adverse publicity and a potential safety recall, any of which would adversely affect our business, prospects, financial condition and operating results.

The battery packs in our electric vehicles use lithium-ion cells, which have been used for years in laptop computers and cell phones. On occasion, if not appropriately managed and controlled, lithium-ion cells can rapidly release the energy they contain by venting smoke and flames in a manner that can ignite nearby materials. Highly publicized incidents of laptop computers and cell phones bursting into flames have focused consumer attention on the safety of these cells. These events also have raised questions about the suitability of these lithium-ion cells for automotive applications. There can be no assurance that a field failure of our battery packs will not occur, which would damage the vehicle or lead to personal injury or death and may subject us to lawsuits. Furthermore, there is some risk of electrocution if individuals who attempt to repair battery packs on our vehicles do not follow applicable maintenance and repair protocols. Any such damage or injury would likely lead to adverse publicity and potentially a safety recall. Any such adverse publicity could adversely affect our business, prospects, financial condition and operating results. Warranty expense for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017 were $8.0 million and $0.1 million, respectively. The increase during the current year relates to issues with certain battery packs in our 2016 and 2017 E-GEN and E-100 vehicles. During the fourth quarter of 2018, the battery pack monitoring software indicated that some of the battery packs were not performing at expected levels. Some vehicles have undergone replacement of battery pack components. The Company is continuing to investigate the issue and explore potential quality issues with certain vendors. As a result of the above information, the Company increased its warranty reserve by $6.9 million in the fourth quarter.

We are subject to significant corporate regulation as a public company and failure to comply with all applicable regulations could subject us to liability or negatively affect our stock price.

As a publicly traded company, we are subject to a significant body of regulation, including the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. While we have developed and instituted a corporate compliance program based on what we believe are the current best practices in corporate governance and continue to update this program in response to newly implemented or changing regulatory requirements, we cannot provide assurance that we are or will be in compliance with all potentially applicable corporate regulations. In connection with management’s assessment of our internal control over financial reporting as required under Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, we identified material weaknesses pertaining to the lack of established adequate financial reporting activities and the lack of established proper accounting and financing reporting oversight. We cannot provide assurance that, in the future, our management will not find additional material weakness in connection with its annual review of our internal control over financial reporting pursuant to Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. We also cannot provide assurance that we will be able to remediate existing weaknesses and any such additional weakness identified; our failure to do so would prevent our management from concluding that our internal control over financial reporting as of the end of our fiscal year is effective. If we fail to comply with any of these regulations, we could be subject to a range of regulatory actions, fines or other sanctions or litigation. If we must disclose any material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting, our stock price could decline.

Cyber attacks could adversely affect the company

The Company faces a heightened risk of cyber-attack. Cyber-attacks may include hacking, viruses, malware, denial of service attacks, ransomware or other data security breaches. The Company’s business requires the continued operation of information systems and network infrastructure. In the event of a cyber-attack that the Company was unable to defend against or mitigate, the Company could have its operations and the operations of its customers and others disrupted. The Company could also have their financial and other information systems and network infrastructure impaired, property damaged and customer and employee information stolen; experience substantial loss of revenues, response costs and other financial loss; and be subject to increased regulation, litigation, penalties and damage to their reputation. The Company has experienced cyber-attacks, although none of the attacks had a material impact.

Risks Related to Owning Our Common Stock

If we fail to continue to meet the listing standards of NASDAQ, our common stock may be delisted, which could have a material adverse effect on the liquidity of our common stock.

Our common stock is currently listed on the Nasdaq Capital Market. The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC has requirements that a company must meet in order to remain listed on NASDAQ. In particular, NASDAQ rules require us to maintain a minimum bid price of $1.00 per share of our common stock. The Company was notified on December 4, 2018 that pursuant to NASDAQ Listing Rule 5810(c)(3)(A), it will be afforded 180 calendar days, or until June 3, 2019, to regain compliance with the minimum bid price requirement. There can be no assurance that we will meet the regain compliance with the minimum bid price requirement, or any other requirement in the future. If we fail to regain compliance with the minimum bid price requirement, The NASDAQ Stock Market LLC may initiate the delisting process with a notification letter. If we were to receive such a notification, we would be afforded a grace period of 180 calendar days to regain compliance with the minimum bid price requirement. In order to regain compliance, shares of our common stock would need to maintain a minimum closing bid price of at least $1.00 per share for a minimum of 10 consecutive trading days. In addition, we may be unable to meet other applicable NASDAQ listing requirements, including maintaining minimum levels of stockholders’ equity or market values of our common stock in which case, our common stock could be delisted. If our common stock were to be delisted, the liquidity of our common stock would be adversely affected and the market price of our common stock could decrease.

The trading of our shares of common has been relatively thin and there is no assurance that a liquid market for our shares of common stock will develop.

Our common stock has traded on the Nasdaq Capital Market, under the symbol “WKHS”, since January 2016. Since that date, our common stock has been relatively thinly traded. There can be no assurance that we will be able to successfully develop a liquid market for our common shares. The stock market in general, and early stage public companies in particular, has experienced extreme price and volume fluctuations that have often been unrelated or disproportionate to the operating performance of such companies. If we are unable to develop a market for our common shares, you may not be able to sell your common shares at prices you consider to be fair or at times that are convenient for you, or at all.

Our stock price and trading volume may be volatile, which could result in substantial losses for our stockholders.

The equity trading markets may experience periods of volatility, which could result in highly variable and unpredictable pricing of equity securities. The market price of our common stock could change in ways that may or may not be related to our business, our industry or our operating performance and financial condition. In addition, the trading volume in our common stock has been low and may fluctuate and cause significant price variations to occur. We have experienced significant volatility in the price of our stock. In addition, the stock markets in general can experience considerable price and volume fluctuations.

We have not paid cash dividends in the past and have no immediate plans to pay cash dividends.

We plan to reinvest all of our earnings, to the extent we have earnings, in order to develop our products, deliver on our orders and cover operating costs and to otherwise become and remain competitive. We do not plan to pay any cash dividends with respect to our securities in the foreseeable future. We cannot assure you that we would, at any time, generate sufficient surplus cash that would be available for distribution to the holders of our common stock as a dividend. Therefore, you should not expect to receive cash dividends on our common stock.

Shares eligible for future sale may adversely affect the market for our common stock.

Of the 61,496,990 shares of our common stock outstanding as of March 18, 2019, approximately 51.3 million shares are held by “non-affiliates” and may be freely tradable without restriction assuming compliance with Rule 144. In addition, we have Registration Statements on Form S-3 for purposes of registering the resale of 3,033,717 shares of common stock and 8,085,519 shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of stock purchase warrants that have been declared effective.  We are also obligated to register an additional 8,948,211 shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of stock purchase warrants. Any substantial sale of our common stock pursuant to Rule 144 or pursuant to any resale prospectus may have a material adverse effect on the market price of our common stock.

Shareholders may experience future dilution as a result of future equity offerings.

In order to raise additional capital, we may in the future offer additional shares of our common stock or other securities convertible into or exchangeable for our common stock at prices that may not be the same as the price per share in our prior offerings. We may sell shares or other securities in any future offering at a price per share that is lower than the price per share paid by historical investors, which would result in those newly issued shares being dilutive. In addition, investors purchasing shares or other securities in the future could have rights superior to existing stockholders, which could impair the value of existing shareholders. The price per share at which we sell additional shares of our common stock, or securities convertible or exchangeable into common stock, in future transactions may be higher or lower than the price per share paid by our historical investors.

Our charter documents and Nevada law may inhibit a takeover that stockholders consider favorable.

Provisions of our certificate of incorporation and bylaws and applicable provisions of Nevada law may delay or discourage transactions involving an actual or potential change in control or change in our management, including transactions in which stockholders might otherwise receive a premium for their shares, or transactions that our stockholders might otherwise deem to be in their best interests. The provisions in our certificate of incorporation and bylaws:

There are limitations on director/officer liability.

As permitted by Nevada law, our certificate of incorporation limits the liability of our directors for monetary damages for breach of a director’s fiduciary duty except for liability in certain instances. As a result of our charter provision and Nevada law, shareholders may have limited rights to recover against directors for breach of fiduciary duty. In addition, our certificate of incorporation provides that we shall indemnify our directors and officers to the fullest extent permitted by law.

ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

None.

ITEM 2. PROPERTIES

Our principal offices are located at 100 Commerce Drive, Loveland, Ohio 45140, which include 7,500 square feet in office space and 37,500 square feet in manufacturing/development space. In August 2018, Workhorse paid off the mortgage for the property.

We are currently leasing office space at 119 Northeast Drive, Loveland, Ohio 45140. The leased office space is 5,810 square feet of office space in a 255,392 square foot building. We pay $4,500 per month and are on month-to-month terms from an agreement which commenced July 10, 2017.

The following table sets forth the location, approximate size and primary use of our principal owned, leased and licensed facilities:

We believe our facilities are in good operating condition and that our facilities are adequate for all present and near term uses.

ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

In May 2018, Precision Manufacturing Company, Inc. (“PMC”) filed a complaint against the Company in the Common Pleas Court of Montgomery, Ohio, which complaint was amended July 26, 2018.  PMC, a former vendor, is claiming Breach of Contract, Unjust Enrichment, Action on Account and Fraud and is seeking $132,189 in damages plus attorney fees and costs. The Company has filed its Answer to the Amended Complaint.

In August 2018, Workhorse Motor Works Inc. was served with a Declaration of Forced Intervention and Application in Warranty in connection with an action in the Superior Court (Civil Division) located in the Province of Quebec, District of Montreal between Aviva Insurance Company of Canada v. Thor Motor Coach and Navistar Canada, Inc. pertaining to the motor home destroyed by fire. Navistar Canada, Inc. provided the chassis sourced from Workhorse Motor Works Inc. which at the time was owned by Navistar. Workhorse Group Inc. did not acquire the assets of Workhorse Motor Works Inc. until 2013. The Company intends to vigorously defend this action.

On January 10, 2019, the Company was served with a Default Request, Affidavit, Entry and Judgment in the Circuit Court for the County of Oakland by a former service provider (“Vendor”) relating to a Verified Complaint by Pilot for Breach of Contract claim that the Company was not properly served. On February 14, 2019, the Company and Pilot entered into a Stipulated Order to Set Aside and Dismiss Lawsuit providing that the parties have entered into a Settlement Agreement whereby Workhorse agreed to make cash payments in the amount of $600,000 in several tranches in return of certain property including two development chassis, the development vehicle and all intellectual property developed as well as a full release of all parties.

ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

None.

PART II

ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES

Market Information

On January 4, 2016 the Company was approved by Nasdaq Capital Market and our common stock is now quoted on Nasdaq under the symbol “WKHS”. Our common stock was previously quoted on the OTCQB under the symbol “TTSO” from July 14, 2009 through May 24, 2010 and then under the symbol “AMPD” from May 24, 2010 to April 16, 2015 when the Company was renamed Workhorse Group Inc. The following table sets forth the range of high and low prices per share of our common stock for each period indicated.

On December 9, 2015, the Company filed a Certificate of Change with the State of Nevada to effect a reverse stock split of its outstanding and authorized shares of common stock at a ratio of 1 for 10 (the “Reverse Stock Split”). Fractional shares that resulted from the Reverse Stock Split were rounded up to the next highest number. The Reverse Stock Split was approved by the Board of Directors of the Company. The effective date of the Reverse Stock Split was December 11, 2015. At the effective time, every ten shares of common stock issued and outstanding were automatically combined into one share of issued and outstanding common stock, without any change in the par value. In addition, the authorized shares of common stock were reduced from 500,000,000 to 50,000,000. The above market prices reflect such Reverse Stock Split. On August 7, 2017, the shareholders of the Company voted to increase the authorized shares of common stock to 100,000,000 and the Certificate of Amendment amending the Articles of Incorporation was filed with the State of Nevada on August 8, 2017.

Holders of our Common Stock

As of March 18, 2019, there were approximately 195 stockholders of record of our common stock. This number does not include shares held by brokerage clearing houses, depositories or others in unregistered form. The stock transfer agent for our securities is Empire Stock Transfer, Inc., 1859 Whitney Mesa Drive, Henderson, Nevada 89014.

Dividends

The Company has never declared or paid any cash dividends on its common stock. The Company currently intends to retain future earnings, if any, to finance the expansion of its business. As a result, the Company does not anticipate paying any cash dividends in the foreseeable future.

Stock Performance Graph

This performance graph shall not be deemed “filed” for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the Exchange Act), or incorporated by reference into any filing of Workhorse under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Exchange Act, except as shall be expressly set forth by specific reference in such filing.

The following graph shows a comparison from January 1, 2013 through December 31, 2018, of the cumulative total return for our common stock, the NASDAQ Composite Index, and a group of peer group companies similarly situated. Such returns are based on historical results and are not intended to suggest future performance. Data for The NASDAQ Composite Index and the peer group assumes an investment of $100 on January 1, 2013 and reinvestment of dividends. We have never declared or paid cash dividends on our capital stock nor do we anticipate paying any such cash dividends in the foreseeable future.

Securities Authorized for Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans

The following table sets forth the aggregate information of our equity compensation plans in effect as of December 31, 2018:

Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities

On January 10, 2017, the Company entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement with Joseph T. Lukens (“Lukens”) providing for the sale by the Company to Lukens of a 6% Convertible Debenture in the aggregate amount of $2,000,000 (the “Lukens Debenture”) in consideration of $2,000,000. The financing closed on January 10, 2017. On January 27, 2017, the Company and Lukens entered into a Conversion Agreement pursuant to which Lukens agreed to convert his outstanding 6% Convertible Debenture in the principal amount of $2,000,000 plus interest into shares of common stock of the Company at the offering price of the Company’s public offering.

During the year ended December 31, 2017, employees and members of the Board of Directors exercised options into 964,525 shares of common stock of the Company. During the year ended December 31, 2017, the Company granted options to acquire 1,900,000 shares of common stock to employees, executives and members of the Board of Directors.

In November 2017, Prefix Corporation converted an existing Accounts Payable Liability of $1,034,539 into 272,247 shares of Common Stock at a price per share of $3.80. In addition, the Company issued Prefix Corporation 130,000 shares of common stock valued at $3.80 per share for modeling and mule services as well as consulting services associated with USPS support, component sourcing and integration services needed for the chassis sub-assembly contractor. 

During the year ended December 31, 2018, the Company granted options to acquire 340,000 shares of common stock to employees, executives and members of the Board of Directors.

On April 24, 2018, the Company entered into an Agreement with Prefix Corporation, an integral vendor, pursuant to which the Company issued 113,874 shares of common stock to settle an invoice in the amount of $298,350.

On April 26, 2018, the Company entered into and closed Subscription Agreements with accredited investors (the “April 2018 Accredited Investors”) pursuant to which the April 2018 Accredited Investors purchased 531,066 shares of the Company’s common stock (“April 2018 Shares”) for a purchase price of $1,444,500 or $2.72 per share. Stephen Burns, Benjamin Samuels, Gerald Budde and Julio Rodriguez, executive officers and/or directors of the Company, participated in this offering.

On July 6, 2018, we, as borrower, entered into a Loan Agreement with a fund managed by Arosa Capital Management LP (“Arosa”), as lender, providing for a term loan (the “Arosa Loan”) in the principal amount of $6.1 million (the “Loan Agreement”), which was subsequently increased to $7.8 million. We paid off the Arosa Loan on December 31, 2018. In accordance with the Loan Agreement, we issued Arosa a warrant to purchase 5,000,358 shares of common stock of the Company at an exercise price of $2.00 per share, which was subsequently reduced to $1.25, exercisable in cash only for a period of five years. Since July 6, 2018, we issued Arosa an additional warrant to acquire 108,768 shares of common stock at an exercise price of $1.596, which was subsequently reduced to $1.25, on October 1, 2018. As a result of our August 2018 public offering including the over-allotment, we issued to Arosa an additional warrant to purchase 1,143,200 shares of common stock at an exercise price of $1.21. The Company issued Arosa a Warrant to purchase 894,821 shares of common stock exercisable at $1.25 per share upon the closing of the Marathon financing. Pursuant to the warrant, Arosa may not exercise such warrant if such exercise would result in Arosa beneficially owning in excess of 9.99% of our then issued and outstanding common stock. On November 28, 2018, in consideration for consenting to the Company selling certain battery cells to Duke Energy, which served as collateral for Arosa Opportunistic Fund LP (“Arosa”) under a Loan Agreement, dated as of July 8, 2018, as amended, for $7.8 million, the Company entered into a Limited Consent, Waiver and Release with Arosa pursuant to which the Company issued Arosa 2,000,000 shares of common stock and restruck the exercise price of  warrants previously issued to Arosa to $1.25 per share.

On December 31, 2018, the Company entered into a Credit Agreement (the “Credit Agreement”), among the Company, as borrower, Marathon Asset Management, LP, on behalf of certain entities it manages, as lenders (collectively, with their permitted successors and assignees, the “Lenders”), and Wilmington Trust, National Association, as the agent (“Wilmington”).  The Credit Agreement provided the Company with a $10 million tranche of term loans and a $25 million tranche of term loans which may be re-borrowed following repayment. In accordance with the Credit Agreement, the Company issued each Lender a Common Stock Purchase Warrant to purchase, in the aggregate, 8,053,390 shares of common stock of the Company at an exercise price of $1.25 per share exercisable in cash only for a period of three years and then for cash or cashless thereafter (collectively, the “Initial Warrants”). Until the later of the repayment of all obligations owed to the Lenders or two years from the closing date, the Company will be required to issue additional Common Stock Purchase Warrants (the “Additional Warrants”) to the Lenders equal to 10%, in the aggregate, of any additional issuance, subject to certain exceptions, on substantially the same terms and conditions of the Initial Warrants, except that (i) the applicable expiration date thereof shall be five years from the issuance date of the applicable warrant, (ii) the initial exercise price shall be a price equal to the price per share of common stock used in the relevant issuance multiplied by 110% and (iii) the holder shall be entitled to exercise the warrant on a cashless exercise at any time the warrant is exercisable.

Commencing February 11, 2019, the Company entered into and closed Subscription Agreements with accredited investors (the “February 2019 Accredited Investors”) pursuant to which the February 2019 Accredited Investors purchased 1,499,684 shares of the Company’s common stock for a purchase price of $1,365,000. If, prior to the six month anniversary, the Company issues shares of its common stock for a purchase price per share less than the purchase price paid by the February 2019 Accredited Investors subject to standard carve-outs (a “Down Round”), the Company will issue additional shares of common stock (for no additional consideration) to the February 2019 Accredited Investors such that the effective purchase price per share is equal to the purchase price per share paid in the Down Round. Benjamin Samuels and Gerald Budde, directors of the Company, acquired 841,928 and 26,310 shares of common stock, respectively, as part of this offering, provided, however, their per share purchase was $0.9501, which was above the closing price the date prior to close and they did not receive the Down Round protection.

The offers, sales, and issuances of the securities described above were deemed to be exempt from registration under the Securities Act in reliance on Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act or Regulation D promulgated thereunder as transactions by an issuer not involving a public offering. The recipients of securities in each of these transactions acquired the securities for investment only and not with a view to or for sale in connection with any distribution thereof and appropriate legends were affixed to the securities issued in these transactions. Each of the recipients of securities in these transactions was an accredited or sophisticated person and had adequate access, through employment, business or other relationships, to information about us.

ITEM 6. SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA 

Note: Share and per share data adjusted for reverse stock split

ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

The following discussion and analysis should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and the related notes that appear elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K

Overview and 2018 Highlights

We are a technology company focused on providing sustainable and cost-effective solutions to the commercial transportation sector. As an American manufacturer, we design and build high performance battery-electric vehicles and aircraft that make movement of people and goods more efficient and less harmful to the environment. As part of our solution, we also develop cloud-based, real-time telematics performance monitoring systems that enable fleet operators to optimize energy and route efficiency. Although we operate as a single unit through our subsidiaries, we approach our development through two divisions, Automotive and Aviation. We are currently focused on our core competency of bringing the N-GEN electric cargo van to market and fulfilling our existing backlog of orders. We are also exploring other opportunities in monetizing our intellectual property which could include a sale, license or other arrangement of assets that are outside of our core focus.

Workhorse electric delivery vans are currently in production and are in use by our customers on U.S. roads. Our delivery customers include companies such as UPS, FedEx Express, Alpha Baking and W.B. Mason. Data from our in-house developed telematics system demonstrates our vehicles on the road are averaging approximately a 500% increase in fuel economy as compared to conventional gasoline-based trucks of the same size and duty cycle.

In addition to improved fuel economy, we anticipate that the performance of our vehicles on-route will reduce long-term vehicle maintenance expense by approximately 50% as compared to fossil-fueled trucks.

We are an OEM capable of manufacturing Class 3-6 commercial-grade, medium-duty truck chassis at our Union City, Indiana facility, marketed under the Workhorse® brand. All Workhorse last mile delivery vans are assembled in the Union City assembly facility.

From our development modeling and the existing performance of our electric vehicles on American roads, we estimate that our E-GEN Range-Extended Electric delivery vans will save over $150,000 in fuel and maintenance savings over the 20-year life of the vehicle. Due to the positive return-on-investment, we place a premium price for our vehicles when selling to major fleet buyers. We expect that fleet buyers will be able to achieve a four-year or better return-on-investment (without government incentives), which we believe justifies the higher acquisition cost of our vehicles.

Our goal is to continue to increase sales and production, while executing on our cost-down strategy to a point that will enable us to achieve gross margin profitability of the last mile-delivery van platform. As a key strategy, we have developed the Workhorse N-GEN platform, which has been accelerated from our development efforts on the USPS NGDV program.

The Workhorse N-GEN electric cargo van platform will be available in multiple size configurations, 450, 700 and 1,000 cubic feet. We intend to initiate the launch with the 450 cubic foot configuration where it is designed to compete with the Sprinter, Transit and RAM gasoline/diesel trucks in the commercial sector with an emphasis on last-mile delivery and other service-oriented businesses, such as telecom. This ultra-low floor platform incorporates state-of-the-art safety features, economy and performance: we expect these vehicles to achieve a fuel economy of approximately 60 MPGe and offer fleet operators the most favorable total cost-of-ownership of any comparable vehicle available today. We believe we are the first American OEM to market a U.S. built electric cargo van, and early indications of fleet interest are significant. We expect the N-GEN trucks will be supported by our Ryder Systems partnership. Using N-GEN light duty prototypes, we delivered over 100,000 packages in San Francisco and Ohio during our testing. During the period we achieved 50 MPGe and successfully demonstrated the role the vehicle can have in last mile delivery.

As a direct result of the USPS award and development efforts, Workhorse has begun development on the Workhorse W-15, a medium- and light-duty pickup truck platform aimed at commercial fleets. The W-15 pickup truck powertrain is a smaller version of its sister vehicle, the medium-duty battery electric powertrain, and will have two purpose-built variants, a W-15 work truck (pickup) and an N-GEN cargo van. Either of these two variants will appeal to delivery fleets, utility companies, telecom companies, municipalities and more.

Our HorseFly delivery drone is a custom designed, purpose-built drone that is fully integrated in our electric trucks. HorseFly is an octocopter designed with a maximum gross weight of 30 lbs., a 10 lb. payload and a maximum air speed of 50 mph. It is designed and built to be rugged and consisting of redundant systems to further meet the FAA’s required rules and regulations.

SureFly is our entry into the emerging VTOL market. It is designed to be a two-person, 400-pound payload aircraft with a hybrid internal combustion/electric power generation system. Our approach in the design is to build the safest and simplest way to fly rotary wing aircraft in the world. We believe it is a practical answer to personal flight, as well as, commercial transportation segments, including air taxi series, agriculture and beyond.

The FAA to-date has granted 14 separate Experimental Airworthiness Certifications, registered as N834LW, for the aircraft. These certifications come after an extensive design review and inspection of the aircraft with each renewed certificate.

In November 2018, Workhorse signed cooperative research and development agreement with a branch of the U.S. Military to test SureFly with a specific focus on military applications. This further expands the potential market for the aircraft.

We are continuing with our efforts to consummate a sale of the SureFly business although we cannot guarantee that we will be successful in such efforts.

Executive Team Changes

On January 30, 2019, Stephen S. Burns, Chief Executive Officer and a member of the Board of Directors (the “Board”) of the Company, resigned as Chief Executive Officer and as a member of the Board, effective immediately. Mr. Burns will serve the Company as a consultant pursuant to a Services Agreement between Mr. Burns and the Company dated as of February 4, 2019 (the “Services Agreement”).

On February 4, 2019, the Company announced the appointment of Duane Hughes as Chief Executive Officer and a member of the Board effective February 4, 2019. Mr. Hughes previously served as the Company’s President and Chief Operating Officer. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Hughes served as Chief Operating Officer of Cumulus Interactive Technologies Group (“Cumulus ITG”). Prior to joining Cumulus ITG, Mr. Hughes served in senior management positions with Gannett Co., Inc., including as Vice President of Sales and Operations for Gannett Media Technologies International.

There is no understanding or arrangement between Mr. Hughes and any other person pursuant to which Mr. Hughes was selected as a director of the Company. Mr. Hughes does not have any family relationship with any director, executive officer or person nominated or chosen by us to become a director or an executive officer.  Since January 1, 2018, Mr. Hughes has not had a direct or indirect material interest in any transaction or proposed transaction, in which the Company was or is a proposed participant exceeding $120,000.

In connection with his appointment as Chief Executive Officer, the Company entered into an amended and restated retention agreement (the “Retention Agreement”) with Mr. Hughes effective February 4, 2019. Pursuant to the Retention Agreement, Mr. Hughes will receive a base salary of $350,000 per year and will be eligible to receive a target performance bonus equal to 50% of his base salary with the potential to increase to 100% or 150% of his base salary assuming pre-determined milestones are met as determined by the Board. Mr. Hughes will also receive a $25,000 signing bonus as well as a $25,000 bonus upon the Company raising $10 million in financing. The Company also granted an option to purchase 1,000,000 shares of the Company’s common stock that will vest over a three-year period. The stock option award was granted under the Company’s 2017 Incentive Stock Plan with an exercise price equal to $0.97. The shares subject to such options will vest over three years in equal quarterly installments commencing March 31, 2019.

In the event Mr. Hughes is terminated without cause or resigns for good reason (as such terms are defined in the Retention Agreement), he will be entitled to severance payments in an amount equal to his base salary plus a prorated portion of his target performance bonus. In addition, any outstanding equity awards will immediately accelerate and vest. The Company will also continue to pay the employer portion of the COBRA premium cost for up to twelve months. In the event Mr. Hughes is terminated without cause or resigns for good reason within twelve months following a change in control of the Company (as such term is defined in the Retention Agreement) he shall be entitled to severance benefits described above.

In connection with his appointment as Chief Executive Officer, on February 4, 2019, the Company entered into a letter agreement (the “Director Agreement”) with Mr. Hughes setting forth certain terms of his appointment as director of the Company. The Director Agreement provides that Mr. Hughes will receive an annual fee of $40,000 as consideration for his service as a director.  Additionally, the Company granted Mr. Hughes options to purchase 50,000 shares of the Company’s common stock at $0.97 per share. The options will expire ten years from the vesting period with 10,000 options vesting immediately and 4,000 every June 30 and December 31 thereafter.

Under the Services Agreement, Mr. Burns will provide consulting services to the Company for a term of one year and will receive a consulting fee of $27,083 per month. The Company also granted Mr. Burns an option to purchase 1,000,000 shares of the Company’s common stock which vested immediately. The stock option award was granted under the Company’s 2017 Incentive Stock Plan with an exercise price equal to $0.97.

On February 19, 2019, the Company announced the appointment of Robert Willison as Chief Operating Officer effective February 18, 2019. Mr. Willison previously served as Director of Fleet Technology for Sysco Corporation. Prior to joining Sysco, Mr. Willison served as the Company’s Director of Research and Development from 2016 until 2018. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Willison served as a Partner and Chief Technology Officer for Räv Technology LLC from 2014 until 2016. Prior to joining Räv Technology, Mr. Willison served as Director of International Operations and New Business Development for PDi Communication Systems.

Mr. Willison does not have any family relationship with any director, executive officer or person nominated or chosen by us to become a director or an executive officer.  Since January 1, 2018, Mr. Willison has not had a direct or indirect material interest in any transaction or proposed transaction, in which the Company was or is a proposed participant exceeding $120,000.

In connection with his appointment as Chief Operating Officer, the Company entered into a retention agreement (the “Retention Agreement”) with Mr. Willison effective February 18, 2019. Pursuant to the Retention Agreement, Mr. Willison will receive a base salary of $250,000 per year and will be eligible to receive a target performance bonus equal to 50% of his base salary with the potential to increase to 100% or 150% of his base salary assuming pre-determined milestones are met as determined by the Board. Subject to the approval by the Company’s shareholders of the Company’s 2019 Stock Incentive Plan, the Company will grant an option to purchase 400,000 shares of the Company’s common stock that will vest over a four-year period in equal quarterly installments commencing in the quarter in which the 2019 Stock Incentive Plan is approved. The stock option award will be granted under the Company’s 2019 Incentive Stock Plan with an exercise price equal to the closing price of the Company’s common stock on the date of shareholder approval of the 2019 Incentive Stock Plan.

In the event Mr. Willison is terminated without cause or resigns for good reason (as such terms are defined in the Retention Agreement), he will be entitled to severance payments in an amount equal to his base salary plus a prorated portion of his target performance bonus. In addition, any outstanding equity awards will immediately accelerate and vest. The Company will also continue to pay the employer portion of the COBRA premium cost for up to twelve months. In the event Mr. Willison is terminated without cause or resigns for good reason within twelve months following a change in control of the Company (as such term is defined in the Retention Agreement) he shall be entitled to severance benefits described above.

The foregoing summary description of the Retention Agreement does not purport to be complete and is subject to, and qualified in its entirety by, the full text of the agreement, a copy of which is filed as Exhibit 10.1 hereto and incorporated by reference herein.

On February 19, 2019 the Company issued a press release regarding Mr. Willison’s appointment. The press release is filed with this report on Form 8-K as Exhibit 99.1 and is incorporated herein by reference.

Results of Operations

Our condensed consolidated statement of operations data for the period presented follows:

Revenue

Sales for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017 were $0.8 million and $10.0 million, respectively. The net sales decrease was primarily due to a decrease in volume of trucks sold due to strategic shift to development of the N-GEN platform.

Cost of Sales

Cost of sales for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017 were $8.0 million and $24.4 million, respectively. The cost of sales decrease was primarily due to a decrease in volume of trucks sold due to strategic shift to development of the N-GEN platform.

Warranty Expense

Warranty expenses for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017 were $8.0 million and $0.1 million, respectively. The increase during the current year relates to issues with certain battery packs in our 2016 and 2017 E-Series trucks. During the fourth quarter of 2018, the battery pack monitoring software indicated that some of the battery packs were not performing at expected levels. Some vehicles have undergone replacement of battery pack components. The Company is continuing to investigate the issue and has found specific quality issues with components from certain vendors. $6.9 million of the expense was recorded in the fourth quarter to increase the warranty accrual at year-end. The accrual includes coverage for labor and transportation and excludes any contribution from related vendors.

Selling, General and Administrative Expenses

Selling, general and administrative (“SG&A”) expenses during year ended December 31, 2018 were $11.5 million, an increase from $8.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2017. The SG&A expense increase primarily related to higher marketing and advertising costs of approximately $1.6 million, investment banking related fees of approximately $0.7 million and legal settlement costs of $0.4 million. This was partially offset by lower consulting fees of approximately $0.4 million.

Research and Development Expenses

Research and development (“R&D”) expenses during the year ended December 31, 2018 were $7.4 million, a decrease from $17.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2017. The decrease in R&D expenses is due to the decrease in prototype and consulting expenses for the USPS, NGDV and SureFly.

Interest Expenses

Interest expenses during the year ended December 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017 were $2.4 million and $0.2 million, respectively. The increase during 2018 was primarily due to cash interest and the amortization of debt issuance costs and discounts associated with the Arosa Loan as well as the amortization of the discount associated with the Senior Secured Notes.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

Cash Requirements

From inception, we have financed our operations primarily through sales of equity securities. We have utilized this capital in our research and development of five truck-based platforms (i.e., E-GEN, E-100, W-15 Pickup Truck, USPS Prototype and N-GEN) and two aviation platforms (HorseFly and SureFly) and to fund designing, building and delivering our vehicles to our customer base and for working capital purposes.

As of December 31, 2018, we had approximately $1.5 million in cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments, compared to approximately $4.1 million as of December 31, 2017, a decrease of $2.6 million. The decrease in cash and cash equivalents was primarily attributable to the operating loss for the period partially offset by the issuance of common stock during the period.

On December 31, 2018, the Company entered into a Credit Agreement (the “Credit Agreement”), among the Company, as borrower, Marathon Asset Management, LP, on behalf of certain entities it manages, as lenders (collectively, with their permitted successors and assignees, the “Lenders”), and Wilmington Trust, National Association, as the agent (“Wilmington”).  The Credit Agreement provided the Company with a $10 million tranche of term loans (the “Tranche One Loans”) which may not be re-borrowed following repayment and (ii) a $25 million tranche of term loans which may be re-borrowed following repayment (the “Tranche Two Loans” together with the Tranche One Loans, the “Loans”). The Company used the proceeds for the Tranche One Loans (x) to pay off a loan provided by Arosa Opportunistic Fund LP (“Arosa”) in the principal amount of $7.8 million plus interest and (y) for working capital purposes. Draws from the Tranche Two Loans will be used in connection with vehicle production and are subject to the Company’s receipt of purchase orders. The Company’s ability to borrow amounts under the Credit Agreement is conditioned upon its compliance with specified covenants, including certain reporting covenants and financial covenants that, in addition to other items, require the Company to maintain (i) minimum liquidity of at least $4 million at all times on or after March 31, 2019, (ii) a maximum total leverage ratio (ratio of total debt borrowed by the Company to EBITDA for the four consecutive fiscal quarters most recently ended, subject to certain adjustments set forth in the Credit Agreement) not to exceed 4.50:1.00 on the last day of the quarter ended September 30, 2019, which total leverage ratio is adjusted for subsequent quarters as set forth in the Credit Agreement and (iii) a maximum debt service coverage ratio (ratio of EBITDA (for the four consecutive fiscal quarters most recently ended, subject to certain adjustments set forth in the Credit Agreement) to interest expense and payments for operating leases) not to exceed 1.25:1.00 on the last day of the quarter ended September 30, 2019, which debt service coverage ratio is adjusted for subsequent quarters as set forth in the Credit Agreement. In the event the Company breaches the total leverage ratio or the debt service coverage ratio covenants, the Company may cure such breach by raising capital through the sale of equity, which capital will be added on a dollar-for-dollar basis to the calculation of EBITDA for purposes of such test period to determine compliance with the financial covenant. In each consecutive four fiscal quarter period, equity cures can only be made for two fiscal quarters, and only four equity cures are allowed during the term of the Credit Agreement. The capital raised in connection with such equity cure must be used to repay the Loans. In addition, the Credit Agreement contains customary representations and warranties and customary affirmative and negative covenants. The Tranche One Loans, and both the drawn and undrawn portions of the Tranche Two Loan, will bear interest at a rate per annum (based on a year of 360 days) equal to LIBOR (as defined in the Credit Agreement) plus 7.625%, which interest is payable quarterly commencing April 5, 2019, as amended. The Credit Agreement contains customary events of default, including for non-payment, misrepresentation, breach of covenants, defaults under other material indebtedness, material adverse change, bankruptcy, change of control and material judgments. The Loans mature on the third anniversary of the closing date. The Company is required to repay a portion of the Tranche One Loans with $500,000 installment payments on each of June 30, 2020, December 31, 2020 and June 30, 2021. Upon the occurrence and during the continuance of an event of default, the Lenders may declare all outstanding amounts thereunder immediately due and payable and may terminate commitments to make any additional advances under the Tranche Two Loans. The Tranche Two Loans are required to be prepaid in an amount equal to the payments received from the subject purchase orders. The Company is also obligated to repay the Loans with a specified percentage of the net cash proceeds the Company receives in connection with certain dispositions of assets, casualty events, incurrences of debt and any issuances of capital stock (other than issuances of capital stock during the first 9 months after closing). The Company is required to prepay the Loans utilizing 100% of the net proceeds from any casualty event or the issuance or incurrence of debt and 50% of the net proceeds from any disposition. If the Company receives net cash proceeds from the issuance of capital stock after the nine-month anniversary of the closing date, the Company is required to prepay the Loans utilizing 35% of the net cash proceeds from such issuance. With limited exceptions, if the Company prepays any portion of the Tranche One Loans or the Tranche Two Loans (with the concomitant termination of the portion of the commitments under the Tranche Two Loans that is repaid) during the 12 months following the closing date, it is required to pay 100% of the interest that would have been due on such prepaid Loans if the prepaid amounts had been outstanding for a period of 12 months after the date of prepayment. If such prepayment occurs during the period beginning after the 12 month anniversary of the closing date and continuing through the 18 month anniversary of the closing date, the Company is required to pay 50% of the interest that would have been due on such prepaid Loans for the 12 month period following the date of such prepayment on a prorated basis. The Company, the Company’s subsidiaries and Wilmington, as agent for the Lenders, entered into a Security Agreement, a Pledge Agreement and a Guarantee, among other loan documents, providing that the Company’s obligations to the Lenders are secured by a first priority security interest in substantially all of the Company’s and its subsidiaries’ tangible and intangible assets including the Company’s real property located in Loveland, Ohio and Union City, Indiana. On March 13, 2019, the Company and the Lenders entered into the First Amendment, Waiver and Consent to Credit Agreement, which, among other items, adjusted the interest payment date to the fifth day of January, April, July and October.

We believe our existing capital resources, including our new Marathon Credit Facility, will be sufficient to support our current and projected funding requirements into the second quarter of 2019. Additional funding will be required.

Our operations will require significant additional funding for the foreseeable future. Unless we are able to generate a sufficient amount of revenue and reduce our costs, we expect to finance future cash needs through public and/or private offerings of equity securities and/or debt financings. With the exception of contingent and royalty payments that we may receive under our existing collaborations, we do not currently have any committed future funding. To the extent we raise additional capital by issuing equity securities, our stockholders could at that time experience substantial dilution. Any debt financing that we are able to obtain may involve operating covenants that restrict our business.

Our future funding requirements will depend upon many factors, including, but not limited to:

Insufficient funds have required a reduction in business activity. Additional delay in funding will continue to defer, scale back or eliminate some or all of our research or development programs, limit our sales activities, limit or cease production or negatively impact our operations.

For the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017, we maintained an investment in a bank money market fund. Cash in excess of immediate requirements is invested with regard to liquidity and capital preservation. Wherever possible, we seek to minimize the potential effects of concentration and degrees of risk. We will continue to monitor the impact of the changes in the conditions of the credit and financial markets to our investment portfolio and assess if future changes in our investment strategy are necessary.

Summary of Cash Flows

Cash Flows from Operating Activities

Our cash flows from operating activities are affected by our cash investments to support the business in research and development, manufacturing, selling, general and administration. Our operating cash flows are also affected by our working capital needs to support fluctuations in inventory, personnel expenses, accounts payable and other current assets and liabilities.

During the year ended December 31, 2018 and 2017, cash used in operating activities was $21.8 million and $38.7 million, respectively. The decrease in net cash used in operations in 2018 as compared to 2017 was mainly due to a lower net loss for the period as well as increases in inventory and warranty reserves and accrued liabilities.

Cash Flows from Financing Activities

During the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017, net cash provided by financing activities was $19.2 million and $42.4 million, respectively. Cash flows from financing activities during the year ended December 31, 2018 consisted primarily of shares issued related to the Company’s August 2018 Offering with National Securities, the Cowen Agreement, the April 2018 closed Subscription Agreements and the Marathon Credit Facility. Cash flows from financing activities for the period ended December 31, 2017 consisted primarily of a net $37.0 million from a public stock offering. 

The Company may seek to raise additional capital through public or private debt or equity financings in order to fund its operations.

Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements

The Company does not have any off-balance sheet arrangements that have or are reasonably likely to have a current or future effect on the Company’s financial condition, changes in financial condition, revenues or expenses, results of operations, liquidity, capital expenditures or capital resources that are material to investors.

Federal Tax Credit Qualification by the IRS

The Company has been qualified by the IRS for a vehicle federal tax credit of up to $7,500 on vehicles whose gross vehicle rate weighting is less than 14,000 lbs. The Company joins a list of plug-in electric drive motor vehicle manufacturers, including Ford Motor Company, General Motors Corporation, Tesla, Toyota, and 13 EV manufacturers in all, qualifying purchasers for up to a $7,500 tax credit when purchasing an electric vehicle.

Additionally, many states offer additional sales tax exemptions and zero emission tax credits of up to $5,000 that can also be applied to the purchase.

California Air Resources Board Approval

On February 20, 2013, CARB approved the Company’s E-100 all-electric commercial truck for sale in the state of California. Most other states use this approval for sale of vehicles in their state.

Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

The following accounting principles and practices of the Company are set forth to facilitate the understanding of data presented in the consolidated financial statements:

Nature of operations

We are a technology company focused on providing sustainable and cost-effective solutions to the commercial transportation sector. As an American manufacturer we design and build high performance battery-electric electric vehicles and aircraft that make movement of people and goods more efficient and less harmful to the environment. As part of our solution, we also develop cloud-based, real-time telematics performance monitoring systems that enable fleet operators to optimize energy and route efficiency. Although we operate as a single unit through our subsidiaries, we approach our development through two divisions, Automotive and Aviation. Our core products, under development and/or in manufacture, are the medium duty step van, the light duty pickup, the delivery drone and the manned multicopter.

Use of estimates

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect certain reported amounts and disclosures. Accordingly, actual results could differ from those estimates.

Property and depreciation

Property and equipment is recorded at cost. Depreciation is provided on the straight-line over the estimated useful lives of the respective assets.

Income taxes

As no taxable income has occurred from the date of this merger to December 31, 2018, cumulative deferred tax assets of approximately $29.6 million are fully reserved, and no provision or liability for federal or state income taxes has been included in the financial statements. Carryover amounts are:

Research and development costs

Research and development costs are expensed as they are incurred. Research and development expense incurred was approximately $7.4 million and $17.7 million for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively, consisting of consulting, payroll and payroll taxes, engineering, purchased supplies, legal fees, parts and small tools.

ITEM 7A. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK

The primary objective of our investment activities is to preserve principal while at the same time maximizing the income we receive from our investments without significantly increasing risk. Some of the securities in which we invest may have market risk. This means that a change in prevailing interest rates may cause the fair value amount of the investment to fluctuate. For example, if we hold a security that was issued with a fixed interest rate at the then-prevailing rate and the prevailing interest rate later rises, the market value amount of our investment will decline. To minimize this risk, we maintain our portfolio of cash equivalents and short-term investments in a variety of securities, including money market funds and government and non-government debt securities and the maturities of each of these instruments is less than one year. In 2018, we maintained an investment portfolio primarily in money market funds. Due to the primarily short-term nature and low interest rate yields of these investments, we believe we do not have a material exposure to interest rate risk and market risk arising from our investments. Therefore, no quantitative tabular disclosure is provided.

We have operated primarily in the United States. Accordingly, we have not had any significant exposure to foreign currency rate fluctuations.

ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

TABLE OF CONTENTS

REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

Board of Directors and Shareholders

Workhorse Group Inc.

Opinion on internal control over financial reporting

We have audited the internal control over financial reporting of Workhorse Group Inc. (a Nevada corporation) and subsidiaries (the “Company”) as of December 31, 2018, based on criteria established in the 2013 Internal Control—Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (“COSO”). In our opinion, because of the effect of the material weaknesses described in the following paragraph on the achievement of the objectives of the control criteria, the Company has not maintained effective internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2018, based on criteria established in the 2013 Internal Control—Integrated Framework issued by COSO.

A material weakness is a control 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 weaknesses have been identified and included in management’s assessment:

We also have audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (“PCAOB”), the consolidated financial statements of the Company as of and for the year ended December 31, 2018, and our report dated March 18, 2019 expressed an unqualified opinion on those financial statements.

Basis for opinion

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 Annual 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.

Definition and limitations of internal control over financial reporting

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.

Other information 

We do not express an opinion or any other form of assurance on the Company’s remediation plan disclosed as part of Management’s Report on Internal Control.

/s/ GRANT THORNTON LLP

Cincinnati, Ohio

March 18, 2019 

REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

Board of Directors and Shareholders

Workhorse Group Inc.

Opinion on the financial statements

We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheet of Workhorse Group Inc. (a Nevada corporation) and subsidiaries (the “Company”) as of December 31, 2018, the related consolidated statements of operations, stockholders’ equity (deficit), and cash flows for the year ended December 31, 2018, and the related notes (collectively referred to as the “financial statements”). In our opinion, the financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company as of December 31, 2018, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for the year ended December 31, 2018, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.

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 December 31, 2018, based on criteria established in the 2013 Internal Control—Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (“COSO”), and our report dated March 18, 2019 expressed an adverse opinion.

Going concern

The accompanying financial statements have been prepared assuming that the Company will continue as a going concern. As discussed in Note 1 to the financial statements, the Company incurred a net loss of $36,502,316 during the year ended December 31, 2018, and as of that date, the Company’s current liabilities exceeded its current assets by $12,545,905 and its total liabilities exceeded its total assets by $15,422,443. These conditions, along with other matters as set forth in Note 1, raise substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern. Management’s plans in regard to these matters are also described in Note 1. The financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty.

Basis for opinion

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 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 the financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. Our audit 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 supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. Our audit 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 audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.

/s/ GRANT THORNTON LLP

We have served as the Company’s auditor since 2018.

Cincinnati, Ohio

March 18, 2019

REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

To the Board of Directors and
Stockholders of Workhorse Group, Inc.

Opinion on the Financial Statements

We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of Workhorse Group, Inc. (the Company) as of December 31, 2017 as restated, and the related consolidated statements of operations, stockholders’ equity (deficit), and cash flows, as restated for the year ended December 31, 2017, and the related notes (collectively referred to as the financial statements) as restated. In our opinion, the financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company as of December 31, 2017, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for each of the year ended December 31, 2017, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.

Basis for Opinion

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 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 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 accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared assuming the Company will continue as a going concern. As described in Note 1 to the consolidated financial statements, the Company has not had positive cash flows from operations and has incurred significant net losses which have caused a significant accumulated deficit. These conditions raise substantial doubt about its ability to continue as a going concern. Management’s plans regarding those matters are also described in Note 1. The consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty. Our opinion is not modified with respect to that matter.

We had served as the Company’s auditor since 2007.

Cincinnati, Ohio

March 14, 2018 (May 8, 2018 as to the effect of the restatement)

RESULTS THROUGH REMARKABLE RELATIONSHIPS

Workhorse Group, Inc.

Consolidated Balance Sheets

December 31, 2018 and 2017

See accompanying notes to the consolidated financial statements.

See accompanying notes to the consolidated financial statements.

See accompanying notes to the consolidated financial statements.

Workhorse Group, Inc.

Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows

For Years Ended December, 2018 and 2017

Cash paid for interest was $1,128,470 and $104,621 for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively.

Supplemental disclosure of non-cash activities:

During the year ended December 31, 2018, the Company issued warrants to purchase common stock to Marathon in association with the Marathon Loan, which were valued at $965,747. The company recorded a provision for the warrant liability in accrued liabilities with the offset recorded as a debt discount against the Marathon Loan.

During the year ended December 31, 2018, the Company issued warrants to purchase common stock to Arosa in association with the Arosa Loan, which were valued at $3,540,542. The company recorded a provision for the warrant liability in accrued liabilities with the offset recorded as a debt discount against the Arosa Loan.

During the year ended December 31, 2018, the Company converted accounts payable of $298,350 to common stock of $114 and additional paid-in-capital of $298,236.

During the year ended December 31, 2017, a vendor converted an existing accounts payable liability of $1,034,539 into common stock. In addition, the company issued $494,000 in common stock in exchange for future services with modeling and mule services as well as future consulting services.

During the year ended December 31, 2017, converted $256,504 of shareholder advances into common stock.

See accompanying notes to the consolidated financial statements.

Workhorse Group, Inc.

Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

The following accounting principles and practices are set forth to facilitate the understanding of data presented in the condensed consolidated financial statements:

Nature of operations and principles of consolidation

Workhorse Group Inc. and its predecessor companies (“Workhorse”, the “Company”, “we”, “us” or “our”) is a technology company focused on providing sustainable and cost-effective solutions to the commercial transportation sector. As an American manufacturer, we design and build high performance battery-electric vehicles and aircraft that make movement of people and goods more efficient and less harmful to the environment. As part of our solution, we also develop cloud-based, real-time telematics performance monitoring systems that enable fleet operators to optimize energy and route efficiency. Although we operate as a single unit through our subsidiaries, we approach our development through two divisions, Automotive and Aviation. We are currently focused on our core competency of bringing the N-GEN electric cargo van to market and fulfilling our existing backlog of orders. We are also exploring other opportunities in monetizing our intellectual property which could include a sale, license or other arrangement of assets that are outside of our core focus.

The Company’s wholly owned subsidiaries include Workhorse Technologies Inc., Workhorse Motor Works Inc. and Workhorse Properties Inc.

Basis of presentation

The financial statements have been prepared on a going concern basis, which contemplates the realization of assets and liquidation of liabilities in the normal course of business. However, the Company has limited revenues and a history of negative working capital and stockholders’ deficits. Our existing capital resources will be insufficient to fund our operations through the first half of 2019. Unless and until we are able to generate a sufficient amount of revenue, reduce our costs and/or enter a strategic relationship, we expect to finance future cash needs through public and/or private offerings of equity securities and /or debt financings. If we are not able to obtain additional financing and/or substantially increase revenue from sales, we will be unable to continue as a going concern. These conditions raise substantial doubt about the ability of the Company to continue as a going concern.

In view of these matters, continuation as a going concern is dependent upon the continued operations of the Company, which, in turn, is dependent upon the Company’s ability to meet its financial requirements, raise additional capital, and successfully carry out its future operations. The financial statements do not include any adjustments to the amount and classification of assets and liabilities that may be necessary, should the Company not continue as a going concern.

The Company has continued to raise capital.  Management believes the proceeds from these offerings, future offerings, and the Company’s anticipated revenue, provides an opportunity to continue as a going concern.  If additional funding is required, the Company plans to obtain working capital from either debt or equity financing from the sale of common, preferred stock, and/or convertible debentures. Obtaining such working capital is not assured. The Company is currently in a production ramp up mode and placing greater emphasis on manufacturing capability.

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in the financial statements and accompanying notes.  Actual results could differ from these estimates.

Certain reclassifications were made to the prior year financial statements to conform to the current year presentation. These reclassifications had no effect on previously reported results of operation or stockholders’ equity.

Financial instruments

The carrying amounts of financial instruments including cash, inventory, accounts payable and short-term debt approximate fair value because of the relatively short maturity of these instruments.

Accounts receivable

Accounts receivable consist of collectible amounts for products and services rendered. The Company carries its accounts receivable at invoice amount less an allowance for doubtful accounts. On a periodic basis, the Company evaluates its accounts receivable and establishes an allowance for doubtful accounts based on a history of past write-offs and collections and current credit conditions. The Company generally does not require collateral for accounts receivable. Sales to our top two customers totaled 0% and 33% for the year ended December 31, 2018 and 98% and 0% for the year ended December 31, 2017.

Lease Receivable

The Company’s leasing activities consist of the leasing of trucks which are classified as direct financing leases.  Revenue is recognized at the inception of the lease.  The leases have a term of eight years.  Future payments to be received on the leases are as follows:

Inventory

Inventory is stated at the lower of cost or net realizable value. Manufactured inventories are valued at standard cost, and consist of raw materials, work in process and finished goods.

Property, plant and equipment, net

Property, plant and equipment, net is stated at cost less accumulated depreciation.  Major renewals and improvements are capitalized while replacements, maintenance and repairs, which do not improve or extend the lives of the respective assets, are expensed. When property, plant and equipment is retired or otherwise disposed of, a gain or loss is realized for the difference between the net book value of the asset and the proceeds realized thereon. Depreciation is calculated using the straight-line method, based upon the following estimated useful lives:

Common stock

On April 22, 2010, the directors of the Company approved a forward stock split of the common stock of the Company on a 14:1 basis.  On May 12, 2010, the stockholders of the Company voted to approve the amendment of the certificate of incorporation resulting in a decrease of the number of shares of common stock.   Management filed the certificate of amendment decreasing the authorized shares of common stock with the State of Nevada on September 8, 2010. On February 11, 2015, the Company filed a certificate of amendment to its articles of incorporation to increase the authorized shares of common stock to 50,000,000.

On December 9, 2015, the Company filed a Certificate of Amendment to its Certificate of Incorporation to implement a one-for-ten reverse split of the Corporation’s issued and outstanding common stock (the “Reverse Stock Split”), as authorized by the stockholders of the Company. The Reverse Stock Split became effective at the open of trading on December 11, 2015 (the “Effective Date”). As of the Effective Date, every ten shares of issued and outstanding common stock were combined into one newly issued share of common stock. No fractional shares were issued in connection with the Reverse Stock Split. Total cash payments made by the Company to stockholders in lieu of fractional shares was not material.

On August 7, 2017, the shareholders of the Company voted to increase the authorized shares of common stock to 100,000,000 and the Certificate of Amendment amending the Articles of Incorporation was filed with the State of Nevada on August 8, 2018.

All references in the financial statements and MD&A to number of common shares, price per share and weighted average shares of common stock have been adjusted to reflect the Reverse Stock Split on a retroactive basis for all prior periods presented, unless otherwise noted, including reclassifying an amount equal to the reduction in par value of common stock to additional paid in capital.

The capital stock of the Company is as follows:

Preferred Stock - The Company has authorized 75,000,000 shares of preferred stock with a par value of $.001 per share. These shares may be issued in series with such rights and preferences as may be determined by the Board of Directors. There are no shares of preferred stock outstanding.

Common Stock - The Company has authorized 100,000,000 shares of common stock with a par value of $0.001 per share as of December 31, 2018.

Income taxes

As no taxable income has occurred from the date of this merger to December 31, 2018 cumulative deferred tax assets of approximately $29.6 million are fully reserved, and no provision or liability for federal or state income taxes has been included in the financial statements. Carryover amounts are:

Research and development costs

The Company expenses research and development costs as they are incurred. Research and Development costs were approximately $7.4 million and $17.7 million for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively, consisting primarily of personnel costs for our teams in engineering and research, prototyping expense, and contract and professional services.

Basic and diluted loss per share

Basic loss per share is computed by dividing net loss available to common shareholders (numerator) by the weighted average number of shares outstanding (denominator) during the period.  For all periods, all of the Company’s common stock equivalents were excluded from the calculation of diluted loss per common share because they were anti-dilutive, due to the Company’s net losses.

Stock based compensation

The Company accounts for its stock-based compensation in accordance with “Share-Based Payments” (codified in FASB ASC Topic 718 and 505). The Company recognizes in its consolidated statement of operations the grant-date fair value of stock options and warrants issued to employees and non-employees over the option or warrant’s vesting period.  The fair value is estimated on the date of grant using a Black-Scholes valuation model that uses assumptions concerning expected volatility, expected term, and the expected risk-free rate of return.  For the awards granted, the expected volatility was estimated by management as 50% based on results from other public companies in our industry.  The expected term of the awards granted was assumed to be the contract life of the option or warrant (one, two, three, five or ten years as determined in the specific arrangement).  The risk-free rate of return was based on market yields in effect on the date of each grant for United States Treasury debt securities with a maturity equal to the expected term of the award.

Subsequent events

The company has evaluated subsequent events for potential recognition and disclosures through the date the consolidated financial statements were filed.

As of December 31, 2018, and 2017, inventory consisted of the following:

During the year ended December 31, 2018, the Company recorded an inventory reserve of approximately $2.5 million. The increase in reserve related to the Company’s strategic switch from the legacy E-GEN/E-100 platform to our N-GEN platform, which occurred in the fourth quarter of 2018. Certain raw materials and work in process were unique to the E-GEN/E-100 vehicles and cannot currently be repurposed. As such, the company recorded a reserve related to these items.