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Item 7A — Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk
Methode Electronics Inc · 10-K · FY 2026 · Period ended May 2, 2026
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We are exposed to market risks from foreign currency exchange, interest rates, and commodity prices, which could affect our operating results, financial position and cash flows. We manage a portion of these risks through use of derivative financial instruments in accordance with our policies. We do not enter into derivative financial instruments for speculative or trading purposes.
Foreign currency risk
We are exposed to foreign currency risk on sales, costs and assets and liabilities denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. We seek to manage our foreign exchange risk largely through operational means, including matching revenue with same-currency costs and assets with same-currency liabilities. We currently transact business in eight primary currencies worldwide, of which the most significant are the U.S. dollar, the euro, the Chinese renminbi and the Mexican peso.
A portion of our balance sheet is exposed to foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations, which may result in non-operating foreign currency exchange gains or losses upon remeasurement. We use foreign currency forward contracts to provide an economic hedge against balance sheet exposure to certain monetary assets and liabilities denominated in currencies other than the functional currency of the subsidiary. The forward contracts have a maturity of less than three months and are not designated as hedging instruments. As of May 2, 2026, the notional value of these outstanding contracts was $154.9 million. These hedges are intended to reduce, but may not entirely eliminate, foreign currency exchange risk. A change in the foreign currency exchange rates on our foreign currency forward contracts will generally be offset against the gain or loss from the re-measurement of the underlying balance sheet exposure.
The translation of the assets and liabilities of our international subsidiaries is made using the foreign currency exchange rates as of the end of the reporting period. Translation adjustments are not included in determining net (loss) income but are included in accumulated other comprehensive loss within shareholders’ equity on the consolidated balance sheets until a sale or substantially complete liquidation of the net investment in the international subsidiary takes place. As of May 2, 2026, the cumulative net currency translation adjustments decreased shareholders’ equity by $10.3 million. As described in Note 8, “Derivative Financial Instruments and Hedging Activities” to our consolidated financial statements included in this Annual Report, in order to manage certain translational exposure to the euro, in the past we entered into cross-currency swaps or designated euro-denominated borrowings as a net investment hedge in our euro-denominated subsidiaries. The effective portion of the gains or losses designated as net investment hedges are recognized within the cumulative translation adjustment component in the consolidated statements of comprehensive income (loss) to offset changes in the value of the net investment in these foreign currency-denominated operations.
Interest rate risk
We are exposed to interest rate risk on borrowings under our Credit Agreement which are based on variable rates. As of May 2, 2026, we had $326.4 million of borrowings under our Credit Agreement. We manage our interest rate exposures through the use of interest rate swaps to effectively convert a portion of our variable-rate debt to a fixed rate. The notional amount of our interest rate swaps was $154.9 million as of May 2, 2026 and it matures on October 31, 2027. Based on borrowings outstanding under our Credit Agreement at May 2, 2026, net of the interest rate swaps, we estimate that a 1% increase in interest rates would result in increased annual interest expense of $1.7 million.
Commodity price risk
We are exposed to commodity price risk primarily on our raw material purchases. These raw materials are not rare or unique to our industry. The cost of copper, resins, and other commodities, such as fuel and energy, has fluctuated in recent years due to changes in global supply and demand. Our gross margins could be affected if these types of costs continue to fluctuate. We actively manage these raw material costs through global sourcing initiatives and price increases on our products where possible. However, in the short-term, further increases in raw material costs can be very difficult to fully offset with price increases because of contractual agreements with our customers, which would unfavorably affect our gross margins.