CORE LABORATORIES N V - Quarter Report: 2020 March (Form 10-Q)

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-Q

(Mark One)

For the quarterly period ended March 31, 2020  

OR

For the transition period from ________________ to ______________

Commission File Number:  001-14273

CORE LABORATORIES N.V.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

(31-20) 420-3191

(Registrant's telephone number, including area code)

None

(Former name, former address and former fiscal year, if changed since last report)

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

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 every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files).   Yes ☒  No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a 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 ☒

The number of common shares of the registrant, par value EUR 0.02 per share, outstanding at April 22, 2020 was 44,456,717.

CORE LABORATORIES N.V.

FORM 10-Q FOR THE QUARTER ENDED MARCH 31, 2020

INDEX

PART I - FINANCIAL INFORMATION

PART I - FINANCIAL INFORMATION

Item 1. Financial Statements

CORE LABORATORIES N.V.

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

(In thousands, except share and per share data)

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

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 CORE LABORATORIES N.V.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS

(In thousands, except per share data)

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

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CORE LABORATORIES N.V.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS)

(In thousands)

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

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CORE LABORATORIES N.V.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CHANGES IN EQUITY

(In thousands)

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

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CORE LABORATORIES N.V.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS

(In thousands)

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.

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CORE LABORATORIES N.V.

NOTES TO THE UNAUDITED CONSOLIDATED INTERIM FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

1. BASIS OF PRESENTATION

The accompanying unaudited consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Core Laboratories N.V. and its subsidiaries for which we have a controlling voting interest and/or a controlling financial interest. These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with United States ("U.S.") generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP") for interim financial information using the instructions to Form 10-Q and Article 10 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, these financial statements do not include all of the information and footnote disclosures required by U.S. GAAP and should be read in conjunction with the audited financial statements and the summary of significant accounting policies and notes thereto included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019 (the "2019 Annual Report").

Core Laboratories N.V. uses the equity method of accounting for investments in which it has less than a majority interest and over which it does not exercise control but does exert significant influence. We use the cost method to record certain other investments in which we own less than 20% of the outstanding equity and do not exercise control or exert significant influence. Non-controlling interests have been recorded to reflect outside ownership attributable to consolidated subsidiaries that are less than 100% owned. In the opinion of management, all adjustments considered necessary for a fair statement of the results for the interim periods presented have been included in these financial statements. Furthermore, the operating results presented for the three months ended March 31, 2020 may not necessarily be indicative of the results that may be expected for the year ending December 31, 2020.

Core Laboratories N.V.'s balance sheet information for the year ended December 31, 2019 was derived from the 2019 audited consolidated financial statements but does not include all disclosures in accordance with U.S. GAAP.

References to "Core Lab", the "Company", "we", "our" and similar phrases are used throughout this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and relate collectively to Core Laboratories N.V. and its consolidated subsidiaries.

We operate our business in two reportable segments. These complementary segments provide different services and products and utilize different technologies for improving reservoir performance and increasing oil and gas recovery from new and existing fields.

Certain reclassifications were made to prior period amounts in order to conform to the current period presentation. These reclassifications had no impact on the reported net income or cash flows for the three months ended March 31, 2019.

2. INVENTORIES

Inventories consisted of the following (in thousands):

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We include freight costs incurred for shipping inventory to our clients in the Cost of product sales caption in the accompanying Consolidated Statements of Operations.

3. SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES UPDATE

Our significant accounting policies are detailed in "Note 2: Summary of Significant Accounting Policies" of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019. Significant changes to our accounting policies as a result of adopting Topic 326 – Financial Instruments-Credit Losses and Topic 350 – Intangibles-Goodwill and Other are discussed below:

Financial Instruments-Credit Losses

We have adopted the expected credit losses methodology for measurement of credit losses on financial assets measured at amortized cost basis, replacing the previous incurred loss impairment methodology. Our financial instruments that are potentially subject to credit losses consist primarily of cash and cash equivalents and accounts receivable. There is no significant impact in our consolidated financial statements or on our accounting policies and processes upon the adoption of this standard.

Intangibles-Goodwill and Other

We assess goodwill for impairment by comparing the fair value of the reporting unit to its carrying amount. If the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying value, then there is an impairment loss limited to the amount of goodwill-allocated to that reporting unit. Our reporting units are the same as our two reportable segments. On January 1, 2020, we adopted the FASB new methodology for assessing goodwill impairment, see Note 20 - Recent Accounting Pronouncements for additional information.

4. CONTRACT ASSETS AND CONTRACT LIABILITIES

Contract assets and liabilities result due to the timing of revenue recognition, billings and cash collections.

Contract assets include our right to payment for goods and services already transferred to a customer when the right to payment is conditional on something other than the passage of time, for example contracts where we recognize revenue over time but do not have a contractual right to payment until we complete the performance obligations. Contract assets are included in accounts receivable in our Consolidated Balance Sheet.

Contract liabilities consist of advance payments received and billings in excess of revenue recognized. We generally receive up-front payments relating to our consortia studies; we recognize revenue over the life of the study as the testing and analysis results are made available to our consortia members. We record billings in excess of revenue recognized for contracts with a duration less than twelve months as unearned revenue. We classify contract liabilities for contracts with a duration greater than twelve months as current or non-current based on the timing of when we expect to recognize revenue. The current portion of contract liabilities is included in unearned revenue and the non-current portion of contract liabilities is included in other long-term liabilities in our Consolidated Balance Sheet.

The balance of contract assets and contract liabilities consisted of the following (in thousands):

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We did not recognize any impairment losses on our receivables and contract assets for the three months ended March 31, 2020.

5. ACQUISITIONS

We had no significant acquisitions during the three months ended March 31, 2020.

In 2018, we acquired a business providing downhole technologies associated with perforating systems for $48.9 million in cash. These downhole technologies will significantly enhance Core Lab's Production Enhancement operations and its ability to bring new and innovative product offerings to our clients. We finalized the fair value assessment of the assets acquired during the third quarter of 2019. We have determined the fair value of tangible assets acquired to be $4.1 million, and intangible assets, including patents, customer-relationship benefits, non-compete agreements and trade secrets to be $9.4 million. We have accounted for this acquisition by allocating the purchase price to the net assets acquired based on their fair values at the date of acquisition which resulted in an increase to goodwill of $35.4 million. The acquisition is included in the Production Enhancement business segment.

6. DISCONTINUED OPERATIONS

In 2018, in a continuing effort to streamline our business and align our business strategy for further integration of services and products, the Company committed to divest the business of our full range of permanent downhole monitoring systems and related services, which had been part of our Production Enhancement segment.

On June 7, 2019, we entered into a definitive purchase agreement for approximately $16.6 million in cash. A pre-tax gain of $8.3 million was recognized in connection with this transaction, subject to adjustments for working capital purposes and is classified in Income from discontinued operations in the Consolidated Statements of Operations. The purchase agreement also provides for additional proceeds of up to $2.5 million based on the results of operations of the sold business in 2019 and 2020, none of which has been recognized.

The associated results of operations are separately reported as Discontinued Operations for all periods presented on the Consolidated Statements of Operations. Cash flows from this discontinued business are shown below. As such, the results from continuing operations for the Company and segment highlights for Production Enhancement, exclude these discontinued operations.

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Selected data for this discontinued business consisted of the following (in thousands):

There are no balances recorded for the discontinued operations as of March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019.

Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities of discontinued operations for the three months ended March 31, 2020 and 2019 was $0.0 million and $0.7 million, respectively.

7. LONG-TERM DEBT, NET

We have no financing lease obligations.

Long-term debt is as follows (in thousands):  

We have two series of senior notes outstanding with an aggregate principal amount of $150 million ("Senior Notes") issued in a private placement transaction. Series A consists of $75 million in aggregate principal amount of notes that bear interest at a fixed rate of 4.01% and are due in full on September 30, 2021. Series B consists of $75 million in aggregate principal amount of notes that bear interest at a fixed rate of 4.11% and are due in full on September 30, 2023. Interest on each series of the Senior Notes is payable semi-annually on March 30 and September 30.

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The aggregate borrowing commitment under our revolving credit facility (the “Credit Facility”) is $300 million. The Credit Facility provides an option to increase the commitment under the Credit Facility by an additional $100 million to bring the total borrowings available to $400 million if certain prescribed conditions are met by the Company. The Credit Facility bears interest at variable rates from LIBOR plus 1.375% to a maximum of LIBOR plus 2.00%. Any outstanding balance under the Credit Facility is due June 19, 2023, when the Credit Facility matures. Our available capacity at any point in time is reduced by borrowings outstanding at the time and outstanding letters of credit which totaled $14.6 million at March 31, 2020, resulting in an available borrowing capacity under the Credit Facility of $131.4 million. In addition to those items under the Credit Facility, we had $6.6 million of outstanding letters of credit and performance guarantees and bonds from other sources as of March 31, 2020.

The terms of the Credit Facility and Senior Notes require us to meet certain covenants, including, but not limited to, an interest coverage ratio (consolidated EBITDA divided by interest expense) and a leverage ratio (consolidated net indebtedness divided by consolidated EBITDA), where consolidated EBITDA (as defined in each agreement) and interest expense are calculated using the most recent four fiscal quarters. The Credit Facility and Senior Notes include a cross-default provision, which means that a default under one agreement may result in the default of the other agreement. The Credit Facility has the more restrictive covenants with a minimum interest coverage ratio of 3.0 to 1.0 and a maximum leverage ratio of 2.5 to 1.0. The Credit Facility agreement allows non-cash charges such as impairment of assets, stock compensation and other non-cash charges to be added back in the calculation of EBITDA. The terms of our Credit Facility also allow us to negotiate in good faith to amend any ratio or requirement to preserve the original intent of the agreement if any change in accounting principle would affect the computation of any financial ratio or requirement of the Credit Facility. Pursuant to the terms of our Credit Facility, we have calculated our leverage ratio to be 1.93, and our interest coverage ratio to be 8.59 for the period ending March 31, 2020. We believe that we are in compliance with all such covenants contained in our credit agreements. Certain of our material, wholly-owned subsidiaries are guarantors or co-borrowers under the Credit Facility and Senior Notes.

We entered into two interest rate swap agreements for a total notional amount of $50 million, including one of which was entered during the three months ended March 31, 2020. See Note 17 - Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities.

The estimated fair value of total debt at March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019 approximated the book value of total debt. The fair value was estimated using Level 2 inputs by calculating the sum of the discounted future interest and principal payments through the date of maturity.

8. PENSION

Defined Benefit Plan

Prior to January 2020, we provided a noncontributory defined benefit pension plan covering substantially all of our Dutch employees ("Dutch Plan") who were hired prior to 2000. During 2019 and 2018, there was a curtailment of the Dutch Plan for our Dutch employees whose pension benefit was based on years of service and final pay or career average pay, depending on when the employee began participating. These employees have been moved into the Dutch defined contribution plan. However, the unconditional indexation for this group or participants remains as long as they stay in active service for the company. There is no further contribution to fund the Dutch Plan since end of 2019.

The following table summarizes the components of net periodic pension cost under the Dutch Plan (in thousands):

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9. COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

We have been and may from time to time be named as a defendant in legal actions that arise in the ordinary course of business. These include, but are not limited to, employment-related claims and contractual disputes or claims for personal injury or property damage which occur in connection with the provision of our services and products. A liability is accrued when a loss is both probable and can be reasonably estimated.

10. EQUITY

During the three months ended March 31, 2020, we repurchased 33,741 of our common shares for $1.2 million. Included in this total were rights to 3,741 shares valued at $0.1 million, which were surrendered to us pursuant to the terms of a stock-based compensation plan in consideration of the participants' tax burdens that may result from the issuance of common shares under that plan. Such common shares, unless canceled, may be reissued for a variety of purposes such as future acquisitions, non-employee director stock awards or employee stock awards. We distributed 12,356 treasury shares upon vesting of stock-based awards during the three months ended March 31, 2020.

In February 2020, we paid a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share of common stock.

Accumulated other comprehensive loss consisted of the following (in thousands):

11. EARNINGS PER SHARE

We compute basic earnings per common share by dividing net income attributable to Core Laboratories N.V. by the weighted average number of common shares outstanding during the period. Diluted earnings per common and potential common shares include additional shares in the weighted average share calculations associated with the incremental effect of dilutive restricted stock awards and contingently issuable shares, as determined using the treasury stock method. The following table summarizes the calculation of weighted average common shares outstanding used in the computation of diluted earnings per share (in thousands):

12. IMPAIRMENTS

During the three months ended March 31, 2020 the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (“COVID-19”) spread across the globe and resulted in government mandated shut-downs, home sheltering and social distancing efforts to mitigate the spread of the virus.  The COVID-19 mitigation actions also caused a sharp decrease in the consumption and demand for crude-oil, and led to

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a sharp decrease in current and projected crude oil prices.  These events have resulted in sharp decreases to the valuation of companies associated with the energy industry, including Core Laboratories. As a result, we determined that it was more likely than not that the fair value of our reporting units was less than their carrying value, which triggered the Company to perform an updated impairment assessment as of March 31, 2020. We performed an impairment test in accordance with ASC Topic 360, Impairment or Disposal of Long-Lived Assets and ASC Topic 350, Intangibles-Goodwill and Other, on our indefinite-lived and long-lived assets related to asset groups, and our reporting units.

As of March 31, 2020, we have two reporting units that are the same as our two reportable segments, with goodwill balances aggregating $213.4 million. We performed a detailed quantitative impairment assessment of our reporting units. We determined that the fair value of one of the reporting units, our Production Enhancement segment representing approximately $114.0 million of the goodwill, was less than the carrying value. We determined that the Reservoir Description reporting unit’s fair value is above the carrying value, which represented $99.4 million of goodwill.  As the result of this assessment, we concluded that the goodwill associated with our Production Enhancement segment was fully impaired, resulting in a $114.0 million goodwill impairment charge.

We applied the income approach to estimate the fair value of the reporting unit. The income approach estimates the fair value by discounting each reporting unit’s estimated future cash flows using the company estimate of the discount rate, or expected return, that a market participant would have required as of the valuation date.

Some of the significant assumptions in the income approach include the estimated future net annual cash flows for each reporting unit and the discount rate. These estimates are based on assumptions we believed to be reasonable, however, given the inherent uncertainty in determining the assumptions underlying a discounted cash flow analysis, actual result may differ from those used in our valuation which could result in additional impairment charges in the future. The discount rates utilized to value the reporting units were approximately 10.3% and 15.1%, depending on the risk and uncertainty inherent in the respective reporting unit.

As of March 31, 2020, we identified a triggering event for one of the asset groups under the reporting unit, Production Enhancement. The estimated fair value, based on applying the income approach model, of one of the asset groups was determined to be below their carrying value. As a result, we recorded a charge of $8.2 million to impair the intangible assets relating to the business acquisition of Guardian Technology in 2018. This impairment charge was associated with our Production Enhancement segment.

13. GOODWILL

The changes in the carrying amount of goodwill for each reportable segment for the three months ended March 31, 2020 were as follows (in thousands):

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14. OTHER (INCOME) EXPENSE, NET

The components of other (income) expense, net, were as follows (in thousands):

Foreign exchange gains and losses are summarized in the following table (in thousands):

15. INCOME TAX EXPENSE   

The Company recorded an income tax benefit of $4.0 million and $27.6 million for the three months ended March 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively. The effective tax rate for the three months ended March 31, 2020 was 3.6% recorded on a loss from continuing operations before taxes of $112.4 million. The lower effective tax rate for the first quarter of 2020, was primarily effected by the impairment of goodwill and intangible assets, which were largely not deductible for tax purposes. The tax benefit associated with the $122.2 million impairment charge was limited to $9 million, and is a discrete item for the first quarter of 2020. We will continue to refine our estimate of the tax effect from the impairment through the year. The effective tax rate for the three months ended March 31, 2019 was (217.6%) on income from continuing operations before tax of $12.7 million. The income tax benefit recorded in the first quarter of 2019 is the result of a corporate restructuring which resulted in a net deferred tax benefit of $58.5 million, which was reduced by tax expense of $26.7 million related to unremitted earnings of foreign subsidiaries that we no longer consider to be indefinitely reinvested, each of which was a discrete item to the quarter ended March 31, 2019.  Income tax expense will continue to be impacted by changes in activity levels in jurisdictions with differing tax rates.

16. LEASES

We have operating leases primarily consisting of offices and lab space, machinery and equipment and vehicles. The components of lease expense are as follows (in thousands):

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Scheduled undiscounted cash flows for non-cancellable leases at March 31, 2020 consist of the following (in thousands):

The Company has elected to apply the short-term lease exemption to all of its classes of underlying assets. Accordingly, no ROU asset or lease liability is recognized for leases with a term of twelve months or less.

The Company has elected to apply the practical expedient for combining lease and non-lease components for vehicle leases and elected not to apply the practical expedient for combining lease and non-lease components to all other classes of underlying assets.

17. DERIVATIVE INSTRUMENTS AND HEDGING ACTIVITIES

We are exposed to market risks related to fluctuations in interest rates. To mitigate these risks, we utilize derivative instruments in the form of interest rate swaps. We do not enter into derivative transactions for speculative purposes.

Interest Rate Risk

Our Credit Facility bears interest at variable rates from LIBOR plus 1.375% to a maximum of LIBOR plus 2.00%. As a result of two interest rate swap agreements, we are subject to interest rate risk on debt in excess of $50 million drawn on our Credit Facility.

We entered into two interest rate swap agreements for a total notional amount of $50 million to hedge changes in the variable rate interest expense on $50 million of our existing or replacement LIBOR-priced debt. Under the first swap agreement of $25 million, we have fixed the LIBOR portion of the interest rate at 2.5% through August 29, 2024. During the first quarter of 2020, we entered into the second swap agreement of $25 million, we have fixed the LIBOR portion of the interest rate at 1.3% through February 28, 2025. Each swap is measured at fair value and recorded in our Consolidated Balance Sheet as an asset or liability. They are designated and qualify as cash flow hedging instruments and are highly effective. Unrealized losses

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are deferred to shareholders' equity as a component of accumulated other comprehensive gain (loss) and are recognized in income as an increase or decrease to interest expense in the period in which the related cash flows being hedged are recognized in expense.

At March 31, 2020, we had fixed rate long-term debt aggregating $200 million and variable rate long-term debt aggregating $104 million, after taking into account the effect of the swap.

The fair values of outstanding derivative instruments are as follows (in thousands):

The fair value of all outstanding derivatives was determined using a model with inputs that are observable in the market (Level 2) or can be derived from or corroborated by observable data.

The effect of the interest rate swaps on the Consolidated Statement of Operations was as follows (in thousands):

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18. FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS

The Company's only financial assets and liabilities which are measured at fair value on a recurring basis relate to certain aspects of the Company's benefit plans and our derivative instruments. We use the market approach to value certain assets and liabilities at fair value using significant other observable inputs (Level 2) with the assistance of a third-party specialist. We do not have any assets or liabilities measured at fair value on a recurring basis using quoted prices in an active market (Level 1) or significant unobservable inputs (Level 3). Gains and losses related to the fair value changes in the deferred compensation assets and liabilities are recorded in General and administrative expense in the Consolidated Statements of Operations. Gains and losses related to the fair value of the interest rate swaps are recorded in Other comprehensive income.

At March 31, 2020, we had fixed rate long-term debt aggregating $200 million and variable rate long-term debt aggregating $96 million, after taking into account the effect of the swaps.

The following table summarizes the fair value balances (in thousands):

19. SEGMENT REPORTING

We operate our business in two reportable segments. These complementary segments provide different services and products and utilize different technologies for improving reservoir performance and increasing oil and gas recovery from new and existing fields.

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Results for these segments are presented below. We use the same accounting policies to prepare our segment results as are used to prepare our Consolidated Financial Statements. All interest and other non-operating income (expense) is attributable to Corporate & Other and is not allocated to specific segments. Summarized financial information concerning our segments is shown in the following table (in thousands):

20. RECENT ACCOUNTING PRONOUNCEMENTS

Pronouncements Adopted in 2020

In June 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-13 ("Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments") which replaces the incurred loss impairment methodology in current GAAP with a methodology that reflects expected credit losses and requires consideration of a broader range of reasonable and supportable information to inform credit loss estimates. The new standard is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2019, including interim periods within those fiscal years. We have adopted this standard on January 1, 2020, and there is no significant impact on our consolidated financial statements or on our accounting policies and processes.

In January 2017, the FASB issued ASU 2017-04 (“Simplifying the Test for Goodwill Impairment”) which eliminates a step in computing the implied fair value of goodwill with a new methodology of an entity performing an annual goodwill impairment test by comparing the fair value of a reporting unit with its carrying amount. We adopted this standard on January 1, 2020, and although the new methodology was applied for the goodwill impairment analysis performed for the three month period ending March 31, 2020, it did not change the conclusion that goodwill had been impaired, and there is no significant impact on our consolidated financial statements or on our accounting policies and processes as a result of adopting this updated accounting standard.

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Item 2. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

The following discussion highlights the current operating environment and summarizes the financial position of Core Laboratories N.V. and its subsidiaries as of March 31, 2020 and should be read in conjunction with (i) the unaudited consolidated interim financial statements and notes thereto included elsewhere in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q ("Quarterly Report") and (ii) the audited consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes to our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2019 (the "2019 Annual Report").

General

Core Laboratories N.V. is a limited liability company incorporated and domiciled in the Netherlands. It was established in 1936 and is one of the world's leading providers of proprietary and patented reservoir description and production enhancement services and products to the oil and gas industry. These services and products can enable our clients to improve reservoir performance and increase oil and gas recovery from their producing fields. Core Laboratories N.V. has over 70 offices in more than 50 countries and employs approximately 4,300 people worldwide.

References to "Core Lab", the "Company", "we", "our" and similar phrases are used throughout this Quarterly Report and relate collectively to Core Laboratories N.V. and its consolidated affiliates.

We operate our business in two reportable segments: Reservoir Description and Production Enhancement. These complementary segments provide different services and products and utilize different technologies for improving reservoir performance and increasing oil and gas recovery from new and existing fields.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This Quarterly Report contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Certain statements contained in this Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations section, including those under the headings "Outlook" and "Liquidity and Capital Resources", and in other parts of this Quarterly Report, are forward-looking. In addition, from time to time, we may publish forward-looking statements relating to such matters as anticipated financial performance, business prospects, technological developments, new products, research and development activities and similar matters. Forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "may", "will", "believe", "expect", "anticipate", "estimate", "continue", or other similar words, including statements as to the intent, belief, or current expectations of our directors, officers, and management with respect to our future operations, performance, or positions or which contain other forward-looking information. These forward-looking statements are based on our current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effect on us. While management believes that these forward-looking statements are reasonable as and when made, no assurances can be given that the future results indicated, whether expressed or implied, will be achieved. While we believe that these statements are and will be accurate, our actual results and experience may differ materially from the anticipated results or other expectations expressed in our statements due to a variety of risks and uncertainties.

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We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. For a more detailed discussion of some of the foregoing risks and uncertainties, see "Item 1A - Risk Factors" in our 2019 Annual Report and in Part II of this Quarterly Report, as well as the other reports filed by us with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC").

Outlook

The events occurring during first quarter of 2020 associated with the coronavirus disease 2019 (“COVID-19”) pandemic and global government mandated shut-downs, home sheltering and social distancing policies have caused a significant decline in the demand for crude oil and associated products.  The significant decline in demand has resulted in a significant decline in the price of crude oil, which has also resulted in a high degree of uncertainty about future demand and the future price for crude oil.  As a result, it is anticipated that the activity associated with the energy markets and our clients will remain low and the commodity price of crude oil will also continue to be depressed and volatile for the remainder of 2020.  OPEC nations, Russia and other oil producing nations continue to work towards negotiating and implementing potentially substantial reductions to current levels of oil being produced, if such negotiations are successful and executed, these actions could help to improve the balance of the supply with demand of crude oil in the mid-term and longer-term.

As part of our long-term growth strategy, we continue to expand our market presence by opening or expanding facilities in strategic areas and realizing synergies within our business lines subject to client demand and market conditions. We believe our market presence in strategic areas provides us a unique opportunity to serve our clients who have global operations whether they are international oil companies, national oil companies, or independent oil companies.

Our major clients continue to focus on capital management, return on invested capital (“ROIC”), free cash flow, and returning capital back to their shareholders, as opposed to a focus on production growth at any cost. The companies adopting value versus volume metrics tend to be the more technologically sophisticated operators and form the foundation of Core Lab’s worldwide client base. Considering a longer term strategy, we expect to benefit from our clients’ shift in focus from strictly production growth to employing higher technological solutions in their efforts to maximize economic production growth and estimated ultimate recovery ("EUR").

We believe operators will continue to manage their capital spending within approved budgets, and maintain their focus on strengthening their balance sheets with an effort to generate positive free cash flow. This was apparent during the first quarter of 2020 with the notable declines in both the U.S. onshore rig count, U.S. land completion activity, and public announcements from oil and gas operators stating their 2020 capital expenditures programs have been reduced significantly. As a result, we believe the U.S. onshore activity in 2020 will decrease significantly and continue to be constrained by these factors.

Core Laboratories expects international field development spending will be funded largely from operating budgets. Reservoir Description continues to work with clients and discuss the progression of longer-term international projects with clients. Longer-term international and offshore projects which are commonly announced through Final Investment Decisions (“FIDs”), and have been previously announced and initiated are not as susceptible or at-risk to delay or suspension due to shorter-term volatility in crude oil commodity price. Additionally, the reservoir fluids analysis that is performed on projects associated with current producing fields, continues to be critical and will be less affected by lower commodity prices for crude oil. The revenue opportunity for Reservoir Description occurs once the well has been drilled and core and fluid samples are recovered from the well and analyzed. The adverse impact from COVID-19 and the depression of crude-oil prices has resulted in increased uncertainty associated with the activity levels and revenue opportunities from these international and offshore projects, however most of the larger projects, especially the projects that have already been commissioned and are underway, are focused on a longer term forecast versus a short to mid-term assessment of the crude oil commodity prices.

Core Laboratories continued to operate as an essential business in response to COVID-19. We have experienced some business disruptions, which is expected to continue for the remainder of the year and possibly beyond 2020. These disruptions mainly relating to operational workflow such as travel, product delivery and quarantine restrictions that caused the delay in client’s projects. We have not experienced any significant disruption in our supply chain, and do not anticipate significant

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disruption in our supply chain. We have implemented a continuity plan across our global organization to protect the health of employees while servicing the clients.

In response to market conditions, in March 2020, Core Lab’s Board of Supervisory Directors (the “Supervisory Board”) approved a plan to reduce the Company’s future quarterly dividends to $0.01 per share beginning with the second quarter of 2020 and to focus excess free cash flow on debt reduction. In December 2019, the Supervisory Board had previously reduced the dividends to $0.25 per share beginning with the first quarter of 2020. The Company is also actively enacting cost control plans which include: (i) corporate and operating cost reductions; (ii) annual capital expenditures reduced to below the 2016 level of $11.4 million, and (iii) eliminating all non-essential costs. The corporate and operating cost reductions include reductions in workforce and reduction of senior executive and employee compensation.

Specifically, the Company has reduced senior executives’ annual base salary by 20% for the foreseeable future. In addition, David Demshur, the current CEO and Chairman of the Company, has decided to accelerate his retirement to the end of May 2020. Mr. Demshur will be available in an uncompensated advisory role after his retirement to support the Company as needed. Core Lab believes these immediate actions, as well as continue evaluation and adjustments, will allow Core Lab, as it has for over 83 years, to navigate through these challenging times. Core Lab remains focused on preserving the quality of service for its clients and producing returns for its shareholders.

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Results of Operations

Our results of operations as a percentage of applicable revenue were as follows (in thousands):