WESTERN CAPITAL RESOURCES, INC. - Annual Report: 2017 (Form 10-K)

UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

(Mark One)

 or

Commission File Number 000-52015

WESTERN CAPITAL RESOURCES, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code:  (402) 551-8888

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: Common Stock, no par value per share

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 the filing requirements for the past 90 days ☒  Yes   ☐ No

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate website, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted 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 and post such files). ☒  Yes   ☐ No

Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K 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 or a smaller reporting company. See definition of “accelerated filer,” large accelerated filer” and “smaller reporting company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. (Check one):

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

The aggregate market value of the voting stock held by persons other than officers, directors and more than 5% shareholders of the registrant as of June 30, 2017 was approximately $14,601,000 based on the closing sales price of $4.90 per share as reported on the OTCQB. As of March 29, 2018, there were 9,390,997 shares of our common stock, $0.001 par value per share, outstanding.

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED IN PART BY REFERENCE

None.

Western Capital Resources, Inc.
Form 10-K

Table of Contents

PART I

ITEM 1    BUSINESS

OVERVIEW

Western Capital Resources, Inc. (“WCR” or “Western Capital”), a Delaware corporation originally incorporated in Minnesota in 2001 and reincorporated in Delaware in 2016, is a holding company having a controlling interest in subsidiaries operating in the following industries and operating segments:

Our “Cellular Retail” segment is comprised of an authorized Cricket Wireless dealer and involves the retail sale of cellular phones and accessories to consumers through our wholly owned subsidiary PQH Wireless, Inc. and its subsidiaries, one of which is 70% owned. Our “Direct to Consumer” segment consists of a wholly owned online and direct marketing distribution retailer of live plants, seeds, holiday gifts and garden accessories selling its products under Park Seed, Jackson & Perkins and Wayside Gardens brand names and home improvement and restoration products operating as Van Dyke’s Restorers as well as a wholesaler under the Park Wholesale brand. Our “Consumer Finance” segment consists of retail financial services conducted through our wholly owned subsidiaries Wyoming Financial Lenders, Inc. and Express Pawn, Inc. Throughout this report, we collectively refer to WCR and its consolidated subsidiaries as “we,” the “Company,” and “us.”

RECENT EVENTS

Sale of Franchise Business

On October 2, 2017, the Company sold 100% of its stock holdings of AlphaGraphics, Inc. (“AGI”), the sole business comprising the Company’s franchise segment, for approximately $61,500,000 (subject to adjustment) and as more fully explained in Note 19 “Discontinued Operations” of the notes to our consolidated financial statements included in this report. All debt, with the exception of approximately $789,000 of long-term debt incurred in our 2017 acquisition of Cricket stores, as more fully explained in Note 18 “Acquisitions” of the notes to our consolidated financial statements included in this report, of approximately $6,980,000 has been paid off with proceeds from the sale. AGI net income applicable to the Company’s shareholders for the year, including the gain on sale, was $36.29 million. We intend to use the net proceeds, after payment of income taxes and the aforementioned debt reduction, for future acquisition activity.

Cellular Retail Growth

In 2017, we grew our Cellular Retail segment by opening 91 new locations and acquiring 7 others, ending 2017 with 278 locations open. As the industry undergoes changes, we are continually reviewing opportunities to take strategic action. On February 1, 2018, we exchanged stores with another Cricket dealer to concentrate our operations in some markets while exiting others. As a result of this transaction, we reduced our store count by 13. We also sold or transferred several other locations to other dealers in order to concentrate our focus and enhance overall results.

Direct to Consumer Realignment

We are realigning our direct to consumer distribution model from the partial use of an outsourced service provider to a fully integrated in-house fulfillment model. We believe that in addition to enhancing distribution performance, this will allow us to consolidate our customer service center which will enhance the experience of our end customers. We also merged our online and direct marketing distribution retailer Van Dykes Restorers, specializing in home improvement and restoration products, into its sister company J & P Park Acquisitions, Inc., also an online and direct marketing retailer. We believe these realignment strategies will result in decreased operational costs, a higher quality call center, and creation of new jobs qualifying for South Carolina tax credits.

Acquisitions

We are actively searching for acquisition opportunities. We are industry agnostic and target leaders in niche industries or geographies as well as opportunistic purchases of businesses that we believe we can improve operationally. We have a particular interest in companies facing succession dilemmas, corporate divestitures and businesses in out-of-favor industries. In addition, we seek to grow our subsidiaries through add-on acquisitions in the e-commerce, cellular retail and consumer finance segments. Our overall strategy continues to focus on building a diversified portfolio of strong cash flow generating businesses. Our financial strength, long-term view and operating expertise allow subsidiary companies to focus on growing and maximizing return on investment. We expect to be patient and move upon what we believe to be the right investment opportunities.

Dividend

In January 2018, our Board of Directors declared an increase of our dividend to $0.05 per share, which was paid in February 2018. Our dividends declared and paid in previous quarters have been at $0.025 per share.

CELLULAR RETAIL SEGMENT

General Description

We operate cellular retail stores as an authorized Cricket dealer, selling cellular phones and accessories, providing ancillary services and accepting service payments from customers. Authorized Cricket dealers are permitted to sell the carrier’s line and generally locate their store operations in areas with a strong potential customer base where the carrier does not maintain a corporate storefront. As an authorized Cricket dealer, we are only permitted to sell the Cricket line of no-contract cellular phones and service at our Cricket retail stores.

We generate revenue in this business through retail sales of cellular phones, receipt of back-end compensation from Cricket, sales of phone accessories (e.g., cases, car chargers and bluetooth speakers), fees charged when a customer changes services (service activations and reactivations, adding lines, phone number changes, etc.), or whenever a customer whom we activated on the Cricket network pays his or her no-contract cellular bill.

A summary table of the number of cellular retail stores we operated during the periods ended December 31, 2017 and 2016 follows:

Market Information and Marketing

Cricket Wireless service offers customers simple, no-contract, predictable and affordable nationwide flat rate wireless plans. Cricket Wireless customers have the added advantage of unlimited minutes, text and data access on the AT&T network.

No-contract cellular products and services were historically targeted primarily only to market segments that were underserved by traditional communications companies requiring credit approval, a contractual commitment from the subscriber for a period of at least one year, and often included overage charges for minute and data usage in excess of a specified limit. We believe that a large portion of the U.S. cellular market consists of customers who are price-sensitive and prefer not to enter into these fixed-term contracts. We believe that the Cricket Wireless cellular retail product and service offerings we offer appeal strongly not only to the underserved markets but to the greater U.S. cellular market as well and believe we are positioned to benefit as Cricket Wireless increases its subscribers.

Market Strategy

We believe that our business model is scalable and we can apply our operational protocols and administrative office functions to continue expanding our cellular retail business. We will continue to evaluate strategic and opportunistic acquisitions of existing Cricket dealerships and will actively close, dispose or consolidate locations that do not meet our operating criteria in order to streamline operations.

Products and Services

Our authorized Cricket retail stores offer the following products and services:

When purchasing a phone, our customers have options among the latest in Apple, Android-based and Windows OS-based smartphones. Because there is no contract for the monthly service, customer phone purchases are paid in full at the time of purchase.

Seasonality

Our Cellular Retail segment operations are influenced by seasonal effects related to traditional retail selling periods and other factors affecting our target customer base. In particular, we generally expect sales activity to be highest in the first and fourth quarters. Nevertheless, our revenues can be strongly affected by the launch of new markets, new or improved products, promotional activity, the timing of federal tax-refunds and the actions of our competitors, any of which have the ability to offset or exacerbate the seasonality we normally experience.

Competition

There is substantial and ever increasing competition in the wireless phone industry where customers can choose between many other postpaid and no-contract resellers, including AT&T, Verizon, Sprint/Boost Mobile, T-Mobile/Metro PCS and a larger number of regional providers. We compete for customers based principally on Cricket’s service/device offerings, price, call quality and coverage area.

Competition for the no-contract customers, the sub-industry in which we largely operate, is primarily among MetroPCS, Virgin Mobile and Boost Mobile, but also includes the traditional postpaid carriers that have introduced no-contract products. There is also competition with other no-contract phone service providers such as Straight Talk by Wal-Mart or Wal-Mart’s Family Mobile powered by T-Mobile, an increase of national retailers offering similar or identical products and services that we provide, such as Cricket phones sold at Game Stop and Wal-Mart, and an increase in mobile virtual network operator (“MVNO”) offerings.

Our Cricket store business also competes with other current or potential authorized Cricket Wireless dealers. The authorization to sell Cricket products and services is granted by Cricket Wireless, LLC, a wholly owned entity of Leap Wireless International, Inc. On March 13, 2014, Leap Wireless International was acquired by AT&T. Our ability to compete with other sellers of Cricket products and services will depend on the success with which we operate our stores.

DIRECT TO CONSUMER SEGMENT

General Description

Our direct to consumer segment is a direct marketer of roses, plants, seeds, holiday gifts and home restoration products. The business is composed of: 1) a multi-channel retailer of garden and living gift products; 2) a wholesale seed business; and 3) a multi-channel retailer of home hardware and restoration products. Our garden products brands are highly recognizable in the rose and garden space as both the Jackson & Perkins and Park Seed brands were founded more than 145 years ago.

Products and Services

Our direct to consumer segment sells product through catalogs and online under the following brands:

Seasonality

Demand for live goods and holiday products is cyclical in nature, sensitive to seasonal growing patterns, general weather conditions, holiday sales patterns and competitive influences. As such, the direct to consumer segment’s results of operations, financial condition and cash flows could fluctuate significantly from period to period. The majority of segment revenue is derived in three selling periods, spring, fall, and the December holiday season, while the summer season accounts for a small portion of sales.

Market Strategy

As a direct to consumer retailer, we focus our marketing spending on mail order catalogs, internet advertising, and traditional advertising mediums (i.e., public relations, magazines, social media, etc.). We are focused on niche markets and direct our advertising to repeat and new customers through internet marketing strategies.

Competition

In the retail garden business, within the bare root rose category, we compete against brick and mortar garden centers and nurseries (approximately 10,000 across the United States), as well as other online and mail-order retailers, including David Austin Roses and Regan Nursery. Across other plant categories, we compete against Gardens Alive and their portfolio of brands, and other competitors. Our biggest competitive advantages are our recognizable Jackson & Perkins brand name proprietary patented rose varieties and exclusive garden seed products. The most direct competitor for Wayside Gardens is White Flower Farms, which also focuses on high-end, premium plants.

Within the holiday gift segment, we compete against larger competitors including Harry and David and 1-800 Flowers, among others. Within the seed business, our primary competitor is Burpee which, in addition to having an online presence, supplies lower-end seed products to mass market retailers, including Wal-Mart.

Our Van Dyke’s Restorers brand competes primarily with other online retailers since brick and mortar stores cannot afford to carry Van Dyke’s breadth of SKUs. Our competitors are Signature Hardware, House of Antique Hardware, and Rejuvenation Hardware (part of Williams Sonoma). The above-mentioned competitors compete primarily in the hardware, lighting and kitchen and bath categories. The decorative wood portion of the Van Dyke’s business is in a very fragmented industry niche and there are no big decorative wood competitors. Van Dyke’s competes primarily through the breadth of its product variety as well as through its established brand name and customer list.

CONSUMER FINANCE SEGMENT

General Description

The majority of short-term consumer loans we provide are commonly referred to as “payday loans” or “cash advance” loans. Such loans are referred to as “payday loans” because they are typically made to borrowers who have no available cash and promise to repay the loan out of their next paycheck. We also provide short-term installment and pawn loans as part of this operating segment.

We provide short-term consumer loans in amounts that typically range from $100 to $500 with the average loan amount, including fee, being approximately $421. Cash advance loans provide customers with cash in exchange for a promissory note with a maturity of generally two to four weeks and the customer’s post-dated personal check for the aggregate amount of the cash advance, plus a fee. The fee varies from state to state based on applicable regulations, and generally ranges from $15 to $22 for each whole or partial increment of $100 borrowed. To repay the cash advance loan, a customer may pay with cash, in which case their personal check is returned to them, or allow the check to be presented to the bank for collection. Approximately 90% and 89% of our lending revenue in the Consumer Finance segment was derived from payday lending in 2017 and 2016, respectively. Payday lending revenue made up approximately 74% of our total revenue in the Consumer Finance segment in 2017 and 2016.

We offer short-term “installment” loans in Colorado and Wisconsin. Approximately 6% and 7% of our lending revenue in the Consumer Finance segment was derived from installment lending in 2017 and 2016. We provide our installment loan customers with cash in exchange for a promissory note with a maturity of generally six months. The fee and interest rate on installment loans vary based on applicable regulations. Like cash advance or payday loans, installment loans are unsecured.

We operate three pawn stores in our Consumer Finance segment. Our pawn stores provide collateralized non-recourse loans, commonly known as “pawn loans” with maturities of one to four months. Allowable service charges vary by state and loan size. The loan amount varies depending on our valuation of each item pawned. We generally lend from 30% to 55% of our estimate of the collateral’s resale value. Customers have the option to redeem the pawned merchandise during the term or at maturity, or else forfeit the merchandise to us on maturity. At our pawn stores we sell merchandise that was acquired through either customer forfeiture of pawn collateral, second-hand merchandise purchased from customers or consigned to us, or new merchandise purchased from vendors. Pawn store revenues made up approximately 17% and 16% of our total revenue in the Consumer Finance segment in 2017 and 2016, respectively.

All of our Consumer Finance lending activities and other services are subject to state regulations (which vary from state to state), federal regulations and local regulations, where applicable.

As part of each payday and installment loan transaction, we enter into a standardized written promissory note with the borrowing customer and obtain proof of income and identity, a personal post-dated check for the principal loan amount plus a specified fee if a payday loan, and other documentation. Our standardized contracts vary based on state laws, but all of our contracts plainly state in simple terms the annual percentage rate (assuming the fees we charge are computed as interest) in compliance with Regulation Z, the borrower’s right to rescind the transaction, a dispute-resolution clause, a notice of financial privacy rights, an affirmative representation about whether the borrower is a member of the U.S. military, and the consequences of defaulting on the loan. We retain copies of our written contracts and provide a signed copy to our customers.

In general, our lending process and standards are extraordinarily different from those used by banks. To our knowledge, banks typically order and carefully review credit reports on all loans, engage in extensive underwriting analysis, and will typically make independent verification of earnings history through phone calls, reviews of tax returns and other processes. As a result, we generally experience a higher default rate on our personal loans than banks do on their personal loans (see caption below, “Risks Associated with Our Loans—Default and Collection”). At December 31, 2017, we had an aggregate (of all loan types) of approximately:

A summary table of the number of Consumer Finance locations operated during the periods ended December 31, 2017 and 2016 follows:

The Fees We Charge

The fee we charge for a payday loan varies from state to state, based on applicable regulations, and generally ranges from $15 to $22 for each whole or partial increment of $100 borrowed. We do not charge interest in connection with our payday loans but do charge interest and fees where allowable on our short-term installment loans made in Colorado and Wisconsin. If, however, we calculate the loan fees we charge as an annual percentage rate of interest (APR), such rate would range from 177% for a 31-day loan transacted in Kansas (on the low end) to approximately 536% for a 14-day loan in Wyoming (on the high end), with the actual average loan amount and average actual loan fees we charge involving an imputed annual percentage rate of approximately 439% and 198% for a 14-day and 31-day loan, respectively. The term of a loan significantly affects the imputed APR of the fees we charge for our loans. For instance, when a $15 fee is charged for a two-week loan of $100, the resulting APR is 391%. When the same fee on $100 is charged for a four-week loan, the resulting APR is 195%. Currently, we do not charge the maximum fee permitted in all of the states where we operate. We do, however, charge a uniform fee for all transactions processed in any particular state that involve the same range of payday loan amounts and the same term.

Of the seven states in which we presently operate, only one state (Wisconsin) does not limit the loan fees we may charge or the term (i.e., the length) of the loans we may offer our customers

In Wisconsin and Colorado, we generally offer short-term installment loans in amounts from $300 to $750 payable in six equal monthly payments. Colorado loan terms include a 45% annual interest rate, an origination fee of 20% on loan amounts up to $300 and 7.5% on loan amounts thereafter, and a monthly maintenance fee. Wisconsin installment loans are payable over four to six months at an annual percentage rate of approximately 480%.

We also offer pawn loans in Nebraska and Iowa. Allowable service charges for pawn loans vary by state and loan size. Our pawn loans earn 24% per month and our average pawn loan amount typically ranges between $10 and $250, although may range as high as $2,000. The loan amount varies depending on our estimated value of each item pawned.

Many states have laws limiting the amount of fees that may be charged in connection with any lending transaction (including payday and pawn lending transactions) when calculated as an APR, and some states expressly prohibit payday lending. These limitations, combined with other limitations and restrictions, effectively prohibit us from utilizing our present business model for cash advance or “payday” lending in those jurisdictions. In addition, the federal “2007 Military Authorization Act” prohibits lenders from offering or making payday loans (or similar lending transactions) to members of the U.S. military when the interest or fees exceed a 36% APR. Like the state limitations discussed above, this limitation effectively prohibits us from providing our cash advance or “payday” lending to members of the U.S. military. As a result of these restrictions, we do not conduct business with U.S. military personnel.

The above-described payday fees are the only fees we assess and collect from our customers for payday loans. Nevertheless, we also charge a flat fee that ranges from $15 to $30 (depending on the state) for returned checks in the event that a post-dated check we attempt to cash as repayment for our loan is returned.

Extensions or “Rollovers” of Payday Loans

Most states prohibit payday lenders from extending or refinancing a payday loan. Nevertheless, one state in which we presently provide payday loans (North Dakota) permits a loan to be extended or “rolled over” once.

When a customer “rolls over” or extends the term of an outstanding loan, when permitted by state law, we treat that rollover or extension as a brand new loan and we again charge the above-described loan fee for that transaction. This rollover has no effect on the imputed APR of the loan in those cases where the extended term is equal to the initial term of the loan. For example, a $100 four-week loan that costs $20 to obtain is the APR equivalent of 261%. If a customer extends the term of that loan for an additional four-week period, the customer will have paid $40 total in fees to obtain the $100 eight-week loan—which is again the APR equivalent of 261%. In cases where a customer (1) extends or rolls over a loan for a length of time that is less than the original loan or (2) repays the extended loan prior to the expiration of the fully extended term, the imputed APR will increase. For example, if a customer who obtained an initial $100 four-week loan for $20 in loan fees (the APR equivalent of 261%) later extends the term of that loan for only two additional weeks and pays the additional $20 loan fee, that customer will have borrowed $100 for a six-week period at a total cost of $40—which is the APR equivalent of 347%. We do not charge any interest on the unpaid fee from the initial term of the loan because, as a condition to agreeing to a loan extension, we will only accept cash payment of the fee for extending the loan.

Risks Associated With Our Loans—Default and Collection

Ordinarily, our customers approach us for a loan because they currently have insufficient funds to meet their present obligations, and so rarely if ever do our customers have sufficient funds in their checking accounts to cover the personal post-dated checks they provide us at the time of the loan transaction. The nature of our payday loan transactions presents a number of risks, including the ultimate risk that the loan will not be paid back. In addition, we do not obtain security for our payday loans principally because, even assuming our customers would have potential collateral to offer as security for a payday loan, the small size of each particular lending transaction does not justify the time, effort and expense of identifying the collateral and properly obtaining a security interest in such collateral. As a consequence, all of our payday loans are unsecured. This means that, absent court or other legal action compelling a customer to repay our loans, we rely principally on the willingness and ability of our customers to repay amounts they owe us. In this regard, in many cases the costs of merely attempting to collect the amounts owed to us exceed the amounts we would seek to collect—making it impractical to take formal legal action against a defaulted borrower.

When a customer defaults on a loan, we engage in collection practices that include contacting the customer for repayment and the customer’s bank to determine whether funds are available to satisfy their personal post-dated check. If funds are available, we present the check to the bank for repayment and an official check from the bank is obtained to pay off the item. The costs involved in these initial collection efforts are minimal, involve some employee time and possibly a flat $15-30 bank fee to cover the cost of the cashier’s check. If funds are not available, we generally attempt to collect returned checks for up to 90 days (or up to 180 days in cases where a bank account is still active and the customer has not initiated a stop payment on the postdated check provided), principally through continued attempts to contact the customer. If our attempts remain unsuccessful after 90 (or 180) days, we generally assign the item to a collection agency. Assignment to a collection agency may cost us 30-40% of the amount eventually collected (if any) from the customer. Ordinarily, we do not recoup any costs of collection from our customers.

Historically, we collect approximately 58% of the amount of all returned checks, which results in approximately 2.69% of our total payday loan principal and fee volume being uncollectible. In 2017, we generated approximately 135,000 payday loan transactions.

Industry Information

According to a November 2016 study by the Center for Financial Services Innovation (“2016 Financially Underserved Market Size Study”) consumers spent approximately $3.6 billion on fees for single payment loan products from storefront payday lenders in 2015. This represented a decline over prior years and the trend was expected to continue going forward. According to the Community Financial Services Association of America (CFSA) website, industry analysts estimate that 19 million U.S. households use short-term payday advances and estimate that there are 20,600 payday advance locations across the United States, which extend approximately $38.5 billion in short-term credit to households experiencing cash-flow shortfalls. In addition to being a valuable source of credit for many consumers, the payday loan industry makes significant contributions to the U.S. and state economies employing more than 50,000 Americans who earn $2 billion in wages and generating more than $2.6 billion in federal, state, and local taxes. Industry trends indicate that there will likely be a net decrease in total payday lending stores over the next few years due to store closings resulting from a combination of regulatory or legal changes, regulatory pressures, a slowdown in new store growth, and general economic conditions.

Predatory Lending and Regulatory Concerns

In general, the payday lending industry suffers from the perception and widespread belief that payday lenders are by their nature, predatory lenders, offering loans to low income and poorly educated consumers at costs that are too high to be good for consumers. This perception and belief results in frequent efforts in the U.S. Congress and various state legislatures, often proposed by consumer advocacy groups and lobbyists for traditional financial institutions such as banks, to further regulate and restrict or prohibit payday lending outright. See “Item 1A – Risk Factors” for further information regarding regulatory risks.

We do not believe the payday lending is predatory, nor do we believe that our loans are too costly for consumers if they are judiciously obtained. In fact, we believe that bank overdraft fees by themselves are typically far more costly for consumers, and bouncing a check can often involve other negative consequences such as independent fees levied by the parties to whom a bad check is written, negative publicity, etc. In this regard, the FDIC released a November 2008 report called “Study of Bank Overdraft Programs.” The report indicates that the average amount obtained when bank customers overdraw their accounts is $60, and the average overdraft fee charged by the bank is $27. This equates to an APR of 1,173% and 587% for a two-week and four-week $60 bank “loan,” respectively. In sum, we believe that many of the bad perceptions about our industry are fueled primarily by:

Seasonality

Our Consumer Finance segment results are subject to seasonality, with the first and fourth quarters typically being our strongest periods as a result of broader economic factors, such as holiday spending habits at the end of each year and income tax refunds during the first quarter.

Competition

Like most other payday lenders, we believe that the primary competitive factors in our business are location and customer service. We face intense competition in an industry with relatively low barriers to entry, and we believe that the payday lending markets are becoming more competitive as the industry matures and consolidates. We compete with other payday lending and check cashing stores, and with financial service entities and retail businesses that offer payday loans or similar financial services. For example, we consider credit card companies that offer payday features, credit unions, banks that offer small loans, and creditors and loan services that can extend payment terms on outstanding loans to be our competitors. In addition, we compete in part with services offered by traditional financial institutions, most particularly with respect to the “overdraft protection” services those institutions may offer and the charges they levy for checks written with insufficient funds.

Additional areas of competition have arisen. Businesses offer loans over the Internet as well as “loans by phone,” and these services compete with the services we offer. There also has been increasing penetration of electronic banking and related services into the check cashing and money transfer industry, including direct deposit of payroll checks, payroll or debit cards, stored-value cards, prepaid credit and debit cards, and electronic transfer of government benefits.

We also believe that customer service is critical to developing loyalty. In our industry, we believe that quality customer service means:

Our competitors for pawn store merchandise sales include numerous retail and wholesale stores, including jewelry stores, discount retail stores, consumer electronics stores, other pawn stores, other resale stores, electronic commerce retailers and auction sites.

The pawn industry in the United States is large and highly fragmented. The industry consists of approximately 13,000 pawn stores owned primarily by independent operators who own one to three locations. We consider the industry relatively mature. The three largest pawn store operators account for approximately 10% of the total estimated pawn stores in the United States.

Effect of General Economic Conditions on our Consumer Finance Segment

Our business has experienced fluctuating changes in our provision for loan losses in recent years. For example, our provision for loan losses as a percentage of payday, installment and pawn loan revenue was 12.3% for 2017 and 16.3% in 2016. We are uncertain how the current economic conditions will affect demand for our services or our loan losses for 2018.

Credit and financing available to us and our industry has been negatively impacted by recent federal and state legislation and regulation, including the overall negative perception associated with payday lending. For example, we are aware of federal and state regulatory pressures being exerted on our banking relationships due to the negative perception about payday lending. For more information, see “Regulation - Regulation of Consumer Financing Activities” below.

REGULATION

We are subject to regulation by federal, state and local governments that affect the products and services we provide. Generally, these regulations are designed to protect consumers who use our services and are not designed to protect our shareholders.

Regulation of Consumer Financing Activities

In those states where we currently operate consumer finance activities, we are licensed as a payday lender or pawn broker where required and are subject to various state regulations regarding the terms and conditions of our payday, installment and pawn loans and our lending policies, procedures and operations. In some states, payday lending is referred to as “deferred presentment,” “cash advance loans,” “deferred deposit loans” or “consumer installment loans.” State regulations normally limit the amount that we may lend to any single consumer and may limit the number of loans that we may make to any consumer at one time or in the course of a single year. State regulations also limit the amount of fees that we may assess in connection with any loan transaction and may limit a customer’s ability to extend or “rollover” a loan with us. Often, state regulations also specify minimum and maximum maturity dates for payday loans and, in some cases, specify mandatory cooling-off periods between transactions.

Our payday lending practices must also comply with the disclosure requirements of the Federal Truth-In-Lending Act and Regulation Z under that Act. Our collection activities for delinquent loans are generally subject to consumer protection laws regulating debt-collection practices. Finally, our payday lending business subjects us to the Equal Credit Opportunity Act and the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act.

During the last few years, legislation has been introduced and passed in the U.S. Congress and in certain state legislatures proposing or effecting various restrictions or an outright prohibition on payday lending. Currently, state laws in Arizona, Montana, Oregon, South Dakota and Georgia have effectively eliminated the ability to conduct payday lending in those states. In 2010, Congress passed the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, which consolidated most federal regulation of financial services offered to consumers, and replaced the Office of Thrift Supervision’s seat on the FDIC Board. Almost all credit providers, including mortgage lenders, providers of payday loans, other nonbank financial companies, and banks and credit unions with assets over $10 billion, are subject to regulations and oversight by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”). While the CFPB does not have authority to make rules limiting interest rates or fees charged, the scope and extent of its authority is broad enough to impose limits on rollovers and extensions of payday loans, as well as compliance with federal rules and regulations.

After several years of research, debate, and public hearings, in October 2017 the CFPB issued new rules for payday lending. The proposed rules, scheduled to go into effect in August 2019, would impose significant restrictions on the industry, and it is expected that a large number of lenders would be forced to close their stores. The CFPB’s studies projected a reduction in the number of lenders by 50%, while industry studies forecast a much higher attrition rate. Included in the new rules are requirements for vetting borrowers (i.e., obtaining a credit report and performing basic underwriting procedures), limits on the number of loans a consumer could obtain in a 12-month period, limiting to two the number of times a consumer’s check may be presented to the consumer’s bank for payment, and provisions requiring paydowns by the consumer on successive loans. However, in January 2018, the CFPB issued a statement that it intends to “reconsider” the regulation. At this time it is uncertain whether the rule will be implemented as announced, rewritten with more favorable terms for the industry, or thrown out altogether. If the rule is implemented as written, it could have a significant and negative impact on business conducted within our Consumer Finance segment.

In addition, our Consumer Finance segment activities are subject to the following federal consumer laws and regulations:

For more information, see “PAYDAY LENDING BUSINESS—Predatory Lending and Regulatory Concerns” above.

Financial Reporting Regulation

Regulations promulgated by the United States Department of the Treasury under the Bank Secrecy Act require us to report all transactions involving currency in an amount greater than $10,000. Generally, every financial institution must report each deposit, withdrawal, exchange of currency or other payment or transfer that involves an amount greater than $10,000. In addition, multiple currency transactions must be treated as a single transaction if we have knowledge that the transactions are by or on behalf of any one person and result, in a single business day, in the transfer of cash in or out totaling more than $10,000. In addition, the regulations require us to maintain information concerning sales of monetary instruments for cash in amounts from $3,000 to $10,000. The Bank Secrecy Act requires us, under certain circumstances, to file a suspicious activity report.

The Money Laundering Suppression Act of 1994 requires us, as a money service business, to register with the United States Department of the Treasury. Money services businesses include check cashers and sellers of money orders. Money services businesses must renew their registrations every two years, maintain a list of their agents, update the agent list annually, and make the agent list available for examination.

Finally, we have established various procedures designed to comply, and we continue to monitor and evaluate our business methods and procedures to ensure compliance with the USA PATRIOT Act.

Privacy Regulation

We are subject to a variety of federal and state laws and regulations restricting the use and seeking to protect the confidentiality of customer identity and other personal nonpublic customer information. We have identified our systems that capture and maintain nonpublic personal information, as that term is understood under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act and associated regulations. We disclose our public information policies to our customers as required by that law. We also have systems in place intended to safeguard this information as required by the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, which specifically governs certain aspects of our payday lending business.

Technology and Information

We maintain an integrated system of retail points of sale and management software applications and platforms for processing the various types of financial transactions we offer. These systems provide us with customer service, internal control mechanisms, record-keeping and reporting information. These systems are designed to provide summary, detailed and exception information to various levels of management.

Security

We believe the principal security risks to our Consumer Finance and Cellular Retail segments are robbery and employee theft. We have established extensive security and management information systems to address both areas of potential loss. To protect against robbery, most payday lending store employees work behind bullet-resistant glass, and the back office, safe and computer areas are locked and closed to customers. Security measures utilized in our retail locations include mechanical safes, electronic alarm systems monitored by third parties or remote controlled systems, control over entry to customer service representative, motion detection devices, locked cases, and, at times, the use of professional security services. Consumer Finance segment employees also use cellular phones to ensure safety and security whenever they are outside secured areas.

We implemented critical safeguarding controls, including daily cash and deposit monitoring, unannounced audits of cash and inventory items, and requiring immediate responses from our staff when irregularities in cash balances are discovered. We primarily self-insure for employee theft and dishonesty at the store level.

We regularly receive and store information about our customers, vendors and other third parties. We have programs in place to detect, contain, and respond to data security incidents. However, because the techniques used to obtain unauthorized access, disable or degrade service, or sabotage systems change frequently and may be difficult to detect for long periods of time, we may be unable to anticipate these techniques or implement adequate preventive measures. In addition, hardware, software, or applications we develop or procure from third parties or through open source solutions may contain defects in design or manufacture or other problems that could unexpectedly compromise information security. Unauthorized parties may also attempt to gain access to our systems or facilities, or those of third parties with whom we do business, through fraud, trickery, or other forms of deceiving our team members, contractors, and vendors.

EMPLOYEES

At December 31, 2017, we had approximately 1,100 employees. We believe our relationship with our employees is good, and we have not suffered any work stoppages or labor disputes. We do not have any employees that operate under collective-bargaining agreements.

CORPORATE INFORMATION

Our principal offices are located at 11550 “I” Street, Suite 150, Omaha, Nebraska 68137, and our telephone number at that office is (402) 551-8888.

Our fiscal year ends December 31. Neither we nor any of our predecessors have been in bankruptcy, receivership or any similar proceeding.

ITEM 1A    RISK FACTORS

You should consider the following risk factors, in addition to the other information presented or incorporated by reference into this Annual Report on Form 10-K, in evaluating our business and your investment in us.

Investment Risks

Acquisitions and strategic investments may fail to meet our expectations, and any such failure could have a negative impact on our results of operation or financial condition, and could ultimately result in dilution to our shareholders.

Our long-term growth strategy includes acquisitions. We may not successfully execute this strategy. An acquisition strategy includes numerous risks, including, among others, the risk that our financial projections relating to our acquisitions may turn out to be incorrect and our investment may fail to positively impact our results and growth as anticipated (and may in fact negatively impact our results), the risk of unexpected or unidentified issues not discovered in the due diligence process which could harm our financial condition, and the need for substantial additional capital which may result in dilution to our shareholders.

Acquisitions and strategic investments made wholly or partly on the basis of our issuance of securities to the target companies, or acquisitions made with cash that is obtained from outside investors or lenders, will result in dilution to our shareholders.

The structuring of future acquisitions, whether through share exchanges, merger acquisitions or otherwise, may result in dilution to existing shareholders. In addition, cash-based transactions may not be financed from corporate cash flows and reserves, and may themselves be financed through borrowing arrangements or the sale of equity or equity-linked securities, the latter of which would be dilutive to our shareholders.

Acquisitions and strategic investments may be disruptive to our business.

The time and expense associated with finding suitable acquisitions or with integrating acquired entities and operations with our Company can be disruptive to our ongoing business and divert our management’s attention. In addition, the financing of acquisitions may impact our ability to obtain or renew financing for existing operations, or subject us to covenants restricting certain activities. Any of these outcomes could have a short- or long-term adverse effect on our results of operation and our ability to further execute our acquisition strategy.

Unpredictability in financing and other markets could impair our ability to grow our business through acquisitions

We anticipate that opportunities to acquire businesses will materially depend on the availability of financing alternatives with acceptable terms as well as acceptable market valuations of prospective acquisitions. As a result, poor credit and other market conditions, mergers and acquisitions market valuations, any uncertainty in the financing markets, or the adverse regulatory pressures of being involved in the payday lending business in particular, could materially limit our ability to grow through acquisitions since such conditions and uncertainty make obtaining financing and finding attractive opportunities more difficult and more expensive.

Our controlling shareholder possesses controlling voting power with respect to our common stock, which will limit other shareholders’ influence on corporate matters.

Our controlling shareholders, WCR, LLC and BC Alpha Holdings I, LLC, which are under common control (see Item 12), had beneficial ownership of approximately 59.61% of our common stock as of December 31, 2017. As a result, the controlling shareholders have the ability to outright control our affairs through the election and removal of our entire Board of Directors and all other matters requiring shareholder approval, including a future merger or consolidation of the Company, or a sale of all or substantially all of our assets. This concentrated control limits the Company’s public float and could discourage others from initiating any such potential merger, consolidation or sale or other change-of-control transaction that may otherwise be beneficial to our shareholders. Furthermore, this concentrated control will limit the practical effect of your participation in Company matters, through shareholder votes and otherwise.

Our certificate of incorporation grants our Board of Directors the power to issue additional shares of common and preferred stock and to designate other classes of preferred stock, all without shareholder approval.

Our authorized capital consists of 12.5 million shares of capital stock. Pursuant to authority granted by our certificate of incorporation, our Board of Directors, without any action by our shareholders, may designate and issue shares in such classes or series (including other classes or series of preferred stock) as it deems appropriate and establish the rights, preferences and privileges of such shares, including dividends, liquidation and voting rights, provided they are consistent with Delaware law. The rights of holders of other classes or series of stock that may be issued could be superior to the rights of holders of our common shares. The designation and issuance of shares of capital stock having preferential rights could adversely affect other rights appurtenant to shares of our common stock. Furthermore, any issuances of additional stock (common or preferred) will dilute the percentage of ownership interest of then-current holders of our capital stock and may dilute our book value per share.

Our common stock trades only in an illiquid trading market.

Trading of our common stock is conducted on the OTCQB, a tier of the OTC Markets (symbol: WCRS). This has an adverse effect on the liquidity of our common stock, not only in terms of the number of shares that can be bought and sold at a given price, but also through delays in the timing of transactions and reduction in security analysts’ and the media’s coverage of us and our common stock. This may result in lower prices for our common stock than might otherwise be obtained and could also result in a larger spread between the bid and asked prices for our common stock.

There is not now and there may not ever be an active market for shares of our common stock.

In general, there has been minimal trading volume in our common stock. During 2017, the average daily trading volume (based on trade volume as reported by OTC Markets) was approximately 699 shares. The small trading volume will likely make it difficult for our shareholders to sell their shares as and when they choose. Furthermore, small trading volumes are generally understood to depress market prices. As a result, you may not always be able to resell shares of our common stock publicly at the time and prices that you feel are fair or appropriate.

A default under our borrowing arrangements could require us to seek financing on a short-term basis that may be disadvantageous to us.

Our borrowing arrangements provide for a series of financial covenants and reporting requirements. If we are unable to comply with the terms or the financial covenants of those borrowing arrangements, we may need to seek additional financing. We may not be able to obtain financing on a short-term basis. Furthermore, even if we are able to obtain needed short-term financing, we may be unable to do so on terms that are favorable or acceptable to us.

Failure to achieve and maintain effective internal controls could limit our ability to detect and prevent fraud and thereby adversely affect our business and stock price.

Effective internal controls are necessary for us to provide reliable financial reports. Nevertheless, all internal control systems, no matter how well designed, have inherent limitations. Even those systems determined to be effective can provide only reasonable assurance with respect to financial statement preparation and presentation. As we continue executing on our acquisition strategy, our fraud risks will change and likely increase as the acquired entity may be unfamiliar or uncooperative with proper internal controls and procedures. Our inability to maintain an effective control environment may cause investors to lose confidence in our reported financial information, which could in turn have a material adverse effect on our stock price.

Our reliance on information management and transaction systems to operate our business exposes us to potential security breaches of our sensitive information from cyber incidents and hacking.

Effective information security internal controls are necessary for us to protect our sensitive information from illegal activities and unauthorized disclosure. Despite our efforts to maintain the highest level of security around our information systems, the sophistication of hackers continues to increase. Our inability to maintain effective controls or utilization of information technology providers that also maintain effective controls may increase our vulnerability to cyber-attacks. Breaches of our information management systems could adversely affect our business reputation. We could also be subject to lawsuits or fines relating to the unauthorized disclosure of information. Any of these outcomes could negatively affect our results of operations and the price of our common stock.

Any disruption in the availability of our information systems could adversely affect our operations.

We rely upon our information systems to manage and operate our business. Our security measures could fail to prevent a disruption in the availability of our information systems, our back-up systems could fail to operate properly, or we may experience denial of service attacks or corruption of our data. Any disruption in the availability of our information systems could adversely affect our results of operations by impairing our ability to efficiently effect transactions.

A significant portion of our assets consists of goodwill and other intangible assets.

As of December 31, 2017, 10.3% of our assets consisted of goodwill and other intangible assets. Under generally accepted accounting principles, the carrying value of goodwill is subject to periodic review and testing to determine if it is impaired. The value of our assets will depend on market conditions, regulatory environment, the availability of buyers and similar factors. While the value of these assets is based on management projections and assumptions and is determined by using the discounted cash flow method for purposes of our impairment testing, those values may differ from what could ultimately be realized by us in a sales transaction or otherwise and that difference, while not affecting cash flow, could have a material adverse impact on our operating results and financial position.

Industry Risks

The payday loan industry is highly regulated under federal, state and local laws and regulations. Changes in federal, state or local laws and regulations governing lending practices, or changes in the interpretation of such laws and regulations, could negatively affect our business.

Our Consumer Finance segment activities are highly regulated under numerous federal, state and local laws, regulations and rules, which are subject to change. New laws, regulations or rules could be enacted or issued, interpretations of existing laws, regulations or rules may change and enforcement action by regulatory agencies may intensify.

Although states provide the primary regulatory framework under which we offer payday loans, certain federal laws also affect our business. For example, because payday loans are viewed as extensions of credit, we must comply with the federal Truth-in-Lending Act and Regulation Z under that Act. Additionally, we are subject to the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act and certain other federal laws.

From a federal standpoint, anti-payday loan legislation has occasionally been introduced in the U.S. Congress. Over the past several years, consumer advocacy groups and certain media reports have advocated governmental and regulatory action to prohibit or severely restrict sub-prime lending activities such as those we conduct. As outlined under “BUSINESS – REGULATION – Regulation of Consumer Financing Activities,” the CFPB released their final rule in October 2017 but announced in January 2018 that it is reconsidering the rule. If implemented in substantially its present form, the rule may put in question the viability of the entire industry and result in mass store closures.

In the states, there are nearly always bills pending to alter the current laws governing payday lending. Any of these bills, or future proposed legislation or regulations prohibiting payday loans or making them less profitable, could be passed in any state at any time, or existing laws permitting payday lending could expire. From time to time legislation banning payday loans has been introduced in Nebraska but has not been passed into law. Since we derive a significant percentage of our payday revenues in Nebraska, the passage of any such legislation in Nebraska would have a highly material and negative effect on our business.

Statutes authorizing payday loans typically provide state agencies that regulate banks and financial institutions with significant regulatory powers to administer and enforce the laws relating to payday lending. Under statutory authority, state regulators have broad discretionary power and may impose new licensing requirements, interpret or enforce existing regulatory requirements in different ways or issue new administrative rules, even if not contained in state statutes, that affect the way we do business and may force us to terminate or modify our operations in those jurisdictions. They may also impose rules that are generally adverse to our industry. Finally, in many states, the attorney general has scrutinized or continues to scrutinize the payday loan statutes and the interpretations of those statutes.

In sum, the passage of federal or state laws and regulations that govern or otherwise affect lending, or changes in interpretations of them, could, at any point, result in our curtailment or cessation of operations in certain or all jurisdictions or locations essentially prohibiting us from conducting its lending business in its current form. Any such legal or regulatory change would certainly have a material and adverse effect on us, our operating results, financial condition and prospects, and perhaps even our viability. Furthermore, any failure to comply with any applicable federal, state or local laws or regulations could result in fines, litigation, closure of one or more store locations and negative publicity.

Adverse changes in laws or regulations relating to pawn lending services could negatively impact our financial results and/or limit our ability to expand into new markets.

Our products and services are subject to extensive regulation and supervision under various federal, state and local laws, ordinances and regulations. We face the risk that restrictions or limitations on pawn loan amounts, pawn loan yields and customer acceptance of pawn loan products resulting from the enactment, change or interpretation of laws and regulations could have a negative effect on our business activities. In particular, short-term consumer loans have come under increased scrutiny and increasingly restrictive regulation in recent years. Adoption of such federal, state or local regulation or legislation could restrict, or even eliminate, our ability to conduct our pawn lending operations at a profit level we consider reasonable at some or all of our stores, and could prevent us from expanding into new markets.

Litigation and regulatory actions directed toward the consumer finance industry or our Company could adversely affect our operating results, particularly in certain key states.

During the last few years, the consumer finance industry has been subject to regulatory proceedings, class action lawsuits and other litigation regarding the offering of payday loans, and we could suffer losses resulting from interpretations of state laws in those lawsuits or regulatory proceedings, even if we are not a party to those proceedings. The losses we could suffer could be directly incurred through our involvement in litigation or regulatory proceedings, or could be indirectly incurred through negative publicity regarding the industry in general that is generated by litigation on regulatory proceedings involving third parties.

In addition, regulatory actions or enforcement efforts taken with respect to money services businesses could negatively affect our ability to operate our consumer finance segment in our current form. For example, federal bank regulators are imposing significant costs and regulatory pressure on banks that do business with money services businesses, even though our business is conducted in a manner compliant with applicable law. As a result, fewer and fewer banks are willing to accept or even retain customers in the money services business industry. We may be forced to change long-standing banking relationships and change the way we operate our consumer finance operations, incurring additional capital expenditures and paying higher banking fees.

Public perception of payday lending as being predatory or abusive could adversely affect our business.

In recent years, consumer advocacy groups and media reports have advocated governmental action to prohibit or severely restrict payday loans. The consumer groups and media reports typically focus on the cost to a consumer for this type of loan, which is higher than the interest typically charged by credit card issuers. The consumer groups and media reports typically characterize these transactions as predatory or abusive toward consumers. If this negative characterization of our business becomes widely accepted by consumers, demand for our payday loans could significantly decrease, which could adversely affect our results of operations primarily by decreasing our revenues. Negative perception of our business activities could also result in our industry being subject to more restrictive laws and regulations and greater exposure to litigation.

Competition in the consumer finance industry is intense and could cause us to lose market share and revenues.

We believe that the primary competitive factors in the payday loan industry are store location and customer service. We face intense competition in the payday and pawn lending industry, and we believe that those markets are becoming more competitive as these industries mature and begin to consolidate. The payday loan industry has low barriers to entry, and new competitors, such as Wal-Mart, may easily enter the market. The pawn lending industry has medium level barriers to entry, however, there are several large pawn lending companies with which we directly compete. We also currently compete with services, such as overdraft protection offered by traditional financial institutions, and with other payday loan and check cashing stores and other financial service entities and retail businesses that offer payday loans or other similar financial services, as well as a rapidly growing internet-based payday loan market. Some of our competitors have larger and more established customer bases and substantially greater financial, marketing and other resources than we have. As a result, we could lose market share and our revenues could decline, thereby affecting our earnings and potential for growth.

We face significant cellular retail competition that may reduce our market share and lower our profits.

We face significant competition in our Cellular Retail segment. We compete with the four national wireless service providers (AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon Wireless) as well as other smaller carriers such as US Cellular and Metro PCS and with many MVNOs such as Walmart’s Straight Talk and Family Mobile plans. We also compete with government-financed “lifeline assurance” programs that offer free or reduced-cost cellular services to individuals and families receiving many types of public assistance. Our ability to compete effectively will depend on, among other things, the pricing of cellular services and equipment, the quality of our customer service, the reach and quality of our sales and distribution channels and our capital resources. It will also depend on how successfully we anticipate and respond to various factors affecting our industry, including new technologies and business models, changes in consumer preferences, demographic trends and economic conditions.

The cellular retail industry also faces competition from other communications and technology companies seeking to capture customer revenue and brand dominance with respect to the provision of cellular accessories and services. For example, Apple Inc. packages software applications and content with its handsets, and Google Inc. has developed and deployed an operating system and related applications for mobile devices.

Free shipping pressure in the e-commerce industry could decrease our direct to consumer segment’s revenues and profitability.

The abundance of fee shipping offers from Amazon.com and other online retailers is putting pressure on our Direct to Consumer segment shipping revenues, currently representing 14% of Direct to Consumer revenues. If market forces lead to the elimination of this revenue stream, it may be difficult for the Direct to Consumer segment to make up that lost revenue.

General economic conditions affect our loan losses, and accordingly, our results of operations could be adversely affected by a general economic slowdown or other negative economic conditions such as high unemployment.

Provision for loan losses, net of recoveries, is one of our largest operating expenses, constituting approximately 12% of our loan fee revenues for the year ended December 31, 2017, with payday loan losses comprising most of the losses. Any changes in economic factors that adversely affect our customers, such as an economic downturn or high unemployment, could result in higher loan loss experiences than anticipated, which could in turn adversely affect our loan charge-offs and operating results.

A sustained deterioration in the economy could reduce demand for our products and services and result in reduced earnings.

A sudden or sustained deterioration in the economy could result in decreased demand for our seed, live plant, holiday gifts and home restoration products. This could result in decreased revenue and, because a significant portion of our sales in the Direct to Consumer segment are of live goods, inventory losses on live product acquired prior to a seasonal selling period could be significant.

In addition, a sudden or sustained deterioration in the economy could cause worsening performance of our pawn loans and in consumer demand for and resale value of pre-owned merchandise that we sell in our stores. This, in turn, could reduce the amount that we could effectively lend on an item of collateral. Such reductions could adversely affect pawn loan balances, pawn loan redemption rates, inventory balances, revenues and gross profit margins.

Company Risks

The concentration of our Consumer Finance revenues in certain states could adversely affect us.

We currently provide payday lending services in seven states. For the year ended December 31, 2017, Consumer Finance revenues from our locations in Nebraska represented approximately 36.8% of our total Consumer Finance segment revenues. For the foreseeable future, we expect that a material portion of our Consumer Finance revenues will continue to be generated in Nebraska. In addition, for the year ended December 31, 2017, Consumer Finance revenues from our North Dakota, Iowa and Wyoming stores represented approximately 23%, 16% and 13% of our total Consumer Finance revenues, respectively. Changes to prevailing economic, demographic, competitive, regulatory or any other conditions, including the legislative, regulatory or litigation risks mentioned above, in the markets in which we operate, and in Nebraska in particular, could lead to a reduction in demand for our services and result in a decline in our revenues or an increase in our provision for doubtful accounts, or even an outright legal prohibition on the conduct of our business. In this regard, we are aware of pending legislation in Nebraska that is aimed at eliminating payday lending in that state and permitting short-term loans in the nature of installment loans. Any of these outcomes could in turn result in a material and swift deterioration of our Consumer Finance segment financial condition principally by impairing its revenues and affecting its ability to obtain financing and operating liquidity, its operating results and its business prospects.

If estimates of our loan losses are not adequate to absorb actual losses, our financial condition and results of operations may be adversely affected.

We maintain an allowance for loan losses at levels to cover the estimated incurred losses in the collection of our payday and installment loan portfolios outstanding at the end of each applicable period. At the end of each period, management considers recent collection history to develop expected loss rates, which are used to establish the allowance for loan losses. Our allowance for loan losses was $0.83 million on December 31, 2017. Our allowance for loan losses is an estimate, and if actual loan losses are materially greater than our allowance for losses, our financial condition and results of operations could be adversely affected.

We face substantial risk through reliance on a single wireless retail carrier.

We operate our Cellular Retail segment exclusively as an authorized dealer for Cricket, which means that this segment of our operations is entirely dependent upon continued operations as a Cricket dealer under our dealer agreement with Cricket Wireless, the commitment of Cricket Wireless to advertise and offer competitive product and service offerings in our markets, and the health of our relationship with Cricket Wireless. If Cricket Wireless were to change certain aspects of its dealer arrangements, including items such as pricing, product supply, credit terms and dealer compensation structure (all of which are primarily determined by Cricket Wireless) in a manner that is adverse to us, our margins and results of operations would likely suffer. In addition, if Cricket Wireless were to begin growing its relationship with other operators, or were to embark upon an effort to significantly grow corporate-owned locations, our prospects for growth in this segment would suffer.

Risk of wireless retail operating losses from stores opened in 2016 and 2017 and resulting cash burn.

In 2016 and 2017 we received substantial incentives from Cricket Wireless to support our commitment to open 150 locations which mitigated some of the losses associated with these new stores. We do not anticipate receiving similar incentives in the future and it is unclear if we will be able to reduce the cash burn of these newly opened stores.

Managing our inventory is complex and may include write-downs of excess or obsolete inventory.

Managing our inventory, across our segments, is complicated by a number of factors, including the need to maintain a significant inventory of finished goods to support our cellular retail locations and online orders for our products that we anticipate but may not be received. These issues may cause us to purchase and maintain significant amounts of inventory. If this inventory is not used as expected based on anticipated requirements, it may become excess or obsolete. The existence of excess or obsolete inventory can result in sales price reductions or inventory write-downs, which could adversely affect our business and results of operations.

Outside factors may affect our ability to obtain product and fulfill orders in our direct to consumer segment.

In our Direct to Consumer segment we have an agreement with a third party wholesale grower that is in effect until 2019. Although we have taken steps to diversify to two other vendors, the existing grower that maintains the research crop is owned by a company which operates several direct to consumer entities that compete with us directly. Disruptions, whether caused by the third party wholesaler, weather or other environmental or climate influences could limit the supply of product we rely upon to fulfill orders.

Transition from our former fulfillment provider to in-house could affect our ability to fulfill orders in our home restoration division of our direct to consumer segment.

Failure to properly transition our Van Dyke’s former third-party fulfilment provider to in-house operations may result in lost sales revenue and customers. Failure to properly transition inventory receiving, storing, periodic cycle counts, pick, pack and shipping customer orders, order taking, processing of customer payments, personalization, customer services, and order processing could adversely affect our business and results of operations.

Because we maintain a significant supply of cash in our locations, we may experience losses due to employee error and theft.

Because our business requires us to maintain a significant supply of cash in our stores, we are subject to the risk of cash shortages resulting from employee error and theft. We periodically experience employee error and theft in stores, which can significantly increase the operating losses of those stores for the period in which the employee error or theft is discovered. We self-insure for employee error and theft at the store level. If our controls to limit our exposure to employee error and theft at the store level and at our corporate headquarters do not operate effectively or are structured ineffectively, our operating margins could be adversely affected by costs associated with increased security and preventative measures.

Regular turnover among our location managers and employees makes it more difficult for us to operate our locations and increases our costs of operation.

We experience a relatively stable workforce among our location managers and employees. Turnover interferes with implementation of operating strategies. Increases in our workforce turnover in the future would likely increase our operating pressures and operating costs and could restrict our ability to grow. Additionally, high turnover would create challenges for us in maintaining high levels of employee awareness of and compliance with our internal procedures and external regulatory compliance requirements. In sum, high turnover would increase our training and supervisory costs, and result in decreased earnings with corresponding greater risks of regulatory non-compliance.

A significant disruption in our computer systems and our inability to adequately maintain and update those systems could adversely affect our operations and our ability to maintain guest confidence.

We rely extensively on our computer systems to manage our businesses. Our systems are subject to damage or interruption from power outages, telecommunications failures, computer viruses, malicious attacks, security breaches, and catastrophic events. If our systems are damaged or fail to function properly or reliably, we may incur substantial repair or replacement costs, experience data loss or theft and impediments to our ability to manage inventories or process guest transactions, engage in additional promotional activities to retain our guests, and encounter lost guest confidence, which could adversely affect our results of operations.

We regularly invest to maintain and update our computer systems. Implementing significant system changes increases the risk of computer system disruption. The potential problems and interruptions associated with implementing technology initiatives, as well as providing training and support for those initiatives, could disrupt or reduce our operational efficiency, and could negatively impact guest experience and guest confidence.

If our efforts to protect the security of information about our customers, vendors and other third parties are unsuccessful, we may face costly government enforcement actions and private litigation, and our sales and reputation could suffer.

We regularly receive and store information about our customers, vendors and other third parties. We have programs in place to detect, contain, and respond to data security incidents. However, because the techniques used to obtain unauthorized access, disable or degrade service, or sabotage systems change frequently and may be difficult to detect for long periods of time, we may be unable to anticipate these techniques or implement adequate preventive measures. In addition, hardware, software, or applications we develop or procure from third parties or through open source solutions may contain defects in design or manufacture or other problems that could unexpectedly compromise information security. Unauthorized parties may also attempt to gain access to our systems or facilities, or those of third parties with whom we do business, through fraud, trickery, or other forms of deceiving our team members, contractors, and vendors.

If we, our vendors, or other third parties with whom we do business experience additional significant data security breaches or fail to detect and appropriately respond to significant data security breaches, we could be exposed to government enforcement actions or private litigation. In addition, our customers could lose confidence in our ability to protect their information, which could cause them to no longer purchase our products or use our services.

ITEM 1B    UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

None.

ITEM 2    PROPERTIES

Our headquarters is in Omaha, Nebraska. We lease a 12,420-square-foot space which is used as our corporate headquarters as well as headquarters for our Cellular Retail and Consumer Finance segments, with additional space available, which is sufficient for our projected near-term future growth. Our monthly lease amount is currently $12,225 and the lease expires on January 31, 2020. The corporate phone number is (402) 551-8888.

Our Direct to Consumer segment, acquired on July 1, 2015, owns 100-acre property with a 382,790 sq. ft. facility in Greenwood, South Carolina. This facility is utilized as J & P Park Acquisitions, Inc.’s (“JPPA”) distribution and warehouse facility and the corporate offices of JPPA and Restorers Acquisition, Inc. (“RAI”). This facility will also be utilized as the distribution and warehouse facility for Van Dykes Restorers beginning in 2018. The real estate is not encumbered as of December 31, 2017.

ITEM 3    LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

We are involved in a variety of legal claims and proceedings incidental to our business, including customer bankruptcy and employment-related matters from time to time, and other legal matters that arise in the normal course of business. We believe these claims and proceedings are not out of the ordinary course for a business of the type and size in which we are engaged. While we are unable to predict the ultimate outcome of these claims and proceedings, management believes there is not a reasonable possibility that the costs and liabilities of such matters, individually or in the aggregate, will have a material adverse effect on our consolidated financial condition or consolidated results of operations.

ITEM 4   MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

Not applicable.

PART II

MARKET INFORMATION

Our common stock is listed for trading under the symbol “WCRS” on the “OTCQB,” which is the OTC Markets’ middle-tier over-the-counter quotation platform. The transfer agent and registrar for our common stock is Corporate Stock Transfer, Inc., 3200 Cherry Creek Drive South, Suite 430, Denver, Colorado 80209.

On January 20, 2016, our shareholders approved a plan to reincorporate Western Capital Resources, Inc. in Delaware at a special meeting of the shareholders called for that purpose. The reincorporation was completed May 11, 2016. In September 2016 for the sole purpose of removing partial shares of common stock, we amended our Certificate of Incorporation to effect a reverse stock split of outstanding shares of common stock at a ratio of 5,000,000:5,000,001. In March 2017 we repurchased 106,873 shares directly from a single shareholder at a price of $4.50 per share.

The following table sets forth the high and low bid prices for our common stock as reported by the OTC Bulletin Board in 2017 and 2016. These quotations reflect inter-dealer prices, without retail mark-up, markdown, or commission, and may not represent actual transactions. Trading in the Company’s common stock during the period represented was sporadic, exemplified by low trading volume and many days during which no trades occurred.

HOLDERS

As of the date of this report, we had 9,390,997 shares of common stock outstanding held by approximately 275 holders of record.

DIVIDENDS

Holders of our common stock are entitled to share pro rata in dividends and distributions with respect to the common stock when, as and if declared by our Board of Directors out of funds legally available therefor. In each of June, September and December 2016 and March, July, September and December 2017, we paid dividends of 2.5 cents per common share. In February 2018 we paid a dividend of 5.0 cents per common share.

SECURITIES AUTHORIZED FOR ISSUANCE UNDER EQUITY COMPENSATION PLANS

The table below sets forth certain information, as of the close of business on December 31, 2017, regarding equity compensation plans (including individual compensation arrangements) under which our securities were then authorized for issuance.

Certain managers of our subsidiaries have options issued for subsidiary stock, which if exercised will dilute parent’s ownership in those subsidiaries.

DESCRIPTION OF EQUITY SECURITIES

Our authorized capital stock consists of 12.5 million shares of capital stock, $0.01 par value per share (unless otherwise determined by the Board of Directors). All shares of common stock have equal voting rights and are entitled to one vote per share on all matters to be voted upon by our shareholders. Shares of our common stock have no preemptive, subscription, conversion or redemption rights and may be issued only as fully paid and non-assessable shares. Cumulative voting in the election of directors is not permitted. In the event of our liquidation, each holder of our common stock is entitled to receive a proportionate share of our assets available for distribution to stockholders after the payment of liabilities. All shares of our common stock issued and outstanding are fully paid and non-assessable.

Not applicable.

The following discussion should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and related notes that appear elsewhere in this report. This discussion contains forward-looking statements that involve significant uncertainties. Our actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including those discussed in “Risk Factors” elsewhere in this report. For further information, see “Forward-Looking Statements” below.

OVERVIEW

In 2017, we sold our Franchise segment for an after tax gain of approximately $34.5 million. We intend to re-invest the net proceeds and are actively searching for investment opportunities.

Our growth focus was in the Wireless Retail segment. We began the year operating 198 Cricket retail locations and closed out the year operating 278. The growth came from a combination of launching new locations and acquiring existing stores from other Cricket dealers. This growth was a continuation of our 2016 efforts where we added a net of 99 store locations.

Excluding discontinued operations, our net income to shareholders in 2017 was $1.39 million compared to a loss in 2016 of ($1.29) million and revenues increased from $94 million in 2016 to $122 million in 2017.

RESULTS OF OPERATIONS:

YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2017 COMPARED TO YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2016

Net income (loss) for continuing operations attributable to our common shareholders was $1.39 million, or $0.15 per share, in 2017 compared to ($1.29) million, or ($0.14) per share, in 2016. Our 2017 earnings per share from discontinued operations was $3.85 compared to $0.29 in 2016.

The following table provides year-over-year revenues and net income attributable to WCR common shareholders by continuing operating segment (in thousands):

Cellular Retail 

The following table summarizes our Cellular Retail segment operating results:

Segment contribution to net income (loss) before noncontrolling interests was ($0.06) million and $0.72 million for the year 2017 and 2016, respectively. Throughout 2016 and 2017 we opened 132 new locations and acquired another 15 that had recently opened. With the launch of a new location, we incur operating costs similar to a “mature” location, yet revenues ramp up gradually over time, resulting in losses. As evidenced above, the magnitude of the new store launch growth initiative has impacted both our revenue and operating results.

Year-over-year net income (loss) in the Cellular Retail segment decreased $0.77 million, or 107.9%, to ($0.06) million. This decrease is due primarily to losses related to our expansion initiative.

Other revenue in this segment includes customer paid fees, compensation received from Cricket that is based on Cricket customer payments of their monthly service fees and development compensation received from Cricket. The growing customer base on which we received compensation from Cricket, which is tied to our growth, as well as non-recurring expansion incentive compensation from Cricket Wireless, are contributing factors to the year over year increase.

Cost of revenues as a percentage of retail merchandise sales and associated fees increased from 50.8% in 2016 to 51.4% in 2017, an increase of 60 bps. We have increased our offering of discounts in 2017 compared to 2016 to entice new customer sales, the benefit of which we hope to see long-term in other revenue.

Our two most significant operating expense categories for this segment are salaries, wages and benefits and occupancy expenses. Salaries, wages and benefits expense increased 92.1% from 2016 due to the additional stores operated. Stated as a percentage of Cellular Retail revenues, salaries, wages and benefits expense was 36.0% and 33.2% for the year 2017 and 2016, respectively. Occupancy expenses, which include base rents, additional rents (common area maintenance, insurance and real estate taxes assessed operating per lease agreements), telephone, utility and repair and maintenance expenses, were 15.6% and 14.6% of Cellular Retail revenues for the year 2017 and 2016, respectively. These percentage increases are related to the growth in locations operated where costs related to an expansion store are similar to a mature store but revenues are in a ramp-up mode.

Direct to Consumer

The following table summarizes our actual Direct to Consumer segment operating results:

The Direct to Consumer segment contributed $1.84 million of net income for the year ended December 31, 2017 compared to $2.25 million for the year ended December 31, 2016. In 2017, we faced challenges with our 3PL provider and began the process of moving all operations, including inventory receiving, storing, periodic cycle counts, pick, pack and shipment of customer orders, order taking, processing of customer payments, personalization, customer services, and order processing, to our facility in South Carolina. The home improvement and restoration division experienced a 12.8% reduction in revenue year over year and a corresponding reduction to net income of $0.33 million.

Consumer Finance

The following table summarizes our Consumer Finance segment operating results:

Our year over year financing fees and interest decline was an expected decrease resulting from a law change in South Dakota and our exit from the state. Our 2016 income statement includes a noncash goodwill impairment charge of $7.56 million and related deferred tax benefit of $2.88 million. This was a 100% write-off goodwill associated with the Consumer Finance segment. Consumer Finance had operations in seven states during 2017.

Corporate

Net loss related to our Corporate segment was ($0.89) million for the year ended December 31, 2017 compared to ($0.93) million for the year ended December 31, 2016. In accordance with authoritative guidance applicable to discontinued operations, no continuing corporate overhead has been allocated to discontinued operations and has been re-allocated for 2016. Comparable Corporate costs have been increased from those reported in previously filed reports as a result.

Consolidated Income Tax Expense

Income tax expense on continuing operations for 2017 was $0.73 million compared to a tax benefit of $0.85 million in 2016 for an effective rate of 30.4% and 39.6%, respectively. The change in effective rate is primarily due to the addition of a subsidiary with a noncontrolling interest where taxable income flows through to the noncontrolling interest and thus is not taxable income to the Company, partially offset by the added income tax expense resulting from the change in the future federal tax rate as a result of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (the “Tax Reform Act”) enacted on December 22, 2017 and its impact on deferred income taxes.

LIQUIDITY AND CAPITAL RESOURCES

Summary cash flow data is as follows:

At December 31, 2017, we had cash and cash equivalents of $21.30 million compared to cash and cash equivalents of $14.16 million on December 31, 2016. For 2018, we believe that our available cash, combined with expected cash flows from operations and our held-to-maturity investments, will be sufficient to fund our liquidity and capital expenditure requirements through March of 2019. Our expected short-term uses of available cash include the funding of operating activities, payment of income tax liabilities related to our sale of the Franchise segment and the payment of dividends.

At December 31, 2017, we had $14 million invested in certificates of deposit (limited to $250,000 per financial institution) and approximately $32 million in short-term T-Bills and in U.S. Treasury money market funds.

In October 2017, we paid off all principal outstanding on our credit facilities with a financial institution in the amount of $6.97 million.

At December 31, 2017, our outstanding debt and capital lease obligations were $0.94 million compared to $10.66 million at December 31, 2016. Available credit at December 31, 2017 under credit facilities in place on that date was $12.0 million.

On April 21, 2016, we entered into a revolver and acquisition credit facility with a financial institution. The facility includes a $9 million dollar acquisition facility commitment and a $3 million revolver credit commitment. Interest accrues on advanced funds at LIBOR plus 3.5%. The facility matures on April 21, 2018. The facility contains customary financial and negative covenants and is secured by substantially all assets of the Company and its subsidiaries.

CRITICAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES

Our consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America applied on a consistent basis. The preparation of these consolidated financial statements requires us to make a number of estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting periods. We evaluate these estimates and assumptions on an ongoing basis. We base these estimates on the information currently available to us and on various other assumptions that we believe are reasonable under the circumstances. Actual results could vary materially from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions.

Our significant accounting policies are discussed in Note 1, “Nature of Business and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies,” of the notes to our consolidated financial statements included in this report. We believe that the following critical accounting policies affect the more significant estimates and assumptions used in the preparation of our consolidated financial statements:

Receivables and Loss Allowance

Direct to Consumer

Receivables are recorded when billed or accrued and represent claims against third parties that will be settled in cash. The carrying value of receivables, net of the allowance for doubtful accounts, represents their estimated net realizable value. The allowance for doubtful accounts is estimated based on historical collection trends, type of customer, the age of outstanding receivables and existing economic conditions. If events or changes in circumstances indicate that specific receivable balances may be impaired, further consideration is given to the collectability of those balances and the allowance is adjusted accordingly. Past due receivable balances are written-off when internal collection efforts have been unsuccessful in collecting the amount due.

Consumer Finance

Included in loans receivable are unpaid principal, interest and fee balances of payday, installment, pawn and title loans that have not reached their maturity date, and “late” payday loans that have reached maturity within the last 180 days and have remaining outstanding balances. Late payday loans generally are unpaid loans where a customer’s personal check has been deposited and the check has been returned due to non-sufficient funds in the customer’s account, a closed account, or other reasons. All returned items are charged-off after 180 days, as collections after that date have not been significant. Loans are carried at cost plus accrued interest or fees less payments made and a loans receivable allowance.

We do not specifically reserve for any individual payday, installment or title loan. Instead, we aggregate loan types for purposes of estimating the loss allowance using a methodology that analyzes historical portfolio statistics and management’s judgment regarding recent trends noted in the portfolio. This methodology takes into account several factors, including (1) the amount of loan principal, interest and fee outstanding, (2) historical charge offs from loans that originated during the last 24 months, (3) current and expected collection patterns and (4) current economic trends. We utilize a software program to assist with the tracking of our historical portfolio statistics. A loan loss allowance is maintained for anticipated losses for payday and installment loans based primarily on our historical percentages by loan type of net charge offs, applied against the applicable balance of loan principal, interest and fees outstanding. We also periodically perform a look-back analysis on our loan loss allowance to verify the historical allowance established tracks with the actual subsequent loan write-offs and recoveries. We are aware that as conditions change, we may also need to make additional allowances in future periods. Loan losses or charge-offs of pawn or title loans are not recorded because the value of the collateral exceeds the loan amount.

See Note 4 “Loans Receivable” and Note 5 “Loans Receivable Allowance” of the notes to our consolidated financial statements included in this report for our outstanding loans receivable aging and loans receivable allowance rollforward as of and for the year ended December 31, 2017 and December 31, 2016.

Inventory

We value inventories at the lower of cost or market. Reserves for excess and obsolescence are estimated and recorded to reduce the carrying value to estimated net realizable value. The amount of the reserve is determined based on historical usage, projected sales information, plans for discontinued products and other factors. Though management considers these reserves adequate and proper, changes in sales volumes due to unexpected economic or competitive conditions are among the factors that could materially affect the adequacy of this reserve.

Long-lived Assets

Property and equipment are recorded at cost less accumulated depreciation. Depreciation is provided on the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the asset. The cost of maintenance and repairs is charged to operations as incurred while renewals and betterments are capitalized.

Finite-lived intangible assets represent the fair values management assigned to assets acquired through business acquisitions, are amortized over periods of three to 15 years based on management’s estimates of the useful life of the asset and are subject to impairment evaluations.

We assess the possibility of impairment of long-lived assets, other than goodwill, whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value may not be recoverable. Factors that could trigger an impairment review include significant underperformance relative to expected historical or projected future cash flows, significant changes in the manner of use of acquired assets or the strategy for the overall business, and significant negative industry events or trends.

Goodwill

Goodwill represents the excess of acquisition cost over the fair value of identifiable finite lived net assets acquired and is not amortized. Goodwill is tested for impairment annually as of October 1, or more frequently if events or changes in circumstances indicate potential impairment. We test for goodwill impairment at the reporting unit level, which aligns with the Company’s segments. We perform a qualitative assessment to determine if a quantitative impairment test is necessary. If quantitative testing is necessary based on a qualitative assessment, we apply a fair value test. This fair value test involves a two-step process. The first step is to compare the carrying value of our net assets to our fair value. If the fair value is determined to be less than the carrying value, a second step is performed to measure the amount of the impairment, if any.

OFF BALANCE SHEET ARRANGEMENTS

We have no off balance sheet arrangements.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Some of the statements made in this report are “forward-looking statements,” as that term is defined under Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. These forward-looking statements are based upon our current expectations and projections about future events. Whenever used in this report, the words “believe,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “estimate,” “expect,” “will” and similar expressions, or the negative of such words and expressions, are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain such words or expressions. The forward-looking statements in this report are primarily located in the material set forth under the headings “Description of Business,” “Risk Factors,” “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations,” but are found in other parts of this report as well. These forward-looking statements generally relate to our plans, objectives and expectations for future operations and are based upon management’s current estimates and projections of future results or trends. Although we believe that our plans and objectives reflected in or suggested by these forward-looking statements are reasonable, we may not achieve these plans or objectives. You should read this report completely and with the understanding that actual future results may be materially different from what we expect. We will not update forward-looking statements even though our situation may change in the future.

Specific factors that might cause actual results to differ from our expectations or may affect the value of the common stock, include, but are not limited to:

Other factors that could cause actual results to differ from those implied by the forward-looking statements in this report are more fully described in the “Risk Factors” section and of this report.

Industry data and other statistical information used in this report are based on independent publications, government publications, reports by market research firms or other published independent sources. Some data are also based on our good faith estimates, derived from our review of internal surveys and the independent sources listed above. Although we believe these sources are reliable, we have not independently verified the information.

ITEM 7A    QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK

Not applicable.

ITEM 8    FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

INDEX OF FINANCIAL INFORMATION

CONTENTS

REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

To the Board of Directors and Shareholders of Western Capital Resources, Inc.:

Opinion on the Financial Statements

We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheet of Western Capital Resources, Inc. (“the Company”) as of December 31, 2017, and the related consolidated statement of income, shareholders’ equity, and cash flows for the year ended December 31, 2017 and the related notes (collectively referred to as the “financial statements”). In our opinion, the consolidated financial statements referred to above 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 flow for the year ended December 31, 2017, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.

Basis for Opinion

These consolidated financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company’s consolidated financial statements based on our audit. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (“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. The Company is not required to have, nor were we engaged to perform, an audit of its internal control over financial reporting. As part of our audits, we are required to obtain an understanding of internal control over financial reporting, but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting. Accordingly, we express no such opinion.

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 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 audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.

We also have audited the adjustments to the 2016 consolidated financial statements to retrospectively apply the effect of discontinued operations, as described in Note 19. In our opinion, such adjustments are appropriate and have been properly applied. We were not engaged to audit, review, or apply any procedures to the 2016 consolidated financial statements of the Company other than with respect to the adjustments and, accordingly, we do not express an opinion or any other form of assurance on the 2016 consolidated financial statements taken as a whole.

/s/ Sadler, Gibb & Associates, LLC

We have served as the Company’s auditor since 2017.

Salt Lake City, UT 

March 29, 2018

office  801.783.2950

fax       801.783.2950

www.sadlergibb.com | Main: 2455 East Parleys Way Suite 320, Salt Lake City, UT 84109 | Provo: 3507 N University Ave #100, Provo, UT 84604 

REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

To the Board of Directors and Stockholders of Western Capital Resources, Inc. and Subsidiaries

We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheet of Western Capital Resources, Inc. and subsidiaries as of December 31, 2016, and the related consolidated statements of income, stockholders’ equity, and cash flows for the year ended December 31, 2016. These financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on these consolidated financial statements based on our audit.

We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States). Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement. The company is not required to have, nor were we engaged to perform, an audit of its internal control over financial reporting. Our audit included consideration of internal control over financial reporting as a basis for designing audit procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances, but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the company’s internal control over financial reporting. Accordingly, we express no such opinion. An audit also includes examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements, assessing the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall financial statement presentation. We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.

In our opinion, the consolidated financial statements referred to above present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of Western Capital Resources, Inc. and Subsidiaries as of December 31, 2016 and the results of its operations and its cash flows for the year ended December 31, 2016 in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.

/s/ KLJ & Associates, LLP

KLJ & Associates, LLP

Edina, MN

March 31,     2017  

5201 Eden Avenue 

Suite 300

Edina, MN 55436 

630.277.2330

WESTERN CAPITAL RESOURCES, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS  

See notes to consolidated financial statements.

See notes to consolidated financial statements.

WESTERN CAPITAL RESOURCES, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY  

See notes to consolidated financial statements.

WESTERN CAPITAL RESOURCES, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS  

See notes to consolidated financial statements.

1.       Basis of Presentation, Nature of Business and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies –

Basis of Presentation / Nature of Business

Western Capital Resources, Inc. (WCR) is a parent company owning operating subsidiaries, with percentage owned shown parenthetically, as summarized below.

References in these financial statement notes to “Company” or “we” refer to Western Capital Resources, Inc. and its subsidiaries. References to specific companies within our enterprise, such as” “PQH,” “JPPA,” “RAI,” “JPRE,” “WFL,” “EPI” or “AGI” are references only to those companies. 

Basis of Consolidation

The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of WCR, its wholly owned subsidiaries and other entities in which the Company owns a controlling financial interest. For financial interests in which the Company owns a controlling financial interest, the Company applies the provisions of Financial Accounting Standards Board Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 810, “Consolidation” applicable to reporting the equity and net income or loss attributable to noncontrolling interests. All significant intercompany balances and transactions of the Company have been eliminated in consolidation. 

Use of Estimates

The preparation of consolidated financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America requires management to make estimates and assumptions that may affect certain reported amounts and disclosures in the consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes. Management bases its estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances. Actual results could differ from those estimates. Significant management estimates relate to the notes and loans receivable allowance, carrying value and impairment of long-lived goodwill and intangible assets, inventory valuation and obsolescence, estimated useful lives of property and equipment, gift certificate and merchandise credits liability and deferred taxes and tax uncertainties.

Revenue Recognition

Cellular Retail

Sales revenue for sales of phones and accessories and dealer compensation for related activations is recognized in the period in which the sale is completed (retail sales and associated fees). Customer service fees are recognized upon completion of the service and payment received. Other dealer compensation not attributed to phone activations is recorded in the period earned as reported to us by Cricket Wireless. All sales are presented net of sales taxes, which are excluded from revenue.

Direct to Consumer

Sales revenue is recognized in the period in which product is shipped. Sales billed or cash received in advance of actual shipment are deferred and recorded as income in the period in which shipment is made. Shipping and handling fees billed to customers is included in net sales. Shipping and handling costs are expensed as incurred and included in cost of sales. All sales are presented net of sales taxes, which are excluded from revenue.

Consumer Finance

Loan fees and interest on cash advance loans are recognized on a constant-yield basis ratably over a loan’s term. Title and installment loan fees and interest are recognized using the interest method, except that installment loan origination fees are recognized as they become non-refundable and installment loan maintenance fees are recognized when earned. The Company recognizes fees on pawn loans on a constant-yield basis ratably over the loans’ terms. No fees are recognized on forfeited pawn loans.

Cash and Cash Equivalents 

For purposes of the consolidated statements of cash flows, the Company considers all highly liquid investments with a maturity of three months or less at the time of purchase to be cash equivalents.

Fair Value of Financial Measurement

In determining fair value measurements, the Company follows the provisions of ASC 820, Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures. ASC 820 defines fair value, establishes a framework for measuring fair value under GAAP, and enhances disclosures about fair value measurements. The topic provides a consistent definition of fair value focusing on an exit price, which is the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. The topic also prioritizes, within the measurement of fair value, the use of market-based information over entity-specific information and establishes a three-level hierarchy for fair value measurements based on the nature of inputs used in the valuation of an asset or liability as of the measurement date. The three level hierarchy is as follows: 

Level 1 - Pricing inputs are quoted prices available in active markets for identical assets or liabilities as of the measurement date.

Level 2 - Pricing inputs are quoted prices for similar assets and liabilities, or inputs that are observable, either directly or indirectly, for substantially the full term through corroboration with observable market data.

Level 3 - Pricing inputs are unobservable for the assets and liabilities, that is, inputs that reflect the reporting entity’s own assumptions about the assumptions market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability.

In certain cases, the inputs used to measure fair value may fall into different levels of the fair value hierarchy. In such cases, an asset or liability’s level within the fair value hierarchy is based on the lowest level of input that is significant to the fair value measurement. The Company’s assessment of the significance of a particular input to the fair value measurement in its entirety requires judgment, and considers factors specific to the asset or liability.

The Company’s held to maturity securities are comprised of a U.S Treasury zero coupon T-Bill and certificates of deposit. The Company’s available for sale securities consist of mutual funds held in money market mutual funds in a brokerage account, which are classified as cash equivalents.

The fair value of these investments is based on quoted prices from recognized pricing services, or in the case of mutual funds, at their closing published net asset value.

The Company assesses the levels of the investments at each measurement date, and transfers between levels are recognized on the actual date of the event or change in circumstances that caused the transfer in accordance with the Company’s accounting policy regarding the recognition of transfers between levels of the fair value hierarchy. During the fiscal years ended December 31, 2017 and 2016, there were no transfers between levels.

Receivables and Loss Allowance

Direct to Consumer

Receivables for noncash sales are recorded when orders are shipped and represent claims against third parties that will be settled in cash. The carrying value of receivables, net of the allowance for doubtful accounts, represents their estimated net realizable value. The allowance for doubtful accounts is estimated based on historical collection trends, type of customer, the age of outstanding receivables and existing economic conditions. If events or changes in circumstances indicate that specific receivable balances may be impaired, further consideration is given to the collectability of those balances and the allowance is adjusted accordingly. Past due receivable balances are written-off when internal collection efforts have been unsuccessful in collecting the amount due. 

Consumer Finance

Included in loans receivable are unpaid principal, interest and fee balances of payday, installment, pawn and title loans that have not reached their maturity date, and “late” payday loans that have reached maturity within the last 180 days and have remaining outstanding balances. Late payday loans generally are unpaid loans where a customer’s personal check has been deposited and the check has been returned due to non-sufficient funds in the customer’s account, a closed account, or other reasons. All returned items are charged-off after 180 days, as collections after that date have not been significant. Loans are carried at cost plus accrued interest or fees less payments made and a loans receivable allowance.

The Company does not specifically reserve for any individual payday, installment or title loan. The Company aggregates loan types for purposes of estimating the loss allowance using a methodology that analyzes historical portfolio statistics and management’s judgment regarding recent trends noted in the portfolio. This methodology takes into account several factors, including (1) the amount of loan principal, interest and fee outstanding, (2) historical charge offs from loans that originated during the last 24 months, (3) current and expected collection patterns and (4) current economic trends. The Company utilizes a software program to assist with the tracking of its historical portfolio statistics. A loan loss allowance is maintained for anticipated losses for payday and installment loans based primarily on our historical percentages by loan type of net charge offs, applied against the applicable balance of loan principal, interest and fees outstanding. The Company also periodically performs a look-back analysis on its loan loss allowance to verify the historical allowance established tracks with the actual subsequent loan write-offs and recoveries. The Company is aware that as conditions change, it may also need to make additional allowances in future periods. Loan losses or charge-offs of pawn or title loans are not recorded because the value of the collateral exceeds the loan amount.

Inventory

Cellular Retail

Inventory, consisting of phones and accessories, is stated at cost, determined on the specific identification and weighted-average cost basis, respectively.

Direct to Consumer

Inventory is valued at the lower of cost or market using the weighted-average method of determining cost.

Consumer Finance

Merchandise inventory is stated at the lower of cost or market. The principal amount of an unpaid loan becomes the inventory cost for forfeited collateral.

Long-Lived Assets

Property and equipment are recorded at cost less accumulated depreciation. Depreciation is provided on the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the related assets as follows:

The cost of maintenance and repairs is charged to operations as incurred while renewals and betterments are capitalized.

The Company capitalizes certain internal costs, including payroll costs, incurred in connection with the development of software for internal use. These costs are capitalized beginning when the Company has entered the application development stage. The capitalization of these costs ceases when the software is substantially complete and ready for its intended use. Only costs incurred for enhancements that are expected to result in additional features or functionality are capitalized and expensed over the estimated useful life of the enhancements.

Finite-lived intangible assets represent the fair values management assigned to assets acquired through business acquisitions, are amortized over periods of three to 15 years based on management’s estimates of the useful life of the asset and are subject to impairment evaluations.

The Company assesses the possibility of impairment of long-lived assets, other than goodwill, whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value may not be recoverable. Factors that could trigger an impairment review include significant underperformance relative to expected historical or projected future cash flows, significant changes in the manner of use of acquired assets or the strategy for the overall business, and significant negative industry events or trends.

Goodwill

Goodwill represents the excess of acquisition cost over the fair value of identifiable finite lived net assets acquired and is not amortized. Goodwill is tested for impairment annually as of October 1, or more frequently if events or changes in circumstances indicate potential impairment. The Company tests for goodwill impairment at the reporting unit level, which aligns with the Company’s segments. The Company performs a qualitative assessment to determine if a quantitative impairment test is necessary. If quantitative testing is necessary based on a qualitative assessment, we apply a fair value test. This fair value test involves a two-step process. The first step is to compare the carrying value of our net assets to our fair value. If the fair value is determined to be less than the carrying value, a second step is performed to measure the amount of the impairment, if any.

Merchandise Credits and Gift Card Liabilities

Direct to Consumer

The Company maintains a liability for unredeemed gift cards, gift certificates and merchandise credits until the earlier of redemption, escheatment or a maximum of two years. The Company has concluded based on historical redemption trends that the likelihood of these liabilities being redeemed beyond two years from the date of issuance is remote. The liability is also reserved for estimated redemption rates which management bases on historical trends.

Advertising, Marketing and Development Costs

Direct to Consumer

The Company expenses advertising costs as they are incurred, except for direct-response advertising, which is capitalized and amortized over its expected period of future benefits, not to exceed six months. Direct-response advertising consists primarily of catalog book production, printing, and postage costs. Prepaid advertising costs at December 31, 2017 and 2016 were $0.87 million and $1.08 million, respectively.

Consumer Finance

The costs of advertising and marketing are expensed as incurred.

Stock-based Compensation

The Company accounts for its employee stock-based compensation plans using the fair value method. The fair value method requires the Company to estimate the grant-date fair value of its stock-based awards and amortize this fair value to compensation expense over the requisite service period or vesting term.

The Company uses the Black-Scholes option-pricing model to estimate the fair value of the Company’s stock option awards. The determination of the fair value of stock-based payment awards on the date of grant using an option-pricing model is affected by the Company’s stock price as well as assumptions regarding a number of complex and subjective variables. These variables include the expected stock price volatility over the term of the awards, actual and projected employee stock option exercise behaviors, the risk-free interest rate and expected dividends. Due to the inherent limitations of option-valuation models, future events that are unpredictable and the estimation process utilized in determining the valuation of the stock-based awards, the ultimate value realized by award holders may vary significantly from the amounts expensed in the Company’s financial statements.

Stock-based compensation expense is recognized net of estimated forfeitures such that expense is recognized only for those stock-based awards that are expected to vest. A forfeiture rate is estimated at the time of grant and revised, if necessary, in subsequent periods if actual forfeitures differ from initial estimate.

Income Taxes

Deferred income taxes reflect the tax consequences in future years of differences between the tax basis of assets and liabilities and their financial reporting amounts, based on enacted tax laws and statutory tax rates applicable in the periods in which the differences are expected to affect taxable income. Valuation allowances are established when necessary to reduce deferred tax assets to the amounts expected to be realized. The provision for income taxes represents taxes paid or payable for the current year and changes during the year in deferred tax assets and liabilities.

Net Income Per Common Share

Basic net income per common share is computed by dividing the income available to common shareholders by the weighted average number of common shares outstanding for the period. Diluted earnings per share gives effect to all potentially dilutive common shares outstanding during the period, including stock options, using the treasury stock method. Options to purchase 65,000 shares granted under the 2015 Stock Incentive Plan effective February 6, 2015 (see Note 15) were outstanding at December 31, 2017. These options have a strike price in excess of the market price as of December 31, 2017 and 2016, were antidilutive and therefore not included in the computation of diluted earnings per share. Thus, there were no dilutive common shares as of December 31, 2017 and 2016.

Fair Value of Financial Instruments

The amounts reported in the balance sheets for cash, short-term investments, accounts and loans receivable, inventory, and accounts payable are short-term in nature and their carrying values approximate fair values. The amounts reported in the balance sheets for notes payable are both long-term and short-term and for investments are long-term and their carrying value approximates fair value.

Reclassifications and Discontinued Operations

Certain Balance Sheet, Statement of Income and Statement of Cash Flows reclassifications have been made in the presentation of our prior financial statements and accompanying notes to conform to the presentation as of and for the year ended December 31, 2017.

In accordance with ASC 205-20-45-6 interest on debt required to be paid as a result of our Franchise segment disposal transaction has been allocated to discontinued operations and in accordance with ASC 205-20-45-9 general corporate overhead has not been allocated to discontinued operations. These re-allocations and related income tax have been made in the presentation of our prior financial statements and accompanying notes.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

In May 2014, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued a comprehensive new revenue recognition standard that will supersede nearly all existing revenue recognition guidance under US GAAP. This standard is effective for annual and interim periods beginning after December 15, 2017. The Company has evaluated this standard and determined it will have no impact on our financial condition, results of operations and consolidated financial statements.

In November 2015, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) 2015-17, Income Taxes (Topic 740), related to balance sheet classification of deferred taxes which will require entities to present deferred tax assets (DTAs) and deferred tax liabilities (DTLs) as noncurrent in a classified balance sheet. The ASU simplifies the current guidance (ASC 740-10-45-4), which requires entities to separately present DTAs and DTLs as current and noncurrent in a classified balance sheet. The ASU is effective for annual reporting periods beginning on after December 15, 2016 and interim periods within that annual period, with early adoption permitted. The Company early adopted the ASU during our first quarter of fiscal year 2016 on a retrospective basis. 

In February 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-02, Leases (Topic 842), related to recognition of lease assets and lease liabilities on the balance sheet and disclosing key information about leasing arrangements. The ASU is effective for annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2018, including interim periods within that annual period, with early adoption permitted and to be applied using a modified retrospective approach. The Company is currently evaluating the impact the ASU will have on our financial condition, results of operations and consolidated financial statements.

In June 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-13, Financial Instruments - Credit Losses (Topic 326), related to the measurement of credit losses on financial instruments. The standard requires a financial asset (or a group of financial assets) measured at amortized cost basis to be presented at the net amount expected to be collected. The ASU is effective for annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2018 and interim periods within that annual period, with early adoption permitted and the standard to be applied using a modified retrospective approach. The Company is currently evaluating the impact the ASU will have on our financial condition, results of operations and consolidated financial statements.

No other new accounting pronouncements issued or effective during the fiscal year have had or are expected to have a material impact on the consolidated financial statements.

2.       Risks Inherent in the Operating Environment –

Regulatory

The Company’s Consumer Finance segment activities are highly regulated under numerous federal, state, and local laws, regulations and rules, which are subject to change. New laws, regulations or rules could be enacted or issued, interpretations of existing laws, regulations or rules may change and enforcement action by regulatory agencies may intensify. Over the past several years, consumer advocacy groups and certain media reports have advocated governmental and regulatory action to prohibit or severely restrict sub-prime lending activities of the kind conducted by the Company. After several years of research, debate, and public hearings, in October 2017 the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued new rules for payday lending. The proposed rules, scheduled to go into effect in August 2019, would impose significant restrictions on the industry, and it is expected that a large number of lenders would be forced to close their stores. The CFPB’s studies projected a reduction in the number of lenders by 50%, while industry studies forecast a much higher attrition rate. At this time it is uncertain whether the rule will be implemented as announced, rewritten with more favorable terms for the industry, or thrown out altogether. If the rule is implemented as written, it could have a significant and negative impact on business conducted within our Consumer Finance segment.

The above rule or any other adverse change in present federal, state, or local laws or regulations that govern or otherwise affect lending could result in the Consumer Finance segment’s curtailment or cessation of operations in certain or all jurisdictions or locations. Furthermore, any failure to comply with any applicable local, state or federal laws or regulations could result in fines, litigation, closure of one or more store locations or negative publicity. Any such change or failure would have a corresponding impact on the Company’s and segment’s results of operations and financial condition, primarily through a decrease in revenues resulting from the cessation or curtailment of operations, decrease in operating income through increased legal expenditures or fines, and could also negatively affect the Company’s general business prospects due to lost or decreased operating income or if negative publicity effects its ability to obtain additional financing as needed.

In addition, the passage of federal, state or local laws and regulations or changes in interpretations of them could, at any point, essentially prohibit the Consumer Finance segment from conducting its lending business in its current form. Any such legal or regulatory change would certainly have a material and adverse effect on the Company, its operating results, financial condition and prospects, and perhaps even the viability of the Consumer Finance segment.

Concentrations

The Company has demand deposits at financial institutions, often times in excess of the limit for insurance by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. As of December 31, 2017, the Company had demand deposits in excess of insurance amounts of approximately $6.78 million.

Loans receivable in the Consumer Finance segment are concentrated in the sub-prime market and geographically, primarily in the Midwest. For the years ended December 31, 2017 and 2016, the Consumer Finance segment had geographic economic and regulatory risk concentrations (shown as a percentage of applicable segment’s revenue by state when 10% or more) as follows:

The Company’s Wireless Retail segment is an exclusive dealer for Cricket. As a dealer operating exclusively for a single carrier, the Company is subject to a number of concentrations, including revenues from a single brand, a single supplier for phones, a single operating system provider and select third party processors.

Our Direct to Consumer subsidiary JPPA has an agreement with a third party wholesale grower that is in effect until 2019. The grower has agreed to perform research for JPPA and maintain JPPA’s research crop in exchange for a reduction in royalties to be paid to JPPA for growing JPPA’s patented roses. There is an option to renew the agreement for consecutive two year terms and the agreement calls for a 24 month notice prior to termination.

RAI has an agreement with a single third-party fulfillment provider. For non-drop ship orders, the fulfillment provider receives and stores inventory, performs periodic cycle counts, picks, packs and ships customer orders. Additional services such as, order taking, processing of customer payments, personalization, customer services, and order processing are also performed by the fulfillment provider. The Company has started the process to move these services to our owned facility in South Carolina.

3.        Cash Equivalents and Investments –

The following table shows the Company’s cash equivalents and held-to-maturity investments, by significant investment category, recorded as cash equivalents or short- and long-term investments as of December 31, 2017 and 2016:

Interest income recognized on held to maturity investments was $75,092 and $0 for the year ended December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively.

4.         Loans Receivable –

    At December 31, 2017 and December 31, 2016, the Consumer Finance segment’s outstanding loans receivable aging was as follows: