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YoY shift: Neutral
Year-over-year tone shift - average net-tone change across Risk Factors and MD&A vs the prior 10-K. This filing is -0.03pp more bearish than last year's.
Why YoY instead of absolute: the LM lexicon has ~6.6× more negative words than positive (legal/risk-disclosure language is heavy on hedging), so every 10-K reads bearish on raw tone. Year-over-year change strips that bias and surfaces the actual shift in management's framing.
Tone shift by section
The two components the gauge averages: how Risk Factors and MD&A each shifted in net tone versus last year's 10-K. The headline above is their average, so a green needle over a soft section just means the other section carried it.
Risk Factors
-0.14pp
Flat
Net-tone change vs last year's 10-K.
MD&A
+0.08pp
Flat
Net-tone change vs last year's 10-K.
Per-snippet highlights
Sentence-level sentiment highlighting with category and subcategory filters is coming once the snippet-scoring pipeline lands. For now, dig into the actual section text on the Sections tab.
Risk Factors (Item 1A)
11,107 words
Item 1A.
Risk Factors.
Investing in our Class A common stock involves a high degree of risk. You should carefully consider the risks and uncertainties described below, together with all of the other information in this Annual Report on Form 10-K and the other documents that we file with the SEC from time to time, including our consolidated financial statements and related notes, before deciding whether to invest in our Class A common stock. Any of the following risks could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects. In that event, the market price of our Class A common stock could decline, and you could lose part or all of your investment.
Risks Related to Our Business
Intense competition may erode our profit margins.
The business of providing pharmacy services to LTCF residents is highly competitive, and we face competition from multiple sources. There are national, regional and local institutional pharmacies, as well as numerous local retail pharmacies, that provide pharmaceutical dispensing services comparable to those that we offer. Many of these pharmacies have relationships with the LTCFs they serve and their residents. In addition, some of our competitors have financial resources than we do and may be more established in the markets they serve than we are, making our ability to compete more . Some of our larger competitors have indicated that they plan to focus more on the ALF market, which could further increase the competition we face. Consolidation within the long-term care pharmacy industry may also lead to increased competition. We compete on the basis of the services we offer as well as price. To attract new and retain existing LTCFs and residents, we must continually meet service expectations of LTCFs and residents. There can be no assurance that we will continue to remain competitive, which would cause our business and operating results to . Competitive pricing pressures may affect our earnings and cash flow. If we cannot compete effectively, our business and operating results would be materially and affected.
Language change vs prior 10-K
MD&A (Item 7) - words with the biggest YoY frequency increase
Negative rising
restated+2
losses+1
critical+1
cancelled+1
Positive rising
No words rose this year.
MD&A (Item 7)
6,258 words
Item 7.
Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.
The following discussion analyzes our financial condition and results of operations and should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and related notes included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. This discussion contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. See “Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements and Risk Factor Summary.” When reviewing the discussion below, you should keep in mind the substantial risks and uncertainties that characterize our business. Known material factors that could affect our financial performance and actual results, and could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied in any forward-looking statements included in this discussion or otherwise made by our management, are described in “Risk Factors.” Factors that could cause or contribute to such difference are not limited to those identified in “Risk Factors.”
In addition, LTCF residents have the ability to choose among pharmacy providers. Certain states have a “freedom of choice” requirement as part of their state Medicaid programs or in separate legislation that enable a resident to select his or her provider. These laws may prevent LTCFs from requiring their residents to purchase pharmacy services or pharmaceuticals from particular providers that have a supplier relationship with the LTCF. Such “freedom of choice” requirements increase the competition we face in providing services to LTCF residents. The ability of a resident to select the pharmacy that supplies him or her with prescription drugs could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations because there can be no assurance that such resident will select us as a provider.
Our prescription volumes may decline, and our operating results may be negatively impacted, if products are withdrawn from the market or if increased safety risk profiles of specific drugs result in utilization decreases.
If the volumes of dispensed pharmaceuticals from our pharmacies decline, our business and operating results would suffer. When increased safety risk profiles of specific drugs or classes of drugs result in utilization decreases, physicians may cease writing or reduce the numbers of prescriptions written for these drugs. Additionally, negative press regarding drugs with higher safety risk profiles may result in reduced resident demand for such drugs.
Unexpected safety or efficacy concerns with respect to pharmaceuticals can also lead to product recalls or withdrawals. In cases where there are no acceptable prescription drug equivalents or alternatives for these recalled or withdrawn pharmaceuticals, our volumes of dispensed pharmaceuticals and our operating results may decline.
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If we lose relationships with one or more pharmaceutical wholesalers or key manufacturers, or if such wholesalers or manufacturers refuse to extend our relationships on the same or similar terms, our business and financial results could be materially and adversely affected.
We maintain contractual relationships with pharmaceutical wholesalers and manufacturers that provide us with, among other things, discounts for drugs we purchase to be dispensed from our pharmacies. Our contracts with pharmaceutical wholesalers and manufacturers often provide us with, among other things, discounts on drugs we purchase, rebates and service fees. Our contracts with pharmaceutical wholesalers and manufacturers generally are terminable on relatively short notice by either party and we have limited contractual protections with them. If any of these contractual relationships are terminated, materially altered, or renewed on terms that are less favorable to us, our business and operating results could be materially adversely affected.
Our operating results may suffer if we fail to maintain certain relationships and contracts with LTCFs we serve.
We have a number of contracts with companies that own or operate numerous LTCFs. If we are not able to maintain these relationships and contracts or are only able to maintain them on less favorable terms than those currently in place, our ability to provide our services to residents of those LTCFs would be materially impacted and our operating results could suffer. Our agreements with SNFs generally range from one to three years in duration and typically renew automatically for subsequent renewal terms. The SNF contracts can be terminated by either party generally upon 60 days’ notice. Our relationships with ALFs and BHFs are generally memorialized in written agreements between Guardian and the owner of the respective community that designate Guardian as the “preferred provider” of that community owner. Unlike a SNF contract where virtually all of the residents in the skilled facility would be served by us, the ALF and BHF contract does not automatically grant us the right to serve those residents. Instead, our sales team must market our pharmacy services to the individual residents in that community, each of whom has the right to choose their pharmacy provider. These contracts generally range from one to three years in duration and typically renew automatically for subsequent renewal terms. These contracts can be terminated by either party generally upon 30 days’ notice. There can be no assurance that these parties will not terminate all or a portion of their contracts with us.
We also provide direct and indirect services to LTCFs, and our failure to provide services at optimal quality may impair our relationship with these LTCFs and could result in losing access to residents in these LTCFs.
The COVID-19 pandemic negatively impacted LTCFs and harmed our business. Another similar public health crisis, outbreak of infectious disease or national emergency could also have a negative impact on our business.
The COVID-19 pandemic caused disruptions to our business and operational plans. Among other effects, the pandemic impacted our labor supply and marketing efforts. In addition, due to the older average age of LTCF residents and prevalence of chronic medical conditions affecting their demographics, LTCFs and their residents were disproportionately impacted by COVID-19, all of which resulted in a significant disruption in demand for senior living communities and a corresponding decrease in demand for our pharmacy services. We recognize that our business may continue to be susceptible to the impact of another public health crisis, outbreak of infectious disease or national emergency including, without limitation, a global pandemic on the scale of COVID-19, which adversely affected economies and financial markets worldwide, and adversely affected our business and financial condition. We could experience disruptions to our operations as a result of any such public health crisis, outbreak of infectious disease or national emergency, and our business and operations may be negatively impacted.
The impact of ongoing healthcare reform efforts on our business cannot accurately be predicted, and continuing government and private efforts to lower pharmaceutical costs, including by capping the prices for certain drugs and by limiting reimbursements, may adversely impact our profitability, results of operations and financial condition.
The healthcare industry in the United States is subject to fundamental changes due to ongoing federal and state healthcare reform efforts and related political, economic, and regulatory influences, including those from the recent
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change in presidential administration. Notably, the Affordable Care Act resulted in expanded healthcare coverage and has resulted in significant changes to the United States healthcare system. The Affordable Care Act outlines certain reductions for Medicare reimbursed services, which may affect skilled nursing, home health, hospice, and outpatient therapy services, as well as certain other changes to Medicare payment methodologies. In addition, there have been legislative initiatives with respect to pharmaceutical pricing practices, and we could be adversely affected by the impact of such legislation and the continuing efforts of government and private health plan payors to lower pharmaceutical costs. For example, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 contains several provisions that have had, and are expected to continue to have, the effect of reducing the prices we can charge and the reimbursement we receive for certain branded drugs we dispense, thereby reducing our profitability, and could adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations. These provisions include the establishment of a Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program, which requires the government to negotiate and set a “maximum fair price” for select high-expenditure drugs covered under Medicare Part D (starting in 2026) and Part B (starting in 2028), and the implementation of changes to Medicare Part D benefits designed to limit patient out-of-pocket drug costs and shift program liabilities from patients to other stakeholders, including health plans, manufacturers and the government. These comprehensive healthcare reform efforts have resulted and will likely continue to result in extensive rulemaking and policy decisions by regulatory authorities, and applicable legislation and regulations may be altered, amended, repealed, or replaced. Moreover, there have been legal and political challenges to the Affordable Care Act and the Inflation Reduction Act since their passage and there may be future challenges. Additionally, the new presidential administration has signed numerous executive orders, including some overturning those of the prior administration aimed at researching alternative payment and delivery models to lower prescription drug costs. Therefore, it is difficult to predict the full impact of the Affordable Care Act, the Inflation Reduction Act, or other healthcare reform efforts, including new executive orders, due to the complexity of the law and implementing regulations, as well our inability to foresee how CMS and other participants in the healthcare industry will respond to the choices available to them under the law. The provisions of the legislation and other regulations implementing the Affordable Care Act, the Inflation Reduction Act, any amended or replacement legislation, or other healthcare reform efforts may increase our costs, materially and adversely affect our revenues and profitability, expose us to expanded liability, or require us to significantly alter the ways in which we conduct our business.
In addition, to reduce pharmaceutical costs, health plan payors may seek to lower reimbursement rates, limit the scope of covered services and negotiate reduced or capped pricing arrangements. Given the significant competition in the industry, we have limited bargaining power to counter health plan payor demands for reduced reimbursement rates. If we, or other entities acting on our behalf, are unable to negotiate for acceptable reimbursement rates, our profitability, results of operations and financial condition could be adversely affected.
In response to rising prescription drug prices, health plan payors may also demand that we satisfy certain quality metrics, enhanced service levels or cost efficiencies to help mitigate the increase in pharmaceutical costs. Our inability or failure to meet health plan payor imposed quality metrics, service requirements or cost efficiencies could adversely impact a health plan payor’s willingness to engage us or could result in payor-specific audits and recoupments.
We cannot assure you that reimbursement payments under governmental and private health plan payor programs will remain at levels comparable to present levels or will be sufficient to cover the costs allocable to LTCF residents eligible for reimbursement under these programs. Any changes that lower reimbursement rates under Medicare, Medicaid or private payor programs could result in a substantial reduction in our revenues. Our operating results may be adversely affected due to deterioration in reimbursement, changes in payor mix and growth in operating expenses in excess of increases, if any, in payments by health plan payors. We also anticipate that federal and state governments will continue to review and assess alternate pharmaceutical delivery systems, payment methodologies and operational requirements for pharmaceutical providers, including LTCFs and pharmacies.
In addition, CMS and other governmental agencies have advocated for the creation of a national average acquisition cost benchmark, which states may use to set pharmacy payment rates. Formulary fee programs have
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been the subject of debate in federal and state legislatures and various other public and governmental forums. If these benchmarks and programs were adopted, our operating results could be materially adversely affected.
Over the long term, funding for federal and state healthcare programs may be impacted by the aging of the population, the growth in enrollees as eligibility is potentially expanded, the escalation in drug costs owing to higher drug utilization among seniors, the impact of the Medicare Part D benefit for seniors, the introduction of new, more efficacious but also more expensive medications and the long-term financing of the Medicare program. We are unable to predict the impact on our business of any changes in healthcare policy relating to the future funding of the Medicare and Medicaid programs, including any stance the new presidential administration may take on such funding. Further, Medicare, Medicaid and private health plan payor rates for pharmaceutical products and supplies may change from current methodologies and present levels. Any future healthcare legislation or regulation impacting these reimbursement rates may materially and adversely affect our business.
If we fail to comply with Medicare and Medicaid regulations, we may be subjected to reduction in reimbursement, overpayment demands, or loss of eligibility to participate in these programs.
The Medicare and Medicaid programs are highly regulated. These programs are also subject to changes in regulations and guidance. If we fail to comply with applicable reimbursement laws and regulations, reimbursement under these programs and participation in these programs could be adversely affected. Federal or state governments may also impose other sanctions on us for failure to comply with the applicable reimbursement regulations, including but not limited to recovering an overpayment. Failure to comply with these or future laws and regulations could result in our inability to provide pharmacy services to LTCF residents or to participate in these payor programs. In addition, CMS mandates certain rules and service capabilities to qualify for participation as a Part D NLTCP provider. If we were to lose our right to participate as a NLTCP, our business and operating results could be materially adversely affected.
Further modifications to the Medicare Part D program may reduce revenue and impose additional costs to the industry.
The Medicare Prescription Drug Improvement and Modernization Act of 2003, included a major expansion of the Medicare program with the addition of a prescription drug benefit under the Medicare Part D program. The continued impact of these regulations depends upon a variety of factors, including our ongoing relationships with the Part D Plans (as defined below) and the resident mix of the LTCFs we serve.
We cannot predict how future modifications to the Medicare Part D program, including through new legislation, may reduce revenue and impose additional costs to the industry, which could materially adversely affect our operating results. We cannot assure you that any changes to Medicare Part D and the regulations promulgated under Medicare Part D will not have a material adverse effect on our business.
Further consolidation of managed care organizations and other health plan payors, and changes in the terms of our agreements with these parties, may adversely affect our profits.
Managed care organizations and other health plan payors have seemingly continued to consolidate in order to enhance their ability to influence the delivery and cost structure of healthcare services. Consequently, the healthcare needs of a large percentage of the U.S. population are increasingly served by a smaller number of managed care organizations. If this consolidation continues, we could face additional pricing and service pressures from these organizations, which are increasingly demanding discounted fee structures. To the extent these organizations engage our competitors as a preferred or exclusive provider, demand discounted fee structures or limit the residents eligible for our services, our liquidity and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected.
We participate in the MHA group purchasing organization (“GPO”), for purposes of drug purchasing. In the event that our relationship were to suffer with MHA under the MHA GPO agreement, our business and operating results could be adversely affected.
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We are highly dependent on our senior management team, our local pharmacy management teams and our pharmacy professionals and the loss of such persons could cause our business to suffer and materially adversely affect our operating results.
Our business is managed by a small number of senior management personnel, the loss of which could cause our business to suffer and materially adversely affect our operating results. There is a limited pool of senior management personnel with significant experience in our industry. Accordingly, if we are unable to retain members of our current management team, we could experience significant difficulty in replacing key management personnel and our business could be materially and adversely affected. Moreover, any newly-hired members of our senior management team would need time to fully assess and understand our business and operations. We can offer no assurance as to how long our senior management will choose to remain with us.
In addition, our business model of empowering our local pharmacy management teams with significant autonomy makes us highly dependent on the local pharmacy’s ability to effectively manage and develop relationships with the LTCFs that they serve. If we experience substantial turnover in our local pharmacy management teams and these persons are not replaced by individuals with comparable skills, experience and industry knowledge, our business and operating results could be materially adversely impacted.
Further, our success depends on our ability to attract and retain pharmacists and other pharmacy professionals. Competition for qualified pharmacists and other pharmacy professionals is intense. The loss of pharmacy personnel or the inability to attract or retain sufficient numbers of qualified pharmacy professionals could materially adversely affect our business. Our inability to meet our staffing requirements for pharmacists and other pharmacy professionals in the future could have a material adverse effect on our business and operating results.
Continued inflation and increases in labor costs may reduce our profitability.
We are currently experiencing inflationary pressures on our operating costs. Among other things, competition for labor is becoming more acute and we expect our labor costs to increase as a result. We expect that as we rebound from labor shortages and our staffing levels increase, we will also experience a corresponding increase to our labor costs. Because labor costs are and will continue to be a major component of our operating expenses, higher labor costs, whether as a result of increased wages or increased staffing levels, could reduce our profitability and gross margins.
In addition, we have experienced increased costs for supplies, and rising fuel costs have resulted in increased costs for the transportation of drugs. We generally are not able to sufficiently raise our pricing to offset these increased costs. Continuing increased costs and prolonged inflation could materially and adversely affect our business, operating results and profitability.
Government efforts to combat inflation, along with other interest rate pressures arising from an inflationary economic environment, could lead to us to incur even higher interest rates and financing costs and may reduce our profitability.
Inflation has risen on a global basis, the United States has been experiencing historically high levels of inflation, and government entities have taken various actions to combat inflation, such as raising interest rate benchmarks. Government entities may continue their efforts, or implement additional efforts, to combat inflation, which could include among other things continuing to raise interest rate benchmarks and/or maintaining interest rate benchmarks at elevated levels. Such government efforts, along with other interest rate pressures arising from an inflationary economic environment, could lead to us to incur even higher interest rates and financing costs and have material adverse effect on our business, operating results and profitability.
Labor shortages could harm our ability to implement our growth strategy.
Our success and our ability to grow our business depends in large part on our ability to attract and retain employees. We have experienced labor shortages in the past, including as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic
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which negatively affected the labor market for employers. During the ongoing recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, labor shortages have also impaired our ability to attract, hire and re-hire employees. To the extent we are unable to hire and retain a sufficient number of employees, our business and growth could be adversely affected. Additionally, labor shortages or labor disruptions experienced by our third-party contractors and subcontractors could disrupt our operations, increase our costs and adversely affect our profitability.
If we or the LTCFs we serve fail to comply with state licensure requirements, we could be prevented from providing pharmacy services or be required to make significant changes to our operations.
Our pharmacies must be licensed by the state boards of pharmacy in the states in which they operate. States also regulate out-of-state pharmacies that fill prescriptions for residents in their states. The failure to obtain or renew any required regulatory approvals or licenses could adversely impact the operation of our business. In addition, the LTCFs we service are also subject to extensive federal, state and local regulations, including a requirement to be licensed in the states in which they operate. A negative action on our licenses or the failure by the LTCFs we service to obtain or renew any required licenses could result in our inability to provide pharmacy services to these LTCFs and their residents and could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations and liquidity.
Complex and rapidly evolving laws and regulations could cause us to make significant changes to our operations or incur substantial costs or penalties.
As a participant in the healthcare industry in the United States, we are subject to numerous federal and state regulations. Further, there are various political, economic and regulatory influences that are placing our industry under intense scrutiny and which seek to implement fundamental changes. We cannot predict which reform proposals, if any, will be adopted, when they may be adopted, or what impact they may have on us. Any changes to the current regulatory and legal paradigm, including as may be advanced by the new presidential administration, could increase the overall regulatory burden and costs associated with our business and materially adversely affect our business and operating results. If we fail to comply with existing or future applicable laws and regulations, we could suffer civil or criminalpenalties, including the loss of our licenses to operate our pharmacies and our ability to participate in federal and state healthcare programs. The DEA, FDA and various state regulatory authorities have broad enforcement powers, including the ability to seize or recall products and impose significant criminal, civil and administrative sanctions for violations of these laws and regulations. As a consequence of the severepenalties we could face, we must devote significant operational and managerial resources to complying with these laws and regulations. Different legal interpretations and enforcement policies could subject our current practices to allegations of noncompliance or illegality, or could require us to make significant changes to our operations. In addition, we cannot predict the impact of future legislation and regulatory changes on our business or assure that we will be able to obtain or maintain the regulatory approvals required to operate our business. The costs associated with complying with federal and state laws and regulations could be significant and the failure to comply with any such legal requirements could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations and liquidity.
If we fail to comply with fraud and abuse laws, falseclaims provisions or other applicable laws, we may need to curtail operations, and could be subject to significant penalties.
We are subject to federal and state fraud and abuse laws that prohibit payments intended to induce or encourage the referral of patients to, or the recommendation of, a particular provider of items or services. Violation of these laws can result in loss of licensure, civil and criminalpenalties, damages and exclusion from the Medicaid, Medicare and other federal healthcare programs. The OIG and U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) have, from time to time, established national enforcement initiatives, targeting all providers of a particular type, that focus on specific billing practices or other suspected areas of abuse. Under the qui tam or “whistleblower” provisions of the federal and various state falseclaims acts, private citizens may bring lawsuits alleging that a violation of the AKS or similar laws has resulted in the submission of “false” claims to federal and/or state
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healthcare programs, including Medicare and Medicaid. Since the private plaintiff in this type of proceeding is generally entitled to share in any damages a court orders the defendant to pay to federal and state governments under these laws, financial incentives exist for individuals to allege that particular practices or activities constitute a violation of these statutes. A determination that we have violated these laws, or the initiation of lawsuits allegingviolations of these laws, could adversely affect our business and financial condition.
As part of our ongoing operations, we are subject to various inspections, audits, inquiries, investigations and similar actions by third parties, as well as governmental/regulatory authorities responsible for enforcing the laws and regulations to which we are subject. From time to time we are subject to whistleblower complaints. Federal and state government agencies have increased their focus on and coordination of civil and criminal efforts in the healthcare area, and the ACA and other legislation has expanded federal healthcare fraud enforcement authority. There can be no assurance that the ultimate resolution of any such claims, inquiries or investigations, individually or in the aggregate, will not have a material adverse effect on our consolidated results of operations, financial position or cash flows. Moreover, we cannot predict our future costs associated with compliance with such laws.
Federal and state privacy and security regulations may increase our cost of operations and expose us to civil and criminal sanctions, damages, and penalties.
In the ordinary course of our business, we process, store and transmit data, which may include sensitive personal information of the residents we serve. We must comply with extensive federal and state requirements regarding the use, transmission and maintenance of PHI under HIPAA and HITECH, which expanded certain sections of HIPAA, including imposing certain liability on business associates, for example, with respect to impermissible uses and disclosures of PHI and Security Rule obligations, strengthening enforcement activities, and increasing penalties for violations. The requirements of federal and state privacy and security laws such as HIPAA and HITECH are complicated and are subject to interpretation and modification. In addition to HIPAA and HITECH, we must adhere to state privacy laws, including those that provide greater privacy protection for individuals than HIPAA. Failure to comply with HIPAA and HITECH or similar state equivalent laws could subject us to loss of customers, denial of the right to conduct business, civil damages, fines, criminalpenalties, class action or other litigation, and other enforcement actions.
In addition, there are numerous federal and state laws and regulations addressing patient and consumer privacy concerns, including unauthorized access or theft of personal information. State statutes and regulations vary from state to state and could impose additional penalties. Violations of these, or other applicable federal or state laws or regulations could subject us to significant criminal or civil penalties, including significant monetary penalties, and class action or other litigation. There are costs and administrative burdens associated with ongoing compliance with HIPAA’s Privacy and Security Rules, as well as HITECH and state equivalents, and other applicable federal and state regulations. Failure to comply carries with it the risk of significant penalties, damages, and sanctions. We cannot predict at this time the costs associated with compliance, or the impact of such laws and regulations on our results of operations, cash flows or financial condition. There can be no assurance that the cost of compliance with such laws and regulations will not increase significantly in the future, which could result in an adverse effect on our operations or profitability.
The increasing enforcement environment in the U.S. healthcare industry may negatively impact our business.
Federal and state government agencies have seemingly increased their focus on and coordination of civil and criminal enforcement efforts in the healthcare industry, and legislation has expanded federal healthcare enforcement authority. Both federal and state government agencies have appeared to increase their focus on and coordination of enforcement efforts in the healthcare industry, including under the AKS, the FalseClaims Act (“FCA”), the CMP Law, and corollary state enforcement schemes. The OIG and the DOJ have, from time to time, established national enforcement initiatives, targeting all providers of a particular type, that focus on specific billing practices or other suspected areas of abuse.
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Our pharmacies are registered with the appropriate state and federal authorities pursuant to statutes governing the regulation of pharmaceuticals and controlled substances. The DEA increased scrutiny and enforcement of long-term care pharmacy practices under the federal Controlled Substances Act. We believe that this increased scrutiny and, in some cases, stringent interpretation of existing regulations, effectively changed long-standing practices for dispensing controlled substances in the long-term care facility setting. Heightened enforcement of controlled substances regulations could increase the overall regulatory burden and costs associated with our pharmacy services, and there can be no assurance that this heightened level of enforcement and DEA or other investigations, or any fines or other penalties resulting therefrom, will not materially adversely affect our results of operations, financial condition or cash flows.
Courts across the United States have provided interpretations, sometimes conflicting, of these laws. In the future, different interpretations or enforcement of these laws and regulations could subject our current or past practices to allegations of impropriety or illegality, or could require us to make changes in our facilities, equipment, personnel, services, capital expenditure programs and operating expenses. A determination that we have violated these laws, or the public announcement that we are being investigated for possible violations of these laws, could have a material adverse effect on our business, operations and financial condition and our reputation could suffer significantly. If we fail to comply with applicable laws and regulations, we could be subjected to liabilities, including criminalpenalties, civil penalties (including the loss of our licenses to operate one or more of our pharmacies), damages, and exclusion of one or more of our pharmacies from participation in the Medicare, Medicaid and other federal healthcare programs. In addition, we are unable to predict future legislation or regulations at the federal or state level and what impact they may have.
Furthermore, the OIG and the U.S. Department of Justice have established national enforcement initiatives that may focus on specific billing practices or other suspected areas of fraud, waste, and abuse. In addition, under the federal FCA and state equivalents, the government and private parties, by qui tam complaints, continue to pursue enforcement activities, resulting in potentially increasing awards of damages and penalties. If we are unable to adjust to an increasingly enforcement-focused environment, it could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations and liquidity.
Adverse results in material litigation matters or governmental inquiries could have a material adverse effect upon our business.
We may from time to time become subject in the ordinary course of business to material legal action related to, among other things, intellectual property disputes, professional liability and employee-related matters, as well as inquiries from governmental agencies and Medicare or Medicaid carriers requesting comment and information on allegations of billing irregularities and other matters that are brought to their attention through billing audits, third parties or other sources. The pharmaceutical industry is subject to substantial federal and state government regulation and audit. Legal actions could result in substantial monetary damages, including civil or criminalpenalties, as well as damage to our reputation with customers, which could have a material adverse effect upon our financial condition and operating results.
Interruptions to our information systems may materially and adversely affect our operating results.
We rely on information systems to obtain, rapidly process, analyze, and manage data to facilitate the dispensing of prescription and non-prescription pharmaceuticals in accordance with physician orders and to deliver those medications to LTCF residents on a timely basis. We also use information systems to manage the accuracy of our billings and collections for thousands of LTCF residents and to process payments to suppliers.
In addition, we rely on computer and software systems owned and operated by third parties that we do not control. We depend on these third-party systems to be functioning and available to operate our business. It is possible that a third party that we rely on could experience interruptions, including as a result of a cybersecurity attack, data security breach or otherwise. These third-party providers also may decide to discontinue operating these systems.
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Our business and operating results may be materially and adversely affected if any of these systems are interrupted for any reason (including cybersecurity threats or third-party provider failures), damaged or if they fail for an extended period of time. Significant disruptions to our infrastructure or any of our facilities due to failure of technology could adversely impact our business.
Our business success and results of operations depend in part on our ability to use technology effectively in our dispensing of prescriptions, and if we cannot keep pace with technological developments or continue to innovate and provide new programs, products and services, the use of our services and our revenue could decline.
To remain competitive, we must continually maintain and upgrade our technologies to meet the evolving preferences, needs and expectations of LTCFs and residents and to improve our productivity and reduce our operating expenses. We cannot predict the effect of technological changes on our business, and new services and technologies in the future, including those implementing or created using artificial intelligence, could be superior to, or render obsolete, the technologies we currently use in our business. Incorporating new technologies into our products and services may require substantial expenditures and take considerable time, and ultimately may not be successful. In addition, our ability to adopt and develop new technologies may be inhibited by industry-wide standards, new laws and regulations and other factors. Our success will depend on our ability to develop new technologies and adapt to technological changes and evolving industry standards. We rely in part on third parties for the development of and access to new technologies, which may adversely impact our ability to integrate new technologies into our business. If we fail to effectively maintain and upgrade our technology, our ability to sustain and grow our business and our results of operations may be materially adversely affected.
Cybersecurity attacks or other data security incidents could disrupt our operations and expose us to regulatory fines or penalties, liability or reputational harm.
In the ordinary course of our business, we process, store and transmit data, which may include sensitive personal information as well as proprietary or confidential information relating to our business or third parties. We have in the past been subject to a ransomware attack, and may in the future be subject to various cyber or ransomware attacks or data breaches. Although the ransomware attack we experienced did not have a material impact to our business, such future incidents could disrupt and materially adversely affect our business. A cybersecurity attack or other data security incident could result in the misappropriation of confidential or personal information, create system interruptions or deploy malicious software that attacks our information technology security systems. Such an attack or incident could result in business interruptions from the disruption of our information technology systems or those of our third-party information systems providers, or negative publicity resulting in reputational harm with our customers, stockholders and other stakeholders. In addition, the unauthorized dissemination of sensitive personal information or proprietary or confidential information could expose us to regulatory fines or penalties, litigation and potential liability or otherwise harm our business.
We could be adversely affected by product liability, product recall, personal injury or other health and safety issues, and our insurance coverage may not be adequate to protect us against all potential risks and claimsagainst us.
Pharmacies are exposed to risks inherent in the packaging and distribution of pharmaceuticals. We could be adversely impacted by the supply of defective or expired pharmaceuticals, including the infiltration of counterfeit products into the supply chain, errors in labeling of products, product tampering, product recall and contamination or product mishandling issues. Through our pharmacies and compliance packaging services, we are also exposed to potential risk of errors in the dispensing and packaging of pharmaceuticals, including related counseling, and in the provision of other healthcare services could lead to seriousinjury or death. Product liability or personal injuryclaims may be asserted against us with respect to any of the products or pharmaceuticals we dispense or services we provide.
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Although we maintain various forms and levels of insurance to protect us against potential loss exposures, our available insurance coverage, and indemnification amounts available to us, may not be adequate to protect us against all potential risks, allegations and claimsagainst us. We cannot assure you that the scope of our insurance coverage, or limitations or exclusions on availability thereunder that may exist now or in the future, will protect us against all potential future claims, or that we will be able to maintain our existing insurance on acceptable terms in the future.
We could suffer significant reputational harm and financial liability if we experience any of the foregoing health and safety issues or incidents or if our insurance coverage proves to be inadequate, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our business operations, financial condition and operating results.
Supply chain and other manufacturing disruptions or trade policies related to the pharmaceuticals we dispense could adversely impact our business.
We may be exposed to risks related to disruptions in the pharmaceutical supply chain, such as shortages of medications, recall events, or disruptions caused by manufacturing issues or regulatory actions. In addition, some of the pharmaceuticals that we dispense, or their sourced ingredients, are imported by others and then sold to us. As a result, significant changes in trade policies, tariffs or trade relations between the U.S. and other countries, such as the imposition of unilateral tariffs on imported products, could result in supply chain disruptions, significant increases in our costs, and have an adverse effect on our operating results and cash flows. Any of these events may impact our ability to procure and deliver medications to our residents, cause us to incur increased costs, and in turn, adversely impact our business and financial results.
Acquisitions and strategic alliances that we have made or may make in the future could require significant resources, may be unsuccessful and could expose us to unforeseen liabilities.
We have made and anticipate that we may continue to make acquisitions of and strategic alliances with complementary businesses to expand our business. At any particular time, we may be in various stages of assessment, discussion and negotiation with regard to one or more potential acquisitions or strategic alliances, which may or may not be completed. Our growth plans rely, in part, on the successful completion of future acquisitions. If we are unsuccessful, our business would suffer.
Acquisitions may involve significant cash expenditures, debt incurrence, operating losses, amortization of certain intangible assets of acquired companies, and expenses that could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations and liquidity. Acquisitions involve numerous risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation:
difficulties integrating acquired operations, personnel and information systems, or in realizing projected efficiencies and cost savings;
failure to operate acquired facilities profitably or to achieveimprovements in their financial performance;
diversion of management’s time from existing operations;
potential loss of key employees or customers of acquired companies;
inaccurate assessment of assets and liabilities and exposure to undisclosed or unforeseen liabilities of acquired companies, including liabilities for failure to comply with healthcare laws; and
increases in our indebtedness.
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Some of the pharmaceuticals we dispense are warehoused with a single logistics provider for warehouse and distribution services to our pharmacies, and our business could be harmed if our logistics provider performs poorly, fails to comply with its licensing requirements or is unavailable and we are unable to replace it.
Some of the pharmaceuticals we dispense are warehoused with one third-party logistics provider prior to receipt by the pharmacy. We depend on this provider’s warehousing services for efficient and cost effective delivery of a portion of our products to our pharmacies. Our logistics provider must hold appropriate licenses issued by state and federal regulators, especially due to its warehousing and distribution services of pharmaceuticals. If our logistics provider is not compliant with these licensing requirements, we could be subject to fines and penalties from governmental agencies, which could have a material adverse effect on our business and operating results. Additional risks associated with our relationship with our logistics provider include service interruptions or errors. In the event we lose these services or their services are ineffective and we are unable to transition efficiently and effectively to a new logistics provider, we could incur increased costs or experience a material disruption in our operations.
We may be exposed to potential liability and reputational harm if LTCF caregivers fail to properly administer the pharmaceuticals we dispense.
While we offer training sessions to inform LTCF caregivers about the proper administration of the pharmaceutical products we dispense, we cannot guarantee that the LTCFs and caregivers will utilize these training opportunities, or that the pharmaceuticals we dispense will be administered properly. The lack of required training for administration of the pharmaceutical products we dispense may result in product misuse, adverse treatment outcomes or errors in administration, which we might not anticipate and which could harm our reputation and expose us to potential liability and consequently harm our business and operating results.
The misuse or off-label use of the pharmaceuticals we dispense may harm our image in the marketplace, result in injuries that lead to product liability suits or result in costlyinvestigations and sanctions by regulatory bodies if we are deemed to have engaged in the promotion of these uses, any of which could be costly to our business.
The pharmaceuticals we dispense have been approved by the FDA for specific indications. We cannot however, prevent a physician from prescribing pharmaceuticals for uses outside of the FDA-approved indications for use, known as “off-label uses,” when in the physician’s independent professional medical judgment he or she deems it appropriate. There may be increased risk of injury to LTCF residents if physicians attempt to use the pharmaceuticals off-label.
LTCF caregivers may also misuse pharmaceuticals that we dispense, ignore or disregard information provided in training or fail to obtain adequate training, potentially leading to injury and an increased risk of product liability. If pharmaceuticals that we dispense are misused, we may become subject to liability and costlylitigation. It is also possible that federal or state enforcement authorities might take action if they consider our business activities to constitute promotion of an off-label use, which could result in significant penalties, including, but not limited to, criminal, civil and administrative penalties, damages, fines, disgorgement, exclusion from participation in government healthcare programs and the curtailment of our operations. Any of these events could significantly harm our business and operating results.
We may be exposed to potential liability and reputational harm if we make errors in the course of providing medication reconciliation, duplicate therapy resolution, clinical issue resolution and related services.
We provide full medication reconciliation, duplicate therapy resolution, clinical issue resolution and other services designed to help improve resident outcomes and reduce costs. In the course of these services, we review residents’ medication regimens, check for instances where multiple medications of the same therapeutic class have been prescribed to a single resident, which can result from a resident’s treatment by multiple physicians, and recommend corrective action where appropriate. These and other related services we offer are complex, and if and to the extent we make errors in the provision of these services, we may be subject to claims and potential liability, any of which could harm our reputation, operating results and financial condition.
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Our future success depends upon our ability to maintain and manage our growth. If we are unable to manage our growth effectively, we may incur unexpected expenses and be unable to meet the demands of our customers and other constituents.
We aim to continue to expand the scope of our operations, both organically and through strategic acquisitions. Growth in our operations will place significant demands on our management, financial and other resources. We cannot be certain that our current systems, procedures, controls, and space will adequately support expansion of our operations, and we may be unable to expand or upgrade our systems or infrastructure to accommodate future growth. Our future operating results will depend on the ability of our management and key employees to successfully maintain our independence and corporate culture, preserve the effectiveness of our high-touch resident care model, manage changing business conditions and to implement and improve our technical, administrative, financial control and reporting systems. Our inability to finance future growth, manage future expansion or hire and retain the personnel needed to manage our business successfully could have a material adverse effect on our business and prospects.
Our revenues and volume trends may be adversely affected by certain factors relevant to the markets in which we have pharmacies, including weather conditions and other natural disasters, some of which may not be covered by insurance.
Our revenues and volume trends will be predicated on many factors, including physicians’ pharmaceutical decisions on patients (residents), health plan payor programs, seasonal and severe weather conditions including the effects of extreme low temperatures, hurricanes and tornadoes, earthquakes, current local economic and demographic changes, some of which may not be covered by insurance. Any of these factors could have a material adverse effect on our revenues and volume trends, and many of these factors will not be within the control of our management. These factors may also have an effect on the LTCFs we serve and their ability to continue to operate.
Risks Related to Ownership of Our Class A Common Stock
The Guardian Founders are able to exercise significant control over us, including through the election of all of our directors.
A group of our stockholders, consisting of Bindley Capital Partners I, LLC, Pharmacy Investors, LLC, Cardinal Equity Fund, L.P., Fred Burke, David Morris and Kendall Forbes (collectively, the “Guardian Founders”) beneficially own shares of our common stock representing a majority of our combined voting power. Pursuant to the terms of the Stockholders’ Agreement, the Guardian Founders have the ability to elect all of the members of our board of directors and thereby control our management and affairs. Accordingly, the Guardian Founders are able to determine the outcome of substantially all matters requiring action by our stockholders, including amendments to our certificate of incorporation and bylaws, any proposed merger, consolidation or sale of all or substantially all of our assets and other corporate transactions, even if such actions are not favored by our other stockholders. This concentration of ownership may also prevent a change in the composition of our board of directors or a change in control of our company that could deprive our stockholders of an opportunity to receive a premium for their Class A common stock as part of a sale of our company and might ultimately affect the market price of our Class A common stock.
We are a “controlled company” within the meaning of the corporate governance standards of NYSE. As a result, we qualify for exemptions from certain corporate governance standards and you do not have the same protections afforded to stockholders of companies that are subject to such requirements.
The Guardian Founders own more than 50% of the total voting power of our outstanding common stock and we are therefore a “controlled company” under NYSE corporate governance standards. As a controlled company, we are not required by NYSE, for continued listing of our Class A common stock, to (i) have a majority of our board of directors consist of independent directors, (ii) maintain a nominating and governance committee that is
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composed entirely of independent directors with a written charter addressing the committee’s purpose and responsibilities or (iii) maintain a compensation committee that is composed entirely of independent directors with a written charter addressing the committee’s purpose and responsibilities. For so long as we qualify as a “controlled company,” we may rely on some or all of these exemptions from NYSE listing requirements. Accordingly, our stockholders do not have the same protections afforded to stockholders of companies that are subject to all of the NYSE corporate governance requirements and the ability of our independent directors to influence our business policies and affairs may be reduced. As a result, our status as a “controlled company” could make our Class A common stock less attractive to some investors or could otherwise harm our Class A common stock price.
Our future issuance of Class A common stock, Class B common stock, preferred stock or convertible debt securities could dilute our common stockholders and adversely affect the market value of our Class A common stock.
The future issuance of shares of Class A common stock, Class B common stock, preferred stock or convertible debt securities may dilute the economic and voting rights of our stockholders and reduce the market price of the Class A common stock. Preferred stock, if issued, could have a preference with respect to liquidating distributions or a preference with respect to dividend payments that could limit our ability to pay dividends to the holders of our Class A common stock and adversely affect the market price of the Class A common stock.
From time to time in the future, we may also issue additional shares of our Class A common stock or securities convertible into Class A common stock pursuant to a variety of transactions, including acquisitions. We also anticipate that we may issue shares of our Class B common stock as consideration in the buyout of minority owners in our future greenfield start-up pharmacies and future acquired pharmacies. The issuance by us of additional shares of our Class A common stock, Class B common stock or securities convertible into our Class A common stock may dilute your ownership of us and the sale of a significant amount of such shares in the public market could adversely affect prevailing market prices of our Class A common stock.
The market price of shares of our Class A common stock has experienced, and may in the future experience, substantial volatility.
As a company with a relatively limited public float, shares of our Class A common stock may experience greater stock price volatility, price run-ups, lower trading volumes, large spreads in bid and ask prices and less liquidity than companies with larger capitalizations. Such volatility, including any stock run-ups, may be unrelated to our actual or expected operating performance, results of operations, financial condition or prospects, making it difficult for prospective investors to assess the rapidly changing value of our Class A common stock.
In addition, if the trading volumes of our Class A common stock are low, persons buying or selling in relatively small quantities may easily influence the price of our Class A common stock. This low volume of trades could also cause the price of our Class A common stock to fluctuate greatly, with large percentage changes in price occurring in any particular trading day session. Holders of our Class A common stock may also not be able to readily liquidate their investment or may be forced to sell at depressed prices due to low volume trading. Broad market fluctuations and general economic and political conditions may also adversely affect the market price of our Class A common stock. As a result of this volatility, investors may experience losses on their investment in our Class A common stock. A decline in the market price of our Class A common stock could also adversely affect our ability to issue additional shares of Class A common stock or other of our securities and our ability to obtain additional financing in the future. No assurance can be given that an active market in our Class A common stock will develop or be sustained. If an active market does not develop, holders of our Class A common stock may be unable to readily sell the shares they hold or may not be able to sell their shares at all.
The requirements of being a public company may strain our resources, divert management’s attention and affect our ability to attract and retain qualified board members.
As a public company, we are subject to the reporting requirements of the Exchange Act, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, as amended (the “Sarbanes-Oxley Act”) and NYSE rules, including those promulgated in response
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to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. These requirements have increased our legal and financial compliance costs, made some activities more difficult, time-consuming or costly and increased demand on our systems and resources. The Exchange Act requires, among other things, that we file annual, quarterly and current reports with respect to our business and financial condition. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires, among other things, that we maintain effective disclosure controls and procedures and internal controls for financial reporting. To maintain and improve the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures, we will need to commit significant resources, hire additional staff and provide additional management oversight. We have implemented additional procedures and processes for the purpose of addressing the standards and requirements applicable to public companies. In addition, sustaining our growth also will require us to commit additional management, operational and financial resources to identify new professionals to join our organization and to maintain appropriate operational and financial systems to adequately support expansion. These activities may divert management’s attention from other business concerns, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. We cannot assure you that management’s past experience will be sufficient to successfully develop and implement these systems, policies and procedures and to operate our company. Failure to do so could jeopardize our status as a public company, and the loss of such status could materially and adversely affect us and our stockholders.
We expect to incur significant additional annual expenses related to these steps associated with, among other things, director fees, reporting requirements, transfer agent fees, additional accounting, legal and administrative personnel, increased auditing and legal fees and similar expenses. We also expect that the rules and regulations that we are now subject to as a result of being a public company will continue to make it more expensive for us to obtain director and officer liability insurance, and we may be required to accept reduced coverage for such directors and officers. Any of these factors could make it more difficult for us to attract and retain qualified members of our board of directors.
Future sales, or the perception of future sales of Class A common stock, by us or our existing stockholders in the public market could cause the market price for our common stock to decline.
The sale of substantial amounts of shares of our Class A common stock in the public market, or the perception that such sales could occur, could harm the prevailing market price of shares of our Class A common stock. These sales, or the possibility that these sales may occur, also might make it more difficult for us to sell equity securities in the future at a time and at a price that we deem appropriate. As of March 2, 2026, we have outstanding approximately 27.1 million shares of Class B common stock (substantially all of which were issued in our Corporate Reorganization in September 2024), which shares are convertible into shares of Class A common stock on a one-to-one basis. The shares of Class B common stock are subject to certain transfer restrictions and conversion terms, including with respect to sales. These transfer restrictions will cease to apply as shares of Class B common stock automatically convert into shares of Class A common stock over the two-year period following their respective dates of issuance. In addition, our board of directors may accelerate the conversion of Class B common stock into Class A common stock at their discretion.
If we are unable to implement and maintain effective internal control over financial reporting in the future, investors may lose confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports and the market price of our Class A common stock may decline.
As a public company, we are required to maintain internal control over financial reporting and to report any material weaknesses in such internal controls. In addition, beginning with this Annual Report on Form 10-K, we are required to furnish a report by management on the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting, pursuant to Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. The process of designing, implementing, and testing the internal control over financial reporting required to comply with this obligation is time consuming, costly, and complicated. If we identify material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting, if we are in the future unable to comply with the requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in a timely manner, or if we are unable to assert that our internal control over financial reporting is effective, investors may
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lose confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports and the market price of our Class A common stock could decline, and we could also become subject to investigations by the stock exchange on which our Class A common stock is listed, the SEC, or other regulatory authorities, which could require additional financial and management resources.
We do not intend to pay any cash dividends on our common stock in the foreseeable future.
We do not expect to pay any dividends on our common stock in the foreseeable future. Payments of future dividends, if any, will be at the discretion of our board of directors after taking into account various factors, including our business, operating results and financial condition, current and anticipated cash needs, plans for expansion and any legal or contractual limitations on our ability to pay dividends. As a result, capital appreciation in the price of our Class A common stock, if any, may be your only source of gain on an investment in our Class A common stock.
We are a holding company with no operations of its own and, accordingly, we depend on our subsidiaries for cash to fund our operations and expenses, including future dividend payments, if any.
We are a holding company and have no material assets other than our ownership of equity interests in our operating subsidiaries. As a holding company, we have no independent means of generating revenue, and our principal source of cash flow will be distributions from our subsidiaries. Therefore, our ability to fund and conduct our business, service our debt, and pay dividends, if any, in the future will depend on the ability of our subsidiaries to generate sufficient cash flow to make upstream cash distributions to us. Our subsidiaries are separate legal entities, and although they are wholly owned or majority owned and controlled by us, they have no obligation to make any funds available to us, whether in the form of loans, dividends, or otherwise. The ability of our subsidiaries to distribute cash to us will also be subject to, among other things, restrictions that may be contained in our subsidiary agreements (as entered into from time to time), availability of sufficient funds in such subsidiaries and applicable laws and regulatory restrictions. Claims of any creditors of our subsidiaries generally will have priority as to the assets of such subsidiaries over our claims and claims of our creditors and stockholders. To the extent the ability of our subsidiaries to distribute dividends or other payments to us is limited in any way, our ability to fund and conduct our business, pay our expenses, service our debt, and pay dividends, if any, could be harmed.
Our certificate of incorporation and bylaws and provisions of Delaware law may discourage or prevent certain strategic transactions, including a takeover of our company, even if such a transaction would be beneficial to our stockholders.
Provisions contained in our certificate of incorporation and bylaws and provisions of the Delaware General Corporation Law (the “DGCL”), could delay or prevent a third party from entering into a strategic transaction with us, even if such a transaction would benefit our stockholders. For example, our certificate of incorporation and bylaws:
provide that our board of directors is classified into three classes of directors with staggered three-year terms;
authorize the issuance of “blank check” preferred stock that could be issued by our board of directors without further action by our stockholders to increase the number of outstanding shares of capital stock, making a takeover more difficult and expensive;
do not permit cumulative voting in the election of directors, which would otherwise allow less than a majority of stockholders to elect director candidates;
do not permit stockholders to take action by written consent other than during the period in which we qualify as a “controlled company” within the meaning of NYSE rules;
provide that special meetings of the stockholders may be called only by or at the direction of the chair of our board or a majority of the directors;
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provide that vacancies on our board of directors will be able to be filled only by our board of directors (subject to the provisions set forth in the Stockholders’ Agreement) and not by stockholders;
restrict the forum for certain litigationagainst us to Delaware; and
provide for advance notice procedures, which apply for stockholders to nominate candidates for election as directors or to bring matters before an annual meeting of stockholders.
In addition, we are subject to the provisions of Section 203 of the DGCL which limits, subject to certain exceptions, the right of a corporation to engage in a business combination with a holder of 15% or more of the corporation’s outstanding voting securities, or certain affiliated persons.
These restrictions and provisions could keep us from pursuing relationships with strategic partners and from raising additional capital, which could impede our ability to expand our business and strengthen our competitive position.
Our certificate of incorporation designates the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware as the exclusive forum for certain litigation that may be initiated by our stockholders and the federal district courts of the United States as the exclusive forum for litigation arising under the Securities Act, which could limit our stockholders’ ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us or our directors, officers or employees.
Our certificate of incorporation provides that, unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware (or, if the Court of Chancery does not have jurisdiction, the federal district court for the District of Delaware) will be the sole and exclusive forum for (i) any derivative action or proceeding brought on our behalf, (ii) any action asserting a claim of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any of our directors, officers or other employees to us or our stockholders, (iii) any action asserting a claim arising pursuant to any provision of the DGCL or our certificate of incorporation or bylaws (as either may be amended from time to time), or (iv) any action asserting a claim governed by the internal affairs doctrine.
Furthermore, our certificate of incorporation also provides that, unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, the federal district courts of the United States will be, to the fullest extent permitted by law, the sole and exclusive forum for any action asserting a claim arising under the Securities Act. However, Section 22 of the Securities Act creates concurrent jurisdiction for federal and state courts over all suits brought to enforce a duty or liability created by the Securities Act or the rules and regulations thereunder and accordingly, we cannot be certain that a court would enforce such provision. We believe this provision would not apply to any action or proceeding asserting a claim under the Exchange Act.
Our certificate of incorporation further provides that, to the fullest extent permitted by law, any person or entity purchasing or otherwise acquiring any interest in shares of our capital stock will be deemed to have notice of, and consented to, the provisions of our certificate of incorporation described above. However, our stockholders will not be deemed to have waived our compliance with the federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder. The forum selection provisions in our certificate of incorporation may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against us or our directors, officers or employees and may limit our stockholders’ ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us or our directors, officers or employees, and may increase the costs associated with bringing a claim, which may disadvantage a stockholder in any such lawsuit. If the enforceability of our forum selection provision were to be challenged, we may incur additional costs associated with resolving such a challenge. While we currently have no basis to expect any such challenge would be successful, if a court were to find our forum selection provision to be inapplicable or unenforceable, we may incur additional costs associated with having to litigate in other jurisdictions, which could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations and result in a diversion of the time, resources and attention of our management.
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A discussion regarding our financial condition and results of operations for the year ended December 31, 2025 compared to the year ended December 31, 2024 is presented below. Our historical results are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for any future period.
Overview
We are a leading, highly differentiated pharmacy services company that provides an extensive suite of technology-enabled services designed to help residents of long-term health care facilities (“LTCFs”) adhere to their appropriate drug regimen, which in turn helps reduce the cost of care and improve clinical outcomes. We enter into contracts directly with LTCFs to serve as the principal pharmacy provider for their residents. In this capacity, we offer high-touch, individualized clinical, drug dispensing and administration capabilities that are tailored to serve the needs of residents in historically lower acuity LTCFs, such as assisted living facilities (“ALFs”) and behavioral health facilities (“BHFs”). Additionally, our robust capabilities enable us to serve
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residents in all types of LTCFs. Our services include prescription intake and adjudication management, packaging drugs into unit dose and/or multi-dose compliance packaging that are organized by date and time of administration, and electronically tracking each drug from delivery through administration to LTCF residents. We also offer training to caregivers and conduct mock audits to ensure compliance with pharmacy administration requirements, billing claims processing, government regulation and other matters. As of December 31, 2025, our 61 pharmacies, 54 of which are full-service, served approximately 205,000 residents in approximately 8,400 LTCFs across 38 states.
While our national competitors have primarily focused on skilled nursing facilities (“SNFs”), we believe we enjoy a strong competitive position as a large and purpose-built provider of pharmacy services to ALFs and BHFs. More than two-thirds of our annual revenue for each of the past three years has been generated from residents of ALFs and BHFs, while the remainder has been generated primarily from residents of SNFs. LTCF industry trends, including aging demographics, increases in the number of assisted living residents, improving life expectancies and enhanced quality of care, have resulted in ALF and BHF resident populations that require assistance with their increasingly acute and complex healthcare needs. Through our value-added capabilities and local management model, we have been able to pass on to residents, LTCFs and health plan payors the benefits of our scale without compromising on the high-touch, localized customer service traditionally associated with an independent pharmacy. For this reason, we are well positioned to continue to serve ALFs and BHFs, which we believe to be the most attractive and highest growth sector of the LTCF market.
Our core growth strategy focuses on increasing the number of residents we serve through a combination of organic and acquired growth. Acquired growth represents growth in the number of residents served resulting from acquiring an operating pharmacy, which we measure using the number of residents served by the acquired pharmacy as of the acquisition date. Organic growth represents the increase in the number of residents served at existing pharmacies, our greenfield pharmacies, and acquired pharmacies subsequent to the acquisition date. We have generated organic growth through new and expanded LTCF relationships as well as increased resident adoption of our services in the facilities we already serve.
Corporate Reorganization and IPO
On September 27, 2024, the Company consummated its initial public offering (“IPO”) of 8,000,000 shares of its Class A common stock, par value $0.001 per share (“Class A common stock”). Also on September 27, 2024, the underwriters for the IPO exercised in full their option to purchase an additional 1,200,000 shares of Class A common stock. The 9,200,000 shares were issued at a public offering price of $14.00 per share, resulting in net proceeds to the Company of $119.8 million, after deducting underwriting discounts of $9.0 million. In addition to the underwriting discounts, the Company incurred $13.0 million of offering costs, which were recorded to additional paid-in capital.
Prior to the IPO, we conducted our business through Guardian Pharmacy, LLC, and its majority owned and wholly owned limited liability company subsidiaries, which were treated for income tax purposes as partnerships and disregarded entities, respectively. Immediately prior to the IPO, we completed a series of corporate reorganization transactions (the “Corporate Reorganization”), pursuant to which:
All Preferred Units in Guardian Pharmacy, LLC were converted into Common Units, resulting in Guardian Pharmacy, LLC having only Common Units outstanding;
The membership interests, including Restricted Interest Unit awards, held by members other than Guardian Pharmacy, LLC in our subsidiaries (other than certain subsidiaries that were not parties to the Corporate Reorganization, as discussed below) were converted into Common Units of Guardian Pharmacy, LLC. The subsidiaries that participated in the Corporate Reorganization are referred to as the “Converted Subsidiaries”, and the subsidiaries that were not parties to the Corporate Reorganization (including those which were formed or acquired subsequent to the Corporate Reorganization) are referred to as the “Non-Converted Subsidiaries”; and
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Guardian Pharmacy, LLC became a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company by participating in a merger with a transitory subsidiary of the Company. Pursuant to the merger, each Common Unit of Guardian Pharmacy, LLC was converted into (i) one share of the Company’s Class B common stock, par value $0.001 per share (“Class B common stock”) and (ii) the right to receive $1.02 in cash per share, without interest (collectively, the “Merger Consideration”). In the merger, 54,094,232 shares of Class B common stock were issued in exchange for Common Units of Guardian Pharmacy, LLC. In accordance with the terms of the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, such issued shares of Class B common stock automatically convert on a one-for-one basis into shares of Class A common stock, with 25% of each holder’s shares of Class B common stock converting into shares of Class A common stock on each of the following dates: (i) March 28, 2025; (ii) September 27, 2025; (iii) March 28, 2026; and (iv) September 27, 2026. The Merger Consideration was $55,176 and was paid using the proceeds from the IPO.
As a result of the Corporate Reorganization, the Company became a holding company with no material assets other than its 100% interest in Guardian Pharmacy, LLC, and the Converted Subsidiaries became wholly owned subsidiaries of Guardian Pharmacy, LLC. In addition, Guardian Pharmacy, LLC remained the majority owner of each of the Non-Converted Subsidiaries.
The Non-Converted Subsidiaries are (i) greenfield start-up pharmacies in various stages of development and integration with Guardian and do not currently have material operations or (ii) pharmacies that we recently acquired. After a period of time that would typically be sufficient to allow such pharmacies to adopt our operating practices and experience meaningful growth in residents served and earnings, we expect to acquire the minority membership interests of such Non-Converted Subsidiaries.
Conversion of Class B Common Stock to Class A Common stock
In accordance with the terms of the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation and the conversion schedule described in the Corporate Reorganization and IPO section above, on March 28, 2025 and September 27, 2025, 13,519,946 and 13,523,285 shares, respectively, of the Company’s Class B common stock automatically converted, in accordance with the terms of such class and without any further action by their holders or the Company, into an equal number of shares of the Company’s Class A common stock.
Follow-On Offering
In May 2025, the Company completed an underwritten follow-on public offering of 1,440,447 shares of Class A common stock at an offering price of $21.00 per share (the “Q2 2025 Offering”). We used all of the net proceeds from the Q2 2025 Offering to purchase 1,440,447 shares of outstanding Class A common stock that were issued upon conversion of shares of our Class B common stock that were originally issued in connection with our Corporate Reorganization. The 1,440,447 shares of Class A common stock purchased by the Company were cancelled, resulting in no change to the total number of Class A common stock outstanding. We did not retain any of the proceeds from the sale of shares in the offering.
As part of the Q2 2025 Offering, certain selling stockholders, consisting of the Company’s founders (the “Guardian Founders”), sold 7,184,553 shares of Class A common stock. We did not receive any proceeds from the sale of shares by the selling stockholders in the Q2 2025 Offering.
Factors Affecting the Comparability of Our Results of Operations
Our results of operations for the year ended December 31, 2025 and the year ended December 31, 2024 have been affected by the following, among other factors, which must be understood to assess the comparability of our period-to-period financial performance and condition.
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Acquisitions
Our growth strategy involves periodically acquiring institutional pharmacies servicing LTCFs and their residents as well as residents in other care settings. Our strategy includes the acquisition of freestanding institutional pharmacy businesses as well as other assets, generally less significant in size, which are combined with existing pharmacy operations to augment internal organic growth.
During 2024 and 2025, we completed acquisitions of various pharmacy operations (the “Acquisitions”). The operating results of the Acquisitions were a contributing factor in certain changes in the results of operations for the year ended December 31, 2025 compared to the year ended December 31, 2024. Acquisition impacts are considered when the beginning of the comparative period precedes the acquisition date.
Share-Based Compensation (in connection with the Corporate Reorganization and IPO)
In connection with the Corporate Reorganization and IPO, Restricted Interest Unit awards associated with the Converted Subsidiaries and Guardian Pharmacy, LLC were converted into Common Units of Guardian Pharmacy, LLC, and the Common Units in Guardian Pharmacy, LLC were then converted into Class B common stock of the Company. This conversion of Restricted Interest Units was treated as a modification, requiring the units to be marked to fair value on the modification date, resulting in the Company recognizing $125.7 million of incremental share-based compensation expense during the year ended December 31, 2024.
Components of Results of Operations
Revenues . We recognize revenue at the time of delivery of prescriptions and other pharmacy services to the LTCF, at which time control has been transferred. Revenue recognized reflects the consideration we expect to receive in exchange for these goods and services.
Cost of goods sold . Cost of goods sold consists primarily of expenses associated with the fulfillment and delivery of the prescription, including prescription drug acquisition costs. Cost of goods sold also includes associated pharmacy personnel-related expenses, including salaries and benefits, delivery charges and other supporting overhead costs (such as rent and depreciation and amortization of assets used in the fulfillment and delivery of the prescription).
Selling, general, and administrative expenses . Selling, general, and administrative expenses consist primarily of personnel-related expenses, including share-based compensation, salaries and benefits, for our employees at the pharmacies and support services engaged in other pharmacy related activities including sales and marketing, finance, legal, human resources, purchasing and other administrative functions. Selling, general, and administrative expenses also include facilities-related expenses, software expenses, insurance premiums, professional services expenses, including for outside legal and accounting services, other overhead costs, changes in the fair value of contingent payments related to acquisitions, depreciation related to long lived assets, and amortization of intangible assets.
Prior to the Corporate Reorganization and IPO, share-based compensation expense primarily represented non-cash recognition of changes in the value of Restricted Interest Unit awards. These awards contained a cash settlement feature and were accounted for as a liability in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America (“GAAP”). These units remained in place until they were (a) forfeited (which occurs when the employee leaves before the units are fully vested), (b) paid out (we purchase the units at a calculated value upon termination of employment) or (c) converted into shares as a result of a major capital event such as a sale or public offering. In connection with the Corporate Reorganization and IPO, all outstanding Restricted Interest Unit awards, other than those issued by Non-Converted Subsidiaries, were converted into shares of Class B common stock, certain of which had additional vesting requirements following the IPO, and are no longer considered a liability. In addition to the unvested Class B common stock issued in connection with the
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Corporate Reorganization and IPO, the Company has share-based compensation awards in the form of restricted stock units, which are settled in shares of Class A common stock upon vesting and are considered equity-based awards.
Interest expense . Interest expense consists of interest on our long-term debt and line of credit under our credit facility and finance leases.
Other expense (income), net . Other expense, net consists primarily of gain (loss) on asset disposals and interest income earned on cash deposits.
Provision for income taxes . Provision for income taxes consists primarily of income taxes in certain jurisdictions in which we conduct business.
Results of Operations for the Years Ended December 31, 2024 and 2025
The following table sets forth our consolidated statements of operations data for the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2025, respectively. The year-over-year comparison of results of operations is not necessarily indicative of results for future periods.
Year Ended December 31,
(in thousands)
Revenues
Cost of goods sold
Gross profit
Selling, general, and administrative expenses (1)
Operating income (loss)
Other expenses:
Interest expense
Other expense (income), net
Total other expenses (income), net
Income (loss) before income taxes
Provision for income taxes
Net income (loss)
Less net income attributable to Guardian Pharmacy, LLC prior to the Corporate Reorganization
Less net income (loss) attributable to non-controlling interests (2)
Net income (loss) attributable to Guardian Pharmacy Services, Inc
Adjusted EBITDA (3)
Included in selling, general, and administrative expenses is share-based compensation expense of $131,490 and $13,850 during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2025, respectively. For the year ended December 31, 2024, this share-based compensation expense primarily represents the incremental expense recognized for Restricted Interest Unit awards that were modified in connection with the Corporate Reorganization and IPO. For the year ended December 31, 2025, this share-based compensation expense primarily represents the incremental expense recognized for Restricted Interest Unit awards that were modified in connection with the Corporate Reorganization and IPO, and share-based compensation expense for Restricted Stock Units granted for Class A common stock.
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These figures, for both Converted Subsidiaries and Non-Converted Subsidiaries, reflect minority membership interests in our subsidiaries preceding the Corporate Reorganization and IPO. Subsequent to the Corporate Reorganization and IPO, and for the year ended December 31, 2025, these figures reflect the minority membership interest for the Non-Converted Subsidiaries.
See “ —Adjusted EBITDA and Other Non-GAAP Financial Measures ” below for more information and for a reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA to net income, the most directly comparable financial measure calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP.
Revenue
Year Ended December 31,
% Change
(in thousands)
Revenue
Revenue for the year ended December 31, 2025 increased by $220.3 million or 17.9% compared to the year ended December 31, 2024. $68.4 million of the increase was attributable to revenue from the Acquisitions, with the remaining $151.9 million of the increase attributable to the organic growth of our business. Further, the increase was attributable to increases in the number of residents served from 186,000 residents during December 2024 to 205,000 residents during December 2025 and prescriptions dispensed from 25.1 million during the year ended December 31, 2024 to 28.6 million during the year ended December 31, 2025, as well as annual drug price inflation.
Cost of goods sold
Year Ended December 31,
% Change
(in thousands)
Cost of goods sold
Percentage of revenue
Cost of goods sold for the year ended December 31, 2025 increased by $171.9 million or 17.5% compared to the year ended December 31, 2024. $60.7 million of the increase was attributable to the Acquisitions, with the remaining $111.2 million of the increase attributable to the organic growth of our business. Cost of goods sold as a percentage of revenue decreased from 80.1% to 79.8% year over year.
Selling, general, and administrative expenses
Year Ended December 31,
% Change
(in thousands)
Selling, general, and administrative expenses
Percentage of revenue
Selling, general and administrative expenses decreased $87.3 million or (28.4)% for the year ended December 31, 2025 compared to the year ended December 31, 2024. $117.6 million of the decrease was driven by decreases in share-based compensation expense, as the year ended December 31, 2024 included significant share-based compensation expense recognized in connection with the Corporate Reorganization and IPO. This decrease was offset by a $30.3 million increase in expense due to an increase in average employee headcount,
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with $20.1 million resulting from organic growth and $10.2 million resulting from the Acquisitions. Selling, general and administrative expenses as a percentage of revenue decreased from 25.0% to 15.2% primarily as a result of the decreases in share-based compensation expense described above.
Interest expense
Year Ended December 31,
% Change
(in thousands)
Interest expense
Interest expense decreased $2.6 million or (79.7)% for the year ended December 31, 2025 compared to the year ended December 31, 2024. The decrease was due to having no balances outstanding under the Credit Facility (see “-Liquidity and Capital Resources” below) during the year ended December 31, 2025.
Provision for income taxes
Year Ended December 31,
% Change
(in thousands)
Provision for income taxes
Income tax expense increased by $19.9 million or 437.0% for the year ended December 31, 2025 compared to the year ended December 31, 2024. In 2024, Guardian Pharmacy Services, Inc. and its majority-owned and wholly-owned limited liability company subsidiaries reported one quarter of tax expense, post-IPO and Corporate Reorganization. Prior to the IPO, we conducted our business through Guardian Pharmacy, LLC, and its majority-owned and wholly-owned limited liability company subsidiaries, which were treated for income tax purposes as partnerships and disregarded entities, respectively for the first three quarters of 2024.
Adjusted EBITDA and Other Non-GAAP Financial Measures
To supplement the results presented in our consolidated financial statements in accordance with GAAP, we also present Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted Net Income, Adjusted EPS and Adjusted SG&A, which are financial measures not based on any standardized methodology prescribed by GAAP.
We define Adjusted EBITDA as net income (loss) before interest expense, income taxes, depreciation and amortization, as adjusted to exclude the impact of items and amounts that we view as not indicative of our core operating performance, including share-based compensation, certain legal and regulatory items, financing-related and other activities, payor-reimbursement matters, and certain tax matters related to the Corporate Reorganization and IPO.
We define Adjusted Net Income as net income attributable to Guardian Pharmacy Services, Inc. before share-based compensation expense, certain legal and other regulatory items, financing-related and other activities, payor- reimbursement matters, amortization expense associated with acquisition-related intangible assets, the income tax impact of the adjustments, and certain tax matters related to the Corporate Reorganization and IPO.
We define Adjusted EPS as Adjusted Net Income divided by the total weighted average of diluted shares for Class A common stock and Class B common stock.
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We define Adjusted SG&A as GAAP selling, general, and administrative expenses adjusted to exclude the impact of share-based compensation, expenses relating to certain legal and regulatory items, financing-related and other activities, and payor-reimbursement matters.
Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted Net Income, Adjusted EPS and Adjusted SG&A do not have a definition under GAAP, and our definition of Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted Net Income, Adjusted EPS and Adjusted SG&A may not be the same as, or comparable to, similarly titled measures used by other companies.
We use Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted Net Income, Adjusted EPS, and Adjusted SG&A to better understand and evaluate our core operating performance and trends. We believe that presenting Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted Net Income, Adjusted EPS, and Adjusted SG&A provides useful information to investors in understanding and evaluating our operating results, as it permits investors to view our core business performance using the same metrics that management uses to evaluate our performance.
There are a number of limitations related to the use of Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted Net Income, Adjusted EPS, and Adjusted SG&A rather than the most directly comparable GAAP financial measure, including:
Adjusted EBITDA does not reflect interest and income tax payments that represent a reduction in cash available to us;
Depreciation and amortization are non-cash charges and the assets being depreciated may have to be replaced in the future, and Adjusted EBITDA does not reflect cash capital expenditure requirements for such replacements or for new capital expenditure requirements;
Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted Net Income, and Adjusted EPS do not reflect changes in, or cash requirements for, our working capital needs;
Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted Net Income, Adjusted EPS, and Adjusted SG&A do not consider the impact of share-based compensation; and
Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted Net Income, Adjusted EPS, and Adjusted SG&A exclude the impact of certain legal and regulatory items, and payor-reimbursement matters which can affect our current and future cash requirements.
Because of these limitations, Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted Net Income, Adjusted EPS, and Adjusted SG&A should not be considered in isolation from, or as a substitute for, financial information prepared in accordance with GAAP. You should consider Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted Net Income, Adjusted EPS, and Adjusted SG&A alongside other financial measures, including net income, diluted EPS, GAAP selling, general, and administrative expense and our other financial results presented in accordance with GAAP.
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A reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA to net income, of Adjusted Net Income to Net Income Attributable to Guardian Pharmacy Services, Inc., and of Adjusted SG&A to GAAP selling, general, and administrative expense, the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures, are set forth below.
Year Ended December 31,
(in thousands)
Net income (loss)
Add:
Interest expense (income), net
Depreciation and amortization
Provision for income taxes
EBITDA
Share-based compensation (1)
Certain legal & other regulatory matters (2)
Financing-related and other activities (3)
Payor-reimbursement matters (4)
Adjusted EBITDA
Net income as a percentage of revenue
Adjusted EBITDA as a percentage of revenue
Net Income (loss) attributable to Guardian Pharmacy Services, Inc.
Share-based compensation (1)
Certain legal & other regulatory matters (2)
Financing-related and other activities (3)
Payor-reimbursement matters (4)
Acquisition-related intangible asset
amortization (5)
Income tax impact of adjustments (7)
Certain tax matters related to Corporate Reorganization and IPO (6)
Adjusted net income
Weighted average common shares outstanding used in calculating diluted U.S. GAAP net income per share
Weighted average common shares outstanding used in calculating diluted Non-GAAP net income per share
Diluted EPS
Adjusted EPS
GAAP selling, general, and administrative expenses
Subtract:
Share-based compensation (1)
Certain legal & other regulatory matters (2)
Financing-related and other activities (3)
Payor-reimbursement matters (4)
Adjusted SG&A
GAAP selling, general, and administrative expenses as a percentage of revenue
Adjusted SG&A as a percentage of revenue
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Prior to the Corporate Reorganization and IPO, our share-based compensation expense primarily represented non-cash recognition of changes in the value of Restricted Interest Unit awards, which had historically been recorded as a liability using a cash settlement methodology as calculated on a quarterly basis. In connection with the Corporate Reorganization and IPO, certain Restricted Interest Unit awards were modified, resulting in incremental share-based compensation expense of $125.7 million during the year ended December 31, 2024, based on the fair value of the modified awards. Share-based compensation expense for the year ended December 31, 2025 relates to equity-classified awards.
Represents non-recurring attorney’s fees, settlement costs and other expenses associated with certain legal proceedings. The Company excludes such charges when evaluating operating performance because it does not incur such charges on a predictable basis and exclusion allows for consistent evaluation of operations.
Represents non-recurring costs associated with various financing-related activities and costs to transition to a public company.
Represents non-recurring proceeds received, recorded as revenue, and legal expenses, recorded as selling, general and administrative expenses, associated with payor reimbursement matters.
Proceeds received associated with payor reimbursement matters, recorded as revenue, were $1.6 million during the year ended December 31, 2025, and $1.7 million during the year ended December 31, 2024.
Legal expenses associated with payor reimbursement matters, recorded as selling, general and administrative expenses, during the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2025 were $0.0 million and $4.3 million, respectively.
Represents amortization expense associated with the acquisition-related intangible assets, such as customer lists and trademarks.
Represents non-recurring income tax expense associated with the Corporate Reorganization and IPO. The Company excludes such charges when evaluating operating performance because it does not incur such charges on a predictable basis and exclusion allows for consistent evaluation of operations.
Represents the income tax impact of non-GAAP adjustments, calculated using the estimated tax rate for the respective non-GAAP adjustment.
Adjusted net income and Adjusted EPS are not presented for the year ended December 31, 2024, as the net income attributable to Guardian Pharmacy Services, Inc. during that period only includes net income for the period subsequent to our IPO on September 27, 2024. As such, adjusted net income and adjusted EPS are not meaningful for these periods.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
We have historically financed our business and acquisitions primarily through cash from operations and borrowings under our Credit Facility (as defined below) and, more recently, sales of our Class A common stock in our IPO. We use cash in the ordinary course of our operations primarily for prescription drug acquisition costs, capital expenditures, and personnel costs. As of December 31, 2025, we had $65.6 million in cash and cash equivalents. Our cash primarily consists of demand deposits held with a large regional financial institution.
On May 13, 2024, the Company entered into the Sixth Amendment to the Third Amended and Restated Loan and Security Agreement (the “2024 Amendment”) to the existing credit facility with Regions Bank (the “Credit Facility”). The Credit Facility provides for term loans (the “Term Loan”) and a line of credit. The 2024 Amendment extended the maturity date of the Credit Facility from April 23, 2025 to April 23, 2027. The line of credit under the Credit Facility bears an interest rate equal to the one-month Secured Overnight Financing Rate (“SOFR”) plus an additional rate of 1.80% to 2.80% based on certain financial ratios maintained by the Company. The total amount available under the line of credit as of December 31, 2025 is $40 million and we have the ability to increase our overall Credit Facility up to $75 million.
As of December 31, 2025, we had no amounts of principal outstanding under the Term Loan and no borrowings outstanding under the line of credit.
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We believe our existing cash and cash equivalents, expected cash flows provided by our operations, and the amounts available under our Credit Facility will be sufficient to meet our working capital and capital expenditure needs over at least the next 12 months and for the foreseeable future, though we may require additional capital resources in the future.
Net Cash Flows
For the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2025, respectively, our net cash flows provided by / (used in) were as follows:
(in thousands)
Year Ended
December 31,
Operating activities
Investing activities
Financing activities
Operating Activities
Cash flows provided by operating activities consist of our net income principally adjusted for certain non-cash items, such as depreciation and amortization, provision for losses on accounts receivable, changes in deferred tax asset, and share-based compensation expense. Cash flows used in operating activities consist primarily of changes in our operating assets and liabilities. Subsequent to the Corporate Reorganization and IPO, income tax payments and receivables are presented as changes in operating assets and liabilities within operating activities.
Net cash provided by operating activities for the years ended December 31, 2025 increased by $42.3 million compared to the corresponding period in 2024. The increase was primarily due to less accounts receivable growth, decreases in the use of cash for other operating liabilities, and increases in net income principally adjusted for certain non-cash items, such as depreciation and amortization, provision for losses on accounts receivable, changes in deferred tax asset, and share-based compensation expense, when compared to the corresponding period in 2024.
Investing Activities
Cash flows provided by investing activities consist primarily of proceeds from disposition of property and equipment. Cash flows used in investing activities consist primarily of capital expenditures relating to our new and existing pharmacy locations and payments related to acquisitions.
Net cash used in investing activities for the year ended December 31, 2025 increased by $1.8 million compared to the corresponding period in 2024. The increase was primarily due to increases in cash used for purchases of property and equipment of $3.2 million, offset by decreases in cash used for acquisitions of $1.3 million compared to the corresponding period in 2024.
Financing Activities
Cash flows provided by financing activities consist primarily of borrowings from the line of credit and sale of our Class A common stock. Cash flows used in financing activities consist primarily of repayment of borrowings from the Term Loan (recorded as repayment of notes payable) and the line of credit, and payment of equity offering costs associated with the IPO and Q2 2025 Offering. Prior to the Corporate Reorganization and IPO, cash flows used in financing activities included significant distributions to equity holders (inclusive of non-controlling interests) of Guardian Pharmacy, LLC, mostly consisting of distributions to fund income tax liabilities and operational distributions, as well as return of capital.
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Net cash used in financing activities for the year ended December 31, 2025 decreased by $16.6 million compared to the corresponding period in 2024.
Cash flows used in financing activities were $7.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2025, primarily due to $4.5 million in payments for finance lease obligations, $1.6 million of payments for equity offering costs, and $2.5 million in payments for contingent payments associated with acquisitions, offset by $2.0 million in contributions from non-controlling interests.
Cash flows used in financing activities were $23.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2024, primarily due to Merger Consideration payment to holders of Class B common stock of $55.2 million in connection with the Corporate Reorganization and IPO, distributions to equity holders (inclusive of non-controlling interest) of $50.2 million, $23.0 million of net payments made on notes payable, $9.0 million of net payments made on the line of credit, and $4.2 million of payments of equity offering costs, offset by net proceeds received from the IPO of $119.8 million.
Critical Accounting Estimates
We prepare our consolidated financial statements in accordance with GAAP. Preparing our consolidated financial statements requires us to make estimates and judgments that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenue and expenses as well as related disclosures. Because these estimates and judgments may change from period to period, actual results could differ materially, which may negatively affect our financial condition or results of operations. We base our estimates and judgments on historical experience and various other assumptions that we consider reasonable, and we evaluate these estimates and judgments on an ongoing basis. We refer to such estimates and judgments, discussed further below, as critical accounting estimates.
Allowance for Credit Losses
Collection of trade accounts receivable from customers is our primary source of operating cash flow and is critical to our operating performance and financial condition. The primary collection risk relates to facility and private pay customers, as billings to these customers can be complex and may lead to payment disputes or delays. We establish an allowance for trade accounts receivable considered to be at increased risk of becoming uncollectible to reduce the carrying value of such receivables to their estimated net realizable value.
When establishing this allowance for credit losses, we consider such factors as historical collection experience (i.e., payment history and credit losses) and creditworthiness, specifically identified credit risks, aging of accounts receivable, current and expected economic conditions, and other relevant factors. Using this information, the Company estimates future expected credit losses. The allowance for credit losses is regularly reviewed for appropriateness. Judgment is used to assess the collectability of account balances and the economic ability of customers to pay. At such time when a balance is definitively deemed to be uncollectible, the balance is written off against the allowance for credit losses.
Intangible Assets
We have intangible assets with finite useful lives as a result of acquisitions. Definite-lived intangible assets are carried at cost less accumulated amortization and are amortized using the straight-line method over their useful lives. The straight-line method approximates the manner in which cash flows are generated from the intangible assets. Judgment is required in estimating the fair value of intangible assets and in assigning their respective useful lives. We generally utilize an income approach to calculate the fair value of the identified intangibles, namely the multi-period excess earnings method for customer lists and the relief from royalty method for trademarks. The fair value estimates are based on available historical information and on future expectations and assumptions deemed reasonable by management but are inherently uncertain. Critical estimates in valuing the intangible assets include, but are not limited to, forecasts of the expected future cash flows,
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projected EBITDA and EBITDA margin attributable to the respective assets, anticipated growth in revenue from the acquired client and product base, and the expected use of the acquired assets. While we believe such assumptions and estimates are reasonable, the actual results may differ materially from the projected amounts.
Income Taxes
We account for income taxes under the asset and liability approach. Deferred tax assets or liabilities are determined based on the differences between the financial statement and tax basis of assets and liabilities as measured by the enacted tax rates as well as net operating losses and credit carryforwards, which will be in effect when these differences reverse. We provide a valuation allowance against net deferred tax assets when, based upon the available evidence, it is more likely than not that the deferred tax assets will not be realized.
We prepare and file tax returns based on interpretations of tax laws and regulations. Our tax returns are subject to examination by various taxing authorities in the normal course of business. Such examinations may result in future tax, interest and penalty assessments by these taxing authorities.
In determining our tax expense for financial reporting purposes, we establish a reserve when there are transactions, calculations, and tax filing positions for which the tax determination is uncertain, and it is more likely than not that such positions would not be sustained upon examinations.
We evaluate the need for tax reserve estimates periodically based on the changes in facts and circumstances, including any examinations by, and settlements with, varying taxing authorities, as well as changes in tax laws, regulations and interpretations. The consolidated tax expense of any given year is expected to include adjustments or other changes to the reserve and related estimated interest charges that are considered appropriate. Our policy is to recognize, when applicable, interest and penalties on uncertain income tax positions as part of income tax expense.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements
Refer to Note 2 Summary of Significant Accounting Policies to our consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K for accounting pronouncements adopted and recent accounting pronouncements not yet adopted as of the date of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
