NOTES TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)
(dollars in thousands, except for share and per share data, unless otherwise noted)
The following is a summary of activity related to the RSUs associated with compensation arrangements during the nine months ended September 30, 2024:
RSU’s
Weighted- Average Grant-Date Fair Value
Unvested balance as of January 1, 2024
3,897,957
$
24.85
Granted
2,287,155
18.67
Vested
(943,353)
29.13
Forfeited
(1,341,245)
22.81
Unvested balance as of September 30, 2024
3,900,514
$
21.13
The following is a vesting schedule of the expected vesting period related to the unvested RSUs as of September 30, 2024:
Unvested RSU’s
Expected to vest within 1 year
1,541,630
Expected to vest between 1 to 2 years
1,378,685
Expected to vest between 2 to 3 years
980,199
Unvested balance as of September 30, 2024
3,900,514
Below is the compensation expense recognized related to the RSUs within the condensed consolidated statements of operations:
Three Months Ended September 30,
Nine Months Ended September 30,
2024
2023
2024
2023
Cost of direct salaries and benefits
$
97
$
229
$
377
$
445
Research and development
2,467
(3,584)
8,431
6,808
Sales and marketing
(594)
435
(106)
466
General and administrative
3,142
3,368
11,281
9,991
Total
$
5,112
$
448
$
19,983
$
17,710
As of September 30, 2024, estimated unrecognized expense for RSUs that are probable of vesting was $57,230 with such expense to be recognized over a weighted-average period of approximately 2.18 years.
Founder PSUs
During June 2021, the Company established a long-term incentive compensation plan for the Co-Founders, which consists of performance restricted stock-unit awards (the “Founder PSUs”), that will be settled in shares of Class A Common Stock pursuant to the 2021 Omnibus Incentive Plan, subject to the satisfaction of both service and market based vesting conditions.
The grant date fair value for the Founder PSUs was determined by a Monte Carlo simulation and discounted by the risk-free rate on the grant date and an expected volatility of 45%. The Founder PSUs are estimated to vest over a five year period, based on the achievement of specified price hurdles of the Company’s Class A Common Stock. The specified price hurdles of the Company’s Class A Common Stock will be measured on the volume-weighted average price per share for the trailing days during any 180 day period that ends within the applicable measurement period. In June 2021, the Company granted 4,208,617 Founder PSUs at a weighted average grant date fair value of $16.54. The Company records the expense related to these awards within general and administrative in the condensed consolidated statements of operations.
As of September 30, 2024, estimated unrecognized expense for Founder PSUs was $3,046 with such expense to be recognized over a weighted-average period of approximately 0.41 years.
NOTES TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)
(dollars in thousands, except for share and per share data, unless otherwise noted)
Below is a summary of total compensation expense recorded in relation to the Company’s incentive plans within the condensed consolidated statements of operations:
In July 2024, a related party exchanged 4,000,000 of their Alclear Units and corresponding shares of Class C Common Stock for shares of the Company’s Class A Common Stock, and the Company repurchased and retired the shares of Class A Common Stock.
Refer to Note 17 for information regarding the TRA liability. Refer to Note 13 regarding transactions between certain related parties with regards to warrants.
20. Employee Benefit Plan
The Company has a 401(k) retirement, savings and investment plan (the “401(k) Plan”). Participants make contributions to the 401(k) Plan in varying amounts, up to the maximum limits allowable under the Internal Revenue Code. For the three months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, the Company recorded expense of $317 and $422, respectively, within the condensed consolidated statements of operations. For the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, the Company recorded expense of $1,665 and $1,817, respectively, within the condensed consolidated statements of operations.
21. Debt
In March 2020, the Company entered into a credit agreement for a three-year $50,000 revolving credit facility, with a group of lenders. In April 2021, the Company entered into Amendment No. 1 to the Credit Agreement that increased the commitments under the revolving credit facility to $100,000, which extended the maturity date to March 31, 2024. The revolving credit facility includes a letter of credit sub-facility. In June 2023, the Company entered into Amendment No. 2 to the Credit Agreement to transition from London Interbank Offered Rate to the Secured Overnight Financing Rate ("SOFR") as our benchmark interest rate and to extend the maturity date to June 28, 2026. The line of credit has not been drawn against as of September 30, 2024. Prepaid loan fees related to this facility are capitalized and amortized over the remaining term of the credit agreement. The balance expected to be amortized within twelve months from the balance sheet date is presented within Prepaid and other current assets on the condensed consolidated balance sheets, while the long term portion is presented within Other assets in the condensed consolidated balance sheets.
The Company incurred $396 of debt issuance costs in connection to Amendment No.2 to the Credit Agreement. As of September 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023, the balance of these loan fees was $231 and $419, respectively.
The Credit Agreement contains customary terms and conditions, including limitations on consolidations, mergers, indebtedness, and certain payments, as well as a financial covenant relating to leverage. Borrowings under the Credit Agreement generally will bear a floating interest rate per year and will also include interest based on the greater of the prime rate, SOFR, or New York Federal Reserve Bank (NYFRB) rate, plus an applicable margin for specific interest periods.
As of September 30, 2024, the Company had a remaining borrowing capacity of $67,794, net of standby letters of credit, and had no outstanding debt obligations.
NOTES TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)
(dollars in thousands, except for share and per share data, unless otherwise noted)
In addition, the Credit Agreement contains certain other covenants (none of which relate to financial condition), events of default and other customary provisions. As of September 30, 2024, the Company was in compliance with all of the financial and non-financial covenants of the Credit Agreement.
22. Subsequent Events
Quarterly Dividend
On October 31, 2024, the Company announced that its Board declared a quarterly dividend of $0.125 per share, payable on December 17, 2024 to holders of record of Class A Common Stock and Class B Common Stock as of the close of business on December 10, 2024 (the “Record Date”). The Company will fund the dividend from proportionate cash distributions by Alclear to all of its members as of the Record Date, including holders of non-controlling interests in Alclear and the Company.
To the extent the quarterly dividend exceeds the Company's current and accumulated earnings and profits, a portion of such dividend may be deemed a return of capital gain to the holders of our Class A Common Stock or Class B Common Stock, as applicable.
ITEM 2. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
The following Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations (“MD&A”) is intended to help readers understand our results of operations, financial condition and cash flows and should be read in conjunction with the audited consolidated financial statements and the related notes included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 (“Annual Report on Form 10-K”). This discussion contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Our actual results could differ materially from those discussed below.
For purposes of this MD&A, the term “we” and other forms thereof refer to Clear Secure, Inc. and its subsidiaries (collectively, the “Company”), which includes Alclear Holdings, LLC (“Alclear”).
Forward-Looking Statements
This quarterly report includes certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws regarding, among other things, our or management’s intentions, plans, beliefs, expectations or predictions of future events, which are considered forward-looking statements. You should not place undue reliance on those statements because they are subject to numerous uncertainties and factors relating to our operations and business environment, all of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond our control. Forward-looking statements include information concerning our possible or assumed future results of operations, including descriptions of our business strategy. These statements often include words such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “plan,” “estimate,” or similar expressions. These statements are based upon assumptions that we have made in light of our experience in the industry, as well as our perceptions of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments and other factors that we believe are appropriate under the circumstances. As you read this quarterly report, you should understand that these statements are not guarantees of performance or results. They involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including those described under the heading “Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K. Although we believe that these forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, you should be aware that many factors, including those described under the heading “Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K, could affect our actual financial results or results of operations and could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements.
Our forward-looking statements made herein are made only as of the date of this quarterly report. We expressly disclaim any intent, obligation or undertaking to update or revise any forward-looking statements made herein to reflect any change in our expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statements are based. All subsequent written and oral forward-looking statements attributable to us or persons acting on our behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements contained in this quarterly report.
Overview
CLEAR is an identity company making experiences safer and easier digitally and physically. We make everyday experiences frictionless by connecting your identity to all the things that make you, YOU - transforming the way you live, work, and travel. CLEAR has been delivering secure, friction-free experiences in airports for over 14 years, achieving exceptional user delight and trust with CLEAR Plus, our consumer aviation subscription service. CLEAR Plus enables access to predictable and fast experiences through dedicated entry lanes in airport security checkpoints nationwide. As we continue to innovate on the travel experience, we are proud to offer TSA PreCheck® Enrollment Provided by CLEAR – offering consumers increased choice in how and where to sign up for this popular trusted traveler program. CLEAR Mobile, which delivers predictable airport security for travelers by accessing a dedicated lane at airport security, simply by showing a QR code, that is free to CLEAR Plus Members and available to all travelers by purchasing a day pass—valid for 24 hours. Our free flagship CLEAR app offers consumer products like Home-to-Gate, which includes RESERVE Powered by CLEAR, our virtual queuing technology that enables customers to prebook a spot in the airport security line so they don’t have to wait; CLEAR Verified, our B2B offering, enables our partners to leverage our digital identity technology and reusable member network to facilitate secure and frictionless experiences digitally and physically via our software development kits and application programming interfaces.
Key Factors Affecting Performance
We believe that our current and future financial growth are dependent upon many factors, including the key factors affecting performance described below.
We are focused on growing Total Cumulative Enrollments and the number of Members that engage with our platform. Our operating results and growth opportunities depend, in part, on our ability to attract new Members, including paying Members (CLEAR Plus Members) as well as new platform Members. We rely on multiple channels to attract new CLEAR Plus Members, including in-airport (our largest channel) which in turn is dependent on the ongoing ability of our Ambassadors to successfully engage with the traveling public. We also rely on numerous digital channels such as paid search and partnerships. We also entered into strategic distribution partnerships with partners such as Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, Alaska Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines and American Express that promote our services to their customers on a discounted or subsidized basis which allows us to efficiently scale membership in CLEAR Plus. In March 2024 we renewed our partnership with American Express for the first of two one year renewal terms. In many cases, we offer limited time free trials to new Members who may convert to paying Members upon the completion of their trial. Our future success is dependent on those channels continuing to drive new Members and our ability to convert free trial Members into paying Members.
We believe we will see an acceleration of Total Cumulative Platform Uses relative to Total Cumulative Enrollments over time as our Members use our products across multiple locations and use cases. We believe this dynamic will grow the long-term economic value of our platform by increasing total engagement, expanding our margins and maximizing our revenue. Our future success is dependent upon maintaining and growing our partnerships as well as ensuring our platform remains compelling to Members.
Although we have historically grown the number of new Members over time and successfully converted some free trial Members to paying Members, our future success is dependent upon our ongoing ability to do so.
Ability to retain CLEAR Plus Members
Our ability to execute on our growth strategy is focused, in part, on our ability to retain our existing CLEAR Plus Members. Frequency and recency of usage are the leading indicators of retention, and we must continue to provide frictionless and predictable experiences that our Members will use in their daily lives. We are subject to various factors which may be out of our control and may impact our Member experience, such as checkpoint staffing generally, checkpoint queue configurations and Registered Traveler policies adopted by TSA. For example, the TSA employs varied randomization as part of their normal security processes. If the TSA materially increases randomized reverification rates for CLEAR Plus Members at the checkpoint or makes other adjustments to checkpoint processes, it may negatively impact the Lane experience and therefore may impact our ability to retain CLEAR Plus Members.
The value of the CLEAR platform to our Members increases as we add more use cases and partnerships, which in turn drives more frequent usage and increases retention. Historically, CLEAR Plus Members who used CLEAR in both aviation and non-aviation venues renewed at rates materially above those who used CLEAR only in aviation. We cannot be sure that we will be successful in retaining our Members due to any number of factors such as our inability to successfully implement a new product, adoption of our technology, harm to our brand or other factors.
Ability to add new partners, retain existing partners and generate new revenue streams
Our partners include local airport authorities, airlines and other businesses. Our future success depends on maintaining those relationships, adding new relationships and maintaining favorable business terms. In addition, our growth strategy relies on creating new revenue streams such as per partner, per Member or per use transaction fees. Although we believe our service provides significant value to our partners, our success depends on creating mutually beneficial partnership agreements. We are focused on innovating both our product and our platform to improve our Members’ experience, improve safety and security and introduce new use cases. We intend to accelerate our pace of innovation to add more features and use cases, to ultimately deliver greater value to our Members and partners. In the near term, we believe that growing our Member base facilitates our ability to add new partnerships and provide additional offerings, which we expect will lead to revenue generation opportunities in the long term.
Timing of new partner, product and location launches
Our financial performance is dependent in part on new partner, product and location launches. In many cases, we cannot predict the exact timing of those launches. Delays, resulting either from internal or external factors, may have a material effect on our financial results.
Although many of our expenses occur in a predictable fashion, certain expenses may fluctuate from period to period due to timing.
In addition, management may make discretionary investments when it sees an opportunity to accelerate growth, add a new partner or acquire talent, among other reasons. This may lead to volatility or unpredictability in our expense base and in our profitability.
Maintaining strong unit economics
Our business model is powered by network effects and has historically been characterized by efficient Member acquisition and high Member retention rates. While we believe our unit economics will remain attractive, this is dependent on our ability to add new Members efficiently and maintain our historically strong retention rates. As we grow our market penetration, the cost to acquire new Members could increase and the experience we deliver to Members could degrade, causing lower retention rates. For our definitions of “Lifetime Value” and “Customer Acquisition Cost” and information about how we calculate these metrics, see the section titled “Business—Our Member Acquisition and Retention Strategy” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K.
Changes to the macro environment
Our business is dependent on macroeconomic and other events outside of our control, such as decreased levels of travel or attendance at events, terrorism, civil unrest, political instability, union and other transit related strikes and other general economic conditions. We are also subject to changes in discretionary consumer spending.
Taxation and Expenses
After the consummation of our IPO, we became subject to U.S. federal, state and local income taxes with respect to our allocable share of any taxable income of Alclear and will be taxed at the prevailing corporate tax rates. Alclear is treated as flow-through entity for U.S. federal income tax purposes, and as such, has generally not been subject to U.S. federal income tax at the entity level. Accordingly, the historical results of operations and other financial information set forth in the Annual Report on Form 10-K do not include any material provisions for U.S. federal income tax for the periods prior to our IPO.
In addition to tax expense, we incur expenses related to our operations, plus payments under the tax receivable agreement (“TRA”) described below, which we expect to be significant. We intend to cause Alclear to make distributions in an amount sufficient to allow us to pay our tax obligations and operating expenses, including distributions to fund any ordinary course payments under the TRA.
Following our IPO, we have and we expect to continue to incur increased amounts of compensation expense, including related to equity awards granted under the 2021 Omnibus Incentive Plan to both existing employees and newly-hired employees, and grants in connection with new hires could be significant. In addition, as a new public company, we are implementing additional procedures and processes for the purpose of addressing the standards and requirements applicable to public companies. We expect to incur additional expenses related to these steps and, among other things, additional directors’ and officers’ liability insurance, director fees, reporting requirements of the SEC, transfer agent fees, hiring additional accounting, legal and administrative personnel, increased auditing and legal fees and similar expenses.
Tax Receivable Agreement
In connection with the IPO we entered into the TRA with the Alclear Members that provides for the payment by us to the Alclear Members of 85% of the amount of cash savings, if any, in U.S. federal, state and local income tax or franchise tax that we actually realize (computed using simplifying assumptions to address the impact of state and local taxes) as a result of (i) any increase in tax basis in Alclear’s assets resulting from (a) exchanges by the Alclear Members (or their transferees or other assignees) of Alclear Units (along with the corresponding shares of our Class C Common Stock or Class D Common Stock, as applicable) for shares of our Class A common stock, $0.00001 par value per share (“Class A Common Stock”) or Class B common stock, $0.00001 par value per share (“Class B Common Stock”) as applicable, and purchases of Alclear Units and corresponding shares of Class C common stock, par value $0.00001 per share (“Class C Common Stock”) or Class D common stock, $0.00001 par value per share (“Class D Common Stock” and, together with the Class A Common Stock, Class B Common Stock and Class C Common Stock, collectively, “Common Stock”), as the case may be, from Alclear Members (or
their transferees or other assignees) or (b) payments under the TRA, and (ii) tax benefits related to imputed interest deemed arising as a result of payments made under the TRA.
The actual increase in tax basis, as well as the amount and timing of any payments under these agreements, varies depending upon a number of factors, including the timing of exchanges by or purchases from the Alclear Members, the price of our Class A Common Stock at the time of the exchange, the extent to which such exchanges are taxable, the amount and timing of the taxable income we generate in the future and the tax rate then applicable and the portion of our payments under the TRA constituting imputed interest.
During the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, the Company recognized certain exchanges. As of September 30, 2024, the Company did not record a TRA liability as a result of these exchanges.
Key Performance Indicators
To evaluate performance of the business, we utilize a variety of other non-GAAP financial reporting and performance measures. These key measures include Total Bookings, Total Cumulative Enrollments, Total Cumulative Platform Uses, Annual CLEAR Plus Net Member Retention, Annual CLEAR Plus Gross Dollar Retention, Active CLEAR Plus Members, and Annual CLEAR Plus Member Usage.
Total Bookings
Total Bookings represent our total revenue plus the change in deferred revenue during the period. Total Bookings in any particular period reflect sales to new and renewing CLEAR Plus subscribers plus any accrued billings to partners. Management believes that Total Bookings is an important measure of the current health and growth of the business and views it as a leading indicator.
Three Months Ended September 30,
Nine Months Ended September 30,
2024
2023
$ Change
% Change
2024
2023
$ Change
% Change
Total Bookings (in millions)
$
227.5
$
191.7
$
35.8
19
%
$
605.0
$
516.5
$
88.5
17
%
Total Bookings increased by $35.8 million, or 19%, for the three months ended September 30, 2024 compared to the three months ended September 30, 2023. The increase was primarily driven by new Member enrollments and pricing increases.
Total Bookings increased by $88.5 million, or 17%, for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 compared to the nine months ended September 30, 2023. The increase was primarily driven by new Member enrollments and pricing increases.
Total Cumulative Enrollments
We define Total Cumulative Enrollments as the number of enrollments since inception as of the end of the period. An Enrollment is defined as any Member who has registered for the CLEAR platform since inception and has a profile (including limited time free trials regardless of conversion to paid membership) net of duplicate and/or purged accounts. This includes CLEAR Plus Members who have completed enrollment with CLEAR and have ever activated a payment method, plus associated family accounts. Management views this metric as an important tool to analyze the efficacy of our growth and marketing initiatives as new Members are potentially a current and leading indicator of revenues.
As of September 30,
2024
2023
Change
% Change
Total Cumulative Enrollments (in thousands)
26,453
18,594
7,859
42%
Total Cumulative Enrollments were 26,453 as of September 30, 2024 and 18,594 as of September 30, 2023, which represented a 42% increase. The year-over-year increase was driven by CLEAR Verified and CLEAR Plus enrollments.
Total Cumulative Platform Uses
We define Total Cumulative Platform Uses as the number of individual engagements across CLEAR use cases, including CLEAR Plus, our flagship app and CLEAR Verified, since inception as of the end of the period. Management views this metric as an important tool to analyze the level of engagement of our Member base which can be a leading indicator of future growth, retention and revenue.
Total Cumulative Platform Uses was 220,413 as of September 30, 2024 and 167,417 as of September 30, 2023, which represented a 32% increase, driven by CLEAR Plus verifications combined with increased contributions from CLEAR Verified uses.
Active CLEAR Plus Members
We define Active CLEAR Plus Members as the number of members with an active CLEAR Plus subscription as of the end of the period. This includes CLEAR Plus members who have an activated payment method, plus associated family accounts and is inclusive of members who are in a limited time free trial or in a billing grace period after a billing failure during which time we attempt to collect payment; we exclude duplicate and/or purged accounts. Management views this as an important tool to measure the growth of its CLEAR Plus product.
As of September 30,
2024
2023
% Change
Active CLEAR Plus Members
7,150
6,374
12
%
Annual CLEAR Plus Gross Dollar Retention
We define Annual CLEAR Plus Gross Dollar Retention as the net bookings collected from a Fixed Cohort of Members during the Current Period as a percentage of the net bookings collected from the same Fixed Cohort during the Prior Period. The Current Period is the 12-month period ending on the reporting date, the Prior Period is the 12-month period ending on the reporting date one year earlier. The Fixed Cohort is defined as all Active CLEAR Plus Members as of the last day of the Prior Period who have activated a payment method for our in-airport CLEAR Plus service, including their registered family plan Members. Bookings received from a third party as part of a partnership agreement are excluded from both periods. Active CLEAR Plus Members, including those on a free or discounted plan, or who receive a full statement credit, only impact Annual CLEAR Plus Gross Dollar Retention to the extent that they are paying anything out-of-pocket on behalf of themselves or a registered family plan Member. Management views this metric to be reflective of our business objective of optimizing revenue and less dependent upon the underlying growth rate of the total membership base.
As of September 30,
2024
2023
% Change
Annual CLEAR Plus Gross Dollar Retention
89.0%
88.0%
1.0%
Annual CLEAR Plus Gross Dollar Retention was 89.0% as of September 30, 2024 and 88.0% as of September 30, 2023, a year-over-year increase of 100 basis points. The year-over-year change was driven by pricing increases offset in part by modest decreases in Member retention.
Annual CLEAR Plus Net Member Retention
We define Annual CLEAR Plus Net Member Retention as one minus the CLEAR Plus net Member churn on a rolling 12 month basis. We define “CLEAR Plus net Member churn” as total cancellations net of winbacks in the trailing 12 month period divided by the average Active CLEAR Plus Members as of the beginning of each month within the same 12 month period. Winbacks are defined as reactivated Members who have been cancelled for at least 60 days. Management views this metric as an important tool to analyze the level of engagement of our Member base, which can be a leading indicator of future growth and revenue, as well as an indicator of customer satisfaction and long term business economics.
As of September 30,
2024
2023
% Change
Annual CLEAR Plus Net Member Retention
81.5%
88.5%
(7.0%)
Annual CLEAR Plus Net Member Retention was 81.5% as of September 30, 2024 and 88.5% as of September 30, 2023, a year-over year decrease of 700 basis points. The decrease was primarily driven by a larger pool of Members up for renewal year-over-year, a normalization of winbacks and the modest impact of various pricing increases.
Active CLEAR Plus Members was 7,150 as of September 30, 2024 and 6,374 as of September 30, 2023, which represented a 12% increase, driven by new Members added through new and existing airports as well as partner and organic channels.
Annual CLEAR Plus Member Usage
We define Annual CLEAR Plus Member Usage as the total number of unique CLEAR Plus airport verifications in the 365 days prior to the end of the period divided by active CLEAR Plus Members as of the end of the period who have been enrolled for at least 365 days. The numerator includes only verifications of the population in the denominator. Management views this as an important tool to analyze the level of engagement of our active CLEAR Plus Member base.
As of September 30,
2024
2023
% Change
Annual CLEAR Plus Member Usage
7.1x
x
8.5x
(16
%)
Annual Usage was 7.1x as of September 30, 2024 and 8.5x as of September 30, 2023, which represented a 16% decrease.
Non-GAAP Financial Measures
In addition to our results as determined in accordance with GAAP, we disclose Adjusted EBITDA, Adjusted EBITDA Margin, Free Cash Flow, Adjusted Net Income and Adjusted Net Income per Common Share, Basic and Diluted as non-GAAP financial measures that management believes provide useful information to investors. These measures are not financial measures calculated in accordance with GAAP and should not be considered as a substitute for net income, net cash provided by (used in) operating activities or any other operating performance measure calculated in accordance with GAAP, and may not be comparable to a similarly titled measure reported by other companies. Our Non-GAAP financial measures are expressed in thousands.
We periodically reassess the components of our Non-GAAP adjustments for changes in how we evaluate our performance and changes in how we make financial and operational decisions to ensure the adjustments remain relevant and meaningful.
Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA Margin
We define Adjusted EBITDA as net income adjusted for income taxes, interest (income) expense net, depreciation and amortization, impairment and losses on asset disposals, equity-based compensation expense, mark to market of warrant liabilities, net other income (expense) excluding sublease rental income, acquisition-related costs and changes in fair value of contingent consideration. Adjusted EBITDA is an important financial measure used by management and our board of directors (“Board”) to evaluate business performance. We believe Adjusted EBITDA assists investors in evaluating the performance of the Company’s core operations by excluding certain items that impact the comparability of results from period to period. During the third quarter of fiscal year 2022, we revised our definition of Adjusted EBITDA to exclude sublease rental income from our other income (expense) adjustment. During the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2022, we revised our definition of Adjusted EBITDA to include impairment on assets as a separate component. We did not revise prior years' Adjusted EBITDA because there was no impact of a similar nature in the prior period that affects comparability. Adjusted EBITDA margin is adjusted EBITDA, divided by total revenues.
Adjusted Net Income
We define Adjusted Net Income as net income attributable to Clear Secure, Inc. adjusted for the net income attributable to non-controlling interests, equity-based compensation expense, amortization of acquired intangible assets, acquisition-related costs, changes in fair value of contingent consideration and the income tax effect of these adjustments, using an effective tax rate. We believe these adjustments assist investors in evaluating the performance of the Company’s core operations assuming the exchange of all vested and outstanding common units in Alclear. In addition, this measure, while not necessarily calculated in the same way as similarly titled measures used by other companies, facilitates comparisons with other companies that have different organizational and tax structures. Adjusted Net Income is used in the calculation of Adjusted Net Income per Common Share as defined below.
We compute Adjusted Net Income per Common Share, Basic as Adjusted Net Income divided by Adjusted Weighted-Average Shares Outstanding for our Class A Common Stock, Class B Common Stock, Class C Common Stock and Class D Common Stock assuming the exchange of all vested and outstanding common units in Alclear at the end of each period presented. We do not present Adjusted Net Income per Common Share for shares of our Class B Common Stock although they are participating securities based on the assumed conversion of those shares to our Class A Common Stock. We do not present Adjusted Net Income per Common Share on a dilutive basis for periods where we have Adjusted Net Income since we do not assume the conversion of any potentially dilutive equity instruments as the result would be anti-dilutive. In periods where we have Adjusted Net Income, the Company also calculates Adjusted Net Income per Common Share, Diluted based on the effect of potentially dilutive equity instruments for the periods presented using the treasury stock/if-converted method, as applicable.
Adjusted Net Income and Adjusted Net Income per Common Share exclude, to the extent applicable, the tax effected impact of non-cash expenses and other items that are not directly related to our core operations. These items are excluded because they are connected to the Company’s long term growth plan and not intended to increase short term revenue in a specific period. We believe these adjustments assist investors in evaluating the performance of the Company’s core operations assuming the exchange of all vested and outstanding common units in Alclear. Further, to the extent that other companies use similar methods in calculating non-GAAP measures, the provision of supplemental non-GAAP information can allow for a comparison of the Company’s relative performance against other companies that also report non-GAAP operating results.
Free Cash Flow
We define Free Cash Flow as net cash provided by operating activities adjusted for purchases of property and equipment. We believe Free Cash Flow provides useful information to management and investors about the Company’s liquidity and cash flow trends. With regards to our CLEAR Plus subscription service, we generally collect cash from our members upfront for annual subscriptions. As a result, when the business is growing Free Cash Flow can be a real time indicator of the current trajectory of the business.
See below for reconciliations of these non-GAAP financial measures to their most comparable GAAP measures.
Calculation of Adjusted Net Income per Common Share, Basic
Three Months Ended September 30,
Nine Months Ended September 30,
2024
2023
2024
2023
Adjusted Net Income in thousands
$
42,459
$
31,469
$
133,824
$
63,097
Adjusted Weighted-Average Number of Shares Outstanding, Basic
140,294,960
151,626,882
144,772,265
152,395,731
Adjusted Net Income per Common Share, Basic
$
0.30
$
0.21
$
0.92
$
0.41
Calculation of Adjusted Net Income per Common Share, Diluted
Three Months Ended September 30,
Nine Months Ended September 30,
2024
2023
2024
2023
Adjusted Net Income in thousands
$
42,459
$
31,469
$
133,824
$
63,097
Adjusted Weighted-Average Number of Shares Outstanding, Diluted
141,871,253
152,406,245
145,861,453
153,462,098
Adjusted Net Income per Common Share, Diluted:
$
0.30
$
0.21
$
0.92
$
0.41
Summary of Adjusted Net Income per Common Share
Three Months Ended September 30,
Nine Months Ended September 30,
2024
2023
2024
2023
Adjusted Net Income per Common Share, Basic
$
0.30
$
0.21
$
0.92
$
0.41
Adjusted Net Income per Common Share, Diluted
$
0.30
$
0.21
$
0.92
$
0.41
Reconciliation of Net Cash Provided by Operating Activities to Free Cash Flow
Three Months Ended September 30,
Nine Months Ended September 30,
(In thousands)
2024
2023
2024
2023
Net cash provided by operating activities
$
(35,868)
$
(4,859)
$
159,065
$
130,902
Purchases of property and equipment
(2,043)
(4,035)
(9,259)
(21,825)
Free Cash Flow
$
(37,911)
$
(8,894)
$
149,806
$
109,077
Components of Results of Operations
Revenue
The Company derives substantially all of its revenue from subscriptions to its consumer aviation service, CLEAR Plus. The Company offers certain limited-time free trials, family pricing, and other beneficial pricing through several channels, including airline and credit card partnerships. Membership subscription revenue is presented net of taxes, refunds, credit card chargebacks, and estimated amounts due to a credit card partner. Membership subscription revenue is also reduced by the Company’s funded portion of credit card benefits issued to Members through a partnership with a credit card company at the end of the contract period. The Company’s funded portion varies based on total number of Members for the contract year.
The Company also generates revenue in relation toCLEAR Verified. While contract structure may vary by use case, these deals are typically multi-year, recurring contracts that drive revenue primarily through transaction fees charged either per use or per user over a predefined time period, which sometimes includes tiered pricing. In addition, they may also include one-time implementation fees, licensing fees or incremental transaction fees. Revenues from our partners, and the percentage of our total revenue from these partners, have historically been immaterial.
The Company generates additional revenue from TSA PreCheck® Enrollment Provided by CLEAR. The Company offers consumers increased choice in how and where to sign up for this popular trusted traveler program through both online and in person enrollments and renewals across multiple locations. The Company continues to launch additional locations on a rolling basis, subject to TSA approval. The Company recognizes the revenue from these services net of fees remitted to TSA and the Federal Bureau of Investigation within the Company’s condensed consolidated statements of operations. The Company recognizes these revenues on a per transaction basis upon completion of each enrollment or renewal.
The Company operates as a concessionaire in airports and shares a portion of the gross receipts generated from the Company’s Members with the host airports and airlines (“Revenue Share”). The Revenue Share fee is generally prepaid to the host airport in the period collected from the Member. The Revenue Share fee is capitalized and subsequently amortized to operating expense over each Member’s subscription period. Such prepayments are recorded in “Prepaid revenue share fee” in the Company’s consolidated balance sheets. Cost of revenue share fee also includes a fixed fee component which is expensed in the period incurred and certain overhead related expenses paid to the airports in relation to our Revenue Share arrangements.
Cost of direct salaries and benefits
Cost of direct salaries and benefits includes employee-related expenses and allocated overhead associated with our field Ambassadors and field managers directly assisting Members and their corresponding travel related costs. Employee-related costs recorded in direct salaries and benefits consist of salaries, taxes, benefits and equity-based compensation and expenses under arrangements related to the use of certain space at airports.
Research and development
Research and development expenses consist primarily of employee related expenses, allocated overhead costs and costs for contractors related to the Company’s development of new products and services and improving existing products and services. Research and development costs are generally expensed as incurred, except for costs incurred in connection with the development of internal-use software that qualify for capitalization as described in our internal-use software policy. Employee related compensation costs consist of salaries, taxes, benefits and equity-based compensation.
Sales and marketing
Sales and marketing expenses consist primarily of costs of general marketing and promotional activities, advertising fees used to drive subscriber acquisition, commissions, the production costs to create our advertisements, expenses related to employees who manage our sales and marketing efforts, as well as brand and allocated overhead costs.
General and administrative
General and administrative expenses consist primarily of employee-related expenses for the executive, finance, accounting, legal, and human resources functions. Employee-related expenses consist of salaries, taxes, benefits and equity-based compensation. In addition, general and administrative expenses include non-personnel costs, such as legal, accounting and other professional fees, warrant expense, variable credit card fees, variable mobile enrollment costs, and all other supporting corporate expenses not allocated to other departments including overhead and acquisition-related costs.
Interest income, net
Interest income, net primarily consists of interest income from our investment holdings and discount accretion on our marketable securities partially offset by issuance costs on our revolving credit facility.
Other income, net
Other income, net consists of certain non-recurring non-operating items including items such as sublease income, and changes in the fair value of contingent consideration.
Provision (benefit) for income taxes
As a result of the IPO and Reorganization, the Company became the sole managing member of Alclear, which is treated as a partnership for U.S. federal and most applicable state and local income tax purposes. As a partnership, Alclear is not subject to U.S. federal and most state and local income taxes. Any taxable income or loss generated by Alclear is passed through to and included in the taxable income or loss of its members, including the Company, based on ownership interest. The Company is subject to federal income taxes in the U.S. and its territories, in addition to state and local income taxes with respect to its allocable share of any taxable income or loss of Alclear, as well as any stand-alone income or loss generated by the Company. The Company is also subject to income taxes in Israel, Argentina, and Mexico.
Comparison of the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023 (in millions):
Three Months Ended September 30,
2024
2023
$ Change
% Change
Revenue
$
198.4
$
160.4
$
38.0
24
%
Operating expenses:
Cost of revenue share fee
28.6
22.9
5.7
25
%
Cost of direct salaries and benefits
44.8
35.3
9.5
27
%
Research and development
17.4
11.8
5.6
48
%
Sales and marketing
11.6
9.7
1.9
19
%
General and administrative
53.9
56.1
(2.2)
(4)
%
Depreciation and amortization
7.0
5.3
1.7
33
%
Operating income
35.1
19.3
15.8
—
Other income (expense)
Interest income, net
7.3
7.7
(0.4)
(6)
%
Other income, net
0.4
0.7
(0.2)
(34)
%
Income before tax
42.8
27.6
15.2
—
Income tax expense
(4.8)
(0.8)
(4.0)
530
%
Net income
$
38.0
$
26.9
$
11.2
—
Nine Months Ended September 30,
2024
2023
$ Change
% Change
Revenue
$
564.2
$
442.6
$
121.6
27
%
Operating expenses:
Cost of revenue share fee
79.0
63.7
15.3
24
%
Cost of direct salaries and benefits
125.2
102.7
22.5
22
%
Research and development
54.9
56.0
(1.1)
(2)
%
Sales and marketing
34.2
30.0
4.2
14
%
General and administrative
162.2
170.3
(8.1)
(5)
%
Depreciation and amortization
19.5
15.4
4.1
27
%
Operating income
89.1
4.4
84.7
—
Other income (expense)
Interest income, net
25.4
21.5
3.9
18
%
Other income, net
1.3
1.6
(0.3)
(18)
%
Income before tax
115.8
27.5
88.3
—
Income tax expense
(7.1)
(0.8)
(6.3)
742
%
Net income
$
108.7
$
26.6
$
82.1
—
Information about our operating results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024 compared to the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 is set forth below:
Revenue
Three Months Ended September 30,
Nine Months Ended September 30,
2024
2023
$ Change
% Change
2024
2023
$ Change
% Change
Revenue
$
198.4
$
160.4
$
38.0
24
%
$
564.2
$
442.6
$
121.6
27
%
Revenue increased by $38.0 million, or 24%, for the three months ended September 30, 2024 compared to the three months ended September 30, 2023. The change was primarily due to an increase in the number of CLEAR Plus Members as well as the benefit of pricing increases. Approximately 28% and 30%, respectively, of paying CLEAR Plus Members were on a family plan as of September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively.
Revenue increased by $121.6 million, or 27%, for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 compared to the nine months ended September 30, 2023. The change was primarily due to an increase in the number of CLEAR Plus Members as
well as the benefit of price increases. Approximately 28% and 30%, respectively, of paying CLEAR Plus Members were on a family plan as of September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively.
Cost of revenue share fee
Three Months Ended September 30,
Nine Months Ended September 30,
2024
2023
$ Change
% Change
2024
2023
$ Change
% Change
Cost of revenue share fee
$
28.6
$
22.9
$
5.7
25
%
$
79.0
$
63.7
$
15.4
24
%
Cost of revenue share fee increased by $5.7 million, or 25%, for the three months ended September 30, 2024 compared to the three months ended September 30, 2023. The change was driven primarily by an increase of $2.3 million, or a 35% increase, in fixed airport fees and $3.4 million, or a 21% increase, in per Member fees. COVID-related concessions reduced Cost of revenue share fee by none and $1.1 million in the three months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively.
Cost of revenue share fee increased by $15.4 million, or 24%, for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 compared to the nine months ended September 30, 2023. The change was driven primarily by an increase of $7.2 million, or a 40% increase, in fixed airport fees and $8.2 million, or a 18% increase, in per Member fees. COVID-related concessions reduced Cost of revenue share fee by $2.4 million and $2.0 million in the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, respectively.
Cost of direct salaries and benefits
Three Months Ended September 30,
Nine Months Ended September 30,
2024
2023
$ Change
% Change
2024
2023
$ Change
% Change
Cost of direct salaries and benefits
$
44.8
$
35.3
$
9.5
27
%
$
125.2
$
102.7
$
22.5
22
%
Cost of direct salaries and benefits expenses increased by $9.5 million, or 27%, for the three months ended September 30, 2024 compared to the three months ended September 30, 2023. The change was primarily due to increased employee compensation costs of $8.8 million caused by wage increases, and higher average employee count.
Cost of direct salaries and benefits expenses increased by $22.5 million, or 22%, for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 compared to the nine months ended September 30, 2023. The change was primarily due to increased employee compensation costs of $21.2 million caused by wage increases and higher average employee count.
Research and development
Three Months Ended September 30,
Nine Months Ended September 30,
2024
2023
$ Change
% Change
2024
2023
$ Change
% Change
Research and development
$
17.4
$
11.8
$
5.6
48
%
$
54.9
$
56.0
$
(1.1)
(2)
%
Research and development expenses increased by $5.6 million, or 48%, for the three months ended September 30, 2024 compared to the three months ended September 30, 2023. The change was primarily driven by a $4.3 million increase in employee compensation costs and a $1.0 million increase in technology costs. Additionally, employee compensation costs during the three months ended September 30, 2023 included $7.7 million employee equity-based compensation forfeitures.
Research and development expenses decreased by $1.1 million, or 2%, for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 compared to the nine months ended September 30, 2023. The change was primarily due to (1) a $1.2 million decrease in employee compensation costs, net of a $0.9 million increase in severance related to the closure of our Israel office; and (2) a $1.2 million non-cash impairment of certain assets and $7.7 million employee equity-based compensation forfeitures during the nine months ended September 30, 2023 that did not occur in the current period. These decreases were offset in part by a $1.4 million increase in technology costs.
Sales and marketing expenses increased by $1.9 million, or 19%, for the three months ended September 30, 2024 compared to the three months ended September 30, 2023. The change was primarily driven by a $3.4 million increase in higher discretionary marketing expense, partially offset by a $1.4 million decrease in employee compensation costs and a $0.4 million decrease in Ambassador commission expense.
Sales and marketing expenses increased by $4.2 million, or 14%, for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 compared to the nine months ended September 30, 2023. The change was driven primarily by $6.9 million of higher discretionary marketing expense, partially offset by a $2.6 million decrease in Ambassador commission expense.
General and administrative
Three Months Ended September 30,
Nine Months Ended September 30,
2024
2023
$ Change
% Change
2024
2023
$ Change
% Change
General and administrative
$
53.9
$
56.1
$
(2.2)
(4)
%
$
162.2
$
170.3
$
(8.1)
(5)
%
General and administrative expenses decreased by $2.2 million, or 4%, for the three months ended September 30, 2024 compared to the three months ended September 30, 2023. The change is primarily driven by a decrease of $3.1 million in employee compensation costs and $3.0 million in professional service fees, partially offset by $1.9 million of higher credit card fees due to higher bookings and $1.8 million for technology costs.
General and administrative expenses decreased by $8.1 million, or 5%, for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 compared to the nine months ended September 30, 2023. The change was driven primarily by a decrease of $11.8 million in employee compensation cost and $5.5 million in professional service fees. In addition, during the nine months ended September 30, 2023, we incurred a $1.5 million lease impairment and $1.0 million write-off of certain assets that did not occur in the current period. The decrease was partially offset by a $7.8 million increase in technology costs and $5.5 million of increased credit card fees due to higher bookings during the nine months ended September 30, 2024.
Other income (expense)
Three Months Ended September 30,
Nine Months Ended September 30,
2024
2023
$ Change
% Change
2024
2023
$ Change
% Change
Interest income, net
$
7.3
$
7.7
$
(0.4)
(6)
%
$
25.4
$
21.5
$
4.0
18
%
Interest income, net decreased by $0.4 million, for the three months ended September 30, 2024 compared to the three months ended September 30, 2023. The change was primarily driven by lower cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities.
Interest income, net increased by $4.0 million, for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 compared to the nine months ended September 30, 2023. The change was primarily driven by higher interest rates.
Three Months Ended September 30,
Nine Months Ended September 30,
2024
2023
$ Change
% Change
2024
2023
$ Change
% Change
Other income, net
$
0.4
$
0.7
$
(0.2)
(34)
%
$
1.3
$
1.6
$
(0.3)
(18)
%
Other income, net decreased by $0.2 million, for the three months ended September 30, 2024 compared to the three months ended September 30, 2023.
Other income, net decreased by $0.3 million, for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 compared to the nine months ended September 30, 2023.
Income tax expense increased by $4.0 million, for the three months ended September 30, 2024 compared to the three months ended September 30, 2023. The change was primarily due to the U.S. federal and state current taxes not offset by tax attributes (e.g. net operating losses and general business tax credits).
Income tax expense increased by $6.3 million, for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 compared to the nine months ended September 30, 2023. The change was primarily due to the U.S. federal and state current taxes not offset by tax attributes (e.g. net operating losses and general business tax credits).
Liquidity and Capital Resources
Our operations have been financed primarily through cash flows from operating activities. As of September 30, 2024, we had cash and cash equivalents of $32.9 million and marketable securities of $511.8 million.
Historically, our principal uses of cash and cash equivalents have included funding our operations, capital expenditures, repurchases of members’ equity and more recently, business combinations and investments that enhance our strategic positioning. We may also use our cash and cash equivalents to repurchase our Class A Common Stock, pay cash dividends and distribute to members for tax payments. We plan to finance our operations, future stock repurchases, cash dividends and capital expenditures largely through cash generated from operations. We believe our existing cash and cash equivalents, marketable securities, cash provided by operations and the availability of additional funds under our Credit Agreement (as defined below) will be sufficient to meet our working capital and capital expenditure needs for at least the next 12 months, including payment of dividends, potential stock repurchases, and known commitments and contingencies as discussed below. We expect that future capital expenditure will generally relate to building enhancements to the functionality of our current platform, equipment, leasehold improvements and furniture and fixtures related to office expansion and relocation, and general corporate infrastructure.
Share Repurchases
On May 13, 2022, the Company's Board authorized a share repurchase program pursuant to which the Company may purchase up to $100 million of its Class A Common Stock. On November 8, 2023, March 21, 2024 and August 5, 2024, the Company announced that its Board authorized three $100 million increases to its existing Class A Common Stock share repurchase program, resulting in an aggregate remaining authorization on August 5, 2024 of approximately $100.5 million. Under the repurchase program, the Company may purchase shares of its Class A Common Stock on a discretionary basis from time to time through open market repurchases, privately negotiated transactions, or other means, including through Rule 10b5-1 trading plans. The timing and actual number of shares repurchased will be determined by management depending on a variety of factors, including stock price, trading volume, market conditions, and other general business considerations. The repurchase program has no expiration date and may be modified, suspended, or terminated at any time. During the nine months ended September 30, 2024, the Company repurchased 11,983,612 shares for $225.2 million. The repurchased shares were retired. As of September 30, 2024, $100.5 million remained available under the repurchase authorization.
Dividends
On May 9, 2023, the Company announced that a special committee of its Board declared a special cash dividend in the amount of $0.20 per share payable on May 25, 2023 to holders of record of the Class A Common Stock and Class B Common Stock as of the close of business on May 18, 2023. The Company funded the payment of the special cash dividend from its pro rata share of tax distributions made by Alclear.
On August 2, 2023, the Company announced that our Board adopted a dividend policy (the "Dividend Policy") of paying a quarterly cash dividend to holders of Class A Common Stock and Class B Common Stock. The amount of such quarterly dividends are subject to approval of the actual amount by the Board at the time of such dividend declaration. It is expected that the dividends will be funded by proportionate cash distributions by Alclear to all of its members as of the applicable record date, including holders of non-controlling interests in Alclear and the Company. The declaration of cash dividends in the future is subject to final determination each quarter by the Board based on a number of factors, including the Company’s results of operations, cash flows, financial position and capital requirements, as well as general business conditions, legal, tax and regulatory restrictions and other factors the Board deems relevant at the time it determines to declare such dividends.
On February 15, 2024, the Company announced that its Board declared a quarterly dividend of $0.09 per share, payable on March 5, 2024 to holders of record of Class A Common Stock and Class B Common Stock as of the close of business on February 26, 2024. The Company funded the dividend from proportionate cash distributions by Alclear to all of its members as of February 26, 2024, including holders of non-controlling interests in Alclear and the Company.
On March 21, 2024, the Company announced the declaration of a special cash dividend in the amount of $0.32 per share payable on April 8, 2024 to holders of record of the Class A Common Stock and Class B Common Stock as of the close of business on April 1, 2024. The Company funded the payment of the special cash dividend with cash held by the Company following its receipt of a pro rata cash distribution made by Alclear to all of its members, including the Company, together with cash held by the Company following its receipt of tax distributions made by Alclear. Tax distributions are required under Alclear’s Operating Agreement, generally at a tax rate higher than the Company's. As a result, together with the Company’s utilization of certain tax attributes, the Company has received cash from tax distributions in excess of what is required to fund its tax liabilities and obligations under its Tax Receivable Agreement.
On May 7, 2024, the Company announced that its Board declared a quarterly dividend of $0.10 per share, payable on June 18, 2024 to holders of record of Class A Common Stock and Class B Common Stock as of the close of business on June 10, 2024. The Company funded the dividend from proportionate cash distributions by Alclear to all of its members as of June 10, 2024, including holders of non-controlling interests in Alclear and the Company.
On August 2, 2024, the Company announced that its Board declared a quarterly dividend of 0.10 per share, payable on September 17, 2024 to holders of record of Class A Common Stock and Class B Common Stock as of the close of business on September 10, 2024. The Company funded the dividend from proportionate cash distributions by Alclear to all of its members as of September 10, 2024, including holders of non-controlling interests in Alclear and the Company.
On October 31, 2024, the Company announced that its Board declared a quarterly dividend of $0.125 per share, payable on December 17, 2024 to holders of record of Class A Common Stock and Class B Common Stock as of the close of business on December 10, 2024 (the “Record Date”). The Company will fund the dividends from proportionate cash distributions by Alclear to all of its members as of the Record Date, including holders of non-controlling interests in Alclear and the Company.
To the extent the quarterly or special dividends exceed the Company's current and accumulated earnings and profits, a portion of such dividends may be deemed a return of capital gain to the holders of our Class A Common Stock or Class B Common Stock, as applicable.
Refer to our risks and uncertainties discussed under the heading "Forward-Looking Statements" and in Part II. Item 1A. "Risk Factors."
Credit Agreement
On March 31, 2020, we entered into a credit agreement (as amended, restated or otherwise modified, the “Credit Agreement”) for a three-year $50 million revolving credit facility that expires on March 31, 2023. Borrowings under the Credit Agreement generally bear interest between 1.5% and 2.5% per year and also include interest based on the greater of the prime rate, London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) or New York Federal Reserve Bank (“NYFRB”) rate, plus an applicable margin for specific interest periods. In April 2021, the Company increased the size of the revolving credit facility to $100 million, which matures three years from the date of the increase. The revolving credit facility includes a letter of credit sub-facility. In June 2023, the Company entered into a second amendment to the Credit Agreement to transition from LIBOR to the Secured Overnight Financing Rate ("SOFR") as our benchmark interest rate and to extend the maturity date to June 28, 2026.
We have the option to repay any borrowings under the Credit Agreement without premium or penalty prior to maturity. In addition, the Credit Agreement contains certain other covenants (none of which relate to financial condition), events of default and other customary provisions. The Credit Agreement contains customary affirmative covenants, such as financial statement reporting requirements and delivery of borrowing base certificates, as well as customary covenants that restrict our ability to, among other things, incur additional indebtedness, sell certain assets, guarantee obligations of third parties, declare dividends or make certain distributions, and undergo a merger or consolidation or certain other transactions.
As of September 30, 2024, the Company had a remaining borrowing capacity of $67.8 million, net of standby letters of credit, and had no outstanding debt obligations. As of September 30, 2024, the Company was in compliance with all of the financial and non-financial covenants of the Credit Agreement. Refer to Note 21 within the condensed consolidated financial statements for further details.
Cash Flow
The following summarizes our cash flows for the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023 (in millions):
Nine Months Ended September 30,
2024
2023
$ Change
Net cash provided by operating activities
$159.1
$130.9
$28.2
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities
148.0
(27.4)
175.3
Net cash used in financing activities
(333.2)
(103.9)
(229.3)
Net increase in cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash
(26.1)
(0.4)
(25.8)
Cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash, beginning of year
62.4
68.9
(6.5)
Net exchange differences on cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash
—
0.1
—
Cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash, end of period
$
36.3
$
68.6
$
(32.3)
Cash flows from operating activities
For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, net cash provided by operating activities was $159.1 million compared to net cash provided by operating activities of $130.9 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023, an increase of $28.2 million primarily due to year-over-year increase of net income of $82.1 million offset by a decrease in non-cash adjustments to net income of $3.1 million and unfavorable changes to working capital of $50.8 million, driven by the settlement of accrued partnership liabilities.
Cash flows from investing activities
For the nine months ended September 30, 2024 net cash provided by investing activities was $148.0 compared to net cash used in investing activities of $27.4 for the nine months ended September 30, 2023, an increase of $175.3 million. The change was primarily due to an increase in the net sales of marketable securities of $154.2 million, a decrease in the purchase of a strategic investment of $5.0 million, decrease in business combinations of $3.8 million, and a decrease in capital expenditures of $12.5 million.
Cash flows from financing activities
For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, net cash used in financing activities was $333.2 million compared to net cash used in financing activities of $103.9 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023, an increase of $229.3 million. The change was due to increases in the amounts used to repurchase Class A Common Stock of $169.0 million, payments of special and regular dividends of $31.6 million, $2.0 million in payments of taxes on net settled stock-based awards, and distributions to members of $26.8 million.
Commitments and Contingencies
We have non-cancelable operating lease arrangements for office space. As of September 30, 2024, we had future minimum payments of $196.4 million, with $15.0 million due within twelve months.
We have and continue to enter into agreements with airports for access to floor and office space. As of September 30, 2024, we had future minimum payments of $71.0 million.
We have commitments for future marketing expenditures to sports stadiums of $5.3 million as of September 30, 2024.
We are subject to certain minimum spend commitments of approximately $16.2 million over the next three years under service arrangements.
Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates
The preparation of the condensed consolidated financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reported periods. The Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) has defined a company’s critical accounting policies as the ones that are most important to the portrayal of a company’s financial condition and results of operations, and which require a company to make its most difficult and subjective judgments. Based on this definition, we have identified the critical accounting policies and judgments addressed below. We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions that we believe to be reasonable under the circumstances. Actual results may differ from these estimates. Refer to Note 2 within the condensed consolidated financial statements for further information.
Tax Receivable Agreement
The Company entered into a Tax Receivable Agreement (“TRA”) which generally provides for payment by the Company to the remaining members of Alclear, the “TRA Holders,” of 85% of the net cash savings, if any, in U.S. federal, state and local income tax and franchise tax that the Company actually realizes or is deemed to realize in certain circumstances. The Company will retain the benefit of the remaining 15% of these net cash savings. As of September 30, 2024, the Company did not record a liability from the TRA.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements
Refer to Note 2 within the condensed consolidated financial statements, for recently issued accounting pronouncements and their expected impact.
Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosure about Market Risk
In the normal course of business, we are subject to a variety of risks which can affect our operations and profitability. We broadly define these areas of risk and interest rate risk.
Interest Rate Risk
We had cash and cash equivalents of $32.9 million as of September 30, 2024. Cash and cash equivalents includes highly liquid securities that have a maturity of three months or less at the date of purchase. The fair value of our cash and cash equivalents would not be significantly affected by either a 10% increase or decrease in interest rates due mainly to the short-term nature of these instruments.
We manage cash and cash equivalents in various institutions at levels beyond federally insured limits per institution, and we may purchase investments not guaranteed by the FDIC. Accordingly, there is a risk that we will not recover the full principal of our investments or that their liquidity may be diminished
Debt
Interest payable on our revolving credit facility is variable. Borrowings generally will bear interest based on the greater of the prime rate, SOFR or NYFRB rate, plus an applicable margin for specific interest periods. As of September 30, 2024, we had no outstanding borrowings under the revolving credit facility.
We had marketable securities totaling $511.8 million as of September 30, 2024. This amount was invested primarily in money market funds, commercial paper, corporate notes and bonds, and government securities. Our investments are made for capital preservation purposes and we do not enter into investments for trading or speculative purposes. We are exposed to market risk related to changes in interest rates where a decline in interest rates would reduce our interest income, net and conversely, an increase in interest rates would have an adverse impact on the fair value of our investment portfolio. The effect of a hypothetical 100 basis points increase or decrease in overall interest rate would result in unrealized loss or gain to our “available for sale” investment fair value of approximately $3.3 million that would be recognized in accumulated other comprehensive loss within the condensed consolidated balance sheets.
Foreign Currency Transaction and Translation Risk
Fluctuations in foreign currencies impact the amount of total assets, liabilities, revenues, operating expenses and cash flows that we report for our foreign subsidiaries upon the translation of these amounts into U.S. dollars. Since the majority of our business is transacted in the U.S. dollar, foreign currency transaction and translation risk was insignificant for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024.
Item 4. Controls and Procedures
Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures
Our management, with the participation of our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, evaluated the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended) as of the quarter ended September 30, 2024. Based on that evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that, as of the quarter ended September 30, 2024, our disclosure controls and procedures were effective in providing reasonable assurance that information required to be disclosed by us in reports that we file or submit under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, is (i) recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms and (ii) accumulated and communicated to our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosures.
Our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, does not expect that our disclosure controls and procedures will prevent all errors and all fraud. A control system, no matter how well conceived and operated, can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance that the objectives of the control system are met. Further, the design of a control system must reflect the fact that there are resource constraints, and the benefits of controls must be considered relative to their costs. Because of the inherent limitations in all control systems, no evaluation of controls can provide absolute assurance that all control issues and instances of fraud, if any, with the Company have been detected.
Changes in Internal Control
There were no changes in our internal control over financial reporting identified in management's evaluation pursuant to Rules 13a-15(d) or 15d-15(d) of the Exchange Act during the quarter ended September 30, 2024 that materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.
From time to time, the Company is subject to commercial litigation claims and various legal proceedings, as well as administrative and regulatory reviews arising in the ordinary course of business. We currently believe that the ultimate outcome of such lawsuits, proceedings and reviews will not, individually or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on our condensed consolidated financial statements.
Item 1A. Risk Factors
We have disclosed under the heading “Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K the risk factors which materially affect our business, financial condition or results of operations. There have been no material changes from the risk factors previously disclosed. You should carefully consider the risk factors set forth in the Annual Report on Form 10-K and the other information set forth elsewhere in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. You should be aware that these risk factors and other information may not describe every risk facing our company. Additional risks and uncertainties not currently known to us or that we currently deem to be immaterial also may materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and/or operating results.
Item 2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds
During the nine months ended September 30, 2024, certain non-controlling interest holders exchanged their Alclear Units and corresponding shares of Class C Common Stock or Class D Common Stock for shares of the Company’s Class A Common Stock or Class B Common Stock, as applicable. As a result, the Company issued 13,264,336 shares of Class A Common Stock, inclusive of shares of Class B Common Stock exchanged for Class A Common Stock.
Use of IPO Proceeds
On July 2, 2021, we closed our IPO, in which the Company issued 15,180,000 shares of Class A Common Stock (which included 1,980,000 shares of Class A Common Stock as a result of the exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option, which was exercised on June 30, 2021). All shares in the IPO were registered under the Securities Act pursuant to a Registration Statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-256851), which was declared effective by the SEC on June 29, 2021 (the “Registration Statement”).
Goldman Sachs & Co. was the representative of the underwriters, which comprised Goldman Sachs & Co., J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, Allen & Company LLC, Wells Fargo Securities, LLC, LionTree Advisors LLC, Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated, Telsey Advisory Group LLC, Centerview Partners LLC, Loop Capital Markets LLC, and Roberts & Ryan Investments, Inc. The lead book-runners of our IPO were Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC, J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, Allen & Company LLC and Wells Fargo Securities, LLC.
The initial offering price to the public in the IPO was $31.00 per share. We received $29.295 per share from the underwriters after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions of $1.705 per share. We incurred underwriting discounts and commissions of approximately $25.9 million, including the effect of the exercise of the over-allotment option. Thus, our net offering proceeds, after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions, net of the rebate on the over-allotment option, were approximately $445.9 million, which the Company contributed to Alclear in exchange for 15,180,000 Alclear Units. The Company has caused Alclear to use such contributed amount to pay offering expenses of approximately $9.0 million, and for general corporate purposes. There has been no material change in the planned use of the IPO net proceeds from what is described in the Company’s Registration Statement. No payments were made to our directors or officers or their associates, holders of 10% or more of any class of our equity securities or any affiliates.
Below is a summary of the repurchases during the three months ended September 30, 2024 (in millions, except share and per share amounts):
Period
Total Number of Shares Purchased
Average Price Paid per Share
Total Number of Shares Purchased as Part of Publicly Announced Plan or Program
Approximate Dollar Value of Shares that May Yet Be Purchased Under the Plan or Program
July 1, 2024 - July 31, 2024
4,000,000
$
18.79
4,000,000
$
101
August 1, 2024 - August 31, 2024
—
$
—
—
$
101
September 1, 2024 - September 30, 2024
—
$
—
—
$
101
Total
4,000,000
$
18.79
4,000,000
All purchases of Class A Common Stock reported in the above table were purchased by the Company pursuant to the Company’s share repurchase program, authorized by the Board on May 13, 2022 and publicly announced by the Company on May 16, 2022, and increased on November 8, 2023, March 21, 2024, and August 5, 2024. The share repurchase program provides for the purchase by the Company of up to $400 million of the Company’s Class A Common Stock on a discretionary basis from time to time through open market repurchases, privately negotiated transactions, or other means, including through Rule 10b5-1 trading plans. As of September 30, 2024, $100.5 million remained available under the repurchase authorization. The timing and actual number of shares repurchased will be determined by management depending on a variety of factors, including stock price, trading volume, market conditions, and other general business considerations. The repurchase program has no expiration date and may be modified, suspended, or terminated at any time. The above table excludes shares repurchased to settle employee tax withholding related to the vesting of stock awards.
Item 3. Defaults Upon Senior Securities.
None
Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures.
Not applicable
Item 5. Other Information.
Rule 10b5-1 Trading Plans
The adoption or termination of contracts, instructions or written plans for the purchase or sale of our securities by our Section 16 officers and directors for the fiscal quarter ended September 30, 2024, each of which is intended to satisfy the affirmative defense conditions of Rule 10b5-1(c) under the Exchange Act (“Rule 10b5-1 Plan”), were as follows:
Name
Title
Date of Adoption of Rule 10b5-1 Trading Plan
Scheduled Expiration Date of Rule 10b5-1 Trading Plan
Number of Shares to be Sold under the Plan
Caryn Seidman Becker
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
September 13, 2024
December 16, 2025
1,000,000
Michael Barkin
Director
September 12, 2024
December 16, 2025
40,000
Second Amended and Restated By-Laws
On August 1, 2024 the Board amended and restated the Company’s First Amended and Restated By-Laws (as amended, the “Second A&R By-Laws”) to: (i) update the procedural and information requirements for director nominations and other proposals submitted by stockholders under the Company’s “advance notice” provisions; (ii) require that any stockholder directly or indirectly soliciting proxies from other stockholders use a proxy card color other than white; (iii) update provisions related to stockholder meeting adjournment procedures and lists of stockholders entitled to vote at stockholder meetings, in each case, to reflect recent amendments to the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware; and (iv) make other modernizing and clarifying changes.
The foregoing description of the Second A&R By-Laws does not purport to be complete and is subject to, and qualified in its entirety by reference to, the full text thereof. A copy of the Second A&R By-Laws is included as Exhibit 3.1 to this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and is incorporated by reference herein.
The documents listed in the Index to Exhibits of this quarterly report on Form 10-Q are incorporated by reference or are filed with this quarterly report on Form 10-Q, in each case as indicated therein.
Inline XBRL Instance Document - the instance document does not appear in the Interactive Data File because its XBRL tags are embedded within the Inline XBRL document
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized.