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Universal Electronics Inc.

ueic · NASDAQ Technology
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Ticker ueic
Exchange NASDAQ
Sector Technology
Industry Hardware, Equipment & Parts
Employees 3838
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FY2023 Annual Report · Universal Electronics Inc.
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ANNUAL REPORT 2023

Delivering
the Connected
Home Experience

Universal
Electronics

Founded in 1986, Universal Electronics Inc. 

(NASDAQ: UEIC) is the global leader in wireless 

universal control solutions for home entertainment 

and smart home devices. We design, develop, 

manufacture, ship and support control and sensor 

technology solutions and a broad line of universal 

control systems, audio video accessories, and 

intelligent wireless security and smart home 

products. Our products and solutions are used by 

the world’s leading brands in the video services, 

consumer electronics, security, home automation, 

climate control and home appliance markets.  

For more info, visit www.uei.com

Corporate information

Directors

Paul D. Arling 
Universal Electronics Inc.

Scottsdale, Arizona

William C. Mulligan 1, 2, 4 
Cleveland, Ohio 

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Retired Partner - Private Equity

Satjiv S. Chahil 3, 4, 5                                             Innovations Advisor and Social Entrepreneur 
Palo Alto, California

Sue Ann R. Hamilton 3, 4 
Hamilton Media LLC

Media and Telecommunications Consultancy

Denver, Colorado

Lawyer; Principal

Rômulo C. Pontual 4, 5 
Miami, Florida

Eric B. Singer 3 
Immersion Corporation

Aventura, Florida

Edward K. Zinser 2, 3 
Tucson, Arizona

1  Lead Independent Director

2  Audit Committee

3  Compensation Committee

Technology Advisor

President, CEO and Chairman  

Financial Consultant

4  Corporate Governance, Sustainability and Nominating Committee

5  Product Strategy and Innovations Committee

Officers

Paul D. Arling* 

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Bryan M. Hackworth* 

Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Ramzi S. Ammari* 

Senior Vice President, Corporate Planning and Strategy

Richard K. Carnifax* 

Senior Vice President, Global Operations

David Chong* 

Executive Vice President, Global Sales 

Richard A. Firehammer, Jr.*  Senior Vice President, General Counsel,

Head of Global Compliance and Secretary

Stephen L. Gutman 

 Senior Vice President, Global Sales - Subscription 
Broadcast

Arsham Hatambeiki 

Senior Vice President, Product and Technology

Joseph L. Haughawout 

Senior Vice President, Product Development

Jonathan Hooker 

Senior Vice President, Consumer Business Line

Michael J. Koch 

Senior Vice President, Finance

Michael Lamb 

President, Ecolink Intelligent Technology, Inc.

Hrag G. Ohannessian 

 Senior Vice President, Global Sales - Home Automation, 
Security and Hospitality

Norman G. Sheridan, Ph.D.  Senior Vice President, Engineering

*  Executive Officer as defined by the Security Exchange Act of 1934.

Investor information

Annual meeting of stockholders
June 11, 2024 at 1:00 p.m. Scottsdale Local Time

Worldwide Headquarters
Universal Electronics Inc.
15147 N. Scottsdale Rd., Suite H300
Scottsdale, AZ 85254

Independent Registered
Public Accounting Firm
Grant Thornton LLP
Newport Beach, California

Registrar & Transfer Agent
Computershare
150 Royall St., Suite 101 
Canton, MA 02021
Shareholder Services: 800-962-4284

Certifications

The Company filed with the Securities and Exchange 
Commission, as Exhibit 31 to the Company’s Annual Report on 
Form 10-K for the 2023 fiscal year, certifications of its Chief 
Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer regarding the 
quality of the Company’s public disclosures.

On Form 10-K

Any stockholder who desires a copy of the Company’s 2023 
Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and 
Exchange Commission may obtain a copy (excluding exhibits) 
without charge by addressing a request to:

A copy of our 2023 Annual Report on Form 10-K, including 
exhibits, may be found on the “Investor” section of our website 
at www.uei.com, click on “Financials” and then click “SEC 
Filings”.

Internet users

We invite you to learn more about Universal Electronic Inc.’s 
business and growth opportunities by visiting the “Investor” 
section of our website at www.uei.com. This section includes 
investor presentations, earnings conference calls and press 
releases.

Investor Relations 
Universal Electronics Inc. 
15147 N. Scottsdale Rd., Suite H300 
Scottsdale, AZ 85254

Worldwide Headquarters

Regional Headquarters

Regional Headquarters

Universal Electronics Inc. 
15147 N. Scottsdale Rd., Suite H300 
Scottsdale, AZ 85254 
USA

480-530-3000

C.G. Development Limited 
902-905, 9th Floor 
One Harbourfront 
18 Tak Fung Street 
Hung Hom, Kowloon 
Hong Kong, China

852-2766-0577

Universal Electronics BV 
Colosseum 2 
7521 PT, Enschede 
The Netherlands

31-53-488-8000

 
 
Dear Fellow Stockholders,

In 2023, we continued to deliver on our mission to create 
products and technologies that help everyday people easily 
discover, control and interact with the devices and services 
in their home. We are driven to provide the most innovative, 
highest quality products to our customers. We have made 
significant strides to expand UEI’s leadership in wireless control 
devices to include new and exciting markets, such as climate 
control and home automation. We’ve made significant changes 
in 2023 to continue driving project wins in these new markets 
and also continued streamlining and improving our financial 
foundation to deliver improved profitability into the future. 

Leading Industry Innovation
For almost four decades, UEI’s innovation has set the standard 
in home connectivity and interoperability technology, 
and today we continue to raise the bar. We have amassed 
over 700 issued and pending patents, creating significant 
differentiation in our features and capabilities compared to 
our competitors. With our proprietary technology, we develop 
embedded solutions, finished goods, and software and cloud 
services that create innovative wireless control solutions 
for our customers. In doing so, we are shaping consumers’ 
desires and informing our customers’ expectations. The 
significance of our innovation cannot be overstated as 
evidenced by our multi-decade relationships with a wide 
variety of customers.

climate control, home automation, and security, where 
sizeable customers need a technology partner to penetrate 
the connected home ecosystem. These channels have 
higher projected growth rates, some in the double digits, 
and represent large market opportunities. In combination 
with home entertainment, our total available market now 
represents nearly $4.3 billion. 

Delivering Continuous Improvement and Efficiencies 
As we navigate the economic headwinds that impacted home 
entertainment, we have been implementing a multi-phased 
footprint optimization and cost reduction plan. First, we built a 
new facility in Vietnam to replace the less efficient operations 
in southwestern China. When our Vietnam facility met and 
exceeded expectations, we closed our older China factory 
in September 2023, sooner than we anticipated and gaining 
the cost efficiencies earlier. These initiatives, coupled with a 
mid-year corporate restructuring, contributed to improved 
quarterly gross margins and bottom-line contributions in 
2023.* We are now executing the third phase of our plan - 
streamlining our operation in Mexico that supplies product for 
certain North American customers. We expect a smaller, more 
efficient facility to deliver additional optimization in 2024. 
By continuing to analyze our global footprint and enhancing 
operational efficiency, we are unlocking resources to allocate 
toward revenue generating activities. 

Capturing New Customer Design Wins in the Growing 
Climate Control and Home Automation Spaces 
Our customers use UEI’s product and technology solutions 
to improve consumer experiences and to grow their 
businesses. Often, we collaborate with top consumer brands 
in their respective industries, including several Fortune 500 
companies, to design breakthrough solutions tailored to 
specific customers’ needs. We continue to gain industry 
recognition and customer momentum. Throughout 2023, 
we captured numerous design wins in all markets we serve. 
Most notably, we expanded our footprint in newer markets: 

Expanding Product Offering and Leveraging Software 
Connectivity Expertise 
We have been strategically investing a considerable portion 
of our total engineering and research & development budget 
toward the development of both standard and customized 
climate control products. These innovations are poised to 
create strong revenue growth in the climate control market.  
Our UEI TIDE™ portfolio of smart thermostats and accessories 
have been extremely well received, securing new product 
design wins, expanding our customer list and broadening 
our reach.

*  Based on Non-GAAP Financial Metrics.  See the reconciliation of the Non-GAAP Financial Metrics found at the end of this report.

Additionally, we continue to advance our industry 
leading QuickSet® technology originally utilized in home 
entertainment and now far beyond. Recently, we unveiled the 
full capabilities of our QuickSet Widget and Nevo™ software 
running on a wireless UEI TIDE Platform, this product delivers a 
complete climate control and smart home control dashboard – 
blending UEI’s core strength and new market innovation. It also 
enables unique control experiences between different brands 
and device categories without the need for an additional hub – 
all from the same TIDE thermostat control interface.

Integrating Sustainability into our Corporate Culture
In 2023, we amplified our sustainability program by 
formalizing and updating our governance, compliance and 
human-rights policies and due-diligence procedures. We 
also integrated environmental considerations into product 
and packaging design and facility management. As a result, 
within a single year, we improved our EcoVadis ranking 
significantly and obtained the Bronze Sustainability Rating in 
the ‘manufacturer of consumer electronics’ category for 2023 
with the goal of achieving a Silver rating before year end.  

We are dedicated to sustainability, transparency, and 
continuous improvement, and I’m proud to say that in 
a few short years, our small, but highly focused team, 
has accomplished much. In 2024, we intend to publish 
our inaugural Sustainability Report highlighting key ESG 
performance metrics. 

Building for Long-term Growth and Stockholder Value 
As we enter 2024, we are building a stronger company for our 
customers, our employees and our stockholders. Leveraging 
our industry-leading wireless technology expertise and 
proprietary know-how, we are extending our reach into new 
markets and generating new revenue streams. Abundant 
prospects fuel our confidence in long-term growth.
In closing, I applaud our global employees and product 
teams for their unwavering commitment to quality, customer 
service and innovation, and I thank our stockholders for their 
ongoing support. 

Paul Arling

Chairman and CEO

 
 
 
Use of Non-GAAP Financial Metrics

In addition to reporting financial results in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, or GAAP, UEI provides 
Adjusted Non-GAAP information as additional information for its operating results. References to Adjusted Non-GAAP 
information are to non-GAAP financial measures. These measures are not required by, in accordance with, or an alternative 
for, GAAP and may be different from non-GAAP financial measures used by other companies. UEI’s management uses these 
measures for reviewing the financial results of UEI for budget planning purposes and for making operational and financial 
decisions. Management believes that providing these non-GAAP financial measures to investors, as a supplement to GAAP 
financial measures, help investors evaluate UEI’s core operating and financial performance and business trends consistent 
with how management evaluates such performance and trends. Additionally, management believes these measures facilitate 
comparisons with the core operating and financial results and business trends of competitors and other companies. 

Adjusted Non-GAAP net sales is defined as net sales. Adjusted Non-GAAP gross profit is defined as gross profit excluding the 
impact of excess manufacturing overhead costs, factory transition costs, impairment, stock-based compensation expense, and 
depreciation expense related to the increase in fixed assets from cost to fair market value resulting from acquisitions. Adjusted 
Non-GAAP operating expenses are defined as operating expenses excluding stock-based compensation expense, amortization 
of intangibles acquired, costs associated with certain litigation efforts, goodwill impairment, impairment, factory restructuring 
costs and severance. Adjusted Non-GAAP net income (loss) is defined as net loss excluding the aforementioned items, foreign 
currency gains and losses, the related tax effects of all adjustments, as well as a valuation allowance on certain deferred tax 
assets. Adjusted Non-GAAP diluted earnings (loss) per share is calculated using Adjusted Non-GAAP net income (loss). A 
reconciliation of these financial measures to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures for the three months ended 
March 31, 2023, June 30, 2023, September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2023 and for the twelve months ended December 31, 
2023 is included at the end of this Annual Report.

Worldwide Headquarters

Regional Headquarters

Regional Headquarters

Universal Electronics Inc. 
15147 N. Scottsdale Rd.  
Suite H300 
Scottsdale, AZ 85254 
USA

C.G. Development Limited 
902-905, 9th Floor 
One Harbourfront 
18 Tak Fung Street 
Hung Hom, Kowloon 
Hong Kong, China

Universal Electronics BV 
Colosseum 2 
7521 PT, Enschede 
The Netherlands

480-530-3000

852-2766-0577

31-53-488-8000