Item 1A. RISK FACTORS

We discuss our expectations regarding future performance, events and outcomes in this Form 10-K, quarterly and annual reports, press releases and other written and oral communications. All statements except for historical and present factual information are “forward-looking statements” and are based on financial data and business plans available only as of the time the statements are made, which may become outdated or incomplete. Forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain, and investors must recognize that events could significantly differ from our expectations. You should carefully consider the risk factors discussed below, together with all the other information included in this Form 10-K, in evaluating us, our ordinary shares and our senior notes. If any of the risks below actually occurs, our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows could be materially and adversely affected. Any such adverse effect may cause the trading price of our ordinary shares to decline, and as a result, you could lose all or part of your investment in us. Our business may also be adversely affected by risks and uncertainties not known to us or risks that we currently believe to be immaterial. We assume no obligation to update any forward-looking statements as a result of new information, future events or other factors.

Risks Related to Our Business

Our global operations subject us to economic risks.

We are incorporated in Ireland and operate in countries worldwide. Our global operations depend on products manufactured, purchased and sold in the U.S. and internationally, including in Australia, China, Colombia, Europe, Korea, Mexico, New Zealand, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates. The political, economic and regulatory environments in which we operate are becoming increasingly volatile and uncertain. Accordingly, we are subject to risks that are inherent in operating globally, including:

•	changes in laws and regulations or imposition of currency restrictions and other restraints in various jurisdictions;

•	limitation of ownership rights, including expropriation of assets by a local government, and limitation on the ability to repatriate earnings;

•	sovereign debt crises and currency instability in developed and developing countries;

•	changes in applicable tax regulations and interpretations;

•	changes to trade agreements, sanctions, import and export regulations, including imposition of burdensome tariffs and quotas, and customs duties;

•	difficulty in staffing and managing global operations;

•	difficulty in enforcing agreements, collecting receivables and protecting assets through non-U.S. legal systems;

•	political unrest, national and international conflict, including war, civil disturbances and terrorist acts; and

•	economic downturns and social and political instability.

These risks could increase our cost of doing business in the U.S. and internationally, increase our counterparty risk, disrupt our operations, disrupt the ability of suppliers and customers to fulfill their obligations, increase our effective tax rate, increase the cost of our products, limit our ability to sell products in certain markets, reduce our operating margin, reduce cash flow and negatively impact our ability to compete.

Our business relies on the institutional, commercial and residential construction and remodeling markets.

We primarily rely on the institutional, commercial and residential construction and remodeling markets, which are marked by cyclicality based on overall economic conditions. Weakness or instability in these markets may cause current and potential customers to delay or choose not to make purchases, which could negatively impact the demand for our products and services.

Increased competition, including from technical developments, could adversely affect our business.

The markets in which we operate include a large number of participants, including multi-national companies, regional companies and small local companies. We primarily compete on the basis of quality, innovation, expertise, effective channels to market, breadth of product offering and price. We may be unable to effectively compete on all these bases. If we are unable to anticipate evolving trends in the market or the timing and scale of our competitors’ activities and initiatives, the demand for our products and services could be negatively impacted.

In addition, we compete in an industry that is experiencing the convergence of mechanical, electronic and digital products. Technology and innovation play significant roles in the competitive landscape. Our success depends, in part, upon the research, development and implementation of new technologies and products including obtaining, maintaining and enforcing necessary intellectual property protections. Securing and maintaining key partnerships and alliances, recruiting and retaining highly skilled and qualified employee talent and having access to technologies, services, intellectual property and solutions developed by others

will play a significant role in our ability to effectively compete. The continual development of new technologies by existing and new competitors, including non-traditional competitors with significant resources, could adversely affect our ability to sustain operating margins and desirable levels of sales volumes. To remain competitive, we must develop new products and respond to new technologies in a timely manner.

Our growth is dependent, in part, on the development, commercialization and acceptance of new products and services.

We must develop and commercialize new products and services in order to remain competitive in our current and future markets and in order to continue to grow our business. The speed of development by our competitors and new market entrants is increasing. We cannot provide any assurance that any new product or service will be successfully commercialized in a timely manner, if ever, or, if commercialized, will result in returns greater than our investment. Investment in a product or service could divert our attention and resources from other projects that become more commercially viable in the market. We also cannot provide any assurance that any new product or service will be accepted by the market.

Changes in customer preferences and the inability to maintain beneficial relationships with large customers could adversely affect our business.

We have significant customers, particularly major retailers, although no one customer represented 10% or more of our total Net revenues in any of the past three fiscal years. The loss or material reduction of business, the lack of success of sales initiatives or changes in customer preferences or loyalties for our products related to any such significant customer could have a material adverse impact on our business. In addition, major customers who are volume purchasers are much larger than us and have strong bargaining power with suppliers. This limits our ability to recover cost increases through higher selling prices. Furthermore, unanticipated inventory adjustments by these customers can have a negative impact on sales.

Our brands are important assets of our businesses, and violation of our trademark rights by imitators could negatively impact revenues and brand reputation.

Our brands and trademarks enjoy a reputation for quality and value and are important to our success and competitive position. Unauthorized use of our trademarks may not only erode sales of our products but may also cause significant damage to our brand name and reputation, interfere with relationships with our customers and increase litigation costs. There can be no assurance that our on-going effort to protect our brand and trademark rights will prevent all violations.

Currency exchange rate fluctuations may adversely affect our results.

We are exposed to a variety of market risks, including the effects of changes in currency exchange rates. See "Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations - Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosure About Market Risk."

Approximately 30% of our 2018 Net revenues were derived outside the U.S., and we expect sales to non-U.S. customers to continue to represent a significant portion of our consolidated Net revenues. Although we may enter into currency exchange contracts to reduce our risk related to currency exchange fluctuations, changes in the relative fair values of currencies occur from time to time and may, in some instances, have a material impact on our results of operations. We do not hedge against all of our currency exposure and therefore, our business will continue to be susceptible to currency fluctuations.

We also translate assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses denominated in non-U.S. dollar currencies into U.S. dollars for our Consolidated Financial Statements based on applicable exchange rates. Consequently, fluctuations in the value of the U.S. dollar compared to other currencies may have a material impact on the value of these items in our Consolidated Financial Statements, even if their value has not changed in their original currency.

Our business strategy includes making acquisitions and investments that complement our existing business. These acquisitions and investments could be unsuccessful or consume significant resources, which could adversely affect our operating results.

We will continue to analyze and evaluate the acquisition of strategic businesses or product lines with the potential to strengthen our industry position or enhance our existing set of products and services offerings. We cannot provide assurance that we will identify or successfully complete transactions with suitable acquisition candidates in the future, nor can we provide assurance that completed acquisitions will be successful.

Some of the businesses we may seek to acquire or invest in may be marginally profitable or unprofitable. For these businesses to achieve acceptable levels of profitability, we must improve their management, operations, products and market penetration. We

may not be successful in this regard and we may encounter other difficulties in integrating acquired businesses into our existing operations.

Acquisitions and investments may involve significant cash expenditures, debt incurrence, operating losses and expenses. Acquisitions involve numerous other risks, including:

•	diversion of management time and attention from daily operations;

•	difficulties integrating acquired businesses, technologies and personnel into our business;

•	difficulties completing the transaction in a timely manner;

•	difficulties realizing synergies expected to result from acquisitions;

•	difficulties in obtaining and verifying the financial statements and other business information of acquired businesses;

•	inability to obtain regulatory approvals and/or required financing on favorable terms;

•	potential loss of key employees, key contractual relationships or key customers of acquired companies or of us;

•	difficulties competing in the new markets we enter;

•	assumption of the liabilities and exposure to unforeseen liabilities of acquired companies;

•	dilution of interests of holders of our ordinary shares through the issuance of equity securities or equity-linked securities; and

•	difficulty in integrating financial reporting systems and implementing controls, procedures and policies, including disclosure controls and procedures and internal control over financial reporting, appropriate for public companies of our size at companies that, prior to the acquisition, had lacked such controls, procedures and policies.

We continually look to expand our services and products into international markets. As we expand into new international markets, we will have only limited experience in marketing and operating services and products in such markets. In some instances, we may rely on the efforts and abilities of foreign business partners in such markets. Certain international markets may be slower than U.S. markets in adopting our services and products, and our operations in such markets may not develop at a rate that supports our level of investment. In addition to the risks outlined above, expansion into certain international markets may require us to compete with local businesses with greater knowledge of the market, including the tastes and preferences of customers and businesses with dominant market shares. Any acquisitions or investments may ultimately harm our business or financial condition; as such, acquisitions may not be successful and may ultimately result in impairment charges.

We may pursue business opportunities that diverge from core business.

We may pursue business opportunities that diverge from our core business, including expanding our products or service offerings, investing in new and unproven technologies and forming new alliances with companies to distribute our products and services. We can offer no assurance that any such business opportunities will prove to be successful. Among other negative effects, our investment in new business opportunities may exceed the returns we realize. Additionally, any new investments could have higher cost structures than our current business, which could reduce operating margins and require more working capital. In the event that working capital requirements exceed operating cash flow, we may be required to draw on our revolving credit facility or pursue other external financing, which may not be readily available.

Our enterprise excellence efforts may not achieve the improvements we expect.

We utilize a number of tools to improve efficiency and productivity. Implementation of new processes to our operations could cause disruptions and may prove to be more difficult, costly or time consuming than expected. There is no assurance that all of our planned enterprise excellence projects will be fully implemented, or if implemented, will realize the expected improvements.

Our periodic restructuring plans may not be successful.

We have in the past restructured or made other adjustments to our workforce and manufacturing footprint in response to market changes, product changes, performance issues, changes in strategy, acquisitions and other internal and external considerations. Historically, these types of restructuring activities have resulted in increased restructuring costs and temporarily reduced productivity. In addition, we may not achieve or sustain the expected growth or cost savings benefits of these restructurings or do so within the expected timeframe. These effects could recur in connection with future acquisitions and other restructurings and our Net revenues and other results of operations could be negatively affected.

Material adverse legal judgments, fines, penalties or settlements could adversely affect our business.

We are currently and may in the future become involved in legal proceedings and disputes incidental to the operation of our business. Our business may be adversely affected by the outcome of these proceedings and other contingencies (including, without

limitation, environmental, product liability, intellectual property, data protection and labor and employment matters) that cannot be predicted with certainty. As required by U.S. generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP"), we establish reserves based on our assessment of contingencies. Subsequent developments in legal proceedings and other contingencies may affect our assessment and estimates of the loss contingency recorded as a reserve, and we may be required to make additional material payments.

Allegations that we have infringed the intellectual property rights of third parties could negatively affect us.

We may be subject to claims of infringement of intellectual property rights by third parties. In particular, we often compete in areas having extensive intellectual property rights owned by others and we have become subject to claims alleging infringement of intellectual property rights of others. In general, if it is determined that one or more of our technologies, products or services infringes the intellectual property rights owned by others, we may be required to cease marketing those services, to obtain licenses from the holders of the intellectual property at a material cost or to take other actions to avoid infringing such intellectual property rights. The litigation process is costly and subject to inherent uncertainties, and we may not prevail in litigation matters regardless of the merits of our position. Adverse intellectual property litigation or claims of infringement against us may become extremely disruptive if the plaintiffs succeed in blocking the trade of our products and services and may have a material adverse effect on our business.

Our reputation, ability to do business and results of operations could be impaired by improper conduct by any of our employees, agents or business partners.

We are subject to regulation under a variety of U.S. federal and state and non-U.S. laws, regulations and policies including laws related to anti-corruption, export and import compliance, anti-trust and money laundering due to our global operations. We cannot provide assurance that our internal controls will always protect us from the improper conduct of our employees, agents and business partners. Any improper conduct could damage our reputation and subject us to, among other things, civil and criminal penalties, material fines, equitable remedies (including profit disgorgement and injunctions on future conduct), securities litigation and a general loss of investor confidence.

Disruptions in our global supply chain, including product manufacturing and logistical services provided by outsourcing partners, may negatively impact our business.

Our ability to meet our customers' needs and achieve cost targets depends on our ability to maintain key manufacturing and supply arrangements, including execution of supply chain optimizations and certain sole supplier or sole manufacturing arrangements. The loss or disruption of such manufacturing and supply arrangements could interrupt product supply and, if not effectively managed and remedied, have an adverse impact on our business.

We outsource certain manufacturing and logistical services to partners located throughout the world. Our reliance on these third parties reduces our control over the manufacturing and delivery process, exposing us to risks including reduced control over quality assurance, product costs, product supply and delivery delays. If we are unable to effectively manage these relationships, or if these third parties experience delays, disruptions, capacity constraints, regulatory issues or quality control problems in their operations or otherwise fail to meet our future requirements for timely delivery, our ability to ship and deliver certain of our products to our customers could be impaired and our business could be harmed.

We may be subject to risks relating to our information technology and operational technology systems.

We rely extensively on information technology and operational technology systems, networks and services including hardware, software, firmware and technological applications and platforms (collectively, "IT Systems") to manage and operate our business from end-to-end, including ordering and managing materials from suppliers, design and development, manufacturing, marketing, selling and shipping to customers, invoicing and billing, managing our banking and cash liquidity systems, managing our enterprise resource planning and other accounting and financial systems and complying with regulatory, legal and tax requirements. There can be no assurance that our current IT Systems will function properly. We have invested and will continue to invest in improving our IT Systems. Some of these investments are significant and impact many important operational processes and procedures. There is no assurance that any newly implemented IT Systems will improve our current systems, improve our operations or yield the expected returns on the investments. In addition, the implementation of new IT Systems may cause disruptions in our operations and, if not properly implemented and maintained, negatively impact our business. If our IT Systems cease to function properly or if these systems do not provide the anticipated benefits, our ability to manage our operations could be impaired.

We currently rely on third-party vendors for many of the critical elements of our global information and operational technology infrastructure and their failure to provide effective support for such infrastructure could negatively impact our business and financial results.

We have outsourced many of the critical elements of our global information and operational technology infrastructure to third-party service providers in order to achieve efficiencies. If such service providers do not perform or do not perform effectively, we may not be able to achieve the expected efficiencies and may have to incur additional costs to address failures in providing service by the service providers. Depending on the function involved, such non-performance, ineffective performance or failures of service may lead to business disruptions, processing inefficiencies or security breaches.

Disruptions or breaches of our information systems could adversely affect us.

Despite our implementation of network security measures which have focused on prevention, mitigation, resilience and recovery, our network and products, including access solutions, may be vulnerable to cybersecurity attacks, computer viruses, malicious codes, malware, ransomware, phishing, social engineering, denial of service, hacking, break-ins and similar disruptions. Cybersecurity attacks and intrusion efforts are continuous and evolving, and in certain cases they have been successful at the most robust institutions. The scope and severity of risks that cyber threats present have increased dramatically and include, but are not limited to, malicious software, attempts to gain unauthorized access to data or premises, exploiting weaknesses related to vendors or other third parties that could be exploited to attack our systems, denials of service and other electronic security breaches that could lead to disruptions in systems, unauthorized release of confidential or otherwise protected information and corruption of data. Any such event could have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results and financial condition, as we face regulatory, reputational and litigation risks resulting from potential cyber incidents, as well as the potential of incurring significant remediation costs.

Our daily business operations also require us to retain sensitive data such as intellectual property, proprietary business information and data related to customers, suppliers and business partners within our networking infrastructure including data from individuals subject to the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation. The loss or breach of such information due to various causes including catastrophic events, natural disasters, power outages, system failures, computer viruses, improper data handling and employee error or malfeasance could result in wide reaching negative impacts to our business, and as such, the ongoing maintenance and security of this information is pertinent to the success of our business operations and our strategic goals.

Our networking infrastructure and related assets may be subject to unauthorized access by hackers, employee error or malfeasance or other unforeseen activities. Such issues could result in the disruption of business processes, network degradation and system downtime, along with the potential that a third party will exploit our critical assets such as intellectual property, proprietary business information and data related to our customers, suppliers and business partners. To the extent that such disruptions occur and our business continuity plans do not effectively address these disruptions in a timely manner, they may cause delays in the manufacture or shipment of our products and the cancellation of customer orders and, as a result, our business operating results and financial condition could be materially and adversely affected, resulting in a possible loss of business or brand reputation.

Commodity shortages, price increases and higher energy prices could negatively affect our financial results.

We rely on suppliers to secure commodities, including steel, zinc, brass and other non-ferrous metals, required for the manufacture of our products. A disruption of deliveries from our suppliers or decreased availability of commodities could have an adverse effect on our ability to meet our commitments to customers or increase our operating costs. We believe that available sources of supply will generally be sufficient for our needs for the foreseeable future. Nonetheless, the unavailability of some commodities could have a material adverse impact on our business.

Volatility in the prices of these commodities could increase the costs of our products and services, and we may not be able to pass on these costs to our customers. We do not currently use financial derivatives to hedge against this volatility; however, we utilize firm purchase commitments to mitigate risk. The pricing of some commodities we use is based on market prices. To mitigate this exposure, we may use annual price contracts to minimize the impact of inflation and to benefit from deflation.

Additionally, we are exposed to fluctuations in energy prices due to the instability of current market prices. Higher energy costs increase our operating costs and the cost of shipping our products and supplying services to our customers around the world. Consequently, sharp price increases, the imposition of taxes or an interruption of supply could cause us to lose the ability to effectively manage the risk of rising energy prices and may have an adverse impact on our results of operations and cash flows.

We may be required to recognize impairment charges for our goodwill, indefinite-lived intangible assets and other long-lived assets.

At December 31, 2018, the net carrying value of our goodwill and other indefinite-lived intangible assets totaled approximately $883.0 million and $130.6 million, respectively. Pursuant to GAAP, we are required to annually assess our goodwill, indefinite-lived intangibles and other long-lived assets to determine if they are impaired. In addition, interim assessments must be performed whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that impairment may have occurred. If the testing performed indicates that impairment has occurred, we are required to record a non-cash impairment charge for the difference between the carrying value of the goodwill or other indefinite-lived intangible assets and the fair value of the goodwill or other indefinite-lived intangible assets in the period the determination is made. Disruptions to our business, end market conditions and protracted economic weakness, unexpected significant declines in operating results of reporting units, divestitures and market capitalization declines may result in additional charges for goodwill and other asset impairments. We have significant intangible assets, including goodwill with an indefinite life, which are susceptible to valuation adjustments as a result of changes in such factors and conditions.

The basis of the fair value for our impairment assessments is determined by projecting future cash flows using assumptions concerning future operating performance and economic conditions that may differ from actual cash flows. Financial and credit market volatility directly impacts our fair value measurement through our weighted-average cost of capital that we use to determine our discount rate and through our stock price that we use to determine our market capitalization. Although our last analysis regarding the fair values of the goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets for our reporting units indicates that they exceed their respective carrying values, materially different assumptions regarding the future performance of our businesses or significant declines in our stock price could result in goodwill and intangible asset impairment losses. Specifically, an unanticipated deterioration in Net revenues and operating margins generated by our EMEIA and/or Asia Pacific segments could trigger future impairment in those segments. While we currently believe that our projected results will not result in future impairment, a deterioration in results or other factors could trigger a future impairment.

Our ability to successfully grow and expand our business depends on our ability to recruit and retain a highly qualified and diverse workforce.

Our ability to successfully grow and expand our business depends on the contributions and abilities of our employees and key management, including, for example, the ability of our sales force to adapt to any changes made in the sales organization and achieve adequate customer coverage. We must therefore continue to effectively recruit, retain and motivate key management, sales and other highly qualified and skilled personnel to maintain our current business and support our projected growth. A shortage of these key employees for various reasons, including changes in laws and policies regarding immigration and work authorizations in jurisdictions where we have operations, might jeopardize our ability to grow and expand our business.

Our operations are subject to regulatory risks.

Our U.S. and non-U.S. operations are subject to a number of laws and regulations, including fire and building codes and environmental, health and safety standards. We have incurred, and will be required to continue to incur, significant expenditures to comply with these laws and regulations. Changes to, or changes in interpretations of, current laws and regulations could require us to increase our compliance expenditures, cause us to significantly alter or discontinue offering existing products and services or cause us to develop new products and services. Altering current products and services or developing new products and services to comply with changes in the applicable laws and regulations could require significant research and development investments, increase the cost of providing the products and services and adversely affect the demand for our products and services.

In the event a regulatory authority concludes that we are not or have not at all times been in full compliance with these laws or regulations, we could be fined, criminally charged or otherwise sanctioned.

Certain environmental laws assess liability on current or previous owners of real property or operators of manufacturing facilities for the costs of investigation, removal or remediation of hazardous substances or materials at such properties or at properties at which parties have disposed of hazardous substances. Liability for investigative, removal and remedial costs under certain U.S. federal and state laws and certain non-U.S. laws are retroactive, strict and joint and several. In addition to cleanup actions brought by governmental authorities, private parties could bring personal injury or other claims due to the presence of, or exposure to, hazardous substances. We have received notification from U.S. and non-U.S. governmental agencies, including the EPA and similar state environmental agencies, that conditions at a number of current and formerly owned sites where we and others have disposed of hazardous substances require investigation, cleanup and other possible remedial action. These agencies may require that we reimburse the government for its costs incurred at these sites or otherwise pay for the costs of investigation and cleanup of these sites, including by providing compensation for natural resource damage claims from such sites. For more information, see "Business - Environmental Regulation."

While we have planned for future capital and operating expenditures to maintain compliance with environmental laws and have accrued for costs related to current remedial efforts, our costs of compliance, or our liabilities arising from past or future releases of, or exposures to, hazardous substances, may exceed our estimates. We may also be subject to additional environmental claims for personal injury or cost recovery actions for remediation of facilities in the future based on our past, present or future business activities.

The capital and credit markets are important to our business.

Instability in U.S. and global capital and credit markets, including market disruptions, limited liquidity and interest rate volatility or reductions in the credit ratings assigned to us by independent ratings agencies, could reduce our access to capital markets or increase the cost of funding our short and long-term credit requirements. In particular, if we are unable to access capital and credit markets on terms that are acceptable to us, we may not be able to make certain investments or fully execute our business plans and strategy.

Our suppliers and customers are also dependent upon the capital and credit markets. Limitations on the ability of customers, suppliers or financial counterparties to access credit could lead to insolvencies of key suppliers and customers, limit or prevent customers from obtaining credit to finance purchases of our products and services and cause delays in the delivery of key products from suppliers.

As a global business, we have a relatively complex tax structure, and there is a risk that tax authorities will disagree with our tax positions.

Since we conduct operations worldwide through our subsidiaries, we are subject to complex transfer pricing regulations in the countries in which we operate. Transfer pricing regulations generally require that, for tax purposes, transactions between us and our affiliates be priced on a basis that would be comparable to an arm's length transaction and that contemporaneous documentation be maintained to support the tax allocation. Although uniform transfer pricing standards are emerging in many of the countries in which we operate, there is still a relatively high degree of uncertainty and inherent subjectivity in complying with these rules. To the extent that any tax authority disagrees with our transfer pricing policies, we could become subject to significant tax liabilities and penalties. Our tax returns are subject to review by taxing authorities in the jurisdictions in which we operate. Although we believe that we have provided for all tax exposures, the ultimate outcome of a tax review could differ materially from our provisions.

We could be subject to changes in tax rates, the adoption of new U.S. or international tax legislation or exposure to additional tax liabilities.

Our future effective tax rate and cash tax obligations could be adversely affected by shifts in our mix of earnings in countries with varying statutory tax rates, changes in the valuation of our deferred tax assets or liabilities or changes in tax laws, regulations, interpretations or accounting principles, as well as certain discrete items. In addition, we are subject to regular review and audit by both U.S. and non-U.S. tax authorities. As a result, we have received, and may in the future receive, assessments in multiple jurisdictions on various tax-related assertions. Any adverse outcome of such a review or audit could have a negative effect on our operating results and financial condition. In addition, the determination of our worldwide provision for income taxes and other tax liabilities requires significant judgment, and there are many transactions and calculations where the ultimate tax determination is uncertain. Although we believe our estimates are reasonable, the ultimate tax outcome may differ from the amounts recorded in our financial statements and may materially affect our financial results in the period or periods for which such determination is made. Furthermore, due to shifting economic and political conditions, tax policies, laws, interpretations and rates in various jurisdictions may be subject to significant change, which could materially affect our financial position and results of operations. For example, the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “Tax Reform Act”) enacted in December 2017 in the U.S. had a significant impact on our cash tax obligations and the issuance of additional regulatory guidance related to the Tax Reform Act could materially affect our cash tax obligations and effective tax rate. In addition, many countries in Europe, as well as a number of other countries and organizations, have recently proposed or recommended changes to existing tax laws or have enacted new laws that could significantly increase our effective tax rate or cash tax obligations in many countries where we do business or require us to change the manner in which we operate our business.

There are risks associated with our outstanding and future indebtedness.

We have approximately $1.5 billion of outstanding indebtedness at December 31, 2018. In addition, we have a senior unsecured revolving credit facility that permits borrowings of up to an additional $500 million. Volatility in the credit markets could adversely impact our ability to obtain favorable financing terms in the future. A substantial portion of our cash flows from operations is

dedicated to the payment of principal and interest on our indebtedness and will not be available for other purposes, including our operations, capital expenditures, payment of dividends, share repurchase programs or future business opportunities.

Our ability to make scheduled payments or to refinance our debt obligations depends on our financial and operating performance, which is subject to prevailing economic and competitive conditions and to certain financial, business and other factors beyond our control. If our cash flows and capital resources are insufficient to fund our debt service obligations, we may be forced to reduce or delay capital expenditures, reduce or eliminate the payment of dividends, sell assets, seek additional capital or seek to restructure or refinance our indebtedness. These alternative measures may not be successful and may not permit us to meet our scheduled debt service obligations. In the absence of such operating results and resources, we could face substantial liquidity problems and might be required to sell material assets or operations to attempt to meet our debt service and other obligations.

Additionally, a portion of our borrowings at December 31, 2018 includes a term loan with a variable rate of interest, which exposes us to interest rate risk. We are exposed to the risk of rising interest rates to the extent that we fund our operations with short-term or variable-rate borrowings. At December 31, 2018, our $1.5 billion of aggregate debt outstanding includes $656 million of floating-rate term loans and $800 million of fixed-rate senior notes. We have the ability to incur up to $500 million of additional floating-rate debt under our senior unsecured revolving credit facility. We have entered into interest rate swaps for $250 million of our floating-rate term loans to manage our interest rate risk. A 100 basis-point increase in LIBOR would have resulted in incremental 2018 interest expense of approximately $4.3 million. If the LIBOR or other applicable base rates under our senior unsecured credit facilities increase in the future, the interest on floating-rate debt could have a material impact on our interest expense.

Risks Relating to the Spin-off

In connection with the Spin-off, Ingersoll Rand indemnified us for certain liabilities and we indemnified Ingersoll Rand for certain liabilities. If we are required to act on these indemnities to Ingersoll Rand, we may need to divert cash to meet those obligations and our financial results could be negatively impacted. The Ingersoll Rand indemnity may not be sufficient to insure us against the full amount of liabilities for which it will be allocated responsibility, and Ingersoll Rand may not be able to satisfy its indemnification obligations in the future.

Pursuant to the Separation and Distribution Agreement, the Employee Matters Agreement and the Tax Matters Agreement with Ingersoll Rand, Ingersoll Rand agreed to indemnify us for certain liabilities, and we agreed to indemnify Ingersoll Rand for certain liabilities, in each case for uncapped amounts. Such indemnities may be significant and could negatively impact our business, particularly indemnities relating to our actions that could impact the tax-free nature of the Spin-off. Third parties could also seek to hold us responsible for any of the liabilities that Ingersoll Rand retained. Further, the indemnity from Ingersoll Rand may not be sufficient to protect us against the full amount of such liabilities, and Ingersoll Rand may not be able to fully satisfy its indemnification obligations. Moreover, even if we ultimately succeed in recovering from Ingersoll Rand any amounts for which we are held liable, we may be temporarily required to bear these losses ourselves.

If the distribution or certain internal transactions undertaken in anticipation of the Spin-off are determined to be taxable for U.S. federal income tax purposes, we, our shareholders that are subject to U.S. federal income tax and/or Ingersoll Rand could incur significant U.S. federal income tax liabilities and, in certain circumstances, we could be required to indemnify Ingersoll Rand for material taxes pursuant to indemnification obligations under the Tax Matters Agreement.

Ingersoll Rand has received an IRS ruling substantially to the effect that, among other things, the distribution of our ordinary shares, together with certain related transactions, qualify under Sections 355 and 368(a) of the Internal Revenue Code ("the Code"), with the result that Ingersoll Rand and Ingersoll Rand’s shareholders will not recognize any taxable income, gain or loss for U.S. federal income tax purposes as a result of the Spin-off, except to the extent of cash received in lieu of fractional shares (the "IRS Ruling"). The IRS Ruling also provided that certain internal transactions undertaken in anticipation of the distribution qualify for favorable treatment under the Code. In addition to obtaining the IRS Ruling, Ingersoll Rand received opinions from the law firm of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP substantially to the effect that certain requirements, including certain requirements that the IRS did not rule on, necessary to obtain tax-free treatment have been satisfied, such that the distribution for U.S. federal income tax purposes and certain other matters relating to the distribution, including certain internal transactions undertaken in anticipation of the distribution, received tax-free treatment under Section 355 of the Code. The receipt and effectiveness of the IRS Ruling and the opinions were conditions to the distribution that were satisfied or waived by Ingersoll Rand. The IRS Ruling and the opinions rely on certain facts and assumptions and certain representations and undertakings from us and Ingersoll Rand regarding the past and future conduct of our respective businesses and other matters. Notwithstanding the IRS Ruling and the opinions, the IRS could determine on audit that the distribution or the internal transactions should be treated as taxable transactions if it determines that any of these facts, assumptions, representations or undertakings is not correct or has been violated, or that the distribution or the internal transactions should be taxable for other reasons, including as a result of significant changes in shares or asset ownership after the distribution. A legal opinion represents the tax adviser’s best legal judgment, is not binding on the IRS or the courts, and

the IRS or the courts may not agree with the opinion. In addition, the opinion will be based on then current law, and cannot be relied upon if current law changes with retroactive effect. If the distribution is determined to be taxable, the distribution could be treated as a taxable dividend or capital gain for U.S. federal income tax purposes, and our shareholders could incur significant U.S. federal income tax liabilities. In addition, we or Ingersoll Rand could incur significant U.S. federal income tax liabilities if it is ultimately determined that certain internal transactions undertaken in anticipation of the distribution are taxable.

In addition, under the terms of the Tax Matters Agreement, in the event the distribution or the internal transactions were determined to be taxable as a result of actions taken after the distribution by us or Ingersoll Rand, the party responsible for such failure would be responsible for all taxes imposed on us or Ingersoll Rand as a result thereof. If such failure is not the result of actions taken after the distribution by us or Ingersoll Rand, then we would be responsible for any taxes imposed on us or Ingersoll Rand as a result of such determination. Such tax amounts could be significant.

If the distribution is determined to be taxable for Irish tax purposes, significant Irish tax liabilities may arise.

Ingersoll Rand has received an opinion of the Irish Revenue regarding the Irish tax consequences of the distribution to the effect that certain reliefs and exemptions for corporate reorganizations apply. In addition to obtaining the opinion from Irish Revenue, Ingersoll Rand received an opinion from the law firm of Arthur Cox confirming the applicability of the relevant exemptions and reliefs to the distribution and that certain internal transactions will not trigger tax costs. These opinions rely on certain facts and assumptions and certain representations and undertakings from us and Ingersoll Rand regarding the past and future conduct of our respective businesses and other matters. Notwithstanding the opinions, the Irish Revenue could determine on audit that the distribution or the internal transactions do not qualify for the relevant exemptions or reliefs if it determines that any of these facts, assumptions, representations or undertakings is not correct or has been violated. A legal opinion represents the tax adviser’s best legal judgment, is not binding on the Irish Revenue or the courts and the Irish Revenue or the courts may not agree with the legal opinion. In addition, the legal opinion was based on then current law, and cannot be relied upon if current law changes with retroactive effect. If the distribution ultimately is determined not to fall within certain exemptions or reliefs, the distribution could result in our shareholders having an Irish tax liability as a result of the distribution (if a shareholder is an Irish resident or holds shares in Ingersoll Rand in an Irish branch or agency), or we or Ingersoll Rand could incur Irish tax liabilities.

In addition, under the terms of the Tax Matters Agreement, in the event the distribution does not qualify for certain reliefs or exemptions, then we would be responsible for any taxes imposed on us or Ingersoll Rand as a result of such determination. Such tax amounts could be significant.

Risks Related to Our Incorporation in Ireland

Irish law differs from the laws in effect in the United States and may afford less protection to holders of our securities.

The U.S. currently does not have a treaty with Ireland providing for the reciprocal recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters. As such, there is some uncertainty as to whether the courts of Ireland would recognize or enforce judgments of U.S. courts obtained against us or our directors or officers based on U.S. federal or state civil liability laws, including the civil liability provisions of the U.S. federal or state securities laws, or hear actions against us or those persons based on those laws.

As an Irish company, we are governed by the Companies Act 2014 of Ireland, as amended, which differs in some material respects from laws generally applicable to U.S. corporations and shareholders, including, among others, differences relating to interested director and officer transactions and shareholder lawsuits. Likewise, the duties of directors and officers of an Irish company generally are owed to the company only. Shareholders of Irish companies generally do not have a personal right of action against directors or officers of the company and may exercise such rights of action on behalf of the company only in limited circumstances. Accordingly, holders of our securities may have more difficulty protecting their interests than would holders of securities of a corporation incorporated in a jurisdiction of the U.S.

In addition, Irish law allows shareholders to authorize share capital which then can be issued by a board of directors without shareholder approval. Also, subject to specified exceptions, Irish law grants statutory preemptive rights to existing shareholders to subscribe for new issuances of shares for cash. At our annual meeting of shareholders, our shareholders authorized our Board of Directors to issue up to 33% of our issued ordinary shares and further authorized our Board of Directors to issue up to 5% of such shares for cash without first offering them to our existing shareholders. Both of these authorizations will expire after a certain period unless renewed by our shareholders, and we cannot guarantee that the renewal of these authorizations will always be approved.

Changes in tax laws, regulations or treaties, changes in our status under the tax laws of many jurisdictions or adverse determinations by taxing authorities could increase our tax burden or otherwise affect our financial condition or operating results, as well as subject our shareholders to additional taxes.

The realization of any tax benefit related to our incorporation and tax residence in Ireland could be impacted by changes in tax laws, tax treaties or tax regulations or the interpretation or enforcement thereof by the tax authorities of many jurisdictions. From time to time, proposals have been made and/or legislation has been introduced to change the tax laws of various jurisdictions or limit tax treaty benefits that if enacted could materially increase our tax burden and/or our effective tax rate. For instance, pending regulatory guidance on the recently enacted U.S. tax legislation could modify or eliminate the tax deductibility of various currently deductible payments, which could materially and adversely affect our effective tax rate and cash tax position. Moreover, other legislative proposals could have a material adverse impact on us by overriding certain tax treaties and limiting the treaty benefits on certain payments, which could increase our tax liability. We cannot predict the outcome of any specific legislation in any jurisdiction.

While we monitor proposals that would materially impact our tax burden and/or our effective tax rate and investigate our options, we could still be subject to increased taxation on a going forward basis no matter what action we undertake if certain legislative proposals are enacted, certain tax treaties are amended and/or our interpretation of applicable tax law is challenged and determined to be incorrect. In particular, any changes and/or differing interpretations of applicable tax law that have the effect of disregarding our incorporation in Ireland, limiting our ability to take advantage of tax treaties between jurisdictions, modifying or eliminating the deductibility of various currently deductible payments or increasing the tax burden of operating or being resident in a particular country, could subject us to increased taxation.

Dividends received by our shareholders may be subject to Irish dividend withholding tax.

In certain circumstances, we are required to deduct Irish dividend withholding tax (currently at the rate of 20%) from dividends paid to our shareholders. In the majority of cases, shareholders residing in the U.S. will not be subject to Irish withholding tax, and shareholders resident in a number of other countries will not be subject to Irish withholding tax provided that they complete certain Irish dividend withholding tax forms. However, some shareholders may be subject to withholding tax, which could discourage the investment in our stock and adversely impact the price of our shares.

Dividends received by our shareholders could be subject to Irish income tax.

Dividends paid in respect of our shares generally are not subject to Irish income tax where the beneficial owner of these dividends is exempt from Irish dividend withholding tax, unless the beneficial owner of the dividend has some connection with Ireland other than his or her shareholding in Allegion.

Our shareholders who receive their dividends subject to Irish dividend withholding tax will generally have no further liability to Irish income tax on the dividends unless the beneficial owner of the dividend has some connection with Ireland other than his or her shareholding in Allegion.

Certain provisions in our Memorandum and Articles of Association, among other things, could prevent or delay an acquisition of us, which could decrease the trading price of our ordinary shares.

Our Memorandum and Articles of Association contains provisions to deter takeover practices, inadequate takeover bids and unsolicited offers. These provisions include, amongst others:

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a provision of our Articles of Association which generally prohibits us from engaging in a business combination with an interested shareholder (being (i) the beneficial owner, directly or indirectly, of 10% or more of our voting shares or (ii) an affiliate or associate of us that has at any time within the last five years been the beneficial owner, directly or indirectly, or 1% or more of our voting shares), subject to certain exceptions;

•	rules regarding how shareholders may present proposals or nominate directors for election at shareholder meetings;

•	the right of our Board of Directors to issue preferred shares without shareholder approval in certain circumstances, subject to applicable law; and

•	the ability of our Board of Directors to set the number of directors and to fill vacancies on our Board of Directors in certain circumstances.

We believe these provisions will provide some protection to our shareholders from coercive or otherwise unfair takeover tactics. These provisions are not intended to make us immune from takeovers. However, these provisions will apply even if the offer may be considered beneficial by some shareholders and could delay or prevent an acquisition that our Board of Directors determines

is in our best interests and our shareholders' best interests. These provisions may also prevent or discourage attempts to remove and replace incumbent directors.

In addition, several mandatory provisions of Irish law could prevent or delay an acquisition of us. For example, Irish law does not permit shareholders of an Irish public limited company to take action by written consent with less than unanimous consent. We also will be subject to various provisions of Irish law relating to mandatory bids, voluntary bids, requirements to make a cash offer and minimum price requirements, as well as substantial acquisition rules and rules requiring the disclosure of interests in our shares in certain circumstances. Also, Irish companies, including us, may alter their Memorandum of Association and Articles of Association only with the approval of at least 75% of the votes of the company’s shareholders cast in person or by proxy at a general meeting of the company.

The agreements that we entered into with Ingersoll Rand in connection with the Spin-off generally require Ingersoll Rand’s consent to any assignment by us of our rights and obligations under the agreements. The consent and termination rights set forth in these agreements might discourage, delay or prevent a change of control that shareholders may consider favorable.