CTS CORP (CTS) Business

Item 1. Business

CTS Corporation ("CTS", "we", "our", "us" or the "Company") is a global manufacturer of sensors, connectivity components, and actuators. CTS was established in 1896 as a provider of high-quality telephone products and was incorporated as an Indiana corporation in February 1929. Our principal executive offices are located in Lisle, Illinois.

We design, manufacture, and sell a broad line of sensors, connectivity components, and actuators primarily to original equipment manufacturers ("OEMs"), tier one suppliers for the aerospace and defense, industrial, medical, and transportation markets, and the U.S. Government. Our vision is to be a leading provider of sensing and motion devices as well as connectivity components, enabling an intelligent and seamless world. These devices are categorized by their ability to Sense, Connect or Move. Sense products provide vital inputs to electronic systems. Connect products allow systems to function in synchronization with other systems. Move products ensure required movements are effectively and accurately executed. We are committed to achieving our vision by continuing to invest in the development of products, technologies, and talent within these categories.

We operate manufacturing facilities in North America, Asia, and Europe. Sales and marketing are accomplished through our sales engineers. We also utilize independent manufacturers' representatives and distributors to extend our sales capability.

See the Consolidated Financial Statements and Notes included in Part II, Item 8 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K for financial information regarding the Company.

PRODUCTS BY MAJOR MARKETS

Our products perform specific electronic functions for a given product family and are intended for use in products assembled by our customers. The following table identifies major products by industry. Products are sold to industry OEMs, tier one suppliers, distributors and the U.S. Government.

The following table provides a breakdown of net sales by end market as a percent of consolidated net sales:

MARKETING AND DISTRIBUTION

Sales and marketing to customers is accomplished through our sales engineers, independent manufacturers' representatives, and distributors. We maintain sales offices in China, Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Japan, Singapore, Taiwan, and the United States. Approximately 86% of 2025 net sales were attributable to our sales engineers.

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Our sales engineers generally service our largest customers with application-specific products. The vast majority of our products are engineered solutions. The sales engineers work closely with major customers in designing and developing products to meet specific customer requirements.

In 2025, independent distributors accounted for approximately 7% of net sales. We use distributors for a small portion of our product portfolio that are standard and require less design support, to service smaller customers, and to provide supply chain fulfillment for certain customers. Our key distribution partners include large global and regional distributors such as Avnet, Inc., Digi-Key Electronics, Master Electronics, Future Electronics, and TTI, Inc. In addition, we also utilize the services of independent manufacturers' representatives for customers not serviced directly by our sales engineers. Independent manufacturers' representatives receive commissions from us in exchange for their services. During 2025, approximately 7% of net sales were attributable to independent manufacturers' representatives.

RAW MATERIALS

We utilize a wide variety of raw materials and purchased parts in our manufacturing processes. The following are the most significant raw materials and purchased components: conductive inks and contactors, passive connectivity components, integrated circuits and semiconductors, certain rare earth elements ("REEs"), ceramic powders, plastic components, molding compounds, printed circuit boards and assemblies, quartz blanks and crystals, wire harness assemblies, copper, brass, silver, gold, platinum, lead, aluminum, titanium and steel-based raw materials and components.

These raw materials and parts are purchased or leased from a number of suppliers. Although we purchase all of our semiconductors, REEs, conductive inks, and silver pastes from a limited number of suppliers, alternative sources are generally available.

Lead times between the placement of orders for certain raw materials and purchased parts and actual delivery to us may vary. Occasionally, we may need to order raw materials in greater quantities and at higher prices to compensate for the variability of lead times for delivery. The price and availability of raw materials and manufactured components is subject to change due to, among other things, new laws and regulations, global economic and political events including strikes, climate events, and public health and safety concerns.

PATENTS, TRADEMARKS, AND LICENSES

In 2025, CTS continued its practice of innovation and protecting its intellectual property by obtaining patents in the U.S. and abroad. CTS’s patents cover inventions relating to products that its engineers have designed, as well as for methods and technology related to CTS’s manufacturing processes. CTS obtained 24 patents in 2025, including ten U.S. patents, six patents in Asia, and eight patents in Europe. CTS currently owns approximately 285 patents worldwide including 144 active U.S. patents. CTS also has 55 existing patent applications that are currently being examined in the U.S., Europe, and Asia. Furthermore, CTS owns eight registered U.S. trademarks, most of which are also registered in jurisdictions throughout the world. We have also licensed certain patents and our license and royalty income for 2025 was less than 1% of net sales.

MAJOR CUSTOMERS

Our net sales to significant customers as a percentage of total net sales were as follows:

We sell parts to these two transportation customers for certain vehicle platforms under purchase agreements that have program lifetime volume estimates and are subject to purchase orders issued from time to time.

No other customer accounted for 10% or more of total net sales during these periods. We continue to focus on broadening our customer base to diversify our business.

Changes in the level of our customers' orders may have a significant impact on our operating results. If a major customer reduces the amount of business it transacts with us, or substantially changes the terms of that business, there could be an adverse impact on our operating results.

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COMPETITION

We compete with domestic and foreign manufacturers principally based on product features, technology, price, quality, reliability, delivery, and service. Most of our product lines encounter competition globally. The number of competitors varies across product lines. No one competitor competes with us in every product line, but some competitors are larger and more diversified than we are.

Some customers have reduced or may plan to reduce their number of suppliers, while increasing their volume of purchases. In certain other cases customers may choose to use multiple vendors to source products, which could impact our volumes and revenues. Customers demand lower cost and higher quality, reliability, and delivery standards from us as well as from our competitors. These trends create opportunities for us, but also increase the risk of loss of business to competitors. We are subject to competitive risks that are typical in our end markets, including technical obsolescence. We believe we compete most successfully in custom engineered products manufactured to meet specific applications of major OEMs.

NON-U.S. REVENUES AND OPERATIONS

Our net sales to customers originating from our non-U.S. operations as a percentage of total net sales were as follows: