ILLINOIS TOOL WORKS INC (ITW) FY 2021 MD&A

ITEM 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

INTRODUCTION

Illinois Tool Works Inc. (the "Company" or "ITW") is a global manufacturer of a diversified range of industrial products and equipment with 83 divisions in 52 countries. As of December 31, 2021, the Company employed approximately 45,000 people.

The Company's operations are organized and managed based on similar product offerings and end markets, and are reported to senior management as the following seven segments: Automotive OEM; Food Equipment; Test & Measurement and Electronics; Welding; Polymers & Fluids; Construction Products; and Specialty Products.

Due to the large number of diverse businesses and the Company's decentralized operating structure, the Company does not require its businesses to provide detailed information on operating results. Instead, the Company's corporate management collects data on several key measurements: operating revenue, operating income, operating margin, overhead costs, number of months on hand in inventory, days sales outstanding in accounts receivable, past due receivables and return on invested capital. These key measures are monitored by management and significant changes in operating results versus current trends in end markets and variances from forecasts are discussed with operating unit management.

THE ITW BUSINESS MODEL

The powerful and highly differentiated ITW Business Model is the Company's core source of value creation. The ITW Business Model is the Company's competitive advantage and defines how ITW creates value for its shareholders. It is comprised of three unique elements:

•ITW's 80/20 Front-to-Back process is the operating system that is applied in every ITW business. Initially introduced as a manufacturing efficiency tool in the 1980s, ITW has continually refined, improved and expanded 80/20 into a proprietary, holistic business management process that generates significant value for the Company and its customers. Through the application of data driven insights generated by 80/20 practice, ITW focuses on its largest and best opportunities (the "80") and eliminates cost, complexity and distractions associated with the less profitable opportunities (the "20"). 80/20 enables ITW businesses to consistently achieve world-class operational excellence in product availability, quality, and innovation, while generating superior financial performance;

•Customer-back Innovation has fueled decades of profitable growth at ITW. The Company's unique innovation approach is built on insight gathered from the 80/20 Front-to-Back process. Working from the customer back, ITW businesses position themselves as the go-to problem solver for their "80" customers. ITW's innovation efforts are

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focused on understanding customer needs, particularly those in "80" markets with solid long-term growth fundamentals, and creating unique solutions to address those needs. These customer insights and learnings drive innovation at ITW and have contributed to a portfolio of approximately 19,300 granted and pending patents;

•ITW's Decentralized, Entrepreneurial Culture enables ITW businesses to be fast, focused, and responsive. ITW businesses have significant flexibility within the framework of the ITW Business Model to customize their approach in order to best serve their specific customers' needs. ITW colleagues recognize their unique responsibilities to execute the Company's strategy and values. As a result, the Company maintains a focused and simple organizational structure that, combined with outstanding execution, delivers best-in-class services and solutions adapted to each business' customers and end markets.

ENTERPRISE STRATEGY

In late 2012, ITW began its strategic framework transitioning the Company on its current path to fully leverage the compelling performance potential of the ITW Business Model. The Company undertook a complete review of its performance, focusing on its businesses delivering consistent above-market growth with best-in-class margins and returns, and developing a strategy to replicate that performance across its operations.

ITW determined that solid and consistent above-market organic growth is the core growth engine to deliver world-class financial performance and compelling long-term returns for its shareholders. To shift its primary growth engine to organic, the Company began executing a multi-step approach.

•The first step was to narrow the focus and improve the quality of ITW's business portfolio. As part of the Portfolio Management initiative, ITW exited businesses that were operating in commoditized market spaces and prioritized sustainable differentiation as a must-have requirement for all ITW businesses. This process included both divesting entire businesses and exiting commoditized product lines and customers inside otherwise highly differentiated ITW divisions.

As a result of this work, ITW's business portfolio now has significantly higher organic growth potential. ITW segments and divisions now possess attractive and differentiated product lines and end markets as they continue to improve operating margins and generate price/cost increases. The Company achieved this through product line simplification, or eliminating the complexity and overhead costs associated with smaller product lines and customers, while supporting and growing the businesses' largest / most profitable customers and product lines.

•Step two, Business Structure Simplification, was implemented to simplify and scale up ITW's operating structure to support increased engineering, marketing, and sales resources, and improve global reach and competitiveness, all of which were critical to driving accelerated organic growth. ITW now has 83 scaled-up divisions with significantly enhanced focus on growth investments, core customers and products, and customer-back innovation.

•The Strategic Sourcing initiative established sourcing as a core strategic and operational capability at ITW, delivering an average of one percent reduction in spend each year from 2013 through 2021 and continues to be a key contributor to the Company's ongoing enterprise strategy.

•With the initial portfolio realignment and scale-up work largely complete, the Company shifted its focus to preparing for and accelerating organic growth, reapplying the 80/20 Front-to-Back process to optimize its newly scaled-up divisions for growth, first, to build a foundation of operational excellence, and second, to identify the best opportunities to drive organic growth.

ITW has clearly demonstrated superior 80/20 management, resulting in meaningful incremental improvement in margins and returns as evidenced by the Company's operating margin and after-tax return on invested capital. At the same time, these 80/20 initiatives can also result in restructuring initiatives that reduce costs and improve profitability and returns.

PATH TO FULL POTENTIAL

Since the launch of the enterprise strategy, the Company has made considerable progress to position itself to reach full potential. The ITW Business Model and unique set of capabilities are a source of strong and enduring competitive advantage,

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but for the Company to truly reach its full potential, every one of its divisions must also be operating at its full potential. To do so, the Company remains focused on its core principles to position ITW to perform to its full potential:

•Portfolio discipline

•80/20 Front-to-Back practice excellence

•Full-potential organic growth

Portfolio Discipline

The Company only operates in industries where it can generate significant, long-term competitive advantage from the ITW Business Model. ITW businesses have the right "raw material" in terms of market and business attributes that best fit the ITW Business Model and have significant potential to drive above-market organic growth over the long-term.

The Company focuses on high-quality businesses, ensuring it operates in markets with positive long-term macro fundamentals and with customers that have critical needs and value ITW's differentiated products, services and solutions. ITW's portfolio operates in highly diverse end markets and geographies which makes the Company more resilient in the face of uncertain or volatile market environments.

The Company routinely evaluates its portfolio to ensure it delivers sustainable differentiation and drives consistent long-term performance. This includes both implementing portfolio refinements and assessing selective high-quality acquisitions to supplement ITW's long-term growth potential.

The Company previously communicated its intent to explore options, including potential divestitures, for certain businesses with revenues totaling up to $1 billion. In the fourth quarter of 2019, the Company completed the divestitures of three businesses and continues to evaluate options for certain other businesses. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Company deferred any further significant divestiture activity until 2022 or later. The Company intends to reinitiate the divestiture process in 2022 for certain businesses with combined annual revenues of approximately $0.5 billion. Refer to Note 4. Divestitures in Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data for further information regarding divestiture activity.

80/20 Front-to-Back Practice Excellence

The 80/20 Front-to-Back process is a rigorous, iterative and highly data-driven approach to identify where the Company has true differentiation and the ability to drive sustainable, high-quality organic growth. The Company simplifies and eliminates complexity and redesigns every aspect of its business to ensure focused execution on key opportunities, markets, customers, and products.

ITW will continue to drive 80/20 Front-to-Back practice excellence in every division in the Company, every day. Driving strong operational excellence in the quality of 80/20 Front-to-Back practice across the Company, division by division, will produce further customer-facing performance improvement in a number of divisions and additional structural margin expansion at the enterprise level.

Near-term Priorities

While it was the challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic that dominated the Company's attention starting in 2020, it was the collection of capabilities and competitive advantages that have been built and honed over the past nine years through the execution of ITW's enterprise strategy that provided the Company with the options to respond. This, coupled with the proprietary and powerful ITW Business Model, diversified high-quality business portfolio and diligent execution put the Company in a position of strength in dealing with the global pandemic.

As the global pandemic continues, the Company continues to focus its efforts on (1) protecting the health and support the well-being of ITW's colleagues; (2) serving the Company's customers with excellence; (3) maintain financial strength, liquidity and strategic optionality; and (4) leverage the Company's strengths to position it to fully participate in the recovery.

"Win the Recovery" is an execution component of the Company's enterprise strategy, not a separate initiative, with every one of the Company's divisions identifying specific opportunities presented by the pandemic to capture sustainable share gains that are aligned with the ITW long-term enterprise strategy. The Company expects these efforts to contribute meaningfully to

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accelerate its progress toward full-potential organic growth. The Company continues to focus on delivering strong results in any environment while executing its long-term strategy to achieve and sustain ITW's full potential performance.

Full-Potential Organic Growth

Reaching full potential means that every division is positioned for sustainable, high-quality organic growth. The Company has clearly defined action plans aimed at leveraging the performance power of the ITW Business Model to achieve full-potential organic growth in every division, with specific focus on:

•"80" focused Market Penetration - fully leveraging the considerable growth potential that resides in the Company's largest and most differentiated product offerings and customer relationships

•Customer-back Innovation - strengthening the Company's commitment to serial innovation and delivering a continuous flow of differentiated new products to its key customers

•Strategic Sales Excellence - deploying a high-performance sales function in every division

As the Company continues to make progress toward its full potential, the Company will explore opportunities to reinforce or further expand the long-term organic growth potential of ITW through the addition of selective high-quality acquisitions, such as the acquisition of the Test & Simulation business of MTS Systems Corporation ("MTS") from Amphenol Corporation on December 1, 2021. The operating results of the MTS Test & Simulation business were reported within the Company's Test & Measurement and Electronics segment. Refer to Note 3. Acquisitions in Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data for further information regarding this acquisition.

TERMS USED BY ITW

Management uses the following terms to describe the financial results of operations of the Company:

•Organic business - acquired businesses that have been included in the Company's results of operations for more than 12 months on a constant currency basis.

•Operating leverage - the estimated effect of the organic revenue volume changes on organic operating income, assuming variable margins remain the same as the prior period.

•Price/cost - represents the estimated net impact of increases or decreases in the cost of materials used in the Company's products versus changes in the selling price to the Company's customers.

•Product line simplification (PLS) - focuses businesses on eliminating the complexity and overhead costs associated with smaller product lines and customers, and focuses businesses on supporting and growing their largest customers and product lines. In the short-term, PLS may result in a decrease in revenue and overhead costs while improving operating margin. In the long-term, PLS is expected to result in growth in revenue, profitability, and returns.

Unless otherwise stated, the changes in financial results in the consolidated results of operations and the results of operations by segment represent the current year period versus the comparable period in the prior year.

CONSOLIDATED RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

In early 2020, an outbreak of a novel strain of coronavirus (COVID-19) occurred in China and other jurisdictions. The COVID-19 outbreak was subsequently declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization on March 11, 2020. In response to the outbreak, governments around the globe have taken various actions to reduce its spread, including travel restrictions, shutdowns of businesses deemed nonessential, and stay-at-home or similar orders. The COVID-19 pandemic and the measures taken globally to reduce its spread have negatively impacted the global economy, causing significant disruptions in the Company's global operations starting primarily in the latter part of the first quarter of 2020 as COVID-19 continued to spread and impact the countries in which the Company operates and the markets the Company serves.

For the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Company is focusing on the following priorities: (1) protect the health and support the well-being of ITW's colleagues; (2) continue to serve the Company's customers with excellence to the best of its ability; (3) maintain financial strength, liquidity and strategic optionality; and (4) leverage the Company's strengths to position it to fully participate in the recovery. To support ITW's colleagues, among its many actions and initiatives, the Company redesigned production processes to ensure proper social distancing practices, adjusted shift schedules and assignments to help colleagues who have child and elder care needs, and implemented aggressive new workplace sanitation practices and a coordinated response to ensure access to personal protective equipment to minimize infection risk. To support its customers, the Company has worked diligently to keep its facilities open and operating safely. The Company has adapted

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customer service systems and practices to seamlessly serve its customers under "work from home" requirements in many parts of the world.

In areas around the world where governments issued stay-at-home or similar orders, the vast majority of ITW's businesses were designated as critical or essential businesses and, as such, they remained open and operational. In some cases, this is because the Company's products directly impact the COVID-19 response effort. In other cases, the Company's businesses are designated as critical because they play a vital role in serving and supporting industries that are deemed essential to the physical and economic health of our communities.

While the vast majority of the Company's facilities have remained open and operational during the pandemic, many of these facilities were operating at a reduced capacity at various times since the outset of the pandemic. The full extent of the COVID-19 outbreak and its impact on the markets served by the Company and on the Company's operations and financial position continues to be highly uncertain as conditions continue to fluctuate around the world, with vaccine administration rising in certain regions and spikes in infections (including the spread of variants) also being experienced. A prolonged outbreak could continue to interrupt the operations of the Company and its customers and suppliers. A description of the risks relating to the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on the Company's business, operations and financial condition is contained in Part I, Item 1A. Risk Factors.

Separately, the Company does not believe that tariffs imposed in recent years have had a material impact on its operating results. As the global trade environment, including the regulatory environment, continues to evolve, the Company will continue to evaluate the impact of enacted and proposed tariffs on its businesses, as well as pricing actions to mitigate the impact of any raw material cost increases resulting from these tariffs.

The Company delivered strong financial results in 2021 primarily due to the continued successful execution of enterprise initiatives, including the "Win the Recovery" actions initiated over the course of the past year, and continued focus on the highly differentiated ITW Business Model. Despite rising raw material costs and a challenging global supply chain environment, the Company generated operating revenue growth of 15.0 percent and organic revenue growth of 12.3 percent, as all segments had organic revenue growth in 2021. Organic revenue for the Automotive OEM segment grew mid-single digits, but was adversely impacted by auto production reductions associated with the supply chain challenges affecting its customers, especially during the second half of 2021. Operating income grew 20.6 percent in 2021. Operating margin was 24.1 percent in 2021 as all segments achieved margin expansion compared to the prior year period.

On December 1, 2021, the Company completed the acquisition of the MTS Test & Simulation business for a purchase price of $750 million, subject to certain closing adjustments. The MTS Test & Simulation business had operating revenue of $46 million for the one month ended December 31, 2021. The Company expects the MTS Test & Simulation business to be neutral to diluted earnings per share in the next twelve months, but expects improved earnings and operating margin performance in later years through the application of the Company's 80/20 Front-to-Back process. The operating results of the MTS Test & Simulation business were reported within the Test & Measurement and Electronics segment. The acquisition of the MTS Test & Simulation business did not have a material impact on the Company's results of operations or financial position for any period presented. Refer to Note 3. Acquisitions in Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data for further information.

The Company's consolidated results of operations for 2021, 2020 and 2019 were as follows:

2021 compared to 2020

•Operating revenue increased due to higher organic and acquisition revenue and the favorable effect of foreign currency translation.

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•Organic revenue increased 12.3% as the Company saw continued improvement in both the breadth and pace of the recovery. Additionally, product line simplification activities reduced organic revenue by 20 basis points.

◦North American organic revenue increased 13.5% due to growth in all segments, primarily driven by the Welding, Test & Measurement and Electronics and Food Equipment segments.

◦Europe, Middle East and Africa organic revenue increased 8.7% due to growth in six segments, primarily driven by the Food Equipment and Construction Products segments. The Automotive OEM segment was essentially flat.

◦Asia Pacific organic revenue increased 13.5% due to growth in all segments. China organic revenue grew 15.1% with growth in six segments, partially offset by a decline in the Construction Products segment.

•Operating income of $3.5 billion increased 20.6% primarily due to higher organic revenue.

•Operating margin of 24.1% increased 120 basis points primarily due to positive operating leverage of 250 basis points and benefits from the Company's enterprise initiatives of 110 basis points, partially offset by unfavorable price/cost of 150 basis points and higher overhead expenses, including employee-related expenses.

•The Company's effective tax rate was 19.0% in 2021 compared to 22.0% in 2020. The 2021 effective tax rate benefited from a discrete income tax benefit of $21 million in the third quarter related to the utilization of capital losses and a discrete income tax benefit of $112 million in the second quarter of 2021 related to the remeasurement of net deferred tax assets due to the enactment of the U.K. Finance Bill 2021, which increases the U.K. income tax rate from 19% to 25% effective April 1, 2023. Additionally, the effective tax rate included discrete income tax benefits related to excess tax benefits from stock-based compensation of $17 million and $27 million for 2021 and 2020, respectively.

•Diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $8.51 increased 28.4%. Excluding the favorable impact of the $21 million discrete income tax benefit in the third quarter of 2021 and the $112 million discrete income tax benefit in the second quarter of 2021, EPS increased 22.0%.

•Operating cash flow was $2.6 billion and free cash flow was $2.3 billion for 2021. Refer to the Cash Flow section of Liquidity and Capital Resources for a reconciliation of free cash flow, which is a non-GAAP measure.

•The Company repurchased approximately 4.4 million shares of its common stock in 2021 for approximately $1.0 billion.

•The Company increased the quarterly dividend on common stock from $1.14 to $1.22 per share in 2021, or from $4.56 to $4.88 per share on an annualized basis. Total cash dividends of approximately $1.5 billion were paid in 2021.

2020 compared to 2019

•Operating revenue decreased due to lower organic revenue, the impact of 2019 divestitures and the unfavorable effect of foreign currency translation.

•Organic revenue decreased 9.8% primarily due to disruptions in the Company's global operations resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic as organic revenue declined in six of the seven segments. The Food Equipment, Automotive OEM and Welding segments had more pronounced unfavorable impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. The Construction Products segment grew 1.5% primarily due to growth in North America. Product line simplification activities reduced the Company's organic revenue by 30 basis points.

◦North American organic revenue decreased 9.7% as a decline in six segments, primarily driven by the Automotive OEM, Food Equipment and Welding segments, was partially offset by growth in the Construction Products segment.

◦Europe, Middle East and Africa organic revenue decreased 13.8% as all seven segments had a decline in organic revenue primarily driven by the Automotive OEM and Food Equipment segments.

◦Asia Pacific organic revenue decreased 2.0% as a decline in the Food Equipment, Welding, Specialty Products and Construction Products segments was offset by growth in the Automotive OEM, Test & Measurement and Electronics and Polymers & Fluids segments. China organic revenue grew 0.3% as an increase in the Automotive OEM, Polymers & Fluids and Test & Measurement and Electronics segments was partially offset by a decline in the Food Equipment, Welding, Specialty Products and Construction Products segments.

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•Operating income of $2.9 billion decreased 15.3% primarily due to lower organic revenue. Additionally, operating income for 2019 included $11.8 million related to the businesses divested in 2019.

•Operating margin of 22.9% decreased 120 basis points primarily driven by negative operating leverage of 230 basis points and product mix, partially offset by benefits from the Company's enterprise initiatives of 120 basis points and lower overhead expenses, such as travel and bonuses, and lower restructuring expenses.

•The effective tax rate was 22.0% in 2020 compared to 23.3% in 2019. The 2019 effective tax rate benefited from a discrete tax benefit of $21 million in the third quarter for the U.S. federal provision to return adjustment resulting primarily from changes in estimates related to the "Tax Cuts and Jobs Act." Additionally, the effective tax rates for 2020 and 2019 included $27 million and $28 million, respectively, related to excess tax benefits from stock-based compensation. Refer to Note 7. Income Taxes in Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data for further information.

•Diluted earnings per share (EPS) were $6.63 for 2020.

•Operating cash flow was $2.8 billion and free cash flow was $2.6 billion for 2020. Refer to the Cash Flow section of Liquidity and Capital Resources for a reconciliation of free cash flow, which is a non-GAAP measure.

•The Company repurchased approximately 4.2 million shares of its common stock in 2020 for approximately $706 million. The Company temporarily suspended its share repurchase program starting in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and resumed share repurchases in 2021.

•The Company increased the quarterly dividend on common stock from $1.07 to $1.14 per share in 2020, or from $4.28 to $4.56 per share on an annualized basis. Total cash dividends of approximately $1.4 billion were paid in 2020.

RESULTS OF OPERATIONS BY SEGMENT

The reconciliation of segment operating revenue and operating income to total operating revenue and operating income is as follows:

Segments are allocated a fixed overhead charge based on the segment's revenue. Expenses not charged to the segments are reported separately as Unallocated. Because the Unallocated category includes a variety of items, it is subject to fluctuations

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on a quarterly and annual basis. Unallocated expenses in 2021 are higher primarily due to higher employee-related expenses and transaction costs related to the previously discussed acquisition of the MTS Test & Simulation business.

AUTOMOTIVE OEM

This segment is a global, niche supplier to top tier OEMs, providing unique innovation to address pain points for sophisticated customers with complex problems. Businesses in this segment produce components and fasteners for automotive-related applications. This segment primarily serves the automotive original equipment manufacturers and tiers market. Products in this segment include:

•plastic and metal components, fasteners and assemblies for automobiles, light trucks and other industrial uses.

The results of operations for the Automotive OEM segment for 2021, 2020 and 2019 were as follows:

2021 compared to 2020

•Operating revenue increased due to higher organic revenue and the favorable effect of foreign currency translation.

•Organic revenue increased 5.8%. The impact of Automotive OEM customers adjusting production schedules to account for the shortage of semiconductor chips and other components negatively impacted organic revenue in 2021, especially during the second half of the year. Worldwide auto builds increased 2%. Auto builds for North America, Europe and China, where the Company has a higher concentration of revenue as compared to the other geographic regions, were flat.

◦North American organic revenue increased 5.3% compared to North American auto builds which were flat. Auto builds for the Detroit 3, where the Company has higher content, decreased 5%.

◦European organic revenue was essentially flat compared to European auto builds which declined 5%.

◦Asia Pacific organic revenue increased 17.2%. China organic revenue grew 13.9% versus China auto builds which increased 4%. Auto builds of foreign automotive manufacturers in China, where the Company has higher content, declined 8%.

•Operating margin was 19.5%. The increase of 170 basis points was primarily driven by positive operating leverage of 120 basis points, the net benefits from the Company's enterprise initiatives and cost management, and lower restructuring expenses, partially offset by unfavorable price/cost of 250 basis points.

2020 compared to 2019

•Operating revenue declined due to lower organic revenue.

•Organic revenue declined 16.0% versus worldwide auto builds which decreased 16%. Product line simplification activities reduced organic revenue by 80 basis points.

◦North American organic revenue decreased 22.3% compared to North American auto builds which declined 20% due to customer mix. Auto builds for the Detroit 3, where the Company has higher content, decreased 23%.

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◦European organic revenue was down 16.8% compared to European auto builds which decreased 22%.

◦Asia Pacific organic revenue increased 0.7%. China organic revenue grew 6.1% versus China auto builds which decreased 4%. Auto builds of foreign automotive manufacturers in China, where the Company has higher content, decreased 8%.

•Operating margin of 17.8% in 2020 decreased 370 basis points primarily due to negative operating leverage of 330 basis points, product mix and unfavorable price/cost of 20 basis points, partially offset by benefits from the Company's enterprise initiatives and lower restructuring expenses.

FOOD EQUIPMENT

This segment is a highly focused and branded industry leader in commercial food equipment differentiated by innovation and integrated service offerings. This segment primarily serves the food service, food retail and food institutional/restaurant markets. Products in this segment include:

•warewashing equipment;

•cooking equipment, including ovens, ranges and broilers;

•refrigeration equipment, including refrigerators, freezers and prep tables;

•food processing equipment, including slicers, mixers and scales;

•kitchen exhaust, ventilation and pollution control systems; and

•food equipment service, maintenance and repair.

The results of operations for the Food Equipment segment for 2021, 2020 and 2019 were as follows:

2021 compared to 2020

•Operating revenue grew due to higher organic revenue and the favorable effect of foreign currency translation.

•Organic revenue increased 16.7% as equipment and service organic revenue grew 21.4% and 8.5%, respectively.

◦North American organic revenue increased 16.2%. Equipment organic revenue grew 20.1% primarily due to growth in the restaurant and institutional end markets, partially offset by a decline in the food retail end markets. Service organic revenue increased 10.3%.

◦International organic revenue increased 17.4%. Equipment organic revenue grew 22.9% primarily due to higher demand in the European warewash, refrigeration and cooking end markets. Service organic revenue increased 5.5%.

•Operating margin was 22.6%. The increase of 300 basis points was primarily driven by positive operating leverage of 370 basis points, benefits from the Company's enterprise initiatives and lower restructuring expenses, partially offset by unfavorable price/cost of 90 basis points and higher overhead expenses.

2020 compared to 2019

•Operating revenue declined due to lower organic revenue.

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•Organic revenue declined 20.6% as equipment and service organic revenue decreased 21.8% and 18.5%, respectively.

◦North American organic revenue declined 19.2% as equipment organic revenue decreased 20.4%, primarily driven by lower demand in the restaurant and institutional end markets, partially offset by growth in the food retail end markets. Service organic revenue decreased 17.3%.

◦International organic revenue decreased 22.5%. Equipment organic revenue declined 23.5% primarily due to lower demand in the European warewash, cooking and refrigeration end markets and lower demand in Asia. Service organic revenue decreased 20.4%.

•Operating margin of 19.6% in 2020 decreased 680 basis points primarily due to negative operating leverage of 540 basis points and product mix, partially offset by benefits from the Company's enterprise initiatives and favorable price/cost of 50 basis points.

TEST & MEASUREMENT AND ELECTRONICS

This segment is a branded and innovative producer of test and measurement and electronic manufacturing and maintenance, repair, and operations, or "MRO" solutions that improve efficiency and quality for customers in diverse end markets. Businesses in this segment produce equipment, consumables, and related software for testing and measuring of materials and structures, as well as equipment and consumables used in the production of electronic subassemblies and microelectronics. This segment primarily serves the electronics, general industrial, automotive original equipment manufacturers and tiers, industrial capital goods, energy and consumer durables markets. Products in this segment include:

•equipment, consumables, and related software for testing and measuring of materials, structures, gases and fluids;

•electronic assembly equipment;

•electronic components and component packaging;

•static control equipment and consumables used for contamination control in clean room environments; and

•pressure sensitive adhesives and components for electronics, medical, transportation and telecommunications applications.

The results of operations for the Test & Measurement and Electronics segment for 2021, 2020 and 2019 were as follows:

2021 compared to 2020

•Operating revenue grew due to higher organic revenue, the MTS Test & Simulation acquisition and the favorable effect of foreign currency translation.

•Organic revenue increased 15.3%.

◦Organic revenue for the test and measurement businesses increased 14.8% primarily driven by higher semiconductor demand in North America, the impact of a stronger capital spending environment, and higher demand in the oil and gas end markets in North America. Instron, where demand is more closely tied to the capital spending environment, had organic revenue growth of 14.0%.

◦Electronics organic revenue increased 15.9% driven by higher demand in consumer electronics, automotive applications and semiconductor end markets. The electronics assembly businesses grew 26.6% primarily due to higher demand in North America and Asia Pacific. The other electronics businesses, which include the contamination control, static control and pressure sensitive adhesives businesses, increased 10.8% with growth in all major regions.

•On December 1, 2021, the Company completed the acquisition of the MTS Test & Simulation business, which had operating revenue of $46 million for the one month ended December 31, 2021 and increased Test & Measurement and Electronics operating revenue by 2.3%.

•Operating margin was 27.4%. The increase of 160 basis points was primarily driven by positive operating leverage of 340 basis points and benefits from the Company's enterprise initiatives, partially offset by unfavorable price/cost of 40 basis points, the dilutive impact from the MTS acquisition, higher overhead expenses and higher freight costs.

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Additionally, the prior year included the recapture of amortization and depreciation expense related to a business previously classified as held for sale.

2020 compared to 2019

•Operating revenue declined due to lower organic revenue and the impact of a 2019 divestiture, partially offset by the favorable effect of foreign currency translation.

•Organic revenue decreased 4.9% in 2020.

◦Organic revenue for the test and measurement businesses decreased 7.2% primarily driven by the impact of a soft capital spending environment in North America and Europe, partially offset by higher semi-conductor demand in North America. Instron, where demand is more closely tied to the capital spending environment, had an organic revenue decline of 14.1% in 2020.

◦Electronics organic revenue declined 2.1%. The electronics assembly businesses decreased 6.9% primarily due to lower demand in North America. The other electronics businesses, which include the contamination control, static control and pressure sensitive adhesives businesses, grew 0.9% primarily due to an increase in North America, partially offset by a decrease in Europe and Asia Pacific.

•Operating margin of 25.8% in 2020 increased 20 basis points primarily due to the net benefits from the Company's enterprise initiatives and cost management, the impact of a 2019 divestiture and favorable price/cost of 30 basis points, partially offset by negative operating leverage of 130 basis points and the recapture of amortization and depreciation expense related to a business previously classified as held for sale.

WELDING

This segment is a branded value-added equipment and specialty consumable manufacturer with innovative and leading technology. Businesses in this segment produce arc welding equipment, consumables and accessories for a wide array of industrial and commercial applications. This segment primarily serves the general industrial market, which includes fabrication, shipbuilding and other general industrial markets, and energy, construction, MRO, automotive original equipment manufacturers and tiers, and industrial capital goods markets. Products in this segment include:

•arc welding equipment; and

•metal arc welding consumables and related accessories.

The results of operations for the Welding segment for 2021, 2020 and 2019 were as follows:

2021 compared to 2020

•Operating revenue grew due to higher organic revenue and the favorable effect of foreign currency translation.

•Organic revenue grew 18.1% as equipment increased 20.5% and consumables increased 14.3% primarily due to higher demand in the industrial end markets related to heavy equipment for agriculture, infrastructure and mining and in the commercial end markets related to construction, light fabrication and farm and ranch customers.

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◦North American organic revenue increased 19.6% primarily driven by growth in the industrial and commercial end markets of 22.6% and 17.0%, respectively.

◦International organic revenue grew 10.7% primarily due to higher equipment demand in the oil and gas end markets in Europe and Asia.

•Operating margin was 29.7%. The increase of 260 basis points was primarily driven by positive operating leverage of 260 basis points and benefits from the Company's enterprise initiatives, partially offset by higher overhead expenses.

2020 compared to 2019

•Operating revenue decreased due to lower organic revenue and the impact of a 2019 divestiture.

•Organic revenue declined 11.8% driven by decreases in equipment of 12.2% and consumables of 11.2%, primarily due to lower demand in the industrial end markets.

◦North American organic revenue decreased 10.8% primarily due to a decline in the industrial end markets of 19.8%, partially offset by growth in the commercial end markets of 2.1%.

◦International organic revenue decreased 16.4% primarily due to a decline in the European oil and gas end markets.

•Operating margin of 27.1% in 2020 decreased 60 basis points primarily driven by negative operating leverage of 220 basis points and product mix, partially offset by benefits from the Company's enterprise initiatives, the impact of a 2019 divestiture and lower restructuring expenses.

POLYMERS & FLUIDS

This segment is a branded supplier to niche markets that require value-added, differentiated products. Businesses in this segment produce engineered adhesives, sealants, lubrication and cutting fluids, and fluids and polymers for auto aftermarket maintenance and appearance. This segment primarily serves the automotive aftermarket, general industrial, MRO and construction markets. Products in this segment include:

•adhesives for industrial, construction and consumer purposes;

•chemical fluids which clean or add lubrication to machines;

•epoxy and resin-based coating products for industrial applications;

•hand wipes and cleaners for industrial applications;

•fluids, polymers and other supplies for auto aftermarket maintenance and appearance;

•fillers and putties for auto body repair; and

•polyester coatings and patch and repair products for the marine industry.

The results of operations for the Polymers & Fluids segment for 2021, 2020 and 2019 were as follows:

2021 compared to 2020

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•Operating revenue grew due to higher organic revenue and the favorable effect of foreign currency translation.

•Organic revenue increased 10.0% driven by higher demand across all major regions. Additionally, product line simplification activities reduced organic revenue by 80 basis points.

◦Organic revenue for the automotive aftermarket businesses increased 11.4% primarily driven by growth in the car care, body repair and tire repair businesses in North America and growth in the European additives and tire repair businesses.

◦Organic revenue for the polymers businesses increased 15.5% with growth across all major regions and end markets.

◦Organic revenue for the fluids businesses decreased 1.0% primarily due to a decline in the industrial maintenance, repair and operations end markets in North America.

•Operating margin was 25.4%. The increase of 60 basis points was primarily due to positive operating leverage of 200 basis points, benefits from the Company's enterprise initiatives and lower intangible asset amortization expense, partially offset by unfavorable price/cost of 200 basis points, higher overhead expenses and higher freight costs.

2020 compared to 2019

•Operating revenue decreased due to lower organic revenue and the unfavorable effect of foreign currency translation.

•Organic revenue declined 1.4% in 2020. Product line simplification activities reduced organic revenue by 50 basis points.

◦Organic revenue for the polymers businesses decreased 5.3% primarily driven by a decline in the heavy industrial end markets in North America and Europe.

◦Organic revenue for the automotive aftermarket businesses declined 0.5% primarily driven by a decrease in the car care and body repair businesses in North America and the additives businesses in Europe, partially offset by growth in the tire and engine repair businesses in North America.

◦Organic revenue for the fluids businesses grew 3.3% primarily due to an increase in the industrial maintenance, repair, and operations end markets in Europe and North America.

•Operating margin of 24.8% in 2020 increased 200 basis points primarily due to the net benefits from the Company's enterprise initiatives and cost management, favorable price/cost of 50 basis points and lower restructuring expenses, partially offset by negative operating leverage of 30 basis points.

CONSTRUCTION PRODUCTS

This segment is a branded supplier of innovative engineered fastening systems and solutions. This segment primarily serves the residential construction, renovation/remodel and commercial construction markets. Products in this segment include:

•fasteners and related fastening tools for wood and metal applications;

•anchors, fasteners and related tools for concrete applications;

•metal plate truss components and related equipment and software; and

•packaged hardware, fasteners, anchors and other products for retail.

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The results of operations for the Construction Products segment for 2021, 2020 and 2019 were as follows:

2021 compared to 2020

•Operating revenue grew primarily due to higher organic revenue and the favorable effect of foreign currency translation.

•Organic revenue increased 13.6% with growth across all major regions. Additionally, product line simplification activities reduced organic revenue by 40 basis points.

◦North American organic revenue grew 13.6% due to higher demand in the United States residential and commercial end markets of 12.7% and 14.7%, respectively, and growth in Canada.

◦International organic revenue increased 13.6%. European organic revenue grew 19.4% primarily driven by higher demand in the commercial and residential end markets. Asia Pacific organic revenue increased 7.3% primarily due to higher demand in Australia and New Zealand in the residential end markets.

•Operating margin was 27.2%. The increase of 170 basis points was primarily due to positive operating leverage of 240 basis points and the net benefits from the Company's enterprise initiatives and cost management, partially offset by unfavorable price/cost of 250 basis points.

2020 compared to 2019

•Operating revenue increased due to higher organic revenue and the favorable effect of foreign currency translation.

•Organic revenue grew 1.5% as an increase in North America was partially offset by declines in Europe and Asia Pacific.

◦North American organic revenue grew 7.8% as increases of 11.4% in the United States residential end markets and 13.0% in Canada were partially offset by a decrease of 11.4% in the commercial end markets.

◦International organic revenue decreased 3.3% in 2020. Asia Pacific organic revenue decreased 0.7% primarily due to a decline in the commercial end markets in Australia and New Zealand. European organic revenue decreased 5.5% driven by a decline in continental Europe and the United Kingdom.

•Operating margin of 25.5% in 2020 increased 190 basis points primarily driven by the net benefits from the Company's enterprise initiatives and cost management, positive operating leverage of 30 basis points and lower restructuring expenses, partially offset by unfavorable price/cost of 50 basis points.

SPECIALTY PRODUCTS

This segment is focused on diversified niche market opportunities with substantial patent protection producing beverage packaging equipment and consumables, product coding and marking equipment and consumables, and appliance components and fasteners. This segment primarily serves the food and beverage, consumer durables, general industrial, industrial capital goods and printing and publishing markets. Products in this segment include:

•line integration, conveyor systems and line automation for the food and beverage industries;

•plastic consumables that multi-pack cans and bottles and related equipment;

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•foil, film and related equipment used to decorate consumer products;

•product coding and marking equipment and related consumables;

•plastic and metal closures and components for appliances;

•airport ground support equipment; and

•components for medical devices.

The results of operations for the Specialty Products segment for 2021, 2020 and 2019 were as follows:

2021 compared to 2020

•Operating revenue grew due to higher organic revenue and the favorable effect of foreign currency translation.

•Organic revenue increased 9.8% as consumables increased 10.8% and equipment increased 6.4% primarily due to higher demand in North America. Additionally, product line simplification activities reduced organic revenue by 20 basis points.

◦North American organic revenue increased 11.2% primarily driven by growth in the consumer packaging, strength film, appliance, filter medical, and product coding and marking businesses.

◦International organic revenue increased 6.8% primarily due to growth in the appliance businesses in Europe and Asia Pacific and the ground support equipment businesses in Europe, partially offset by a decline in the consumer packaging businesses in Europe and the strength film businesses in Asia Pacific.

•Operating margin was 27.2%. The increase of 120 basis points was primarily due to positive operating leverage of 190 basis points and benefits from the Company's enterprise initiatives, partially offset by unfavorable price/cost of 200 basis points, higher overhead expenses and higher freight costs. Additionally, the prior year included an unfavorable impact of a one-time customer cost-sharing settlement.

2020 compared to 2019

•Operating revenue decreased primarily due to lower organic revenue and the impact of 2019 divestitures.

•Organic revenue decreased 8.2% as equipment sales declined 17.7% and consumables declined 5.2%. Additionally, product line simplification activities reduced organic revenue by 30 basis points.

◦North American organic revenue decreased 7.3% primarily due to a decline in the ground support equipment, appliance and specialty films businesses, partially offset by an increase in the consumer packaging businesses.

◦International organic revenue decreased 10.0% primarily due to a decline in the consumer packaging, ground support equipment, appliance, specialty films and marking coding businesses in Europe.

•Operating margin of 26.0% in 2020 increased 10 basis points primarily due to benefits from the Company's enterprise initiatives, lower restructuring expenses and the impact of 2019 divestitures, partially offset by negative operating leverage of 180 basis points, unfavorable price/cost of 60 basis points and the unfavorable impact of a one-time customer cost-sharing settlement.

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OTHER FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

•Interest expense was $202 million in 2021, $206 million in 2020 and $221 million in 2019. Interest expense in 2020 was $15 million lower than 2019 primarily driven by the repayment of the $700 million notes due April 1, 2019 and the $650 million notes due March 1, 2019, and outstanding commercial paper in 2019, partially offset by the issuance of the €1.6 billion Euro notes in June of 2019.

•Other income (expense) was income of $51 million in 2021, $28 million in 2020 and $107 million in 2019. The income in 2021 increased $23 million compared to 2020 primarily due to higher investment income and higher other net periodic benefit income in 2021. The income in 2020 decreased $79 million compared to 2019 primarily due to the net pre-tax gain on the disposal of operations and affiliates of $44 million in 2019, lower interest and investment income, and lower other net periodic benefit income.

•The Company's effective tax rate for 2021, 2020 and 2019 was 19.0%, 22.0% and 23.3%, respectively. The 2021 effective tax rate benefited from discrete income tax benefits of $21 million in the third quarter of 2021 related to the utilization of capital losses and $112 million in the second quarter of 2021 related to the remeasurement of net deferred tax assets due to the enactment of the U.K. Finance Bill 2021, which increases the U.K. income tax rate from 19% to 25% effective April 1, 2023. The 2019 effective tax rate benefited from a discrete income tax benefit of $21 million in the third quarter for the U.S. federal provision to return adjustment. Additionally, the effective tax rates for 2021, 2020 and 2019 included discrete income tax benefits of $17 million, $27 million and $28 million, respectively, related to excess tax benefits from stock-based compensation. Refer to Note 7. Income Taxes in Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data for further information.

•The impact of the Euro and other foreign currencies against the U.S. Dollar in 2021 versus 2020 increased operating revenue and income before taxes by approximately $301 million and $77 million, respectively. The impact of the Euro and other foreign currencies against the U.S. Dollar in 2020 versus 2019 decreased operating revenue and income before taxes by approximately $20 million and $3 million, respectively.

NEW ACCOUNTING PRONOUNCEMENTS

Information regarding new accounting pronouncements is included in Note 1. Description of Business and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies in Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data.

LIQUIDITY AND CAPITAL RESOURCES

The Company's primary sources of liquidity are free cash flow and short-term credit facilities. As of December 31, 2021, the Company had $1.5 billion of cash and equivalents on hand and no outstanding borrowings under its $2.5 billion revolving credit facility. The Company also has maintained strong access to public debt markets. Management believes that these sources are sufficient to service debt and to finance the Company's capital allocation priorities, which include:

•internal investments to support organic growth and sustain core businesses;

•payment of an attractive dividend to shareholders; and

•external investments in selective strategic acquisitions that support the Company's organic growth focus, such as the recently completed acquisition of the MTS Test & Simulation business, and an active share repurchase program. Refer to Note 3. Acquisitions in Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data for further information regarding this acquisition.

The Company believes that, based on its operating revenue, operating margin, free cash flow, and credit ratings, it could readily obtain additional financing, if necessary. A description of the risks related to the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on the financial and capital markets and the related potential risks to the Company is contained in Part I, Item 1A. Risk Factors.

The Company has certain contractual obligations, primarily noncurrent income taxes payable, operating leases and long-term debt. Refer to Note 7. Income Taxes, Note 10. Leases and Note 11. Debt in Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data for details related to the Company's contractual obligations. The Company did not have any significant off-balance sheet commitments as of December 31, 2021.

Cash Flow

The Company uses free cash flow to measure cash flow generated by operations that is available for dividends, share repurchases, acquisitions and debt repayment. The Company believes this non-GAAP financial measure is useful to investors in evaluating the Company's financial performance and measures the Company's ability to generate cash internally to fund

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Company initiatives. Free cash flow represents net cash provided by operating activities less additions to plant and equipment. Free cash flow is a measurement that is not the same as net cash flow from operating activities per the statement of cash flows and may not be consistent with similarly titled measures used by other companies. Summarized cash flow information for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019 was as follows:

Free cash flow decreased in 2021 due to higher working capital investments to support revenue growth, including increased inventory levels to help mitigate supply chain risk and sustain customer service levels.

Stock Repurchase Programs

On February 13, 2015, the Company's Board of Directors authorized a stock repurchase program which provided for the repurchase of up to $6.0 billion of the Company's common stock over an open-ended period of time (the "2015 Program"). Under the 2015 Program, the Company repurchased approximately 6.1 million shares of its common stock at an average price of $91.78 per share during 2015, approximately 18.7 million shares of its common stock at an average price of $107.17 per share during 2016, approximately 7.1 million shares of its common stock at an average price of $140.56 per share during 2017, approximately 13.9 million shares of its common stock at an average price of $143.66 per share during 2018 and approximately 3.1 million shares of its common stock at an average price of $143.23 per share during 2019. The 2015 Program was completed in the second quarter of 2019.

On August 3, 2018, the Company's Board of Directors authorized a new stock repurchase program which provides for the repurchase of up to an additional $3.0 billion of the Company's common stock over an open-ended period of time (the "2018 Program"). Under the 2018 Program, the Company repurchased approximately 6.7 million shares of its common stock at an average price of $158.11 per share during 2019, approximately 4.2 million shares of its common stock at an average price of $167.69 per share during 2020 and repurchased approximately 4.4 million shares of its common stock at an average price of $227.29 per share during 2021. As of December 31, 2021, there were approximately $240 million of authorized repurchases remaining under the 2018 Program.

On May 7, 2021, the Company's Board of Directors authorized a new stock repurchase program which provides for the repurchase of up to an additional $3.0 billion of the Company's common stock over an open-ended period of time (the "2021 Program"). As of December 31, 2021, there were $3.0 billion of authorized repurchases remaining under the 2021 Program.

After-tax Return on Average Invested Capital

The Company uses after-tax return on average invested capital ("After-tax ROIC") to measure the effectiveness of its operations' use of invested capital to generate profits. After-tax ROIC is not defined under U.S. generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP"). After-tax ROIC is a non-GAAP financial measure that the Company believes is a meaningful metric to investors in evaluating the Company's ability to generate returns from cash invested in its operations and may be different than the method used by other companies to calculate After-tax ROIC. The Company defines After-tax ROIC as operating income after taxes divided by average invested capital, which is annualized when presented in interim periods. Operating income after taxes is a non-GAAP measure consisting of net income before interest expense and other income (expense), on an after-tax basis, which are excluded as they do not represent returns generated by the Company's operations. For

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comparability, the Company also excluded the discrete tax benefit of $21 million in the third quarter of 2021 and the discrete tax benefit of $112 million in the second quarter of 2021 from net income and the effective tax rate for the year ended December 31, 2021. Additionally, for comparability, the Company excluded the discrete tax benefit of $21 million in the third quarter of 2019 from net income and the effective tax rate for the year ended December 31, 2019. Total invested capital represents the net assets of the Company, other than cash and equivalents and outstanding debt which do not represent capital investment in the Company's operations. The most comparable GAAP measure to operating income after taxes is net income. Net income to average invested capital and After-tax ROIC for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020, and 2019 were as follows:

(1)    Effective tax rate used for interest expense and other (income) expense for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020, and 2019 was 23.0%, 22.0% and 24.0%, respectively.

(2)    Average invested capital is calculated using the total invested capital balances at the start of the period and at the end of each quarter within each of the periods presented.

After-tax ROIC increased 330 basis points for the twelve month period ended December 31, 2021 compared to the prior year period as a result of a 19.1% increase in after-tax operating income versus a 5.9% increase in average invested capital. After-tax ROIC decreased 250 basis points for the twelve month period ended December 31, 2020 compared to the prior year period as a result of a 13.1% decrease in after-tax operating income versus a 5.0% decrease in average invested capital.

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A reconciliation of the 2021 effective tax rate excluding the third quarter 2021 discrete tax benefit of $21 million related to the utilization of capital losses and the second quarter 2021 discrete tax benefit of $112 million related to a change in the U.K. income tax rate is as follows:

A reconciliation of the 2019 effective tax rate excluding the third quarter 2019 discrete tax benefit of $21 million for the U.S. federal provision to return adjustment is as follows:

Refer to Note 7. Income Taxes in Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data for further information regarding the discrete tax items noted above.

Working Capital

Management uses working capital as a measurement of the short-term liquidity of the Company. Net working capital as of December 31, 2021 and 2020 is summarized as follows:

As of December 31, 2021, a significant portion of the Company's cash and equivalents was held by international subsidiaries. Cash and equivalents held internationally may be subject to foreign withholding taxes if repatriated to the U.S. Cash and equivalents held internationally are typically used for international operating needs or reinvested to fund expansion of existing international businesses. International funds may also be used to fund international acquisitions or, if not considered permanently invested, may be repatriated to the U.S. The Company has accrued for foreign withholding taxes related to foreign held cash and equivalents that are not permanently invested.

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In the U.S., the Company utilizes cash flows from operations to fund domestic cash needs and the Company's capital allocation priorities. This includes operating needs of the U.S. businesses, dividend payments, share repurchases, acquisitions, servicing of domestic debt obligations, reinvesting to fund expansion of existing U.S. businesses and general corporate needs. The Company may also use its commercial paper program, which is backed by a long-term credit facility, for short-term liquidity needs. The Company believes cash generated by operations and liquidity provided by the Company's commercial paper program will continue to be sufficient to fund cash requirements in the U.S.

Debt

Total debt as of December 31, 2021 and 2020 was as follows:

As of December 31, 2021, short-term debt included $568 million related to the 1.75% Euro notes due May 20, 2022, which the Company intends to redeem in full in February 2022, and commercial paper of $210 million. As of December 31, 2020, short-term debt included $350 million related to the 3.375% notes due September 15, 2021, which were redeemed in full on June 15, 2021. There was no commercial paper outstanding as of December 31, 2020.

The Company may issue commercial paper to fund general corporate needs, share repurchases, and small and medium-sized acquisitions. During the third quarter of 2019, the Company entered into a $2.5 billion, five-year revolving credit facility with a termination date of September 27, 2024, which is available to provide additional liquidity, including to support the potential issuances of commercial paper. On September 22, 2021, due to the anticipated LIBOR transition, the Company agreed to suspend its right to borrow in Euro, British Pounds Sterling and Japanese Yen currencies under the revolving credit facility, effective December 31, 2021. The Company may continue to borrow in U.S. Dollars under the credit facility. This change is not expected to have a significant impact on the Company's liquidity or its commercial paper program. No amounts were outstanding under the revolving credit facility at December 31, 2021. The maximum outstanding commercial paper balance during 2021 was $300 million, while the average daily balance was $49 million.

As of December 31, 2021, the Company had unused capacity of approximately $201 million under international debt facilities. In the ordinary course of business, the Company also had approximately $210 million outstanding in guarantees, letters of credit and other similar arrangements with financial institutions as of December 31, 2021. Refer to Note 11. Debt in Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data for additional details regarding the Company's outstanding debt obligations.

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Total Debt to EBITDA

The Company uses the ratio of total debt to EBITDA as a measure of its ability to repay its outstanding debt obligations. EBITDA and the ratio of total debt to EBITDA are non-GAAP financial measures. The Company believes that total debt to EBITDA is a meaningful metric to investors in evaluating the Company's long term financial liquidity and may be different than the method used by other companies to calculate total debt to EBITDA. The ratio of total debt to EBITDA represents total debt divided by net income before interest expense, other income (expense), income taxes, depreciation, and amortization and impairment of intangible assets on a trailing twelve month basis. Total debt to EBITDA for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019 was as follows:

Stockholders' Equity

The changes to stockholders' equity during 2021 and 2020 were as follows:

CRITICAL ACCOUNTING ESTIMATES

The Company has three accounting estimates that it believes are most important to the Company's financial condition and results of operations, and which require the Company to make judgments about matters that are inherently uncertain. Management bases its estimates on historical experience, and in some cases on observable market information. Various assumptions are also used that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances and form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Actual results may differ from these estimates.

The Company's critical accounting estimates are as follows:

Income Taxes— The Company provides deferred income tax assets and liabilities based on the estimated future tax effects of differences between the financial and tax bases of assets and liabilities based on currently enacted tax laws. The Company's deferred and other tax balances are based on management's interpretation of the tax regulations and rulings in numerous taxing jurisdictions. Income tax expense, assets and liabilities recognized by the Company also reflect its best estimates and assumptions regarding, among other things, the level of future taxable income, the effect of the Company's various tax planning strategies and uncertain tax positions. Future tax authority rulings and changes in tax laws, changes in projected

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levels of taxable income and future tax planning strategies could affect the actual effective tax rate and tax balances recorded by the Company.

Goodwill and Intangible Assets— The Company's business acquisitions typically result in recording goodwill and other intangible assets, which are a significant portion of the Company's total assets and affect the amount of amortization expense and impairment charges that the Company could incur in future periods. The Company follows the guidance prescribed in the accounting standards to test goodwill and intangible assets for impairment. On an annual basis, or more frequently if triggering events occur, the Company compares the estimated fair value of its reporting units to the carrying value of each reporting unit to determine if a potential goodwill impairment exists. If the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying value, a goodwill impairment loss is recorded for the difference. In calculating the fair value of the reporting units or specific intangible assets, management relies on a number of factors, including business plans, economic projections, anticipated future cash flows, comparable transactions and other market data. There are inherent uncertainties related to these factors and management's judgment in applying them in the impairment tests of goodwill and other intangible assets.

As of December 31, 2021, the Company had total goodwill and intangible assets of approximately $5.9 billion allocated to its reporting units. Although there can be no assurance that the Company will not incur additional impairment charges related to its goodwill and other intangible assets, the Company generally believes the risk of significant impairment charges is lessened by the number of diversified businesses and end markets represented by its reporting units that have goodwill and other intangible assets. In addition, the individual businesses in many of the reporting units have been acquired over a long period of time, and in many cases have been able to improve their performance, primarily as a result of the application of the Company's 80/20 Front-to-Back process. The amount of goodwill and other intangible assets allocated to individual reporting units ranges from approximately $222 million to $1.4 billion, with the average amount equal to $588 million. Fair value determinations require considerable judgment and are sensitive to changes in the factors described above. Due to the inherent uncertainties associated with these factors and economic conditions in the Company's global end markets, impairment charges related to one or more reporting units could occur in future periods.

Pension and Other Postretirement Benefits— The Company has various company-sponsored defined benefit retirement plans covering a number of U.S. employees and many employees outside the U.S. Pension and other postretirement benefit expense and obligations are determined based on actuarial valuations. Pension benefit obligations are generally based on each participant's years of service, future compensation, and age at retirement or termination. Important assumptions in determining pension and postretirement expense and obligations are the discount rate, the expected long-term return on plan assets, life expectancy, and health care cost trend rates. Future changes in any of these assumptions could materially affect the amounts recorded related to the Company's pension and other postretirement benefit plans. See Note 12. Pension and Other Postretirement Benefits in Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data for additional discussion of actuarial assumptions used in determining pension and postretirement health care liabilities and expenses.

The Company determines the discount rate used to measure plan liabilities as of the year-end measurement date for the U.S. primary pension plan. The discount rate reflects the current rate at which the associated liabilities could theoretically be effectively settled at the end of the year. In estimating this rate, the Company looks at rates of return on high-quality fixed income investments, with similar duration to the liabilities in the plan. A 25 basis point decrease in the discount rate would increase the present value of the U.S. primary pension plan obligation by approximately $37 million. The Company estimates the service and interest cost components of net periodic benefit cost by applying specific spot rates along the yield curve to the projected cash flows rather than a single weighted-average rate. See Note 12. Pension and Other Postretirement Benefits in Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data for information on the Company's pension and other postretirement benefit plans and related assumptions.

The expected long-term return on plan assets is based on historical and expected long-term returns for similar investment allocations among asset classes. For the U.S. primary pension plan, a 25 basis point decrease in the expected return on plan assets would increase the annual pension expense by approximately $4 million.