EDGAR 10-K Filing

Company CIK: 1023313
Filing Year: 2025
Filename: 1023313_10-K_2025_0000950170-25-035158.json

---

ITEM 1. BUSINESS
Item 1. Business
General
Forrester Research, Inc. is a global independent research and advisory firm. We empower leaders in technology, customer experience, digital, marketing, sales, and product functions to be bold at work and accelerate growth through customer obsession. Forrester’s proprietary research, consulting and continuance guidance model, and events help executives and their teams achieve their initiatives and outcomes faster and with confidence. Our unique insights are grounded in annual surveys of more than 700,000 consumers, business leaders, and technology leaders worldwide, rigorous and objective research methodologies, and the shared wisdom of our clients.
Our common stock is listed on Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol "FORR".
Market Overview
We believe that market dynamics - from empowered customers to the emergence of new technologies like generative AI - have fundamentally changed business and technology. These dynamics continue to change stakeholder expectations.
Consumers and business buyers have new demands and requirements. To win, serve, and retain customers in this environment, we believe that companies require a higher level of customer obsession. Customer obsessed firms put their customers at the center of their leadership, strategy, and operations. Our research has shown that customer-obsessed firms grow faster and are more profitable.
Organizations and leaders require a continuous stream of guidance and analysis to adapt to these ever-changing behaviors and realities. We believe that there is an increasing need for objective external sources of this guidance and analysis, fueling what we call the “golden age of research.”
Forrester’s Strategy and Business Model
The foundation of our business model is our ability to help business and technology leaders and their teams tackle their most pressing priorities and drive growth through customer obsession. Forrester helps clients solve problems, make decisions, and take action to deliver results. With our proprietary research, consulting, and events, our business model provides multiple sources of value to our clients and creates a system to expand contract value ("CV"), which we view as our most significant business metric.
Generally speaking, we define CV products as those services that our clients use over a year’s time and that are renewable periodically, usually on an annual basis. Our CV products primarily consist of our subscription research products, while our non-CV businesses, consulting and events, play critical complementary roles in driving our CV growth.
With respect to our clients, we believe that it has become difficult for large companies to run multi-year strategy and change management projects on their own as customers are changing faster and competitors are increasingly aggressive. Multi-year CV product relationships enable us to help our clients formulate their vision for the future and then translate those plans into implementation and outcomes over time. For our investors, we believe that CV growth will result in predictable and profitable revenue streams.
Our business model is built on the premise that an increase in CV generates more cash which can then be invested in improving our go-to-market structure (activities including sales, product, marketing and acquisitions) and creating CV products that clients renew year after year-repeating the cycle and driving the model forward. We refer to this model as our "CV growth engine."
Our Products and Services
We strive to be an indispensable source that business and technology leaders and their teams across functions, including technology, customer experience, digital, marketing, sales, and product, worldwide turn to for ongoing guidance to plan and operate more effectively.
We deliver our products and services globally through three business segments - Research, Consulting and Events.
Research
For more than 40 years, Forrester has been providing objective, independent and data-driven research insights utilizing both qualitative and quantitative data. We adhere to rigorous, unbiased research methodologies that are transparent and publicly available to ensure consistent research quality across markets, technologies, and geographies.
Our primary subscription research service is Forrester Decisions. This portfolio of research services is designed to provide business and technology leaders with a proven path to growth through customer obsession. Key content available via online access includes:
•future trends, predictions, and market forecasts;
•deep consumer and business buyer data and insights;
•curated best practice models and tools to run business functions;
•operational and performance benchmarking data; and
•technology and service market landscapes and vendor evaluations.
Our research services also include on-going support from, and time with, Forrester analysts who provide guidance on how to apply Forrester research insights, best practices, tools, frameworks and data to advance key business initiatives.
As of December 31, 2024, approximately 80% of our CV was composed of Forrester Decisions products.
Consulting
Our Consulting business includes consulting projects and advisory services. We deliver focused insights and recommendations to assist clients in developing and executing their technology and business strategies. Our consulting projects help clients with challenges addressed in our published research. Applying Forrester’s customer-obsessed business and technology research, rich insights, and proven frameworks, our consultants work with leaders to design and implement strategies that drive growth, increase performance, and optimize costs. Our consulting projects include conducting maturity assessments, prioritizing best practices, developing strategies, building business cases, selecting technology vendors, structuring organizations, and developing content marketing strategies and collateral, and sales tools. Consulting plays an important role in supporting our CV growth, as we have found that clients that purchase consulting projects from us renew their CV contracts at higher rates compared to clients that do not purchase consulting.
Events
We host multiple events across North America, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific region throughout the year. Forrester Events are thoughtfully designed and curated experiences to provide clients with insights and actionable advice to achieve accelerated business growth. Forrester Events focus on business imperatives of significant interest to clients, including business-to-business marketing, sales and product leadership, customer experience, security and risk, and technology and innovation. One of the primary purposes of our Events business is to help drive our CV growth, and we have found that clients that have attended one of our events renew their contracts with us at higher rates compared to those that have not attended an event.
Sales and Marketing
We believe we have a strong alignment across our sales, marketing and product functions.
We sell our products and services through our direct sales force in various locations in North America, Europe and the Asia Pacific region. Our sales organization is organized into groups based on client size, geography, and market potential. Our Premier groups focus on our largest vendor and end user clients across the globe while our Emerging and Mid-Size Tech group focuses on small to mid-sized vendor clients. Our European and Asia Pacific groups focus on both end user and vendor clients in their respective geographies. Our International Business Development group sells our products and services through independent sales representatives in select international locations. We also have teams focused on new business, revenue development, and event sales.
We employed 580 sales personnel as of December 31, 2024 compared to 601 sales personnel employed as of December 31, 2023.
We also sell select Research products directly online through our website.
Our marketing activities are designed to elevate the Forrester brand, differentiate and promote Forrester’s products and services, improve the client experience, and drive growth. We achieve these outcomes by combining the value of reputation, demand generation, customer engagement, and sales and customer success enablement programs to deliver multichannel campaigns and high-quality digital experiences. Our customer success organization conducts post-sale engagement activities that are designed to align to client outcomes, accelerate time to value, and drive higher retention.
As of December 31, 2024, our products and services were delivered to more than 1,900 client companies. No single client company accounted for more than 3% of our 2024 revenues.
Pricing and Contracts
We report our revenue from client contracts in three categories of revenue: (1) research, (2) consulting, and (3) events. We classify revenue from subscriptions to, and licenses of, our research products and services as research revenue. We classify revenue from our consulting projects and standalone advisory services as consulting revenue. We classify revenue from tickets to, and sponsorships of, events as events revenue.
Contract pricing for annual subscription-based products is principally a function of the number of licensed users at the client. Pricing of contracts is a fixed fee for the consulting project or shorter-term advisory service. We periodically review and increase the list prices for our products and services.
We track contract value as a significant business indicator. Contract value is defined as the value attributable to all of our recurring research-related contracts. Contract value is calculated as the annualized value of all contracts in effect at a specific point in time, without regard to how much revenue has already been recognized. Contract value decreased 5% to $307.6 million at December 31, 2024 from $323.6 million at December 31, 2023.
Competition
We believe our focus on helping business and technology leaders use customer obsession to drive growth sets us apart from our competition. In addition, we believe we compete favorably due to:
•our ability to offer forward-looking research, tools and frameworks as well as hands-on guidance;
•our focus on providing teams within our clients' organizations with the confidence to execute effectively with end-to-end guidance, valuable knowledge, know-how, and a shared vocabulary;
•our use of rigorous research methodologies to offer objective insights; and
•our brand promise to be “on your side and by your side,” meaning that we strive to be obsessed about our clients' needs and priorities and aligned to their strategies.
Our principal direct competitors include other independent providers of research and advisory services, such as Gartner, as well as marketing agencies, general business consulting firms, and survey-based general market research firms. In addition, our indirect competitors include the internal planning and marketing staffs of our current and prospective clients, as well as other information providers such as electronic and print publishing companies. We also face competition from free sources of information available on the Internet, such as Google and artificial intelligence services. Our indirect competitors could choose to compete directly against us in the future. In addition, there are relatively few barriers to entry into certain segments of our market, and new competitors could readily seek to compete against us in one or more of these market segments. Increased competition could adversely affect our operating results through pricing pressure and loss of market share. There can be no assurance that we will be able to continue to compete successfully against existing or new competitors.
Intellectual Property
Our proprietary research, methodologies and other intellectual property play a significant role in the success of our business. We rely on a combination of copyright, trademark, trade secret, confidentiality, and other contractual provisions to protect our intellectual property. We actively monitor compliance by our employees, clients and third parties with our policies and agreements relating to confidentiality, ownership, and the use and protection of Forrester’s intellectual property.
Employees
Attracting, retaining, and developing the best and brightest talent around the globe is critical to the ongoing success of our company. As of December 31, 2024, we employed a total of 1,571 persons. Of these employees, 1,122 were in the United States and Canada; 249 in Europe, Middle East and Africa (“EMEA”); and 200 in the Asia Pacific region.
Our culture emphasizes certain key values - including client, courage, collaboration, integrity, and quality - that we believe are critical to deliver Forrester’s unique value proposition of helping business and technology leaders use customer obsession to drive growth. In addition, we seek to foster a culture where employees can be creative, feel supported and empowered, and are encouraged to think boldly about new ideas.
We focus on attracting and the hiring of all backgrounds and perspectives, with the goals of improving employee retention and engagement, strengthening the quality of our research, and improving client retention and customer experience. We field regular all-employee surveys to measure our progress against our goals. We have a robust learning and development program and celebrate and enrich the Forrester culture through frequent recognition of achievements.
Available Information
Forrester Research Inc. was incorporated in Massachusetts on July 7, 1983 and reincorporated in Delaware on February 16, 1996. Forrester’s corporate offices are located in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Our Internet address is www.forrester.com. We make available free of charge, on or through the investor information section of our website, annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K, and amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 as soon as reasonably practicable after we electronically file such material with, or furnish it to, the SEC. The SEC maintains an internet site (http://www.sec.gov) that contains reports, proxy and information statements and other information regarding issuers that file documents electronically.

---

ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS
Item 1A. Risk Factors
We operate in a rapidly changing and competitive environment that involves risks and uncertainties, certain of which are beyond our control. These risks and uncertainties could have a material adverse effect on our business and our results of operations and financial condition. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to:
Risk Factors Specific to our Business
A Decline in Renewals or Demand for Our Subscription-Based Research Services. Our success depends in large part upon retaining (on both a client company and contract value basis) existing subscriptions for our Research products and services, and increasing the contract value of subscriptions for our Research products and services from both existing and new clients. This success depends on a variety of factors, including our ability to continue to provide credible and reliable information and insight that is useful to our clients. Regardless of cause, our results of operations and financial condition would be adversely impacted if we are not able to retain existing subscriptions or generate demand for and new sales of our subscription-based products and services.
Demand for Our Consulting Services. Consulting revenues comprised 23% of our total revenues in 2024 and 25% of our total revenues in 2023. Consulting engagements generally are project-based and non-recurring. A decline in our ability to fulfill existing or generate new consulting engagements to replace expiring consulting agreements could have an adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.
Our Business May be Adversely Affected by the Economic Environment. Our business is in part dependent on technology spending and is impacted by economic conditions such as inflation, slowing growth, rising interest rates, trade policies and tariffs, threat of recession and supply chain issues that may impact us and our customers. The economic environment may materially and adversely affect demand for our products and services. If conditions in the United States and the global economy were to lead to a decrease in technology spending, or in demand for our products and services, this could have an adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition. Although we do not have any employees or material client relationships in Russia or Ukraine and only a limited presence in the Middle East, the conflict between Russia and Ukraine and between Israel and Gaza may cause negative effects on both the United States and the global economy that could materially and adversely affect our business.
Our International Operations Expose Us to a Variety of Operational Risks which Could Negatively Impact Our Results of Operations. As of December 31, 2024, we have clients in approximately 73 countries and approximately 23% of our revenues come from international sales. Our operating results are subject to the risks inherent in international business activities, including general political and economic conditions in each country, challenges in staffing and managing foreign operations, changes in regulatory requirements, compliance with numerous foreign laws and regulations, differences between U.S. and foreign tax rates and laws, trade policies and tariffs, fluctuations in currency exchange rates, difficulty of enforcing client agreements, collecting accounts receivable and protecting intellectual property rights in international jurisdictions, and potential disruptions caused by foreign wars and conflicts. Furthermore, we rely on local independent sales representatives in some international locations. If any of these arrangements are terminated by our representatives or us, we may not be able to replace the arrangement on beneficial terms or on a timely basis, or clients sourced by the local sales representative may not want to continue to do business with us or our new representative.
Ability to Develop and Offer New Products and Services. Our future success will depend in part on our ability to offer new products and services. These new products and services must successfully gain market acceptance by anticipating and identifying changes in client requirements and changes in the technology industry and by addressing specific industry and business organization sectors. The process of internally researching, developing, launching, and gaining client acceptance of a new product or service, or assimilating and marketing an acquired product or service, is risky and costly. We may not be able to introduce new, or assimilate acquired, products or services successfully. Our failure to do so would adversely affect our ability to maintain a competitive position in our market and continue to grow our business.
The Use of Generative AI in our Business and by Our Clients and Competitors Could Negatively Affect our Business and Reputation. In October of 2023, we introduced Izola, a generative AI tool that allows our clients to query our research database. We are also in the process of implementing various other generative AI initiatives within our company. While we believe that generative AI technologies offer significant opportunities, they are rapidly evolving and the integration of generative AI technologies into our and our vendors’ systems (potentially without the vendor disclosing such use to us) poses novel risks that could result in negative consequences to our business, reputation and financial results. These risks include the potential for factual errors or inaccuracies, unintentional distribution of confidential information, ethical concerns, data privacy or security risks, and risks related to intellectual property rights. In addition, third parties may be able to use generative AI to compete with and reduce demand for our products and services or may load our proprietary research into large language models in violation of our terms of use, which could reduce the value of our services and our ability to protect our intellectual property.
Loss of Key Management. Our future success will depend in large part upon the continued services of a number of our key management employees. The loss of any one of them, in particular George F. Colony, our founder, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, could adversely affect our business.
The Ability to Attract and Retain Qualified Professional Staff. Our future success will depend in large measure upon the continued contributions of our senior management team, research professionals, consultants, and experienced sales and marketing personnel. Thus, our future operating results will be largely dependent upon our ability to retain the services of these individuals and to attract additional professionals from a limited pool of qualified candidates. This need is accentuated by actions we have taken to reduce our overall employee population, as announced in January and May 2023, February 2024 and January 2025. Our future success will also depend in part upon the effectiveness of our sales leadership in hiring and retaining sales personnel and in improving sales productivity. We experience competition in hiring and retaining professionals from developers of Internet and emerging-technology products, other research firms, management consulting firms, print and electronic publishing companies, and financial services companies, many of which have substantially greater ability, either through cash or equity, to attract and compensate professionals. If we lose professionals or are unable to attract new talent, we will not be able to maintain our position in the market or grow our business.
Failure to Anticipate and Respond to Market Trends. Our success depends in part upon our ability to anticipate rapidly changing technologies and market trends and to adapt our research and consulting services, and other related products and services to meet the changing needs of our clients. The technology and commerce sectors that we analyze undergo frequent and often dramatic changes. The environment of rapid and continuous change presents significant challenges to our ability to provide our clients with current and timely analysis, strategies, and advice on issues of importance to them. Meeting these challenges requires the commitment of substantial resources. Any failure to continue to provide insightful and timely analysis of developments, technologies, and trends in a manner that meets market needs could have an adverse effect on our market position and results of operations.
Our Business With the U.S. Government is Subject to Government Contracting Risks. Our business with government agencies, including sales to prime contractors that supply these agencies, is subject to government contracting risks. U.S. government contracts are subject to the approval of appropriations by the U.S. Congress to fund the agencies contracting for our services and are subject to termination by the government, either for the convenience of the government or for default as a result of our failure to perform under the applicable contract. In addition, if we were charged with wrongdoing with respect to a U.S. government contract, the U.S. government could suspend us from bidding on or receiving awards of new government contracts pending the completion of legal proceedings, and if we are found liable, we could subject us to fines, penalties, repayments and treble and other damages, and/or debarment from bidding on or receiving new awards of U.S. government contracts. Should appropriations for the various agencies that contract with us be curtailed, or should our government contracts be terminated for convenience or otherwise, we may experience a significant loss of revenues.
We Have Outstanding Debt Which Could Materially Restrict our Business and Adversely Affect our Financial Condition, Liquidity, and Results of Operations. In December of 2021, we entered into an amendment of our existing credit agreement to eliminate our term loan facility, increase the available amount of our revolving credit facility to $150.0 million, and extend the maturity date to December 2026 (as so amended, “the Facility”). As of December 31, 2024, we had outstanding debt of $35.0 million under the Facility (refer to Note 5 - Debt in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for further information). The obligations incurred under this Facility could impair our future financial condition and operating results. In addition, the affirmative, negative, and financial covenants of the Facility could limit our future financial flexibility. A failure to comply with these covenants could result in acceleration of all amounts outstanding, which could materially impact our financial condition unless accommodations could be negotiated with our lenders. No assurance can be given that we would be successful in doing so, or that any accommodations that we were able to negotiate would be on terms as favorable as those currently. The outstanding debt may limit the amount of cash or additional credit available to us, which could restrain our ability to expand or enhance products and services, respond to competitive pressures or pursue future business opportunities requiring substantial investments of additional capital.
Competition. We compete principally in the market for research and advisory services, with an emphasis on customer behavior and customer experience, and the impact of technology on our clients’ business and service models. Our principal direct competitors include other independent providers of research and advisory services, such as Gartner, as well as marketing agencies, general business consulting firms, and survey-based general market research firms. Some of our competitors have substantially greater financial and marketing resources than we do. In addition, our indirect competitors include the internal planning and marketing staffs of our current and prospective clients, as well as other information providers such as electronic and print publishing companies. We also face competition from free sources of information available on the Internet, such as Google and artificial intelligence services. Our indirect competitors could choose to compete directly against us in the future. In addition, there are relatively few barriers to entry into certain segments of our market, and new competitors could readily seek to compete against us in one or more of these market segments. Increased competition could adversely affect our operating results through pricing pressure and loss of market share. There can be no assurance that we will be able to continue to compete successfully against existing or new competitors.
Fluctuations in Our Operating Results. Our revenues and earnings may fluctuate from quarter to quarter based on a variety of factors, many of which are beyond our control, and which may affect our stock price. These factors include, but are not limited to:
•Trends in technology and research and advisory services spending in the marketplace and general economic conditions.
•The timing and size of new and renewal subscriptions for our products and services from clients.
•The utilization of our advisory services by our clients.
•The timing of revenue-generating events sponsored by us.
•The introduction and marketing of new products and services by us and our competitors.
•The hiring and training of new research professionals, consultants, and sales personnel.
•Changes in demand for our research and advisory services.
•Fluctuations in currency exchange rates.
•An increase in the interest rates applicable to our outstanding debt obligations.
As a result, our operating results in future quarters may be below the expectations of securities analysts and investors, which could have an adverse effect on the market price for our common stock. Factors such as announcements of new products, services, offices, acquisitions or strategic alliances by us, our competitors, or in the research and professional services industries generally, may have a significant impact on the market price of our common stock. The market price for our common stock may also be affected by movements in prices of stocks in general.
Concentration of Ownership. Our largest stockholder is our Chairman and CEO, George F. Colony, who owns approximately 39% of our outstanding stock. This concentration of ownership enables Mr. Colony to strongly influence or effectively control matters requiring stockholder approval, including the election of directors, amendment of our certificate of incorporation, adoption or amendment of equity plans, and approval of significant transactions such as mergers, acquisitions, consolidations, and sales or purchases of assets. This concentration of ownership may also limit the liquidity of our stock. As a result, efforts by stockholders to change the direction, management, or ownership of Forrester may be unsuccessful, and stockholders may not be able to freely purchase and sell shares of our stock.
General Risk Factors
We Face Risks from Network Disruptions or Security Breaches that Could Damage Our Reputation and Harm Our Business and Operating Results. We face risks from network disruptions or security breaches caused by computer viruses, illegal break-ins or hacking, sabotage, acts of vandalism by third parties, or terrorism. To date, none have resulted in any material adverse impact to our business, operations, products, services or customers. However, our security measures or those of our third-party service providers may not detect or prevent such security breaches. Any such compromise of our information security could result in the unauthorized publication of our confidential business or proprietary information, cause an interruption in our operations, result in the unauthorized release of customer or employee data, result in a violation of privacy or other laws, expose us to a risk of litigation, or damage our reputation, which could harm our business and operating results.
Failure to Enforce and Protect our Intellectual Property Rights. We rely on a combination of copyright, trademark, trade secret, confidentiality, and other contractual provisions to protect our intellectual property. Unauthorized third parties may obtain or use our proprietary information despite our efforts to protect it. The laws of certain countries do not protect our intellectual property to the same extent as the laws of the United States and accordingly we may not be able to protect our intellectual property against unauthorized use or distribution, which could adversely affect our business.
Privacy and Other Laws. Privacy laws and regulations, and the interpretation and application of these laws and regulations, in the U.S, Europe and other countries around the world where we conduct business are sometimes inconsistent and frequently changing. This includes, but is not limited to, the European Union General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the California Consumer Privacy Act (as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act (the "CCPA")) and other similar laws in a number of U.S. states which require, among other things, covered companies to provide disclosure to consumers about such companies’ data collection, use and sharing practices, provide such consumers ways to make requests about their personal information, including requests to delete their personal information, to know what information a company has about the consumer, and to opt-out of certain sales, transfers, or sharing of personal information. Some U.S. state data privacy laws, including the CCPA, also provide consumers with additional causes of action. In 2023, Europe finalized the first-ever comprehensive legal framework for governance of the development and use of artificial intelligence, the European Union Artificial Intelligence Act, with rolling effective dates beginning in 2025, and is moving forward with finalizing applicable regulations. Many jurisdictions in the U.S. are considering or have passed laws governing the development or use of Artificial Intelligence. Similarly, Europe has enacted laws governing cyber resilience, and we expect more laws will be considered and passed on this issue. Compliance with these laws, or changing interpretations and application of these laws, could cause us to incur substantial costs or require us to take action in a manner that would be adverse to our business.
Taxation Risks. We operate in numerous jurisdictions around the world. A portion of our income is generated outside of the United States and is taxed at lower rates than rates applicable to income generated in the U.S. or in other jurisdictions in which we do business. Our effective tax rate in the future, and accordingly our results of operations and financial position, could be adversely affected by changes in applicable tax law or if more of our income becomes taxable in jurisdictions with higher tax rates.
Any Weakness Identified in Our System of Internal Controls by Us and Our Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm Pursuant to Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 Could Have an Adverse Effect on Our Business. Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 requires that companies evaluate and report on their systems of internal control over financial reporting. In addition, our independent registered public accounting firm must report on its evaluation of those controls. There can be no assurance that no weakness in our internal control over financial reporting will occur in future periods, or that any such weakness will not have a material adverse effect on our business or financial results, including our ability to report our financial results in a timely manner.

---

ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS
Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments
We have not received written comments from the Securities and Exchange Commission that remain unresolved.

---

ITEM 2. PROPERTIES
Item 2. Properties
Our corporate headquarters building is comprised of approximately 190,000 square feet of office space in Cambridge, Massachusetts, substantially all of which is currently occupied by the Company. This facility accommodates research, marketing, sales, consulting, technology, and operations personnel. The lease term of this facility expires February 28, 2027.
We also rent office space in New York City, Norwalk (CT), London, New Delhi, Singapore, and Sydney. In addition, we lease office space on a relatively short-term basis in various other locations in North America, Europe, and Asia.
We believe that our existing facilities are adequate for our current needs and that additional facilities are available for lease to meet future needs.

---

ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS
Item 3. Legal Proceedings
From time to time, we may be subject to legal proceedings and civil and regulatory claims that arise in the ordinary course of our business activities. It is our policy to record accruals for legal contingencies to the extent that we have concluded that it is probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount of the loss can be reasonably estimated, and to expense costs associated with loss contingencies, including any related legal fees, as they are incurred.
We believe that we have meritorious defenses in connection with our current lawsuits and material claims and disputes and intend to vigorously contest each of them. Regardless of the outcome, litigation can have a material adverse effect on us because of defense and settlement costs, diversion of management resources, and other factors.
In our opinion based upon information currently available to us, while the outcome of these legal proceedings and claims is uncertain, the likely results of these lawsuits, claims and disputes are not expected, either individually or in the aggregate, to have a material adverse effect on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows, although the effect could be material to our consolidated results of operations or consolidated cash flows for any interim reporting period.

---

ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURE
Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures
Not applicable.
PART II

---

ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT'S COMMON EQUITY
Item 5. Market For Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters, and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
Our common stock is listed on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol “FORR”. We did not declare or pay any dividends during the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2024. The actual declaration of any potential future dividends, and the establishment of the per share amount and payment dates for any such future dividends, are subject to the discretion of the Board of Directors.
As of March 3, 2025 there were approximately 24 stockholders of record of our common stock. On March 3, 2025 the closing price of our common stock was $10.79 per share.
As of December 31, 2024, our Board of Directors has authorized an aggregate $610.0 million to purchase common stock under the Company’s stock repurchase program, which includes an additional $25.0 million authorized in April 2024. As of December 31, 2024, we had repurchased approximately 18.0 million shares of common stock at an aggregate cost of $530.0 million.
During the quarter ended December 31, 2024, we repurchased the following shares of our common stock under the stock repurchase program:
Maximum Approximate Dollar
Total Number of Shares
Value of Shares that May
Total Number of
Average Price
Purchased as Part of Publicly
Yet be Purchased
Shares Purchased
Paid per Share
Announced Plans or Programs
Under the Plans or Programs
Period
(#)
($)
(#)
(In thousands)
October 1 - October 31
-
$
-
-
$
82,901
November 1 - November 30
82,500
$
16.96
82,500
$
81,501
December 1 - December 31
90,483
$
16.99
90,483
$
79,964
Total for the quarter
172,983
172,983
See “Item 12. Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters” for information on our equity compensation plans.
The following graph contains the cumulative stockholder return on our common stock during the period from December 31, 2019 through December 31, 2024 with the cumulative return during the same period for the Russell 2000 and the S&P 600 Small Cap Information Technology Index, and assumes that the dividends, if any, were reinvested.

---

ITEM 6. SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA
Item 6. [Reserved]

---

ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS
Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
Overview
We derive revenues from subscriptions to our Research products and services, subscriptions to, and individual licenses of, electronic “reprints” of our Research, performing consulting projects and advisory services, and hosting events. We offer contracts for our products as either multi-year contracts or annual contracts, which are typically payable in advance on an annual basis. For certain contracts, we offer to invoice the contract price in multiple invoices throughout the year. Billings in excess of revenue recognized are recorded as deferred revenue. Subscription products are recognized as revenue over the term of the contract. Individual reprint licenses include an obligation to deliver a customer-selected research document and certain usage data provided through our platform, which represents two performance obligations. We recognize revenue for the performance obligation for the data portion of the reprint ratably over the license term. We recognize revenue for the performance obligation for the research document at the time of providing access to the document. Clients purchase consulting projects and advisory services independently and/or to supplement their access to our subscription-based products. Consulting project revenues, which are based upon fixed-fee agreements, are recognized as the services are provided. Advisory service revenues, such as speeches and advisory days, are recognized when the service is complete. Events revenues consist of ticket and sponsorship sales for a Forrester-hosted event, and revenue is recognized upon completion of each event.
Our primary operating expenses consist of cost of services and fulfillment, selling and marketing expenses, and general and administrative expenses. Cost of services and fulfillment represents the costs associated with the production and delivery of our products and services, including salaries, bonuses, employee benefits, and stock-based compensation expense for all personnel that produce and deliver our products and services, including all associated editorial, travel, and support services. Selling and marketing expenses include salaries, sales commissions, bonuses, employee benefits, stock-based compensation expense, travel expenses, promotional costs, and other costs incurred in marketing and selling our products and services. General and administrative expenses include the costs of the technology, operations, finance, and human resources groups and our other administrative functions, including salaries, bonuses, employee benefits, and stock-based compensation expense. Overhead costs such as facilities, net of sublease income, and annual fees for cloud-based information technology systems are allocated to these categories according to the number of employees in each group.
Our key metrics focus on our contract value ("CV") products. We are focusing on CV products as these products are our most profitable products and historically our contracts for CV products have renewed at high rates (as measured by our client retention and wallet retention metrics). Our CV products make up essentially all of our research revenues, and research revenues as a percentage of total revenues increased from approximately 70% in 2023 to approximately 73% in 2024.
We calculate CV at the foreign currency rates used for internal planning purposes each year. For comparative purposes, we have recast historical CV and wallet retention at the planned 2025 foreign currency rates. In addition, due to the divestiture of the FeedbackNow product line in the third quarter of 2024, we have recast our historical metrics to exclude FeedbackNow products and clients. In addition, the recast metrics reflect the correction of an insignificant error. We have included the recast metrics below for the period ended December 31, 2023, and we have also provided recast metrics dating back to the fourth quarter of 2022, on the investor relations section of our website.
Contract value, client retention, wallet retention, and number of clients are metrics that we believe are important to understanding our research business. We define these metrics as follows:
•Contract value (CV) - is defined as the value attributable to all of our recurring research-related contracts. Contract value is calculated as the annualized value of all contracts in effect at a specific point in time, without regard to how much revenue has already been recognized. Contract value primarily consists of subscription-based products for which revenue is recognized on a ratable basis, except for the entitlements embedded in our subscription products, such as event tickets and advisory sessions, for which the revenue is recognized when the item is delivered. Contract value also includes our reprint products, as these products are used throughout the year by our clients and are typically renewed.
•Client retention - represents the percentage of client companies (defined as all clients that buy a CV product) at the prior year measurement date that have active contracts at the current year measurement date.
•Wallet retention - represents a measure of the CV we have retained with clients over a twelve-month period, including increases or decreases in retained client CV during the period. Wallet retention is calculated on a percentage basis by dividing the annualized contract value of our current clients, who were also clients a year ago, by the total annualized contract value from a year ago.
•Clients - is calculated at the enterprise level as all clients that have an active CV contract.
Client retention and wallet retention are not necessarily indicative of the rate of future retention of our revenue base. A summary of our key metrics is as follows (dollars in millions):
As of
Absolute
Percentage
December 31,
Increase
Increase
(Decrease)
(Decrease)
Contract value
$
307.6
$
323.6
$
(16.0
)
(5
%)
Client retention
%
%
-
Wallet retention
%
%
2 points
Number of clients
1,942
2,257
(315
)
(14
%)
Contract value during 2024 decreased by 5% compared to 2023 due to wallet retention being at 89% for the period (representing retention and enrichment of the prior year CV base) and new client acquisition not fully offsetting the net retention loss. Client retention was flat compared to the prior year period, however wallet retention improved by 2 percentage points. The decrease in the number of clients from the prior year period is primarily attributable to 1) macroeconomic conditions affecting our client base including a) funding and budget pressure on our smaller technology clients and the technology industry in general, and b) the uncertain economic conditions during the past year caused by inflation, high interest rates, and geopolitical turbulence, and 2) the transition of our client base to our Forrester Decisions product platform that was launched in August 2021. As of December 31, 2024, approximately 80% of our overall CV was in our Forrester Decisions product platform compared to 62% at December 31, 2023. The remaining CV at December 31, 2024 represents our reprints products at approximately 12% of CV, and our heritage research products at approximately 8% of CV.
Critical Accounting Estimates
Management’s discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations are based upon our consolidated financial statements, which have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America (“GAAP”). The preparation of these financial statements requires us to make estimates and judgments that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses, and related disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities. On an ongoing basis, we evaluate our estimates, including but not limited to, those related to our revenue recognition, goodwill, intangible and other long-lived assets, and income taxes. Management bases its estimates on historical experience, data available at the time the estimates are made, and various assumptions that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which 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 under different assumptions or conditions.
We consider the following accounting estimates to be those that require the most subjective judgment or that involve uncertainty that could have a material impact on our financial statements. If actual results differ significantly from management’s estimates and projections, there could be a material effect on our financial statements.
•Revenue Recognition. We generate revenues from subscriptions to our Research products and services, subscriptions to, and individual licenses of, electronic reprints of our Research, performing consulting projects and advisory services, and hosting events. We execute contracts that govern the terms and conditions of each arrangement. Revenues are recognized when an approved contract with a customer exists, the fees, payment terms, and rights regarding the products or services to be transferred can be identified, it is probable we will collect substantially all of the consideration for the products and services expected to be provided, and we have transferred control of the products and services to the customer. We continually evaluate customers’ ability and intention to pay by reviewing factors including the customer’s payment history, our ability to mitigate credit risk, and experience selling to similarly situated customers. Although write-offs of customer receivables have not been significant during the last three years ($0.7 million each year during 2024, 2023, and 2022), if our customers' financial condition were to deteriorate unexpectedly, we could experience a significant increase in our expense.
Our contracts may include either a single promise (referred to as a performance obligation) to transfer a product or service or a combination of multiple promises to transfer products or services. We evaluate the existence of multiple performance obligations within our products and services by using judgment to determine if: (1) the customer can benefit from each contractual promise on its own or together with other readily available resources; and (2) the transfer of each contractual promise is separately identifiable from other promises in a contract. When both criteria are met, each promise is accounted for as a separate performance obligation. Revenues from contracts that contain multiple products or services are allocated among the separate performance obligations on a relative basis according to their standalone selling prices. We obtain the standalone selling prices of our products and services based upon an analysis of standalone sales of these products and services. When there is an insufficient history of standalone sales, we use judgment to estimate the standalone selling price, taking into consideration available market conditions, factors used to set list prices, pricing of similar products, and
internal pricing objectives. Standalone selling prices are typically analyzed and updated on an annual basis, or as business conditions change.
Consulting project revenues are recognized over time as the services are provided, based on an input method that calculates the total hours expended compared to the estimated hours required to satisfy the performance obligation. This method requires the use of judgement in determining the required number of hours to complete the project.
We are required to estimate the amount of prepaid performance obligations that will expire unused and recognize revenue for that estimate over the same period the related rights are exercised by our customers. This assessment requires judgment, including estimating the percentage of prepaid rights that will go unexercised and anticipating the impact that future changes to products, pricing, and customer engagement will have on actual expirations. We update the estimates used to recognize unexercised rights on a quarterly basis.
•Goodwill, Intangible Assets, and Other Long-Lived Assets. As of December 31, 2024, we had $255.4 million of goodwill and intangible assets with finite lives recorded in our Consolidated Balance Sheets.
When acquiring a business, as of the acquisition date, we determine the estimated fair values of the assets acquired and liabilities assumed, which may include a significant amount of intangible assets and goodwill. Goodwill is required to be assessed for impairment at least annually or whenever events or circumstances indicate that there may be an impairment. An impairment assessment requires evaluating the potential impairment at the reporting unit level using either a qualitative assessment, to determine if it is more likely than not that the fair value of any reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, or a quantitative analysis, to determine and compare the fair value of each reporting unit to its carrying value, or a combination of both. Judgment is required in determining the use of a qualitative or quantitative assessment, as well as in determining each reporting unit’s estimated fair value as it requires us to make estimates of market conditions and operational performance, including projected financial results, discount rates, control premium, and valuation multiples for key financial metrics.
Absent an event that indicates a specific impairment may exist, we have selected November 30th as the date to perform the annual goodwill impairment test. We completed the annual goodwill impairment testing as of November 30, 2024 utilizing a qualitative assessment to determine if the fair values of each of our reporting units was less than their respective carrying values. We considered a variety of factors including the impacts of the uncertain economic conditions and the transition of our client base to our Forrester Decisions product platform on our long-term forecast and stock price. Based on those assessments, we concluded that no impairments existed. We will continue to monitor these factors and other future events, and will perform interim impairments tests, if necessary. Any resulting impairment loss could have a material adverse impact on our results of operations.
During February 2025 and into early March 2025, we did observe a substantial decline in the price of our stock. If our stock price remains at the current level for a sustained period, and after considering other qualitative factors, there may be a triggering event indicating goodwill may be impaired in our Research reporting unit. Accordingly, management may need to perform a quantitative impairment test during our interim period ended March 31, 2025. Any resulting impairment loss could have a material adverse impact on our results of operations.
Intangible assets with finite lives as of December 31, 2024 consist of acquired customer relationships, acquired technology, and acquired trademarks and were valued using the future cash flows they were estimated to produce or the estimated costs to replace the assets. These assigned values are amortized on a basis which best matches the periods in which the economic benefits are expected to be realized. Tangible assets with finite lives consist of property and equipment, which are depreciated over their estimated useful lives. Other long-lived assets consist primarily of operating lease right-of-use assets as described under Leases in the critical accounting policies and estimates footnote found in Note 1 - Summary of Significant Accounting Policies.
We continually evaluate whether events or circumstances have occurred that indicate the estimated remaining useful life of any of our intangible assets, tangible assets, or operating lease right-of-use assets may warrant revision, or that the carrying value of these assets may be impaired. To compute whether these assets have been impaired, we estimate the undiscounted future cash flows for the estimated remaining useful life of the assets and compare that to the carrying value. To the extent that the future cash flows are less than the carrying value, the assets are written down to their estimated fair value.
During 2024, we recorded $3.6 million of right-of-use asset impairments and $1.0 million of leasehold improvement impairments related to the closure of the 10th and 11th floors of our offices located in San Francisco, California. During 2023, we recorded $1.9 million of right-of-use asset impairments and accelerated amortization and $0.7 million of leasehold improvement impairments related to closing various offices. During 2022, we recorded $3.7 million of right-of-use asset impairments and $1.3 million of leasehold improvement impairments related to closing the 10th floor of our offices located in San Francisco, California.
•Income Taxes. We recognize deferred tax assets and liabilities using enacted tax rates for the effect of temporary differences between book and tax bases of assets and liabilities, operating loss carryforwards (from acquisitions) and U.S. capital losses (through December 31, 2021). Such amounts are adjusted as appropriate to reflect changes in the tax rates expected to be in effect when the temporary differences reverse. We record a valuation allowance to reduce our deferred taxes to an amount we believe is more likely than not to be realized. We consider all available evidence, both positive and negative, to determine whether, based on the weight of that evidence, a valuation allowance is needed for some portion or all of a net deferred income tax asset. Judgment is required in considering the relative impact of negative and positive evidence. In arriving at these judgments, the weight given to the potential effect of negative and positive evidence is commensurate with the extent to which it can be objectively verified. As of December 31, 2024 and 2023, we maintained a valuation allowance of $1.1 million, primarily relating to foreign net operating loss carryforwards from an acquisition.
Results of Operations for the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023
The following table sets forth our Consolidated Statements of Operations as a percentage of total revenues for the years noted.
Years Ended
December 31,
Revenues:
Research revenues
73.2
%
69.6
%
Consulting revenues
22.5
24.6
Events revenues
4.3
5.8
Total revenues
100.0
100.0
Operating expenses:
Cost of services and fulfillment
42.2
42.5
Selling and marketing
36.9
34.8
General and administrative
13.6
14.2
Depreciation
1.8
1.8
Amortization of intangible assets
2.2
2.5
Restructuring costs
2.7
2.8
Loss from sale of divested operation
0.4
-
Income from operations
0.2
1.4
Interest expense
(0.7
)
(0.6
)
Other income, net
0.9
0.5
Gains on investments, net
0.2
-
Income before income taxes
0.6
1.3
Income tax expense
1.9
0.7
Net income (loss)
(1.3
%)
0.6
%
2024 compared to 2023
Revenues
Absolute
Percentage
Increase
Increase
(Decrease)
(Decrease)
(dollars in millions)
Total revenues
$
432.5
$
480.8
$
(48.3
)
(10
%)
Research revenues
$
316.7
$
334.4
$
(17.7
)
(5
%)
Consulting revenues
$
97.3
$
118.2
$
(21.0
)
(18
%)
Events revenues
$
18.5
$
28.2
$
(9.7
)
(34
%)
Revenues attributable to customers outside of the U.S.
$
98.4
$
107.3
$
(8.9
)
(8
%)
Percentage of revenue attributable to customers
outside of the U.S.
%
%
1 point
Research revenues are recognized as revenue primarily on a ratable basis over the term of the contracts, which are generally 12 or 24-month periods. Research revenues decreased 5% during 2024 compared to 2023 primarily due to the decrease in CV, as discussed above. From a product perspective, the decrease in revenues was primarily due to a decline in revenue from our reprint product and our other smaller and discontinued products. In addition, revenue from our subscription research products declined 1%
during 2024 compared to 2023, as revenue growth from our Forrester Decisions products was offset by revenue declines from our heritage research products.
Consulting revenues decreased 18% during 2024 compared to 2023. The decrease in revenues was due to a decrease in delivery of consulting services due to lower client bookings.
Events revenues decreased 34% during 2024 compared to 2023. The decrease in revenues was due to decreases in both sponsorship revenues and event ticket revenues.
Refer to the “Segment Results” section below for a discussion of revenue and expenses by segment.
Cost of Services and Fulfillment
Absolute
Percentage
Increase
Increase
(Decrease)
(Decrease)
Cost of services and fulfillment (dollars in millions)
$
182.5
$
204.5
$
(22.0
)
(11
%)
Cost of services and fulfillment as a percentage of
total revenues
%
%
(1) point
Service and fulfillment employees (at end of period)
(101
)
(13
%)
Cost of services and fulfillment expenses decreased 11% in 2024 compared to 2023. The decrease was primarily due to (1) a $18.1 million decrease in compensation and benefit costs due to a decrease in headcount and incentive bonus costs, partially offset by an increase in benefit costs (mainly due to a benefit during 2023 resulting from the introduction of the flexible vacation and personal paid time off policy in the United States), (2) a $1.6 million decrease in professional services costs primarily due to a decrease in survey costs and contractor costs, (3) a $1.0 million decrease in facilities costs, and (4) a $0.8 million decrease in event expenses.
Selling and Marketing
Absolute
Percentage
Increase
Increase
(Decrease)
(Decrease)
Selling and marketing expenses (dollars in millions)
$
159.6
$
167.4
$
(7.7
)
(5
%)
Selling and marketing expenses as a percentage of
total revenues
%
%
2 points
Selling and marketing employees (at end of period)
(44
)
(6
%)
Selling and marketing expenses decreased 5% in 2024 compared to 2023. The decrease was primarily due to (1) a $8.1 million decrease in compensation and benefit costs due to a decrease in headcount, commissions expense, and incentive bonus costs, partially offset by an increase in benefit costs (mainly due to a benefit during 2023 resulting from the introduction of the flexible vacation and personal paid time off policy in the United States) and (2) a $0.8 million decrease in stock compensation expense. These decreases were partially offset by a $1.4 million increase in professional services costs primarily due to an increase in consulting fees, partially offset by a decrease in advertising costs.
General and Administrative
Absolute
Percentage
Increase
Increase
(Decrease)
(Decrease)
General and administrative expenses (dollars in
millions)
$
58.8
$
68.5
$
(9.7
)
(14
%)
General and administrative expenses as a percentage
of total revenues
%
%
-
General and administrative employees (at end
of period)
(28
)
(10
%)
General and administrative expenses decreased 14% in 2024 compared to 2023. The decrease was primarily due to (1) a $5.6 million decrease in legal costs, due primarily to a $4.8 million provision for a legal settlement recorded in 2023 for a wage-related matter and (2) a $3.8 million decrease in compensation and benefit costs due to a decrease in headcount and incentive bonus costs, partially offset by an increase in benefit costs (mainly due to a benefit during 2023 resulting from the introduction of the flexible vacation and personal paid time off policy in the United States).
Depreciation
Depreciation expense decreased by $0.9 million in 2024 compared to 2023 primarily due to certain software assets becoming fully depreciated.
Amortization of Intangible Assets
Amortization expense decreased by $2.3 million in 2024 compared to 2023 primarily due to a decrease in the amortization of trademark and technology intangible assets. We expect amortization expense related to our intangible assets to be approximately $8.7 million for the year ending December 31, 2025.
Restructuring
In January 2023, we implemented a reduction in our workforce of approximately 4% across various geographies and functions to streamline operations. We recorded $4.3 million of severance and related costs for this action during the fourth quarter of 2022, and $0.6 million during the first quarter of 2023. We recorded a restructuring charge of $5.0 million during the fourth quarter of 2022 related to closing one floor of our offices in California. During the first quarter of 2023, we recorded an incremental $0.4 million impairment to our California office. We also recorded a $0.6 million charge during the first quarter of 2023 for the write-off of a previously capitalized software project. In the fourth quarter of 2023, we recorded an additional impairment of $0.4 million to our California office.
In May 2023, we implemented a reduction in our workforce of approximately 8% across various geographies and functions to better align our cost structure with our revised revenue outlook for the year, and to streamline our sales and consulting organizations to more efficiently go to market in support of driving contract value growth in the future. We recorded $7.5 million of severance and related costs for this action during the second quarter of 2023. In addition, we closed certain of our smaller offices both inside and outside the U.S. in order to reduce facility costs and better match our facilities to our hybrid work strategy. As a result of closing the offices, we recorded restructuring costs of $2.3 million. We also incurred $0.7 million in contract termination costs.
In February 2024, we implemented a reduction in our workforce of approximately 3% across various geographies and functions to better align our cost structure with the revenue outlook for the year. We recorded $0.7 million of severance and related costs for this action during the fourth quarter of 2023, and $2.8 million during the first quarter of 2024. We recorded a restructuring charge of $3.8 million during the first quarter of 2024 related to closing one floor of our offices in California. All of the severance and related costs for this plan were paid during 2024.
During the third quarter of 2024, we recorded an additional restructuring charge of $0.7 million related to the closure of our offices in California, of which $0.4 million related to an impairment of the right-of-use assets and $0.3 million related to an impairment of leasehold improvements. Also, during the third quarter of 2024, we recognized $0.2 million of expense from the write-off of foreign currency translation adjustments related to the liquidation of a small foreign operation.
In January 2025, we implemented a reduction in force of approximately 6% of our workforce across various geographies and functions to better align our cost structure with our revenue outlook for 2025. Approximately $4.2 million of severance and related costs for this action were recorded during the fourth quarter of 2024. We expect a majority of the severance and related costs for this plan to be paid during 2025. See Note 17 - Subsequent Events, for additional details of this action.
Loss From Sale of Divested Operation
Loss from sale of divested operation of $1.8 million was attributable to the sale of our FeedbackNow product line in August 2024.
Interest Expense
Interest expense consists of interest on our borrowings. The fluctuation for interest expense was immaterial in 2024 compared to 2023.
Other Income, Net
Other income, net primarily consists of interest income, gains and losses on foreign currency, and gains and losses on foreign currency forward contracts. Other income, net increased by $1.7 million in 2024 compared to 2023 primarily due to a $2.1 million increase in interest income, partially offset by a $0.5 million increase in foreign currency exchange losses.
Gains on Investments, Net
Gains on investments, net primarily represents our share of equity method investment gains and losses from our technology-related investment funds. Gain on investments, net increased by $0.6 million in 2024 compared to 2023 due to an increase in investment gains generated by the underlying funds.
Income Tax Expense
Absolute
Percentage
Increase
Increase
(Decrease)
(Decrease)
Provision for income taxes (dollars in millions)
$
8.4
$
3.2
$
5.1
%
Effective tax rate
%
%
267 points
The significant items impacting the effective tax rate during 2024 as compared to 2023 are primarily due to 1) tax expense from the non-deductible goodwill related to the sale of the FeedbackNow product line of $2.5 million, 2) tax expense from the settlement of share-based awards of $1.8 million, 3) foreign withholding taxes of $0.8 million, and 4) state tax expense of $0.6 million related to the write-off of non-realizable state NOL carryforwards due to the dissolution of a domestic subsidiary.
Segment Results
We operate in three segments: Research, Consulting, and Events. These segments, which are also our reportable segments, are based on our management structure and how management uses financial information to evaluate performance and determine how to allocate resources. Our products and services are delivered through each segment as described below.
The Research segment includes the revenues from all of our research products as well as consulting revenues from advisory services (such as speeches and advisory days) delivered by our research organization. Research segment costs include the cost of the organizations responsible for developing and delivering these products in addition to the cost of the product management organization that is responsible for product pricing and packaging and the launch of new products. During the third quarter of 2024, we realigned our technology teams and as such certain technology costs are no longer reported within the Research segment, and are now reported within the line selling, marketing, administrative and other expenses. Prior period amounts have been recast to conform to the current presentation.
The Consulting segment includes the revenues and the related costs of our project consulting organization. The project consulting organization delivers a majority of our project consulting revenue.
The Events segment includes the revenues and the costs of the organization responsible for developing and hosting in-person and virtual events.
We evaluate reportable segment performance and allocate resources based on segment operating income (loss). Segment expenses include the direct expenses of each segment organization and exclude selling and marketing expenses, general and administrative expenses, stock-based compensation expense, depreciation expense, adjustments to incentive bonus compensation from target amounts, amortization of intangible assets, restructuring costs, loss from sale of divested operation, interest expense, other income, and gains on investments. The accounting policies used by the segments are the same as those used in the consolidated financial statements. We do not review or evaluate assets as part of segment performance. Accordingly, we do not identify or allocate assets by reportable segment.
Research
Segment
Consulting
Segment
Events
Segment
Consolidated
Year Ended December 31, 2024
(In thousands, except percentages)
Research revenues
$
316,739
$
-
$
-
$
316,739
Consulting revenues
21,095
76,159
-
97,254
Events revenues
-
-
18,477
18,477
Total segment revenues
337,834
76,159
18,477
432,470
Segment expenses
(115,651
)
(37,828
)
(19,250
)
(172,729
)
Segment operating income (loss)
222,183
38,331
(773
)
259,741
Year over year revenue change
(7
%)
(15
%)
(34
%)
(10
%)
Year over year expense change
(8
%)
(16
%)
(6
%)
(10
%)
Research
Segment
Consulting
Segment
Events
Segment
Consolidated
Year Ended December 31, 2023
(In thousands)
Research revenues
$
334,396
$
-
$
-
$
334,396
Consulting revenues
28,826
89,402
-
118,228
Events revenues
-
-
28,155
28,155
Total segment revenues
363,222
89,402
28,155
480,779
Segment expenses
(125,392
)
(45,028
)
(20,557
)
(190,977
)
Segment operating income
237,830
44,374
7,598
289,802
Research segment revenues decreased 7% during 2024 compared to 2023. Research product revenues within this segment decreased 5% primarily due to the decrease in CV, as discussed above. Consulting product revenues within this segment decreased 27% primarily due to decreased delivery of consulting and advisory services by our research analysts due primarily to lower client bookings for these services.
Research segment expenses decreased 8% during 2024 compared to 2023. The decrease in expenses was primarily due to (1) an $8.4 million decrease in compensation and benefit costs primarily due to a decrease in headcount and (2) a $1.0 million decrease in professional services primarily due to a decrease in survey costs.
Consulting segment revenues decreased 15% during 2024 compared to 2023. The decrease in revenues was due to a decrease in delivery of consulting services due to lower client bookings.
Consulting segment expenses decreased 16% during 2024 compared to 2023. The decrease in expenses was primarily due to (1) a $6.5 million decrease in compensation and benefit costs primarily due to a decrease in headcount and (2) a $0.5 million decrease in professional services primarily due to a decrease in contractor costs.
Event segment revenues decreased 34% during 2024 compared to 2023. The decrease in revenues was due to a decrease in both sponsorship revenues and event ticket revenues.
Event segment expenses decreased 6% during 2024 compared to 2023. The decrease in expenses was primarily due to (1) a $0.9 million decrease in event costs and (2) a $0.5 million decrease in compensation and benefit costs primarily due to a decrease in headcount.
A detailed description and analysis of the fiscal year 2022 year-over-year changes can be found in Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
We have historically financed our operations primarily through funds generated from operations. Research revenues, which constituted 73% of our revenues during 2024, are generally renewable and are typically payable in advance. We used $3.9 million of cash in operating activities during the year ended December 31, 2024 and generated $21.7 million of cash from operating activities during the year ended December 31, 2023. The $25.5 million decrease in cash from operations during 2024 was primarily due to a $21.1 million increase in cash used for working capital and a $8.8 million decrease in net income, partially offset by the changes in non-cash items affecting net income.
During 2024, we generated cash from investing activities of $5.0 million primarily from $6.0 million in proceeds from the sale of the FeedbackNow product line and $2.5 million in net maturities and sales of marketable investments, partially offset by $3.4 million of purchases of property and equipment, primarily consisting of computer software. During 2023, we used cash in investing activities of $36.8 million, which consisted of $31.3 million in net purchases of marketable investments and $5.5 million of purchases of property and equipment, primarily consisting of computer software.
During 2024, we used $16.1 million of cash from financing activities primarily due $15.9 million for purchases of our common stock and $2.6 million in taxes paid related to net share settlements of restricted stock units, partially offset by $2.4 million of net proceeds from the issuance of common stock under our stock-based incentive plans. During 2023, we used $18.3 million of cash from financing activities primarily due to $15.0 million of discretionary repayments of our revolving credit facility, $4.1 million for purchases of our common stock, and $2.7 million in taxes paid related to net share settlements of restricted stock units, partially offset by $3.5 million of net proceeds from the issuance of common stock under our stock-based incentive plans. As of December 31, 2024, our remaining stock repurchase authorization was approximately $80.0 million.
The Company has a credit facility that provides up to $150.0 million of revolving credit commitments. The amount outstanding under the credit facility was $35.0 million at December 31, 2024 and the facility expires in December of 2026. The credit facility
permits the Company to increase the revolving credit commitments in an aggregate principal amount up to $50.0 million, subject to approval by the administrative agent and certain customary terms and conditions.
The credit facility contains certain customary restrictive loan covenants, including among others, financial covenants that apply a maximum leverage ratio, minimum interest coverage ratio, and maximum annual capital expenditures. The negative covenants limit, subject to various exceptions, our ability to incur additional indebtedness, create liens on assets, merge, consolidate, liquidate or dissolve any part of the company, sell assets, change fiscal year, or enter into certain transactions with affiliates and subsidiaries. We were in full compliance with the covenants as of December 31, 2024 and expect to continue to be in compliance through the next 12 months.
Additional future contractual cash obligations extending over the next 12 months and beyond primarily consist of operating lease payments. We lease office space under non-cancelable operating lease agreements (refer to Note 6 - Leases in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for additional information). The remaining duration of non-cancelable office space leases ranges from less than 1 year to 7 years. Remaining lease payments within one year, within two to three years, within four to five years, and after five years from December 31, 2024 are $13.9 million, $18.0 million, $5.7 million, and $3.2 million, respectively.
In addition to the contractual cash commitments included above, we have other payables and liabilities that may be legally enforceable but are not considered contractual commitments. See Note 15 - Certain Balance Sheet Accounts in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for more information on our payables and liabilities.
As of December 31, 2024, we had cash, cash equivalents, and marketable investments of $104.7 million. This balance includes $70.7 million held outside of the U.S. If the cash outside of the U.S. is needed for operations in the U.S., we would be required to accrue and pay U.S. state taxes and may be required to pay withholding taxes to foreign jurisdictions to repatriate these funds. However, our intent is to permanently reinvest these funds outside of the U.S. and our current plans do not demonstrate a need to repatriate these funds for our U.S. operations. We believe that our current cash balance and cash flows from operations will satisfy working capital, financing activities, and capital expenditure requirements for the next twelve months and to meet our known long-term cash requirements.
As of December 31, 2024, we did not have any significant unrecognized tax benefits for uncertain tax positions.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements
See Note 1 - Summary of Significant Accounting Policies in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for a full description of recent accounting pronouncements, including the expected dates of adoption and effects on results of operations and financial condition.

---

ITEM 7A. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK
Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk
The following discussion about our market risk disclosures involves forward-looking statements. Actual results could differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. We are exposed to market risk related to changes in foreign currency exchange rates and changes in interest rates on our variable-rate debt.
Foreign Currency Exchange. On a global level, we face exposure to movements in foreign currency exchange rates as we enter into normal business transactions that may be in currencies other than the local currency of our subsidiaries, including the Euro, British Pound, and other foreign currencies. During 2024, we entered into several foreign currency forward contracts to mitigate the effects of adverse fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates and we may continue to enter into hedging agreements in the future. In addition, transactions and account balances between our U.S. and foreign subsidiaries expose us to currency exchange risk. This exposure may change over time as business practices evolve and could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.
We incurred foreign currency exchange losses of $0.8 million, $0.3 million, and $0.2 million during the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023, and 2022, respectively.
Interest Rate Risk. As of December 31, 2024, we had $35.0 million in total debt principal outstanding. See Note 5 - Debt in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for additional information regarding our outstanding debt obligations.
All of our debt outstanding as of December 31, 2024 was based on a floating base rate of interest, which exposes us to increases in interest rates. As an indication of our potential exposure to changes in interest rates, a hypothetical 25 basis point increase or decrease in interest rates on our debt could change our annual pretax interest expense for the following 12-month period by approximately $0.1 million.
The primary objective of our investment activities is to preserve principal and maintain liquidity while at the same time maximizing the income we receive from our investments without significantly increasing risk. To achieve this objective, we maintain our portfolio of cash equivalents and marketable investments in a variety of securities during the course of the year, which may include U.S. government agencies, municipal notes and bonds, corporate notes and bonds, commercial paper, and money market funds. The securities, other than U.S. money market funds, are classified as available-for-sale and consequently are recorded in the Consolidated Balance Sheets at fair value with unrealized gains or losses reported as a component of accumulated other comprehensive loss in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. If interest rates rise, the market value of our investments may decline, which could result in a realized loss if we are forced to sell an investment before its scheduled maturity. We have the ability to hold our fixed income investments until maturity (without giving effect to any future acquisitions or mergers). Therefore, we would not expect our operating results or cash flows to be affected to any significant degree by a sudden change in market interest rates on our securities portfolio. In addition, given the short maturities and investment grade quality of the portfolio holdings at December 31, 2024, a hypothetical 10% change in interest rates would not materially affect the fair value of our cash equivalents and investments.
The following table provides information about our investment portfolio, excluding our money market funds, for which all of the securities are denominated in U.S. dollars. For investment securities, the table presents principal cash flows and related weighted-average interest rates by maturity date (dollars in thousands):
Years Ended December 31,
Corporate obligations
$
6,083
$
4,688
$
1,409
Weighted average interest rates
3.28
%
4.67
%
5.19
%

---

ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA
Item 8. Consolidated Financial Statements and Supplementary Data
The financial statements listed in the following Index to Financial Statements are filed as a part of this 2024 Annual Report on Form 10-K.
FORRESTER RESEARCH, INC.
Page
Report of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm (PCAOB ID 238)
Consolidated Balance Sheets
Consolidated Statements of Operations
Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (Loss)
Consolidated Statements of Stockholders’ Equity
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
To the Board of Directors and Stockholders of Forrester Research, Inc.
Opinions on the Financial Statements and Internal Control over Financial Reporting
We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of Forrester Research, Inc. and its subsidiaries (the "Company") as of December 31, 2024 and 2023, and the related consolidated statements of operations, of comprehensive income (loss), of stockholders’ equity and of cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2024, including the related notes (collectively referred to as the "consolidated financial statements"). We also have audited the Company's internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2024, based on criteria established in Internal Control - Integrated Framework (2013) issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO).
In our opinion, the consolidated financial statements referred to above present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company as of December 31, 2024 and 2023, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2024 in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America. Also in our opinion, the Company maintained, in all material respects, effective internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2024, based on criteria established in Internal Control - Integrated Framework (2013) issued by the COSO.
Basis for Opinions
The Company's management is responsible for these consolidated financial statements, for maintaining effective internal control over financial reporting, and for its assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting, included in Management’s Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting appearing under Item 9A. Our responsibility is to express opinions on the Company’s consolidated financial statements and on the Company's internal control over financial reporting based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (PCAOB) and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.
We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audits to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the consolidated financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud, and whether effective internal control over financial reporting was maintained in all material respects.
Our audits of the consolidated financial statements included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the consolidated financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the consolidated financial statements. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the consolidated financial statements. Our audit of internal control over financial reporting included obtaining an understanding of internal control over financial reporting, assessing the risk that a material weakness exists, and testing and evaluating the design and operating effectiveness of internal control based on the assessed risk. Our audits also included performing such other procedures as we considered necessary in the circumstances. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinions.
Definition and Limitations of Internal Control over Financial Reporting
A company’s internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. A company’s internal control over financial reporting includes those policies and procedures that (i) pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the company; (ii) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and that receipts and expenditures of the company are being made only in accordance with authorizations of management and directors of the company; and (iii) provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use, or disposition of the company’s assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements.
Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.
Critical Audit Matters
The critical audit matter communicated below is a matter arising from the current period audit of the consolidated financial statements that was communicated or required to be communicated to the audit committee and that (i) relates to accounts or disclosures that are material to the consolidated financial statements and (ii) involved our especially challenging, subjective, or complex judgments. The communication of critical audit matters does not alter in any way our opinion on the consolidated financial statements, taken as a whole, and we are not, by communicating the critical audit matter below, providing a separate opinion on the critical audit matter or on the accounts or disclosures to which it relates.
Revenue Recognition - Identification of Distinct Performance Obligations
As described in Note 1 to the consolidated financial statements, the Company generates all of its revenues from contracts with customers, which totaled $432.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2024. Performance obligations within a contract are identified based on the products and services promised to be transferred in the contract. When a contract includes more than one promised product or service, management must apply judgment to determine whether the promises represent multiple performance obligations or a single, combined performance obligation. This evaluation requires management to determine if the promises are both capable of being distinct, where the customer can benefit from the product or service on its own or together with other resources readily available, and are distinct within the context of the contract, where the transfer of products or services is separately identifiable from other promises in the contract. When both criteria are met, each promised product or service is accounted for as a separate performance obligation.
The principal considerations for our determination that performing procedures relating to revenue recognition, specifically the identification of distinct performance obligations, is a critical audit matter is a high degree of auditor effort in performing procedures and evaluating evidence related to management’s identification of the distinct performance obligations.
Addressing the matter involved performing procedures and evaluating audit evidence in connection with forming our overall opinion on the consolidated financial statements. These procedures included testing the effectiveness of controls relating to the revenue recognition process, including controls over the identification of performance obligations. These procedures also included, among others, testing management’s process for identifying distinct performance obligations within contracts with customers and evaluating the revenue recognition impact of contractual terms and conditions by examining contracts on a test basis.
/s/ PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
Boston, Massachusetts
March 7, 2025
We have served as the Company’s auditor since 2010.
FORRESTER RESEARCH, INC.
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(In thousands, except per share data)
December 31,
December 31,
ASSETS
Current Assets:
Cash and cash equivalents
$
56,087
$
72,909
Marketable investments (Note 3)
48,582
51,580
Accounts receivable, net of allowance for expected credit losses of $434 and $574 as
of December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively (Note 1, 15)
55,490
58,999
Deferred commissions
22,942
23,207
Prepaid expenses and other current assets
18,263
9,305
Total current assets
201,364
216,000
Property and equipment, net
11,699
19,401
Operating lease right-of-use assets
27,049
39,722
Goodwill
227,959
244,257
Intangible assets, net
27,475
37,637
Other assets
8,316
7,157
Total assets
$
503,862
$
564,174
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
Current Liabilities:
Accounts payable
$
$
1,796
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities
57,602
81,482
Deferred revenue
145,404
156,798
Total current liabilities
203,971
240,076
Long-term debt
35,000
35,000
Non-current operating lease liabilities
24,809
37,673
Other non-current liabilities (Note 15)
10,545
11,160
Total liabilities
274,325
323,909
Commitments and contingencies (Note 16)
Stockholders' Equity:
Preferred stock, $0.01 par value
Authorized - 500 shares; issued and outstanding - none
-
-
Common stock, $0.01 par value
Authorized - 125,000 shares
Issued - 25,119 and 24,684 shares as of December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively
Outstanding - 18,838 and 19,248 shares as of December 31, 2024 and
2023, respectively
Additional paid-in capital
292,217
278,057
Retained earnings
171,934
177,681
Treasury stock - 6,282 and 5,437 shares as of December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively
(227,119
)
(211,149
)
Accumulated other comprehensive loss
(7,746
)
(4,571
)
Total stockholders’ equity
229,537
240,265
Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity
$
503,862
$
564,174
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.
FORRESTER RESEARCH, INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
(In thousands, except per share data)
Years Ended December 31,
Revenues:
Research
$
316,739
$
334,396
$
354,453
Consulting
97,254
118,228
152,587
Events
18,477
28,155
30,747
Total revenues
432,470
480,779
537,787
Operating expenses:
Cost of services and fulfillment
182,534
204,484
223,773
Selling and marketing
159,621
167,352
181,940
General and administrative
58,818
68,497
67,655
Depreciation
7,561
8,452
9,269
Amortization of intangible assets
9,648
11,956
13,161
Restructuring costs
11,773
13,272
9,335
Loss from sale of divested operation
1,775
-
-
Total operating expenses
431,730
474,013
505,133
Income from operations
6,766
32,654
Interest expense
(3,011
)
(3,060
)
(2,461
)
Other income, net
4,094
2,371
Gains on investments, net
Income before income taxes
2,637
6,285
30,724
Income tax expense
8,384
3,235
8,918
Net income (loss)
$
(5,747
)
$
3,050
$
21,806
Basic income (loss) per common share
$
(0.30
)
$
0.16
$
1.15
Diluted income (loss) per common share
$
(0.30
)
$
0.16
$
1.14
Basic weighted average common shares outstanding
19,094
19,183
18,967
Diluted weighted average common shares outstanding
19,094
19,258
19,172
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.
FORRESTER RESEARCH, INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS)
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
Net income (loss)
$
(5,747
)
$
3,050
$
21,806
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax:
Foreign currency translation
(3,264
)
3,248
(4,807
)
Net change in market value of interest rate swap
-
-
Net change in market value of investments
(134
)
Other comprehensive income (loss)
(3,175
)
3,347
(4,729
)
Comprehensive income (loss)
$
(8,922
)
$
6,397
$
17,077
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.
FORRESTER RESEARCH, INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY
(In thousands)
Accumulated
Common Stock
Additional
Treasury Stock
Other
Total
Number of
$0.01 Par
Paid-in
Retained
Number of
Comprehensive
Stockholders'
Shares
Value
Capital
Earnings
Shares
Cost
Loss
Equity
Balance at December 31, 2021
24,085
$
$
245,985
$
152,825
5,027
$
(191,955
)
$
(3,189
)
$
203,907
Issuance of common stock under stock
plans, including tax effects
1,238
-
-
-
-
1,241
Repurchases of common stock
-
-
-
-
(15,112
)
-
(15,112
)
Stock-based compensation expense
-
-
14,543
-
-
-
-
14,543
Net income
-
-
-
21,806
-
-
-
21,806
Net change in interest rate swap, net of tax
-
-
-
-
-
-
Net change in marketable investments, net
of tax
-
-
-
-
-
-
(134
)
(134
)
Foreign currency translation
-
-
-
-
-
-
(4,807
)
(4,807
)
Balance at December 31, 2022
24,367
261,766
174,631
5,305
(207,067
)
(7,918
)
221,656
Issuance of common stock under
stock plans, including tax effects
-
-
-
-
Repurchases of common stock
-
-
-
-
(4,082
)
-
(4,082
)
Stock-based compensation expense
-
-
15,486
-
-
-
-
15,486
Net income
-
-
-
3,050
-
-
-
3,050
Net change in marketable investments, net
of tax
-
-
-
-
-
-
Foreign currency translation
-
-
-
-
-
-
3,248
3,248
Balance at December 31, 2023
24,684
278,057
177,681
5,437
(211,149
)
(4,571
)
240,265
Issuance of common stock under
stock plans, including tax effects
(183
)
-
-
-
-
(179
)
Repurchases of common stock
-
-
-
-
(15,970
)
-
(15,970
)
Stock-based compensation expense
-
-
14,343
-
-
-
-
14,343
Net loss
-
-
-
(5,747
)
-
-
-
(5,747
)
Net change in marketable investments, net
of tax
-
-
-
-
-
-
Foreign currency translation
-
-
-
-
-
-
(3,264
)
(3,264
)
Balance at December 31, 2024
25,119
$
$
292,217
$
171,934
6,282
$
(227,119
)
$
(7,746
)
$
229,537
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.
FORRESTER RESEARCH, INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(In thousands)
Years Ended December 31,
Cash flows from operating activities:
Net income (loss)
$
(5,747
)
$
3,050
$
21,806
Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash provided by (used in)
operating activities:
Depreciation
7,561
8,452
9,269
Impairment of property and equipment
1,296
Amortization of intangible assets
9,648
11,956
13,161
Deferred income taxes
(58
)
(5,461
)
(6,652
)
Stock-based compensation
14,343
15,486
14,543
Operating lease right-of-use assets amortization and impairments
12,974
11,658
14,511
Loss from sale of divested operation
1,775
-
-
Other, net
Changes in assets and liabilities
Accounts receivable
(9
)
14,715
12,835
Deferred commissions
1,352
5,070
Prepaid expenses and other current assets
(197
)
6,020
4,374
Accounts payable
(814
)
1,428
(461
)
Accrued expenses and other liabilities
(20,866
)
(10,644
)
(6,102
)
Deferred revenue
(9,105
)
(23,279
)
(31,656
)
Operating lease liabilities
(14,570
)
(13,978
)
(12,939
)
Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities
(3,861
)
21,673
39,425
Cash flows from investing activities:
Purchases of property and equipment
(3,400
)
(5,495
)
(5,663
)
Purchases of marketable investments
(59,365
)
(61,068
)
(28,683
)
Proceeds from maturities of marketable investments
51,735
28,338
27,331
Proceeds from sales of marketable investments
10,111
1,453
-
Proceeds from sale of divested operation
6,000
-
-
Other investing activity
(62
)
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities
5,019
(36,759
)
(6,814
)
Cash flows from financing activities:
Payments on borrowings
-
(15,000
)
(25,000
)
Payment of debt issuance costs
-
(25
)
-
Repurchases of common stock
(15,920
)
(4,082
)
(15,112
)
Proceeds from issuance of common stock under employee equity
incentive plans
2,426
3,489
4,352
Taxes paid for net share settlements of stock-based compensation awards
(2,605
)
(2,681
)
(3,111
)
Net cash used in financing activities
(16,099
)
(18,299
)
(38,871
)
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash
(1,914
)
2,773
(6,117
)
Net decrease in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash
(16,855
)
(30,612
)
(12,377
)
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash, beginning of year
75,042
105,654
118,031
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash, end of year
$
58,187
$
75,042
$
105,654
Supplemental disclosure of cash flow information:
Cash paid for interest
$
2,562
$
2,596
$
2,015
Cash paid for income taxes
$
9,277
$
10,643
$
8,901
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.
FORRESTER RESEARCH, INC.
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
December 31, 2024
Note 1 - Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
Basis of Presentation
Forrester Research, Inc. is a global independent research and advisory firm. The Company empower leaders in technology, customer experience, digital, marketing, sales, and product functions to be bold at work and accelerate growth through customer obsession. Forrester’s proprietary research, consulting and continuance guidance model, and events help executives and their teams achieve their initiatives and outcomes faster and with confidence. The Company's unique insights are grounded in annual surveys of more than 700,000 consumers, business leaders, and technology leaders worldwide, rigorous and objective research methodologies, and the shared wisdom of its clients.
The accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America (“GAAP”) and pursuant to the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) for reporting on Form 10-K. The Company’s fiscal year is the twelve months from January 1 through December 31 and all references to 2024, 2023, and 2022 refer to the fiscal year unless otherwise noted.
Principles of Consolidations
The accompanying consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Forrester and its wholly-owned subsidiaries. All intercompany transactions and balances have been eliminated in consolidation.
Management Estimates
The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Forrester considers the more significant of these estimates to be revenue recognition, ongoing impairment reviews of goodwill, intangible and other long-lived assets, and income taxes. On an ongoing basis, management evaluates its estimates. Actual results could differ from these estimates.
Adoption of New Accounting Pronouncements
In March 2020, the FASB issued ASU No. 2020-04, Reference Rate Reform (Topic 848) - Facilitation of the Effects of Reference Rate Reform on Finance Reporting. The new standard provides optional guidance for a limited period of time to ease the potential burden in accounting for, or recognizing the effects of, reference rate reform on financial reporting due to the risk of cessation of the London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”). The updates apply to contracts, hedging relationships, and other transactions that reference LIBOR, or another reference rate expected to be discontinued because of reference rate reform, and as a result require a modification. In December 2022, the FASB issued ASU No. 2022-06, Reference Rate Reform (Topic 848): Deferral of the Sunset Date of Topic 848. The amendments in this update defer the sunset date of Topic 848 from December 31, 2022, to December 31, 2024, after which entities will no longer be permitted to apply the relief in Topic 848. The amendments in this update apply to all entities, subject to meeting certain criteria, that have contracts, hedging relationships, and other transactions that reference LIBOR or another reference rate expected to be discontinued because of reference rate reform. The adoption of this standard did not impact the Company’s financial position or results of operations, and will not have an impact in the future as the Company no longer has any financial instruments that reference LIBOR.
In November 2023, the FASB issued ASU No. 2023-07, Segment Reporting (Topic 280) - Improvements to Reportable Segment Disclosures. The new standard enhances the disclosures of reportable segment information, primarily in regards to significant segment expenses. The new standard was effective for the Company for the annual periods beginning January 1, 2024, and for interim periods beginning January 1, 2025, with early adoption permitted. Upon adoption, the guidance should be applied retrospectively to all prior periods presented in the financial statements. The adoption of this standard as of December 31, 2024 did not have a material impact on the Company’s financial position or results of operations.
Fair Value Measurements
The carrying amounts reflected in the Consolidated Balance Sheets for cash, certain cash equivalents, accounts receivable, note receivable, accounts payable, and accrued expenses approximate fair value due to their short-term maturities. The Company’s financial instruments also include its outstanding variable-rate borrowings (refer to Note 5 - Debt). The Company believes that the
carrying amount of its variable-rate borrowings reasonably approximate their fair values because the rates of interest on those borrowings reflect current market rates of interest.
Additionally, the Company has certain financial assets and liabilities recorded at fair value at each balance sheet date, including cash equivalents and marketable investments, in accordance with the accounting standards for fair value measurements. Refer to Note 8 - Fair Value Measurements for the Company’s fair value disclosures.
Cash, Cash Equivalents, and Marketable Investments
Forrester considers all short-term, highly liquid investments with original maturities at the time of purchase of 90 days or less to be cash equivalents, inclusive of the Company's U.S. based money market funds.
The Company’s portfolio of investments may at any time include securities of U.S. government agencies, municipal notes and bonds, corporate notes and bonds, commercial paper, and money market funds based outside of the U.S. Marketable investments are classified as current assets as they are available for use in current operations. Forrester accounts for all marketable investments as available-for-sale securities and as such, the marketable investments are carried at fair value with unrealized gains and losses (not related to credit losses) recorded in accumulated other comprehensive loss in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. Realized gains and losses on securities are included in earnings and are determined using the specific identification method. The Company conducts periodic reviews to identify and evaluate each investment that has an unrealized loss, in accordance with the meaning of other-than-temporary impairment and its application to certain investments, as required under the accounting standards. Unrealized losses on available-for-sale securities that are determined to be temporary, and not related to credit loss, are recorded, net of tax, in accumulated other comprehensive loss. During the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023, and 2022, the Company did not record any other-than-temporary impairment losses on its available-for-sale securities.
The Company did not realize any gains or losses from the Company's available-for-sale securities during the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023, and 2022.
Presentation of Restricted Cash
The following table summarizes the end-of-period cash and cash equivalents from the Company's Consolidated Balance Sheets and the total cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash as presented in the accompanying Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (in thousands).
For the Year Ended December 31,
Cash and cash equivalents shown in balance sheets
$
56,087
$
72,909
Restricted cash classified in other assets (1):
2,100
2,133
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash shown in statement of cash flows
$
58,187
$
75,042
(1)Restricted cash consists of collateral required for leased office space. The short-term or long-term classification regarding the collateral for the leased office space is determined in accordance with the expiration of the underlying leases.
Concentrations of Credit Risk
Financial instruments that potentially subject Forrester to concentrations of credit risk are principally cash, cash equivalents, marketable investments, accounts receivable, and foreign currency forward exchange contracts. The Company limits its risk exposure by having its cash, cash equivalents, and foreign currency forward exchange contracts with large commercial banks and by diversifying counterparties. No single customer accounted for greater than 3% of revenues or 2% of accounts receivable in any of the periods presented.
Forrester does not have any off-balance sheet arrangements.
Goodwill
Goodwill represents the excess of the purchase price of acquired businesses over the estimated fair values of the tangible and identifiable intangible net assets acquired. Goodwill is not amortized; however, it is required to be tested for impairment annually, which requires assessment of the potential impairment at the reporting unit level. Reporting units are determined based on the components of the Company's operating segments that constitute a business for which financial information is available and for which operating results are regularly reviewed by segment management. Testing for impairment is also required on an interim basis if an event or circumstance indicates it is more likely than not an impairment loss has been incurred. When performing an impairment assessment, the Company either uses a qualitative assessment, to determine if it is more likely than not that the estimated fair value of
any reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, or a quantitative analysis, to determine and compare the fair value of each reporting unit to its carrying value, or a combination of both. An impairment of goodwill is recognized to the extent that the carrying amount of a reporting unit exceeds its estimated fair value. Absent an event that indicates a specific impairment may exist, the Company has selected November 30th as the date for performing the annual goodwill impairment test. Goodwill impairment charges have not been required for the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023 and 2022.
Impairment of Other Long-Lived Tangible and Intangible Assets
Other long-lived assets primarily consist of property and equipment, operating lease right-of-use assets, and intangible assets. The Company periodically evaluates the recoverability of other long-lived assets whenever events and changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of an asset may not be fully recoverable. When indicators of impairment are present, the carrying values of the asset group are evaluated in relation to the future undiscounted cash flows of the underlying business. The net book value of the underlying asset is adjusted to fair value if the sum of the expected discounted cash flows is less than book value. Fair values are based on estimates of market prices and assumptions concerning the amount and timing of estimated future cash flows and assumed discount rates, reflecting varying degrees of perceived risk. The Company recorded $4.6 million, $2.6 million, and $5.0 million of long-lived asset impairment charges during 2024, 2023 and 2022, respectively (refer to Note 6 - Leases).
Non-Current Liabilities
The Company records deferred tax liabilities and other liabilities that are expected to be settled over a period that exceeds one year as non-current liabilities.
Foreign Currency
The functional currency of Forrester’s wholly-owned subsidiaries is their respective local currency. These subsidiary financial statements are translated to U.S. dollars using period-end exchange rates for assets and liabilities and average exchange rates during the corresponding period for revenues and expenses, with translation gains and losses recorded as a component of accumulated other comprehensive loss in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. Gains and losses related to the remeasurement of monetary assets and liabilities denominated in a currency other than an entity’s functional currency are included in other income, net in the Consolidated Statements of Operations. Forrester recorded $0.8 million, $0.3 million, and $0.2 million of foreign exchange losses during 2024, 2023, and 2022, respectively.
Revenue
The Company generates all of its revenues from contracts with customers, which totaled $432.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2024.
The Company recognizes revenue when a customer obtains control of promised products or services, in an amount that reflects the consideration expected to be received in exchange for those products or services. The Company follows the five-step model prescribed under Topic 606: (i) identify the contract(s) with a customer; (ii) identify the performance obligation(s) in the contract; (iii) determine the transaction price; (iv) allocate the transaction price to the performance obligation(s) in the contract; and (v) recognize revenue when (or as) the Company satisfies each performance obligation. Revenues are presented net of any sales or value added taxes collected from customers and remitted to the government.
The Company accounts for a contract when it has approval and commitment from both parties, the fees, payment terms and rights of the parties regarding the products or services to be transferred are identified, the contract has commercial substance, and it is probable that substantially all of the consideration for the products and services expected to be transferred is collectible. The Company applies judgment in determining the customer’s ability and intention to pay for services expected to be transferred, which is based on factors including the customer’s payment history, management’s ability to mitigate exposure to credit risk (for example, requiring payment in advance of the transfer of products or services, or the ability to stop transferring promised products or services in the event a customer fails to pay consideration when due), and experience selling to similarly situated customers. Since the transaction price is fixed and defined as part of entering into a contract, and generally does not change, variable consideration is insignificant.
Performance obligations within a contract are identified based on the products and services promised to be transferred in the contract. When a contract includes more than one promised product or service, the Company must apply judgment to determine whether the promises represent multiple performance obligations or a single, combined performance obligation. This evaluation requires the Company to determine if the promises are both capable of being distinct, where the customer can benefit from the product or service on its own or together with other resources readily available, and are distinct within the context of the contract, where the transfer of products or services is separately identifiable from other promises in the contract. When both criteria are met, each promised product or service is accounted for as a separate performance obligation. In cases where the promises are distinct, the
Company is further required to evaluate if the promises are a series of products and services that are substantially the same and have the same pattern of transfer to the customer (referred to as the “series” guidance). When the Company determines that promises meet the series guidance, they are accounted for as a single, combined performance obligation.
Contracts that contain multiple performance obligations require an allocation of the transaction price to each performance obligation on a relative basis according to their standalone selling prices. The Company determines standalone selling price based on the price at which the performance obligation is sold separately. If the Company does not have a history of selling a performance obligation, management applies judgment to estimate the standalone selling price, taking into consideration available information, including market conditions, factors considered to set list prices, pricing of similar products, and internal pricing objectives. The corresponding allocated revenues are recognized when (or as) the performance obligations are satisfied, as discussed further below.
Research revenues
The majority of research revenues are subscriptions to our research, including access to a designated portion of our research and, depending on the type of license, unlimited analyst inquiry or guidance sessions, an executive coach or advisor, peer offerings, and unlimited participation in Forrester webinars, all of which are delivered throughout the contract period. The Company has concluded that these promises represent a stand ready obligation to provide a daily information service, in which the services are the same each day, every day is distinct, and the customer simultaneously receives and consumes the benefits as the Company transfers control throughout the contract period. Accordingly, these subscriptions meet the requirements of the series guidance and are each accounted for as a single performance obligation. The Company recognizes revenue ratably over the contract term, using an output measure of time elapsed. Certain of the research products include advisory services and/or an event ticket, which are accounted for as a separate performance obligation and are recognized at the point in time the service is completed, the final deliverable is transferred to the customer, or the event occurs. Research revenues also include subscriptions to, and individual licenses of electronic reprints, which are written research documents prepared by Forrester’s analysts and hosted via our on-line platform. Individual licenses of reprints include a promise to deliver a customer-selected research document and certain usage data provided through the on-line platform, which represents two performance obligations. The Company satisfies the performance obligation for the research document by providing access to the electronic reprint and accordingly recognizes revenue at that point in time. The Company satisfies the performance obligation for the data portion of the reprint on a daily basis and accordingly recognizes revenue over time. For reprint subscriptions, which allow the customer to utilize different reprints throughout the subscription period, the Company recognizes revenue ratably over the contract term.
Consulting revenues
Consulting revenues consist of consulting projects and advisory services. Consulting project revenues consist of the delivery of focused insights and recommendations to assist clients in developing and executing their technology and business strategies. Projects are fixed-fee arrangements that are generally completed over two weeks to three months. The Company has concluded that each project represents a single performance obligation as each is a single promise to deliver a customized engagement and deliverable. For the majority of these services, either practically or contractually, the work performed and delivered to the customer has no alternative use to the Company. Additionally, Forrester maintains an enforceable right to payment at all times throughout the contract. The Company utilizes an input method and recognizes revenue over time, based on hours expended relative to the total estimated hours required to satisfy the performance obligation. The input method closely aligns with how control of interim deliverables is transferred to the customer throughout the engagement and is also the method used internally to price the project and assess operational performance. If the Company were to enter into an agreement where it does not have an enforceable right to payment at all times, revenue would be recognized at the point in time the project is completed. Certain of our content marketing consulting projects contain a second performance obligation for access to interactive tools over a specified license period, typically 12 or 24 months. The Company recognizes revenue for this performance obligation ratably over the license period.
Advisory services revenues are short-term presentations or knowledge sharing sessions (which can range from one hour to two days), such as speeches and advisory days. Each is a promise for a Forrester analyst to deliver a deeper understanding of Forrester’s published research and represents a single performance obligation. Revenue is recognized at the point in time the service is completed, which is when the customer has received the benefit(s) of the service.
Events revenues
Events revenues consist of either ticket or sponsorship sales for Forrester-hosted events. Each is a single promise that either allows entry to, or grants the right to promote a product or service at, a specific event. The Company concluded that each of these represents a single performance obligation. The Company recognizes revenue at the completion of the event, which is the point in time when the customer has received the benefit(s) from attending or sponsoring the event.
Prepaid performance obligations
Prepaid performance obligations (including event tickets, reprints, consulting projects, and advisory services) on non-cancelable contracts, for which the Company estimates will expire unused, are recognized in proportion to the pattern of related rights exercised by the customer. This assessment requires judgment, including estimating the percentage of prepaid rights that will go unexercised and anticipating the impact that future changes to products, pricing, and customer engagement will have on actual expirations. The Company updates estimates used to recognize unexercised rights on a quarterly basis.
Contract modifications
Consulting contracts are occasionally modified to update the scope of the services purchased. Since a consulting project is a single performance obligation that is only partially satisfied at the modification date, the updated project requirements are not distinct and the modification is accounted for as part of the existing contract. The effect of the modification on the transaction price and the Company’s measure of progress for the performance obligation to which it relates is recognized as an adjustment to revenue (either an increase or decrease) on a cumulative catch-up basis. For the year ended December 31, 2024, the Company recorded an immaterial amount of cumulative catch-up adjustments.
Refer to Note 14 - Operating Segment and Enterprise Wide Reporting for a summary of disaggregated revenue by geographic region.
Contract Assets and Liabilities
Accounts receivable
Accounts receivable includes amounts billed and currently due from customers. Since the only condition for payment of the Company's invoices is the passage of time, the Company records a receivable on the date the invoice is issued. Also included in accounts receivable are unbilled amounts resulting from revenue exceeding the amount billed to the customer, where the right to payment is unconditional. If the right to payment for services performed was conditional on something other than the passage of time, the unbilled amount would be recorded as a separate contract asset. There were no contract assets as of December 31, 2024.
The majority of the Company’s contracts are non-cancelable. However, for contracts that are cancelable by the customer, the Company does not record a receivable when it issues an invoice. The Company records accounts receivable on these contracts only up to the amount of revenue earned but not yet collected.
In addition, since the majority of the Company’s contracts are invoiced for annual periods, and payment is expected within one year from the transfer of products and services, the Company does not adjust its receivables or transaction price for the effects of a significant financing component.
Deferred revenue
The Company refers to contract liabilities as deferred revenue in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. Payment terms in the Company’s customer contracts vary, but generally require payment in advance of fully satisfying the performance obligation(s). Deferred revenue consists of billings in excess of revenue recognized. Similar to accounts receivable, the Company does not record deferred revenue for unpaid invoices issued on a cancelable contract.
During the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, the Company recognized approximately $141.8 million and $166.3 million of revenue, respectively, related to its deferred revenue balance at January 1 of each such period.
Approximately $371.0 million of revenue is expected to be recognized during the next 36 months from remaining performance obligations as of December 31, 2024.
Cost to Obtain Contracts
The Company capitalizes commissions paid to sales representatives and related fringe benefits costs that are incremental to obtaining customer contracts. These costs are included in deferred commissions in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. The Company elected the practical expedient to account for these costs at a portfolio level as the Company’s contracts are similar in nature and the amortization model used closely matches the amortization expense that would be recognized on a contract-by-contract basis. Costs to obtain a contract are amortized to earnings over the initial contract term, which is the same period the related revenue is recognized.
Amortization of the expense related to deferred commissions was $37.2 million, $39.8 million, and $45.9 million for the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023, and 2022, respectively, and is recorded in selling and marketing expenses in the Consolidated Statements of Operations. The Company evaluates the recoverability of deferred commissions at each balance sheet date and there were no impairments recorded during 2024, 2023, or 2022.
Leases
The Company determines whether an arrangement is a lease at inception of the arrangement. The Company accounts for a lease when it has the right to control the leased asset for a period of time while obtaining substantially all of the asset's economic benefits. All of the Company’s leases are operating leases, the majority of which are for office space. Operating lease right-of-use ("ROU") assets and non-current operating lease liabilities are included as individual line items in the Consolidated Balance Sheets, while short-term operating lease liabilities are recorded within accrued expenses and other current liabilities.
Operating lease ROU assets and operating lease liabilities are recognized based on the present value of the future minimum lease payments over the lease term at commencement date. The discount rate used to determine the present value of the lease payments is the Company’s incremental borrowing rate based on the information available at lease inception, as generally an implicit rate in the lease is not readily determinable. An operating lease ROU asset includes all lease payments, lease incentives and initial direct costs incurred. Some of the Company’s leases include options to extend or terminate the lease. When determining the lease term, these options are included in the measurement and recognition of the Company’s ROU assets and lease liabilities when it is reasonably certain that the Company will exercise the option(s). The Company considers various economic factors when making this determination, including, but not limited to, the significance of leasehold improvements incurred in the office space, the difficulty in replacing the asset, underlying contractual obligations, and specific characteristics unique to a particular lease.
Subsequent to entering into a lease arrangement, the Company reassesses the certainty of exercising options to extend or terminate a lease. When it becomes reasonably certain that the Company will exercise an option that was not included in the lease term, the Company accounts for the change in circumstances as a lease modification, which results in the remeasurement of the ROU asset and lease liability as of the modification date.
Lease expense for operating leases is recognized on a straight-line basis over the lease term based on the total lease payments (which include initial direct costs and lease incentives). The expense is included in operating expenses in the Consolidated Statements of Operations.
The Company’s lease agreements generally contain lease and non-lease components. Non-lease components are fixed charges stated in an agreement and primarily include payments for parking at the leased office facilities. The Company accounts for the lease and fixed payments for non-lease components as a single lease component under Topic 842, which increases the amount of the ROU assets and lease liabilities. Most of the Company’s lease agreements also contain variable payments, primarily maintenance-related costs, which are expensed as incurred and not included in the measurement of the ROU assets and lease liabilities.
Leases with an initial term of twelve months or less are not recorded in the Consolidated Balance Sheets and are not material.
Advertising Costs
The Company expenses advertising costs as incurred. Advertising expense for the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023, and 2022 was $0.9 million, $1.7 million, and $2.3 million, respectively. These expenses consisted primarily of online marketing and are included in selling and marketing expense in the Consolidated Statements of Operations.
Stock-Based Compensation
The Company recognizes the fair value of stock-based compensation expense over the requisite service period of the individual grantee, which generally equals the vesting period. Forfeitures are recognized as they occur and all income tax effects related to settlements of share-based payment awards are reported in earnings as an increase or decrease to income tax expense. All income tax-related cash flows resulting from share-based payments are reported as operating activities in the Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows and cash paid by directly withholding shares for tax withholding purposes is classified as a financing activity.
Stock-based compensation expense was recorded in the following expense categories (in thousands):
Years Ended December 31,
Cost of services and fulfillment
$
8,700
$
9,068
$
8,435
Selling and marketing
2,164
2,943
2,774
General and administrative
3,479
3,475
3,334
Total
$
14,343
$
15,486
$
14,543
The options granted under the equity incentive plan and shares subject to the employee stock purchase plan were valued utilizing the Black-Scholes model using the following assumptions and had the following fair values (no options were granted in 2024 or 2022):
Employee Stock Purchase Plan
Equity Incentive Plans
Employee Stock Purchase Plan
Employee Stock Purchase Plan
Average risk-free interest rate
4.55
%
4.27
%
5.51
%
3.71
%
Expected dividend yield
0.0
%
0.0
%
0.0
%
0.0
%
Expected life
0.5 Years
4.75 Years
0.5 Years
0.5 Years
Expected volatility
%
%
%
%
Weighted average fair value
$
4.86
$
14.24
$
7.90
$
10.22
Expected volatility is based on the historical volatility of Forrester’s common stock as well as management’s expectations of future volatility over the expected term of the awards granted. The risk-free interest rate is based on the U.S. Treasury Constant Maturity rate with an equivalent remaining term. The expected term calculation is based upon the option period of the employee stock purchase plan, and for options, it is based upon Forrester's historical experience of exercise patterns.
The unamortized fair value of stock-based awards as of December 31, 2024 was $26.7 million with a weighted average remaining recognition period of 2.7 years.
Depreciation and Amortization
Forrester provides for depreciation and amortization of property and equipment, computed using the straight-line method, over their estimated useful lives of its assets as follows:
Estimated
Useful Life
Computers and equipment
3 to 10 Years
Computer software
3 to 5 Years
Furniture and fixtures
7 Years
Leasehold improvements
Shorter of asset life or lease term
Forrester provides for amortization of intangible assets, computed using an accelerated method according to the expected cash flows to be received from the underlying assets, over their estimated useful lives as follows:
Estimated
Useful Life
Customer relationships
5 to 9 Years
Technology
1 to 8 Years
Trademarks
6 to 8 Years
Income Taxes
Forrester recognizes deferred tax assets and liabilities for the expected future tax consequences of temporary differences between the financial statements and tax basis of assets and liabilities as well as operating loss carryforwards.
Forrester’s provision for income taxes is composed of a current and a deferred provision for federal, state, and foreign jurisdictions. The current provision is calculated as the estimated taxes payable or refundable on tax returns for the current year. The deferred provision is calculated as the net change during the year in deferred tax assets and liabilities. Valuation allowances are provided if, based on the weight of available evidence, it is more likely than not that some or all of the deferred tax asset will not be realized.
Forrester accounts for uncertain tax positions using a “more-likely-than-not” threshold for recognizing and resolving uncertain tax positions. The evaluation of uncertain tax positions is based on factors including, but not limited to, changes in tax law, the measurement of tax positions taken or expected to be taken in tax returns, the effective settlement of matters subject to audit, new audit activity, and changes in facts or circumstances related to a tax position. The Company evaluates these tax positions on a quarterly basis. The Company also accrues for potential interest and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits in income tax expense.
Net Income (Loss) Per Common Share
Basic net income (loss) per common share is computed by dividing net income (loss) by the basic weighted average number of common shares outstanding during the period. Diluted net income (loss) per common share is computed by dividing net income (loss) by the diluted weighted average number of common shares and common equivalent shares outstanding during the period. The weighted average number of common equivalent shares outstanding has been determined in accordance with the treasury-stock method. Common stock equivalents consist of common stock issuable upon the exercise of outstanding stock options and the vesting of restricted stock units.
Basic and diluted weighted average common shares are as follows (in thousands):
Years Ended December 31,
Basic weighted average common shares outstanding
19,094
19,183
18,967
Weighted average common equivalent shares
-
Diluted weighted average common shares outstanding
19,094
19,258
19,172
Options and restricted stock units excluded from diluted weighted
average share calculation as effect would have been anti-dilutive
1,307
Recent Accounting Pronouncements
In December 2023, the FASB issued ASU No. 2023-09, Income Taxes (Topic 740) - Improvements to Income Tax Disclosures. The new standard enhances income tax disclosure requirements by requiring specified categories and greater disaggregation within the rate reconciliation table, disclosure of income taxes paid by jurisdiction, and providing clarification on uncertain tax positions and related financial statement impacts. The new standard will be effective for the Company on January 1, 2025, with early adoption permitted. The adoption of the standard will result in additional disclosures in the Company's income tax footnote as described above.
In November 2024, the FASB issued ASU No. 2024-03, Disaggregation of Income Statement Expenses. The new standard requires disclosures about specific types of expenses included in the expense captions presented on the face of the income statement as well as disclosures about selling expenses. The new standard will be effective for the Company on January 1, 2027, with early adoption permitted. The Company anticipates adopting this standard on January 1, 2027, which will result in additional disclosures of expenses in the footnotes to its financial statements.
Note 2 - Divestiture
In August 2024, the Company completed the sale of a non-core product line, FeedbackNow, for approximately $17.6 million. The Company received $6.0 million in cash from the sale, along with a note receivable of $9.0 million that is payable in 2025, and a non-marketable equity investment in the acquirer valued at $2.6 million, which is accounted for under the cost method. The Company recorded a pre-tax loss of $1.8 million on the sale of FeedbackNow, which is included in Loss from sale of divested operation in the Consolidated Statements of Operations. The FeedbackNow product line was included in the Company’s Research segment. The principal components of the assets divested included goodwill, property and equipment, and accounts receivable, with carrying amounts of $14.8 million, $2.2 million, and $2.4 million, respectively, while the liabilities transferred with the sale primarily consisted of deferred revenue with a carrying amount of $1.8 million.
As of December 31, 2024, the balance of the note receivable inclusive of interest is $9.2 million and is recorded within Prepaid expenses and other current assets in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. The stated interest rate on the note receivable is 8% and is due upon maturity. The Company measures the note receivable on an amortized cost basis and records the estimate of any expected credit losses on the note receivable as an allowance for credit losses. Any allowance for credit losses would be reported as a valuation account on the balance sheet that is deducted from the note receivable’s amortized cost basis. Any changes in the allowance for credit losses would be reported outside of operations in the Consolidated Statement of Operations. If any amount of the note is determined by the Company to be uncollectible, for example, due to the borrower’s failure to meet repayment terms or due to the borrower's deteriorating financial condition, the write-off amount, reduced by any previously recorded allowances, would also be recorded outside of operations in the Consolidated Statement of Operations. During the year ended December 31, 2024, no material allowance or write-off amounts were recorded.
Note 3 - Marketable Investments
The following table summarizes the Company’s marketable investments (in thousands):
As of December 31, 2024
Gross
Gross
Amortized
Unrealized
Unrealized
Market
Cost
Gains
Losses
Value
Corporate obligations
$
12,140
$
$
(6
)
$
12,180
Money market funds
36,402
-
-
36,402
Total
$
48,542
$
$
(6
)
$
48,582
As of December 31, 2023
Gross
Gross
Amortized
Unrealized
Unrealized
Market
Cost
Gains
Losses
Value
Corporate obligations
$
18,049
$
-
$
(72
)
$
17,977
Federal agency obligations
2,000
-
(7
)
1,993
Money market funds
31,610
-
-
31,610
Total
$
51,659
$
-
$
(79
)
$
51,580
Realized gains and losses on investments are included in earnings and are determined using the specific identification method. Sales of marketable investments during 2024 primarily represent redemptions from non-U.S. based money market funds, and there were no realized gains or losses on marketable investments during the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023, and 2022.
The following table summarizes the maturity periods of the marketable investments in the Company’s portfolio as of December 31, 2024 (in thousands):
Total
Corporate obligations
$
6,083
$
4,688
$
1,409
$
12,180
Money market funds
36,402
-
-
36,402
Total
$
42,485
$
4,688
$
1,409
$
48,582
The following table shows the gross unrealized losses and market value of the Company’s available-for-sale securities with unrealized losses that are not deemed to be other-than-temporary, aggregated by investment category and length of time that individual securities have been in a continuous unrealized loss position (in thousands):
As of December 31, 2024
Less Than 12 Months
12 Months or Greater
Market
Unrealized
Market
Unrealized
Value
Losses
Value
Losses
Corporate obligations
$
$
$
$
Total
$
$
$
$
As of December 31, 2023
Less Than 12 Months
12 Months or Greater
Market
Unrealized
Market
Unrealized
Value
Losses
Value
Losses
Corporate obligations
$
13,098
$
$
4,879
$
Federal agency obligations
-
-
1,993
Total
$
13,098
$
$
6,872
$
Note 4 - Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets
A summary of goodwill by segment and the changes in the carrying amount of goodwill is shown in the following table (in thousands):
Research
Segment
Consulting
Segment
Total
Balance at December 31, 2022
$
234,020
$
8,129
$
242,149
Foreign currency translation adjustments
2,038
2,108
Balance at December 31, 2023
236,058
8,199
244,257
Disposition (1)
(14,795
)
-
(14,795
)
Foreign currency translation adjustments
(1,449
)
(54
)
(1,503
)
Balance at December 31, 2024
$
219,814
$
8,145
$
227,959
(1)See Note 2 - Divestiture for additional information. The amount of goodwill allocated to the divestiture was determined using a relative fair value approach.
The Company performed its annual impairment test as of November 30, 2024 utilizing a qualitative assessment to determine if the fair values of each of its reporting units was less than their respective carrying values. The Company considered a variety of factors including the impacts of the uncertain economic conditions and the transition of its client base to the Forrester Decisions product platform on the Company's long-term forecast and stock price. Based upon those assessments, the Company concluded that there were no events or circumstances that had occurred that would more likely than not reduce the fair value of its reporting units below their carrying values. The Company will continue to monitor these factors and other future events, and the Company will perform interim impairment tests, if necessary.
As of December 31, 2024, the Company had no accumulated goodwill impairment losses and the Consulting reporting unit had a negative carrying value.
A summary of Forrester’s intangible assets is as follows (in thousands):
December 31, 2024
Gross
Net
Carrying
Accumulated
Carrying
Amount
Amortization
Amount
Amortizable intangible assets:
Customer relationships
$
77,000
$
49,946
$
27,054
Technology
13,000
12,978
Trademarks
12,000
11,601
Total
$
102,000
$
74,525
$
27,475
December 31, 2023
Gross
Net
Carrying
Accumulated
Carrying
Amount
Amortization
Amount
Amortizable intangible assets:
Customer relationships
$
77,640
$
42,091
$
35,549
Technology
16,524
15,950
Trademarks
12,519
11,005
1,514
Total
$
106,683
$
69,046
$
37,637
Amortization expense related to intangible assets was approximately $9.6 million, $12.0 million, and $13.2 million during the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023, and 2022, respectively. Estimated intangible asset amortization expense for each of the four succeeding years is as follows (in thousands):
$
8,734
8,335
8,324
2,082
Total
$
27,475
Note 5 - Debt
The Company and certain of its subsidiaries are parties to a credit facility, dated as of January 3, 2019 and amended in December 2021 and April 2023, with JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., as administrative agent (the “Administrative Agent”), and the lenders party thereto (the "Credit Agreement").
The Credit Agreement matures in December 2026 and includes the following provisions: (a) an aggregate principal amount of revolving credit commitments (the "Revolving Credit Facility") of $150.0 million, (b) margin, at Forrester’s option, (i) between 1.25% and 1.75% per annum for loans based on LIBOR and (ii) between 0.25% and 0.75% per annum for loans based on the applicable base rate, in each case, based on Forrester’s consolidated total leverage ratio, and (c) a commitment fee applicable to undrawn revolving credit commitments between 0.30% and 0.20% per annum based on the Company's consolidated total leverage ratio.
The Credit Agreement permits the Company to increase commitments under the Revolving Credit Facility in an aggregate principal amount up to $50.0 million, subject to approval by the Administrative Agent and certain customary terms and conditions.
The Company may voluntarily prepay revolving loans under the credit facility at any time and from time to time, without premium or penalty. No interim amortization payments are required to be made under the credit facility.
In April 2023, the Company executed a second amendment to the credit facility to facilitate the conversion from LIBOR to SOFR and to set the base interest rate at SOFR plus 10 basis points.
Up to $5.0 million of the Revolving Credit Facility is available for the issuance of letters of credit, and any drawings under the letters of credit must be reimbursed within one business day. As of December 31, 2024, $0.6 million in letters of credit were issued under the Revolving Credit Facility.
Outstanding Borrowings
The following table summarizes the Company’s total outstanding borrowings as of the dates indicated (in thousands):
Description:
December 31, 2024
December 31, 2023
Revolving credit facility (1) (2) (3)
$
35,000
$
35,000
(1)The contractual annualized interest rate as of December 31, 2024 on the Revolving Credit Facility was 5.695%.
(2)The Company had $114.4 million of available borrowing capacity on the Revolving Credit Facility (not including the expansion feature) as of December 31, 2024.
(3)The weighted average annual effective rate on the Company's total debt outstanding for the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023 was 6.5% and 6.3%, respectively.
The Credit Agreement contains certain customary restrictive loan covenants, including among others, financial covenants that apply a maximum leverage ratio, minimum interest coverage ratio, and maximum annual capital expenditures. The negative covenants limit, subject to various exceptions, the Company’s ability to incur additional indebtedness, create liens on assets, merge, consolidate, liquidate or dissolve any part of the Company, sell assets, change fiscal year, or enter into certain transactions with affiliates and subsidiaries. The Company was in full compliance with the covenants as of December 31, 2024. The Facility also contains customary events of default, representations, and warranties.
All obligations under the Credit Agreement are unconditionally guaranteed by each of the Company’s existing and future, direct and indirect, material wholly-owned domestic subsidiaries, other than certain excluded subsidiaries, and are collateralized by a first priority lien on substantially all tangible and intangible assets, including intellectual property, and all of the capital stock of the Company and its subsidiaries (limited to 65% of the voting equity of certain subsidiaries).
Note 6 - Leases
The components of lease expense were as follows (in thousands):
Years Ended December 31,
Operating lease cost
$
11,542
$
12,671
$
14,284
Short-term lease cost
1,095
Variable lease cost
4,817
4,394
5,416
Sublease income
(524
)
(521
)
(746
)
Total lease cost
$
16,930
$
17,525
$
19,708
Additional lease information is summarized in the following table (in thousands, except lease term and discount rate):
Years Ended December 31,
Cash paid for amounts included in the measurement of
operating lease liabilities
$
14,570
$
13,839
Operating ROU assets obtained in exchange for
lease obligations
$
$
1,110
Weighted-average remaining lease term - operating
leases (years)
3.7
4.3
Weighted-average discount rate - operating leases
4.1
%
4.3
%
Future minimum lease payments under non-cancelable leases as of December 31, 2024 are as follows (in thousands):
Operating Lease
Payments
$
13,898
12,302
5,694
2,865
2,838
Thereafter
3,169
Total lease payments
40,766
Less imputed interest
(3,199
)
Present value of lease liabilities
$
37,567
Lease balances are as follows (in thousands):
As of
December 31, 2024
Operating lease ROU assets
$
27,049
Short-term operating lease liabilities (1)
$
12,758
Non-current operating lease liabilities
24,809
Total operating lease liabilities
$
37,567
(1)Included in accrued expenses and other current liabilities in the Consolidated Balance Sheets.
The Company’s leases do not contain residual value guarantees, material restrictions or covenants.
During the year ended December 31, 2024, the Company recorded $3.6 million of ROU asset impairments and $1.0 million of leasehold improvements impairments related to closure of the 10th and 11th floors of its offices located in San Francisco, California. During the year ended December 31, 2023, the Company recorded $1.9 million of ROU asset impairments and accelerated amortization and $0.7 million of leasehold improvements impairments related to closing various offices. During the year ended December 31, 2022, the Company recorded $3.7 million of ROU asset impairments and $1.3 million of leasehold improvement impairments related to closing the 10th floor of its offices located in San Francisco, California. The space had been vacant prior to the Company electing to permanently reduce its office space. The impairments and accelerated amortization are included in restructuring costs in the Consolidated Statements of Operations. The leasehold improvements were originally recorded in property and equipment, net in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. As a result of the impairments, the ROU asset and leasehold improvements were required to be recorded at their estimated fair value as Level 3 non-financial assets. The fair value of the asset group was determined using a discounted cash flow model, which required the use of estimates, including projected cash flows for the related assets, the selection of a discount rate used in the model, and regional real estate industry data. The fair value of the asset group was allocated to the ROU asset and leasehold improvements based on their relative carrying values.
Note 7 - Derivatives and Hedging
The Company enters into derivative contracts (an interest rate swap and foreign currency forwards) to mitigate the cash flow risk associated with changes in interest rates on its variable rate debt (refer to Note 5 - Debt) and changes in foreign exchange rates on forecasted foreign currency transactions. The Company accounts for its derivative contracts in accordance with FASB ASC Topic 815 - Derivatives and Hedging (“Topic 815”), which requires all derivatives, including derivatives designated as accounting hedges, to be recorded on the balance sheet at fair value.
Interest Rate Swap
During 2019, the Company entered into a single interest rate swap contract that matured on December 31, 2022, with an initial notional amount of $95.0 million. The Company paid a base fixed rate of 1.65275% and in return received the greater of: (1) 1-month LIBOR, rounded up to the nearest 1/16 of a percent, or (2) 0.00%.
The swap had been designated and accounted for as a cash flow hedge of the forecasted interest payments on the Company’s debt. The swap was considered to be a highly effective hedge of the designated interest rate risk for the entire contract period and changes in the fair value of the swap were recorded in accumulated other comprehensive loss, a component of equity in the Consolidated Balance Sheets.
Foreign Currency Forwards
The Company enters into a limited number of foreign currency forward exchange contracts to mitigate the effects of adverse fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates on transactions entered into in the normal course of business that are denominated in foreign currencies that differ from the local functional currency. These contracts generally have short durations and are recorded at fair value with both realized and unrealized gains and losses recorded in other income, net in the Consolidated Statements of Operations because the Company does not designate these contracts as hedges for accounting purposes.
During 2024, the Company entered into eleven foreign currency forward exchange contracts, all of which settled by December 31, 2024. Accordingly, as of December 31, 2024, there are no amounts recorded in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. During 2023, the Company entered into twelve foreign currency forward exchange contracts, all of which settled by December 31, 2023. Accordingly, as of December 31, 2023, there are no amounts recorded in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. During 2022, the Company entered into ten foreign currency forward exchange contracts, all of which settled by December 31, 2022.
The Company’s derivative counterparties are investment grade financial institutions. The Company does not have any collateral arrangements with its derivative counterparties and the derivative contracts do not contain credit risk related contingent features. The table below provides information regarding amounts recognized in the Consolidated Statements of Operations for derivative contracts for the periods indicated (in thousands):
For the Year Ended December 31,
Amount recorded in:
Interest expense (1)
$
-
$
-
$
(103
)
Other income, net (2)
(13
)
(194
)
Total
$
$
(13
)
$
(297
)
(1)Consists of interest expense from the interest rate swap contract.
(2)Consists of net realized gains (losses) on foreign currency forward contracts.
Note 8 - Fair Value Measurements
The Company has certain financial assets and liabilities which have been classified as either Level 1, 2, or 3 within the fair value hierarchy as described below.
Level 1 - Fair value based on quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities.
Level 2 - Fair value based on inputs other than Level 1 inputs that are observable, either directly or indirectly, such as quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities, quoted prices in markets that are not active, or other inputs that are observable or can be corroborated by observable market data for substantially the full term of the assets or liabilities.
Level 3 - Fair value based on unobservable inputs that are supported by little or no market activity and such inputs are significant to the fair value of the assets or liabilities.
The following table represents the Company’s fair value hierarchy for its financial assets and liabilities that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis (in thousands):
As of December 31, 2024
Level 1
Level 2
Total
Assets:
Money market funds (1)
$
52,395
$
-
$
52,395
Marketable investments (3)
-
12,180
12,180
Total Assets
$
52,395
$
12,180
$
64,575
As of December 31, 2023
Level 1
Level 2
Total
Assets:
Money market funds (2)
$
55,128
$
-
$
55,128
Marketable investments (3)
-
19,970
19,970
Total Assets
$
55,128
$
19,970
$
75,098
(1)U.S. based funds of $16.0 million are included in cash and cash equivalents and non-U.S. based funds of $36.4 million are included in marketable investments in the Consolidated Balance Sheets.
(2)U.S. based funds of $23.5 million are included in cash and cash equivalents and non-U.S. based funds of $31.6 million are included in marketable investments in the Consolidated Balance Sheets.
(3)Marketable investments have been initially valued at the transaction price and subsequently valued, at the end of the reporting period, utilizing third party pricing services or other market observable data. The pricing services utilize industry standard valuation methods, including both income and market based approaches and observable market inputs to determine value. These observable market inputs include reportable trades, benchmark yields, credit spreads, broker/dealer quotes, bids, offers, current spot rates and other industry and economic events.
During the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, the Company did not transfer assets or liabilities between levels of the fair value hierarchy. Additionally, there have been no changes to the valuation techniques for Level 2 assets and liabilities.
Note 9 - Non-Marketable Investments
At December 31, 2024 and 2023, the carrying value of the Company’s non-marketable investments, which were composed of interests in technology-related private equity funds and an interest in a standalone real-time feedback company (see Note 2 - Divestiture), was $3.2 million and $1.2 million, respectively, and are included in other assets in the Consolidated Balance Sheets.
One of the Company’s investments, with a book value of $2.6 million at December 31, 2024 is being accounted for using the cost method and, accordingly, is valued at cost less impairments, if any. The Company’s other investment is accounted for using the equity method. Accordingly, the Company records its share of the investee’s operating results each period, which are included in gains on investments, net in the Consolidated Statement of Operations. The Company recorded $0.8 million, $0.2 million and $0.3 million in gains from its non-marketable investments for the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023 and 2022, respectively.
The Company uses the cumulative earnings approach to classify distributions received from equity method investments. During the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023 and 2022, no distributions were received from the funds.
Note 10 - Income Taxes
Income before income taxes consists of the following (in thousands):
Years Ended December 31,
Domestic
$
(1,775
)
$
(4,058
)
$
16,552
Foreign
4,412
10,343
14,172
Total
$
2,637
$
6,285
$
30,724
The components of the income tax expense are as follows (in thousands):
Years Ended December 31,
Current:
Federal
$
2,874
$
3,867
$
9,349
State
1,922
3,819
Foreign
4,955
2,907
2,402
Total current
8,442
8,696
15,570
Deferred:
Federal
(636
)
(3,872
)
(5,513
)
State
(1,597
)
(1,788
)
Foreign
(185
)
Total deferred
(58
)
(5,461
)
(6,652
)
Income tax expense
$
8,384
$
3,235
$
8,918
A reconciliation of the federal statutory rate to Forrester’s effective tax rate is as follows:
Years Ended December 31,
Income tax provision at federal statutory rate
21.0
%
21.0
%
21.0
%
Increase (decrease) in tax resulting from:
State tax provision, net of federal benefit
40.6
8.1
5.2
Foreign tax rate differential
37.7
2.7
(0.5
)
Stock compensation
66.6
17.5
0.9
Withholding taxes
31.7
6.2
1.7
Non-deductible expenses
23.1
8.1
1.5
Goodwill related to sale of FeedbackNow
93.9
-
-
Permanent differences
(0.1
)
(1.7
)
(0.3
)
Change in valuation allowance
0.4
0.5
1.0
Foreign subsidiary income subject to U.S. tax
(1.6
)
1.2
1.3
Foreign-derived intangible income benefit
1.1
(3.8
)
(0.7
)
Change in tax legislation
-
(8.1
)
(1.6
)
Foreign exchange gain (loss) on previously taxed earnings and profits
(0.5
)
1.6
-
Currency translation gain (loss)
3.6
0.7
(0.1
)
Other, net
0.4
(2.5
)
(0.4
)
Effective tax rate
317.9
%
51.5
%
29.0
%
The significant items impacting the effective tax rate during 2024 as compared to 2023 are primarily due to 1) tax expense from the non-deductible goodwill related to the sale of the FeedbackNow product line of $2.5 million, 2) tax expense from the settlement of share-based awards of $1.8 million, 3) foreign withholding taxes of $0.8 million, and 4) state tax expense of $0.6 million related to the write-off of non-realizable state NOL carryforwards due to the dissolution of a domestic subsidiary.
The components of deferred income taxes are as follows (in thousands):
As of December 31,
Non-deductible reserves and accruals
$
1,776
$
3,077
Net operating loss and other carryforwards
5,525
6,262
Stock compensation
2,085
2,676
Depreciation and amortization
3,485
Lease liability
8,562
12,276
Gross deferred tax asset
21,433
24,726
Less - valuation allowance
(1,055
)
(1,065
)
Sub-total
20,378
23,661
Other liabilities
(2,553
)
(733
)
Goodwill and intangible assets
(13,837
)
(15,181
)
Operating lease right-of-use assets
(5,822
)
(9,163
)
Deferred commissions
(6,071
)
(6,545
)
Net deferred tax liability
$
(7,905
)
$
(7,961
)
As of December 31, 2024 and 2023, long-term net deferred tax assets were $0.8 million and $0.7 million, respectively, and are included in other assets in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. Long-term net deferred tax liabilities were $8.7 million at December 31, 2024 and 2023, and are included in non-current liabilities in the Consolidated Balance Sheets.
As of December 31, 2024, the Company has fully utilized its U.S. federal net operating loss carryforwards. In addition, the Company has no U.S. federal or state capital loss carryforwards.
The Company has foreign net operating loss carryforwards of approximately $17.4 million, which can be carried forward indefinitely. Approximately $3.2 million of the foreign net operating loss carryforwards relate to a prior acquisition, the utilization of which is subject to limitation under the tax law of the United Kingdom.
The Company considers all available evidence, both positive and negative, to determine whether, based on the weight of that evidence, a valuation allowance is needed for some portion or all of a net deferred income tax asset. Judgment is required in considering the relative impact of negative and positive evidence. In arriving at these judgments, the weight given to the potential effect of negative and positive evidence is commensurate with the extent to which it can be objectively verified. Although realization is not assured, based upon the Company’s historical taxable income and projections of the Company’s future taxable income over the periods during which the deferred tax assets are deductible and the carryforwards expire, management believes it is more likely than not that the Company will realize the benefits of these deductible differences, net of the existing valuation allowances, as discussed below.
As of December 31, 2024 and 2023, the Company maintained a valuation allowance of approximately $1.1 million, primarily relating to foreign net operating loss carryforwards from an acquisition, and as of December 31, 2022, also from U.S. capital losses from the Company’s investment in technology-related private equity funds.
The following table provides a summary of the changes in the deferred tax valuation allowance for the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023, and 2022 (in thousands):
Deferred tax valuation allowance at January 1
$
1,065
$
$
1,114
Additions
Deductions
(8
)
-
(336
)
Change in tax legislation
-
(4
)
Translation adjustments
(21
)
(81
)
Deferred tax valuation allowance at December 31
$
1,055
$
1,065
$
The Company will generally be free of additional U.S. federal tax consequences on additional unremitted foreign earnings that have been subject to U.S. tax or would be eligible for a dividends received deduction for earnings distributed after January 1, 2018. Notwithstanding the U.S. taxation of these amounts, the Company intends to continue to invest all of its unremitted earnings of $38.3 million, as well as the capital in these subsidiaries, indefinitely outside of the U.S. unless there are opportunities in the future to repatriate in a tax efficient manner. The Company does not expect to incur any material, additional taxes related to such amounts.
The Company utilizes a two-step process for the measurement of uncertain tax positions that have been taken or are expected to be taken on a tax return. The first step is a determination of whether the tax position should be recognized in the financial statements. The second step determines the measurement of the tax position. A reconciliation of the beginning and ending amount of unrecognized tax benefits is summarized as follows for the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023, and 2022 (in thousands):
Unrecognized tax benefits at January 1
$
-
$
-
$
Reductions for tax positions of prior years
-
-
(4
)
Translation adjustments
-
-
(1
)
Unrecognized tax benefits at December 31
$
-
$
-
$
-
The Company files income tax returns in the U.S. and in foreign jurisdictions. Generally, the Company is no longer subject to U.S., state, local, and foreign income tax examinations by tax authorities in its major jurisdictions for years before 2017, except to the extent of net operating loss and tax credit carryforwards from those years. Major taxing jurisdictions include the U.S., the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Switzerland. As of December 31, 2024, the Company has no jurisdictions under audit.
Note 11 - Stockholders’ Equity
Preferred Stock
Forrester has authorized 500,000 shares of $0.01 par value preferred stock. The Board of Directors has full authority to issue this stock and to fix the voting powers, preferences, rights, qualifications, limitations, or restrictions thereof, including dividend rights, conversion rights, redemption privileges, liquidation preferences, and the number of shares constituting any series or designation of such series.
Treasury Stock
As of December 31, 2024, Forrester’s Board of Directors has authorized an aggregate $610.0 million to purchase common stock under the Company’s stock repurchase program, which includes an additional $25.0 million authorized in April 2024. The shares repurchased may be used, among other things, in connection with Forrester’s equity incentive and purchase plans. As of December 31, 2024, the Company had repurchased approximately 18.0 million shares of common stock at an aggregate cost of $530.0 million.
Dividends
The Company does not currently pay cash dividends on its common stock.
Equity Plans
The Company maintains the Forrester Research, Inc. Amended and Restated Equity Incentive Plan (the “Equity Incentive Plan”), as most recently amended and restated by our stockholders in May 2023. The amendment and restatement resulted in (1) extending the term of the plan for an additional 10 years until May 2033, (2) increasing the number of shares issuable under the plan by 3,500,000 shares, and (3) establishing a maximum amount of awards issuable under the plan to the Company’s non-employee directors.
The Equity Incentive Plan provides for the issuance of stock-based awards, including incentive stock options (“ISOs”), non-qualified stock options (“NSOs”), and restricted stock units (“RSUs”) to purchase up to 9,930,000 shares authorized in the plan plus the number of unused shares from prior plan (not to exceed 2,500,000 shares). Under the terms of the Equity Incentive Plan, ISOs may not be granted at less than fair market value on the date of grant (and in no event less than par value). Options and RSUs generally vest annually over four years and options expire after 10 years. No future awards can be granted or issued under prior plans and there is a maximum amount of awards issuable under the plan to the Company’s non-employee Directors. RSUs granted to non-employee directors vest quarterly over one year. Options and RSUs granted under the Equity Incentive Plan immediately vest upon certain events, as described in the plan. As of December 31, 2024, approximately 3.6 million shares were available for future grant of awards under the Equity Incentive Plan.
As of December 31, 2024, no options remain outstanding under prior plans.
Restricted Stock Units
Restricted stock units represent the right to receive one share of Forrester common stock when the restrictions lapse and the vesting conditions are met. RSUs are valued on the date of grant based upon the value of the Company’s stock on the date of grant less the present value of dividends expected to be paid during the requisite service period, if any. Shares of Forrester’s common stock are delivered to the grantee upon vesting, subject to a reduction of shares for payment of withholding taxes. The weighted average grant date fair value for RSUs granted in 2024, 2023, and 2022 was $21.29, $32.82, and $50.37, respectively. The value of RSUs vested and converted to common stock, based on the value of Forrester’s common stock on the date of vesting, was $8.6 million, $8.8 million, and $10.8 million during 2024, 2023, and 2022, respectively.
RSU activity for the year ended December 31, 2024 is presented below (in thousands, except per share data):
Weighted-
Average
Number of
Grant Date
Shares
Fair Value
Unvested at December 31, 2023
$
37.66
Granted
21.29
Vested
(415
)
37.30
Forfeited
(222
)
30.48
Unvested at December 31, 2024
1,253
$
27.42
Stock Options
Stock option activity for the year ended December 31, 2024 is presented below (in thousands, except per share data and contractual term):
Weighted -
Weighted -
Average
Average
Exercise
Remaining
Aggregate
Number
Price Per
Contractual
Intrinsic
of Shares
Share
Term (in years)
Value
Outstanding at December 31, 2023
$
33.93
Forfeited
(34
)
37.01
Outstanding at December 31, 2024
$
33.29
6.54
$
-
Exercisable at December 31, 2024
$
33.64
4.27
$
-
Vested and expected to vest at December 31, 2024
$
33.29
6.48
$
-
No stock options were granted or exercised during 2024. The total intrinsic value of options exercised during 2023 and 2022 was $6 thousand and $0.3 million, respectively.
Employee Stock Purchase Plan
In May 2022, stockholders of the Company approved an amendment to the Company’s Second Amended and Restated Employee Stock Purchase Plan, which provided for an additional 600,000 shares of common stock, par value $0.01 per share, to be granted under the plan. The Company's Third Amended and Restated Employee Stock Purchase Plan (the "Stock Purchase Plan"), provides for the issuance of up to 0.8 million shares of common stock and as of December 31, 2024, approximately 0.5 million shares remain available for issuance. With certain limited exceptions, all employees of Forrester whose customary employment is more than 20 hours per week, including officers and directors who are employees, are eligible to participate in the Stock Purchase Plan. Purchase periods under the Stock Purchase Plan are six months in length and commence on each successive March 1 and September 1. Stock purchased under the Stock Purchase Plan is required to be held for one year before it is able to be sold. During each purchase period the maximum number of shares of common stock that may be purchased by an employee is limited to the number of shares equal to $12,500 divided by the fair market value of a share of common stock on the first day of the purchase period. An employee may elect to have up to 10% deducted from his or her compensation for the purpose of purchasing shares under the Stock Purchase Plan. The price at which the employee’s shares are purchased is the lower of: (1) 85% of the closing price of the common stock on the day that the purchase period commences, or (2) 85% of the closing price of the common stock on the day that the purchase period terminates.
Shares purchased by employees under the Stock Purchase Plan are as follows (in thousands, except per share data):
Shares
Purchase
Purchase Period Ended
Purchased
Price
February 29, 2024
$
17.14
August 31, 2024
$
16.30
February 28, 2023
$
27.96
August 31, 2023
$
26.04
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss (“AOCL”)
The components of accumulated other comprehensive loss are as follows (in thousands):
Marketable
Investments
Interest Rate
Swap
Translation
Adjustment
Total AOCL
Balance at December 31, 2021
$
(25
)
$
(212
)
$
(2,952
)
$
(3,189
)
Foreign currency translation (1)
-
-
(4,807
)
(4,807
)
Unrealized gain (loss) before reclassification, net
of tax of $(10)
(134
)
-
Reclassification to income, net
of tax of $(28) (2)
-
-
Balance at December 31, 2022
(159
)
-
(7,759
)
(7,918
)
Foreign currency translation (1)
-
-
3,248
3,248
Unrealized gain, net of tax of $(33)
-
-
Balance at December 31, 2023
(60
)
-
(4,511
)
(4,571
)
Foreign currency translation (1)
-
-
(3,496
)
(3,496
)
Reclassification adjustment for write-off of foreign currency translation loss (3)
-
-
Unrealized gain, net of tax of $(30)
-
-
Balance at December 31, 2024
$
$
-
$
(7,775
)
$
(7,746
)
(1)The Company does not record tax provisions or benefits for the net changes in foreign currency translation adjustments as it intends to permanently reinvest undistributed earnings of its foreign subsidiaries.
(2)Reclassification is related to the Company’s interest rate swap (cash flow hedge) and was recorded in interest expense in the Consolidated Statements of Operations. Refer to Note 7 - Derivatives and Hedging.
(3)The reclassification adjustment for the write-off of a foreign currency translation loss relates to the liquidation of a non-U.S. subsidiary during 2024 and is reported in restructuring costs in the Consolidated Statements of Operations.
Note 12 - Employee Pension Plans
Forrester sponsors several defined contribution plans for eligible employees. Generally, the defined contribution plans have funding provisions which, in certain situations, require contributions based upon formulas relating to employee wages or the level of elective participant contributions, as well as allow for additional discretionary contributions. Further, certain plans contain vesting provisions. Forrester’s contributions to these plans totaled approximately $7.2 million, $7.8 million, $8.2 million for the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023, and 2022, respectively.
Note 13 - Restructuring
In January 2023, the Company implemented a reduction in its workforce of approximately 4% across various geographies and functions to streamline operations. The Company recorded $4.3 million of severance and related costs for this action during the fourth quarter of 2022, and $0.6 million during the first quarter of 2023. The Company also recorded a restructuring charge of $5.0 million during the fourth quarter of 2022 related to closing one floor of its offices located in San Francisco, California, of which $3.7 million related to an impairment of a right-of-use asset and $1.3 million related to an impairment of leasehold improvements. During 2023, the Company recorded an incremental $0.9 million impairment to its California office and a $0.6 million charge for the write-off of a previously capitalized software project. During the third quarter of 2024, the Company recorded an incremental $0.5 million impairment to its California office.
The following table rolls forward the activity in the restructuring accrual for the January 2023 action for the year ended December 31, 2024 (in thousands):
Accrual at December 31, 2023
$
Additional restructuring and related costs
Non-cash charge (included above)
(492
)
Cash payments
(62
)
Accrual at December 31, 2024
$
-
In May 2023, the Company implemented a reduction in its workforce of approximately 8% across various geographies and functions to better align its cost structure and to streamline its sales and consulting organizations. The Company recorded $7.5 million of severance and related costs for this action during the second quarter of 2023. In addition, the Company closed certain of its smaller offices both inside and outside the U.S. in order to reduce facility costs and better match its facilities to its hybrid work strategy. As a result of closing the offices, the Company recorded restructuring costs of $2.3 million, which included $1.3 million related to right-of-use asset impairments and accelerated amortization and $0.6 million related to impairments of leasehold improvements. In addition, the Company incurred $0.7 million in contract termination costs. During the third quarter of 2024, the Company recognized $0.2 million of expense from the write-off of foreign currency translation adjustments related to the liquidation of a small foreign operation.
The following table rolls forward the activity in the restructuring accrual for the May 2023 action for the year ended December 31, 2024 (in thousands):
Accrual at December 31, 2023
$
1,282
Additional restructuring and related costs
Non-cash charge (included above)
(232
)
Cash payments
(943
)
Accrual at December 31, 2024
$
In February 2024, the Company implemented a reduction in its workforce of approximately 3% across various geographies and functions to better align its cost structure with the revenue outlook for the year. The Company recorded $0.7 million of severance and related costs for this action during the fourth quarter of 2023, and $2.8 million during the first quarter of 2024. The Company also recorded a restructuring charge of $3.8 million during the first quarter of 2024 related to closing one floor of its offices located in San Francisco, California, of which $3.2 million related to an impairment of a right-of-use asset and $0.6 million related to an impairment of leasehold improvements. During the third quarter of 2024, the Company recorded an incremental $0.2 million impairment to its California office.
The following table rolls forward the activity in the restructuring accrual for the February 2024 action for the year ended December 31, 2024 (in thousands):
Accrual at December 31, 2023
$
Additional restructuring and related costs
6,850
Non-cash charge (included above)
(4,036
)
Cash payments
(3,546
)
Accrual at December 31, 2024
$
-
In January 2025, the Company implemented a reduction in its workforce of approximately 6% across various geographies and functions to better align its cost structure with the revenue outlook for the year. Approximately $4.2 million of severance and related costs for this action were recorded during the fourth quarter of 2024. See Note 17 - Subsequent Events, for additional details of this action.
Note 14 - Operating Segment and Enterprise Wide Reporting
The Company’s chief operating decision-maker is the chief executive officer and the chief financial officer. The Company operates in three segments: Research, Consulting, and Events. These segments, which are also the Company's reportable segments, are based on the management structure of the Company and how the chief operating decision maker uses financial information to evaluate performance and determine how to allocate resources. The Company’s products and services are delivered through each segment as described below.
The Research segment includes the revenues from all of the Company’s research products as well as consulting revenues from advisory services (such as speeches and advisory days) delivered by the Company’s research organization. Research segment costs include the cost of the organizations responsible for developing and delivering these products in addition to the costs of the product management organization responsible for product pricing and packaging, and the launch of new products. During the third quarter of
2024, the Company realigned its technology teams and as such certain technology costs are no longer reported within the Research segment, and are now reported within the line selling, marketing, administrative and other expenses. Prior period amounts have been recast to conform to the current presentation.
The Consulting segment includes the revenues and the related costs of the Company’s project consulting organization. The project consulting organization delivers a majority of the Company’s project consulting revenue.
The Events segment includes the revenues and the costs of the organization responsible for developing and hosting in-person and virtual events.
The Company evaluates reportable segment performance and allocates resources based on segment operating income (loss). Segment expenses include the direct expenses of each segment organization and exclude selling and marketing expenses, general and administrative expenses, stock-based compensation expense, depreciation expense, adjustments to incentive bonus compensation from target amounts, amortization of intangible assets, restructuring costs, loss from sale of divested operation, interest expense, other income, and gains on investments. The accounting policies used by the segments are the same as those used in the consolidated financial statements. The Company does not review or evaluate assets as part of segment performance. Accordingly, the Company does not identify or allocate assets by reportable segment.
The Company provides information by reportable segment in the tables below (in thousands):
Research
Segment
Consulting
Segment
Events
Segment
Consolidated
Year Ended December 31, 2024
Research revenues
$
316,739
$
-
$
-
$
316,739
Consulting revenues
21,095
76,159
-
97,254
Events revenues
-
-
18,477
18,477
Total segment revenues
337,834
76,159
18,477
432,470
Segment expenses (1):
Compensation, benefits and related costs
(100,620
)
(27,782
)
(5,567
)
(133,969
)
Direct costs of Events
-
-
(13,429
)
(13,429
)
Professional services
(10,864
)
(1,735
)
(108
)
(12,707
)
Billable expenses
(548
)
(7,926
)
-
(8,474
)
Travel and entertainment
(1,895
)
(358
)
(104
)
(2,357
)
Software
(1,278
)
(8
)
(5
)
(1,291
)
Other segment expenses (2)
(446
)
(19
)
(37
)
(502
)
Total segment expenses
(115,651
)
(37,828
)
(19,250
)
(172,729
)
Segment operating income (loss)
222,183
38,331
(773
)
259,741
Selling, marketing, administrative and other expenses
(235,805
)
Amortization of intangible assets
(9,648
)
Restructuring costs
(11,773
)
Loss from sale of divested operation
(1,775
)
Interest expense, other income, and gains on investments
1,897
Income before income taxes
$
2,637
(1)The significant expense categories and amounts align with the segment-level information that is regularly provided to the chief operating decision maker.
(2)Other segment expenses for each reportable segment includes office supplies, maintenance, and certain overhead expenses.
Research
Segment
Consulting
Segment
Events
Segment
Consolidated
Year Ended December 31, 2023
Research revenues
$
334,396
$
-
$
-
$
334,396
Consulting revenues
28,826
89,402
-
118,228
Events revenues
-
-
28,155
28,155
Total segment revenues
363,222
89,402
28,155
480,779
Segment expenses (1):
Compensation, benefits and related costs
(109,025
)
(34,324
)
(6,049
)
(149,398
)
Direct costs of Events
-
-
(14,293
)
(14,293
)
Professional services
(11,861
)
(2,272
)
(60
)
(14,193
)
Billable expenses
(595
)
(8,113
)
-
(8,708
)
Travel and entertainment
(1,690
)
(297
)
(124
)
(2,111
)
Software
(1,729
)
(11
)
(14
)
(1,754
)
Other segment expenses (2)
(492
)
(11
)
(17
)
(520
)
Total segment expenses
(125,392
)
(45,028
)
(20,557
)
(190,977
)
Segment operating income
237,830
44,374
7,598
289,802
Selling, marketing, administrative and other expenses
(257,808
)
Amortization of intangible assets
(11,956
)
Restructuring costs
(13,272
)
Interest expense, other income, and gains on investments
(481
)
Income before income taxes
$
6,285
(1)The significant expense categories and amounts align with the segment-level information that is regularly provided to the chief operating decision maker.
(2)Other segment expenses for each reportable segment includes office supplies, maintenance, and certain overhead expenses.
Research
Segment
Consulting
Segment
Events
Segment
Consolidated
Year Ended December 31, 2022
Research revenues
$
354,453
$
-
$
-
$
354,453
Consulting revenues
41,559
111,028
-
152,587
Events revenues
-
-
30,747
30,747
Total segment revenues
396,012
111,028
30,747
537,787
Segment expenses (1):
Compensation, benefits and related costs
(107,870
)
(37,625
)
(7,187
)
(152,682
)
Direct costs of Events
-
-
(14,373
)
(14,373
)
Professional services
(13,441
)
(8,063
)
(62
)
(21,566
)
Billable expenses
(740
)
(10,712
)
-
(11,452
)
Travel and entertainment
(1,414
)
(357
)
(123
)
(1,894
)
Software
(1,488
)
(103
)
(1
)
(1,592
)
Other segment expenses (2)
(476
)
(29
)
(55
)
(560
)
Total segment expenses
(125,429
)
(56,889
)
(21,801
)
(204,119
)
Segment operating income
270,583
54,139
8,946
333,668
Selling, marketing, administrative and other expenses
(278,518
)
Amortization of intangible assets
(13,161
)
Restructuring costs
(9,335
)
Interest expense, other income, and gains on investments
(1,930
)
Income before income taxes
$
30,724
(1)The significant expense categories and amounts align with the segment-level information that is regularly provided to the chief operating decision maker.
(2)Other segment expenses for each reportable segment includes office supplies, maintenance, and certain overhead expenses.
Net long-lived tangible assets by location as of December 31, 2024 and 2023 are as follows (in thousands):
United States
$
30,307
$
48,001
United Kingdom
7,043
8,194
Europe (excluding United Kingdom)
Asia Pacific
1,207
2,742
Total
$
38,748
$
59,123
Revenues by geographic destination, based on the location products and services are consumed, and as a percentage of total revenues for the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023, and 2022 are as follows (dollars in thousands):
United States
$
334,095
$
373,483
$
426,041
Europe (excluding United Kingdom)
37,698
37,912
36,664
United Kingdom
18,934
21,311
20,079
Canada
12,221
16,416
20,759
Asia Pacific
20,778
23,604
26,548
Other
8,744
8,053
7,696
Total
$
432,470
$
480,779
$
537,787
United States
%
%
%
Europe (excluding United Kingdom)
United Kingdom
Canada
Asia Pacific
Other
Total
%
%
%
Note 15 - Certain Balance Sheet Accounts
Property and Equipment:
Property and equipment as of December 31, 2024 and 2023 is recorded at cost less accumulated depreciation and consists of the following (in thousands):
Computers and equipment
$
8,615
$
10,128
Computer software
32,120
34,641
Furniture and fixtures
7,393
9,188
Leasehold improvements
25,423
29,506
Total property and equipment
73,551
83,463
Less accumulated depreciation
(61,852
)
(64,062
)
Total property and equipment, net
$
11,699
$
19,401
The Company incurs costs to develop or obtain internal use computer software used for its operations, and certain of these costs meeting the criteria in ASC 350 - Internal Use Software are capitalized and amortized over their useful lives. The entire balance in the computer software category above consists of these costs. Amortization of capitalized internal-use software costs totaled $4.3 million, $4.7 million, and $4.8 million for the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023, and 2022, respectively, and is included in depreciation expense in the Consolidated Statements of Operations.
Accrued Expenses and Other Current Liabilities:
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities as of December 31, 2024 and 2023 consist of the following (in thousands):
Payroll and related benefits
$
30,879
$
43,426
Taxes
2,142
4,680
Lease liability
12,758
14,181
Other
11,823
19,195
Total
$
57,602
$
81,482
Non-Current Liabilities:
Non-current liabilities as of December 31, 2024 and 2023 consist of the following (in thousands):
Deferred tax liability
$
8,705
$
8,679
Other
1,840
2,481
Total
$
10,545
$
11,160
Allowance for Doubtful Accounts:
A rollforward of the allowance for doubtful accounts as of and for the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023, and 2022 is as follows (in thousands):
Balance, beginning of year
$
$
$
Provision for doubtful accounts
Write-offs
(697
)
(692
)
(669
)
Translation adjustments
(19
)
Balance, end of year
$
$
$
When evaluating the adequacy of the allowance for expected credit losses, the Company makes judgments regarding the collectability of accounts receivable based, in part, on the Company’s historical loss rate experience, customer concentrations, management’s expectations of future losses as informed by current economic conditions, and changes in customer payment terms. If the expected financial condition of the Company’s customers were to deteriorate, resulting in an impairment of their ability to make payments, additional allowances may be required. If the expected financial condition of the Company’s customers were to improve, the allowances may be reduced accordingly.
Note 16 - Contingencies
From time to time, the Company may be subject to legal proceedings and civil and regulatory claims that arise in the ordinary course of its business activities. Regardless of the outcome, legal proceedings and claims can have a material adverse effect on the Company because of defense and settlement costs, diversion of management resources, and other factors. It is the Company's policy to record accruals for legal contingencies to the extent that it has concluded that it is probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount of the loss can be reasonably estimated, and to expense costs associated with loss contingencies, including any related legal fees, as they are incurred. The Company reviews its loss contingencies at least quarterly and adjusts its accruals and/or disclosures to reflect the impact of negotiations, settlements, rulings, advice of legal counsel, or other new information, as deemed necessary. Once established, a provision may change in the future due to new developments or changes in circumstances and could increase or decrease the Company’s earnings in the period that the changes are made. Following an April 2023 mediation in a wage-related matter that resulted in a settlement agreement, the Company accrued $4.8 million of expense in the quarter ended March 31, 2023 that is classified in general and administrative expense in the Consolidated Statement of Operations. This claim was fully paid in the first quarter of 2024.
Note 17 - Subsequent Events
In January 2025, the Company implemented a reduction in force of approximately 6% of its workforce across various geographies and functions to better align its cost structure with the revenue outlook for the year. The Company also plans to close one of its smaller offices in the United States. The Company anticipates total costs for this action to be in a range of $5.6 million to $5.8 million related principally to cash severance and related benefit costs for terminated employees, with the majority of the cash costs to be expended in 2025.

---

ITEM 9. CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS
Item 9. Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure
Not applicable.

---

ITEM 9A. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES
Item 9A. Controls and Procedures
Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures
Our management, with the participation of our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, evaluated the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 13a-15(e) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”)) as of the end of the period covered by this report. Based on the evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures were effective as of December 31, 2024.
Management’s Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting
Management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting as defined in Rule 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) under the Exchange Act. Internal control over financial reporting is designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (“GAAP”). Internal control over financial reporting includes those policies and procedures that: 1) pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the Company, 2) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with GAAP, and that receipts and expenditures of the Company are being made only in accordance with authorizations of management and directors of the Company, and 3) provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use, or disposition of the Company’s assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements.
Management assessed the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2024. In making its assessment, management used the criteria set forth in Internal Control - Integrated Framework (2013) issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (“COSO”) in 2013. Based on this assessment, management concluded that as of December 31, 2024, the Company’s internal control over financial reporting was effective.
The effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2024 has been audited by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, our independent registered public accounting firm, as stated in their report which appears herein.
Changes in Internal Control Over Financial Reporting
There was no change in our internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rules 13a-15(f) of the Exchange Act) that occurred during the quarter ended December 31, 2024, which has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

---

ITEM 9B. OTHER INFORMATION
Item 9B. Other Information
During the three months ended December 31, 2024, no director or officer of the Company adopted or terminated a “Rule 10b5-1 trading arrangement” or “non-Rule 10b5-1 trading arrangement,” as each term is defined in Item 408(a) of Regulation S-K.

---

ITEM 10. DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers, and Corporate Governance
Executive Officers
The following table sets forth information about our executive officers as of March 7, 2025.
Name
Age
Position
George F. Colony
Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer
Ryan Darrah
Chief Legal Officer and Secretary
Michael Facemire
Chief Technology Officer
L. Christian Finn
Chief Financial Officer
Jobina Gonsalves
Chief People Officer
Carrie Johnson
Chief Product Officer
Sharyn Leaver
Chief Research Officer
Nate Swan
Chief Sales Officer
George F. Colony, Forrester’s founder, has served as Chairman of the Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer since the Company’s inception in July 1983, and as President since September 2001 and from 1983-2000.
Ryan Darrah began serving as Chief Legal Officer and Secretary in March 2017. Previously, he was the Assistant General Counsel and Assistant Secretary of the Company. Prior to joining the Company in 2007, Mr. Darrah served as General Counsel and Secretary of Sports Loyalty Systems, Inc. and ProfitLogic, Inc.
Michael Facemire began serving as Chief Technology Officer in July 2024. Previously, he served as Vice President of Product Technology from July 2018 to July 2024, and Vice President, Principal Analyst, from October 2016 to July 2018. Mr. Facemire joined Forrester in 2012.
L. Christian Finn became the Company’s Chief Financial Officer in September 2021. Prior to joining Forrester, he was Vice President FP&A and Global Procurement of LogMeIn, Inc., a software as a service company focused on unified communications and collaboration, from September 2015 to September 2021. Prior to joining LogMeIn, from 2011 to 2015 Mr. Finn was with Nuance Communications, Inc., most recently serving as the Chief Financial Officer of its Healthcare division.
Jobina Gonsalves became the Company's Chief People Officer in May 2024. Prior to joining Forrester, she was the Senior Vice President HR for TUV SUD America, a quality, safety, and sustainability solutions provider, where she held a number of roles since 2012.
Carrie Johnson became Forrester’s Chief Product Officer in January 2022. Previously, she served as Chief Research Officer from November 2018 until January 2022, Senior Vice President, Research from August 2015 to November 2018, and Vice President, Group Director from October 2013 to August 2015. Ms. Johnson joined Forrester in 1998.
Sharyn Leaver began serving as the Company's Chief Research Officer in January 2022. Previously she served as Senior Vice President, Research, from November 2018 to January 2022, and Vice President and Group Research Director from October 2013 to November 2018. Ms. Leaver joined Forrester in 2001.
Nate Swan became Forrester’s Chief Sales Officer in January 2023. Prior to joining Forrester, he was Vice President of Sales at OneTrust LLC, a software as a service company focused on privacy management software platforms, from January to December 2022. Prior to joining OneTrust, from June to September 2021, Mr. Swan was Chief Sales Officer of Ideal Image, and from 1997 until June of 2021, he was with Gartner, Inc., most recently as Senior Vice President, Sales Learning and Development.
Our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics covers all employees, officers and directors, including our principal executive, financial and accounting officers. A copy of our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics can be found on our web site, www.forrester.com.
We intend to satisfy the disclosure requirements under Item 5.05 of Form 8-K regarding an amendment to, or waiver from, a provision of the Company’s Code of Business Conduct and Ethics, that relates to a substantive amendment or material departure from a provision of the Code, by posting such information on our Internet website at www.forrester.com. We also intend to satisfy the disclosure requirements of the Nasdaq Stock Market regarding waivers of the Code of Business Conduct and Ethics by posting such information on our Internet website at www.forrester.com.
The remainder of the response to this item is contained in our Proxy Statement for our 2025 Annual Meeting of Stockholders (the “2025 Proxy Statement”) under the captions “Election of Directors”, “Section 16(a) Beneficial Ownership Reporting Compliance” and "Insider Trading Policies and Procedures", all of which is incorporated herein by reference.

---

ITEM 11. EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION
Item 11. Executive Compensation
The response to this item is contained in the 2025 Proxy Statement under the captions “Director Compensation” and “Executive Compensation” and is incorporated herein by reference.

---

ITEM 12. SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS
Item 12. Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters
The response to this item is contained in the 2025 Proxy Statement under the caption “Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management” and is incorporated herein by reference.
The following table summarizes, as of December 31, 2024, the number of options issued under our equity incentive plans and the number of shares available for future issuance under these plans:
(a)
(b)
(c)
Plan Category
Number of
Securities
to be Issued Upon
Exercise
of Outstanding
Options,
Warrants and
Rights
Weighted Average
Exercise
Price of
Outstanding
Options, Warrants
and Rights
Number of Securities
Remaining
Available for Future
Issuance Under
Equity Compensation
Plans (Excluding
Securities Reflected
in Column (a)(1)
Equity compensation plans
approved by stockholders
1,420,195
(1)
$
33.29
4,028,580
(2)
Equity compensation plans not
approved by stockholders
N/A
N/A
N/A
Total
1,420,195
$
33.29
4,028,580
(1)Includes 1,253,476 restricted stock units that are not included in the calculation of the weighted average exercise price.
(2)Includes, as of December 31, 2024, 3,576,647 shares available for issuance under our Equity Incentive Plan and 451,933 shares that are available for issuance under our Stock Purchase Plan.
The shares available under our Equity Incentive Plan are available to be awarded as restricted or unrestricted stock or stock units.

---

ITEM 13. CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS
Item 13. Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence
The response to this item is contained in the Company’s 2025 Proxy Statement under the captions “Information with Respect to Board of Directors”, “Certain Relationships and Related Transactions”, and “Related Person Transactions” and is incorporated herein by reference.

---

ITEM 14. PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING FEES AND SERVICES
Item 14. Principal Accountant Fees and Services
The response to this item is contained in the Company’s 2025 Proxy Statement under the caption “Independent Auditors’ Fees and Other Matters” and is incorporated herein by reference.
PART IV

---

ITEM 15. EXHIBITS, FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES
Item 15. Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules.
a. Financial Statements. See Index to Financial Statement herein.
b. Financial Statement Schedules. None.
c. Exhibits. A complete listing of exhibits required is given in the Exhibit Index herein, which precedes the exhibits filed with this report.