Accounting Policies

Almost all of the Company’s fixed-price contracts are considered to have a single performance obligation. Although multiple promises to transfer individual goods or services may exist, they are not typically distinct within the context of such contracts because contract promises included therein are interrelated or the contracts require the Company to perform critical integration so that the customer receives a completed project. Warranties provided under the Company’s contracts with customers are assurance-type primarily and are recorded as the corresponding contract work is performed.

The transaction price for a contract represents the value of the contract awarded to the Company that is used to determine the amount of revenues recognized as of the balance sheet date. It may reflect amounts of variable consideration which could be either increases or decreases to the transaction price. These adjustments can be made from time-to-time during the period of contract performance as circumstances evolve related to such items as changes in the scope and price of contracts, claims, incentives and liquidated damages.

Contract assets include amounts that represent the rights to receive payment for goods or services that have been transferred to the project owner, with the rights conditional upon something other than the passage of time. Contract liabilities include amounts that reflect obligations to provide goods or services for which payment has been received. Contract retentions are billed amounts which, pursuant to the terms of the applicable contract, are not paid by project owners until a defined phase of a contract or project has been completed and accepted. These retained amounts are reflected in contract assets or contract liabilities depending on the net contract position of the particular contract. Retention amounts and the length of retention periods may vary. Retainage amounts related to active contracts are considered current regardless of the term of the applicable contract; such amounts are generally collected by the completion of the applicable contract. The total of amounts retained by project owners under construction contracts at April 30, 2022 and January 31, 2022 were $41.8 million and $40.4 million, respectively.

Variable Consideration

Amounts for contract variations for which the Company has project-owner directive for additional work or other scope change, but not for the price associated with the corresponding additional effort, are included in the transaction price when it is considered probable that the applicable costs will be recovered through a modification to the contract price. The effects of any revision to a transaction price can be determined at any time and they could be material. The Company may include in the corresponding transaction price a portion of the amount claimed in a dispute that it expects to receive from a project owner. Once a settlement of the dispute has been reached with the project owner, the transaction price may be revised again to reflect the final resolution. The aggregate amounts of such contract variations included in the transaction prices that were used to determine project-to-date revenues at April 30, 2022 and January 31, 2022 were $6.8 million and $7.5 million, respectively. Variations related to the Company’s contracts typically represent modifications to the existing contracts and performance obligations, and do not represent new performance obligations. Actual costs related to any changes in the scope of the corresponding contract are expensed as they are incurred. Changes to total estimated contract costs and losses, if any, are reflected in operating results for the period in which they are determined.

The Company’s long-term contracts typically have schedule dates and other performance objectives that if not achieved could subject the Company to liquidated damages. These contract requirements generally relate to specified activities that must be completed by an established date or by the achievement of a specified level of output or efficiency. Each applicable contract defines the conditions under which a project owner may be entitled to any liquidated damages. At the outset of each of the Company’s contracts, the potential amounts of liquidated damages typically are not subtracted from the transaction price as the Company believes that it has included activities in its contract plan, and the associated costs, that will be effective in preventing such damages. Of course, circumstances may change as the Company executes the corresponding contract. The transaction price is reduced by an applicable amount when the Company no longer considers it probable that a future reversal of revenues will not occur when the matter is resolved. The Company considers potential liquidated damages, the costs of other related items and potential mitigating factors in determining the adequacy of its regularly updated estimates of the amounts of gross profit expected to be earned on active projects.

In other cases, the Company may have the grounds to assert liquidated damages against subcontractors, suppliers, project owners or other parties related to a project. Such circumstances may arise when the Company’s activities and progress are adversely affected by delayed or damaged materials, challenges with equipment performance or other events out of the Company’s control where the Company has rights to recourse, typically in the form of liquidated damages.

In general, the Company does not adjust the corresponding contract accounting until it is probable that the favorable cost relief will be realized. Such adjustments have been and could be material.

The Company records adjustments to revenues and profits on contracts, including those associated with contract variations and estimated cost changes, using a cumulative catch-up method. Under this method, the impact of an adjustment to the amount of revenues recognized to date is recorded in the period that the adjustment is identified. Estimated variable consideration amounts are determined by the Company based primarily on the single most likely amount in the range of possible consideration amounts. Revenues and profits in future periods of contract performance are recognized using the adjusted amounts of transaction price and estimated contract costs.

Remaining Unsatisfied Performance Obligations ("RUPO”)

The amount of RUPO represents the unrecognized revenue value of active contracts with customers as determined under the revenue recognition rules of U.S. GAAP. Increases to RUPO during a reporting period represent the transaction prices associated with new contracts, as well as additions to the transaction prices of existing contracts. The amounts of such changes may vary significantly each reporting period based on the timing of major new contract awards and the occurrence and assessment of contract variations.

At April 30, 2022, the Company had RUPO of $339.2 million. The largest portion of RUPO at any date usually relates to EPC service contracts with typical performance durations of one to three years. However, the length of certain significant construction projects may exceed three years. The Company estimates that approximately 74% of the RUPO amount at April 30, 2022 will be included in the amount of consolidated revenues that will be recognized during the remainder of the fiscal year ending January 31, 2023 ("Fiscal 2023”). Most of the remaining amount of the RUPO amount at April 30, 2022 is expected to be recognized in revenues during the fiscal year ending January 31, 2024 ("Fiscal 2024”). Revenues for future periods will also include customer contract amounts added to RUPO subsequent to April 30, 2022.

It is important to note that estimates may be changed in the future and that cancellations, deferrals, or scope adjustments may occur related to work included in the amount of RUPO at April 30, 2022. Accordingly, RUPO may be adjusted to reflect project delays and cancellations, revisions to project scope and cost and foreign currency exchange fluctuations, or to revise estimates, as effects become known. Such adjustments may materially reduce future revenues below Company estimates.

Disaggregation of Revenues

The following table presents consolidated revenues for the three months ended April 30, 2022 and 2021, disaggregated by the geographic area where the corresponding projects were located:

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The major portion of the Company’s consolidated revenues are recognized pursuant to fixed-price contracts with most of the remaining portions earned pursuant to time-and-material contracts. Consolidated revenues are disaggregated by reportable segment in Note 14 to the condensed consolidated financial statements.

Short-term investments as of April 30, 2022 and January 31, 2022 consisted solely of certificates of deposit purchased from Bank of America (the "Bank”) with weighted average initial maturities of less than one year (the "CDs”). The Company has the intent and ability to hold the CDs until they mature, and they are carried at cost plus accrued interest. Interest income is recorded when earned and is included in other income. At April 30, 2022 and January 31, 2022, the weighted average annual interest rates of the outstanding CDs were 0.9% and 0.1%, respectively.

The Company has a substantial portion of its cash on deposit in the U.S. with the Bank. The Company also maintains certain Euro-based bank accounts in Ireland and certain pound sterling-based bank accounts in the U.K. in support of the operations of APC. Management does not believe that the combined amount of the CDs and the cash deposited with the Bank and cash balances maintained at financial institutions in Ireland and the U.K., in excess of government-insured levels, represent material risks.

30, 2022 and January 31, 2022, for which the Company has provided cash collateral. As of April 30, 2022, no amounts have been drawn against this letter of credit.

The Company has pledged the majority of its assets to secure its financing arrangements. The Bank’s consent is not required for acquisitions, divestitures, cash dividends or significant investments as long as certain conditions are met. The Bank requires that the Company comply with certain financial covenants at its fiscal year-end and at each of its fiscal quarter-ends. The Credit Agreement includes other terms, covenants and events of default that are customary for a credit facility of its size and nature, including a requirement to achieve positive adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, as defined, over each rolling twelve-month measurement period. As of April 30, 2022 and January 31, 2022, the Company was in compliance with the covenants of the Credit Agreement.

The Company expects to amend the Credit Agreement during Fiscal 2023 in order to replace LIBOR with an equivalent benchmark rate. The Company does not expect that the change will materially impact its consolidated financial statements.

Monthly payments for the occupancy by TRC of its primary offices and plant, which are made to the founder and retired chief executive officer of TRC based on an annual rental rate of $0.3 million, are being made on a month-to-month rental basis.

The Company also uses equipment and occupies other facilities under short-term rental agreements. Rent expense amounts incurred under operating leases and short-term rental agreements (including portions of the lease expense amounts disclosed above) and included in costs of revenues for the three months ended April 30, 2022 and 2021 were $2.9 million and $3.0 million, respectively. Rent expense incurred under these types of arrangements (including portions of the lease expense amounts disclosed above) and included in selling, general and administrative expenses for the three months ended April 30, 2022 and 2021 was $0.2 million for both periods.

Performance Bonds and Guarantees

In the normal course of business and for certain major projects, the Company may be required to obtain surety or performance bonding, to cause the issuance of letters of credit, or to provide parent company guarantees (or some combination thereof) in order to provide performance assurances to clients on behalf of its contractor subsidiaries. As these subsidiaries are wholly-owned, any actual liability is ordinarily reflected in the financial statement account balances determined pursuant to the Company’s accounting for contracts with customers. When sufficient information about claims on guaranteed or bonded projects would be available and monetary damages or other costs or losses would be determined to be probable, the Company would record such losses. Any amounts that may be required to be paid in excess of the estimated costs to complete contracts in progress as of April 30, 2022 are not estimable.

As of April 30, 2022, the value of the Company’s unsatisfied bonded performance obligations, covering all of its subsidiaries, was approximately $187.0 million. In addition, as of April 30, 2022, there were bonds outstanding in the aggregate amount of approximately $1.1 million covering other risks including warranty obligations related to completed activities; these bonds expire at various dates over the next two years. Not all of our projects require bonding.

As of April 30, 2022 and January 31, 2022, the Company had also provided a financial guarantee, subject to certain terms and conditions, on behalf of GPS to an original equipment manufacturer in the amount of $3.6 million in support of business development efforts. A liability was established for the estimated loss related to this guarantee during Fiscal 2022.

Warranties

The Company generally provides assurance-type warranties for work performed under its construction contracts. The warranties cover defects in equipment, materials, design or workmanship, and most warranty periods typically run from nine to twenty-four months after the completion of construction on a particular project. Because of the nature of the Company’s projects, including project owner inspections of the work both during construction and prior to substantial completion, the Company has not experienced material unexpected warranty costs in the past. Warranty costs are estimated based on experience with the type of work and any known risks relative to each completed project. The accruals of liabilities, which are established to cover estimated future warranty costs, are recorded as the contracted work is performed, and they are included in the amounts of accrued expenses in the condensed consolidated balances sheets. The liability amounts may be periodically adjusted to reflect changes in the estimated size and number of expected warranty claims.

The features of the 2020 Plan are similar to those included in the 2011 Plan. Awards may include nonqualified stock options, incentive stock options,  and restricted or unrestricted stock. The specific provisions for awards are documented in a written agreement between the Company and the awardee. All stock options awarded under the Stock Plans have exercise prices per share at least equal to the common stock’s market value on the date of grant. Stock options have terms no longer than ten years. Typically, stock options are awarded with one-third of each stock option vesting on each of the first three anniversaries of the corresponding award date.

As of April 30, 2022, there were 1,970,801 shares of common stock reserved for issuance under the Stock Plans; this number includes 254,646 shares of common stock available for future awards under the 2020 Plan.

Stock Options

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The changes in the number of non-vested options to purchase shares of common stock for the three months ended April 30, 2022, and the weighted average fair value per share for each number, are presented below (shares in thousands):

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The total intrinsic value amounts of the stock options exercised during the three months ended April 30, 2022 and 2021 were not significant. At April 30, 2022, the aggregate market value amounts of the shares of common stock subject to outstanding and exercisable stock options that were "in-the-money” exceeded the aggregate exercise prices of such options by $2.0 million and $1.9 million, respectively.

Restricted Stock Units

The Company awards restricted stock units to senior executives, members of the Company’s board of directors and certain other employees. Awardees earn the right to receive shares of common stock as certain performance goals are achieved and/or service periods are satisfied. Each restricted stock unit expires on the three-year anniversary of the award.

During the three months ended April 30, 2022, the Company awarded 47,000 performance-based restricted stock units, 7,500 renewable performance-based restricted stock units and 57,500 time-based restricted stock units. During the three months ended April 30, 2021, the Company awarded 49,000 performance-based restricted stock units, 10,000 renewable performance-based restricted stock units and 49,500 time-based restricted stock units.

Fair Value

The fair value amounts of stock options and restricted stock units are recorded as stock compensation expense over the terms of the corresponding awards. Expense amounts related to stock awards were $0.9 million and $0.7 million for the three months ended April 30, 2022 and 2021, respectively. At April 30, 2022, there was $8.4 million in unrecognized compensation cost related to outstanding stock awards that the Company expects to expense over the next three years.

The Company estimates the weighted average fair value of stock options on the date of award using a Black-Scholes option pricing model. The Company believes that its past stock option exercise activity is sufficient to provide it with a reasonable basis upon which to estimate the expected life of newly awarded stock options. Risk-free interest rates are determined by blending the rates for three-to-five year U.S. Treasury notes. The dividend yield is based on the Company’s current annual regular dividend amount. The calculations of the expected volatility factors are based on the monthly closing prices of the Company’s common stock for the five-year periods preceding the dates of the corresponding awards.

The fair value amounts for the performance-based restricted stock units have been determined by using the per share market price of the Company’s common stock on the dates of award and the target number of shares for the awards (50% of the maximum number), by assigning equal probabilities to the thirteen possible payout outcomes at the end of each three-year term, and by computing the weighted average of the outcome amounts. For each award, the estimated fair value amount was calculated to be 88.5% of the aggregate market value of the target number of shares on the award date. For the renewable performance-based restricted stock units, the fair value of each award was determined to be 50% of the aggregate market value of the shares of common stock covered by the award on the date of the award. For the time-based restricted stock units, the fair value of each award equals the aggregate market price for the number of shares covered by each award on the date of award.

Net Operating Loss ("NOL”) Carryback

In an effort to combat the adverse economic impacts of the COVID-19 crisis, the U.S. Congress passed the Coronavirus, Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act ( the "CARES Act”) that was signed into law on March 27, 2020. This wide-ranging legislation was an emergency economic stimulus package that included spending and tax breaks aimed at strengthening the U.S. economy and funding a nationwide effort to curtail the effects of the outbreak of COVID-19.

The tax changes of the CARES Act included a temporary suspension of the limitations on the future utilization of certain NOLs and re-established a carryback period for certain losses to five years. The NOLs eligible for carryback under the CARES Act include the Company’s domestic NOL for the year ended January 31, 2020 ("Fiscal 2020”), which was approximately $39.5 million. The Company made the appropriate filing with the Internal Revenue Service (the "IRS”) requesting carryback refunds of income taxes paid for the years ended January 31, 2017 ("Fiscal 2017”), 2016 ("Fiscal 2016”) and 2015 in the total amount of approximately $12.7 million.

Research and Development Tax Credits

During the year ended January 31, 2019 ("Fiscal 2019”), the Company completed a detailed review of the activities of its engineering staff on major EPC services projects in order to identify and quantify the amounts of research and development tax credits that may have been available to reduce prior year income taxes. This study focused on project costs incurred during the three-year period ended January 31, 2018. Based on the results of the study, management identified and estimated significant amounts of income tax benefits that were not previously recognized in the Company’s operating results for any prior year reporting period. The net amount of research and development tax credit benefit recognized in Fiscal 2019 was $16.6 million. During Fiscal 2020, deferred tax assets related to the research and development tax credits were reduced by $0.4 million. The Company recorded a corresponding liability for uncertain income tax return positions related to identified but unrecognized research and development tax credit benefits in the amount of $5.0 million. Most this liability was included in accrued expenses as of April 30, 2022 and January 31, 2022.

The research and development credits claimed by the Company in its federal income tax returns were examined by the IRS. The conclusions of the IRS were formally protested by the Company and the results of the appeals hearing that occurred in May 2022 are described in Note 15.

Income Tax Refunds

As of April 30, 2022 and January 31, 2022, the balances of other current assets in the condensed consolidated balance sheet included income tax refunds receivable and prepaid income taxes in the total amounts of approximately $27.7 million and $29.5 million, respectively. The income tax refunds included the amounts that were expected to be received from the IRS upon completion of the tax return examination appeals process described in Note 15 and the amount expected to be received from the IRS upon its processing of the Company’s NOL carryback refund request discussed above. The Company has also formally protested the conclusions reached by two states, where the Company filed tax returns reflecting the benefits of certain research and development credits, that the credits are not allowable. The Company expects that the ultimate settlement of the income tax disputes with the states will be resolved on bases favorable to the Company.

Income Tax Returns

The Company is subject to federal and state income taxes in the U.S., and income taxes in Ireland and the U.K. Tax treatments within each jurisdiction are subject to the interpretation of the related tax laws and regulations which require significant judgment to apply. The Company is no longer subject to income tax examinations by authorities for its fiscal years ended on or before January 31, 2018 ("Fiscal 2018”) except for several notable exceptions including Ireland, the U.K. and several states where the open periods are one year longer.

Solar Energy Projects

The Company has invested in limited liability companies that make equity investments in solar energy projects that are eligible to receive energy tax credits. The passive investments have been accounted for under the equity method and the balances are included in other assets in our condensed consolidated balance sheets. Each tax credit, when recognized, is recorded as a reduction of the corresponding investment balance with an offsetting reduction in the balance of accrued taxes payable in accordance with the deferral method. At April 30, 2022 and January 31, 2022, the investment account balances were $0.8 million and $0.2 million, respectively. These investments are expected to provide positive overall returns over their six-year expected lives.

For the three-month period ended April 30, 2022, the investment balance was adjusted to reflect its share of the income of the investment entities in the amount of approximately $0.6 million, which has been included as other income in the Company’s condensed consolidated statement of earnings. Other than the Company making initial payments to a solar energy investment company in the amount of approximately $3.5 million during the three-month period ended April 30, 2021, the activities related to these projects during this prior period were not meaningful.  

The Company has also established deferred taxes related to the difference in the book and tax bases of the investments.

Supplemental Cash Flow Information

The Company was not required to make any income tax payments during the three months ended April 30, 2022 or 2021. During the three months ended April 30, 2022 and 2021, the Company did not receive any income tax refunds that were material.