Bosco Chiu
Vice President of Finance
Principal Accounting Officer
t 310 410 9600 x52254
boscoc@herbalife.com
Herbalife International of America, Inc.
990 West 190th Street, Suite 650
Torrance, CA 90502
April 21, 2011
John Reynolds
Assistant Director
United States Securities and Exchange Commission
100 F. Street NE
Washington, D.C. 20549
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Re: |
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Your Letter Dated April 8, 2011 (the Comment Letter)
Regarding Herbalife Ltd. (File No. 001-32381)s
Form 10-K for Fiscal Year End December 31, 2010
Filed February 22, 2011 (the 2010 10-K) |
Dear Mr. Reynolds:
Herbalife Ltd. (the Company, we or our) takes very seriously its responsibilities
regarding the accuracy and completeness of the disclosures contained in its public filings. The
Company appreciates the Staffs comments as well as the opportunity the review process provides to
improve the content of the Companys public filings.
We confirm that we are responsible for the adequacy and accuracy of the disclosures in our
filings. Furthermore, we acknowledge that (i) neither Staff comments nor changes in disclosure in
response to Staff comments preclude the Securities and Exchange Commission (the Commission) from
taking any action with respect to the filing, and (ii) we may not assert Staff comments as a
defense in any proceeding initiated by the Commission or any person under the federal securities
laws of the United Sates.
For ease of reference, the headings and numbered paragraphs below correspond to the headings
and numbered comments in the Comment Letter, with the Staffs comments presented in bold italicized
text. In response to the Comment Letter the Company offers the following:
Form 10-K filed February 22, 2011
Distributor Strategy, page 7
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1. |
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We note in several of your regions, distributors are converting their focus
to daily consumption DMOs. In order to provide an investor with a better understanding
of your business, please provide us with and confirm in future Exchange Act filings,
you will revise your disclosure to provide more clarification of the nature and
characteristics of a DM0 and how this differs from your current model. |
Company Response:
We note the Staffs comment, and in response thereto, respectfully advise the Staff
that we work with our distributors to globalize best-practice business methods in
direct selling to enable our distributors to improve their businesses. We refer to
these business methods as Distributor Methods of Operations (DMOs). While we
support a number of different DMOs, as described on page 7 of the 2010 10-K under the
heading Distributor Strategy, one of the more popular DMOs is the daily consumption
DMO, which is described below. We will include disclosure regarding daily
consumption DMOs similar to the following in future Exchange Act filings, including
our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended March 31, 2011:
Under our traditional DMO, distributors typically sell to their customers on a
somewhat infrequent basis (e.g. monthly) which provides less opportunity for
interaction with their customers. Under a daily consumption DMO, distributors
interact with their customers on a more frequent basis which enables the distributors
to better educate and advise customers about nutrition and the proper use of the
products and helps promote daily usage as well, thereby helping our distributors grow
their businesses.
We also note that in our prior Exchange Act filings we have used the term DMO for
both the general concept of distributor methods of operations and the more specific
daily methods of operation or daily consumption business models. We will conform
our use of these terms in future filings as described above.
Network Marketing Program, page 11
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2. |
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We note in late 2009 (as disclosed on page 12), you revised your sales leader
qualification to include an additional optional qualification that allows for a
distributor to achieve a sales leader level by personally placing orders with
Herbalife that accumulate to 5,000 Volume Points within 12 months. Please tell us how
this impacted your sales leader retention in 2010 compared to 2009. Specifically, tell
us what percentage of your retention rate for each of your geographic areas was
attributed to this change in qualification criteria. |
Company Response:
We note the Staffs comment, and in response thereto, respectfully advise the Staff
that the change to our qualification criteria in late 2009 noted by the Staff had no
impact on the 2010 retention rate. A distributor who achieves the sales leader level
will hold this status until the February following the one-year anniversary of the
distributor qualifying as a sales leader, at which point the distributor is subject
to the requalification requirements. Because the change to our qualification
criteria was effected in late 2009, the earliest the distributors who took advantage
of this change to achieve sales leader status for the first time would have been
subject to the requalification requirements was February 2011. Therefore, the 2010
retention rate, which reflected the requalification results from February 2010, was
not affected by the change to our criteria. We also note that the change had no
material impact on the 2011 retention rate as the vast majority of sales leaders that
qualified under this change will not need to requalify until February 2012. However,
in general we believe that allowing distributors to qualify over a longer period of
time will promote success for our sales leaders which, over time, could improve
retention rates.
Managements Discussion and Analysis
Volume Points by Geographic Region, page 50
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3. |
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We note your disclosure that volume points can be a measure of your sales
volume as well as of your sales volume trends. In order to provide an investor with a
better understanding of your volume points measure, please provide us with and confirm
in future Exchange Act filings you will revise to disclose (i) how volume points are
assigned (e.g. by $US price, size of product, etc.) and (ii) how this measure relates
to changes in product mix (e.g. if a more expensive or lager sized product is assigned
more volume points, the overall increase in volume points doesnt necessarily mean an
increase in volume of product being sold). |
Company Response:
We note the Staffs comment, and in response thereto, respectfully advise the Staff
that a key non-financial measure we focus on is Volume Points, which is essentially
our weighted average measure of product sales volume. Volume Points, which are
unaffected by exchange rates or price increases, are used by management as a proxy
for sales trends because in general, an increase in Volume Points in a particular
geographic region or country indicates an increase in our local currency net sales
while a decrease in Volume Points in a particular geographic region or country
indicates a decrease in our local currency net sales. We will expand our disclosure
regarding Volume Points to include similar information to the following in future
Exchange Act filings, including our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal
quarter ended March 31, 2011:
We assign a Volume Point value to a product when it is first introduced into the
market. The specific number of Volume Points assigned to a product is based on a
Volume Point to U.S. dollar ratio that we use for the vast majority of new products.
If a product is available in different quantities then the various sizes will have
different Volume Point values. If a new product is not introduced in or otherwise
expected to be sold in the U.S., we will determine the Volume Point value for that
product based on a review of various factors in the regions and countries in which we
will market the product, including the Volume Point to local currency ratio of
existing products in the relevant countries. In general, once assigned, a Volume
Point value is consistent in each region and country and does not change from year to
year. The reason Volume Points are used in the manner described above is that the
Company uses Volume Points for distributor qualification and recognition purposes and
therefore attempts to keep Volume Points for a similar or like product consistent on
a global basis.
However, because Volume Points are a function of value rather than product type or
size, they are not a reliable measure for product mix. As an example, an increase in
Volume Points in a specific country or region could mean a significant increase in
sales of less expensive product or a marginal increase in sales of an expensive
product.
Gross Margin, page 61
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4. |
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Please provide us with and confirm in future Exchange Act filings you will
revise your disclosure here to quantify the impact of underlying variances (e.g.
currency fluctuations, price increases, cost savings from your Seed to Feed
initiative, supply chain, etc) to be consistent with the information provided in your
quarterly earnings conference calls. |
Company Response:
We note the Staffs comment, and in response thereto, respectfully advise the Staff
that we will expand our disclosure regarding gross profit as a percentage of net
sales to be consistent with the information provided in our quarterly earnings
conference calls similar to the following in future Exchange Act filings, including
our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended March 31, 2011:
Gross profit was $2,175.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2010, as compared
to $1,831.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2009. As a percentage of net
sales, gross profit for the year ended December 31, 2010 increased to 79.6%, as
compared to 78.8% for the same period in 2009, or a net increase of 80 basis points.
108 basis points of the net increase were primarily due to various cost savings
initiatives, price increases in certain markets, the favorable impact from foreign
currency fluctuations, and changes in country mix. The increase was partially offset
by a net decrease of 28 basis points relating to the circumstances surrounding
Herbalife Venezuela and Venezuelas highly inflationary economy, which circumstances
are described in detail throughout the 2010 10-K. Specifically, the 28 basis point
net decrease resulted from the combination of (i) approximately 50 unfavorable basis points from
the impact of remeasuring Herbalife Venezuelas Bolivar net sales at the less
favorable old parallel market rate and the less favorable SITME exchange rate during
2010, as opposed to being measured at the CADIVI official rate during 2009, and (ii)
approximately 22 favorable basis points from recognizing a less unfavorable foreign
exchange impact of $12.7 million during the year ended December 31, 2010, relating to
the incremental U.S. dollar cost of importing finished goods into Venezuela at the
unfavorable parallel market rate rather than the CADIVI official rate, as compared to
an $18.8 million unfavorable foreign exchange impact recognized during the year ended
December 31, 2009.
Liquidity and Capital Resources, page 69
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5. |
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Tell us how you considered providing liquidity disclosures to discuss the
potential tax impact associated with the repatriation of undistributed earnings of
foreign subsidiaries. In this regard, provide us with the amount of investments that
are currently held by your foreign subsidiaries. If material to your liquidity
position, please also provide us with and confirm in future Exchange Act filings you
will disclose the impact of repatriating the undistributed earnings of foreign
subsidiaries. Refer to Item 303(a)(l) of Regulation S-K and Section IV of SEC Release
33-8350. |
Company Response:
We note the Staffs comment, and in response thereto, respectfully advise the Staff
that in Item 7A, Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk on page
82 of the 2010 10-K, we disclosed that our cash and cash equivalents held by our
foreign (non-U.S.) subsidiaries was $188.2 million as of December 31, 2010. Our
foreign subsidiaries did not hold any other significant investments that were
recorded on our consolidated balance sheet as of December 31, 2010.
Item 303(a)(1) of Regulation S-K and Section IV of SEC Release 33-8350 require
disclosure of matters affecting a registrants liquidity in any material way. Should
we make a determination to remit these cash and cash equivalents from our foreign
subsidiaries for the purpose of repatriation of undistributed earnings of foreign
subsidiaries, the impact of any tax consequences on the Companys overall liquidity
position would not be material. We also further note that any impact would be
mitigated by (i) the Companys consolidated net positive operating cash flows, as
disclosed in the Companys consolidated statements of cash flows for the years ended
December 31, 2010, 2009 and 2008, (ii) the Companys new $700 million revolving
credit facility, recently executed in March 2011, which can be used to fund liquidity
needs based on the $520 million of undrawn and available credit as of March 31, 2011,
and (iii) the fact that the tax impact associated with the repatriation could be funded by the
distribution itself.
Therefore, we do not believe any disclosure is required with respect to any potential
tax impact. However, if the potential tax impact associated with the repatriation of
undistributed earnings of foreign subsidiaries become material to our liquidity
position in the future, we will provide additional appropriate disclosures in future
Exchange Act filings.
Financial Statements
Notes to Financial Statements
Note 2 Basis of Presentation
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6. |
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Please tell us where you record shipping and handling costs and provide us
with the amounts for each period presented. If these amounts are not included in costs of
sales and are material, please confirm in future Exchange Act filings you will revise
to disclose (i) your policy for recording shipping and handling costs and (ii) the
amounts for each period presented. |
Company Response:
We note the Staffs comment, and in response thereto, respectfully advise the Staff
that in Note 2, Basis of Presentation, under the heading of Revenue Recognition, in
the notes to consolidated financial statements on page 104 of the 2010 10-K, we
disclose that shipping and handling costs paid by the Company are included in cost of
sales. The shipping and handlings costs for 2010, 2009 and 2008 were $58 million,
$49 million and $48 million, respectively.
Note 12 Income Taxes, page 124
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7. |
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Tell us how you considered separately disclosing your income before income
tax expense for domestic operations in addition to your foreign operations. Refer to
Rule 4-08(h) of Regulation S-X. |
Company Response:
We note the Staffs comment, and in response thereto, respectfully advise the Staff
that the disclosure required by Rule 4-08(h) of Regulation S-X is included in Note
12, Income Taxes, in the notes to consolidated financial statements and that we
separately state domestic, foreign and worldwide income before income tax expense
within Note 12. The income before income tax expense generated from U.S. operations
is considered income from domestic operations and income before income tax generated
from operations in countries other than the U.S. is treated as income from foreign
operations.
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8. |
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We note the caption in your effective income tax rate reconciliation for
differences between U.S. and foreign tax rates on foreign income, including
withholding taxes. |
Please clarify what the foreign rate differential represents in each of the three
years presented. As part of your response, (i) explain how the foreign rate
differential is determined in each fiscal year, (ii) identify the significant
components of this item and (iii) tell us how this relates to your new tax
strategies that were referred to in your quarterly earnings conference calls.
Company Response:
We note the Staffs comment, and in response thereto, respectfully advise the Staff
as follows:
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(i) |
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For each of the last three years, the differences between U.S.
and foreign tax rates on foreign income, including withholding taxes represents
the difference between the actual foreign taxes expensed and the foreign taxes
that would have been expensed assuming a hypothetical application of a notional
35% tax rate to our foreign income. This number has increased as our foreign
income taxed at rates below the notional 35% tax rate has increased. |
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(ii) |
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There are no other significant components within this item other
than the computation noted above. |
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(iii) |
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The Company performed a comprehensive review in 2010 of its
expenses and income related to transfer pricing as part of its on-going tax
strategy. This review resulted in changes to our mix of income across tax
jurisdictions and an increase in the difference between the notional 35% U.S.
tax rate and foreign tax rates on foreign income, including withholding taxes.
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9. |
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Please tell us why you believe it is not practicable to determine the amount
of unrecognized deferred tax liability related to the over $1.4 billion in
undistributed earnings. |
Company Response:
We note the Staffs comment and in response thereto, respectfully advise the Staff
that it is not practicable to determine the amount of unrecognized deferred tax
liability related to the $1.4 billion in undistributed earnings as there is
uncertainty regarding the amount of
deferred tax liabilities for a substantial portion of these undistributed earnings.
The amount of the unrecognized deferred tax liability depends on judgment required to
analyze the withholding tax due, the applicable tax law and related tax treaties, and
factual circumstances in effect at the time of any such distribution, such as a
determination of the tax residencies of the public shareholders of the registrant.
Therefore, we believe it is not practicable at this time to reliably determine the
amount of the unrecognized deferred tax liability related to the Companys
undistributed earnings.
Exhibits
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10. |
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We note that exhibit 10.35 appears to be missing schedules and exhibits.
Please confirm that you will file these exhibits in their entirety with your next
periodic report. |
Company Response:
We note the Staffs comment, and in response thereto, respectfully advise the Staff
that, as disclosed in our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on March 9, 2011,
we refinanced our long term debt. As a result of that refinancing, exhibit
10.35 to the 2010 10-K is no longer operative. In the Companys next Quarterly
Report on Form 10-Q, this exhibit will be replaced with the Companys new credit
agreement, including all schedules and exhibits thereto.
We hope this response has addressed all of the Staffs concerns relating to the Comment
Letter. Should you have additional questions regarding the information contained herein, we would
be pleased to discuss them with you.
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Very truly yours,
HERBALIFE LTD.
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By: |
/s/ Bosco Chiu
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Bosco Chiu |
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Vice President of Finance
Principal Accounting Officer |
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cc: |
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Michael O. Johnson, Chief Executive Officer & Chairman
Brett R. Chapman, General Counsel & Corporate Secretary
John DeSimone, Chief Financial Officer |