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Note 9 - Loan & Related Agreements
9 Months Ended
Oct. 31, 2013
Debt Disclosure [Abstract]  
Debt Disclosure [Text Block]

9.             Loan & Related Agreements


As previously reported, on February 11, 2013, the Company and Elkhorn Partners Limited Partnership (“Elkhorn”), entered into a Secured Loan Agreement (the “Elkhorn Loan Agreement”) and a Stock Purchase Agreement (the “Elkhorn SPA”), and certain related agreements, which are described below (collectively, the “Elkhorn Agreements”). Pursuant to those Agreements, Elkhorn has made a $1.5 million senior secured loan to the Company with a maturity date of November 30, 2014 and has purchased a total of 6,250,000 shares of the Company’s common stock at a cash purchase price of $0.16 per share, generating an additional $1.0 million of cash for the Company. The average of the closing prices of the Company’s common stock in the over-the-counter market for the five trading days immediately preceding February 11, 2013 was $0.14 per share and, for the 29 trading days that began on January 2, 2013 and ended on February 8, 2013, was $0.158 per share. On February 11, 2013, the Company used approximately $2.1 million of the proceeds of $2.5 million from the Elkhorn Loan and the sale of the shares to Elkhorn to pay the entire principal amount of and all accrued interest on the Broadwood Loan.


Secured Loan Agreement with Elkhorn Partners.


The Elkhorn Loan, which is evidenced by a promissory note (the “Elkhorn Note”), issued by the Company to Elkhorn, bears interest at 7% for the first 12 months of the Loan, increasing to 8.5% thereafter and continuing until the Loan is paid in full. The Loan matures on November 30, 2014 (the “Maturity Date”); however, the Company has the right, at its option, to prepay the Elkhorn Loan, in whole or in part, without penalty or premium.


The Elkhorn Loan Agreement provides that if and to the extent the Company does not pay the Elkhorn Loan in full by its Maturity Date, then, Elkhorn will have the right, at its option (but not the obligation), to convert the then unpaid balance of the Loan, in whole or in part, into shares of Company common stock at a conversion price of $0.25 per share. That conversion price is subject to possible adjustment on (i) certain sales of Company common stock at a price lower than $0.25 per share, (ii) stock splits of, stock dividends on and any reclassification of the Company’s outstanding shares, and (iii) certain mergers or reorganizations of the Company, as provided in Article III of the Elkhorn Loan Agreement. This conversion feature creates a derivative liability that is described in Note 10.


The Elkhorn Loan Agreement contains customary representations and warranties of and affirmative and negative covenants on the part of the Company and CWT. The Agreement also provides that the Elkhorn Loan, together with accrued interest, will become immediately due and payable upon the occurrence of an Event of Default, which is defined in the Loan Agreement to include each of the following, among others: (i) a failure of the Company to pay the principal of or accrued interest on the Loan which continues unremedied for three calendar days (except that such grace period shall not apply to amounts due at the Maturity Date of the Loan), (ii) the Company or CWT commits a breach of any of their other material obligations under the Loan Agreement or under any of the Debt Related Agreements (described below) and the breach which remains uncured for a period ranging from 15 days to 30 days (depending on the nature of the breach) following receipt of notice of the breach from Elkhorn; (iii) any of the representations or warranties of the Company or CWT contained in the Loan Agreement prove to have been untrue or incorrect in any material respect, (iv) the Company or CWT fails to pay indebtedness, as such term is defined in the Elkhorn Loan Agreement, in the amount of $200,000 or more owed to any other creditor, (v) one or more judgments are entered against the Company or CWT in an aggregate amount of $200,000 or more, which are not satisfied, discharged, stayed or bonded against within the succeeding 30 days, and (vi) the filing by the Company of a voluntary petition in bankruptcy or the Company’s failure to obtain the dismissal, within 60 days, of an involuntary petition filed against it in bankruptcy, or a receiver or liquidator is appointed over, or an attachment is issued against a substantial part of the assets of the Company or CWT, which in either case remains undismissed for the succeeding thirty (30) days.


Upon the occurrence and during the continuance of an Event of Default, interest on the Loan will accrue at the lesser of (i) 15% per annum or (ii) the highest rate permitted by applicable law.


Debt Related Agreements. In connection with the Elkhorn Loan Agreement, the Company and CWT entered into a Security Agreement and the Company entered into a Pledge Agreement (collectively, the “Debt Related Agreements”) with Elkhorn to secure the payment and performance by the Company and CWT of their respective obligations under the Loan Agreement and the Debt Related Agreements. Set forth below is a summary of those Agreements.


Security Agreement. As security for the performance of their respective obligations under the Elkhorn Loan Agreement and the Debt Related Agreements, the Company and CWT have entered into a security agreement (the “Security Agreement”) granting Elkhorn a first priority perfected security interest in all of their assets, including their intellectual property rights. The Security Agreement provides that, on the occurrence and during the continuance of an Event of Default, whether by the Company or CWT, Elkhorn will become entitled to take possession of and to sell the assets of the Company and CWT to the extent necessary to recover the amounts due Elkhorn under the Loan Agreement and any other amounts that may be due and payable to Elkhorn under any of the Debt Related Agreements.


Pledge Agreement. As additional security for the payment and performance of its obligations under the Elkhorn Loan Agreement, the Company has entered into a Pledge Agreement (the “Pledge Agreement”) pursuant to which it has pledged and will deliver possession to Elkhorn of all of CWT’s outstanding shares. The Pledge Agreement provides, among other things, that upon the occurrence and during the continuance of an Event of Default, Elkhorn will become entitled to transfer the CWT shares into its name, to vote those shares and, subject to applicable securities laws, to sell those shares in order to recover amounts owed to it by the Company.


Elkhorn Stock Purchase Agreement


Concurrently with the Company’s entry into the Loan Agreement, the Company and Elkhorn entered into the Elkhorn SPA. Pursuant to that Agreement, the Company sold 6,250,000 shares of its common stock to Elkhorn at a price of $0.16 per share, resulting in an aggregate purchase price of $1.0 million. As noted above, that purchase price compares to an average per share closing price for Comarco’s shares of $0.14 during the five trading days immediately preceding the sale of the shares to Elkhorn, and an average per share closing price of $0.158 for the 29 trading days that that began on January 1, 2013 and ended on February 8, 2013.


The purchase price of $0.16 per share paid by Elkhorn for those shares was determined by arms-length negotiations between Elkhorn and the members of a special committee of the Company’s Board of Directors, comprised of three of the directors who have no affiliation with Elkhorn and no financial interest, other than their interests solely as shareholders of the Company, in either the loan or share transactions with Elkhorn. That per share purchase price was determined based on a number of factors, including the Company’s inability, notwithstanding its best efforts, to raise additional capital from other prospective institutional investors during the six month term of the Broadwood Loan and the recent trading prices of the Company’s shares in the over-the-counter market.


Senior Secured Six Month Term Loan Agreement with Broadwood Partners L.P. (“Broadwood”)


The Company entered into a Senior Secured Six Month Term Loan Agreement dated July 27, 2012 (the “Loan Agreement”) with Broadwood, a significant shareholder of the Company.


Pursuant to that Agreement, Broadwood made a $2,000,000 senior secured six month loan (the “Loan”) to the Company and to CWT, as co-borrower. The loan bore interest at 5% per annum, ranked senior in right of payment to all other indebtedness of the Company and was due and payable in full on January 28, 2013. The Company originally intended to repay the Loan and accrued interest from the $3.0 million in proceeds that was expected to be received from Broadwood in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2013, pursuant to the Broadwood Stock Purchase Agreement (“Broadwood SPA”). As consideration for the Loan and Broadwood’s entry into the SPA, on July 27, 2012 the Company issued stock purchase warrants (the “Warrants”) to Broadwood entitling it to purchase up to a total of 1,704,546 shares of the Company’s common stock (the “Warrant Shares”), at a price of $1.00 per Warrant Share, at any time through July 2020.


On January 28, 2013, the maturity date of the loan, the Company was informed by Broadwood, that it was Broadwood’s position that one or more of the conditions precedent to its obligation to purchase the Company’s shares pursuant to the Broadwood SPA had not been satisfied and, as a result, Broadwood would not consummate that purchase and, therefore, the Company would have to repay the loan in cash. The Company’s position is that, contrary to Broadwood’s assertions, all of the conditions under the SPA had been satisfied, and Broadwood’s refusal to purchase 3,000,000 shares of Company common stock, at the price of $1.00 per share, constituted a material breach by Broadwood of its obligations under the Broadwood SPA. As a result, as of the date of filing this report, the Company has not issued any of the 1,000,000 Additional Warrant Shares to Broadwood and each party has reserved its rights under and with respect to the Broadwood SPA and the Broadwood Warrants.


During the first quarter of fiscal 2014, the Company repaid the amounts outstanding under the Broadwood Loan Agreement in full from the Elkhorn proceeds described above.