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Note 3 - Summary of Significant Accounting Policies | 9 Months Ended
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Oct. 31, 2014
Notes to Financial Statements |
Significant Accounting Policies [Text Block] |
3. | Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
The summary of our significant accounting policies presented below is designed to assist the reader in understanding our condensed consolidated financial statements. Basis of Presentation The accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheet as of January 31, 2014, which has been derived from our audited financial statements, and our unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements as of October 31, 2014 included herein have been prepared without audit in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) for interim information and with the instructions for Form 10-Q and Article 10 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, they do not include all of the information and footnotes required by (“GAAP”) for complete financial statements. The Company believes that the disclosures are adequate to make the information presented not misleading when read in conjunction with the audited consolidated financial statements included in the Company’s annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended January 31, 2014. The accounting policies followed by the Company are set forth in Note 2 to the Company’s audited financial statements included in its Form 10-K for its fiscal year ended January 31, 2014 (the “2014 10-K”), which was filed with the SEC on April 30, 2014. The unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial information presented herein reflects all adjustments, consisting only of normal recurring accruals, which are, in the opinion of management, necessary for a fair presentation of the consolidated results for the interim periods presented. The consolidated results for the three and nine months ended October 31, 2014 are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for the fiscal year ending January 31, 2015. Principles of Consolidation The unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements of the Company include the accounts of Comarco, Inc. and CWT, its wholly owned subsidiary. All material intercompany balances, transactions, and profits and losses have been eliminated. Cash and Cash Equivalents All highly liquid investments with original maturity dates of three months or less when acquired are classified as cash and cash equivalents. The fair value of cash and cash equivalents approximates the amounts shown in the consolidated financial statements. Cash and cash equivalents are generally maintained in uninsured accounts, typically Eurodollar deposits with daily liquidity, which are subject to investment risk including possible loss of principal invested. Accounts Receivable Due from Suppliers Oftentimes we were able to source components locally that we later sold to our contract manufacturers, who built the finished goods, and other suppliers. This was especially the case when new products were initially introduced into production. Sales to our contract manufacturers (or “CMs”) and other suppliers were excluded from revenue and were recorded as a reduction to cost of revenue. Restricted Cash Our restricted cash balances are secured by separate bank accounts and represents $5,000 which serves as collateral for credit card chargebacks associated with our internet website. Use of Estimates The preparation of consolidated financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements, and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the periods reported. Actual results could materially differ from those estimates. Certain accounting principles require subjective and complex judgments to be used in the preparation of financial statements. Accordingly, a different financial presentation could result depending on the judgments, estimates, or assumptions that are used. Such estimates and assumptions include, but are not specifically limited to, those required in the assessment of the impairment of long-lived assets, allowance for doubtful accounts, valuation allowances for deferred tax assets, valuation of derivative liabilities and determination of stock-based compensation. Derivative Liabilities A derivative is an instrument whose value is “derived” from an underlying instrument or index such as a future, forward, swap, option contract, or other financial instrument with similar characteristics, including certain derivative instruments embedded in other contracts and for hedging activities. As a matter of policy, the Company does not invest in separable financial derivatives or engage in hedging transactions. However, the Company entered into certain financing transactions in fiscal 2013 that involved financial equity instruments containing certain features that have resulted in the instruments being deemed derivatives. The Company may engage in other similar complex financing transactions in the future, but not with the intention to enter into derivative instruments. Derivatives are measured at fair value using the Monte Carlo simulation pricing model and marked to market through earnings. However, such new and/or complex instruments may have immature or limited markets. As a result, the pricing models used for valuation of derivatives often incorporate significant estimates and assumptions. Changes in these subjective assumptions can materially affect the estimate of the fair value of derivative liabilities and, consequently, the related amount recognized as loss due to change in fair value of derivative liabilities on the consolidated statement of operations. Furthermore, depending on the terms of a derivative, the valuation of derivatives may be removed from the financial statements upon exercise or conversion of the underlying instrument into some other security. We evaluate free-standing derivative instruments to properly classify such instruments within stockholders’ equity or as liabilities in our financial statements. Our policy is to settle instruments indexed to our common shares on a first-in-first-out basis. The classification of a derivative instrument is reassessed at each balance sheet date. If the classification changes as a result of events during a reporting period, the instrument is reclassified as of the date of the event that caused the reclassification. There is no limit on the number of times a contract may be reclassified. During the second quarter of fiscal 2013, we adopted the guidance, as codified in Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") Accounting Standards Codification ("ASC") 815-40, Derivatives and Hedging , Accounting for Derivative Financial Instruments Indexed to, and Potentially Settled in, a Company’s Own Stock, that requires us to apply a two-step model in determining whether a financial instrument or an embedded feature is indexed to our own stock and thus enables it to qualify for equity classification. The warrants issued to Broadwood Partners, L.P. (“Broadwood”) contained provisions that adjusted the exercise price in the event of certain dilutive issuance of our securities (see Note 8). Accordingly, the Company considered the warrants to be subject to price protection and classified them as derivative liabilities at the date of issuance with a fair value of $1.4 million and a corresponding discount to the underlying loan payable (see Note 8). On August 13, 2014, we entered into an an Amendment and Release Agreement that canceled and replaced the Broadwood warrants. Accordingly, the derivative liability associated with the Broadwood warrants was reversed on the cancellation date and the replacement warrants, which qualified for classification as equity, were added to additional paid in capital. Additionally, during the first quarter of fiscal 2014, we entered into a Loan Agreement with Elkhorn Partners Limited Partnership (“Elkhorn”) which contains convertible provisions that allow Elkhorn to convert the loan into common stock. The conversion price could have been adjusted in the event of certain dilutive issuance of our securities. Accordingly, the Company considered the convertible debt to be subject to price protection and created a discount to the underlying loan payable and classified that fair value as derivative liabilities at the date of issuance with a fair value of $0.6 million (see Note 8). On June 3, 2014, the Company repaid the Elkhorn Loan in full and as a result, the discount to the loan payable and related derivative liability were extinguished and charged to earnings for the nine months period ended October 31, 2014. Fair Value of Financial Instruments Our financial instruments include cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable due from customers and suppliers, accounts payable, accrued liabilities, a short-term loan and derivative liabilities. The carrying amount of cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable, accounts payable, and accrued liabilities are considered to be representative of their respective fair values because of the short-term nature of those instruments. Legal expense classification Our legal expenses are classified in either selling, general, and administrative expenses or engineering and support expenses depending on the nature of the legal expense. All legal expenses incurred related to our intellectual property, including associated litigation expense and maintenance of our patent portfolio, are included in engineering and support expenses in our consolidated statement of operations. All other legal expenses, including all other litigation expense and public company legal expense are included in selling, general, and administrative expenses in our consolidated statement of operations.

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