Stock Compensation Plans

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Share-based Payment Arrangement [Abstract]

Stock Compensation PlansPursuant to the Company’s 2021 Stock Incentive Plan, as amended, the Company may issue stocks, stock options, restricted stock, RSUs including performance-based RSUs, stock purchase warrants, stock appreciation rights, phantom stock and dividend equivalents to eligible employees, non-employee directors, consultants, and other service providers of the Company and its subsidiaries. The Company has granted RSUs as its primary incentive awards. There were no outstanding awards other than RSUs as of December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019. An aggregate of 17.1 million shares of common stock were authorized under the 2021 Stock Incentive Plan, and the total number of shares available for grant was approximately 5.4 million as of December 31, 2021.

The following table presents a summary of the total share-based compensation expense and the related net tax benefits (deficiencies) associated with the Company’s various employee share-based compensation plans for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019:



($ in thousands)	Year Ended December 31,
	2021		2020		2019
Stock compensation costs	$	32,567	$	29,237	$	30,761
Related net tax benefits (deficiencies) for stock compensation plans	$	1,760	$	(1,839)	$	4,792

Restricted Stock Units — RSUs are granted under the Company’s long-term incentive plan at no cost to the recipient. RSUs generally cliff vest after three years of continued employment from the date of the grant, and are authorized to settle predominantly in shares of the Company’s common stock. Certain RSUs are settled in cash. Dividends are accrued during the vesting period and are paid at the time of vesting. While a portion of RSUs are time-based vesting awards, others vest subject to the attainment of specified performance goals, referred to as “performance-based RSUs.” Performance-based RSUs are granted annually upon approval by the Company’s Compensation Committee based on the performance in the year prior to the grant date of the award. The number of awards that vests can range from zero to a maximum of 200% of the granted number of awards based on the Company’s achievement of specified performance criteria over a performance period of three years.

Compensation costs are calculated using the quoted market price of the Company’s common stock at the grant date. Compensation costs for certain time-based awards that will be settled in cash are adjusted to fair value based on changes in the share price of the Company’s common stock up to the settlement date. For performance-based RSUs, the compensation costs are based on grant date fair value which considers both performance and market conditions, and is subject to subsequent adjustments based on the Company’s outcome in meeting the performance criteria at the end of the performance period. Compensation costs of both time- and performance-based awards are estimated based on awards ultimately expected to vest, and recognized net of estimated forfeitures on a straight-line basis from the grant date until the vesting date of each grant. For accounting on stock-based compensation plans, see Note 1 — Summary of Significant Accounting Policies — Significant Accounting Policies — Stock-Based Compensation to the Consolidated Financial Statements in this Form 10-K for additional information.

The following table presents a summary of the activities for the Company’s time- and performance-based RSUs that will be settled in shares for the year ended December 31, 2021. The number of outstanding performance-based RSUs provided below assumes that performance will be met at the 100% target level.



	Time-Based RSUs			Performance-Based RSUs
	Shares	Weighted- Average Grant Date Fair Value		Shares	Weighted- Average Grant Date Fair Value
Outstanding, January 1, 2021	1,345,635	$	50.22	398,057	$	53.66
Granted	417,900	71.88		91,960	77.67
Vested	(301,800)	66.85		(120,286)	70.13
Forfeited	(131,789)	56.26		—	—
Outstanding, December 31, 2021	1,329,946	$	52.65	369,731	$	54.28

The following table presents a summary of the activities for the Company’s time-based RSUs that will be settled in cash for the year ended December 31, 2021:



												Shares
Outstanding, January 1, 2021												21,802
Granted												24,073
Vested												—
Forfeited												(13,228)
Outstanding, December 31, 2021												32,647

The weighted-average grant date fair value of the time-based awards granted during the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020, and 2019 was $71.88, $40.61, and $52.46, respectively. The weighted-average grant date fair value of the performance-based awards granted during the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019 was $77.67, $39.79 and $54.64, respectively. The total fair value of time-based awards that vested during the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019 was $22.7 million, $11.5 million and $20.7 million, respectively. The total fair value of performance-based awards that vested during the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020, and 2019 was $15.4 million, $8.9 million and $14.5 million, respectively.

As of December 31, 2021, there were $24.4 million of unrecognized compensation costs related to unvested time-based RSUs expected to be recognized over a weighted-average period of 1.83 years, and $13.6 million of unrecognized compensation costs related to unvested performance-based RSUs expected to be recognized over a weighted-average period of 1.77 years.

Employee Stock Purchase Plan — The 1998 Employee Stock Purchase Plan (the “Purchase Plan”) provides eligible employees of the Company the right to purchase shares of its common stock at a discount. Employees could purchase shares at 90% of the fair market price subject to an annual purchase limitation of $22,500 per employee. As of December 31, 2021, the Purchase Plan qualifies as a non-compensatory plan under Section 423 of the Internal Revenue Code and, accordingly, no compensation expense has been recognized. 2,000,000 shares of the Company’s common stock were authorized for sale under the Purchase Plan. During the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020, 37,725 shares totaling $2.6 million and 89,425 shares totaling $2.3 million, respectively, were sold to employees under the Purchase Plan. As of December 31, 2021, there were 266,775 shares available under the Purchase Plan.