Income Taxes (Tables)

12 Months Ended

May 31, 2023

Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]

Earnings before Income Taxes

Earnings before income taxes for the prior three fiscal years included the following components:

(In thousands)	2023		2022		2021
U.S. based operations	$	308,719	$	470,248	$	897,601
Non – U.S. based operations		36,649		44,038		20,116
Earnings before income taxes		345,368		514,286		917,717
Less: Net earnings attributable to noncontrolling interests (1)		12,642		19,878		17,655
Earnings before income taxes attributable to controlling interest	$	332,726	$	494,408	$	900,062

Components of Income Tax Expense (Benefit)

Significant components of income tax expense (benefit) for the prior three fiscal years were as follows:

(In thousands)	2023			2022			2021
Current
Federal	$	69,919		$	79,674		$	160,903
State and local		7,774			8,704			6,018
Foreign		14,033			7,469			4,524
Subtotal		91,726			95,847			171,445
Deferred
Federal		(9,682	)		19,398			6,668
State and local		(2,122	)		2,576			(391	)
Foreign		(3,724	)		(2,799	)		(1,455	)
Subtotal		(15,528	)		19,175			4,822
Total	$	76,198		$	115,022		$	176,267

Reconciliation of Federal Statutory Corporate Income Tax Rate to Total Tax Provision

A reconciliation of the federal statutory corporate income tax rate to total tax provision for the prior three fiscal years follows:

	2023			2022			2021
Federal statutory corporate income tax rate		21.0	%		21.0	%		21.0	%
State and local income taxes, net of federal tax benefit		1.7			2.3			0.8
Non-U.S. income taxes at other than federal statutory rate		0.9			(0.9	)		(0.3	)
Excess benefit related to share-based payment awards		(0.2	)		(0.2	)		(0.5	)
Nondeductible executive compensation		1.1			0.9			0.6
Oil & Gas capital stock loss		-			-			(1.5	)
Other		(1.6	)		0.2			(0.5	)
Effective tax rate attributable to controlling interest		22.9	%		23.3	%		19.6	%

Reconciliation of Unrecognized Tax Benefits

A tabular reconciliation of unrecognized tax benefits follows:

(In thousands)
Balance at May 31, 2022	$	4,706
Increases - tax positions taken in prior years		-
Decreases - tax positions taken in prior years		-
Increases - tax positions taken in prior years		-
Increases - current tax positions		-
Settlements		-
Lapse of statutes of limitations		(43	)
Balance at May 31, 2023	$	4,663

Deferred Tax Assets and Liabilities

The components of our deferred tax assets and liabilities as of May 31 were as follows:

(In thousands)	2023			2022
Deferred tax assets
Accounts receivable	$	1,929		$	1,695
Inventories		6,195			6,291
Accrued expenses		30,157			28,981
Net operating loss carry forwards		10,700			8,178
Stock-based compensation		6,226			5,432
Derivative contracts		2,242			-
Operating lease - ROU liability		8,390			10,443
Other		2,523			1,588
Total deferred tax assets		68,362			62,608
Valuation allowance for deferred tax assets		(5,480	)		(5,878	)
Net deferred tax assets		62,882			56,730
Deferred tax liabilities
Property, plant and equipment		(60,771	)		(58,433	)
Intangibles		(69,175	)		(69,426	)
Investment in affiliated companies, principally due    to undistributed earnings		(23,073	)		(28,274	)
Operating lease - ROU asset		(8,091	)		(10,354	)
Derivative contracts		-			(412	)
Other		(3,221	)		(4,963	)
Total deferred tax liability		(164,331	)		(171,862	)
Net deferred tax liability	$	(101,449	)	$	(115,132	)