The Company maintains the MarketAxess Holdings Inc. 2020 Equity Incentive Plan (the “2020 Plan”) which provides for the grant of stock options, stock appreciation rights, restricted stock, restricted stock units, performance shares, performance units, or other stock-based awards as incentives to encourage employees, consultants and non-employee directors to participate in the long-term success of the Company. As of September 30, 2022, there were 2,480,299 shares available for grant under the 2020 Plan.

Total stock-based compensation expense was as follows:


	Three Months Ended September 30,				Nine Months Ended September 30,
	2022		2021		2022		2021
	(In thousands)
Employees	$	6,958	$	6,444	$	20,659	$	19,467
Non-employee directors		393		310		1,294		845
Total stock-based compensation	$	7,351	$	6,754	$	21,953	$	20,312

The Company records stock-based compensation expense for employees in employee compensation and benefits and for non-employee directors in general and administrative expenses in the Consolidated Statements of Operations.

During the nine months ended September 30, 2022, the Company granted to employees and directors a total of 68,119 restricted stock units, 23,904 options to purchase shares of common stock and performance stock units with an expected pay-out at target of 22,141 shares of common stock. The fair values of the restricted stock units and performance stock units were based on a weighted-average fair value per unit at the grant date of $346.66 and $350.85, respectively. Based on the Black-Scholes option pricing model, the weighted-average fair value for each option granted was $101.38 per share.

As of September 30, 2022, the total unrecognized compensation cost related to all non-vested awards was $44.7 million. That cost is expected to be recognized over a weighted-average period of 1.6 years.

In June 2022, the Company’s stockholders approved the MarketAxess Holdings Inc. Employee Stock Purchase Plan (the “ESPP”), under which a total of 121,221 shares of the Company’s Common Stock will be made available for purchase by employees. The ESPP is intended to qualify as an “employee stock purchase plan” meeting the requirements of Section 423 of the Internal Revenue Code. The ESPP was adopted by the Company’s Board of Directors in April 2022 and approved by the Company’s stockholders in June 2022. The ESPP has a series of six-month offering periods, with a new offering period beginning on the first trading day on or after February 16 and August 16 of each year. Subject to certain limitations, employees may contribute up to $2,000 of such employee’s total eligible compensation per month towards the purchase of common stock via payroll deductions. Purchase dates occur on the first trading day on or after February 15 and August 15 of each year and shares are purchased at a 15% discount off the lesser of: (i) the fair market value per share on the first day of each offering period; and (ii) the fair market value per share on the purchase date, but in no event less than par value. The first offering period under the ESPP began on August 16, 2022.

The ESPP replaced the 2015 MarketAxess Holdings Inc. Employee Stock Purchase Plan, which was terminated by the Company’s Compensation and Talent Committee in February 2022.