Fair Value Measurements

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2020

Fair Value Measurements:

Certain assets and liabilities of the Company are reported at fair value in the accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheets. To increase consistency and comparability of assets and liabilities recorded at fair value, Accounting Standards Codification ("ASC") 820-10, Fair Value Measurements (“ASC 820-10”), established a three-level fair value hierarchy to prioritize the inputs to valuation techniques used to measure fair value. ASC 820-10 requires disclosures detailing the extent to which companies measure assets and liabilities at fair value, the methods and assumptions used to measure fair value and the effect of fair value measurements on earnings. In accordance with ASC 820-10, the Company applied the following fair value hierarchy:



Level 1 -		Assets or liabilities for which the identical item is traded on an active exchange, such as publicly-traded instruments.

Level 2 -		Assets or liabilities valued based on observable market data for similar instruments.

Level 3 -		Assets or liabilities for which significant valuation assumptions are not readily observable in the market; instruments valued based on the best available data, some of which are internally-developed, and considers risk premiums that market participants would require.

The fair values of cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable, accounts payable and accrued liabilities, and short-term debt approximate their carrying amounts because of the short-term nature of these instruments. The investments in registered investment companies, which are Level 1 assets measured at fair value on a recurring basis, were $3.0 million and $3.6 million as of March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, respectively. The investments in registered investment companies are valued using quoted prices in active markets multiplied by the number of shares owned and were included in "Other current assets" in the accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheet. For the three months ended March 31, 2020, the Company

determined the provision for credit losses related to accounts receivable and investments in registered investment companies was immaterial.

The Company elected not to carry its long-term debt at fair value. The carrying value of the long-term debt represents amortized cost, inclusive of unamortized premium, and net of unamortized discount and debt issuance costs. The Company assesses the fair value of these financial instruments based on an estimate of interest rates available to the Company for financial instruments with similar features, the Company’s current credit rating and spreads applicable to the Company. The following table summarizes the carrying value and estimated fair value of these financial instruments as of March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, respectively:



		2020				2019
	Fair Value Hierarchy	Carrying Value		Estimated Fair Value		Carrying Value		Estimated Fair Value
Financial instruments not carried at fair value:
Long-term debt excluding finance lease liabilities and syndicated revolving credit facility debt issuance costs	Level 2	$	2,650.5	$	2,895.0	$	2,650.4	$	2,902.2

On February 1, 2020, the sale of the aerial imagery sourcing group was completed. The Company contributed the assets related to the disposed business and cash of $63.8 million in exchange for a non-controlling 35.0% ownership interest in a nonpublic company, Vexcel Group, Inc ("Vexcel"). As of March 31, 2020, the Company had an equity investment of $129.7 million related to such interest accounted for in accordance with ASC 820-10. The value of the equity investment is based on management estimates with the assistance of valuations performed by third party specialists. This investment was included in "Other noncurrent assets" in the accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheet. For the three months ended March 31, 2020, there was no provision for credit losses related to this investment. Refer to Note 6. Dispositions for further discussion.

As of March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, the Company had securities of $14.0 million, which were accounted for under ASC 323-10-25, The Equity Method of Accounting for Investments in Common Stock ("ASC 323-10-25"). The Company does not have the ability to exercise significant influence over the investees’ operating and financial policies. As of March 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, the Company also had an investment in a limited partnership of $13.8 million and $13.1 million, respectively, accounted for in accordance with ASC 323-10-25 as an equity method investment. These investments were included in "Other noncurrent assets" in the accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheet. For the three months ended March 31, 2020, there was no provision for credit losses related to these investments.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the fair value of financial instruments (as defined), including financial assets and financial liabilities (collectively, as defined), and the measurements of those instruments as well as disclosures related to the fair value of non-financial assets and liabilities. Such disclosures about the financial instruments, assets, and liabilities would include: (1) the fair value of the required items together with their carrying amounts (as appropriate); (2) for items for which it is not practicable to estimate fair value, disclosure would include: (a) information pertinent to estimating fair value (including, carrying amount, effective interest rate, and maturity, and (b) the reasons why it is not practicable to estimate fair value; (3) significant concentrations of credit risk including: (a) information about the activity, region, or economic characteristics identifying a concentration, (b) the maximum amount of loss the entity is exposed to based on the gross fair value of the related item, (c) policy for requiring collateral or other security and information as to accessing such collateral or security, and (d) the nature and brief description of such collateral or security; (4) quantitative information about market risks and how such risks are managed; (5) for items measured on both a recurring and nonrecurring basis information regarding the inputs used to develop the fair value measurement; and (6) for items presented in the financial statement for which fair value measurement is elected: (a) information necessary to understand the reasons for the election, (b) discussion of the effect of fair value changes on earnings, (c) a description of [similar groups] items for which the election is made and the relation thereof to the balance sheet, the aggregate carrying value of items included in the balance sheet that are not eligible for the election; (7) all other required (as defined) and desired information.

+ References + Details