Shareholders' Equity

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2016

Shareholders' Equity

Shareholders' Equity

Note 15—Shareholders’ Equity

Par value reduction—On October 29, 2015, at our extraordinary general meeting, our shareholders approved the reduction of the par value of each of our shares to CHF 0.10 from the original par value of CHF 15.00.  The reduction of par value became effective as of January 7, 2016 upon registration in the commercial register.

Distributions of qualifying additional paid‑in capital—In May 2015, at our annual general meeting, our shareholders approved the distribution of qualifying additional paid‑in capital in the form of a U.S. dollar denominated dividend of $0.60 per outstanding share, payable in four quarterly installments of $0.15 per outstanding share, subject to certain limitations.  In May 2015, we recognized a liability of $218 million for the distribution payable, recorded in other current liabilities, with a corresponding entry to additional paid‑in capital.  On June 17 and September 23, 2015, we paid the first two installments in the aggregate amount of $109 million to shareholders of record as of May 29 and August 25, 2015.  On October 29, 2015, at our extraordinary general meeting, our shareholders approved the cancellation of the third and fourth installments of the distribution.  As a result, we reduced our distribution payable, recorded in other current liabilities, by $109 million with corresponding increase to additional paid‑in capital.

In May 2014, at our annual general meeting, our shareholders approved the distribution of qualifying additional paid‑in capital in the form of a U.S. dollar denominated dividend of $3.00 per outstanding share, payable in four quarterly installments of $0.75 per outstanding share, subject to certain limitations.  In May 2014, we recognized a liability of $1.1 billion for the distribution payable, recorded in other current liabilities, with a corresponding entry to additional paid‑in capital.  On June 18, September 17 and December 17, 2014, we paid the first three installments in the aggregate amount of $816 million to shareholders of record as of May 30, August 22 and November 14, 2014, respectively.  On March 18, 2015, we paid the final installment in the aggregate amount of $272 million to shareholders of record as of February 20, 2015.

In May 2013, at our annual general meeting, our shareholders approved the distribution of qualifying additional paid‑in capital in the form of a U.S. dollar denominated dividend of $2.24 per outstanding share, payable in four quarterly installments of $0.56 per outstanding share, subject to certain limitations.  On March 19, 2014, we paid the final installment in the aggregate amount of $202 million to shareholders of record as of February 21, 2014.

We did not pay the distribution of qualifying additional paid‑in capital with respect to our shares held in treasury or held by our subsidiary.

Shares issued—To complete the merger with Transocean Partners, we issued 23.8 million shares from conditional capital.  Each Transocean Partners common unit that was issued and outstanding immediately prior to the closing, other than the units held by Transocean and its subsidiaries, was converted into the right to receive 1.20 of our shares.  See Note 1—Business, Note 14—Noncontrolling Interest and Note 18—Supplemental Cash Flow Information.

Shares held in treasury—In May 2009, at our annual general meeting, our shareholders approved and authorized our board of directors, at its discretion, to repurchase an amount of our shares for cancellation with an aggregate purchase price of up to CHF 3.5 billion, equivalent to approximately $3.4 billion.  On February 12, 2010, our board of directors authorized our management to implement the share repurchase program.  During the three‑year period ended December 31, 2016, we did not purchase any shares under our share repurchase program.  At December 31, 2015, we held 2.9 million shares in treasury, recorded at cost.  On October 29, 2015, at our extraordinary general meeting, our shareholders approved the cancellation of all shares that had been repurchased to date under our share repurchase program.  The cancellation of our shares held in treasury became effective as of January 7, 2016 upon registration in the commercial register.

Shares held by subsidiaries—Two of our subsidiaries hold our shares for future use to satisfy our obligations to deliver shares in connection with awards granted under our incentive plans or other rights to acquire our shares.  At December 31, 2016 and 2015, our subsidiaries held 5.4 million shares and 6.9 million shares, respectively.

Accumulated other comprehensive loss—The changes in accumulated other comprehensive loss, presented net of tax, for our defined benefit pension plans were as follows (in millions):

	Years ended December 31,
	2016		2015
Balance, beginning of period	$	(277)	$	(346)
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications		(15)		49
Reclassifications to net income		9		20
Other comprehensive income (loss), net		(6)		69
Balance, end of period	$	(283)	$	(277)