EQUITY

Common Stock

The Company is authorized to issue up to 500,000,000 shares of common stock, $0.01 par value per share. Each outstanding share of our common stock entitles the holder to one vote on all matters submitted to a vote of stockholders, including the election of directors and, except as may be provided with respect to any other class or series of stock, the holders of such shares possess the exclusive voting power.

On May 9, 2017, the Company and the Operating Partnership, entered into an underwriting agreement (the “Underwriting Agreement”) with Raymond James & Associates, Inc. and Deutsche Bank Securities Inc., as the representatives of the several underwriters named therein, relating to the issuance and sale of 9,000,000 shares of the Company’s common stock, $0.01 par value per share, at a public offering price of $16.50 per share, less an underwriting discount of $0.66 per share. Pursuant to the terms of the Underwriting Agreement, the Company granted the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 1,350,000 shares of common stock on the same terms, which the underwriters exercised in full on May 10, 2017. The closing of the offering occurred on May 15, 2017 for net proceeds of $163.8 million, after the underwriting discount and offering-related expenses of $7.0 million.

On May 25, 2017, the Company and the Operating Partnership entered into separate sales agreements (collectively, the “Sales Agreements”) with each of Robert W. Baird & Co. Incorporated, Raymond James & Associates, Inc., Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated, Deutsche Bank Securities Inc., RBC Capital Markets, LLC, KeyBanc Capital Markets Inc., Canaccord Genuity Inc., Jefferies LLC, BB&T Capital Markets, a division of BB&T Securities, LLC, and BTIG, LLC (collectively, the “Sales Agents”), pursuant to which the Company may sell the Company’s shares of common stock, $0.01 par value per share, having an aggregate offering price of up to $200.0 million (the “Shares”), from time to time through the Sales Agents, each acting as a sales agent or principal (the "2017 ATM Program"). At the same time, the Company terminated each of the sales agreements entered into in connection with its prior at-the-market offering program, which was established in August 2016 and under which 6,151,514 shares of the Company’s common stock were sold through May 25, 2017 for net proceeds of approximately $89.1 million. To date, we have not sold any shares of our common stock under the 2017 ATM Program. During the three months ended March 31, 2018, we incurred costs totaling $0.1 million related to the 2017 ATM Program.

Pursuant to the Sales Agreements, the Shares may be offered and sold through any Sales Agent in transactions that are deemed to be “at the market” offerings as defined in Rule 415 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, including sales made directly on the New York Stock Exchange or sales made to or through a market maker other than on an exchange or, with the prior consent of the Company, in privately negotiated transactions. Each Sales Agent will be entitled to compensation of up to 2.0% of the gross proceeds of the Shares sold through such Sales Agent from time to time under the related Sales Agreement. The Company has no obligation to sell any of the Shares under the Sales Agreements and may at any time suspend solicitations and offers under, or terminate, any of the Sales Agreements.

Changes in common stock during the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017 were as follows:



	For the Three Months Ended March 31,
	2018		2017
Beginning common shares outstanding	104,287,128		93,525,469
Grants under the Equity Plan	583,373		316,142
Common Unit redemptions	—		10,657
Common stock issued for director fees	1,147		1,259
Shares retained for employee tax withholding requirements	(187,850	)	(42,355	)
Ending common shares outstanding	104,683,798		93,811,172

Preferred Stock

The Company is authorized to issue up to 100,000,000 shares of preferred stock, $0.01 par value per share, of which 90,600,000 is currently undesignated, 3,000,000 shares have been designated as 6.45% Series D Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Stock (the "Series D preferred shares") and 6,400,000 shares have been designated as 6.25% Series E Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Stock (the "Series E preferred shares").

On March 20, 2018, the Company paid $85.3 million to redeem all 3,400,000 of its outstanding Series C preferred shares at a redemption price of $25 per share plus accrued and unpaid dividends.

The Company's outstanding shares of preferred stock (collectively, “Preferred Shares”) rank senior to our common stock and on parity with each other with respect to the payment of dividends and distributions of assets in the event of a liquidation, dissolution, or winding up. The Preferred Shares do not have any maturity date and are not subject to mandatory redemption or sinking fund requirements. The Company may not redeem the Series D or Series E preferred shares prior to June 28, 2021 and November 13, 2022, respectively, except in limited circumstances relating to the Company’s continuing qualification as a REIT or in connection with certain changes in control. After those dates, the Company may, at its option, redeem the applicable Preferred Shares, in whole or from time to time in part, by payment of $25 per share, plus any accumulated, accrued and unpaid distributions up to, but not including, the date of redemption. If the Company does not exercise its rights to redeem the Preferred Shares upon certain changes in control, the holders of the Preferred Shares have the right to convert some or all of their shares into a number of the Company’s common shares based on a defined formula, subject to a share cap, or alternative consideration. The share cap on each Series D preferred share is 3.9216 shares of common stock and each Series E preferred share is 3.1686 shares of common stock, all subject to certain adjustments.

The Company pays dividends at an annual rate of $1.6125 for each Series D preferred share and $1.5625 for each Series E preferred share. Dividend payments are made quarterly in arrears on or about the last day of February, May, August and November of each year.

Non-controlling Interests in Operating Partnership

Pursuant to the limited partnership agreement of our Operating Partnership, beginning on February 14, 2012, the unaffiliated third parties who hold Common Units in our Operating Partnership have the right to cause us to redeem their Common Units in exchange for cash based upon the fair value of an equivalent number of our shares of common stock at the time of redemption; however, the Company has the option to redeem Common Units with shares of our common stock on a one-for-one basis. The number of shares of our common stock issuable upon redemption of Common Units may be adjusted upon the occurrence of certain events such as share dividend payments, share subdivisions or combinations.

At March 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017, unaffiliated third parties owned 323,391 Common Units of the Operating Partnership, representing less than a 1% limited partnership interest in the Operating Partnership for each period.

We classify outstanding Common Units held by unaffiliated third parties as non-controlling interests in the Operating Partnership, a component of equity in the Company’s Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets. The portion of net income allocated to these Common Units is reported on the Company’s Condensed Consolidated Statement of Operations as net income attributable to non-controlling interests of the Operating Partnership.