Common Shares and Earnings per Share

3 Months Ended

Feb. 29, 2020

Common Shares and Earnings per Share

Weighted-average shares outstanding for the three months ended February 29, 2020 and February 28, 2019 were calculated as follows (in millions):



	Three months ended February 29/28,
	2020	2019
Weighted-average shares outstanding:
Shares used in basic EPS calculation	395.7	398.0
Effect of dilutive securities:
RSUs/RSAs	3.8	3.0
Stock options	4.6	7.0
Shares used in diluted EPS calculation	404.1	408.0

Share Repurchase Programs

In October 2019, our Board of Directors authorized a share repurchase program of up to $2.5 billion of IHS Markit common shares from October 17, 2019 through November 30, 2021, to be funded using our existing cash, cash equivalents, marketable securities, and future cash flows, or through the incurrence of short- or long-term indebtedness, at management’s discretion. This program replaced the previous share repurchase program that was originally set to terminate on November 30, 2019, but was early terminated by our Board of Directors. This October 2019 share repurchase program does not obligate us to repurchase any set dollar amount or number of shares and may be modified, suspended, or terminated at any time without prior notice. Under the repurchase program, we are authorized to repurchase our common shares on the open market from time to time, in privately negotiated transactions, or through accelerated repurchase agreements, subject to availability of common shares, price, market conditions, alternative uses of capital, and applicable regulatory requirements, at management’s discretion. As of February 29, 2020, we had $2.0 billion remaining available to repurchase under the program.

In December 2019, we funded a $500 million accelerated share repurchase (“ASR”) agreement with a scheduled termination date in the first quarter of 2020. Upon funding of the ASR, we received an initial delivery of 5.547 million shares. At the completion of the ASR in February 2020, we received an additional 0.944 million shares.

In March 2020, we funded a $250 million ASR agreement with a scheduled termination date in the second quarter of 2020. Upon funding of the ASR, we received an initial delivery of 2.807 million shares. The total number of shares ultimately to be repurchased under the ASR will generally be based on the daily volume-weighted average price of the shares during the calculation period for the ASR, less an agreed discount. At final settlement of the ASR, we may be entitled to receive additional shares, or, under certain limited circumstances, be required to deliver shares to the relevant ASR counterparty.

In August 2016, our Board of Directors separately authorized, subject to applicable regulatory requirements, the repurchase of our common shares surrendered by employees in an amount equal to the exercise price, if applicable, and statutory tax liability associated with the vesting of their equity awards, for which we pay the statutory tax on behalf of the employee and forgo receipt of the exercise price of the award from the employee, if applicable.

Dividends

On January 17, 2020, our Board of Directors approved a cash dividend of $0.17 per common share issued and outstanding to the holders of record as of February 6, 2020. A cash dividend of $67.7 million was paid on February 14, 2020, and dividend equivalents of $1.3 million were accrued on unvested equity awards. The total $69.0 million associated with the dividend was recorded as a reduction to retained earnings.

Employee Benefit Trust (EBT) Shares

We have approximately 25.2 million outstanding common shares that are held by the Markit Group Holdings Limited Employee Benefit Trust. The trust is under our control using the variable interest entity model criteria; consequently, we have consolidated and classified the trust shares as treasury shares within our consolidated balance sheets.