Note 9 - Stock Compensation Plans

12 Months Ended

Dec. 25, 2021

Notes to Financial Statements

Share-based Payment Arrangement [Text Block]

Note 9 —    Stock Compensation Plans

In May 2017, Shareholders approved the Escalade, Incorporated 2017 Incentive Plan (2017 Incentive Plan), which is an incentive plan for key employees, directors and consultants with various equity-based incentives as described in the plan document. The 2017 Incentive Plan is a replacement for the 2007 Incentive Plan, which expired at the end of April 2017. All options issued and outstanding under the expired plans will remain in effect until exercised, expired or forfeited.

The 2017 Incentive Plan is administered by the Board of Directors or a committee thereof, which is authorized to determine, among other things, the key employees, directors or consultants who will receive awards under the plan, the amount and type of award, exercise prices or performance criteria, if applicable, and vesting schedules. Under the original terms of the plan and subject to various restrictions contained in the plan document, the total number of shares of common stock which may be issued pursuant to awards under the Plan may not exceed 1,661,598.

Restricted Stock Awards

During 2021, and pursuant to the 2017 Incentive Plan, in lieu of cash payments of director fees, the Company awarded to certain directors 5,683 shares of common stock. In 2021, the Company awarded 13,332 restricted stock units to directors and 37,283 restricted stock units to employees. The restricted stock units awarded to directors time vest over two years (one-half one year from grant date and one-half two years from grant date) provided that the director is still a director of the Company at the vest date. Director restricted stock units are subject to forfeiture, except for termination of services as a result of retirement, death or disability, if on the vesting date the director no longer holds a position with the Company. All of the 2021 restricted stock units awarded to employees time vest over three years (one-third one year from grant, one-third two years from grant and one-third three years from grant) provided that the employee is still employed by the Company on the vesting date.

A summary of restricted stock awards activity is as follows:

	Number of Shares			Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value
Non-vested stock units as of December 28, 2019		128,636		$	11.78
Granted		171,519			7.67
Vested		(56,079	)		11.39
Forfeited		--			--
Non-vested stock units as of December 26, 2020		244,076		$	8.98
Granted		50,615			20.74
Vested		(84,887	)		8.98
Forfeited		(55,684	)		7.99
Non-vested stock units as of December 25, 2021		154,120		$	13.19

When vesting is dependent on certain market criteria, the fair value of restricted stock units is determined by the use of Monte Carlo techniques. The market price of the Company’s stock on the grant date is used to value restricted stock units where vesting is not contingent on market criteria. In 2021, 2020, and 2019 the Company recognized $902 thousand, $1,011 thousand, and $505 thousand respectively in compensation expense related to restricted stock units and as of December 25, 2021 and December 26, 2020, there was $629 thousand and $926 thousand respectively, of unrecognized compensation expense related to restricted stock units.

Stock Options

Total compensation expense recorded in the statements of operations for 2021, 2020 and 2019 relating to stock options was zero, $5 thousand and $8 thousand, respectively. No stock options were awarded during 2021, 2020 or 2019.

The following table summarizes option activity for each of the three years ended 2021:

	Incentive Stock Options				Director Stock Options
	Granted		Outstanding		Granted		Outstanding
2021		--		--		--		--
2020		--		10,000		--		--
2019		--		20,000		--		--

The following table summarizes stock option transactions for the three years ended 2021:

	2021					2020					2019
	Shares			Option Price		Shares			Option Price		Shares			Option Price
Outstanding at beginning of year		10,000		$	14.39		20,000		$	14.39		35,000			$11.86	to	$14.39
Issued during year		--			--		--			--		--					--
Canceled or expired		--			--		--			--		(5,000	)			$11.86
Exercised during year		(10,000	)	$	14.39		(10,000	)	$	14.39		(10,000	)			$11.86
Outstanding at end of year		--			--		10,000		$	14.39		20,000				$14.39
Exercisable at end of year		--					10,000					6,666
Weighted-average fair value of options granted during the year		--					--					--

The total intrinsic value of options exercised was zero, $73 thousand and zero for 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively.

There were no stock options outstanding at December 25, 2021.