15.SHARE-BASED AWARDS

The Company has share-based compensation plans which are described as follows:

2016 Incentive Compensation Plan: The 2016 Incentive Compensation Plan (the “2016 Plan”) serves as a successor to the 2007 Incentive Compensation Plan, the 1998 Stock Option/Stock Incentive Plan, the 1998 Non-Employee Director Stock Option Plan, the Restricted Stock Bonus Plan and the Non‑Employee Director Stock Retainer Plan (the “Predecessor Plans”). Under the 2016 Plan, 2.5 million shares of common stock were reserved for issuance. Shareholders approved the 2016 Plan at the 2016 Annual Meeting of Shareholders.

The 2016 Plan consists of four separate incentive compensation programs: (i) the discretionary grant program, (ii) the stock issuance program, (iii) the incentive bonus program and (iv) the automatic grant program for the non‑employee members of the Company’s Board of Directors. Share-based compensation is generally awarded under three of the four programs, as more fully described below.

Discretionary Grant Program — Under the Discretionary Grant Program, stock options may be granted with an exercise price no less than 100 percent of the fair market value (defined as the closing market price) of the Company’s common stock on the date of the grant. Options generally become exercisable ratably over three years and have a maximum contractual term of 10 years.

Stock Issuance Program — Under the Stock Issuance Program, shares of common stock, restricted stock units or performance shares may be granted. Time-based equity awards generally vest ratably over three years. Provided certain three-year performance targets are achieved, performance-based equity awards generally vest on the three-year anniversary date of the grant.

Automatic Grant Program — At each annual shareholder meeting, non-employee directors will receive an award of restricted stock units that entitle the holder to an equivalent number of shares of common stock upon vesting, under the automatic grant program. Awards of restricted stock units granted under the program generally vest ratably over one year.

The shares of common stock authorized to be issued under the 2016 Plan may be drawn from shares of the Company’s authorized but unissued common stock or from shares of its common stock that the Company acquires, including shares purchased on the open market or in private transactions.

Predecessor Plans: All predecessor plans have been superseded by the 2016 Plan. No further grants will be made under the predecessor plans.

Activity in the Company’s stock option plans for the year ended December 31, 2017, was as follows (in thousands, except weighted average exercise price and weighted average contractual life):


				Weighted		Weighted
				Average		Average	Aggregate
	2007	1998	Total	Exercise		Contractual	Intrinsic
	Plan	Plan	Shares	Price		Life	Value
Outstanding at December 31, 2016	319	5	324	$	21.67
Granted	—	—	—
Exercised	(84)	(3)	(87)	$	21.95
Forfeited and expired	—	(2)	(2)	$	24.72
Outstanding at December 31, 2017	235	—	235	$	21.54	3.3	$	1,946
Exercisable at December 31, 2017	235	—	235	$	21.54	3.3	$	1,946

The following table summarizes non-vested restricted stock unit activity through December 31, 2017, (in thousands, except weighted average grant-date fair value amounts):


	2007 Plan	2016 Plan	Total	Weighted
	Restricted	Restricted	Restricted	Average Grant-
	Stock Units	Stock Units	Stock Units	Date Fair Value
Outstanding at December 31, 2016	701	19	720	$	33.35
Granted	153	304	457	$	31.76
Vested	(470)	(9)	(479)	$	27.35
Canceled	(7)	(5)	(12)	$	37.24
Outstanding at December 31, 2017	377	309	686	$	36.41

Share-based compensation expense and other information related to share-based awards for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2017, is as follows:


	Years Ended December 31,
Share-based expense, net of estimated forfeitures (in millions)	2017		2016		2015
Share-based compensation expense	$	11.1	$	9.8	$	12.2
Intrinsic value of options exercised	$	0.7	$	2.0	$	9.2
Tax benefit realized upon stock vesting	$	6.8	$	5.9	$	3.4
Fair value of stock vested	$	17.3	$	15.8	$	8.6

As of December 31, 2017, there was no unrecognized compensation cost related to non-vested stock options. As of December 31, 2017, unrecognized compensation cost related to non-vested restricted stock units and performance-based equity awards were $11.5 million. That unrecognized compensation cost is expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of approximately 1.7 years.