QUITY-BASED COMPENSATION

Stock Awards

Stock awards, which include shares of restricted stock, restricted stock units and performance units, are awarded from time to time to executive officers and certain key employees of the Company. Stock award compensation is recorded based on the award date fair value and charged to expense ratably through the requisite service period. The forfeiture of unvested restricted stock, restricted stock units and performance units causes the reversal of all previous expense recorded as a reduction of current period expense.

A summary of stock award activity is as follows:



	Years Ended December 31,
	2017				2016				2015
	Stock Awards		Weighted Average Award Date Fair Value		Stock Awards		Weighted Average Award Date Fair Value		Stock Awards		Weighted Average Award Date Fair Value
Outstanding, beginning of year	1,501,021		$	20.58	1,275,707		$	20.54	767,540		$	21.93
Restricted stock units awarded	257,532		23.06		335,026		18.43		422,141		17.37
Performance stock units awarded	213,436		28.18		245,586		25.69		297,164		21.55
Restricted shares distributed	(179,169	)	22.44		(162,554	)	23.49		(90,607	)	19.25
Restricted stock units distributed	(95,510	)	20.71		(23,739	)	20.73		(12,646	)	19.62
Performance stock units distributed	(49,672	)	21.95		—		—		—		—
Restricted shares forfeited	(1,084	)	23.01		(22,045	)	23.34		(54,045	)	23.40
Restricted stock units forfeited	(81,626	)	20.36		(71,992	)	17.60		(27,360	)	18.79
Performance stock units forfeited	(136,050	)	24.29		(74,968	)	22.64		(26,480	)	22.42
Outstanding, end of year	1,428,878		$	21.53	1,501,021		$	20.58	1,275,707		$	20.54

Expense associated with stock awards was $10.1 million, $8.3 million and $6.8 million in 2017, 2016 and 2015, respectively. Unrecognized pre-tax expense of $11.8 million related to stock awards is expected to be recognized over the weighted average remaining service period of 1.7 years for awards outstanding at December 31, 2017.

At December 31, 2017, 1,501,962 shares of common stock were available for equity-based compensation awards pursuant to the 2016 Employee Plan.

Deferred Stock Unit Awards

Deferred stock units generally are awarded to directors of the Company and represent the Company’s obligation to transfer one share of the Company’s common stock to the grantee at a future date and generally are fully vested on the date of grant. The expense related to the issuance of deferred stock units is recorded as of the date of the award.

The following table summarizes information about deferred stock unit activity:



	Years Ended December 31,
	2017				2016				2015
	Deferred Stock Units		Weighted Average Award Date Fair Value		Deferred Stock Units		Weighted Average Award Date Fair Value		Deferred Stock Units		Weighted Average Award Date Fair Value
Outstanding, beginning of year	253,445		$	19.93	247,219		$	19.92	221,471		$	20.10
Awarded	47,091		23.53		45,886		21.22		53,527		18.56
Shares distributed	(30,559	)	23.57		(39,660	)	21.29		(27,779	)	18.76
Outstanding, end of year	269,977		$	20.14	253,445		$	19.93	247,219		$	19.92

Expense associated with awards of deferred stock units was $1.1 million, $1.0 million and $1.0 million in 2017, 2016 and 2015, respectively.

At December 31, 2017, 117,261 shares of common stock were available for equity-based compensation awards pursuant to the 2016 Director Plan.

Stock Options

Stock options on the Company’s common stock are awarded from time to time to executive officers and certain key employees of the Company. Stock options granted generally have a term of seven to ten years and an exercise price equal to the market value of the underlying common stock on the date of grant.

A summary of stock option activity is as follows:



	Years Ended December 31,
	2017				2016				2015
	Shares		Weighted Average Exercise Price		Shares		Weighted Average Exercise Price		Shares		Weighted Average Exercise Price
Outstanding at January 1	170,253		$	21.99	288,383		$	21.73	503,134		$	18.18
Exercised	(43,573	)	18.87		(114,307	)	21.33		(209,205	)	13.13
Canceled/Expired	—		—		(3,823	)	22.24		(5,546	)	24.21
Outstanding at December 31	126,680		$	23.06	170,253		$	21.99	288,383		$	21.73

Exercisable at December 31	126,680		$	23.06	170,253		$	21.99	284,929		$	21.78

In 2017, 2016 and 2015, the Company recorded expense of zero, less than $0.1 million and $0.1 million, respectively, related to stock option grants. Unrecognized pre-tax expense related to stock option grants was zero at December 31, 2017.

Financial data for stock option exercises are summarized in the following table (in thousands):



	Years Ended December 31,
	2017		2016		2015
Amount collected from stock option exercises	$	822	$	306	$	2,748
Total intrinsic value of stock option exercises	370		47		1,108
Tax benefit of stock option exercises recorded in income tax expense ⁽¹⁾	63		—		—
Tax benefit of stock option exercises recorded in additional paid-in-capital⁽¹⁾	—		315		209
Aggregate intrinsic value of outstanding stock options	386		102		173
Aggregate intrinsic value of exercisable stock options	386		102		169

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⁽¹⁾

As of January 1, 2017, the Company adopted FASB Accounting Standards Update No. 2016-09, Compensation - Stock Compensation (Topic 718): Improvements to Employee Share-Based Payment Accounting, which, among other items, changed the accounting for the tax benefit of stock option exercises so that it is now recorded as part of current earnings rather than additional paid-in capital. Prior period balances were not retrospectively adjusted.

The intrinsic value calculations are based on the Company’s closing stock price of $25.43, $23.70 and $19.31 on December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, respectively.