Fair Value Measurements

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2012

For recognition purposes, on a recurring basis the Corporation is required to measure at fair value its marketable securities. The marketable securities were comprised of government securities, corporate bonds and money market funds. When available the Corporation uses quoted market prices to determine fair value and classifies such measurements within Level 1. In some cases where market prices are not available, the Corporation makes use of observable market-based inputs to calculate fair value, in which case the measurements are classified within Level 2.

Assets measured at fair value for the three-month period ended March 31, 2012 were as follows:



(In thousands)	Fair value as of measurement date		Quoted prices in active markets for identical assets (Level 1)		Significant other observable inputs (Level 2)		Significant unobservable inputs (Level 3)
Government securities	$	15,749	$	—	$	15,749	$	—
Corporate bonds	$	4,371	$	—	$	4,371	$	—
Derivative financial instruments	$	706	$	—	$	706	$	—

Assets measured at fair value for the year ended December 31, 2011 were as follows:



(In thousands)	Fair value as of measurement date			Quoted prices in active markets for identical assets (Level 1)		Significant other observable inputs (Level 2)			Significant unobservable inputs (Level 3)
Government securities	$	15,863		$	—	$	15,863		$	—
Corporate bonds	$	3,751		$	—	$	3,751		$	—
Derivative financial instruments	$	(91	)	$	—	$	(91	)	$	—

In addition to the methods and assumptions the Corporation uses to record the fair value of financial instruments as discussed in the section above, it uses the following methods and assumptions to estimate the fair value of its financial instruments.

Cash and cash equivalents

The carrying amount approximated fair value.

Long-term debt (including current portion)

The carrying value of the Corporation's outstanding variable-rate, long-term debt obligations at March 31, 2012 and December 31, 2011, the end of the Corporation's 2011 fiscal year, approximated the fair value. The fair value of the Corporation's outstanding fixed-rate, long-term debt obligations is estimated based on discounted cash flow method to be $161 million at March 31, 2012 and $160 million at December 31, 2011, compared to the carrying value of $150 million.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the fair value of financial instruments (as defined), including financial assets and financial liabilities (collectively, as defined), and the measurements of those instruments as well as disclosures related to the fair value of non-financial assets and liabilities. Such disclosures about the financial instruments, assets, and liabilities would include: (1) the fair value of the required items together with their carrying amounts (as appropriate); (2) for items for which it is not practicable to estimate fair value, disclosure would include: (a) information pertinent to estimating fair value (including, carrying amount, effective interest rate, and maturity, and (b) the reasons why it is not practicable to estimate fair value; (3) significant concentrations of credit risk including: (a) information about the activity, region, or economic characteristics identifying a concentration, (b) the maximum amount of loss the entity is exposed to based on the gross fair value of the related item, (c) policy for requiring collateral or other security and information as to accessing such collateral or security, and (d) the nature and brief description of such collateral or security; (4) quantitative information about market risks and how such risks are managed; (5) for items measured on both a recurring and nonrecurring basis information regarding the inputs used to develop the fair value measurement; and (6) for items presented in the financial statement for which fair value measurement is elected: (a) information necessary to understand the reasons for the election, (b) discussion of the effect of fair value changes on earnings, (c) a description of [similar groups] items for which the election is made and the relation thereof to the balance sheet, the aggregate carrying value of items included in the balance sheet that are not eligible for the election; (7) all other required (as defined) and desired information.

+ References

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+ Details