Note 17. Share-Based Compensation

At March 31, 2018, the Company had two share-based employee compensation plans (the 2011 Long-Term Incentive Plan “LTIP” and the 2014 “LTIP”). Together these plans authorized an aggregate total of 4.5 million shares to be issued. The plans have a total of 1.5 million shares available for future issuances.

The Company issues share-based compensation awards with a vesting period ranging up to 3 years and a maximum contractual term of 10 years. The Company issues new shares of stock when stock options are exercised. As of March 31, 2018, there was $10.6 million of total unrecognized compensation cost related to non-vested share-based compensation awards. That cost is expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of 2.0 years.

Stock Options

The Company measures share-based compensation cost for options using the Black-Scholes option pricing model. The following table presents the weighted average assumptions used to estimate fair values of the stock options granted during the nine months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017:

	Nine Months Ended
	March 31, 2018			March 31, 2017
Risk-free interest rate	2.12		%	1.1		%
Expected volatility	57.6		%	55.6		%
Expected dividend yield	—		%	—		%
Forfeiture rate	6.5		%	6.5		%
Expected term (in years)	5.4 years			5.2 years
Weighted average fair value	$	11.25		$	15.33

Expected volatility is based on the historical volatility of the price of our common shares during the historical period equal to the expected term of the option. The Company uses historical information to estimate the expected term, which represents the period of time that options granted are expected to be outstanding. The risk-free rate for the period equal to the expected life of the option is based on the U.S. Treasury yield curve in effect at the time of grant. The forfeiture rate assumption is the estimated annual rate at which unvested awards are expected to be forfeited during the vesting period. This assumption is based on our actual forfeiture rate on historical awards. Periodically, management will assess whether it is necessary to adjust the estimated rate to reflect changes in actual forfeitures or changes in expectations. Additionally, the expected dividend yield is equal to zero, as the Company has not historically issued and has no immediate plans to issue a dividend.

A stock option roll-forward as of March 31, 2018 and changes during the nine months then ended, is presented below:

(In thousands, except for weighted average price and life data)	Awards		Weighted- Average Exercise Price		Aggregate Intrinsic Value		Weighted Average Remaining Contractual Life (yrs.)

Outstanding at June 30, 2017	1,475		$	18.02	$	12,212	5.7
Granted	50		$	21.43
Exercised	(404	)	$	7.13	$	3,897
Forfeited, expired or repurchased	(20	)	$	32.31

Outstanding at March 31, 2018	1,101		$	21.93	$	4,205	5.6


Vested and expected to vest at March 31, 2018	1,096		$	21.92	$	4,205	5.6
Exercisable at March 31, 2018	1,044		$	21.60	$	4,205	5.4

Restricted Stock

The Company measures restricted stock compensation costs based on the stock price at the grant date less an estimate for expected forfeitures. The annual forfeiture rate used to calculate compensation expense was 5.6% and 6.5% for the nine months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively.

A summary of restricted stock awards as of March 31, 2018 and changes during the nine months then ended, is presented below:

(In thousands, except for weighted average price and life data)	Awards		Weighted Average Grant - date Fair Value		Aggregate Intrinsic Value

Non-vested at June 30, 2017	334		$	30.71
Granted	588		$	18.24
Vested	(177	)	$	31.30	$	3,901
Forfeited	(57	)	$	21.70
Non-vested at March 31, 2018	688		$	20.63

Performance-Based Shares

On September 22, 2017, the Company approved and granted performance-based awards to certain key executives. The stock-settled awards will cliff vest based on relative Total Shareholder Return (“TSR”) over a three-year period. The Company measures share-based compensation cost for TSR awards using a Monte-Carlo simulation model.

A summary of performance-based share awards as of March 31, 2018 and changes during the nine months then ended, is presented below:

(In thousands, except for weighted average price and life data)	Awards		Weighted Average Grant - date Fair Value		Aggregate Intrinsic Value

Non-vested at June 30, 2017	—		$	—
Granted	47		$	25.58
Vested	(21	)	$	25.58	$	500
Forfeited	—		$	—

Non-vested at March 31, 2018	26		$	25.58

In connection with the termination of the employment of Arthur P. Bedrosian, the Company’s former Chief Executive Officer, the Company entered into a separation agreement pursuant to which he received certain benefits including, among others, accelerated vesting of his outstanding equity awards.

Employee Stock Purchase Plan

In February 2003, the Company’s stockholders approved an Employee Stock Purchase Plan (“ESPP”). Employees eligible to participate in the ESPP may purchase shares of the Company’s stock at 85% of the lower of the fair market value of the common stock on the first day of the calendar quarter or the last day of the calendar quarter. Under the ESPP, employees can authorize the Company to withhold up to 10% of their compensation during any quarterly offering period, subject to certain limitations. The ESPP was implemented on April 1, 2003 and is qualified under Section 423 of the Internal Revenue Code. The Board of Directors authorized an aggregate total of 1.1 million shares of the Company’s common stock for issuance under the ESPP. During the nine months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017, 46 thousand shares and 43 thousand shares were issued under the ESPP, respectively. As of March 31, 2018, 588 thousand total cumulative shares have been issued under the ESPP.

The following table presents the allocation of share-based compensation costs recognized in the Consolidated Statements of Operations by financial statement line item:

	Three Months Ended				Nine Months Ended
	March 31,				March 31,
(In thousands)	2018		2017		2018		2017
Selling, general and administrative expenses	$	1,638	$	1,345	$	5,350	$	4,568
Research and development expenses	149		175		477		500
Cost of sales	478		269		1,191		894

Total	$	2,265	$	1,789	$	7,018	$	5,962


Tax benefit at statutory rate	$	668	$	653	$	2,070	$	2,176