NOTE 22 – Earnings Per Share (“EPS”)

Basic EPS is computed by dividing earnings available to common shareholders by the weighted-average number of common shares outstanding. Diluted EPS reflects the potential dilution that could occur if securities or other contracts to issue common stock were exercised or converted into common stock or resulted in the issuance of common stock that then shared in the earnings of the entity. Diluted earnings per share include dilutive stock options and stock units under the treasury stock method.

The following table sets forth the computation of basic and diluted earnings per share for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017 (in thousands, except per share data):

	Three Months Ended September 30,				Nine Months Ended September 30,
	2018		2017		2018		2017
Net income	$	103,858	$	66,536	$	279,906	$	184,859
Preferred dividends		2,343		2,343		7,031		7,031
Net income available to common shareholders	$	101,515	$	64,193	$	272,875	$	177,828
Shares for basic and diluted calculation:
Average shares used in basic computation		71,919		68,522		71,824		68,488
Dilutive effect of stock options and units ⁽¹⁾		9,565		12,359		9,601		12,074
Average shares used in diluted computation		81,484		80,881		81,425		80,562
Earnings per common share:
Basic	$	1.41	$	0.94	$	3.80	$	2.60
Diluted	$	1.25	$	0.79	$	3.35	$	2.21

⁽¹⁾	Diluted earnings per share is computed on the basis of the weighted-average number of shares of common stock plus the effect of dilutive potential common shares outstanding during the period using the treasury stock method.

For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017, the anti-dilutive effect from restricted stock units was immaterial.

Cash Dividends

During the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018, we declared and paid cash dividends of $0.12 and $0.36 per common share. During the three and nine months ended September 30, 2017, we declared and paid cash dividends of $0.10 per common share.