Fair Value Measurements

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

3. Fair Value Measurements

The Company has various financial instruments that must be measured at fair value on a recurring basis, including marketable debt and equity securities held by Astec Insurance Company (“Astec Insurance”), the Company’s captive insurance company, and marketable equity securities held in an unqualified Supplemental Executive Retirement Plan (“SERP”). The financial assets held in the SERP also constitute a liability of the Company for financial reporting purposes. The Company’s subsidiaries also occasionally enter into foreign currency exchange contracts to mitigate exposure to fluctuations in currency exchange rates.

For cash and cash equivalents, trade receivables, other receivables, revolving debt and accounts payable, the carrying amount approximates the fair value because of the short-term nature of these instruments. Investments are carried at their fair value based on quoted market prices for identical or similar assets or, where no quoted prices exist, other observable inputs for the asset. The fair values of foreign currency exchange contracts are based on quotations from various banks for similar instruments using models with market based inputs.

As indicated in the tables below, the Company has determined that its financial assets and liabilities at December 31, 2014 and 2013 are level 1 and level 2 in the fair value hierarchy:

	December 31, 2014
	Level 1		Level 2		Level 3		Total
Financial Assets:
Trading equity securities:
SERP money market fund	$	532	$	--	$	--	$	532
SERP mutual funds		3,195		--		--		3,195
Preferred stocks		973		--		--		973
Trading debt securities:
Corporate bonds		2,825		1,184		--		4,009
Municipal bonds		--		2,060		--		2,060
Floating rate notes		100		322		--		422
U.S. Treasury bill		622		--		--		622
Other government bonds		--		1,496		--		1,496
Derivative financial instruments		--		547		--		547
Total financial assets	$	8,247	$	5,609	$	--	$	13,856
Financial Liabilities:
SERP liabilities	$	--	$	8,128	$	--	$	8,128
Total financial liabilities	$	--	$	8,128	$	--	$	8,128

	December 31, 2013
	Level 1		Level 2		Level 3		Total
Financial Assets:
Trading equity securities:
SERP money market fund	$	783	$	--	$	--	$	783
SERP mutual funds		2,813		--		--		2,813
Preferred stocks		1,170		--		--		1,170
Short-term investments in mutual funds		16,073		--		--		16,073
Trading debt securities:
Corporate bonds		3,696		1,155		--		4,851
Municipal bonds		--		1,908		--		1,908
Floating rate notes		103		446		--		549
U.S. Treasury bill		250		--		--		250
Other government bonds		--		864		--		864
Derivative financial instruments		--		452		--		452
Total financial assets	$	24,888	$	4,825	$	--	$	29,713
Financial Liabilities:
SERP liabilities	$	--	$	7,828	$	--	$	7,828
Total financial liabilities	$	--	$	7,828	$	--	$	7,828

The Company reevaluates the volume of trading activity for each of its investments at the end of each reporting period and adjusts the level within the fair value hierarchy as needed. Due to increased trading activity, $164 of investments included in Level 2 at December 31, 2013 were transferred to Level 1 at December 31, 2014.

- 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.

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