Stock-Based Awards

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2024

Stock-Based Awards [Abstract]

Stock-Based Awards

18. Stock-Based Awards

On July 15, 2022, the Company’s stockholders approved the 2022 Equity Plan under which the Company may issue up to 16,000,000 shares of common stock (less one share for every share granted under the 2016 Equity Plan since March 31, 2022 and inclusive of shares available under the 2016 Equity Plan as of March 31, 2022) in the form of stock options and other stock-based awards.

The Company grants equity awards to employees and directors, which include restricted stock awards (“RSAs”), restricted stock units (“RSUs”), including deferred RSUs to non-employee directors, performance-based restricted stock units (“PRSUs”) and stock options. Certain awards described below are subject to acceleration under certain conditions.

Stock options:	Generally issued for terms of ten years and may vest after at least one year of service and have an exercise price equal to the Company’s stock price on the grant date. The Company estimates the fair value of stock options (when granted) using the Black-Scholes option pricing model.
RSAs/RSUs:	Awards are valued based on the Company’s stock price on grant date and generally vest ratably, on an annual basis, over three years. For non-employee directors, such awards generally vest on the one-year anniversary of the grant date.
Deferred RSUs:	Awards are valued based on the Company’s stock price on grant date and generally vest on the one-year anniversary of the grant date. The awards are issued pursuant to the Company’s Non-Employee Director Deferred Compensation Program, and are settled based on timing elected by the recipient in advance.
PRSUs:	These awards cliff vest three years from the grant date and contain a market condition whereby the number of PRSUs ultimately vesting is tied to how the Company’s total shareholder return (“TSR”) compares to a peer group of other publicly traded asset managers over the three-year period. A Monte Carlo simulation is used to value these awards.

The number of PRSUs vesting ranges from 0% to 200% of the target number of PRSUs granted, as follows:

● If the relative TSR is below the 25^th percentile, then 0% of the target number of PRSUs granted will vest;

● If the relative TSR is at the 25^th percentile, then 50% of the target number of PRSUs granted will vest;

● If the relative TSR is above the 25^th percentile, then linear scaling is applied such that the percent of the target number of PRSUs vesting is 100% at the 50^th percentile and capped at 200% of the target number of PRSUs granted for performance at the 85^th percentile; and

● If the Company’s TSR is negative, the target number of PRSUs vesting is capped at 100% regardless of the relative TSR percentile.

Stock-based compensation expense was $5,197 and $15,952, respectively, during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024 and $3,916 and $12,422, respectively, during the comparable periods in 2023.

A summary of unrecognized stock-based compensation expense and average remaining vesting period is as follows:

	September 30, 2024
	Unrecognized  Stock-Based Compensation		Weighted-Average Remaining Vesting  Period (Years)
Employees and directors	$	22,861		1.03

A summary of stock-based compensation award activity (shares) during the three months ended September 30, 2024 is as follows:

	RSA			RSU			PRSU
Balance at July 1, 2024		4,906,159			268,384			1,398,289
Granted		—			444			4,395
Vested		(27,625	)		—			—
Forfeited		(49,111	)		(1,140	)		—
Balance at September 30, 2024		4,829,423			267,688	(1)		1,402,684

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⁽¹⁾  Includes 103,228 deferred RSUs that have vested.