Equity

As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, the Company's charter had authorized for issuance a total of 280,000,000 shares of common stock and 50,000,000 shares of preferred stock.

During the year ended December 31, 2014, the Company:


(i)	issued 2,069,538 common shares through public offerings under CEP III, discussed below;


(ii)	issued 500,197 shares of common stock in connection with stock options exercised;


(iii)	issued 2,434 common shares through the Company's dividend reinvestment plan;


(iv)	issued 115,163 common shares in connection with stock grants and the conversion of restricted stock units to restricted shares;


(v)	withheld 55,523 common shares to satisfy employees' tax withholding and other liabilities;


(vi)	canceled 7,970 shares of restricted stock upon forfeiture; and


(vii)	issued 9,848 shares through the Employee Stock Purchase Plan.

Any deferred compensation related to the Company’s stock option and restricted stock grants during the year ended December 31, 2014 is not reflected on the Company’s Consolidated Balance Sheet as of December 31, 2014, and will not be reflected until earned as compensation cost.

In August 2012, the Company commenced a third continuous equity program ("CEP III"), under which the Company is authorized by its Board of Directors to sell up to $750,000,000 of shares of its common stock from time to time during a 36-month period. Actual sales will depend on a variety of factors to be determined by the Company, including market conditions, the trading price of the Company's common stock and determinations by the Company of the appropriate sources of funding for the Company. In conjunction with CEP III, the Company engaged sales agents who receive compensation of approximately 1.5% of the gross sales price for shares sold. During the year ended December 31, 2014, the Company sold 2,069,538 shares at an average sales price of $144.95 per share, for net proceeds of $295,465,000. As of December 31, 2014, the Company had $346,304,000 of shares remaining authorized for issuance under this program.

On September 9, 2014, based on a market closing price of $155.83 per share on that date, the Company entered into a forward contract to sell 4,500,000 shares of common stock for an initial forward price of $151.74 per share, net of offering fees and discounts (the "Forward"). The sales price and proceeds achieved by the Company will be determined on the date or dates of settlement, with adjustments during the term of the contract for the Company’s dividends as well as for a daily interest factor that varies with changes in the Fed Funds rate. The Company generally has the ability to determine the date(s) and method of settlement, subject to certain conditions and the right of the Forward counterparty to accelerate settlement under certain circumstances. Settlement may be (i) physical sale of shares of our common stock for cash, (ii) net cash settlement, whereby the Company will either pay or receive the difference between the forward contract price and the weighted average market price for its common stock at the time of settlement, or (iii) net share settlement, whereby the Company will either receive or issue shares of its common stock, with the number of shares issued or received determined by the difference between the Forward price and the weighted average market price for its common stock at the time of settlement. The Forward price and the weighted average market price would in both cases by determined under the applicable terms of the Forward. Under either of the net settlement provisions, the Company will pay to the counterparty either cash or shares of its common stock when the weighted average market price of its common stock at the time of settlement exceeds the Forward price, and will receive either cash or issue shares of its common stock to the extent that the weighted average market price of its common stock at the time of settlement is less than the price under the Forward. Settlement of the Forward will occur on one or more dates not later than September 8, 2015. The Company accounts for the Forward as equity. Before the issuance of shares of the Company’s common stock, if any, upon physical or net share settlement of the Forward, the Company expects that the shares issuable upon settlement of the Forward will be reflected in its diluted earnings per share calculations using the treasury stock method. Under this method, the number of shares of the Company’s common stock used in calculating diluted earnings per share is deemed to be increased by the excess, if any, of the number of shares of common stock that would be issued upon full physical settlement of the Forward over the number of shares of common stock that could be purchased by the Company in the market (based on the average market price during the period) using the proceeds receivable upon full physical settlement (based on the adjusted forward sale price at the end of the reporting period). If and when the Company physically or net share settles the Forward, the delivery of shares of our common stock would result in an increase in the number of shares outstanding and dilution to our earnings per share.