Basis of Presentation and Recent Accounting Pronouncements (Policies)

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2019

Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]

Basis of accounting

The interim consolidated financial statements have been prepared in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”). All significant intercompany transactions and balances have been eliminated in consolidation.

Use of estimates

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ materially from those estimates and assumptions. In the opinion of management, the accompanying unaudited interim consolidated financial statements reflect all adjustments (consisting of normally recurring accruals) necessary for a fair statement of results on an interim basis. The results of any interim period are not necessarily indicative of the results for a full year or any future periods.

Recent accounting pronouncements

Recently Issued Accounting Standards Adopted

The Company adopted ASU 2016-02, “Leases (Topic 842)”, which provides a new comprehensive model for lease accounting. Topic 842 requires a lessee to recognize a liability to make lease payments (the lease liability) and a right-of-use asset representing its right to use the underlying asset for the lease term. The Company adopted the modified retrospective approach of this standard, that resulted in the recognition of a right-of-use asset of  $147.9 million as part of other assets and a lease liability of $163.6 million as part of other liabilities in the consolidated balance sheet as of January 1, 2019. The Company de-recognized the liability for deferred rent that was required under the previous guidance.

In addition, the Company adopted ASU 2018-11, “Leases: Targeted Improvements (Topic 842),” which provides an additional (optional) transition method to adopt the new lease standard. The Company adopted the alternative transition method and elected to utilize a cumulative-effect adjustment to the opening balance of the retained earnings for the year of adoption. As such, the Company’s reporting for the comparative periods prior to the adoption continue to be presented in the financial statements in accordance with previous lease accounting guidance. The Company also adopted the practical expedients as a package which allows the Company to not reassess (1) whether any expired or existing contracts are or contain leases (2) the lease classification for any expired or existing leases (3) initial direct costs for any existing leases and (4) to account for the lease and non lease components as a single lease component. In addition to electing the practical expedients as a package, the Company elected to include hindsight to determine the lease term of existing leases, and made an accounting policy election to not apply the recognition requirements to short-term leases (lease term of less than twelve months). The cumulative effect adjustment to the opening balance of retained earnings was zero. The adoption of the updated guidance did not have a material effect on the Company’s results of operations or liquidity.

The Company adopted ASU 2018-07 “Improvements to Nonemployee Share-Based Payment Accounting,” which was issued in June 2018 to simplify the accounting for share-based payments granted to nonemployees for goods and services. Under this ASU, most of the guidance on such payments to nonemployees would be aligned with the requirements for share-based payments granted to employees. The ASU is effective for reporting periods beginning after December 15,

2018. This guidance and the adoption of this provision did not have a material effect on the Company's financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

The Company adopted ASU 2018-02 “Income Statement-Reporting Comprehensive Income (Topic 220) - Reclassification of Certain Tax Effects from Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income,” which was issued in February 2018 to allow the reclassification of the stranded tax effects in accumulated other comprehensive income (“AOCI”) resulting from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (“Tax Cuts Act”). Current guidance requires the effect of a change in tax laws or rates on deferred tax balances to be reported in income from continuing operations in the accounting period that includes the period of enactment, even if the related income tax effects were originally charged or credited directly to AOCI. The amount of the reclassification would include the effect of the change in the U.S. federal corporate income tax rate on the gross deferred tax amounts and related valuation allowances, if any, at the date of the enactment of the Tax Cuts Act related to items in AOCI. The updated guidance is effective for reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2018 and is to be applied retrospectively to each period in which the effect of the Tax Cuts Act related to items remaining in AOCI are recognized or at the beginning of the period of adoption. The adoption of this ASU did not have a material effect on the Company’s results of operations, financial position or liquidity.

The Company adopted ASU 2017-08 “Receivables - Nonrefundable Fees and Other Costs (Subtopic 310-20), Premium Amortization on Purchased Callable Debt Securities,” which was issued in March, 2017. This ASU shortens the amortization period for certain callable debt securities held at a premium and requires the premium to be amortized to the earliest call date. However, the new guidance does not require an accounting change for securities held at a discount whose discount continues to be amortized to maturity. The standard is effective for financial statements issued for fiscal years, and interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2018, with early adoption permitted. The adoption of the guidance requires a modified retrospective approach with a cumulative-effect adjustment to retained earnings. The adoption of this ASU did not have a material effect on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

Recently Issued Accounting Standards Not Yet Adopted

For information regarding additional accounting standards that the Company has not yet adopted, see note 3(q), “Significant Accounting Policies—Recent Accounting Pronouncements,” of the notes to consolidated financial statements in the Company’s 2018 Form 10-K.