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Shareholders' Equity
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3 Months Ended |
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Mar. 31, 2012
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| Shareholders' Equity [Abstract] | |
| Shareholders' Equity |
10. Shareholders’ Equity Dividends The declaration of future dividends is subject to the discretion of the Company’s board of directors and will depend upon various factors, including its earnings, financial condition, restrictions imposed by the New Credit Facility and the terms of any other indebtedness that may be outstanding, cash requirements, future prospects and other factors deemed relevant by its board of directors. The New Credit Facility entered into on March 9, 2011, permits payments of dividends as long as no default or event of default exists and the consolidated leverage ratio specified in the New Credit Facility is not exceeded. On February 21, 2012, the Company announced that its board of directors approved a cash dividend of $0.30 per common share in an aggregate amount of $35.2 million that was paid to shareholders on March 22, 2012. The aggregate amount of dividends declared and paid during the three months ended March 31, 2012 and 2011, were $35.2 million and $14.8 million, respectively. Share Repurchases The Company has a $1 billion share repurchase program that expires on December 2014. The New Credit Facility permits the Company to repurchase its common shares as long as no default or event of default exists and the consolidated leverage ratio specified in the New Credit Facility is not exceeded. During the three months ended March 31, 2012, the Company repurchased approximately 0.7 million of its common shares through open market purchases at an aggregate cost of approximately $50.0 million or an average cost of $67.24 per share. As of March 31, 2012, the remaining authorized capacity under the Company’s share repurchase program was approximately $427.9 million.
The Company reflects the aggregate purchase price of its common shares repurchased as a reduction to shareholders’ equity. The Company allocated the purchase price of the repurchased shares as a reduction to retained earnings, common shares and additional paid-in-capital. The number of shares issued upon vesting or exercise for certain restricted stock units and SARs granted pursuant to the Company’s share-based compensation plans is net of the minimum statutory withholding requirements that the Company pays on behalf of its employees. Although shares withheld are not issued, they are treated as common share repurchases in the Company’s consolidated financial statements, as they reduce the number of shares that would have been issued upon vesting. These shares do not count against the authorized capacity under the Company’s share repurchase program described above. |