13. CAPITAL STOCK

Our authorized capital stock consists of 2,000,000 preferred shares, none of which were issued or outstanding at December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, and 120,000,000 common shares, no par value per share, of which the following shares were outstanding:


	2017		2016		2015
Shares outstanding as of December 31,		51,768,424		51,527,711		51,501,877
Summary of Share Issuances:
Share Issuances related to Equity Compensation:
Shares issued upon exercise of stock options by employees		28,384		25,834		657,998
Proceeds realized from stock option exercises	$	123,603	$	80,161	$	2,780,188
Average exercise price of options exercised	$	4.35	$	3.10	$	4.23
Restricted Stock Grants		530,000		—		850,000

Common Shares

Holders of the common shares are entitled to one vote per share on all matters submitted to a vote of our shareholders and are entitled to receive dividends when and if declared by the Board of Directors. The Board is authorized to issue additional common shares within the limits of the our Articles of Incorporation without further shareholder action, subject to applicable stock exchange rules.