Shareholders' equity

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2023

Equity [Abstract]

Shareholders' equity

15. Shareholders' equity

Common shares

The following table presents a summary of the common shares issued and outstanding and shares repurchased as of and for the nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022:

	2023	2022
Common shares issued and outstanding, beginning of period	162,177,653	161,929,777
Issuance of common shares, net of forfeitures and shares withheld	1,172,575	1,078,208
Issuance of common shares upon exercise of warrants	1,517,873	—
Issuance of common shares upon exercise of options	200,000	—
Shares repurchased	—	(695,047)
Common shares issued and outstanding, end of period	165,068,101	162,312,938

The Company’s authorized share capital consists of 300,000,000 common shares with a par value of $0.10 each. During the nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022, the Company did not pay any dividends to its common shareholders.

Preference shares

The Company’s authorized share capital also consists of 30,000,000 preference shares with a par value of $0.10 each.

Series B preference shares

The Series B preference shares are listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “SPNT PB”. The Company has 8,000,000 of Series B preference shares outstanding, par value $0.10. Dividends on the Series B preference shares are cumulative and payable quarterly in arrears at an initial rate of 8.0% per annum. The preference shareholders have no voting rights with respect to the Series B preference shares unless dividends have not been paid for six dividend periods, whether or not consecutive, in which case the holders of the Series B preference shares will have the right to elect two directors.

The dividend rate will reset on each five-year anniversary of issuance at a rate equal to the five-year U.S. treasury rate at such time plus 7.298%. The Series B preference shares are perpetual and have no fixed maturity date. The Series B preference shares provide for redemption rights by the Company (i) in whole, or in part, on each five-year anniversary of issuance at 100%, (ii) in whole, but not in part, (a) upon certain rating agency events, at 102%, (b) upon certain capital disqualification events, at 100%, and (c) upon certain tax events, at 100%.

During the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023, the Company declared and paid dividends of $4.0 million and $12.0 million, respectively, to the Series B preference shareholders (2022 - $4.0 million and $12.0 million, respectively).

Share repurchases

As of September 30, 2023, the Company was authorized to repurchase up to an aggregate of $56.3 million of outstanding common shares and warrants under its repurchase program.

During the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023, the Company did not repurchase any of its common shares in the open market.

During the three months ended September 30, 2022, the Company did not repurchase any of its common shares in the open market. During the nine months ended September 30, 2022, the Company repurchased 695,047 of its common shares in the open market for $5.0 million at a weighted average cost, including commissions, of $7.17 per share. Common shares repurchased by the Company during the period were retired.