Equity Based Compensation

In November 2010, the shareholders approved the 2010 Master Stock Incentive Plan (the Plan). The Plan extends through September 2020 and allows for the granting of nonqualified stock options, incentive stock options, restricted stock, restricted stock units, stock appreciation rights, dividend equivalents and other stock-based awards. Options under the Plan are granted to key employees whereby the option exercise price is equivalent to the market price of the Company's common stock at the date of grant. Options are generally exercisable for up to 10 years from the date of grant. The Plan also allows for the granting of performance awards to a limited number of key executives. As administered by the Human Resources Committee of the Company’s Board of Directors to date, these performance awards are payable in common stock and are based on a formula that measures performance of the Company over a three-year period. Performance award expense under these plans totaled $0.9 million, $0.3 million and $0.1 million in the years ended July 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, respectively.

Stock options are exercisable in equal increments over three years. For the years ended July 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, the Company recorded pretax stock-based compensation expense associated with stock options of $7.5 million, $6.7 million and $9.5 million, respectively. The Company also recorded tax benefits associated with this compensation expense of $2.2 million, $2.1 million and $3.1 million for the years ended July 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, respectively.

Stock-based employee compensation expense is recognized using the fair-value method for all awards. The Company determined the fair value of these awards using the Black-Scholes option pricing model with the following assumptions:



	Year Ended July 31,
	2017		2016		2015
Risk-free interest rate	2.5 - 2.6%		1.6 - 2.3%		0.05 - 2.3%
Expected volatility	20.8 - 24.1%		21.8 - 25.9%		18.6 - 26.7%
Expected dividend yield	1.7	%	1.7	%	1.6	%

Expected life:
Director and officer grants	8 years		8 years		8 years
Non-officer original grants	7 years		7 years		7 years
Reload grants (1)	N/A		N/A		≤4 years

(1)

Grants made to officers or directors who exercised a reloadable option during the fiscal year and made payment of the purchase price using shares of previously owned Company stock. The reload grant is for the number of shares equal to the shares used in payment of the purchase price and/or withheld for minimum tax withholding. Options with a reload provision were no longer issued to officers with more than five years of service, and all directors beginning in fiscal 2006. The Company continued to issue options with a reload provision to officers with less than five years of service until fiscal 2011 when this provision was discontinued.

The weighted average fair value for options granted during the years ended July 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015 was $10.09, $7.10 and $9.94 per share, respectively, using the Black-Scholes pricing model.

The following table summarizes stock option activity for the years ended July 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015:



	Options Outstanding		Weighted Average Exercise Price
Outstanding at July 31, 2014	7,197,882		$	26.84
Granted	1,023,836		38.58
Exercised	(916,566	)	18.54
Canceled	(113,710	)	38.67
Outstanding at July 31, 2015	7,191,442		29.38
Granted	969,450		28.19
Exercised	(916,789	)	19.39
Canceled	(421,713	)	36.95
Outstanding at July 31, 2016	6,822,390		30.09
Granted	888,500		42.65
Exercised	(978,193	)	24.04
Canceled	(47,146	)	36.51
Outstanding at July 31, 2017	6,685,551		32.60

The total intrinsic value of options exercised during the years ended July 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015 was $18.3 million, $11.6 million and $18.8 million, respectively.

The number of shares reserved at July 31, 2017 for outstanding options and future grants was 9,683,708. Shares reserved consist of shares available for grant plus all outstanding options.

The following table summarizes information concerning outstanding and exercisable options as of July 31, 2017:



Range of Exercise Prices	Number Outstanding	Weighted Average Remaining Contractual Life (Years)	Weighted Average Exercise Price		Number Exercisable	Weighted Average Exercise Price
$0.00 to $22.69	1,209,231	1.92	$	19.63	1,209,231	$	19.63
$22.70 to $28.69	981,995	7.57	27.54		387,755	26.72
$28.70 to $34.69	1,457,982	4.40	31.61		1,440,251	31.61
$34.70 to $40.69	1,447,048	6.14	37.03		1,161,545	36.66
$40.70 and above	1,589,295	8.02	42.47		706,244	42.24
	6,685,551	5.65	32.60		4,905,026	31.00

At July 31, 2017, the aggregate intrinsic value of shares outstanding and exercisable was $99.6 million and $80.9 million, respectively.

The following table summarizes the status of options that contain vesting provisions:



	Options		Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value
Non-vested at July 31, 2016	1,762,856		$	8.70
Granted	888,500		10.09
Vested	(834,806	)	9.41
Canceled	(36,025	)	8.61
Non-vested at July 31, 2017	1,780,525		9.06

The total fair value of options vested during years ended July 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, was $39.6 million, $30.0 million and $29.3 million, respectively.

As of July 31, 2017, there was $7.4 million of total unrecognized compensation expense related to non-vested stock options granted under the Plan. This unvested expense is expected to be recognized during fiscal years 2018, 2019 and 2020.