EARNINGS PER SHARE

12 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2015

NOTE 7 EARNINGS PER SHARE

ASC 260, Earnings per Share, requires companies to treat unvested share-based payment awards that have non-forfeitable rights to dividend or dividend equivalents as a separate class of securities in calculating earnings per share. We have granted and expect to continue to grant to employees restricted stock grants that contain non-forfeitable rights to dividends. Such grants are considered participating securities under ASC 260. As such, we are required to include these grants in the calculation of our basic earnings per share and calculate basic earnings per share using the two-class method. The two-class method of computing earnings per share is an earnings allocation formula that determines earnings per share for each class of common stock and participating security according to dividends declared (or accumulated) and participation rights in undistributed earnings.

Basic earnings per share is computed utilizing the two-class method and is calculated based on weighted-average number of common shares outstanding during the periods presented.

Diluted earnings per share is computed using the weighted-average number of common and common equivalent shares outstanding during the periods utilizing the two-class method for stock options and nonvested restricted stock.

The following table sets forth the computation of basic and diluted earnings per share:

	September 30,
	2015			2014			2013
	(in thousands)
Numerator:
Income from continuing operations	$	422,272		$	708,766		$	721,453
Income (loss) from discontinued operations		(47	)		(47	)		15,186

Net income		422,225			708,719			736,639
Adjustment for basic earnings per share
Earnings allocated to unvested shareholders		(2,174	)		(4,145	)		(3,842	)

Numerator for basic earnings per share:
From continuing operations		420,098			704,621			717,611
From discontinued operations		(47	)		(47	)		15,186

		420,051			704,574			732,797
Adjustment for diluted earnings per share:
Effect of reallocating undistributed earnings of unvested shareholders		6			30			46
Numerator for diluted earnings per share:
From continuing operations		420,104			704,651			717,657
From discontinued operations		(47	)		(47	)		15,186

	$	420,057		$	704,604		$	732,843


Denominator:
Denominator for basic earnings per share—weighted-average shares		107,754			107,800			106,286
Effect of dilutive shares from stock options and restricted stock		816			1,341			1,593

Denominator for diluted earnings per share—adjusted weighted-average shares		108,570			109,141			107,879


Basic earnings per common share:
Income from continuing operations	$	3.90		$	6.54		$	6.75
Income from discontinued operations		—			—			0.14

Net income	$	3.90		$	6.54		$	6.89


Diluted earnings per common share:
Income from continuing operations	$	3.87		$	6.46		$	6.65
Income from discontinued operations		—			—			0.14

Net income	$	3.87		$	6.46		$	6.79

The following shares attributable to outstanding equity awards were excluded from the calculation of diluted earnings per share because their inclusion would have been anti-dilutive:

	2015		2014		2013
	(in thousands, except per share amounts)
Shares excluded from calculation of diluted earnings per share		667		215		743
Weighted-average price per share	$	72.85	$	79.67	$	57.27