Earnings Per Common Share

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2018

Note 14— Earnings Per Common Share

Basic and diluted earnings per common share are computed by dividing net income by the weighted-average number of basic and diluted common shares outstanding, respectively. The weighted-average number of diluted common shares includes the impact of dilutive securities, including outstanding stock options and unvested restricted stock and restricted stock units. The table below reconciles the weighted-average basic and diluted common shares outstanding:



	Three Months Ended March 31,
	2018	2017
	(in thousands)
Weighted average number of common shares outstanding - basic	73,913	73,074
Effect of dilutive securities⁽¹⁾	812	872
Weighted average number of common shares outstanding - diluted	74,725	73,946

⁽¹⁾

Certain outstanding stock option awards are anti-dilutive and were therefore excluded from the calculation of the weighted average number of diluted common shares outstanding. During the three months ended March 31, 2018, options to purchase 0.2 million shares having a weighted average exercise price of $52.06 per share were excluded. During the three months ended March 31, 2017, options to purchase 0.5 million shares having a weighted average exercise price of $39.38 per share were excluded.