Earnings per share

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2016

Earnings per Share

Basic earnings per share are computed using the weighted average number of shares outstanding and diluted earnings per share are computed using the weighted average number of shares and dilutive share equivalents (consisting of non-qualified stock options, restricted stock units and employee stock purchase plan contributions) outstanding during the periods using the treasury stock method.

The following is a reconciliation of the shares used to compute basic and diluted earnings per share (in thousands):



	Year Ended December 31,
	2016	2015	2014
Weighted average number of common shares outstanding used to compute basic earnings per share	53,192	52,259	53,437
Dilutive effect of stock-based awards	555	746	857
Number of shares used to compute diluted earnings per share	53,747	53,005	54,294

There were no significant share equivalents outstanding as of December 31, 2016, 2015 and 2014 that were anti-dilutive when applying the treasury stock method.