Earnings Per Share

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2016

NOTE 7 – EARNINGS PER SHARE

The following table illustrates the computation of basic and diluted earnings per share for the three months ended March 31, 2016 and 2015 (in thousands, except per share data):



	For the Three Months Ended March 31,
	2016		2015
Numerator (basic and diluted):
Net income	$	255,374	$	212,864

Denominator:
Weighted-average common shares outstanding – basic	97,140		101,612
Effect of stock options ⁽¹⁾	1,397		1,645
Weighted-average common shares outstanding – assuming dilution	98,537		103,257

Earnings per share:
Earnings per share-basic	$	2.63	$	2.09
Earnings per share-assuming dilution	$	2.59	$	2.06

Antidilutive potential common shares not included in the calculation of diluted earnings per share:
Stock options ⁽¹⁾	268		278
Weighted-average exercise price per share of antidilutive stock options ⁽¹⁾	$	256.19	$	195.90


⁽¹⁾	See Note 6 for further information concerning the terms of the Company’s share-based compensation plans.

For the three months ended March 31, 2016 and 2015, the computation of diluted earnings per share did not include certain securities. These securities represent underlying stock options not included in the computation of diluted earnings per share, because the inclusion of such equity awards would have been antidilutive.

Subsequent to the end of the first quarter and through May 9, 2016, the Company repurchased 0.5 million shares of its common stock, at an average price of $268.74, for a total investment of $124.1 million.