Note 21 - Stock-based Compensation

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2022

Notes to Financial Statements

Share-Based Payment Arrangement [Text Block]

21.         Stock-based compensation

The Company has a stock option plan for certain officers, key full-time employees and directors of the Company and its subsidiaries. Options are granted at the market price for the underlying shares on the day immediately prior to the date of grant. Each option vests over a four-year term, expires five years from the date granted and allows for the purchase of one Subordinate Voting Share. All Subordinate Voting Shares issued are new shares. As at December 31, 2022, there were 892,050 options available for future grants.

Grants under the Company’s stock option plan are equity-classified awards.

Stock option activity for the years ended December 31, 2022, and 2021 was as follows:

						Weighted average
				Weighted		remaining		Aggregate
	Number of			average		contractual life		intrinsic
	options			exercise price		(years)		value
Shares issuable under options - December 31, 2020		2,190,125		$	69.22
Granted		682,500			136.38
Exercised		(292,450	)		49.38
Forfeited		(29,300	)		80.15
Shares issuable under options - December 31, 2021		2,550,875		$	89.34
Granted		837,500			95.69
Exercised		(305,125	)		54.99
Forfeited		(30,250	)		110.73
Shares issuable under options - December 31, 2022		3,053,000		$	94.30		3.1	$	25,723
Options exercisable - December 31, 2022		1,271,220		$	83.31		2.1	$	18,801

The Company incurred stock-based compensation expense related to these awards of $21,853 during the year ended December 31, 2022 (2021 - $14,349). As at December 31, 2022, the range of option exercise prices was $67.30 to $150.24 per share.

The following table summarizes information about option exercises:

	Year ended December 31,
	2022		2021
Number of options exercised		305,125		292,450
Aggregate fair value	$	41,528	$	32,808
Intrinsic value		16,779		14,440
Amount of cash received		24,749		18,368
Tax benefit recognized	$	754	$	937

As at December 31, 2022, there was $41,873 of unrecognized compensation cost related to non-vested awards which is expected to be recognized over the next four years. During the year ended December 31, 2022, the fair value of options vested was $16,866 (2021 - $11,986).

The fair value of each option grant is estimated on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes option pricing model, utilizing the following weighted average assumptions:

	As at December 31,
	2022			2021
Risk free rate		4.2	%		0.8	%
Expected life in years		4.75			4.75
Expected volatility		41.2	%		39.4	%
Dividend yield		0.3	%		0.2	%
Weighted average fair value per option granted	$	38.22		$	46.12

The risk-free interest rate is based on the implied yield of a zero-coupon US Treasury bond with a term equal to the option’s expected term. The expected life in years represents the estimated period of time until exercise and is based on historical experience. The expected volatility is based on the historical prices of the Company’s shares over the previous four years.