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UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

 

SCHEDULE 14A

 

Proxy Statement Pursuant to Section 14(a) of

the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (Amendment No.   )

 

Filed by the Registrant x

 

Filed by a Party other than the Registrant o

 

Check the appropriate box:

x

Preliminary Proxy Statement

o

Confidential, for Use of the Commission Only (as permitted by Rule 14a-6(e)(2))

o

Definitive Proxy Statement

o

Definitive Additional Materials

o

Soliciting Material Pursuant to §240.14a-12

 

BioTelemetry, Inc.

(Name of Registrant as Specified In Its Charter)

 

 

(Name of Person(s) Filing Proxy Statement, if other than the Registrant)

 

Payment of Filing Fee (Check the appropriate box):

x

No fee required.

o

Fee computed on table below per Exchange Act Rules 14a-6(i)(1) and 0-11.

 

(1)

Title of each class of securities to which transaction applies:

 

 

 

 

(2)

Aggregate number of securities to which transaction applies:

 

 

 

 

(3)

Per unit price or other underlying value of transaction computed pursuant to Exchange Act Rule 0-11 (set forth the amount on which the filing fee is calculated and state how it was determined):

 

 

 

 

(4)

Proposed maximum aggregate value of transaction:

 

 

 

 

(5)

Total fee paid:

 

 

 

o

Fee paid previously with preliminary materials.

o

Check box if any part of the fee is offset as provided by Exchange Act Rule 0-11(a)(2) and identify the filing for which the offsetting fee was paid previously. Identify the previous filing by registration statement number, or the Form or Schedule and the date of its filing.

 

(1)

Amount Previously Paid:

 

 

 

 

(2)

Form, Schedule or Registration Statement No.:

 

 

 

 

(3)

Filing Party:

 

 

 

 

(4)

Date Filed:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Persons who are to respond to the collection of information contained in this form are not required to respond unless the form displays a currently valid OMB control number.

 

 

 


 


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BioTelemetry, Inc.

Notice of 2017 Annual Meeting of Stockholders

 

 

 

1000 Cedar Hollow Road, Suite 102

Malvern, PA 19355

 

March 27, 2017

 

The 2017 Annual Meeting of Stockholders of BioTelemetry, Inc. will be held:

 

Thursday, May 11th, 2017

8:30 AM, local time

Philadelphia Marriott West

111 Crawford Avenue

West Conshohocken, Pennsylvania 19428

 

The items of business are:

 

1.              Election of three Class I director nominees named in the proxy statement to hold office until the 2020 Annual Meeting of Stockholders or until their successors are elected and qualified;

2.              Approval, on an advisory basis, of the compensation of our named executive officers;

3.              Approval, on an advisory basis, of the frequency of holding an advisory vote on executive compensation;

4.              Approval of the BioTelemetry, Inc. 2017 Omnibus Incentive Plan;

5.              Approval of the BioTelemetry, Inc. 2017 Employee Stock Purchase Plan;

6.              Approval of amendments to our Bylaws to change the voting requirement relating to the election of directors;

7.              Approval of amendments to our Certificate of Incorporation to eliminate the supermajority voting requirement relating to the adoption, amendment or repeal of any provision of our Bylaws;

8.              Ratification of the appointment of Ernst & Young LLP as our independent registered public accounting firm for the year ending December 31, 2017; and

9.              Conducting any other business properly brought before the meeting and any adjournment or postponement of the meeting.

 

Only stockholders of record of our common stock at the close of business on March 22, 2017 are entitled to vote at the meeting and any postponements or adjournments of the meeting.

 

 

 

Peter Ferola

 

Secretary

 

 

Important Notice Regarding the Internet Availability of Proxy Materials for the Annual Meeting of Stockholders to be Held on May 11th, 2017

 

We mailed a Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials (the “Notice”) containing instructions on how to access our proxy statement and Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2016, including our annual report wrapper (the “2016 Annual Report”), on or about March 27, 2017. Our proxy statement and the 2016 Annual Report are available on our website at http://www.gobio.com in the “Investors” section.

 

Your Vote is Important

 

It is important that your shares be represented at the meeting, regardless of the number you may hold. Whether or not you plan to attend, please vote using the proxy card or voting instruction card as promptly as possible in order to ensure your representation at the meeting. This will not prevent you from voting your shares in person if you are present at the meeting.

 


 


Table of Contents

 

 

Table of Contents

 

 

Proxy Summary

1

General Information About the Meeting

4

Corporate Governance and Board Matters

7

Code of Business Conduct and Ethics

7

Board Leadership Structure

7

The Board’s Role in Risk Oversight

8

Committees

8

Director Independence

10

Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation

10

Executive Sessions of Independent Directors

10

Communicating with the Board

11

Nomination of Director Candidates

11

Related Person Transactions and Procedures

12

Director Compensation

13

2016 Director Compensation

13

Executive Officers

15

Executive Officer Biographies

15

Executive Compensation

17

Our Compensation Philosophy and Goals

17

Most Recent Say on Pay Results

17

2016 Financial Highlights

18

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

18

Executive Compensation Elements

19

2016 MIP Bonuses (Cash)

19

2016 LTIP Awards (RSUs and Stock Options)

20

Our Compensation Practices

20

Compensation Discussion and Analysis

21

2016 Performance Overview

22

Executive Compensation Elements

22

Summary of Key 2016 Compensation Decisions

22

Our Management Incentive Plan

23

Our Long-Term Incentive Plan

25

Compensation Philosophy and Objectives

28

Applying our Compensation Philosophy

28

Competitive Positioning

29

Post-Employment Compensation Arrangements

30

Other Compensation Policies

31

Risk Considerations in Our Compensation Programs

31

Role of the Compensation Consultant and Executives

32

Compensation and Talent Development Committee Report

33

Compensation Tables

33

2016 Pension Benefits

39

2016 Nonqualified Deferred Compensation

39

Payments on Disability or Death

39

Estimated Payments Following Termination

40

Estimated Payments Following Termination or Change in Control

41

Independent Auditor And Fees

43

Fees Paid to EY

43

Audit Committee Policy on Pre-Approval of Audit and Permissible Non-Audit Services

43

Audit Committee Report

44

Items to Be Voted On

45

Proposal 1 — Election of Three Directors as Class I Directors

45

Proposal 2 — Advisory Vote on Executive Compensation

50

Proposal 3 — Advisory Vote On The Frequency Of The Advisory Vote On Executive Compensation

51

Proposal 4 — Approval of the BioTelemetry, Inc. 2017 Omnibus Incentive Plan

51

 



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Proposal 5 — Approval of the BioTelemetry, Inc. 2017 Employee Stock Purchase Plan

59

Proposal 6 — Adoption of Majority Vote Standard For Election of Directors

62

Proposal 7 — Elimination of the Super-Majority Voting Requirement Relating to the Adoption, Amendment or Repeal of any Provision of our Bylaws

63

Proposal 8 — Ratification of Appointment of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm for 2017

64

Other Information

65

Stock Ownership

65

Section 16(a) Beneficial Ownership Reporting Compliance

65

2016 Annual Report and SEC Filings

65

2018 Stockholder Proposals or Nominations

66

Other Matters

66

 



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PROXY SUMMARY

 

 

Proxy Summary

 

 

Here are highlights of important information you will find in this proxy statement. This summary does not contain all of the information that you should consider and you should read the entire proxy statement carefully before voting.

 

Summary of Stockholder Voting Matters

 

 

For More Information

Board Vote Recommendation

 

 

 

Proposal 1: Election of Three Class I Directors

Page 45

ü  FOR Each Nominee

 

 

 

Joseph H. Capper

Joseph A. Frick

Colin Hill

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Proposal 2: Say on Pay Advisory Vote

Page 50

ü  FOR

 

 

 

Approval, on an advisory basis, of the compensation of our named executive officers

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Proposal 3: Say on Frequency Advisory Vote

Page 51

ü  FOR One Year

Approval, on an advisory basis, of the frequency of holding an advisory vote on executive compensation

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Proposal 4: Approval of  Omnibus Incentive Plan

Page 51

ü  FOR

Approval of the BioTelemetry, Inc. 2017 Omnibus Incentive Plan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Proposal 5: Approval of  Employee Stock Purchase Plan

Page 59

ü  FOR

Approval of the BioTelemetry, Inc. 2017 Employee Stock Purchase Plan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Proposal 6: Adoption of Majority Vote Standard For Election of Directors

Page 62

ü  FOR

Approval of amendments to our Bylaws to change the voting requirement relating to the election of directors

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Proposal 7: Elimination of the Super-Majority Vote Provisions Regarding Amendment of Bylaws

Page 63

ü  FOR

Approval of amendments to our Certificate of Incorporation to change the voting requirement relating to the adoption, amendment or repeal of any provision of our Bylaws

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Proposal 8: Ratification of Ernst & Young LLP

Page 64

ü  FOR

 

 

 

Ratification of Appointment of Ernst & Young LLP (“EY”) as our Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm for 2017

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2017 Annual Meeting and Proxy Statement | 1

 



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PROXY SUMMARY

 

Our Director Nominees

 

You are being asked to vote on the election of Joseph H. Capper, Joseph A. Frick and Colin Hill as Class I directors to serve for a three-year term. The number of members of our Board of Directors (the “Board”) is currently set at nine members and is divided into three classes of equal size, each of which has a three-year term. Currently, Class I consists of three directors, Class II consists of two directors and Class III consists of two directors. Mr. Hill was appointed to the Board on May 3, 2016, filling a Class I vacancy.  We are continuing to seek to identify an individual to fill the vacancy in Class II. Our Board, by a majority vote of sitting directors, may fill any vacancies unless the Board has determined, by resolution, that any such vacancies shall be filled by stockholders. A director elected by the Board to fill a vacancy in a class, including vacancies created by an increase in the number of directors, shall serve for the remainder of the full term of that class and until the director’s successor is elected and qualified.

 

The term of office of our Class I directors expires at the 2017 Annual Meeting of Stockholders (the “2017 Annual Meeting”). We are nominating Mr. Capper,  Mr. Frick and  Mr. Hill  for reelection at the 2017 Annual Meeting to serve until the 2020 Annual Meeting of Stockholders and until each director’s successor is elected and qualified. Directors are elected by a plurality of the votes of the holders of shares present in person or represented by proxy and entitled to vote on the election of directors. The three nominees receiving the most FOR votes (among votes properly cast in person or by proxy) will be elected.  If no contrary indication is made, shares represented by executed proxies will be voted FOR the election of Mr. Capper,  Mr. Frick and  Mr. Hill  or, if any nominee becomes unavailable for election as a result of an unexpected occurrence, FOR the election of a substitute nominee designated by our Board. Each nominee has agreed to serve as a director if elected, and we have no reason to believe that any nominee will be unable to serve.

 

Detailed information about each director’s and director nominee’s background and areas of expertise can be found beginning on page 46.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   Committee Memberships

 

 

Name

 

Age

 

Director
Since

 

Occupation

 

Independent

 

AC

 

CC

 

NCGC

 

Other Current
Public Company
Boards

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Joseph H. Capper

 

53

 

2010

 

President and Chief Executive Officer, BioTelemetry, Inc.

 

No

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

0

Joseph A. Frick

 

64

 

2013

 

Diversified Search Inc., Senior Advisor

 

Yes

 

 

 

C

 

 

 

1

Colin Hill

 

44

 

2016

 

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, GNS Healthcare, Inc.

 

Yes

 

 

 

M

 

M

 

0

 

AC

Audit Committee

CC

Compensation and Talent Development Committee

M

Member

NCGC

Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee

 

 

C

Chair

 

 

2016 Performance and Compensation Highlights

 

Under the leadership of Joseph H. Capper, our President and Chief Executive Officer, and the rest of our management team, we had a record year, posting the highest revenue, patient and study volumes, income before taxes and adjusted EBITDA in our corporate history. These achievements are a direct result of the successful implementation of our corporate strategy. Compared to 2015, revenue grew by 16.7%, gross profit grew by 21.5%, income before taxes grew 99.7% and adjusted EBITDA grew by 43.6%.

 

 

(1)

 

_____________________________

 

(1) For a reconciliation of 2016 GAAP income from operations ($18.0 million) to adjusted EBITDA, please see “Non-GAAP Financial Measures” on page 18.

 

2017 Annual Meeting and Proxy Statement | 2

 



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PROXY SUMMARY

 

The following table shows the components of 2016 compensation paid to our named executive officers (“NEOs”). This table is not a substitute for our 2016 Summary Compensation Table set forth on page 33.

 

2016 Compensation

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Name and
Principal Position

 

Salary ($)

 

Stock
Awards ($)

 

Option
Awards ($)

 

Non-Equity
Incentive
Plan
Compensation ($)

 

All Other
Compensation ($)

 

Total ($)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Joseph H. Capper
President and Chief Executive Officer

 

 

556,500

 

535,001

 

535,000

 

556,000

 

21,087

 

2,203,588

Heather C. Getz
Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

 

 

345,000

 

126,783

 

126,788

 

207,000

 

21,359

 

826,930

Daniel Wisniewski
Senior Vice President, Operations

 

 

326,500

 

79,996

 

80,002

 

163,250

 

23,433

 

673,181

Peter Ferola
Senior Vice President and General Counsel

 

 

316,500

 

77,498

 

77,501

 

158,250

 

19,750

 

649,499

Fred (Andy) Broadway III
Senior Vice President, Sales and Marketing

 

 

291,000

 

85,585

 

85,587

 

145,000

 

21,467

 

628,639

 

 

Key Compensation Features

 

·                  No tax gross-ups, including no excise tax gross-ups.

 

·                  No “single trigger” feature on parachute payments in employment agreements, with the exception of our Chief Executive Officer whose equity awards immediately accelerate and become fully vested upon a change in control.

 

·                  No hedging of company stock.

 

·                  Engagement of independent compensation consultant.

 

·                  Option repricing forbidden without stockholder approval.

 

·                  Have not paid any dividend equivalents.

 

·                  Maintain stringent share-ownership requirements for NEOs.

 

·                  Adopted a clawback policy allowing us to recoup incentive compensation paid in the event of a material restatement of our financial statements.

 

 

Auditors

 

Set forth below is summary information with respect to EY’s fees for services provided in 2016 and 2015.

 

Type of Fee

 

2016

 

2015

 

Audit (1)

 

1,114,500

 

849,500

 

Audit Related (2)

 

175,029

 

43,500

 

Tax Services (3)

 

          18,000

 

          78,826

 

Total

 

1,307,529

 

971,826

 

 


(1) Audit fees were principally for services rendered for the audit and/or review of our consolidated financial statements.

 

(2) Audit-related fees were for professional services related to merger and acquisition due diligence and an audit of our Employee Benefit Plan.

 

(3) Tax Fees consist of fees billed in the indicated year for professional services performed by EY with respect to tax compliance, tax advice and tax planning.

 

2017 Annual Meeting and Proxy Statement | 3

 


 


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GENERAL INFORMATION

 

 

General Information About the Meeting

 

 

Proxy Solicitation

 

Our Board is soliciting your vote on matters that will be presented at the 2017 Annual Meeting and at any adjournment or postponement thereof. This proxy statement contains information on these matters to assist you in voting your shares.

 

 

 

Stockholders Entitled to Vote

 

All stockholders of record of our common stock, par value $0.001 per share, at the close of business on March 22, 2017, are entitled to receive the Notice and to vote their shares at the 2017 Annual Meeting. As of that date, [·] shares of our common stock were outstanding. Each share is entitled to one vote on each matter properly brought to the meeting.

 

 

Voting Methods

 

You may vote at the 2017 Annual Meeting by delivering a proxy card in person or you may cast your vote in any of the following ways:

 

 

 

 

 

Mailing your signed proxy card or voter instruction card.

Using the Internet at www.voteproxy.com.

Calling toll-free from the United States, U.S. territories and Canada to 1-800-776-9437.

 

 

How Your Shares Will Be Voted

 

In each case, your shares will be voted as you instruct. If you return a signed card, but do not provide voting instructions, your shares will be voted FOR each of the proposals. If you sign and return your proxy marked “abstain” on any proposal, your shares will not be voted on that proposal. If you are the record holder of your shares, you may revoke or change your vote any time before the proxy is exercised by filing with our Corporate Secretary a notice of revocation or a duly executed proxy bearing a later date. You may also vote in person at the meeting, although attendance at the meeting will not by itself revoke a previously granted proxy. If your shares are held by your broker, bank or other holder of record as a nominee or agent (i.e., the shares are held in “street name”), you should follow the instructions provided by your broker, bank or other holder of record.

 

Deadline for Voting. The deadline for voting by telephone or Internet is 11:59 PM Eastern Time on May 10, 2017. If you are a registered stockholder and attend the meeting, you may deliver your completed proxy card in person. “Street name” stockholders who wish to vote at the meeting will need to obtain a proxy form from the institution that holds their shares.

 

 

Broker Voting

 

If your shares are held in a stock brokerage account or by a bank or other holder of record, you are considered the “beneficial owner” of shares held in street name. The Notice has been forwarded to you by your broker, bank or other holder of record who is considered the stockholder of record of those shares. As the beneficial owner, you may direct your broker, bank or other holder of record on how to vote your shares by using the proxy card included in the materials made available or by following their instructions for voting on the Internet.

 

A broker non-vote occurs when a broker or other nominee that holds shares for another does not vote on a particular item because the nominee does not have discretionary voting authority for that item and has not received instructions from the beneficial owner of the shares. The following table summarizes how broker non-votes and abstentions are treated with respect to our proposals:

 

2017 Annual Meeting and Proxy Statement | 4

 



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GENERAL INFORMATION

 

Proposal

 

 

Votes Required

 

 

Broker
Discretionary
Voting

 

 

 

Treatment of Abstentions and Broker
Non-Votes

 

 

Proposal 1 -Election of three Class I Directors to hold office until the 2020 Annual Meeting of Stockholders

 

 

Plurality of the votes of the shares present in person or represented by proxy and entitled to vote on the proposal

 

No

 

Abstentions and broker non-votes will not be taken into account in determining the outcome of the proposal

Proposal 2 –Say on Pay Advisory Vote

 

Not applicable

 

No

 

Not applicable

Proposal 3 –Say on Frequency Advisory Vote

 

Not applicable

 

No

 

Not applicable

Proposal 4 –Approval of Omnibus Incentive Plan

 

Majority of the votes of the shares present in person or represented by proxy and entitled to vote on the proposal

 

No

 

Abstentions and broker non-votes will have the effect of negative votes

Proposal 5 –Approval of Employee Stock Purchase Plan

 

Majority of the votes of the shares present in person or represented by proxy and entitled to vote on the proposal

 

No

 

Abstentions and broker non-votes will have the effect of negative votes

Proposal 6 – Adoption of Majority Vote Standard For Election of Directors

 

Affirmative vote of 66 2/3% of the outstanding shares entitled to vote generally at an election of directors

 

No

 

Abstentions and broker non-votes will have the effect of negative votes

Proposal 7 –Elimination of the Super-Majority Vote for Provisions Regarding Amendment of Bylaws

 

Affirmative vote of 66 2/3% of the outstanding shares entitled to vote generally at an election of directors

 

No

 

Abstentions and broker non-votes will have the effect of negative votes

Proposal 8 -Ratification of appointment of EY as our independent registered public accounting firm for the year ending December 31, 2017

 

Majority of the shares present in person or represented by proxy and entitled to vote on the proposal

 

Yes

 

Abstentions will have the effect of negative votes

 

Proposals 2 and 3 are non-binding, advisory votes, which means that while we ask stockholders to approve resolutions regarding Say on Pay and Say on Frequency, these are not actions that require stockholder approval. Consequently, our Bylaw provisions regarding voting requirements do not apply to these proposals. We will report the results of the stockholder vote on these proposals based on the number of votes cast.  We will take into account the outcome of the Say on Pay vote when making executive compensation decisions and will consider the Say on Frequency vote when determining the frequency of future Say on Pay votes.

 

 

Board Facts

 

·                  6 out of 7 independent directors

 

·                  Independent Chairman of the Board

 

·                  Average Board tenure is less than 6 years

 

·                  None of our directors serve on more than 1 other public company board

 

·                  Strong Board oversight of risk management and compliance process

 

·                  No related person transactions in 2016

 

Quorum

 

We must have a quorum to conduct business at the 2017 Annual Meeting. A quorum consists of the presence at the meeting either in person or represented by proxy of the holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of our common stock entitled to vote. For the purpose of establishing a quorum, abstentions, including brokers holding customers’ shares of record who cause abstentions to be recorded at the meeting, and broker non-votes are considered stockholders who are present and entitled to vote, and count toward the quorum. If there is no quorum, the holders of a majority of shares present at the meeting in person or represented by proxy or the chairman of the meeting may adjourn the meeting to another date.

 

2017 Annual Meeting and Proxy Statement | 5

 



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GENERAL INFORMATION

 

 

Mailings to Multiple Stockholders at the Same Address

 

We have adopted a procedure called “householding”. Under this procedure, stockholders of record who share the same last name and address will receive only one copy of the Notice, unless we are notified that one or more of these stockholders wishes to continue receiving additional copies.

 

We will continue to make a proxy card available to each stockholder of record. If you prefer to receive multiple copies of the Notice at the same address, or if you are eligible for householding but you and other stockholders of record with whom you share the same last name and address currently receive multiple copies of the Notice, or if you hold stock in more than one account, and in either case you wish to receive only a single copy, please contact us in writing: Corporate Secretary, BioTelemetry, Inc., 1000 Cedar Hollow Road, Suite 102, Malvern, PA 19355, or by telephone: (610) 729-7000. Beneficial stockholders can request information about householding from their broker, bank or other holder of record.

 

 

Proxy Solicitation Costs

 

We pay the cost of soliciting proxies. Proxies will be solicited on behalf of the Board by mail, telephone, and other electronic means or in person. Directors and employees will not be paid any additional compensation for soliciting proxies. We have engaged D.F. King & Co., a professional proxy solicitation firm, located at 48 Wall Street, New York, New York 10005, to assist with the solicitation of proxies for a fee of $7,500 plus reasonable out-of-pocket expenses. We may also reimburse brokerage firms, banks and other agents for the cost of forwarding proxy materials to beneficial owners.

 

 

Results of the 2017 Annual Meeting

 

We will report final voting results from the 2017 Annual Meeting on a Current Report on Form 8-K to be filed with the SEC within four business days after the conclusion of the 2017 Annual Meeting.

 

2017 Annual Meeting and Proxy Statement | 6

 


 


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CORPORATE GOVERNANCE AND BOARD MATTERS

 

 

Corporate Governance and Board Matters

 

 

During 2016, our Board met sixteen times in person and telephonically (four meetings were in person and twelve meetings were telephonic). Each director attended at least 75% of the Board meetings and the meetings of the Board committees on which he or she served. It is our policy to invite our directors and nominees for director to attend our annual meetings of stockholders. All of our directors then in office attended our 2016 Annual Meeting of Stockholders in person and we expect that all of our current directors and nominees for director will attend our 2017 Annual Meeting in person.

 

Our principal governance documents are our Board committee charters and Code of Business Conduct and Ethics. Aspects of our governance documents are summarized below.

 

We encourage our stockholders to read our governance documents, as they present a comprehensive picture of how the Board addresses its governance responsibilities to ensure our vitality and success. The documents are available in the “Investors—Corporate Governance” section of our website at www.gobio.com and copies of these documents may be requested by writing to our Corporate Secretary, BioTelemetry, Inc., 1000 Cedar Hollow Road, Suite 102, Malvern, PA 19355.

 

 

Code of Business Conduct and Ethics

 

All of our employees, officers and directors are required to comply with our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics. The Code of Business Conduct and Ethics covers fundamental ethical and compliance-related principles and practices such as accurate accounting records and financial reporting, avoiding conflicts of interest, the protection and use of our property and information and compliance with legal and regulatory requirements. If we make any substantive amendments to the Code of Business Conduct and Ethics or grant any waiver from a provision of the Code of Business Conduct and Ethics to any executive officer or director, we will promptly disclose the nature of the amendment or waiver on our website.

 

 

Board Leadership Structure

 

The Board is currently composed of an independent Chairman of the Board and independent committees of the Board. Kirk E. Gorman has served as a member of our Board since 2008 and the Chairman of our Board since October 2011.

 

As Chairman, Mr. Gorman leads the activities of the Board, including:

 

·                  calling meetings of the Board and independent directors;

 

·                  setting the agenda for Board meetings in consultation with the Chief Executive Officer and Corporate Secretary;

 

·                  chairing executive sessions of the independent directors; and

 

·                  acting as an advisor to Mr. Capper on strategic aspects of the Chief Executive Officer role with regular consultations on major developments and decisions likely to interest the Board.

 

Our Board believes its leadership structure effectively allocates authority, responsibility and oversight between management and the independent members of our Board. It gives primary responsibility for the operational leadership and strategic direction of our company to our Chief Executive Officer, while the Chairman facilitates our Board’s independent oversight of management, promotes communication between management and our Board, and leads our Board’s consideration of key governance matters.

 

 

2017 Annual Meeting and Proxy Statement | 7

 



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CORPORATE GOVERNANCE AND BOARD MATTERS

 

The Board’s Role in Risk Oversight

 

Our Board recognizes the importance of effective risk oversight in running a successful business, and in fulfilling its fiduciary responsibilities to us and our stockholders. While the Chief Executive Officer, the General Counsel and other members of our senior leadership team are responsible for the day-to-day management of risk, our Board is responsible for ensuring that an appropriate culture of risk management exists within our company and for setting the right “tone at the top,” overseeing our aggregate risk profile, and assisting management in addressing specific risks, such as strategic and competitive risks, financial risks, brand and reputation risks, legal risks, regulatory risks, operational risks and cybersecurity risks. While our Board focuses on the overall risks affecting us, each committee has been delegated the responsibility for the oversight of specific risks that fall within its area of responsibility. For example:

 

·                  the Compensation and Talent Development Committee (the “Compensation Committee”) is responsible for overseeing the management of risks relating to our executive compensation policies, plans and arrangements and the extent to which those policies or practices increase or decrease risk for our company.

 

·                  the Audit Committee oversees management of financial reporting, compliance and litigation risks as well as the steps management has taken to monitor and control such exposure.

 

·                  the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee manages risks associated with the independence of the Board, potential conflicts of interest and the effectiveness of the Board.

 

Although each committee is responsible for evaluating certain risks and overseeing the management of those risks, the full Board is regularly informed about those risks through committee reports.

 

Our Board believes that our current leadership structure best facilitates its oversight of risk by combining independent leadership, through the independent Chairman, independent Board committees, and majority independent Board composition. The Chairman, independent committee chairs, and other independent directors also are experienced professionals or executives who can and do raise issues for Board consideration and review. Our Board believes there is a well-functioning and effective balance between the independent Chairman and non-executive Board members, which enhances risk oversight.

 

 

Committees

 

The Board has three standing committees: the Audit Committee; the Compensation Committee; and the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. Each committee consists solely of independent directors. Each committee has a written charter, each of which is posted in the “Investors—Corporate Governance” section of our website at www.gobio.com. You may request a printed copy of each committee’s charter from our Corporate Secretary.

 

Audit Committee

 

Anthony J. Conti (Chair)

Kirk E. Gorman

Robert J. Rubin, M.D.

 

The Audit Committee assists our Board in its oversight of (1) our corporate accounting and financial reporting processes; (2) our systems of internal control over financial reporting and audits of our financial statements; (3) the quality and integrity of our financial statements and reports; and (4) the qualifications, independence and performance of the firm or firms of certified public accountants engaged as our independent outside auditors for the purpose of preparing or issuing an audit report or performing other audit, review or attest services. In carrying out these responsibilities, the Audit Committee, among other things:

 

·       reviews and discusses our annual and quarterly financial statements with management and the independent auditors;

 

·       manages our relationship with the independent auditors, including having sole authority for their appointment, compensation, retention and oversight;

 

·       reviews the scope of their work; approving non-audit and audit services; and confirming the independence of the independent auditors;

 

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·       confers with management and the independent auditors, as appropriate, regarding the scope, adequacy and effectiveness of our internal control over financing reporting; and

 

·       reports to the Board with respect to material issues that arise regarding the quality or integrity of our financial statements, our compliance with legal or regulatory requirements, the performance or independence of the independent auditors or such other matters as the Audit Committee deems appropriate from time to time.

 

 

 

 

 

Pursuant to the NASDAQ Marketplace Rules (the “NASDAQ Listing Rules”), each member of our Audit Committee must be able to read and understand fundamental financial statements, including a balance sheet, income statement, and cash flow statement. In addition, our Board has determined that Mr. Conti is an “audit committee financial expert” within the meaning of SEC regulations and has financial sophistication in accordance with the NASDAQ Listing Rules. In 2016, the Audit Committee met six times in person. All members of the Audit Committee are independent within the meaning of applicable SEC rules and regulations and the NASDAQ Listing Rules.

 

 

 

Compensation Committee

 

 

 

 

 

Joseph A. Frick (Chair)

Rebecca W. Rimel

Colin Hill

 

 

The Compensation and Talent Development Committee develops our overall compensation philosophy, and, either as a committee or together with the other independent directors;

 

·       determines and approves our executive compensation programs;

 

·       makes all decisions about the compensation of our executive officers (with the exception of our Chief Executive Officer);

 

·       evaluates the Chief Executive Officer’s performance in light of his goals and objectives approved by the Compensation Committee and recommends to the full Board the Chief Executive Officer’s base salary, and short-term and long-term incentive compensation;

 

·       oversees our cash and equity-based incentive compensation plans;

 

·       oversees and approves our management continuity and succession planning process;

 

·       reviews our workforce demographics and metrics related to hiring, promotions, employee turnover and diversity; and

 

·       reviews our initiatives related to employee training and development, culture and mission, employee engagement and civic involvement.

 

Additional information about the roles and responsibilities of the Compensation Committee can be found under the heading “Compensation Discussion and Analysis.” In 2016, the Compensation Committee met four times in person. All members of the Compensation Committee are independent within the meaning of the NASDAQ Listing Rules.

 

 

 

Nominating and Corporate

Governance Committee 

 

 

 

 

 

Rebecca W. Rimel (Chair)

Robert J. Rubin, M.D.

Colin Hill

 

 

The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee oversees all aspects of our corporate governance functions on behalf of the Board, including:

 

·       making recommendations to the Board regarding corporate governance issues;

 

·       identifying, reviewing and evaluating candidates to serve as Board members consistent with criteria approved by the Board and reviewing and evaluating incumbent directors;

 

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·       serving as the focal point for communication between Board candidates, non-committee directors and our management;

 

·       nominating candidates to serve as directors;

 

·       making recommendations to the Board regarding affairs relating to our directors;

 

·       overseeing our director orientation and continuing education programs;

 

·       overseeing our available defense mechanisms; and

 

·       overseeing matters impacting our image and reputation and our standing as a responsible corporate citizen.

 

 

 

 

 

In 2016, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee met three times in person. All members of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee are independent within the meaning of the NASDAQ Listing Rules.

 

 

Director Independence

 

The NASDAQ Listing Rules require that a majority of the Board and all members of our Audit Committee, Compensation Committee and Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee be comprised of directors who are “independent,” as such term is defined by the NASDAQ Listing Rules. Each year, the Board undertakes a review of director independence, which includes a review of each director’s responses to questionnaires asking about any relationships with us. This review is designed to identify and evaluate any transactions or relationships between a director or any member of his or her immediate family and us, or members of our senior management or other members of the Board, and all relevant facts and circumstances regarding any such transactions or relationships. Consistent with these considerations, after review of all relevant transactions or relationships between each director, or any of his or her family members, and us, in early 2017 the Board affirmatively determined that all of our directors are “independent” other than Mr. Capper, our President and Chief Executive Officer, who is not an independent director by virtue of his employment with us.

 

 

Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation

 

None of our executive officers or employees serves as a member of the compensation committee, or other committee serving an equivalent function, of any entity that has one or more of its executive officers serving as a member of our Board or our Compensation Committee. None of the members of our Compensation Committee has ever been an officer or employee of ours.

 

 

Executive Sessions of Independent Directors

 

Our Board also holds regular executive sessions of only independent directors to conduct a self-assessment of its performance and to review management’s strategy and operating plans, the criteria by which our Chief Executive Officer and other senior executives are measured, management’s performance against those criteria and other relevant topics. In 2016, our independent directors held sixteen executive sessions.

 

 

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CORPORATE GOVERNANCE AND BOARD MATTERS

 

Communicating with the Board

 

Our Board has adopted a formal process by which stockholders may communicate with the Board or any of its directors. Stockholders wishing to communicate with the Board or an individual director may send a written communication to the Board or such director at our corporate office. Each communication will be reviewed by our Corporate Secretary to determine whether it is appropriate for presentation to the Board or such director. Communications determined by the Corporate Secretary to be appropriate for presentation to the Board or such director will be submitted to the Board or such director on a periodic basis. This information is available in the “Investors—Corporate Governance” section of our website at www.gobio.com.

 

 

Nomination of Director Candidates

 

Candidates for nomination to our Board are selected by the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee in accordance with its charter, our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation and our Bylaws. All persons recommended for nomination to our Board, regardless of the source of the recommendation (including director candidates recommended by stockholders), are evaluated in the same manner by the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee.

 

The Board and the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee consider, at a minimum, the following qualifications:

 

·                  a candidate’s ability to read and understand basic financial statements;

 

·                  a candidate’s age;

 

·                  a candidate’s personal integrity and ethics;

 

·                  a candidate’s background, skills and experience;

 

·                  a candidate’s expertise upon which to be able to offer advice and guidance to management;

 

·                  a candidate’s ability to devote sufficient time to the affairs of our company;

 

·                  a candidate’s ability to exercise sound business judgment; and

 

·                  a candidate’s commitment to rigorously represent the long-term interests of our stockholders.

 

Candidates for director are reviewed in the context of the current composition of the Board, our operating requirements and the long-term interests of stockholders. In conducting its assessment, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee considers diversity, age, skills, and such other factors as it deems appropriate given the current needs of us and the Board, in an effort to maintain a balance of knowledge, experience and capability.

 

The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee places a high priority on identifying individuals with diverse skill sets and types of experience, including identification of individuals from among the medical professional and medical device communities. In the case of incumbent directors whose terms of office are set to expire, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee reviews these directors’ overall service to our company during their terms, including the number of meetings attended, level of participation, quality of performance, and any other relationships and transactions that might impair the directors’ independence. In the case of new director candidates, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee also determines whether the nominee is independent.

 

The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee then uses its network of contacts to compile a list of potential candidates, but may also engage, if it deems appropriate, a professional search firm. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee typically conducts any appropriate and necessary inquiries into the backgrounds and qualifications of possible candidates after considering the function and needs of the Board. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee typically meets to discuss and consider the candidates’ qualifications and then selects a nominee by majority vote.

 

Under the heading “Director Qualifications and Biographies” in this proxy statement, we provide an overview of each director’s and director nominee’s principal occupation, business experience and other directorships of publicly-traded companies, together with the qualifications, experience, key attributes and skills the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee and the Board believe will best serve the interests of the Board, our company and our stockholders.

 

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Stockholders who wish to recommend or nominate director candidates must provide information about themselves and their candidates and comply with procedures and timelines contained in our Bylaws. These procedures are described under “Other Information—2018 Stockholder Proposals or Nominations” in this proxy statement.

 

 

Related Person Transactions and Procedures

 

The Board has adopted a written policy and procedures relating to the Audit Committee’s review and approval of transactions with related persons that are required to be disclosed in proxy statements under SEC regulations. A “related person” includes our directors, executive officers, 5% stockholders, as well as immediate family members of such persons and any entity owned or controlled by such persons.

 

Under the policy, where a transaction has been identified as a related person transaction, management must present information regarding the proposed related person transaction to our Audit Committee, or, where review by our Audit Committee would be inappropriate, to another independent body of our Board, for review. The presentation must include a description of, among other things, the material facts, the direct and indirect interests of the related persons, the benefits of the transaction to us and whether any alternative transactions are available.

 

In approving a transaction, the Audit Committee will take into account, among other factors, the risks, costs and benefits to us, the terms of the transaction, the availability of other sources for comparable services or products and the terms available to or from, as the case may be, unrelated third parties or to or from our employees generally. Our policy requires that, in reviewing a related person transaction, our Audit Committee must consider, in light of known circumstances, whether the transaction is in, or is not inconsistent with, the best interests of us and our stockholders, as our Audit Committee determines in the good faith exercise of its discretion.

 

The Audit Committee reviews and pre-approves certain types of related person transactions, including the following:

 

·                  director and executive officer compensation that is otherwise required to be reported in our proxy statement under SEC regulations;

 

·                  certain transactions with companies at which the related person is an employee only; and

 

·                  charitable contributions that would not disqualify a director’s independent status.

 

We have no related person transactions required to be reported under applicable SEC rules.

 

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DIRECTOR COMPENSATION

 

 

Director Compensation

 

 

 

2016 Director Compensation

 

Under our compensation program for non-employee directors (the “Board Compensation Program”), our non-employee directors receive the following forms of consideration for service on our Board:

 

·                  an initial grant of restricted stock units (“RSUs”) equal to $80,000;

 

·                  an annual Board retainer of $50,000, payable, at the director’s election, in cash or RSUs;

 

·                  an annual grant of RSUs valued at $80,000;

 

·                  fees for committee membership in the following amounts: (i) $7,500 for Audit Committee membership, (ii) $5,000 for Compensation and Talent Development Committee membership and (iii) $5,000 for Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee membership, in each case payable, at the director’s election, in cash or RSUs; and

 

·                  fees for committee chair positions in the following amounts: (i) $17,500 for Audit Committee Chair, (ii) $17,500 for Compensation and Talent Development Committee Chair and (iii) $12,500 for Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee Chair, in each case payable, at the director’s election, in cash or RSUs; and

 

Our Chairman also receives an additional retainer of $50,000, payable, at his election, in cash or RSUs.

 

All RSU grants, including those paid in lieu of the cash retainer, currently have a 100% retention requirement since shares are not delivered until Board service terminates. Upon termination of Board service, a director receives all RSUs that have vested as of that date.

 

All non-employee director compensation is pro-rated, as applicable, based on the start date of Board service.

 

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DIRECTOR COMPENSATION

 

2016 Non-Employee Director Compensation

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Name

 

Fees Earned
or Paid
in Cash
($)

 

 

Stock Awards
($)

 

 

All Other
Compensation
($)

 

 

Total
($)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kirk E. Gorman

 

37,500

 

 

137,531

 

 

¾

 

 

175,031

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Anthony J. Conti

 

67,500

 

 

80,014

 

 

¾

 

 

147,514

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Joseph A. Frick

 

36,875

 

 

113,784

 

 

¾

 

 

150,659

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Colin Hill

 

30,000

 

 

160,029

 

 

¾

 

 

190,029

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rebecca W. Rimel

 

65,000

 

 

80,014

 

 

¾

 

 

145,014

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert J. Rubin, M.D.

 

24,063

 

 

130,021

 

 

¾

 

 

154,084

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Fees Earned or Paid in Cash

 

The amounts in the “Fees Earned or Paid in Cash” column are retainers earned for serving on our Board, its committees and as committee chairs and as our Chairman. All annual cash retainers are paid in 4 quarterly installments over the calendar year as of the last day of each calendar quarter beginning with the first calendar quarter following the date of the annual meeting.

 

Stock Awards

 

The amounts in the “Stock Awards” column reflect the grant date fair value of RSU awards made in 2016. The grant date fair value is determined under Financial Accounting Standards Board Accounting Standards Codification (“FASB ASC”) Topic 718. For additional information on the valuation assumptions regarding the fiscal 2016 grants, refer to Note 12 in our financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2016, which is included in our 2016 Annual Report.

 

All RSUs vest in four successive quarters following the award date and are distributed in the form of common stock on the earliest to occur of the non-employee director’s death, disability, separation from service or a change in the ownership or effective control of our company.

All Other Compensation

 

We reimburse our non-employee directors for their travel, lodging and other reasonable expenses incurred in attending meetings of the Board and committees of the Board.

 

RSUs and Stock Options

 

The following table sets forth the aggregate number of RSUs and unexercised stock options outstanding at December 31, 2016 for each of our non-employee directors.

 

Outstanding Director Stock Awards and Stock Options at Year-End 2016

 

Name

 

Aggregate
Number of
RSUs
Outstanding
(#)

 

Aggregate
Value of RSUs
Outstanding
($)
(1)

 

 

Aggregate
Number of
Unexercised
Stock Options
Outstanding
(#)
(2)

 

Kirk E. Gorman

 

 

4,463

 

99,748

 

27,286

 

Anthony J. Conti

 

 

2,595

 

57,998

 

¾

 

Joseph A. Frick

 

 

3,691

 

82,494

 

¾

 

Colin Hill

 

 

5,190

 

115,997

 

¾

 

Rebecca W. Rimel

 

 

2,595

 

57,998

 

9,338

 

Robert J. Rubin, M.D.

 

 

4,218

 

94,272

 

28,489

 

 

(1) Value based on the closing stock price of a share of our common stock on December 30, 2016 ($22.35).

(2) Represents stock options granted in 2007, 2008 and 2009.


 

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EXECUTIVE OFFICERS

 

 

Executive Officers

 

 

Executive Officer Biographies

 

The following are biographical summaries of our executive officers and their ages, except for Mr. Capper, whose biography is included under the heading “Director Qualifications and Biographies” in this proxy statement.

 

Heather C. Getz, CPA

 

 

 

Age: 42

 

Position:

 

Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

Ms. Getz was appointed Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer in January 2010. Ms. Getz joined us in May 2009 as Vice President of Finance. From April 2008 to May 2009, Ms. Getz was Vice President of Finance at Alita Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a privately held specialty pharmaceutical company, where she was responsible for all areas of finance, accounting and information systems. Prior to joining Alita Pharmaceuticals, Inc., from March 2002 to April 2008, Ms. Getz held various financial leadership positions at VIASYS Healthcare Inc., a healthcare technology company acquired by Cardinal Health, Inc. in July 2007, including directing the company’s global financial planning, budgeting and analysis, and external reporting functions. From June 1997 to February 2002, Ms. Getz began her career at Sunoco, Inc., where she held various positions of increasing responsibility. Ms. Getz is a certified public accountant, and received her undergraduate degree in Accountancy and a Master of Business Administration degree from Villanova University. 

 

 

Peter F. Ferola

 

 

 

 

Age: 48

 

Position:

 

Senior Vice President, Corporate Development, General Counsel, and Secretary

Mr. Ferola joined us in February 2011 as our Senior Vice President, Corporate Development and General Counsel, with over 20 years of progressive leadership experience in business management, legal affairs and corporate governance. From 2009 to 2011, Mr. Ferola served as Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary of Nipro Diagnostics, Inc. (formerly Home Diagnostics, Inc., NASDAQ: HDIX). Prior to joining Home Diagnostics, Mr. Ferola worked as a corporate and securities attorney with Greenberg Traurig, LLP and with Dilworth Paxson, LLP in Washington, D.C., focusing on mergers, acquisitions, public securities offerings and corporate governance matters. From 1989 to 2002, Mr. Ferola worked in executive management roles for an American Stock Exchange listed company, most recently serving as Vice President—Administration and Corporate Secretary, overseeing the company’s administrative functions, legal matters and investor relations. Mr. Ferola earned a Bachelor of Science and Juris Doctor degree from Nova Southeastern University and a Master of Laws in Securities and Financial Regulation from Georgetown University Law Center. Mr. Ferola has authored numerous articles on corporate and securities laws, with a particular focus on audit committees and regulations implemented in the wake of the Sarbanes Oxley Act of 2002.

 

 

Fred (Andy) Broadway III

 

 

 

Age: 47

 

Position:

 

Senior Vice President, Sales and Marketing

Mr. Broadway joined us in June 2009 as our Vice President, Marketing, bringing 15 years of progressive leadership experience in sales and marketing, including extensive therapeutic knowledge in Cardiology and Neurology. In September 2012, Mr. Broadway was promoted to Senior Vice President, Marketing, and in January 2013, Mr. Broadway became our Senior Vice President, Sales and Marketing. Prior to joining us, from 2006 to June 2009, Mr. Broadway was Director of Marketing at Bristol Myers Squibb, leading the commercialization launch efforts of a potential new therapy for the treatment of stroke prevention in atrial fibrillation. Earlier in his career, Mr. Broadway was on the marketing team at Pfizer, responsible for developing yearly and long-term strategic plans, brand and portfolio positioning, asset  life cycle development, and overseeing commercialization tactics for several leading brands. Mr. Broadway started his career with Sanofi Pharmaceuticals, where he held numerous positions of increasing responsibility including sales, marketing, and eventually leadership positions in both sales and marketing. Mr. Broadway received his undergraduate degree in Zoology from Auburn University.

 

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EXECUTIVE OFFICERS

 

Daniel Wisniewski

 

 

 

 

Age: 53

 

Position:

 

Senior Vice President, Technical Operations

Mr. Wisniewski joined us in December 2010 as our Senior Vice President, Operations, and is now serving as our Senior Vice President, Technical Operations. Mr. Wisniewski has over 20 years of experience in executive leadership, information systems, and operations. Most recently, from 2000 to 2010, Mr. Wisniewski served as Chief Information Officer with CCS Medical, Inc. As the Chief Information Officer, Mr. Wisniewski was responsible for developing a highly scalable patient centric operational infrastructure focused on compliance, growth and expense control within the healthcare industry. Prior to joining CCS Medical, Inc., Mr. Wisniewski held various roles within the nuclear and banking industries with increasing responsibilities in information systems and general management. Mr. Wisniewski began his career as an U.S. Navy Nuclear Trained Naval Officer. Mr. Wisniewski received his undergraduate degree in Electrical Engineering from Virginia Military Institute.

 

 

George Hrenko

 

 

 

 

Age: 54

 

Position:

 

Senior Vice President, Human Resources and Organizational Excellence

Mr. Hrenko joined us in 2008 as our Vice President of Human Resources and was named Senior Vice President, Human Resources and Organizational Excellence in May 2010. Most recently, Mr. Hrenko served as a Director of Human Resources for Target Corporation from February 2002 to March 2007. From December 1998 to February 2002, Mr. Hrenko held several positions with Bank One Corporation, including First Vice President, Human Resources Generalist, Vice President, Compensation, and Vice President, Corporate Staffing. From 1996 to 1998 he served as Managing Director, Human Resources for Continental Airlines. Prior to joining Continental Airlines, Mr. Hrenko served as Human Resources Manager at Pepsi Cola Co. and PepsiCo, Inc., from 1987 to 1996. Mr. Hrenko received an undergraduate degree in English and Psychology from Pennsylvania State University.

 

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EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

 

 

Executive Compensation

 

 

Executive Summary

 

Our Compensation Philosophy and Goals

 

We believe that our long-term success is directly related to our ability to attract, motivate and retain highly talented individuals with outstanding ability and potential who are committed to continually improving financial performance, achieving profitable growth and enhancing stockholder value.

 

To that end, our compensation program is generally designed to provide performance-oriented incentives that fairly compensate our executive officers and enable us to attract, motivate and retain executives with outstanding ability and potential. Our compensation program consists of both short-term and long-term components, including cash and equity-based compensation, and is intended to reward consistent performance that meets or exceeds formally established corporate and financial performance goals and objectives. Our Compensation Committee and our senior management are focused on providing an appropriate mix of short-term and long-term incentives. Our compensation program provides long-term incentives to ensure that our executives continue in employment with us and directly tie executive compensation to the generation of long-term stockholder value.

 

The Management Incentive Plan (“MIP”), our annual cash incentive bonus plan, is based primarily on two financial measures and several corporate performance objectives. The two financial measures are revenue and adjusted EBITDA, which is our earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization and excluding expenses that are considered not necessary to support the ongoing business or which are nonrecurring in nature. The corporate performance objectives vary by year and are intended to encourage our executives to build and maintain an infrastructure that supports growth and strategy and increases revenues. In 2016, these corporate performance objectives included launching new products, increasing efficiencies, further advancing our hospital sales initiative and increasing our service capabilities.

 

Our Long-Term Incentive Plan (“LTIP”) is based on the same metrics as our MIP. The long term incentive awards are split equally between RSUs and stock options. The RSUs vest on the third anniversary of the grant date and the stock options vest over a four-year period from the grant date. We believe that the time-vested aspect of the RSUs and stock options promotes the retention of key talent and encourages share ownership.

 

 

Most Recent Say on Pay Results

 

Consistent with the preference expressed by our stockholders at our 2011 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, our stockholders have been voting on a say on pay proposal every three years. At our 2014 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, we held a stockholder “Say on Pay” advisory vote to approve the compensation of our NEOs as disclosed in our proxy statement. Stockholders expressed overwhelming support for the compensation of our NEOs, with approximately 97.4% of the votes present at the meeting and entitled to vote approving NEO compensation.

 

The Compensation Committee considered this vote as demonstrating strong support for our compensation programs and continued to apply the same effective principles and philosophies that have been applied in prior years when making compensation decisions for 2016. These principles and philosophies are highlighted above and described more fully below.

 

At the 2017 Annual Meeting, out stockholders will vote on executive compensation and the frequency of the advisory vote on executive compensation.

 

 

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EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

 

2016 Financial Highlights

 

2016 was a record year for us. We delivered exceptional financial performance in 2016, achieving record revenue, gross profit, income before taxes and adjusted EBITDA. Compared to 2015, revenue grew by 16.7%, gross profit grew by 21.5%, income before taxes grew by 99.7% and adjusted EBITDA grew by 43.6%. We operate under three reportable segments: (1) Healthcare, (2) Technology and (3) Research. Our Healthcare segment benefitted from continued volume strength and favorable pricing. In addition, we are investing in and expanding our product offerings in our Technology segment and we continue to experience double-digit growth in our Research segment study volume. We made three acquisitions in 2016 including an acquisition of a leading provider of clinical trial imaging solutions in our Research segment and the acquisition of a digital population health management company.  We were also able to achieve numerous crucial operational and performance objectives, including an increase in patient volume, FDA approval for mobile cardiac telemetry service patch device and successful outcomes on several patent litigation claims. Our stock price finished the year at $22.35 per share, up 91% year over year.

 

 

 

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

 

The following table contains reconciliations of 2016 GAAP net income to adjusted EBITDA for short-term and long-term incentive purposes relating to the MIP and LTIP financial metrics set forth in this proxy statement. Management uses adjusted EBITDA so that investors have the same financial data that management uses with the belief that it will assist the investment community in properly assessing the performance of the Company for the period being reported. Adjusted EBITDA excludes certain non-cash and non-operating items to facilitate comparisons and provides a meaningful measurement that is focused on the performance of our ongoing operations.

 

2016 Financial Measures

 

Consolidated Performance

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Net income ¾ GAAP

$

53,437,000

 

Impact of tax valuation allowance release

 

(37,554)

 

Income taxes excluding valuation allowance release

 

(113)

 

Interest, other loss (net)

 

2,242

 

Other charges(1)

 

8,639,000

 

Depreciation and amortization expense

 

14,269,000

 

Stock compensation expense

 

6,502,000

 

Adjusted EBITDA(2)

$

47,422,000

 

 

(1) For the year ended December 31, 2016, we incurred $8.6  million of other charges, primarily due to patent litigation and the acquisitions completed in the current year.

 

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(2) A full discussion of components of adjusted EBITDA is found in our fourth-quarter and full-year 2016 earnings press release furnished on Form 8-K with the SEC on February 22, 2017.

 

 

Executive Compensation Elements

 

Compensation

Component

 

Objectives

 

Key Features

 

Base Salary

 

 

Fair and competitive compensation to attract, retain and reward executive officers by providing a fixed level of cash compensation tied to responsibility, experience, skills and capability relative to the market

 

 

·             Annual cash compensation that is not at risk

 

·             Targeted to the 50th percentile of our peer group, with variations based on experience, skills and other factors

 

·             Adjustments considered annually based on level of pay relative to our peer group, individual responsibilities and individual and corporate performance

 

 

MIP

 

 

Focuses executives on annual results by rewarding them for achieving key budgeted financial and corporate performance targets

 

Links executives’ interests with those of stockholders by promoting profitable growth

 

Helps retain executives by providing market-competitive compensation

 

 

·             At-risk cash awards based on revenue, adjusted EBITDA and certain corporate performance objectives

 

·             Annual awards vary from 0% to 200% of the targeted amount

 

·             Cash bonuses are generally paid out within the first quarter

 

·             Targeted so that the total of base salary and bonus is expected to fall between the 50th and 75th percentile of our peer group if the earned bonus is 100% of the targeted amount

 

 

LTIP (RSUs and Stock Options)

 

 

Aligns executives’ interests with those of stockholders by linking compensation with financial and corporate performance

 

Drives stockholder value

 

Provides a retention incentive for key employees through time-based RSUs and stock options

 

Promotes a sensible balance of risk and reward, without encouraging unnecessary or unreasonable risk-taking

 

Rewards key employees for demonstrated value creation

 

 

·             At-risk long-term compensation

 

·             Targeted so that total compensation approximates the 50th percentile of our peer group (actual grant values may vary from the target value based on consideration of both company and individual executive performance)

 

·             RSUs vest on the third anniversary of the grant date; stock options vest in equal annual increments over a four-year period

 

·             Time-based equity awards encourage share ownership and promote the retention of NEOs

 

 

2016 MIP Bonuses (Cash)

 

MIP payouts for all executives, including the NEOs, are based on our performance against revenue, adjusted EBITDA and certain corporate performance objectives. The target bonus is set as a percentage of base salary, which for the NEOs, ranges from 50% to 100%. 2016 MIP target goals were set by the Compensation Committee based on the budget approved by the Board and the Compensation Committee’s determination that the targets contained sufficient “stretch.” For 2016, the Compensation Committee determined that the financial and corporate performance goals under the MIP were to be weighted as follows:

 

 

 

% of Payout

Goal

 

 

30%

Revenue

30%

Adjusted EBITDA

40%

Corporate objectives

 

 

 

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For 2016, we achieved 99% of our revenue target and 127.5% of our adjusted EBITDA target as shown in the table below. See footnotes to “Financial Results for MIP Purposes” on page 24.

 

2016 MIP and LTIP Performance Against Primary Financial Metrics

Threshold, Target and Actual Performance(1)

 

 

(1) Excludes results of operations from 2016 acquisitions.

 

 

2016 LTIP Awards (RSUs and Stock Options)

 

Long-term incentive compensation opportunities for our executives, including the NEOs, are entirely equity-based and are determined by the Compensation Committee and Board based, in large part, on the same financial and corporate performance objectives as our MIP: (i) revenue, (ii) adjusted EBITDA and (iii) certain corporate performance objectives. Our LTIP grants are designed to encourage share ownership and promote the retention of key talent. Under our LTIP, eligible executives receive an award of time-vested RSUs and stock options, approximately equal in expected value. The grants made in a particular year reflect the Company’s prior year performance against the financial and corporate performance objectives discussed above. The RSUs vest on the third anniversary of the grant date while the stock options vest annually over a four-year period from the grant date. The value of each NEO’s LTIP grant is determined by the Compensation Committee based on its review of peer-group market data, the executive’s roles and responsibilities, his or her impact on our results, and advancement potential. Our achievement levels with respect to our 2016 financial performance goals are set forth above.

 

 

Our Compensation Practices

 

We continue to incorporate leading practices into our compensation programs:

 

·                  Our compensation philosophy targets total direct compensation of our NEOs at the 50th percentile of peer group companies.

 

·                  We prohibit our employees, officers and directors from hedging or engaging in any speculative trading with respect to our common stock.

 

·                  We do not provide tax “gross-ups” for perquisites provided to our executive officers.

 

·                  Our equity-incentive plan prohibits the repricing or exchange of equity awards without stockholder approval.

 

·                  We do not have “single trigger” features on parachute payments in any employment agreements, with the exception of our Chief Executive Officer whose equity awards immediately accelerate and become fully vested upon a change in control.

 

·                  We have not provided golden-parachute excise-tax gross-ups in any employment agreements offered to executives.

 

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·                  We require our executive officers to meet share-ownership guidelines with respect to shares acquired upon vesting or exercise. The ownership guideline for our Chief Executive Officer is four times base salary, the guideline for our Chief Financial Officer is two times base salary and the guideline for our other executive officers is one times base salary. Executive officers must retain 100% of the shares (on a net, after-tax basis) acquired upon the exercise of options or vesting of restricted shares until the guideline is satisfied.

 

·                  The Compensation Committee has engaged an independent outside compensation consultant. See “Role of the Compensation Consultant and Executives.”

 

·                  In the event of a material restatement of our financial results, the Board or the Compensation Committee will review the incentive compensation that was paid or awarded, with respect to the period to which the restatement relates, to our current and former officers who engaged in fraud or other misconduct that resulted in the restatement, and may, in its sole discretion recoup any incentive-based compensation paid or awarded to the current or former officer(s) in excess of the amount that would have been paid or awarded to the current or former officer(s) under our restated financial statements.

 

 

Compensation Discussion and Analysis

 

This section discusses our executive compensation program for 2016, the compensation decisions made under those programs and the factors that were considered by the Compensation Committee in making those decisions. It focuses on the compensation for each of our NEOs for 2016:

 

·                  Joseph H. Capper, President and Chief Executive Officer;

·                  Heather C. Getz, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer;

·                  Daniel Wisniewski, Senior Vice President, Technical Operations;

·                  Peter Ferola, Senior Vice President and General Counsel; and

·                  Fred (Andy) Broadway III, Senior Vice President, Sales and Marketing.

 

This Compensation Discussion and Analysis is divided into two parts:

 

Part 1 discusses our 2016 performance, the Compensation Committee’s actions, our compensation practices and the compensation decisions for our NEOs.

 

Part 2 discusses our compensation framework in more detail, including how we apply our compensation philosophy and determine competitive positioning of our executive compensation and other policies.

 

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Part 1 – 2016 Performance, Compensation and Talent Development Committee Actions, Compensation Practices and Decisions

 

2016 Performance Overview

 

2016 was an outstanding year for us and our stockholders. Among the accomplishments of our executive team, led by Mr. Capper, were:

 

· Exceptional financial performance in 2016, achieving record revenue, gross profit, income before taxes and adjusted EBITDA, including a 43.6% increase in adjusted EBITDA;

 

· Completion of three acquisitions in 2016 including an acquisition of a leading provider of clinical trial imaging solutions in our Research segment and the acquisition of a digital population health management company;

 

· An increase of 3% in the Medicare reimbursement rates for remote cardiac monitoring services;

 

· Successful outcomes on several outstanding patent litigation claims; and

 

· We were also able to achieve numerous crucial operational and performance objectives, including an increase in patient volume, FDA approval for mobile cardiac telemetry service patch device and successful outcomes on several patent litigation claims.

 

 

Executive Compensation Elements

 

The following chart summarizes the key features of each element of our executive compensation program: Cash (salary and annual bonus); Equity (long-term incentive); Retirement (retirement benefit program) and Other (perquisites). Each type is discussed in detail in the remainder of this Compensation Discussion and Analysis, and the accompanying tables.

 

Compensation
Element

 

Type

 

Key Features

 Cash

Salary

 

 

 

MIP

·        Fixed amount of compensation based on experience, contribution and responsibilities.

·        Salaries reviewed annually and adjusted based on market practice, individual performance and contribution, length of service and other internal factors.

·        Cash awards based on revenue, adjusted EBITDA and certain corporate performance objectives. See “Financial Results for MIP Purposes” on page 24.

·        Annual awards vary from 0% to 200% of the targeted amount.

LTIP Compensation
(100% Equity)

RSUs and Incentive stock options

(50% of grant value each)

·        Grant values vary from target based on revenue, adjusted EBITDA and certain corporate performance objectives achieved in the prior year.

·        RSUs vest on the third anniversary of the grant date.

·        Options vest annually over a four-year period and expire 10 years from the grant date.

Retirement

401(k) Plan

·        Qualified 401(k) plan that provides participants the opportunity to defer taxation on a portion of their income, up to code limits, and receive a matching company contribution of 100% on the first 3% of compensation deferred under the 401(k) plan and 50% on the next 2% of compensation deferred under the 401(k) plan.

 

 

Summary of Key 2016 Compensation Decisions

 

The following highlights the Compensation Committee’s key NEO compensation decisions for 2016, as reported in the Summary Compensation Table on page 33. The decisions were made after considering input from the Compensation Committee’s independent compensation consultant, Willis Towers Watson & Co. (“Willis Towers Watson”).

 

Chief Executive Officer Compensation

 

In February 2016, the Compensation Committee took the following actions on Mr. Cappers’ compensation:

 

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·            His base salary was $556,500 (an increase of 3.9%);

 

·            His MIP target award opportunity was  $556,500  (100% of base salary); and

 

·            His LTIP target expected value was maintained at $1,355,600 (200% of base salary).

 

After benchmarking Mr. Capper’s compensation with our peer group, the Compensation Committee determined that Mr. Capper was between the 50th and 75th percentiles for overall compensation.

 

Compensation of Other NEOs

 

The Compensation Committee approved salaries and set incentive-compensation targets of the other NEOs taking into account the Chief Executive Officer’s recommendations, the advice of Willis Towers Watson, peer group salary data, relative duties and responsibilities, advancement potential and impact on our financial and strategic performance. Consistent with the approach for the Chief Executive Officer, the Compensation Committee provided no increases in target MIP or LTIP incentive compensation and provided nominal 2% increases in annual base salaries to the other NEOs for 2016.

 

2015-2017 NEO Base Salaries and MIP Target

 

Name

2015 Base Salary

2016 Base Salary

2017 Base Salary

MIP Target
as % of
Salary

Joseph H. Capper

$535,000

$556,500

$579,000

100%

Heather C. Getz

$338,100

$345,000

$359,000

60%

Daniel Wisniewski

$320,000

$326,500

$333,500

50%

Peter Ferola

$310,000

$316,500

$324,500

50%

Fred (Andy) Broadway III

$285,285

$291,000

$303,000

50%

 

Our Management Incentive Plan

 

Plan Criteria and Rationale

 

The annual incentives for all MIP participants, including the NEOs, are based on our financial and corporate performance as a whole measured primarily by revenue, adjusted EBITDA and certain corporate performance objectives.

 

In 2016, as in past years, the Compensation Committee evaluated the continued use of the MIP financial and corporate performance objectives using the following principles:

 

·                  Metrics that support achievement of an annual Board-approved operating plan;

 

·                  Metrics that support profitable growth while preserving cash for longer-term investment;

 

·                  Metrics that provide a clear line of sight—i.e., that are clearly understood and can be affected by the performance of our executives and employees;

 

·                  Metrics that are consistent with market practice and commonly used within our peer group; and

 

·                  Corporate performance metrics that encourage our executives to build and maintain an infrastructure that supports our growth and financial performance.

 

Following this review, the Compensation Committee concluded that the continued use of these measures supports these principles because they are linked to top-line growth, the creation of stockholder value and encourage our executives to continue to build a successful and growing commercial organization. For 2016, the Compensation Committee determined that the financial and corporate performance goals under the MIP were weighted as follows:

 

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EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

 

 

 

 

% of Payout

 

Goal

 

 

 

30%

 

Revenue

30%

 

Adjusted EBITDA

40%

 

Corporate objectives

 

 

 

 

Target Setting

 

The target MIP awards for our NEOs are set as a percentage of base salary. Target awards are reviewed annually to ensure alignment with our compensation philosophy to target total direct compensation at the market median. Variances from this goal are based on an evaluation of competitive market data, internal equity considerations among the Chief Executive Officer’s direct reports and individual performance evaluations.

 

For 2016, target MIP opportunities for the NEOs ranged from 50% to 100% of their year-end base salary rate, as follows:

 

 

 

 

NEO

 

Target %

 

 

 

Joseph H. Capper

 

100%

Heather C. Getz 

 

60%

Daniel Wisniewski, Peter Ferola, Fred (Andy) Broadway III

 

50%

 

 

 

 

The Compensation Committee has historically approved funding of MIP awards at less than 100%, as set forth below:

 

 

 

 

Year

 

MIP Funding %

 

 

 

2010

 

57.5%

2011 and 2012

 

50.0%

2013 and 2014

 

85%

2015

 

100%

 

 

Financial Results for MIP Purposes

 

The Compensation Committee set the MIP targets based on its evaluation of the budget amounts and its assessment that the targets contained a sufficient degree of “stretch.”

 

2016 Performance Metrics, Weight and Achievement

(all amounts in millions)

 

 

 

Metric

 

Objectives

 

Milestone Achievement

MIP Objective

 

Weight

 

Threshold

 

Target

 

Maximum

 

Results

 

% of Target

Revenue

 

30%

 

$

176.4

 

$

196.0

 

$

215.6

 

$

194.5

 

99.0%

Adjusted EBITDA(1)

 

30%

 

$

32.0

 

$

40.0

 

$

48.0

 

$

45.1(3)

 

127.5%

Corporate objectives(2)

 

40%

 

¾

 

¾

 

¾

 

¾

 

¾

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

___________________________________

(1)                                     For a reconciliations of 2016 GAAP income from operations to adjusted EBITDA for short-term and long-term incentive purposes relating to the MIP and LTIP financial metrics, please set “Non-GAAP Financial Measures” on page 18.

 

(2)                                     Our 2016 corporate performance objectives included launching new products, increasing efficiencies, further advancing our hospital sales initiative and increasing our service capabilities.

 

(3)                                     Excludes the impact of acquisitions.

 

 

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2016 MIP Awards

 

In February 2017, our Compensation Committee evaluated the level of achievement of our financial and corporate performance objectives relating to operational commitments relative to the executive officer’s position, and approved funding of the 2016 MIP award at 100% of target. In making its decision to approve 2016 MIP awards at 100% of target, our Compensation Committee acknowledged the management team’s achievement of the corporate performance objectives and the adjusted revenue of $194.5 million and adjusted EBITDA of $45.1 million.

 

The table below sets forth 2016 target MIP opportunities for our NEOs and the actual payout amounts and percentage of achievement of the target amounts. The actual payout amounts are computed based on the actual performance.

 

2016 MIP Target and Actual Payouts and Achievement

 

Name

2016 Target Bonus Award ($)

2016 Actual Award ($)

 

 

Actual Achievement % of
Target

Joseph H. Capper

556,500

556,500

100%

Heather C. Getz

207,000

207,000

100%

Daniel Wisniewski

163,250

163,250

100%

Peter Ferola

158,250

158,250

100%

Fred (Andy) Broadway III

145,500

145,500

100%

 

 

 

Our Long-Term Incentive Plan

 

Plan Criteria and Rationale

 

Long-term compensation for all our executives, including our NEOs, is entirely equity-based. Our LTIP is structured to align our executives’ interests with stockholders and to emphasize the Compensation Committee’s expectation that our executive officers should focus their efforts on growing our business while carefully managing capital.

 

The objectives of the LTIP are as follows:

 

·                  drive growth in stockholder value;

 

·                  reward key employees for demonstrated value creation;

 

·                  promote retention for key employees; and

 

·                  build equity ownership among the executive team.

 

We believe that, by providing our executives the opportunity to increase their ownership of our stock, the best interests of stockholders and executives will be better aligned and we will encourage long-term performance objectives.

 

To help further these objectives, our Compensation Committee considers the same financial and corporate performance objectives that we use for non-equity based compensation under our MIP in determining the LTIP award values. At the beginning of each calendar year, awards are granted following the Compensation Committee’s evaluation of the achievement of the goals under our MIP. For the 2016 performance year, these LTIP targets were revenue of $196.0 million, adjusted EBITDA of $40.0 million and certain corporate performance objectives.

 

One-half of an award is granted in the form of a stock option award, based on the Black-Scholes value of the option at the time of grant, with a ten-year term and vesting at the rate of 25% per year commencing on December 31st and on each of the first, second and third anniversaries thereafter while the other half of the award is granted in the form of an RSU award, based on the closing stock price on the date of grant. The RSU award will vest in full on the third anniversary of the date of grant.

 

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Stock awards enable our executive officers to participate in any increase in stockholder value and personally participate in the risks of business setbacks. It is our belief that long-term incentives motivate and reward successful long-term value creation and the achievement of financial goals for us and our stockholders, as well as help us retain top executive talent.

 

All executive officers and other employees selected by our Compensation Committee are eligible to receive awards under the LTIP. The participants in the LTIP will receive awards based on each individual’s target dollar value, which is determined by our Compensation Committee. For our NEOs, the individual LTIP target dollar values approved by our Compensation Committee for fiscal 2016 performance, expressed as a percentage of each person’s base salary, were as follows:

 

 

 

 

NEO

 

Target %

 

 

 

Joseph H. Capper

 

200%

Heather C. Getz 

 

75%

Daniel Wisniewski, Peter Ferola and Fred (Andy) Broadway III

 

50%

 

 

 

 

In 2016, our Compensation Committee awarded at 100% of target equity payout to executives under the LTIP based on 2015 results, with the exception of Mr. Broadway and certain other executive employees who were granted LTIP awards at 120% of target equity payout because of their individual contributions to our record sales in the fiscal year ended December 31, 2015. In 2017, our Compensation Committee awarded at 120% of target equity payout to executives under the LTIP based on 2016 results. Despite the increase in grant value, the number of shares and options received by executives in 2017 was reduced by more than 50% as the Company’s share price more than doubled from $9.57 to $24.65.

 

LTIP Award Values

 

 

2016 LTIP Payout
(based on 2015 performance)
100% of Target Value
(2)
Grant date price of $9.57

2017 LTIP Payout
(based on 2016 performance)
120% of Target Value
Grant date price of $24.65

 

Value

Options

Shares

Value

Options

Shares

Joseph H. Capper

1,070,000

94,752

55,904

1,335,600

45,917

27,091

Heather C. Getz, CPA

253,575

22,455

13,248

310,500

10,675

6,298

Daniel Wisniewski

160,000

14,169

8,359

195,900

6,735

3,974

Peter Ferola

155,000

13,726

8,098

189,900

6,529

3,852

Fred (Andy) Broadway III

171,171

15,158

8,943

174,600

6,003

3,542

 

___________________________

(1)             The 2016 LTIP Payout values are reflected in the Summary Compensation Table appearing on page 33 of this proxy statement. The 2017 LTIP Payout values will be reported in the Summary Compensation Table of the proxy statement for the 2018 Annual Meeting of Stockholders.

(2)             Mr. Broadway’s 2016 LTIP Payout (based on 2015 performance) was granted at 120% of target value as a bonus due to our record sales in 2015.

 

 

Equity Award Grant Practices

 

In 2014, the Compensation Committee changed the structure of the LTIP program, effective for the 2015 and 2016 payouts, which allowed them to vary from target based on prior year performance, year over year performance and other factors. The Compensation Committee also eliminated the minimum grant requirement of 60% of target.

 

The Compensation Committee also delegates authority to our Chief Executive Officer to make a limited number of grants between meetings to employees at the vice president and director level in connection with the hiring or promotion of employees or for retention purposes.

 

 

 

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Equity Plans

 


2008 Equity Incentive Plan

 

In 2008, our Board adopted the 2008 Equity Incentive Plan (the “2008 EIP”). The 2008 EIP is available to all executive officers on the same basis as our other employees.

 

Our 2008 EIP authorizes us to grant stock options, stock appreciation rights, restricted stock, RSUs, performance stock awards, performance cash awards and other stock-based awards. All stock options granted to our employees and directors were granted with an exercise price that was no less than the fair market value of a share of our common stock on the date such options were granted. Prior to January 2009, all option grants typically vested over four years, with one quarter of the shares subject to the stock option vesting on the one year anniversary of the vesting commencement date, and the remaining shares vesting in equal monthly installments thereafter over three years. Beginning in January 2009, the Compensation Committee approved a new vesting schedule for all post-2009 grants, such that all new grants would vest in annual 25% increments over a four year period beginning with the first anniversary of the date of grant as opposed to monthly vesting. All options have a ten-year term (unless terminated earlier due to termination of service with us).

 

2008 Employee Stock Purchase Plan

 

In 2008, we adopted the 2008 Employee Stock Purchase Plan, which became effective on March 18, 2008, upon the closing of our initial public offering. The 2008 Employee Stock Purchase Plan is available to all executive officers on the same basis as our other employees.

Special Performance-Contingent Awards in 2014

 

In 2014, the Compensation Committee approved a special, one-time, performance-contingent equity award under the 2008 EIP to LTIP participants, including our NEOs, as follows:

 

 

 

 

 

NEO

 

Target Bonus

(in Performance Shares)

 

Joseph H. Capper

 

123,272

 

Heather C. Getz

 

27,823

 

Daniel Wisniewski

 

18,433

 

Peter Ferola

 

18,433

 

Fred (Andy) Broadway III

 

14,228

 

 

Shares underlying this one-time performance award had the following vesting criteria:

 

·                  50% of the shares underlying the award will be earned if our quarterly revenues exceed $66.0 million for two consecutive quarters at any time between the grant date and the end of the first quarter of 2017 (the “First Hurdle”);

 

·                  50% of the shares underlying the award will be earned if our quarterly adjusted EBITDA exceeds $9.5 million for two consecutive quarters at any time between the grant date and the end of the first quarter of 2017 (the “Second Hurdle”); and

 

·                  Our net debt as of each quarter-end must be less than three times our annualized EBITDA (quarterly EBITDA multiplied by 4) in order for either goal to be earned in a particular quarter.

 

During 2016, the First Hurdle was met and the first 50% of the shares were earned and vested.  Based on performance through January 2017, it was determined that, the Second Hurdle would not be met and the second 50% of the performance shares were forfeited.

 


 

 

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Part 2 – Compensation Framework

 

 

Applying our Compensation Philosophy

 

We believe our approach to goal setting, setting of targets with payouts at multiple levels of performance, and evaluation of performance results assist in mitigating excessive risk-taking that could harm our value or reward poor judgment by our executives. The features of these practices and programs also reflect sound risk management practices. We believe we have allocated our compensation among base salary and short and long-term compensation target opportunities in such a way as to not encourage excessive risk-taking. This is based on our belief that applying company-wide metrics encourages decision making that is in the best long-term interests of us and our stockholders. In addition, we believe that the mix of equity award instruments used under our LTIP, including both stock options and RSUs, in each case, that vest over multi-year periods also mitigates risk and properly accounts for the time horizon of risk.

 

We apply our compensation philosophy and objectives as follows:

 

Compensation Component

Objectives

Base Salary

 

Fair and competitive compensation to attract, retain and reward executive officers by providing a fixed level of cash compensation tied to experience, skills and capability relative to the market.

MIP Award

At-risk cash bonuses focus NEOs on annual results by rewarding them for achieving key budgeted financial and corporate performance targets.

 

Links interests of NEOs with those of stockholders by promoting strong profitable growth.

 

Helps retain NEOs by providing market-competitive compensation.

 

 

LTIP Award (RSUs and Stock Options)

At-risk long-term compensation aligns interests of NEOs with those of stockholders by linking compensation with financial and corporate performance.

 

Retains NEOs through multi-year RSU and stock option vesting.

 

Promotes a sensible balance of risk and reward, without encouraging unnecessary or unreasonable risk-taking.

 

 

 

 

Compensation Philosophy and Objectives

 

Our compensation philosophy is to provide competitive executive pay opportunities tied to our company success. This overriding pay-for-performance approach enables us to attract, motivate and retain the type of executive leadership that will help us achieve our strategic objectives and realize increased stockholder value. To reach these goals, we have adopted the following program objectives:

 

·                  Have a strong pay-for-performance element with a major portion of executive pay “at risk” based on achievement of financial and corporate performance goals.

 

·                  Support achievement of both operating performance and strategic corporate performance objectives.

 

·                  Link management compensation with the interests of stockholders.

 

·                  Be fair and market-competitive to assure access to needed talent and encourage retention.

 

·                  Provide compensation opportunities that are consistent with each executive’s responsibilities, experience and performance.

 

·                  Promote retention of key employees.

 

·                  Design compensation incentive programs that promote a sensible risk/reward balance, and that do not encourage unnecessary or unreasonable risk-taking.

 

 

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Competitive Positioning

 

In support of our compensation philosophy, we target executive officer compensation at the median values of a peer group of publicly traded companies in the medical products and services sector. Generally, the Compensation Committee’s consultant conducts a market analysis every other year, with the most recent one being completed during the fall of 2016. The results of this analysis were used by the Compensation Committee in determining executive officer compensation for 2015 and 2016. As described more fully below, the market references are among many different factors considered by the Compensation Committee when setting executive officer compensation.

 

Given our size and diverse business portfolio, identifying peer companies using conventional criteria such as revenues and industry classification can be challenging. The Compensation Committee believes that using a peer group that includes companies with which we compete for business and capital, and more broadly, those with which we compete for talent, provides the Compensation Committee with decision-quality data and context, and is a reasonable representation of our labor market for executive talent. The Compensation Committee regularly evaluates and, if appropriate, updates the composition of the peer group.

 

The companies included in the 2014 study peer group were recommended by Willis Towers Watson and approved by the Compensation Committee. The 17 peer companies reflected the following criteria as of the most recent fiscal year completed at the time the study was completed(1):

 

 

Revenue (mm)

EBITDA (mm)

Employees

Market Cap (mm)

 

 

 

 

 

High

$334.1

$52.3

1,300

$1,047

Median

$150.8

$19.7

511

$507.6

Low

$63.9

-$32.1

320

$58.6

 


(1)                                     Revenue, EBITDA and Employees all were reported as of the most recent fiscal year completed at the time the study was conducted. Market capitalization values were calculated as of October 2014 using the most recent common shares outstanding reported and an average share price over the prior 200 days.

 

All peer companies in the 2014 study were classified to one of the following industries by Standard & Poor’s: Healthcare Equipment, Healthcare Supplies, Healthcare Services or Life Sciences Tools and Services. In addition, the proposed peer group considered whether companies used us as a peer in market analyses of executive officer compensation.

 

The peer group companies in the 2014 study used as a reference when establishing officer compensation for 2015 and 2016 consisted of the following:

 

Peer Group

 

ABIOMED, INC.

Affymetrix, Inc.

Alphatec Holdings, Inc.

Angiodynamics, Inc.

Atricure, Inc.

ATRION Corp.

Cardiovascular Systems, Inc.

Cryolife, Inc.

Endologix, Inc.

Exactech, Inc.

Landaur, Inc.

LeMaitre Vascular, Inc.

Natus Medical, Inc.

PDI, Inc.

Quidel Corp.

The Spectranetics Corp.

Vascular Solutions, Inc.

 

 

 

 

In the fall of 2016, Willis Towers Watson provided a new peer group study that was used in determining 2017 compensation.  Following is the updated peer group:

 

Abaxis, Inc.*

Accuray, Inc.*

Angiodynamics, Inc.

Atricure, Inc.

Cardiovascular Systems, Inc.

Cutera, Inc.*

Cryolife, Inc.

Endologix, Inc.*

Exactech, Inc.

ICU Medical, Inc.

Meridian Biosciences

Natus Medical, Inc.

NXSTAGE Medical

Orasure Technologies, Inc.*

Quidel Corp.

The Spectranetics Corp.

Vascular Solutions, Inc.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

* New companies included in 2017 peer group.

 

 

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Setting Compensation

 

The Compensation Committee annually reviews the total compensation of each executive officer—i.e., cash compensation (salary and target MIP opportunity) and long-term equity compensation (target long-term equity value). The Compensation Committee, with input from Willis Towers Watson, then sets the executive’s compensation target for the current year. Salary adjustments, if any, typically become effective in February of each year. In making its decisions, the Compensation Committee uses several resources and tools, including competitive market information and compensation trends within the peer group and the larger executive compensation environment.

 

To achieve its objectives for our executive compensation program, the Compensation Committee evaluates our executive compensation program with the goal of setting compensation at levels the Compensation Committee believes are competitive with those of other similarly situated companies that compete with us for executive talent and has engaged Willis Towers Watson to provide additional assurance that our executive compensation programs are reasonable and consistent with its objectives. Willis Towers Watson reports directly to the Compensation Committee, periodically participates in committee meetings, and advises the Compensation Committee with respect to compensation trends and best practices, plan design and the reasonableness of individual compensation awards. Although the Compensation Committee reviews the compensation practices of the companies in our peer group as described above, the Compensation Committee does not adhere to strict formulas or survey data to determine the mix of compensation elements. Instead, the Compensation Committee considers various factors in exercising its discretion to determine compensation, including the experience, responsibilities and performance of each of our executive officers, as well as our overall financial performance. Our Compensation Committee believes this flexibility is particularly important in designing compensation arrangements to attract and retain executives.

 

 

Evaluating Performance

 

Determinations about corporate performance are based on the achievement of certain corporate performance objectives. Individual performance against goals are more subjective and are based on the judgments made at the discretion of our Compensation Committee and our Board, with input from our Chief Executive Officer, except as it relates to his own compensation. For our executive officers, other than himself, our Chief Executive Officer evaluates the performance of the executive officers on an annual basis and makes recommendations to our Compensation Committee with respect to annual salary adjustments, bonuses and annual equity awards. These recommendations are reviewed by our Compensation Committee on an aggregated basis so that our Compensation Committee can evaluate the compensation paid to our executives on a total compensation basis. While our Compensation Committee reviews the recommendations of our Chief Executive Officer with respect to executive officers other than himself, our Compensation Committee exercises its own discretion in approving salary adjustments for the upcoming year and discretionary cash and equity awards for all executives and communicates its final approval to our Board.

 

 

Post-Employment Compensation Arrangements

 

Retirement Plans

 

Consistent with our compensation philosophy, we intend to continue to maintain broad-based retirement and welfare employee benefit programs for all of our employees, in which our NEOs are also eligible to participate. However, our Compensation Committee, in its discretion, may in the future revise, amend or add to the benefits of any executive officer if it deems it advisable. Effective January 1, 2014, our Compensation Committee approved a matching contribution under our 401(k) retirement plan of 100% on the first 3% of compensation deferred under the plan and 50% on the next 2% of compensation deferred under the plan (up to the applicable statutory limits under the Internal Revenue Code).

 

Termination Payments

 

The employment agreements for each of our NEOs provide for payments in the event that the executive is terminated by us without cause or by the executive for good reason, in each case, without regard to whether the termination occurs in the context of a change in control. With the exception of Mr. Capper, if the executive’s employment is terminated by us without cause or by the executive for good reason in connection with a change in control, all of the executive’s equity awards will immediately accelerate and become fully vested. All of Mr. Capper’s equity awards will immediately accelerate and become fully vested upon a change in control without regard to a termination of employment (unless he is terminated for cause). Payments and benefits to Messrs. Capper, Wisniewski, Ferola and Broadway and Ms. Getz will be modified to avoid any excise tax under Section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code to the extent the modification would result in a greater net after tax benefit to the executive. We believe these severance and change in control benefits are an essential element of our overall executive compensation package. The severance and change in control benefits

 

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were also determined through comparison to companies in our peer group. See “Estimated Payments Following Termination or Change in Control” below for further information regarding the payments and benefits under the employment agreements.

 

We believe that our existing arrangements help executives remain focused on our business in the event of a threat or occurrence of a change-in-control and encourage them to act in the best interests of the stockholders in assessing a transaction.

 

We do not have any “single trigger” features on parachute payments in any employment agreements, with the exception of our Chief Executive Officer whose equity awards immediately accelerate and become fully vested upon a change in control. We also have not provided golden-parachute excise-tax gross-ups in any employment agreements offered to executives.

 

Other Compensation Policies

 

Personal Benefits

 

We provide our NEOs with other benefits that we believe are reasonable and competitive so that we may attract and retain talented senior executives. In total, they represent a small percentage of the NEOs’ overall compensation, and the Compensation Committee has reduced many of them in recent years. We do not provide perquisite gross-ups. These benefits are reflected in the “All Other Compensation” column of the Summary Compensation Table.

 

Share-Ownership Requirements

 

Share-ownership goals align executives with the interests of stockholders and encourage a long-term focus. All of our executive officers must retain shares acquired upon vesting or exercise if their ownership level is below the value equal to particular multiples of their base salary. The Compensation Committee established a goal of four-times base salary for the Chief Executive Officer, two-times base salary for the Chief Financial Officer and one-time base salary for all other executives. Executive officers must retain 100% of the shares (on a net, after-tax basis) acquired upon the exercise of options or vesting of restricted shares until the guideline is satisfied. All NEOs currently meet these guidelines.

 

Policy on Hedging and Speculative Trading

 

We prohibit directors, officers, employees and consultants from engaging in short sales, transactions in put or call options, hedging transactions or other inherently speculative transactions with respect to our stock at any time. In addition, we prohibit our officers, directors, employees and consultants from margining, or making any offer to margin, any of our stock, including without limitation, borrowing against such stock, at any time.

 

Clawback Policy

 

In the event of a material restatement of our financial results, we will review the incentive compensation that was paid or awarded, with respect to the period to which the restatement relates, to our current and former officers who engaged in fraud or other misconduct that resulted in the restatement. To the extent permitted by law and as the Compensation Committee in its sole discretion deems appropriate and in our best interests, we may seek the recoupment or forfeiture of any incentive-based compensation paid or awarded to the officer in excess of the amount that would have been paid or awarded to the officer under our restated financial statements.

 

 

Risk Considerations in Our Compensation Programs

 

The Compensation Committee considers potential risks when reviewing and approving compensation programs. We have designed our compensation programs, including our incentive compensation plans, with specific features to address potential risks while rewarding employees for achieving long-term financial and corporate performance objectives through prudent business judgment and appropriate risk taking. The following elements have been incorporated in our programs available for our executive officers:

 

·                  A Balanced Mix of Compensation Components—The target compensation mix for our executive officers is composed of salary, annual cash incentives and long-term equity incentives, representing a mix that is not overly weighted toward short-term cash incentives.

 

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·                  Multiple Performance Factors—Our incentive compensation plans use company-wide metrics, which encourage focus on the achievement of objectives for our overall benefit.

 

·                  The MIP and LTIP awards are each dependent on multiple performance metrics including revenue and adjusted EBITDA, as well as corporate goals related to specific strategic or operational objectives.

 

·                  The LTIP awards are equity-based and have two components: (1) achievement of certain financial and corporate performance objectives and (2) time-based vesting. The RSUs vest on the third anniversary of the grant date and the stock options vest annually over a four-year period.

 

·                  We have a stock ownership and holding policy to better align the financial interests of our executives with those of our stockholders.

 

·                  We have adopted a clawback policy allowing us to recoup incentive compensation paid in the event of a material restatement of our financial statements.

 

Additionally, the Compensation Committee considered an assessment of compensation-related risks for all of our employees. Based on this assessment, the Compensation Committee concluded that our compensation programs do not create risks that are reasonably likely to have a material adverse effect on us. In making this evaluation, the Compensation Committee reviewed the key design elements of our compensation programs in relation to industry norms as well as the means by which any potential risks may be mitigated, such as through our internal controls and oversight by management and the Board.

 

 

Role of the Compensation Consultant and Executives

 

The Compensation Committee approves all compensation decisions for our NEOs, other than our Chief Executive Officer, whose base salary and incentive compensation are approved by the Board with a recommendation from the Compensation Committee.

 

Our Compensation Committee has the sole authority to retain or replace, as necessary, compensation consultants to provide it with independent advice. The Compensation Committee has engaged Willis Towers Watson as its independent compensation consultant to advise it on executive and non-employee director compensation matters. This selection was made without the input or influence of management.

 

During 2016, the consultant performed the following tasks for the Compensation Committee:

 

·                  Prepared competitive market data for the compensation of the executive officer group;

 

·                  Provided an evaluation of market/peer practices in the area of retirement and other benefits for all salaried employees;

 

·                  Updated the Compensation Committee on executive compensation trends and regulatory developments; and

 

·                  Provided input on compensation program design and philosophy, incentive-pay mix and peer group companies against which executive pay is benchmarked.

 

The consultant provides no services to us other than its advice to the Compensation Committee on executive and director compensation matters. The Compensation Committee determined Willis Towers Watson to be independent from us under the NASDAQ Listing Rules and SEC regulations.

 

Our Chief Executive Officer annually reviews the performance of each of the other executive officers, including the other NEOs. He then recommends annual merit salary adjustments and any changes in annual or long-term incentive opportunities for other executives. The Compensation Committee considers the Chief Executive Officer’s recommendations in addition to data and recommendations presented by the consultant.

 

The Chief Executive Officer and other members of management also work with the Compensation Committee and consultant in determining the companies to be included in the peer group.

 

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Compensation and Talent Development Committee Report

 

The Compensation and Talent Development Committee has reviewed and discussed with management the Compensation Discussion and Analysis. Based on its review and discussions with management, the Compensation and Talent Development Committee recommended to the Board, and the Board approved, the inclusion of the Compensation Discussion and Analysis in this proxy statement and incorporated by reference in our 2016 Annual Report.

 

 

Compensation and Talent Development Committee

 

 

 

Joseph A. Frick, Chairman

 

Rebecca W. Rimel

 

Colin Hill

 

 

Compensation Tables

 

The following tables, narrative and footnotes discuss the compensation of the NEOs during 2016, 2015 and 2014.

 

2016 Summary Compensation Table

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Non-Equity

 

 

 

 

 

 

Option

Incentive Plan

All Other

 

 

 

Salary

Stock Awards

Awards

Compensation

Compensation

Total

Name and Principal Position

Year

($)

($)(1)

($)(1)

($)(2)

($)(3)

($)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Joseph H. Capper

2016

556,500

535,001

535,000

556,000

21,087

2,203,588

President and Chief Executive Officer

2015

535,000

1,283,997

804,383

535,000

21,361

3,179,741

 

2014

535,000

535,000

539,226

454,750

¾

2,063,976

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Heather C. Getz

2016

345,000

126,783

126,788

207,000

21,359

826,930

Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

2015

338,100

298,250

190,629

202,860

23,183

1,053,022

 

2014

338,100

120,747

121,701

172,431

10,142

763,121

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Daniel Wisniewski

2016

326,500

79,996

80,002

163,250

23.433

673.181

Senior Vice President, Operations

2015

320,000

192,001

120,279

160,000

20,758

813,038

 

2014

320,000

80,003

80,630

136,000

7,799

624,432

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Peter Ferola

2016

316,500

77,498

77,501

158,250

19,750

649,499

Senior Vice President and General Counsel

2015

310,000

178,500

116,524

155,000

23,324

783,348

 

2014

310,000

70,004

70,554

131,750

9,167

591,475

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fred (Andy) Broadway III

2016

291,000

85,585

85,587

145,000

21,467

628,639

Senior Vice President, Sales and Marketing

2015

285,285

156,844

102,128

142,643

23,120

710,020

 

2014

271,700

61,749

62,239

111,150

23,254

530,092

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(1)  The amounts in these columns do not reflect compensation actually received by the NEO nor do they reflect the actual value that will be recognized by the NEO. Instead the amounts reflect the aggregate grant date fair value of awards computed in accordance with FASB ASC Topic 718. For additional information on that valuation of assumptions regarding the RSU awards and the option awards, please refer to the tables below and to note 12 to our financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2016, which are included in our Annual Report on Form 10 K for the year ended December 31, 2016, filed with the SEC on February 22, 2017.

 

(2)  The amounts reported in this column reflect compensation earned for 2016, 2015 and 2014 performance under our MIP. We make payments under this program in the first quarter of the fiscal year following the fiscal year in which they were earned after finalization of our audited statements.

 

(3)  These amounts reflect our contributions to our 401(k) Plan and the amount of health, life and disability insurance premiums paid by us on behalf of each NEO.

 

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Stock Awards

 

Stock Awards Grant Date Fair Value (Target) 2014-2016

 

 

2016

2015

2014

Name

Performance-Contingent Stock

Awards

($)

RSU

Awards

($)

Performance-Contingent Stock

Awards

($)

RSU

Awards

($)

Performance-Contingent

Stock Awards

($)

RSU

Awards

($)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Joseph H. Capper

¾

535,001

535,000

748,997

¾

535,000

Heather C. Getz

¾

126,783

120,752

177,498

¾

120,747

Daniel Wisniewski

¾

79,996

79,999

112,002

¾

80,003

Peter Ferola

¾

77,498

70,000

108,500

¾

70,004

Fred (Andy) Broadway III

¾

85,585

61,750

95,094

¾

61,749

 

The table below shows the maximum payout value for our performance shares made in 2014.

 

Performance-Contingent Stock Awards Grant Date Maximum Value 2014

 

 

2014

Name

($)(1)(2)

 

 

Joseph H. Capper

1,070,000

Heather C. Getz

253,575

Daniel Wisniewski

160,000

Peter Ferola

155,000

Fred (Andy) Broadway III

171,171

 

 

 

(1)             The amounts reflect the aggregate grant date fair value of awards computed in accordance with FASB ASC Topic 718. For additional information on that valuation of assumptions regarding performance-contingent stock awards, please refer to the tables below and to note 12 to our financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2016, which are included in our Annual Report on Form 10 K for the year ended December 31, 2016, filed with the SEC on February 22, 2017.

(2)             Fifty percent of the Performance-Contingent Stock Awards were paid in the third quarter of 2016. The other fifty percent of the Performance-Contingent Stock Awards were forfeited.

 

Stock Based Compensation

 

We estimate the fair value of our share-based awards to employees and directors using the Black-Scholes option valuation model. The Black-Scholes option valuation model requires the use of certain subjective assumptions. The most significant of these assumptions are the estimates of the expected volatility of the market price of our stock and the expected term of the award. We base our estimates of expected volatility on the historical volatility of our stock price. The expected term represents the period of time that stock-based awards granted are expected to be outstanding. Other assumptions used in the Black-Scholes option valuation model include the risk-free interest rate and expected dividend yield. The risk-free interest rate for periods pertaining to the contractual life of each option is based on the U.S. Treasury yield of a similar duration in effect at the time of grant. We have never paid, and do not expect to pay, dividends in the foreseeable future. The fair value of our stock-based awards was estimated at the date of grant using the following assumptions:

 

 

Year Ended December 31,

 

2016

2015

2014

Expected volatility

64.4%

66.5%

62.8%

Expected term (in years)

7.96

6.72

6.49

Weighted average risk-free interest rate

1.61%

1.68%

1.85%

Expected dividends

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

Weighted average grant date fair value per option

$9.47

$6.58

$5.00

Weighted average grant date fair value per RSU

$11.06

$9.71

$8.43

 

Non-Equity Incentive Plan Compensation

 

The amounts in the “Non-Equity Incentive Plan Compensation” column are MIP awards made with respect to 2016 performance. MIP awards are paid in cash in the first quarter of the fiscal year following the fiscal year in which they were earned after finalization of our audited financial statements.

 

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All Other Compensation

 

The amounts in the “All Other Compensation” column consist of: contributions to our 401(k) Plan and the amount of health, life and disability benefits. There were no tax gross-ups paid in 2016.

 

2016 Grants of Plan-Based Awards Table

 

Stock options granted to our NEOs consist of a mixture of incentive stock options and nonqualified stock options. The exercise price per share of each stock option granted to our NEOs was equal to the fair market value of our common stock as determined in good faith by our Board on the date of the grant. All stock options were granted under our 2008 EIP. The following table provides information on stock options and RSUs granted to our NEOs in 2016.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Estimated Potential Payouts Under Non-Equity
Incentive Plan Awards

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Name

 

Award
Type

 

Grant
Date

 

Target
($)

 

Maximum
($)

 

All Other
Stock
Awards:
Number
of
Shares of Stock or
Units
(#)

 

All Other
Option
Awards:
Number
of
Securities
Underlying
Options
(#)

 

Exercise
or Base
Price
of
Option
Awards
($/Sh)

 

Grant
Date
Fair
Value of
Stock
and
Option
Awards (1)
($)

 

Joseph H. Capper

 

2016 MIP(2)

 

 

 

556,500

 

1,113,000

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2016 LTIP(3)

 

2/15/16

 

 

 

 

 

55,904

 

 

 

 

 

535,001

 

 

 

2016 LTIP(3)

 

2/15/16

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

94,752

 

9.57

 

535,000

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Heather C. Getz

 

2016 MIP(2)

 

 

 

207,000

 

414,000

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2016 LTIP(3)

 

2/15/16

 

 

 

 

 

13,248

 

 

 

 

 

126,783

 

 

 

2016 LTIP(3)

 

2/15/16

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

22,255

 

9.57

 

126,788

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Daniel Wisniewski

 

2016 MIP(2)

 

 

 

163,250

 

326,500

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2016 LTIP(3)

 

2/15/16

 

 

 

 

 

8,359

 

 

 

 

 

79,996

 

 

 

2016 LTIP(3)

 

2/15/16

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

14,169

 

9.57

 

80,002

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Peter Ferola

 

2016 MIP(2)

 

 

 

158,250

 

316,570

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2016 LTIP(3)

 

2/15/16

 

 

 

 

 

8,098

 

 

 

 

 

77,498

 

 

 

2016 LTIP(3)

 

2/15/16

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

13,726

 

9.57

 

77,501

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fred (Andy) Broadway III

 

2016 MIP(2)

 

 

 

145,500

 

291,000

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2016 LTIP(3)

 

2/15/16

 

 

 

 

 

8,943

 

 

 

 

 

85,585

 

 

 

2016 LTIP(3)

 

2/15/16

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

15,158

 

9.57

 

85,587

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(1)       The amounts reflect the aggregate grant date fair value of awards computed in accordance with FASB ASC Topic 718. For additional information on that valuation of assumptions regarding the RSU awards and the option awards, please refer to the tables below and to note 12 to our financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2016, which are included in our Annual Report on Form 10 K for the year ended December 31, 2016, filed with the SEC on February 22, 2017.

 

(2)       Amounts represent cash bonus opportunities provided to NEOs in 2016. The criteria used to determine the amount of the annual bonus payable to each executive is described under “Compensation Discussion and Analysis – Our Management Incentive Plan.” These bonuses were ultimately earned at the target level, which is 100% of such individual’s target bonus opportunity.

 

(3)       2016 LTIP amounts represent the actual number of payouts under our LTIP in 2016 for service performed in 2015, which are payable one-half in RSUs and one-half in stock options. The stock options vest at the rate of 25% per year commencing on December 31st and on each of the first, second and third anniversaries thereafter. The RSUs vest on the third anniversary of the date of grant.

 

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Outstanding Equity Awards at Year-End 2016

 

The following table contains information on the outstanding equity awards granted to our NEOs that remained outstanding as of December 31, 2016.

 

 

 

 

Option Awards

 

Stock Awards

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Name

 

Number of
Securities
Underlying
Unexercised
Options
Exercisable
(#)

 

Number of
Securities
Underlying
Unexercised
Options
Unexercisable
(#)

 

Option
Exercise
Price
($)

 

Option
Expiration
Date

 

Number of
Shares or
Units of
Stock That
Have Not
Vested
(#)
(1)

 

Market
Value of
Shares or
Units of
Stock That
Have Not
Vested
($)
(2)

 

Equity
Incentive Plan
Awards:
Number of

Unearned
Shares, Units
or Other
Rights That

Have Not
Vested
(#)
(6)

 

Equity Incentive Plan
Awards: Market or
Payout Value of

Unearned Shares,
Units or Other Rights
That Have Not Vested

($)
(7)