UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

 

 

FORM 8-K

 

 

CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): November 14, 2013

 

 

BROADRIDGE FINANCIAL SOLUTIONS, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 

 

DELAWARE

(State or other jurisdiction

of incorporation)

 

 

 

001-33220   33-1151291

(Commission

file number)

 

(I.R.S. Employer

Identification No.)

1981 Marcus Avenue

Lake Success, New York 11042

(Address of principal executive offices)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (516) 472-5400

N/A

(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)

 

 

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions:

 

¨ Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

 

¨ Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)

 

¨ Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

 

¨ Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

 

 

 


Item 5.07. Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders.

On November 14, 2013, Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (“Broadridge” or the “Company”) held its 2013 Annual Meeting of Stockholders. At the 2013 Annual Meeting, stockholders approved all of management’s proposals, which were:

 

1. The election of nine directors for terms of one year and until their successors are elected and qualified.

 

2. The ratification of the appointment of Deloitte & Touche LLP as the independent registered public accounting firm to conduct the annual audit of the financial statements of the Company and its subsidiaries for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2014.

 

3. Approval of the Amendment and Restatement of the Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. 2007 Omnibus Award Plan (the “Plan”).

 

4. The advisory vote on the Company’s executive compensation (the Say on Pay Vote).

Proposal 1: Election of Directors. The following table reflects the tabulation of the votes with respect to each director who was elected at the 2013 Annual Meeting:

 

     FOR      AGAINST      ABSTAIN      Broker Non Votes  

Leslie A. Brun

     100,561,954         154,624         142,994         8,583,618   

Richard J. Daly

     100,622,976         111,275         125,321         8,583,618   

Robert N. Duelks

     100,639,549         90,435         129,588         8,583,618   

Richard J. Haviland

     100,330,998         407,678         120,896         8,583,618   

Sandra S. Jaffee

     100,504,774         230,761         124,037         8,583,618   

Stuart R. Levine

     100,522,814         216,911         119,847         8,583,618   

Maura A. Markus

     100,633,257         104,553         121,762         8,583,618   

Thomas J. Perna

     100,525,614         212,596         121,362         8,583,618   

Alan J. Weber

     100,449,128         279,657         130,787         8,583,618   

Proposal 2: Ratification of Appointment of Auditors. The ratification of the appointment of Deloitte & Touche LLP as the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm to conduct the annual audit of the financial statements of the Company and its subsidiaries for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2014, was approved by the stockholders. The stockholders cast 108,891,226 votes in favor of this proposal and 421,741 votes against. There were 130,223 abstentions.

Proposal 3: Approval of the Amendment and Restatement of our 2007 Omnibus Award Plan. The Amendment and Restatement of the Plan was approved by the stockholders. The stockholders cast 87,910,046 votes in favor of this proposal and 12,745,487 votes against. There were 204,039 abstentions and 8,583,618 broker non-votes.

Proposal 4: Advisory Vote on the Company’s Executive Compensation (the Say on Pay Vote). The non-binding proposal on the Company’s executive compensation was approved by the stockholders. The stockholders cast 99,241,371 votes in favor of this proposal and 1,372,167 votes against. There were 246,034 abstentions and 8,583,618 broker non-votes.


Item 7.01. Regulation FD Disclosure.

The Company is furnishing the transcript of the Company’s 2013 Annual Meeting of Stockholders held on November 14, 2013.

The information furnished pursuant to Items 7.01 and 9.01, including Exhibit 99.1, shall not be deemed “filed” for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), or otherwise subject to the liabilities under that Section, and shall not be deemed to be incorporated by reference into any filing of the Company under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Exchange Act.

 

Item 9.01. Financial Statements and Exhibits.

Exhibits. The following exhibit is furnished herewith:

 

Exhibit
No.

  

Description

  4.1    The Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. 2007 Omnibus Award Plan (Amended and Restated Effective November 14, 2013).
99.1    Transcript of the 2013 Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. Annual Meeting of Stockholders.


SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.

Dated: November 15, 2013

 

BROADRIDGE FINANCIAL SOLUTIONS, INC.
By:  

/s/ Adam D. Amsterdam

  Name:   Adam D. Amsterdam
  Title:   Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary

Exhibit 4.1

Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc.

2007 Omnibus Award Plan

(Amended and Restated Effective November 14, 2013)

 

  1. Purpose

The purpose of the Plan is to provide a means through which the Company and its Affiliates may attract able persons to enter and remain in the employ of, or other service with, the Company and its Affiliates and to provide a means whereby employees, directors and consultants of the Company and its Affiliates can acquire and maintain Common Stock ownership, or be paid incentive compensation measured by reference to the value of Common Stock, thereby strengthening their commitment to the welfare of the Company and its Affiliates and promoting an identity of interest between stockholders and these persons.

So that the appropriate incentive can be provided, the Plan provides for granting Incentive Stock Options, Non-qualified Stock Options, Stock Appreciation Rights, Restricted Stock, Restricted Stock Units, Phantom Stock Awards, Stock Bonuses and Performance Compensation Awards, or any combination or variation of the foregoing.

The Plan, which was originally adopted by the Company effective March 29, 2007, was amended on April 29, 2008 to increase the per calendar year individual limit for Options and Stock Appreciation Rights, was amended and restated effective August 4, 2008, was again amended effective August 4, 2009, was further amended on August 3, 2010, and is hereby amended and restated effective November 14, 2013, subject to approval of the stockholders of the Company at the Company’s annual general meeting of stockholders in calendar year 2013.

 

  2. Definitions

The following definitions shall be applicable throughout the Plan.

(a) “ Affiliate ” means (i) any entity that directly or indirectly is controlled by, controls or is under common control with the Company and (ii) to the extent provided by the Committee, any entity in which the Company has a significant equity interest.

(b) “ Appreciation Award ” means any Award under the Plan of any Option or SAR.

(c) “ Award ” means, individually or collectively, any Incentive Stock Option, Non-qualified Stock Option, Stock Appreciation Right, Restricted Stock, Restricted Stock Unit, Phantom Stock Award, Stock Bonus or Performance Compensation Award granted under the Plan.

(d) “ Award Agreement ” means an agreement pursuant to which an Award is granted.

(e) “ Board ” means the Board of Directors of the Company.

 

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(f) “ Cause ” shall mean, unless in the case of a particular Award the applicable Award agreement states otherwise, the Company or an Affiliate having “cause” to terminate a Participant’s employment or service, as defined in any existing employment, consulting or any other agreement between the Participant and the Company or an Affiliate in effect at the time of such termination or, in the absence of such an employment, consulting or other agreement, upon (i) the good faith determination by the Committee that the Participant has ceased to perform his duties to the Company or an Affiliate (other than as a result of his incapacity due to physical or mental illness or injury), which failure amounts to an intentional and extended neglect of his duties to such party, provided that no such failure shall constitute Cause unless the Participant has been given notice of such failure (if cure is reasonably possible) and has not cured such act or omission within 15 days following receipt of such notice, (ii) the Committee’s good faith determination that the Participant has engaged or is about to engage in conduct materially injurious to the Company or an Affiliate, (iii) the Participant having been convicted of, or plead guilty or no contest to, a felony or any crime involving as a material element fraud or dishonesty, (iv) the consistent failure of the Participant to follow the lawful instructions of the Board or his direct superiors, which failure amounts to an intentional and extended neglect of his duties to such party, or (v) in the case of a Participant who is a non-employee director, the Participant ceasing to be a member of the Board in connection with the Participant engaging in any of the activities described in clauses (i) through (iv) above.

(g) “ Change in Control ” shall mean the occurrence of any of the following: (A) any “ Person ” (as defined in Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “ Exchange Act ”)), excluding the Company, any subsidiary of the Company, or any employee benefit plan sponsored or maintained by the Company (including any trustee of any such plan acting in his capacity as trustee), becoming the “beneficial owner” (as defined in Rule 13d-3 under the Exchange Act) of securities of the Company representing 35% or more of the total combined voting power of the Company’s then outstanding securities; (B) the merger, consolidation or other business combination of the Company (a “ Transaction ”), other than a Transaction immediately following which the stockholders of the Company immediately prior to the Transaction continue to be the beneficial owners of securities of the resulting entity representing more than 65% of the voting power in the resulting entity, in substantially the same proportions as their ownership of Company voting securities immediately prior to the Transaction; (C) the sale of all or substantially all of the Company’s assets, other than a sale immediately following which the stockholders of the Company immediately prior to the sale are the beneficial owners of securities of the purchasing entity representing more than 65% of the voting power in the purchasing entity, in substantially the same proportions as their ownership of Company voting securities immediately prior to the Transaction; or (D) solely with respect to Awards granted on or after the Prior Effective Date, during any consecutive two-year period, individuals who at the beginning of such period constitute the Board and any new director (other than a director designated by a person who has entered into an agreement with the Company to effect a transaction described in paragraph (A), (B), or (C) of this Section or a director whose initial assumption of office is in connection with an actual or threatened election or other proxy contest, including but not limited to a consent solicitation, relating to the election of

 

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directors to the Board) whose election by the Board or nomination for election by the Company’s stockholders was approved by a vote of at least two-thirds of the directors then still in office who either were directors at the beginning of the two-year period or whose election or nomination for election was previously so approved, ceasing for any reason to constitute at least a majority of the Board. Notwithstanding any other provision of the Plan to the contrary, to the extent that Awards under the Plan subject to Section 409A of the Code are payable upon a Change in Control, an event shall not be considered to be a Change in Control under the Plan with respect to such Awards unless such event is also a “change in ownership,” a “change in effective control” or a “change in the ownership of a substantial portion of the assets” of the Company within the meaning of Section 409A of the Code.

(h) “ Code ” means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. Reference in the Plan to any section of the Code shall be deemed to include any amendments or successor provisions to such section and any regulations under such section.

(i) “ Committee ” means the Compensation Committee of the Board or such other committee of at least two people as the Board may appoint to administer the Plan or, if no such committee has been appointed by the Board, the Board. Unless the Board is acting as the Committee or the Board specifically determines otherwise, each member of the Committee shall, at the time he takes any action with respect to an Award under the Plan, be a Qualified Director. However, the fact that a Committee member shall fail to qualify as a Qualified Director with respect to the requirements of Rule 16b-3 or Section 162(m) of the Code shall not invalidate any Award granted by the Committee which Award is otherwise validly granted under the Plan.

(j) “ Common Stock ” means the common stock of the Company, par value $0.01 per share, and any stock into which such common stock may be converted or into which it may be exchanged; provided that the Common Stock subject to any Award constitutes “service recipient” stock for purposes of Section 409A of the Code, unless the Award is intended to be structured in a manner that complies with Section 409A of the Code.

(k) “ Company ” means Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. and any successor thereto.

(l) “ Date of Grant ” means the date on which the granting of an Award is authorized, or such other date as may be specified in such authorization or, if there is no such date, the date indicated on the applicable Award Agreement pursuant to action of the Committee (or its authorized delegate).

(m) “ Effective Date ” means November 14, 2013, subject to Section 3 .

(n) “ Eligible Consultant ” means any natural person who may be offered securities pursuant to Form S-8.

 

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(o) “ Eligible Director ” means a director of the Company who is not an employee of the Company or an Affiliate.

(p) “ Eligible Employee ” means any individual regularly employed by the Company or Affiliate; provided , however , that no such employee covered by a collective bargaining agreement shall be an Eligible Employee unless and to the extent that such eligibility is set forth in such collective bargaining agreement or in an agreement or instrument relating thereto.

(q) “ Exchange Act ” means the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.

(r) “ Fair Market Value ”, on a given date, means, unless otherwise required by any applicable provision of the Code or any regulations issued thereunder, (i) if the Stock is listed on a national securities exchange, the closing price reported on the primary exchange with which the Stock is listed and traded on such date, or, if there is no such sale on that date, then the closing price on the last preceding date on which such a sale was reported; or (ii) if the Stock is not listed on a national securities exchange, the amount determined by the Committee to be the fair market value based upon a good faith attempt to value the Stock accurately and computed in accordance with applicable regulations of the Internal Revenue Service, including, without limitation, the regulations promulgated under Section 422 of the Code or Section 409A of the Code, as applicable.

(s) “ Incentive Stock Option ” means an Option granted by the Committee to a Participant under the Plan which is designated by the Committee as an incentive stock option as described in Section 422 of the Code and otherwise meets the requirements set forth herein.

(t) “ Negative Discretion ” shall mean the discretion authorized by the Plan to be applied by the Committee to eliminate or reduce the size of a Performance Compensation Award in accordance with Section 11(d)(iv) of the Plan; provided , that the exercise of such discretion would not cause the Performance Compensation Award to fail to qualify as “performance-based compensation” under Section 162(m) of the Code.

(u) “ Non-qualified Stock Option ” means an Option granted by the Committee to a Participant under the Plan which is not designated by the Committee as an Incentive Stock Option.

(v) “ Option ” means an Award granted under Section 7 of the Plan.

(w) “ Option Period ” means the period described in Section 7(c) of the Plan.

(x) “ Option Price ” means the exercise price for an Option as described in Section 7(a) of the Plan.

(y) “ Participant ” means an Eligible Employee, Eligible Director or Eligible Consultant who has been selected by the Committee to participate in the Plan and to receive an Award pursuant to Section 6 of the Plan.

 

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(z) “ Parent ” means any parent of the Company, as defined in Section 424(e) of the Code.

(aa) “ Performance Compensation Award ” shall mean any Award designated by the Committee as a Performance Compensation Award pursuant to Section 11 of the Plan.

(bb) “ Performance Criteria ” shall be measured in terms of one or more of the following objectives, described as they relate to Company-wide objectives or of an Affiliate, a subsidiary, division, department or function of the Company or an Affiliate:

(i) Earnings per share;

(ii) Stock price;

(iii) Stockholder return;

(iv) Return on investment;

(v) Return on capital;

(vi) Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and/or amortization;

(vii) Income before taxes and extraordinary items;

(viii) Gross or net profits;

(ix) Gross or net revenues;

(x) Net earnings or net income (before or after taxes);

(xi) Operating income;

(xii) Operating profit or net operating profit (before or after taxes);

(xiii) Return measures (including, but not limited to, return on assets or net assets, capital, invested capital, equity, or sales);

(xiv) Cash flow (including, but not limited to, operating cash flow, free cash flow, and cash flow return on capital);

(xv) Gross or operating margins;

(xvi) Fair market value of the shares of the Company’s Common Stock;

(xvii) The growth in the value of an investment in the Company’s Common Stock assuming the reinvestment of dividends;

(xviii) Productivity ratios;

 

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(xix) Expense targets;

(xx) Margins;

(xxi) Operating efficiency;

(xxii) Objective measures of customer satisfaction;

(xxiii) Cost reductions or savings;

(xxiv) Market share;

(xxv) Working capital targets;

(xxvi) Measures of economic value added;

(xxvii) Sales;

(xxviii) Enterprise value;

(xxix) Client retention;

(xxx) Competitive market metrics;

(xxxi) Employee retention;

(xxxii) Timely completion of new product rollouts; or

(xxxiii) Any combination of the foregoing.

The foregoing performance criteria may be measured on an absolute basis or relative to a pre-established target, to previous years’ results or to a designated comparison group.

For purposes of item (vii) above, “extraordinary items” shall mean all items of gain, loss or expense for the fiscal year determined to be extraordinary or unusual in nature or infrequent in occurrence or related to a corporate transaction (including, without limitation, a disposition or acquisition) or related to a change in accounting principle, all as determined in accordance with standards established by Accounting Principles Board Opinion No. 30 (or any successor pronouncement thereto).

Only to the extent permitted under Section 162(m) of the Code (including, without limitation, compliance with any requirements for stockholder approval), the Committee may: (i) designate additional business criteria on which the Performance Criteria may be based or (ii) adjust, modify or amend the aforementioned business criteria.

(cc) “ Performance Formula ” shall mean, for a Performance Period, the one or more objective formulas applied against the relevant Performance Goal to determine, with regard to the Performance Compensation Award of a particular Participant, whether all, some portion but less than all, or none of the Performance Compensation Award has been earned for the Performance Period.

 

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(dd) “ Performance Goals ” shall mean, for a Performance Period, the one or more goals established by the Committee for the Performance Period based upon the Performance Criteria. The Committee is authorized at any time during the first 90 days of a Performance Period (or, if longer or shorter, within the maximum period allowed under Section 162(m) of the Code), or at any time thereafter (but only to the extent the exercise of such authority after such period would not cause the Performance Compensation Awards granted to any Participant for the Performance Period to fail to qualify as “performance-based compensation” under Section 162(m) of the Code), in its sole and absolute discretion, to adjust or modify the calculation of a Performance Goal for such Performance Period to the extent permitted under Section 162(m) of the Code in order to prevent the dilution or enlargement of the rights of Participants based on the following events:

(i) asset write-downs;

(ii) litigation or claim judgments or settlements;

(iii) the effect of changes in tax laws, accounting principles, or other laws or regulatory rules affecting reported results;

(iv) any reorganization and restructuring programs;

(v) extraordinary nonrecurring items as described in Accounting Principles Board Opinion No. 30 (or any successor pronouncement thereto) and/or in management’s discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations appearing in the Company’s annual report to stockholders for the applicable year;

(vi) acquisitions or divestitures;

(vii) any other specific unusual or nonrecurring events, or objectively determinable category thereof;

(viii) foreign exchange gains and losses; and

(ix) a change in the Company’s fiscal year.

(ee) “ Performance Period ” shall mean the one or more periods of time, as the Committee may select, over which the attainment of one or more Performance Goals will be measured for the purpose of determining a Participant’s right to and the payment of a Performance Compensation Award.

(ff) “ Phantom Stock Award ” shall mean a cash award whose value is determined based on the change in the value of the Company Common Stock from the Date of Grant.

 

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(gg) “ Plan ” means this Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. 2007 Omnibus Award Plan (Amended and Restated Effective November 14, 2013).

(hh) “ Prior Effective Date ” means August 4, 2008.

(ii) “ Qualified Director ” means a person who is (i) a “non-employee director” within the meaning of Rule 16b-3 under the Exchange Act, or a person meeting any similar requirement under any successor rule or regulation and (ii) an “outside director” within the meaning of Section 162(m) of the Code, and the Treasury Regulations promulgated thereunder, and (iii) an “independent director” under the rules of any stock exchange on which the Stock is listed; provided , however , that (A) clause (i) shall apply only with respect to grants of Awards to which Section 16(b) of the Exchange Act otherwise would be applicable and (B) clause (ii) shall apply only with respect to grants of Awards with respect to which the Company’s tax deduction could be limited by Section 162(m) of the Code if such clause did not apply.

(jj) “ Restricted Period ” means, with respect to any Award of Restricted Stock or any Restricted Stock Unit, the period of time determined by the Committee during which such Award is subject to the restrictions set forth in Section 9 or, as applicable, the period of time within which performance is measured for purposes of determining whether an Award has been earned.

(kk) “ Restricted Stock ” means shares of Stock issued or transferred to a Participant subject to forfeiture and the other restrictions set forth in Section 9 of the Plan.

(ll) “ Restricted Stock Unit ” means a hypothetical investment equivalent to one share of Stock granted in connection with an Award made under Section 9 .

(mm) “ Securities Act ” means the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

(nn) “ Stock ” means the Common Stock or such other authorized shares of stock of the Company as the Committee may from time to time authorize for use under the Plan.

(oo) “ Stock Appreciation Right ” or “ SAR ” means an Award granted under Section 8 of the Plan.

(pp) “ Stock Bonus ” means an Award granted under Section 10 of the Plan.

(qq) “ Stock Option Agreement ” means any agreement between the Company and a Participant who has been granted an Option pursuant to Section 7 which defines the rights and obligations of the parties thereto.

(rr) “ Strike Price ” means, (i) in the case of a SAR granted in tandem with an Option, the Option Price of the related Option, or (ii) in the case of a SAR granted independent of an Option, the Fair Market Value on the Date of Grant.

 

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(ss) “ Subsidiary ” means any subsidiary of the Company, as defined in Section 424(f) of the Code.

(tt) “ Substitution Award ” means an Award that is intended to replace any existing incentive award held by an Eligible Employee or Eligible Director of, or Eligible Consultant to, an entity acquired by the Company or an Affiliate. The terms and conditions of any Substitution Award shall be set forth in an Award Agreement and shall, except as may be inconsistent with any provision of the Plan, to the extent practicable provide the recipient with benefits (including economic value) substantially similar to those provided to the recipient under the existing Award which such Substitution Award is intended to replace.

(uu) “ Termination ” means a Termination of Employment, Termination of Directorship or Termination of Consultancy, as applicable. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, for Awards that are intended to be subject to Section 409A of the Code and payable on a Participant’s Termination, any payment shall be made solely if such termination constitutes a “separation from service” under Section 409A of the Code and guidance issued thereunder.

(vv) “ Termination of Consultancy ” means: (a) that a Consultant is no longer acting as a consultant to the Company or an Affiliate; or (b) when an entity which is retaining a Participant as a Consultant ceases to be an Affiliate unless the Participant otherwise is, or thereupon becomes, a Consultant to the Company or another Affiliate at the time the entity ceases to be an Affiliate. With respect to Awards granted on or after the Prior Effective Date and solely to the extent provided in an Award Agreement for an Award granted prior to the Prior Effective Date, in the event that a Consultant becomes an Eligible Employee or an Eligible Director upon the termination of his or her consultancy, unless otherwise determined by the Committee, in its sole discretion, no Termination of Consultancy shall be deemed to occur until such time as such Consultant is no longer a Consultant, an Eligible Employee or an Eligible Director. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Committee may, in its sole discretion, otherwise define Termination of Consultancy in the Award agreement or, if no rights of a Participant are reduced, may otherwise define Termination of Consultancy thereafter.

(ww) “ Termination of Directorship ” means that an Eligible Director has ceased to be a director of the Company; except that, with respect to Awards granted on or after the Prior Effective Date and solely to the extent provided in an Award Agreement for an Award granted prior to the Prior Effective Date, if an Eligible Director becomes an Eligible Employee or a Consultant upon the termination of his or her directorship, his or her ceasing to be a director of the Company shall not be treated as a Termination of Directorship unless and until the Participant has a Termination of Employment or a Termination of Consultancy, as the case may be.

(xx) “ Termination of Employment ” means: (a) a termination of employment (for reasons other than a military or personal leave of absence granted by the Company) of a Participant from the Company and its Affiliates; or (b) when an entity which is employing a Participant ceases to be an Affiliate, unless the Participant otherwise is, or

 

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thereupon becomes, employed by the Company or another Affiliate at the time the entity ceases to be an Affiliate. With respect to Awards granted on or after the Prior Effective Date and solely to the extent provided in an Award Agreement for an Award granted prior to the Prior Effective Date, in the event that an Eligible Employee becomes an Eligible Consultant or an Eligible Director upon the termination of his or her employment, unless otherwise determined by the Committee, in its sole discretion, no Termination of Employment shall be deemed to occur until such time as such Eligible Employee is no longer an Eligible Employee, or an Eligible Consultant or an Eligible Director. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Committee may, in its sole discretion, otherwise define Termination of Employment in the Award agreement or, if no rights of a Participant are reduced, may otherwise define Termination of Employment thereafter.

(yy) “ Vested Unit ” shall have the meaning ascribed thereto in Section 9(d) .

 

  3. Effective Date and Stockholder Approval

The Plan is effective November 14, 2013, subject to the approval of the Plan by stockholders of the Company in accordance with the requirements of the laws of the State of Delaware and the requirements of the New York Stock Exchange at the Company’s annual general meeting of stockholders in calendar year 2013.

No Option shall be treated as an Incentive Stock Option unless the Plan has been approved by the stockholders of the Company in a manner intended to comply with the stockholder approval requirements of Section 422(b)(i) of the Code.

 

  4. Administration

(a) The Committee shall administer and interpret the Plan. The majority of the members of the Committee shall constitute a quorum. The acts of a majority of the members present at any meeting at which a quorum is present or acts approved in writing by a majority of the Committee shall be deemed the acts of the Committee.

(b) Subject to the provisions of the Plan and applicable law, the Committee shall have the power, and in addition to other express powers and authorizations conferred on the Committee by the Plan, to: (i) designate Participants; (ii) determine the type or types of Awards to be granted to a Participant; (iii) determine the number of shares of Stock to be covered by, or with respect to which payments, rights, or other matters are to be calculated in connection with, Awards; (iv) determine the terms and conditions of any Award; (v) determine whether, to what extent, and under what circumstances Awards may be settled or exercised in cash, shares of Stock, other securities, other Awards or other property, or canceled, forfeited, or suspended and the method or methods by which Awards may be settled, exercised, canceled, forfeited, or suspended; (vi) determine whether, to what extent, and under what circumstances the delivery of cash, Stock, other securities, other Options, other property and other amounts payable with respect to an Award shall be deferred either automatically or at the election of the holder thereof or of the Committee, provided that it shall be designed in a manner intended to comply with Section 409A of the Code; (vii) interpret, administer, reconcile any inconsistency, correct any defect and/or supply any omission in the Plan and any instrument or agreement relating to, or Award

 

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granted under, the Plan; (viii) establish, amend, suspend, or waive any rules and regulations under the Plan; (ix) appoint such agents as it shall deem appropriate for the proper administration of the Plan; and (x) make any other determination and take any other action that the Committee deems necessary or desirable for the administration of the Plan.

(c) Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Committee may delegate to any officer or officers of the Company or any Affiliate the authority to act on behalf of the Committee with respect to any matter, right, obligation, or election which is the responsibility of or which is allocated to the Committee herein, and which may be so delegated as a matter of law, except for grants of Awards to (i) “covered employees” under Code Section 162(m) (other than Awards exempt from the application of Code Section 162(m)) and (ii) persons subject to Section 16 of the Exchange Act.

(d) Unless otherwise expressly provided in the Plan, all designations, determinations, interpretations, and other decisions under or with respect to the Plan or any Award or any documents evidencing Awards granted pursuant to the Plan shall be within the sole discretion of the Committee, may be made at any time and shall be final, conclusive and binding upon all parties, including, without limitation, the Company, any Affiliate, any Participant, any holder or beneficiary of any Award, and any stockholder.

(e) Subject to Section 16 hereof, the Committee shall, in its sole discretion, have the authority to adopt, alter and repeal such administrative rules, guidelines and practices governing the Plan and perform all acts, as it shall, from time to time, deem advisable. The Committee may, in its sole discretion, adopt special guidelines and provisions for persons who are residing in or employed in, or subject to, the taxes of, any domestic or foreign jurisdictions to comply with applicable tax and securities laws of such domestic or foreign jurisdictions. The Plan is intended to comply with the applicable requirements of Rule 16b-3 under the Exchange Act, with respect to Options, SARs and Performance Compensation Awards, the applicable provisions of Section 162(m) of the Code, and with respect to Awards containing deferral provisions, Section 409A of the Code and the Plan shall be limited, construed and interpreted in a manner so as to comply therewith.

(f) No member of the Committee shall be liable for any action or determination made in good faith with respect to the Plan or any Award hereunder.

 

  5. Grant of Awards; Shares Subject to the Plan

The Committee may, from time to time, grant Awards of Options, Stock Appreciation Rights, Restricted Stock, Restricted Stock Units, Phantom Stock Awards, Stock Bonuses and/or Performance Compensation Awards to one or more Eligible Employees, Eligible Directors or Eligible Consultants; provided , however , that:

(a) Subject to Section 13 , the aggregate number of shares of Stock in respect of which Awards may be granted under the Plan on or after the Effective Date is 9,064,596 shares, less the number of Shares in respect of Awards granted after June 30, 2013 and prior to the Effective Date. If an SAR is granted in tandem with an Option, the shares of Stock covered by such tandem award shall only apply once against the maximum number of shares of Stock which may be granted under the Plan;

 

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(b) If and to the extent Awards granted under the Plan expire, terminate or are canceled for any reason whatsoever after June 30, 2013 or to the extent Awards are cash-settled after June 30, 2013, the shares of Stock covered by such Awards (other than Substitution Awards) shall, to the extent of such expiration, termination, cancellation or cash-settlement again become available for future Awards under the Plan and shall be added back on a one-for-one basis to the aggregate maximum limit, as provided in Section 5(a) . To the extent that, after June 30, 2013, (i) any Option or other Award granted under the Plan is exercised through the tendering of shares of Stock (either actually or by attestation) or by the withholding of shares of Stock by the Company, or (ii) any shares of Stock subject to an Award granted under this Plan are withheld to satisfy any tax-withholding obligation, then in each such case the shares of Stock so tendered or withheld shall again become available for future Awards under the Plan and shall be added back on a one-for-one basis to the aggregate maximum limit, as provided in Section 5(a) . For purposes of determining the number of shares of Stock available for Awards under the Plan, each SAR exercised after June 30, 2013 shall count against the aggregate maximum limit, as provided in Section 5(a), based on the number of shares of Stock issued in settlement of such SAR rather than the number of shares of Stock underlying the exercised portion of such SAR. In the case of any Substitution Award, shares of Stock delivered or to be delivered in connection with such Substitution Award shall not be counted against the number of shares of Stock reserved under the Plan, but shall be available under the Plan by virtue of the Company’s assumption of the plan or arrangement of the acquired company or business;

(c) Stock delivered by the Company in settlement of Awards may be authorized and unissued Stock, Stock held in the treasury of the Company, Stock purchased on the open market or by private purchase, or a combination of the foregoing;

(d) Subject to Section 13 , no Participant may be granted Options or SARs or Restricted Stock, Restricted Stock Units or Stock Bonus Awards which are Performance Compensation Awards under the Plan during any three consecutive calendar years with respect to more than 2,550,000 shares of Stock, which limit shall apply individually to each such Award, provided that the maximum aggregate number of shares of Stock for all types of such Awards does not exceed 2,550,000 shares of Stock to any Participant during any three consecutive calendar years. If an SAR is granted in tandem with an Option, it shall apply against the Participant’s individual share limitations for both SARs and Options;

(e) The maximum amount that can be paid in any calendar year to any Participant pursuant to a cash bonus Award described in the last sentence of Section 11(a) shall be $3,000,000. Furthermore, any Performance Compensation Award that has been deferred shall not (between the date as of which the Award is deferred and the payment date) increase (A) with respect to a Performance Compensation Award that is payable in cash, by a measuring factor for each fiscal year that is greater than either a reasonable rate of interest or one or more predetermined actual investments, as set by the Committee

 

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in a manner consistent with Section 162(m) of the Code or (B) with respect to a Performance Compensation Award that is payable in shares of Stock, by an amount greater than the appreciation of a share of Stock from the date such Award is deferred to the payment date; and

(f) There are no annual individual Participant share limitations on Restricted Stock, Restricted Stock Units, Phantom Stock Awards, or Stock Bonus Awards that are not intended to comply with the requirements of Section 162(m) of the Code.

(g) Except as provided in Section 14 and without limiting the generality of the preceding provisions of this Section 5 , the Committee may, but solely with the Participant’s consent, agree to cancel any Award under the Plan and issue a new Award in substitution therefor upon such terms as the Committee may in its sole discretion determine, provided that the substituted Award satisfies all applicable Plan requirements as of the date such new Award is granted and Section 409A of the Code. Notwithstanding the foregoing, an outstanding Option or SAR may not be modified to reduce the Option Price or Strike Price, as applicable, thereof, nor may an Option or SAR be cancelled, exchanged or surrendered in exchange for cash, other Awards, or stock options or SARs with an Option Price or Strike Price that is less than the Option Price or Strike Price of the original Award, as applicable (other than adjustments or substitutions in accordance with Section 13 or in connection with a Change in Control transaction under Section 14 ), unless such action is approved by the stockholders of the Company.

(h) No more than $500,000 may be granted in Awards under the Plan during any calendar year to an Eligible Director (based on the Fair Market Value of the shares of Stock underlying the Award as of the applicable grant date in the case of Restricted Stock, Restricted Stock Units, Phantom Stock Awards or Stock Bonus Awards, and based on the applicable grant date fair value for accounting purposes in the case of Options or SARs).

 

  6. Eligibility

Participation shall be limited to Eligible Employees, Eligible Directors and Eligible Consultants who have entered into an Award Agreement or who have received written notification from the Committee, or from a person designated by the Committee, that they have been selected to participate in the Plan. Actual participation in the Plan and receipt of an Award under the Plan shall be determined by the Committee in its sole discretion.

 

  7. Options

The Committee is authorized to grant one or more Stock Options to any Eligible Employee, Eligible Director or Eligible Consultant; provided , however , that no Incentive Stock Option shall be granted to any Participant who is not an Eligible Employee of the Company or a Parent or Subsidiary. Each Option so granted shall be subject to the conditions set forth in this Section 7 , or to such other conditions as may be reflected in the applicable Stock Option Agreement. To the extent that any Stock Option does not qualify as an Incentive Stock Option (whether because of its provisions or the time or manner of its exercise or otherwise), such Stock Option or the portion thereof which does not qualify shall constitute a separate Non-Qualified Stock Option.

(a) Option Price. Subject to Section 7(e) , the exercise price (“ Option Price ”) per share of Stock for each Option shall be set by the Committee at the time of grant but, except in the case of Substitution Awards, shall not be less than the Fair Market Value of a share of Stock on the Date of Grant.

 

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(b) Manner of Exercise and Form of Payment. No shares of Stock shall be delivered pursuant to any exercise of an Option until payment in full of the Option Price therefor is received by the Company. Options which have become exercisable may be exercised by delivery of written notice of exercise to the Committee accompanied by payment of the Option Price. The Option Price shall be payable (i) in cash, check, cash equivalent and/or shares of Stock valued at the Fair Market Value at the time the Option is exercised (including by means of attestation of ownership of a sufficient number of shares of Stock in lieu of actual delivery of such shares to the Company); (ii) in the discretion of the Committee, either (A) in other property having a fair market value on the date of exercise equal to the Option Price, (B) by means of a “net exercise” whereby the number of shares of Stock received by Participant shall equal the excess, if any, of (x) the number of shares of Stock that would have been received by Participant upon such exercise had Participant paid the Option Price in cash over (y) a number of shares of Stock, the aggregate Fair Market Value of which is equal to the aggregate Option Price that would have been paid as determined pursuant to the immediately preceding clause (x), or (C) by delivering to the Committee a copy of irrevocable instructions to a stockbroker, reasonably acceptable to the Committee or specifically designated by the Committee, to deliver promptly to the Company an amount of loan proceeds, or proceeds from the sale of the Stock subject to the Option, sufficient to pay the Option Price (which may also include sufficient funds to cover applicable federal, state, local or foreign withholding taxes); or (iii) by such other method as the Committee may allow. Notwithstanding the foregoing, in no event shall a Participant be permitted to exercise an Option in a manner which the Committee determines would violate the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, any other applicable law or the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission or the applicable rules and regulations of any securities exchange or inter dealer quotation system on which the securities of the Company or any Affiliates are listed or traded.

(c) Vesting, Option Period and Expiration. Options shall vest and become exercisable in such manner and on such date or dates determined by the Committee and shall expire after such period, not to exceed ten years, as may be determined by the Committee (the “ Option Period ”); provided , however , that notwithstanding any vesting dates set by the Committee, the Committee may, in its sole discretion, accelerate the exercisability of any Option, which acceleration shall not affect the terms and conditions of such Option other than with respect to exercisability. If an Option is exercisable in installments, such installments or portions thereof which become exercisable shall remain exercisable until the Option expires.

 

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(d) Stock Option Agreement—Other Terms and Conditions. Each Option granted under the Plan shall be evidenced by a Stock Option Agreement. Except as specifically provided otherwise in such Stock Option Agreement, each Option granted under the Plan shall be subject to the following terms and conditions:

(i) Each Option or portion thereof that is exercisable shall be exercisable for the full amount or for any part thereof.

(ii) Each share of Stock purchased through the exercise of an Option shall be paid for in full at the time of the exercise. Each Option shall cease to be exercisable, as to any share of Stock, when the Participant purchases the share or exercises a related SAR or when the Option expires.

(iii) Subject to Section 12(m) , Options shall not be transferable by the Participant except by will or the laws of descent and distribution and shall be exercisable during the Participant’s lifetime only by him.

(iv) Each Option shall vest and become exercisable by the Participant in accordance with the vesting schedule established by the Committee and set forth in the Stock Option Agreement.

(v) At the time of any exercise of an Option, the Committee may, in its sole discretion, require a Participant to deliver to the Committee a written representation that the shares of Stock to be acquired upon such exercise are to be acquired for investment and not for resale or with a view to the distribution thereof and any other representation deemed necessary by the Committee to ensure compliance with all applicable federal and state securities laws. Upon such a request by the Committee, delivery of such representation prior to the delivery of any shares issued upon exercise of an Option shall be a condition precedent to the right of the Participant or such other person to purchase any shares. In the event certificates for Stock are delivered under the Plan with respect to which such investment representation has been obtained, the Committee may cause a legend or legends to be placed on such certificates to make appropriate reference to such representation and to restrict transfer in the absence of compliance with applicable federal or state securities laws.

(vi) Each Participant awarded an Incentive Stock Option under the Plan shall notify the Company in writing immediately after the date he or she makes a disqualifying disposition of any Stock acquired pursuant to the exercise of such Incentive Stock Option. A disqualifying disposition is any disposition (including any sale) of such Stock before the later of (A) two years after the Date of Grant of the Incentive Stock Option or (B) one year after the date the Participant acquired the Stock by exercising the Incentive Stock Option. The Company may, if determined by the Committee and in accordance with procedures established by it, retain possession of any Stock acquired pursuant to the exercise of an Incentive Stock Option as agent for the applicable Participant until the end of the period described in the preceding sentence, subject to complying with any instructions from such Participant as to the sale of such Stock.

 

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(vii) A Stock Option Agreement may, but need not, include a provision whereby a Participant may elect, at any time before the Participant’s Termination with the Company, to exercise the Option as to any part or all of the shares of Stock subject to the Option prior to the full vesting of the Option. Any unvested shares of Stock so purchased may be subject to a share repurchase option in favor of the Company or to any other restriction the Committee determines to be appropriate. The Company shall not exercise its repurchase option until at least six (6) months (or such longer or shorter period of time required to avoid a charge to earnings for financial accounting purposes) have elapsed following the exercise of the Option unless the Committee otherwise specifically provides in an Stock Option Agreement.

(e) Incentive Stock Option Grants to 10% Stockholders. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Section 7 , if an Incentive Stock Option is granted to a Participant who owns stock representing more than ten percent of the voting power of all classes of stock of the Company or of a Subsidiary or Parent, the Option Period shall not exceed five years from the Date of Grant of such Option and the Option Price shall be at least 110 percent of the Fair Market Value (on the Date of Grant) of the Stock subject to the Option.

(f) $100,000 Per Year Limitation for Incentive Stock Options. To the extent the aggregate Fair Market Value (determined as of the Date of Grant) of Stock for which Incentive Stock Options are exercisable for the first time by any Participant during any calendar year (under all plans of the Company) exceeds $100,000, such excess Incentive Stock Options shall be treated as Non-qualified Stock Options.

(g) Voluntary Surrender. The Committee may permit the voluntary surrender of all or any portion of any Non-qualified Stock Option and its corresponding SAR, if any, granted under the Plan to be conditioned upon the granting to the Participant of a new option for the same or a different number of shares as the option surrendered or require such voluntary surrender as a condition precedent to a grant of a new Option to such Participant. Such new Option shall be exercisable at an Option Price, during an Option Period, and in accordance with any other terms or conditions specified by the Committee at the time the new Option is granted, all determined in accordance with the provisions of the Plan without regard to the Option Price, Option Period, or any other terms and conditions of the Non-qualified Stock Option surrendered. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the terms of outstanding Awards may not be amended to reduce the Option Price or Strike Price of outstanding Options or SARs or cancel, exchange or surrender outstanding Options or SARs in exchange for cash, other awards or Options or SARs with a Strike Price that is less than the Strike Price of the original Options or SARs (other than adjustments or substitutions in accordance with Section 13 and Section 14 ), unless such action is approved by the stockholders of the Company.

 

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  8. Stock Appreciation Rights

Any Option granted under the Plan may include SARs, either at the Date of Grant or, except in the case of an Incentive Stock Option, by subsequent amendment. The Committee also may award SARs to Eligible Employees, Eligible Directors or Eligible Consultants independent of any Option. An SAR shall be subject to such terms and conditions not inconsistent with the Plan as the Committee shall impose, including, but not limited to, the following:

(a) Vesting, Transferability and Expiration. An SAR granted in connection with an Option shall become exercisable, be transferable and shall expire according to the same vesting schedule, transferability rules and expiration provisions as the corresponding Option. An SAR granted independent of an Option shall become exercisable, be transferable and shall expire in accordance with a vesting schedule, transferability rules and expiration provisions as established by the Committee and reflected in an Award Agreement.

(b) Automatic Exercise. The Strike Price per share covered by an SAR shall be not less than the per share Option Price of the related Option in the case of an SAR granted in connection with an Option. The Strike Price per share covered by an SAR, other than a Substitution Award, granted independent of an Option shall be not less than the per share Fair Market Value of the Common Stock on the Date of Grant. If on the last day of the Option Period (or in the case of a SAR independent of an option, the period established by the Committee after which the SAR shall expire), the Fair Market Value exceeds the Strike Price, the Participant has not exercised the SAR or the corresponding Option, and neither the SAR nor the corresponding Option has expired, such SAR shall be deemed to have been exercised by the Participant on such last day and the Company shall make the appropriate payment therefor.

(c) Payment. Upon the exercise of an SAR, the Company shall pay to the Participant an amount equal to the number of shares subject to the SAR multiplied by the excess, if any, of the Fair Market Value of one share of Stock on the exercise date over the Strike Price. The Company shall pay such excess in cash, in shares of Stock valued at Fair Market Value, or any combination thereof, as determined by the Committee. Fractional shares shall be settled in cash.

(d) Method of Exercise. A Participant may exercise an SAR at such time or times as may be determined by the Committee at the time of grant by filing an irrevocable written notice with the Committee or its designee, specifying the number of SARs to be exercised, and the date on which such SARs were awarded.

(e) Expiration. Except as otherwise provided in the case of SARs granted in connection with Options, an SAR shall expire on a date designated by the Committee which is not later than ten years after the Date of Grant of the SAR.

 

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  9. Restricted Stock and Restricted Stock Units

(a) Award of Restricted Stock and Restricted Stock Units.

(i) The Committee shall have the authority (A) to grant Restricted Stock and Restricted Stock Units to Eligible Employees, Eligible Directors and Eligible Consultants, (B) to issue or transfer Restricted Stock to Participants, and (C) to establish terms, conditions and restrictions applicable to such Restricted Stock and Restricted Stock Units, including the Restricted Period, as applicable, which may differ with respect to each grantee, the time or times at which Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units shall be granted or become vested and the number of shares or units to be covered by each grant.

(ii) Each Participant granted Restricted Stock shall execute and deliver to the Company an Award Agreement with respect to the Restricted Stock setting forth the restrictions and other terms and conditions applicable to such Restricted Stock. If the Committee determines that the Restricted Stock shall be held by the Company or in escrow rather than delivered to the Participant pending the release of the applicable restrictions, the Committee may require the Participant to additionally execute and deliver to the Company (A) an escrow agreement satisfactory to the Committee, if applicable, and (B) the appropriate blank stock power with respect to the Restricted Stock covered by such agreement. If a Participant shall fail to execute an Award Agreement evidencing an Award of Restricted Stock and, if applicable, an escrow agreement and stock power, the Award shall be null and void. Subject to the restrictions set forth in Section 9(b) , the Participant generally shall have the rights and privileges of a stockholder as to such Restricted Stock, including the right to vote such Restricted Stock. At the discretion of the Committee, cash dividends and stock dividends with respect to the Restricted Stock may be either currently paid to the Participant or withheld by the Company for the Participant’s account as provided in the Award Agreement, and interest may be credited on the amount of cash dividends withheld at a rate and subject to such terms as determined by the Committee. The cash dividends or stock dividends so withheld by the Committee and attributable to any particular share of Restricted Stock (and earnings thereon, if applicable) shall be distributed to the Participant in cash or, at the discretion of the Committee, in shares of Stock having a Fair Market Value equal to the amount of such dividends and earnings, if applicable, upon the release of restrictions on such share and, if such share is forfeited, the Participant shall have no right to such cash dividends, stock dividends or earnings.

(iii) Upon the grant of Restricted Stock, the Committee shall, in its sole discretion, either cause a stock certificate registered in the name of the Participant to be issued and, if it so determines, deposited together with the stock powers with an escrow agent designated by the Committee or require the shares of Restricted Stock be held in uncertificated book entry form. If an escrow arrangement is used, the Committee may cause the escrow agent to issue to the Participant a receipt evidencing any stock certificate held by it, registered in the name of the Participant.

(iv) The terms and conditions of a grant of Restricted Stock Units shall be reflected in a written Award Agreement. No shares of Stock shall be issued at the time a Restricted Stock Unit is granted, and the Company will not be required to set aside a fund for the payment of any such Award. At the discretion of the Committee, each Restricted Stock Unit (representing one

 

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share of Stock) may be credited with cash and stock dividends paid by the Company in respect of one share of Stock (“ Dividend Equivalents ”) in a manner intended to comply with Section 409A of the Code. At the discretion of the Committee, Dividend Equivalents may be either currently paid to the Participant or withheld by the Company for the Participant’s account in a manner intended to comply with Section 409A of the Code, and interest may be credited on the amount of cash Dividend Equivalents withheld at a rate and subject to such terms as determined by the Committee. Dividend Equivalents credited to a Participant’s account and attributable to any particular Restricted Stock Unit (and earnings thereon, if applicable) shall be distributed in cash or, at the discretion of the Committee, in shares of Stock having a Fair Market Value equal to the amount of such Dividend Equivalents and earnings, if applicable, to the Participant upon settlement of such Restricted Stock Unit and, if such Restricted Stock Unit is forfeited, the Participant shall have no right to such Dividends Equivalents.

(b) Restrictions.

(i) Restricted Stock awarded to a Participant shall be subject to the following restrictions until the expiration of the Restricted Period, and to such other terms and conditions as may be set forth in the applicable Award Agreement: (A) if an escrow arrangement or uncertificated book entry is used, the Participant shall not be entitled to delivery of the stock certificate; (B) the shares shall be subject to the restrictions on transferability set forth in the Award Agreement; (C) the shares shall be subject to forfeiture to the extent provided in this Section 9(b) and the applicable Award Agreement; and (D) to the extent such shares are forfeited, the stock certificates shall be returned to the Company, and all rights of the Participant to such shares and as a stockholder with respect to such shares shall terminate without further obligation on the part of the Company.

(ii) Restricted Stock Units awarded to any Participant shall be subject to (A) forfeiture until the expiration of the Restricted Period, and satisfaction of any applicable Performance Goals during such period, to the extent provided in the applicable Award Agreement, and to the extent such Restricted Stock Units are forfeited, all rights of the Participant to such Restricted Stock Units shall terminate without further obligation on the part of the Company and (B) such other terms and conditions as may be set forth in the applicable Award Agreement.

(iii) The Committee shall have the authority to remove any or all of the restrictions on the Restricted Stock and Restricted Stock Units whenever it may determine that, by reason of changes in applicable laws or other changes in circumstances arising after the date of the Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units are granted, such action is appropriate.

(iv) The Committee may determine that an Award of Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units shall be a Performance Compensation Award conditioned upon the attainment of Performance Goals and subject to the provisions of Section 11 hereof.

(c) Restricted Period. With respect to Restricted Stock and Restricted Stock Units, the Restricted Period shall commence on the Date of Grant or such other date specified by the Committee and end at the time or times set forth on a schedule established by the Committee in the applicable Award Agreement.

 

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(d) Delivery of Restricted Stock and Settlement of Restricted Stock Units. Upon the expiration of the Restricted Period with respect to any shares of Restricted Stock, the restrictions set forth in Section 9(b) and the applicable Award Agreement shall be of no further force or effect with respect to such shares, except as set forth in the applicable Award Agreement. If an escrow arrangement is used, upon such expiration, the Company shall deliver to the Participant, or his beneficiary, without charge, the stock certificate evidencing the shares of Restricted Stock which have not then been forfeited and with respect to which the Restricted Period has expired (to the nearest full share) and any cash dividends or stock dividends credited to the Participant’s account with respect to such Restricted Stock and the interest thereon, if any.

Upon the expiration of the Restricted Period with respect to any outstanding Restricted Stock Units, the Company shall deliver to the Participant, or his beneficiary, without charge, one share of Stock for each such outstanding Restricted Stock Unit (“ Vested Unit ”) and cash equal to any Dividend Equivalents credited with respect to each such Vested Unit in accordance with Section 9(a)(iv) hereof and the interest thereon or, at the discretion of the Committee, in shares of Stock having a Fair Market Value equal to such Dividend Equivalents and interest thereon, if any; provided, however, that, if explicitly provided in the applicable Award Agreement, the Committee may, in its sole discretion, elect to (i) pay cash or part cash and part Stock in lieu of delivering only shares of Stock for Vested Units or (ii) delay the delivery of Stock (or cash or part Stock and part cash, as the case may be) beyond the expiration of the Restricted Period which shall be in a manner intended to comply with Section 409A of the Code. If a cash payment is made in lieu of delivering shares of Stock, the amount of such payment shall be equal to the Fair Market Value of the Stock as of the date on which the Restricted Period lapsed with respect to such Vested Unit.

(e) Stock Restrictions. Each certificate representing Restricted Stock awarded under the Plan shall bear a legend substantially in the form of the following until the lapse of all restrictions with respect to such Stock as well as any other information the Company deems appropriate:

THE SHARES OF STOCK REPRESENTED BY THIS CERTIFICATE ARE SUBJECT TO RESTRICTIONS ON TRANSFER SET FORTH IN THE BROADRIDGE FINANCIAL SOLUTIONS, INC. 2007 OMNIBUS AWARD PLAN (AMENDED AND RESTATED EFFECTIVE NOVEMBER 14, 2013) AND A CERTAIN RESTRICTED STOCK AWARD AGREEMENT BETWEEN BROADRIDGE FINANCIAL SOLUTIONS, INC. AND THE REGISTERED OWNER OF THIS CERTIFICATE (OR HIS PREDECESSOR IN INTEREST). SAID PLAN IS AVAILABLE FOR INSPECTION WITHOUT CHARGE AT THE PRINCIPAL OFFICE OF BROADRIDGE FINANCIAL SOLUTIONS, INC. AND COPIES THEREOF WILL BE FURNISHED WITHOUT CHARGE TO ANY OWNER OF SAID SHARES UPON REQUEST.

Stop transfer orders shall be entered with the Company’s transfer agent and registrar against the transfer of legended securities.

 

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  10. Stock Bonus Awards; Phantom Stock Awards

The Committee may issue Stock Bonus Awards in the form of unrestricted Stock, or other Awards denominated in Stock, under the Plan to Eligible Employees, Eligible Directors and Eligible Consultants, alone or in tandem with other Awards, in such amounts and subject to such terms and conditions as the Committee shall from time to time in its sole discretion determine.

The Committee may also issue Phantom Stock Awards under the Plan to Eligible Employees, Eligible Directors and Eligible Consultants, alone or in tandem with other Awards, in such amounts and subject to such terms and conditions as the Committee shall from time to time in its sole discretion determine.

Subject to the provisions of this Plan, the Committee shall, in its sole discretion, have authority to determine the Eligible Employees, Eligible Directors and Eligible Consultants to whom, and the time or times at which, such Stock Bonus Awards and Phantom Stock Awards shall be made, the number of shares of Common Stock with respect to which such Awards are granted, and all other conditions of the Awards. The Committee may also provide for the grant or vesting of such Awards upon the completion of a specified Performance Period.

The Committee may determine that a Stock Bonus Award or Phantom Stock Award shall be a Performance Compensation Award conditioned upon the attainment of Performance Goals and subject to the provisions of Section 11 hereof.

 

  11. Performance Compensation Awards

(a) General. The Committee shall have the authority, at the time of grant of any Award described in Sections 7 through 10 (other than Options and Stock Appreciation Rights granted with an exercise price or grant price, as the case may be, equal to or greater than the Fair Market Value per share of Stock on the date of grant), to designate such Award as a Performance Compensation Award in order to qualify such Award as “performance-based compensation” under Section 162(m) of the Code. In addition, the Committee shall have the authority to make an award of a cash bonus or Phantom Stock Award to any Participant and designate such Award as a Performance Compensation Award in order to qualify such Award as “performance-based compensation” under Section 162(m).

(b) Eligibility. The Committee will, in its sole discretion, designate within the first 90 days of a Performance Period (or, if longer or shorter, within the maximum period allowed under Section 162(m) of the Code) which Participants will be eligible to receive Performance Compensation Awards in respect of such Performance Period. However, designation of a Participant eligible to receive an Award hereunder for a Performance Period shall not in any manner entitle the Participant to receive payment in respect of any Performance Compensation Award for such Performance Period. The determination as to whether or not such Participant becomes entitled to payment in respect of any Performance Compensation Award shall be decided solely in accordance with the provisions of this Section 11 . Moreover, designation of a Participant eligible to receive an Award hereunder for a particular Performance Period shall not require designation of such Participant eligible to receive an Award hereunder in any subsequent Performance Period and designation of one person as a Participant eligible to receive an Award hereunder shall not require designation of any other person as a Participant eligible to receive an Award hereunder in such period or in any other period.

 

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(c) Discretion of Committee with Respect to Performance Compensation Awards. With regard to a particular Performance Period, the Committee shall have full discretion to select the length of such Performance Period, the type(s) of Performance Compensation Awards to be issued, the Performance Criteria that will be used to establish the Performance Goal(s), the kind(s) and/or level(s) of the Performance Goals(s) that is (are) to apply to the Company and the Performance Formula. Within the first 90 days of a Performance Period (or, if longer or shorter, within the maximum period allowed under Section 162(m) of the Code), the Committee shall, with regard to the Performance Compensation Awards to be issued for such Performance Period, exercise its discretion with respect to each of the matters enumerated in the immediately preceding sentence of this Section 11(c) and record the same in writing.

(d) Payment of Performance Compensation Awards

(i) Condition to Receipt of Payment . Unless otherwise provided in the applicable Award Agreement, a Participant must be employed by the Company on the last day of a Performance Period to be eligible for payment in respect of a Performance Compensation Award for such Performance Period. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if an Award Agreement provides that a Participant will receive a Performance Compensation Award if the Participant incurs a Termination prior to the last day of the Performance Period, such Performance Compensation Award will be based on the actual achievement of the Performance Goals either through the end of the Performance Period or through the date of the Participant’s Termination, as determined by the Committee.

(ii) Limitation . A Participant shall be eligible to receive payment in respect of a Performance Compensation Award only to the extent that: (A) the Performance Goals for such period are achieved; and (B) the Performance Formula as applied against such Performance Goals determines that all or some portion of such Participant’s Performance Award has been earned for the Performance Period.

(iii) Certification . Following the completion of a Performance Period, the Committee shall review and certify in writing whether, and to what extent, the Performance Goals for the Performance Period have been achieved and, if so, calculate and certify in writing that amount of the Performance Compensation Awards earned for the period based upon the Performance Formula. The Committee shall then determine the actual size of each Participant’s Performance Compensation Award for the Performance Period and, in so doing, may apply Negative Discretion in accordance with Section 11(d)(iv) hereof, if and when it deems appropriate.

(iv) Use of Discretion . In determining the actual size of an individual Performance Award for a Performance Period, the Committee may reduce or eliminate the amount of the Performance Compensation Award earned under the Performance Formula in the Performance Period through the use of Negative Discretion if, in its sole judgment, such reduction or elimination is appropriate. The Committee shall not have the discretion to (a) grant or provide payment in respect of Performance Compensation Awards for a Performance Period if the Performance Goals for such Performance Period have not been attained; or (b) increase a Performance Compensation Award above the maximum amount payable under Sections 5(d) or 5(e) of the Plan.

 

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(v) Timing of Award Payments . Performance Compensation Awards granted for a Performance Period shall be paid to Participants as soon as administratively practicable following completion of the certifications required by this Section 11 .

 

  12. General

(a) Additional Provisions of an Award. Awards to a Participant under the Plan also may be subject to such other provisions (whether or not applicable to Awards granted to any other Participant) as the Committee determines appropriate, including, without limitation, provisions to assist the Participant in financing the purchase of Stock upon the exercise of Options (provided, that the Committee determines that providing such financing does not violate the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002), adding dividend equivalent rights or other protections to Participants in respect of dividends paid on Stock underlying any Award, other than an Appreciation Award or a Performance Compensation Award until the performance criteria have been met and the Performance Compensation Award vests (in addition to those provisions of Section 9 providing for the payment of dividends with respect to Restricted Stock and Dividend Equivalents with respect to Restricted Stock Units), provisions for the forfeiture of or restrictions on resale or other disposition of shares of Stock acquired under any Award, provisions giving the Company the right to repurchase shares of Stock acquired under any Award in the event the Participant elects to dispose of such shares, provisions allowing the Participant to elect to defer the receipt of payment in respect of Awards for a specified period or until a specified event, and provisions to comply with Federal and state securities laws and Federal and state tax withholding requirements; provided , however , that any such provision be designed in a manner intended to comply with Section 409A of the Code. Any such provisions shall be reflected in the applicable Award Agreement.

(b) Privileges of Stock Ownership. Except as otherwise specifically provided in the Plan, no person shall be entitled to the privileges of ownership in respect of shares of Stock which are subject to Awards hereunder until such shares have been issued to that person.

(c) Government and Other Regulations. The obligation of the Company to settle Awards in Stock shall be subject to all applicable laws, rules, and regulations, and to such approvals by governmental agencies as may be required. Notwithstanding any terms or conditions of any Award to the contrary, the Company shall be under no obligation to offer to sell or to sell, and shall be prohibited from offering to sell or selling, any shares of Stock pursuant to an Award unless such shares have been properly registered for sale pursuant to the Securities Act with the Securities and Exchange Commission or unless the Company has received an opinion of counsel, satisfactory to the Company, that such shares may be offered or sold without such registration pursuant to an available exemption therefrom and the terms and conditions of such exemption have been fully complied with. The Company shall be under no obligation to register for sale under the Securities Act any of the shares of Stock to be offered or sold under the Plan. If the shares of Stock offered for sale or sold under the Plan are offered or sold pursuant to an exemption from registration under the Securities Act, the Company may restrict the transfer of such shares and may legend the Stock certificates representing such shares in such manner as it deems advisable to ensure the availability of any such exemption.

 

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(d) Tax Withholding.

(i) A Participant may be required to pay to the Company or any Affiliate, and the Company or any Affiliate shall have the right and is hereby authorized to withhold from any shares of Stock or other property deliverable under any Award or from any compensation or other amounts owing to a Participant, the amount (in cash, Stock or other property) of any required income tax withholding and payroll taxes in respect of an Award, its exercise, or any payment or transfer under an Award or under the Plan and to take such other action as may be necessary in the opinion of the Company to satisfy all obligations for the payment of such withholding and taxes.

(ii) Without limiting the generality of clause (i) above, the Committee may, in its sole discretion, permit a Participant to satisfy, in whole or in part, the foregoing withholding liability (but no more than the minimum required withholding liability) by having the Company withhold from the number of shares of Stock otherwise issuable pursuant to the exercise or settlement of the Award a number of shares with a Fair Market Value equal to such withholding liability (but no more than the minimum required withholding liability).

(e) Section 409A. Awards under the Plan are intended to comply with, or be exempt from, the applicable requirements of Section 409A of the Code and shall be limited, construed and interpreted in accordance with such intent. Although the Company does not guarantee any particular tax treatment, to the extent that any Award is subject to Section 409A of the Code, it shall be paid in a manner that is intended to comply with Section 409A of the Code, including regulations and any other guidance issued by the Secretary of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service with respect thereto. In no event whatsoever shall the Company be liable for any additional tax, interest or penalties that may be imposed on the Participant by Section 409A of the Code or any damages for failing to comply with Section 409A of the Code.

(f) No Guarantee of Tax Treatment. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, a Participant shall be solely responsible for the taxes relating to the grant or vesting of, or payment pursuant to, any Award, and none of the Company, the Board or the Committee (or any of their respective members, officers or employees) guarantees any particular tax treatment with respect to any Award.

(g) Claim to Awards and Employment Rights. No employee of the Company or an Affiliate, or other person, shall have any claim or right to be granted an Award under the Plan or, having been selected for the grant of an Award, to be selected for a grant of any other Award. Neither the Plan nor any action taken hereunder shall be construed as giving any Participant any right to be retained in the employ or service of the Company or an Affiliate.

(h) Designation and Change of Beneficiary. Each Participant may file with the Committee a written designation of one or more persons as the beneficiary who shall be entitled to receive the amounts payable with respect to an Award, if any, due under the Plan upon his death. A Participant may, from time to time, revoke or change his beneficiary designation without the consent of any prior beneficiary by filing a new designation with the Committee. The last such designation received by the Committee shall be controlling; provided , however , that no designation, or change or revocation thereof, shall be effective unless received by the Committee

 

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prior to the Participant’s death, and in no event shall it be effective as of a date prior to such receipt. If no beneficiary designation is filed by a Participant, the beneficiary shall be deemed to be his or her spouse or, if the Participant is unmarried at the time of death, his or her estate.

(i) Payments to Persons Other Than Participants. If the Committee shall find that any person to whom any amount is payable under the Plan is unable to care for his affairs because of illness or accident, or is a minor, or has died, then any payment due to such person or his estate (unless a prior claim therefor has been made by a duly appointed legal representative) may, if the Committee so directs the Company, be paid to his spouse, child, relative, an institution maintaining or having custody of such person, or any other person deemed by the Committee to be a proper recipient on behalf of such person otherwise entitled to payment. Any such payment shall be a complete discharge of the liability of the Committee and the Company therefor.

(j) No Liability of Committee Members. No member of the Committee shall be personally liable by reason of any contract or other instrument executed by such member or on his behalf in his capacity as a member of the Committee nor for any mistake of judgment made in good faith, and the Company shall indemnify and hold harmless each member of the Committee and each other employee, officer or director of the Company to whom any duty or power relating to the administration or interpretation of the Plan may be allocated or delegated, against any cost or expense (including counsel fees) or liability (including any sum paid in settlement of a claim) arising out of any act or omission to act in connection with the Plan unless arising out of such person’s own fraud or willful bad faith; provided , however , that approval of the Board shall be required for the payment of any amount in settlement of a claim against any such person. The foregoing right of indemnification shall not be exclusive of any other rights of indemnification to which such persons may be entitled under the Company’s Articles of Incorporation or By-Laws, as a matter of law, or otherwise, or any power that the Company may have to indemnify them or hold them harmless.

(k) Governing Law. The Plan shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the internal laws of the State of Delaware applicable to contracts made and performed wholly within the State of Delaware.

(l) Funding. No provision of the Plan shall require the Company, for the purpose of satisfying any obligations under the Plan, to purchase assets or place any assets in a trust or other entity to which contributions are made or otherwise to segregate any assets, nor shall the Company maintain separate bank accounts, books, records or other evidence of the existence of a segregated or separately maintained or administered fund for such purposes. Participants shall have no rights under the Plan other than as unsecured general creditors of the Company, except that insofar as they may have become entitled to payment of additional compensation by performance of services, they shall have the same rights as other employees under general law.

(m) Nontransferability.

(i) Each Award shall be exercisable only by a Participant during the Participant’s lifetime, or, if permissible under applicable law, by the Participant’s legal guardian or representative. No Award may be assigned, alienated, pledged, attached, sold or otherwise transferred or

 

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encumbered by a Participant other than by will or by the laws of descent and distribution and any such purported assignment, alienation, pledge, attachment, sale, transfer or encumbrance shall be void and unenforceable against the Company or an Affiliate; provided that the designation of a beneficiary shall not constitute an assignment, alienation, pledge, attachment, sale, transfer or encumbrance.

(ii) Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Committee may, in its sole discretion, permit Awards other than Incentive Stock Options to be transferred by a Participant, without consideration, subject to such rules as the Committee may adopt consistent with any applicable Award Agreement to preserve the purposes of the Plan, to:

(A) any person who is a “family member” of the Participant, as such term is used in the instructions to Form S-8 (collectively, the “Immediate Family Members”);

(B) a trust solely for the benefit of the Participant and his or her Immediate Family Members;

(C) a partnership or limited liability company whose only partners or stockholders are the Participant and his or her Immediate Family Members; or

(D) any other transferee as may be approved either (a) by the Board or the Committee in its sole discretion, or (b) as provided in the applicable Award Agreement;

(each transferee described in clauses (A), (B), (C) and (D) above is hereinafter referred to as a “Permitted Transferee”); provided that the Participant gives the Committee advance written notice describing the terms and conditions of the proposed transfer and the Committee notifies the Participant in writing that such a transfer would comply with the requirements of the Plan.

(iii) The terms of any Award transferred in accordance with the immediately preceding sentence shall apply to the Permitted Transferee and any reference in the Plan, or in any applicable Award Agreement, to a Participant shall be deemed to refer to the Permitted Transferee, except that (A) Permitted Transferees shall not be entitled to transfer any Award, other than by will or the laws of descent and distribution; (B) Permitted Transferees shall not be entitled to exercise any transferred Option unless there shall be in effect a registration statement on an appropriate form covering the shares of Stock to be acquired pursuant to the exercise of such Option if the Committee determines, consistent with any applicable Award Agreement, that such a registration statement is necessary or appropriate, (C) the Committee or the Company shall not be required to provide any notice to a Permitted Transferee, whether or not such notice is or would otherwise have been required to be given to the Participant under the Plan or otherwise, and (D) the consequences of the Termination of the Participant’s employment by, or services to, the Company or an Affiliate under the terms of the Plan and the applicable Award Agreement shall continue to be applied with respect to the Participant, including, without limitation, that an Option shall be exercisable by the Permitted Transferee only to the extent, and for the periods, specified in the Plan and the applicable Award Agreement.

(n) Reliance on Reports. Each member of the Committee and each member of the Board shall be fully justified in acting or failing to act, as the case may be, and shall not be liable for having so acted or failed to act in good faith, in reliance upon any report made by the independent public accountant of the Company and its Affiliates and/or any other information furnished in connection with the Plan by any person or persons other than himself.

 

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(o) Relationship to Other Benefits. No payment under the Plan shall be taken into account in determining any benefits under any pension, retirement, profit sharing, group insurance or other benefit plan of the Company except as otherwise specifically provided in such other plan.

(p) Expenses. The expenses of administering the Plan shall be borne by the Company and Affiliates.

(q) Pronouns. Masculine pronouns and other words of masculine gender shall refer to both men and women.

(r) Titles and Headings. The titles and headings of the sections in the Plan are for convenience of reference only, and in the event of any conflict, the text of the Plan, rather than such titles or headings shall control.

(s) Termination of Employment or Service. Unless an applicable Award Agreement provides otherwise, for purposes of the Plan, a person who transfers from employment or service with the Company to employment or service with an Affiliate or vice versa shall not be deemed to have terminated employment or service with the Company or an Affiliate.

(t) Severability. If any provision of the Plan or any Award Agreement is or becomes or is deemed to be invalid, illegal, or unenforceable in any jurisdiction or as to any person or Award, or would disqualify the Plan or any Award under any law deemed applicable by the Committee, such provision shall be construed or deemed amended to conform to the applicable laws, or if it cannot be construed or deemed amended without, in the determination of the Committee, materially altering the intent of the Plan or the Award, such provision shall be stricken as to such jurisdiction, person or Award and the remainder of the Plan and any such Award shall remain in full force and effect.

(u) Compliance with Applicable Law. Notwithstanding any provision in the Plan to the contrary, the Committee reserves the right to add any additional terms or provisions to any Award granted under the Plan that it in its sole discretion deems necessary or advisable in order that such Award complies with the legal requirements of any governmental entity to whose jurisdiction the Award is subject.

(v) No Dividends or Dividend Equivalents on Unvested Performance Awards. Notwithstanding any provision of the Plan to the contrary, no dividends or dividend equivalents shall be paid with respect to Awards that vest contingent on achievement of performance conditions prior to the vesting of such Awards.

 

  13. Changes in Capital Structure

Awards granted under the Plan and any agreements evidencing such Awards, the maximum number of shares of Stock subject to all Awards stated in Section 5(a) and the maximum number of shares of Stock with respect to which any one person may be granted Awards during

 

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any period stated in Sections 5(d) or 5(e) shall be subject to adjustment or substitution, in the manner determined by the Committee in its sole discretion, as to the number, price or kind of a share of Stock or other consideration subject to such Awards or as otherwise determined by the Committee to be equitable (i) in the event of changes in the outstanding Stock or in the capital structure of the Company by reason of stock or extraordinary cash dividends, stock splits, reverse stock splits, recapitalization, reorganizations, mergers, consolidations, combinations, exchanges, or other relevant changes in capitalization occurring after the Date of Grant of any such Award or (ii) in the event of any change in applicable laws or any change in circumstances which results in or would result in any substantial dilution or enlargement of the rights granted to, or available for, Participants, or which otherwise warrants equitable adjustment because it interferes with the intended operation of the Plan. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, in the case of any event which affects the Stock and is considered an “equity restructuring” for purposes of the applicable accounting rules, the Committee shall make an adjustment to outstanding Awards in the manner described in the preceding sentence, and such adjustment shall be such that the benefits conferred upon Participant by outstanding Awards are intended to be neither increased nor decreased. Any adjustment in Incentive Stock Options under this Section 13 shall be made only to the extent not constituting a “modification” within the meaning of Section 424(h)(3) of the Code, Treasury Regulation § 1.424-1(a) or Section 409A of the Code, and any adjustments under this Section 13 shall be made in a manner which does not adversely affect the exemption provided pursuant to Rule 16b-3 under the Exchange Act. Further, with respect to Awards intended to qualify as “performance-based compensation” under Section 162(m) of the Code, such adjustments or substitutions shall be made only to the extent that the Committee determines that such adjustments or substitutions may be made without causing the Company to be denied a tax deduction on account of Section 162(m) of the Code. The Company shall give each Participant notice of an adjustment hereunder and, upon notice, such adjustment shall be conclusive and binding for all purposes.

Fractional shares of Common Stock resulting from any adjustment in Awards provided herein shall be aggregated until a fractional share remains, in which case such fractional share shall be payable in cash.

Notwithstanding the above, in the event of any of the following:

(a) The Company is merged or consolidated with another corporation or entity and, in connection therewith, consideration is received by stockholders of the Company in a form other than stock or other equity interests of the surviving entity;

(b) All or substantially all of the assets of the Company are acquired by another person;

(c) The reorganization or liquidation of the Company; or

(d) The Company shall enter into a written agreement to undergo an event described in clauses a, b or c above,

then the Committee may, in its discretion (i) upon at least 10 days advance notice to the affected persons, cancel any outstanding Awards and cause the holders thereof to be paid, in cash or

 

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stock, or any combination thereof, the value of such Awards based upon the price per share of Stock received or to be received by other stockholders of the Company in the event, including, without limitation, the cancellation of any Award without payment to the Participant, if the value of the Common Stock underlying such Award at the time of such event is less than the Fair Market Value of such Award on the Grant Date; or (ii) continue, assume or substitute any outstanding Award (or portion thereof) without a Participant’s consent, provided that any such assumption or substitution of a Stock Option or Stock Appreciation Right shall be structured in a manner intended to comply with Section 409A of the Code and the regulations thereunder. The terms of this Section 13 may be varied by the Committee in any particular Award Agreement.

The existence of this Plan and the Awards granted hereunder shall not affect in any way the right or power of the Board or the stockholders of the Company to make or authorize (i) any adjustment, recapitalization, reorganization or other change in the Company’s capital structure or its business, (ii) any merger or consolidation of the Company or its Affiliates, (iii) any issuance of bonds, debentures, preferred or prior preference stock ahead of or affecting the Common Stock, (iv) the dissolution or liquidation of the Company or its Affiliates, (v) any sale or transfer of all or part of the assets or business of the Company or its Affiliates or (vi) any other corporate act or proceeding.

 

  14. Effect of Change in Control

(a) The Committee may, but is not required to, provide in any particular Award Agreement:

(i) In the event of a Change in Control, notwithstanding any provision of the Plan or any applicable Award Agreement to the contrary, and either in or not in combination with another event such as a Termination of the applicable Participant by the Company without Cause, all Options and SARs subject to such Award shall become immediately exercisable with respect to 100 percent of the shares subject to such Option or SAR, and/or that the Restricted Period shall expire immediately with respect to 100 percent of such shares of Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units subject to such Award (including a waiver of any applicable Performance Goals) and, to the extent practicable, such acceleration of exercisability and expiration of the Restricted Period (as applicable) shall occur in a manner and at a time which allows affected Participants the ability to participate in the Change in Control transaction with respect to the Stock subject to their Awards.

(ii) In the event of a Change in Control, all incomplete Performance Periods in respect of such Award in effect on the date the Change in Control occurs shall end on the date of such change, and the Committee shall (A) determine the extent to which Performance Goals with respect to each such Award Period have been met based upon such audited or unaudited financial information then available as it deems relevant, (B) cause to be paid to the applicable Participant partial or full Awards with respect to Performance Goals for each such Award Period based upon the Participant’s actual attainment of Performance Goals, and (C) cause the Award, if previously deferred, to be settled in full as soon as possible in a manner that complies with Section 409A of the Code.

 

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(b) In addition, in the event of a Change in Control, the Committee may in its discretion and upon at least 10 days’ advance notice to the affected persons, cancel any outstanding Awards and pay to the holders thereof, in cash or stock, or any combination thereof, the value of such Awards based upon the price per share of Stock received or to be received by other stockholders of the Company in the event; provided , however , that the Committee may, in its sole discretion, provide for the cancellation of any Awards without payment, if such price is less than the Fair Market Value of such Award on the date of grant. The obligations of the Company under the Plan shall be binding upon any successor corporation or organization resulting from the merger, consolidation or other reorganization of the Company, or upon any successor corporation or organization succeeding to substantially all of the assets and business of the Company. The Company agrees that it will make appropriate provisions for the preservation of Participants’ rights under the Plan in any agreement or plan which it may enter into or adopt to effect any such merger, consolidation, reorganization or transfer of assets.

 

  15. Nonexclusivity of the Plan

Neither the adoption of this Plan by the Board nor the submission of this Plan to the stockholders of the Company for approval shall be construed as creating any limitations on the power of the Board to adopt such other incentive arrangements as it may deem desirable, including, without limitation, the granting of stock options otherwise than under this Plan, and such arrangements may be either applicable generally or only in specific cases.

 

  16. Amendments and Termination

(a) Amendment of the Plan. The Board may amend, alter, suspend, discontinue, or terminate the Plan or any portion thereof at any time; provided , that any such amendment, alteration, suspension, discontinuance or termination that would impair the rights of any Participant or any holder or beneficiary of any Award theretofore granted shall not to that extent be effective without the consent of the affected Participant, holder or beneficiary; and provided , further that no such amendment, alteration, suspension, discontinuation or termination shall be made without stockholder approval if such approval is necessary to comply with any tax or regulatory requirement applicable to the Plan (including as necessary to comply with any applicable stock exchange listing requirement, Rule 16b-3 under the Exchange Act or to the extent applicable to Incentive Stock Options, Section 422 of the Code or to prevent the Company from being denied a tax deduction on account of Section 162(m) of the Code) that would (i) increase the aggregate number of shares of Common Stock that may be issued under this Plan under Section 5 or the maximum individual Participant limitations in Sections 5(d) and 5(e) (except, in each case, by operation of Section 13 ); (ii) change the classification of Participants eligible to receive Awards under this Plan; or (iii) materially alter the Performance Criteria.

(b) Termination of the Plan. The expiration date of the Plan, on and after which no Awards may be granted hereunder, shall be August 1, 2023; provided , however , that the administration of the Plan shall continue in effect until all matters relating to Awards previously granted have been settled. Notwithstanding the foregoing, no Award (other than a Stock Option or Stock Appreciation Right) that is intended to be “performance-based” under Section 162(m) of the Code shall be granted on or after the fifth anniversary of the stockholder approval of the Plan unless the Performance Goals are reapproved (or other designated performance goals are approved) by the stockholders no later than the first stockholder meeting that occurs in the fifth year following the year in which stockholders approve the Performance Goals.

 

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(c) Amendment of Award Agreements. The Committee may, to the extent consistent with the terms of any applicable Award Agreement and the Plan, waive any conditions or rights under, amend any terms of, or alter, suspend, discontinue, cancel or terminate, any Award theretofore granted or the associated Award Agreement, prospectively or retroactively; provided that any such waiver, amendment, alteration, suspension, discontinuance, cancellation or termination that would impair the rights of any Participant or any holder or beneficiary of any Award theretofore granted shall not to that extent be effective without the consent of the affected Participant, holder or beneficiary; and provided further that, without stockholder approval (i) no amendment or modification may reduce the Option Price of any Option or the Strike Price of any SAR or extend the maximum Option Period under Section 7(c) ; (ii) the Committee may not cancel, exchange or surrender any outstanding Option or SAR and replace it with cash, other Awards, or a new Option or SAR with a lower Option Price or Strike Price, as the case may be, in a manner which would either (A) (if the Company is subject to the reporting requirement of the Exchange Act) be reportable on the Company’s proxy statement as Options which have been “repriced” (as such term is used in Item 402 of Regulation S-K promulgated under the Exchange Act), or (B) result in any Option being accounted for under the “variable” method for financial statement reporting purposes; and (iii) the Committee may not take any other action which is considered a “repricing” for purposes of the stockholder approval rules of the applicable stock exchange on which the Stock is listed, if any, except that, in each case of (i), (ii) and (iii) adjustments or substitutions in accordance with Section 13 and Section 14 may be made.

* * *

As adopted by the Board of Directors of

BROADRIDGE FINANCIAL SOLUTIONS, INC.

at a meeting held on November 14, 2013.

 

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Exhibit 99.1

Broadridge

November 14, 2013

10:00 AM ET

 

Les Brun:    Good morning, everyone, and welcome to Broadridge’s 2013 Annual Meeting. My name is Les Brun and I have the privilege of serving your Board as its Chair and serving you, our shareholders.
   This is Broadridge’s fifth completely virtual meeting of shareholders. Validated shareholders can vote and submit questions in real time. And this format, by the way, has increased shareholder access, participation and voting.
   If I might introduce to you our — or your slate of nominees for Director, my colleagues. To the very far right of me is Mr. Bob Duelks. To Bob’s left is Mr. Rich Haviland, then Sandra Jaffee, myself, Mr. Daly; and Stuart Levine, Maura Markus, Tom Perna and Alan Weber. They have served us well over the course of their years of service and we hope that you find them electable again this year.
   Let me also introduce as well the slate of our auditors, if I might, our representatives from Deloitte & Touche. We have Mike Angelaras, Linda Hellstrom and Jeffrey Kottkamp here with us. And as well, we have Jon Mark from Cahill Gordon, our law firm.
   I will now turn it over to Adam Amsterdam, who many of you know, to conduct the business aspects of the meeting.
Adam Amsterdam:    Thanks, Les.
   Proof of notice of the meeting will be filed with the minutes. The tabulators provided me with a report indicating that over 91% of our shares are present by proxy at this meeting so that I can certify that a quorum exists. The Company has appointed Tom Tighe as our Inspector of Election.
   All Broadridge stockholders entitled to vote at this meeting have the ability to do so online, as well as the ability to submit questions in real time online or over the phone by dialing 1-888-437-2685. You’ll provide your 12-digit control number that was included with your notice of the meeting and your materials. If you’re a stockholder entitled to vote and have not yet voted, or you want to change a previously cast vote, you can do so now via the website.
   The proposals being considered today are explained in full detail in our proxy statement and that was distributed to all stockholders who are entitled to vote. The polls will remain open until the conclusion of the question-and-answer session following Rich Daly’s remarks.


   In proposal number one the Board is proposing nine nominees for election as Directors.
   In proposal number two the Board is proposing the ratification of the appointment of Deloitte & Touche to serve as Broadridge’s independent auditor for the fiscal year that began July 1, 2013.
   In proposal number three the Board is proposing the approval of the amendment and restatement of the Company’s 2007 Omnibus Award Plan.
   And in proposal number four, the Board is seeking advisory approval of the compensation for the corporate officers named in our proxy statement.
   Our Board recommends that stockholders vote for each of these proposals.
   Now I’ll turn the meeting over to our CEO, Rich Daly.
Rich Daly:    Thanks, Adam.
   Good morning, everyone. I’d also like to welcome you to Broadridge’s 2013 Annual Meeting. This is our fifth virtual-only annual meeting. As Les said, we’re pleased that so many more people can participate. We’re also pleased to showcase one of our many issuer services products.
   I’m going to start today with some financial highlights from fiscal year 2013.
   Total revenue grew 6% to over $2.4 billion. Non-GAAP earnings per share increased 11% to $236 million. We had record non-GAAP EPS of $1.88 per share. We also had record recurring revenue of closed sales of $121 million.
   Broadridge returned over $300 million to stockholders in the form of cash dividends and share repurchases in fiscal year 2013. We also increased our annual dividend 17% this past August to $0.84 per share. That’s the sixth year and every year since we’ve spun that we’ve increased our dividend.
   What I’d like to do now is share some of the progress we made this past year in our clear and executable strategy. When you think about Broadridge, you can think that our products align really in three key strategic themes. They are cost mutualization, digital communications and intelligence from data.
   Let’s start with cost mutualization. Cost mutualization is now the new upscale term of what used to be called outsourcing. And in Broadridge, we’ve been in the outsourcing or cost mutualization business a very long time and long before either of those terms became popular.
   I want to highlight two significant activities that transpired last year. The first is the strategic alliance we entered into with Accenture. Jointly, we’ve created the Accenture Post-Trade Processing Solution. That solution includes Broadridge’s technology as the exclusive technology provider for clearance and trade settlement activities. The alliance is targeting the European, Asian, Middle Eastern and Australian marketplaces.
   We’re very pleased that Societe Generale has signed to be the first client last year. And within the last month Societe Generale has transferred their associates over to Accenture. During calendar years 2014 and 2015 Broadridge will be converting with Accenture the technology onto our platform; first for London in 2014 and then for Paris in 2015. It’s also interesting to note that Societe Generale was a US outsourcing client for Broadridge prior to entering into this transaction. Another notable name that joined our long list of outsourcing clients last year and went live was Bloomberg Tradebook, also a Tiffany name.


   Let me move now to digital communications. It’s very interesting that our industry still spends over $20 billion in paper and postage communicating with their customers and investors. By industry I mean brokerage firms, mutual funds and annuity providers. At Broadridge we’ve already proven that we can be a leader in converting paper communications to digital solutions because we’ve already eliminated over 60% of the paper in the proxy process. We’re taking those same skills and technology focus and we’re now going to attack the next $2 billion to $3 billion of activity, primarily related to brokerage statements, confirms and prospectuses.
   We’ve branded an overall suite of digital solutions which we call Fluent and we’re very, very pleased that one of the largest top global investment banks has signed up with us to roll out our complete suite of Fluent solutions to attack their statement, confirms and prospectuses; not to just take out costs, but to provide those customers a better interactive solution with better content than they can get from a paper solution.
   The last item I want to talk about most people refer to as Big Data and we’re calling it Intelligence From Data. First of all, helping our clients understand data better is not new to Broadridge and we’re already approaching $50 million a year in revenue from data-related activities. I’ll just add one note of an item we added last year, which is Broadridge, in conjunction with PWC launched what we’re calling the Proxy Pulse Report. That report provides insight into voting trends. That is very, very useful information to management, boards and institutional investors.
   Let me move on to talk a little bit about our values and beliefs at Broadridge. We believe doing the right thing is good business. And the foundation for our values and beliefs in a business philosophy is the service profit chain. The service profit chain in its simplest form reads as follows. Every company wants to have steady, growing profits and the service profit chain recognizes the only way to do that over a sustainable period of time is to have generally either meet the customer expectations, but normally exceed those expectations. Every business wants to do that.
   The service profit chain takes it one step further, which recognizes the only way to exceed expectations, or at least meet them, over a sustainable period of time is to have the best and highest engaged associates in your space. So, we remain very focused on associate engagement and are at all-time highs of associate engagement and client satisfaction. Let me give you one real tangible example of that in action.
   Last year the East Coast in the US was hit by Super Storm Sandy and it caused significant disruption to many personal households, personal property, business property and business interruption. During that period of time our markets were shut down. But we made it very clear to all regulators and all markets that Broadridge was ready for business. Alright? It wasn’t by accident and it wasn’t a coincidence. Our detailed business continuity plans, led by our highly-engaged associates, anticipated, not this particular storm, but disruptive activity.
   So our associates, just like many other businesses, lost power in their homes, couldn’t get gas in their cars, alright, and couldn’t make it to work. But long before the storm we had a continuity plan that we put into action prior to the storm so associates that were needed to perform functions left the area before the storm hit and were in a position for business as usual. And let me tell you how it was business as usual. At Broadridge, when the markets opened, and even if they had opened on time, we were positioned to process every trade, every confirm, every prospectus, every proxy and every proxy vote in a business-as-usual position and that’s what our clients received.


   At Broadridge, one other piece on values and beliefs. Diversity we believe is very real and a real business requirement. We want Broadridge to reflect the diverse markets we serve in the people that lead Broadridge. That’s why I’m so pleased to report that Broadridge received a 100 rating on the Corporate Equality Index from the Human Rights Campaign.
   I’m going to provide a very few brief comments on our first quarter. We were very pleased with our first quarter results. Total revenue grew 10% to $545 million. Non-GAAP earnings increased 116% to $48 million. If you’d like to hear all of my comments and our CFO’s comments from the first quarter, please visit our website at broadridge.com; and not only can you hear the first quarter call, but you can also get access to our Annual Report, my Shareholder Letter where I go into the strategy, our values and beliefs, in far more detail for you to review at your leisure.
   Now, as CEO I certainly hope you’re pleased with our performance this past year. I will tell you that we’re proud of the results that we were able to create and the sustainability that we had, not only through the financial crisis, but the opportunities and the shareholder value we have created since the spin. We now believe we’re on a clear journey to achieve top quartile shareholder returns on a sustainable basis.
   I’m now going to open the call to Q&A. Let me go through some of the procedures. You can ask questions during the meeting by clicking the Ask a Question button on your screen or by calling. And I’ll repeat the number Adam gave to you earlier. 1-888-437-2685. If for some reason time doesn’t allow us or if a follow-up is required, we will respond to your questions as soon as possible on our website, but no later than November 20th.
   Let me give you the order in which we’re going to answer questions. First we’re going to answer questions submitted online before the meeting through our stockholder forum. Then we’ll answer questions submitted live from the internet during the meeting. And finally, we’ll answer questions from the phone. After the Q&A I’ll close the polls and then we’ll bring Adam back up to report the results.
   Alright, let’s begin. These are, again, from the shareholder forum. I will play emcee here. I will read the question. If I am the most appropriate to answer it, I will. Otherwise, I’ll give it to the applicable Director.
   Question one: Broadridge has such as obvious advantage with regard to the ability to hold shareholder forums limited to shareholders. What steps will our company take to do a better job of integrating information streams and other social media type features into the forums? At least on Yahoo I can also find SEC documents, financials, who major shareholders are, etc. On Google I can share thoughts and documents. Let’s either put some effort into forums or drop them.
   Well first, thank you for the question. Let me give you a couple of comments on that. I think I’m the one most applicable to answer this question.
   Our shareholder forum, as you’ve implied, is the only forum where only validated shareholders can participate. That’s a critical aspect and that’s what makes our forum, we believe, more relevant when it comes to these activities, particularly for boards and investors than any other forum out there. Again, only a validated shareholder can participate and you don’t have the ability to represent something that you’re not.


   Because of the unique position we’re in, let’s remember how we got there. It’s in the role we play as an agent to brokers and banks. And it’s also as a role when we’re hosting this for a corporation, being engaged by them to perform this service. So, Broadridge can only provide services at the level that our broker and bank clients agree to let us provide, as well as the issuer who’s using this technology for the meeting. So, this is not a Broadridge decision.
   Broadridge has implemented many of the things you’re talking about, including we’ve already proven that we can hold an interactive investor forum with validated shareholders. But in order for that to take place going forward, we would need our banker and broker clients to agree to allow us to do that.
   In terms of bringing new technologies in, as I said actually in my opening comments, Broadridge is a leader in digital technologies and we clearly will continue to roll out more digital capabilities as we go forward.
   Next question: How is the transfer agent business doing?
   I’m very, very pleased to report that the transfer agent business is progressing very well. Companies look to Broadridge, first of all, for a single solution for all of their shareholder communications because I think Broadridge has a differentiated model that recognizes companies care about all shareholders and really don’t care whether the shareholder has their stock in registered form or in street format.
   We’ve added some meaningful names since acquiring our very small transfer agency. This year we were particularly pleased to add Disney to the list. Disney was a company that had never outsourced the stock transfer functions. We believe they were the largest in-house equity transfer agent. Disney could not find a transfer agent previously that met their requirement, because Disney also recognizes that their shareholders are also very, very important customers. So, we were very pleased to work with Disney. And we’re actually working with Disney on utilizing technologies like Facebook and other activities to integrate into the process to create a more engaging experience for shareholders.
   Some other meaningful names that we’ve added since we’ve become a transfer agent are Chubb, CSX, Tyco and the Green Bay Packers.
   Since getting into this business we have added several shareholders to the base. We started with about 40 million shareholders. Let me get my numbers right here. I apologize. We started with about 70,000 shareholder records and we’re up to 2.5 million records. So, we’re very, very pleased with the growth of this business.
   I’m now going to move on to the next question.
   Reading the proxy, I can’t tell; do unvested equity awards lapse if the CEO’s employment is terminated?
   Gee, that’s a question I don’t particularly look forward to happening. Alright, Alan Weber, who’s the Chair of our Comp Committee, we believe is best suited to answer this question. Alan?
Alan Weber:    Thank you, Rich.
   The treatment of Mr. Daly’s equity awards upon termination of employment would depend on the reason for termination. If the termination is classified without cause, his equity would continue to vest for 24 months. If Mr. Daly is terminated for cause, his equity awards would lapse upon his termination.


   In addition, Broadridge Change and Control Severance Plan provides for accelerated vesting of equity awards under certain circumstances for corporate officers upon a termination of employment that occurs after a change in control.
Rich Daly:    Thanks, Alan.
   Next question: Does Broadridge only pay long-term incentives to the CEO for above median performance against the peer group? Alan, you’re back on.
Alan Weber:    Mr. Daly’s long-term incentive compensation targets are set by the Compensation Committee after review of a peer group market analysis that’s completed by the Committee’s independent compensation consultant.
   Mr. Daly receives two forms of long-term incentives, performance-based restricted stock units and stock options. These serve to ensure that his pay is tied to company performance and is aligned with stockholder interests. His 2013 long-term incentive targets were set below the median of Broadridge’s proxy statement peer group. Mr. Daly’s business performance targets, an example of which would be earnings per share, are correspondingly set by the Compensation Committee and the Board.
Rich Daly:    Thank you.
   Next question: Has the Board considered getting rid of Broadridge’s super majority requirements or the lack of ability for shareholders to call a special meeting or act by written consent?
   That’s a clear governance question. Stuart Levine, Chair of our Governance Committee.
Stuart Levine:    Thanks, Rich.
   The question from the shareholder is interesting. And from a historical point of view, that question relates to the spin and when we were formed as a company. The majority requirements were established as our fundamental provisions and we are highly focused on staying current and, in fact, providing leadership in governance areas. We have not really sought to change those principles. But from a shareholder point of view, we are assessed on an annual basis by proxy advisory firms. And when they look at the totality of Broadridge the corporation, we get very good scores on risk in the governance area. In fact, we’re rated very low risk in our profile on governance in our practices.
Rich Daly:    Thanks, Stuart.
   The proxy voting manager of a mutual fund told me Broadridge has no minorities on its Board. True? If so, are there no viable candidates? I could recommend some.
   Our Chair, Les Brun, is best equipped to answer this.
Les Brun:    I think a simple observation of the Board’s composition and picture before you would answer the question. But having said that, as Mr. Daly said in his comments, diversity is an important part of Broadridge’s business activities and is a business imperative. As Rich had noted, we’ve received a 100 rating from the National Corporate Equality folks. And certainly at the Board level, which the question speaks to, it’s equally important that we have a diversity of opinion on the Board to inform the decision making of the Board with respect to strategy and being additive to the business overall.


   We think about this quite a bit. We are very, very proactive in making sure that the Board’s composition is as representative of the community that we serve as is possible and we’ll continue to maintain those initiatives.
Rich Daly:    Thanks, Les.
   Alright. Now we’re going to go — if there were any questions that were submitted during the meeting online. We’re just queuing it up. Here we go.
   First question that was submitted during the meeting. With regards to employee stock options I have always supported incentives, but feel all stock option awards, 75%, should be held until two years after retirement. With risk and rewards associated, is it logical? Will Broadridge lead the way?
   Alan, I guess as Chair of the Comp Committee we’re going to put you back on here.
Alan Weber:    Well, as I mentioned previously, we have two types of main incentives, restricted stock and stock options. The stock options all have appropriate vesting periods attached to them and they will continue to.
Rich Daly:    Thank you.
   Next question: What do you feel were the key reasons why the PFAC proposal was approved by the SEC? I’ll certainly take that question.
   The SEC’s job is to protect investors. Several years ago they requested that we consider ways to increase investor participation in the voting process. The clear answer to that, and from our point of view, most industry issues are to get the right technology involved. So, we built and created what we call our Investor Mailbox product, alright? And we demoed it to the SEC and showed in the beta clients that we went live with voting percentages went up somewhere between generally 50% and 400% in retail investor participation. That was a pretty stunning increase. They liked the technology.
   Then it goes through the normal process. The New York Stock Exchange formed the PFAC Committee. The SEC encouraged the PFAC Committee to include in recommendations an Investor Mailbox type proposal. The terminology used by the stock exchange in the SEC as EBIP, or Enhanced Broker Internet Platform.
   So, we are very pleased that the SEC recognized the benefits of technology. We’re very pleased that we were able to work with both them and the New York Stock Exchange and the SEC. And right now we have 16 firms that are live with our Investor Mailbox product, which is the equivalent of an EBIP type product, and eight in the process of being implemented.
   With the SEC now encouraging brokers to implement this technology, and in addition to which recognizing that there are costs and providing broker’s incentive fees to get this activity done, we’re optimistic that the adoption rate of our Investor Mailbox product is going to increase significantly. Thank you.
   Next question. Alright, I show we have no more questions, but we have two callers on the line. If we could connect with the first caller.
   How about the second caller?
   They’re not on the line?


   Okay. You know what I’m going to do? I’m going to ask if someone did try to get in and for some reason either disconnected as we were going through the other questions, or for whatever reason is not connected, I’m going to just provide another minute or so to allow you to reconnect. We certainly want everyone who wants to participate to have the opportunity to participate.
   While we’re waiting, I’m going to make my concluding remarks before I would turn it over to Adam.
   For me it’s been a real privilege to serve as the CEO of Broadridge and it’s something I’m very proud of. I’m also proud of what we accomplish. But on behalf of the entire management team and leadership team at Broadridge, I want to make everyone aware that we believe that the effort that we expended to achieve the results we have is in the past. And going forward, alright, we intend to provide that same effort and that same leadership to take Broadridge to new heights, particularly with the use of technology.
   So again, thank you for your interest and ownership of Broadridge and we look forward to communicating with you in the future.
   We still don’t have anyone coming back in on the phones, so at this time I’m going to close the polls and turn the meeting back to Adam Amsterdam.
Adam Amsterdam:    Thank you, Rich.
   The Inspector of Election has presented me with the report covering votes received for and against each of the proposals in our proxy. I’m happy to report that all of our Director nominees have been elected and each of the other proposals have passed. The complete voting results will be contained in a Form 8-K that will be filed with the SEC within four days following the meeting. The 8-K will be available on our website probably after we’ve filed it.
   Now the business and procedural aspects of the meeting are concluded, so Les, I’ll turn the meeting back over to you.
Les Brun:    Thank you, Adam.
   Given that there is no further business, I will declare this meeting adjourned. Thank you all for participating.