Angi Inc

We report Adjusted EBITDA as a supplemental measure to U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”). This measure is considered our primary segment measure of profitability and one of the metrics by which we evaluate the performance of our businesses, and on which our internal budgets are based and may also impact management compensation. We believe that investors should have access to, and we are obligated to provide, the same set of tools that we use in analyzing our results. This non-GAAP measure should be considered in addition to results prepared in accordance with GAAP, but should not be considered a substitute for or superior to GAAP results. We endeavor to compensate for the limitations of the non-GAAP measure presented by providing the comparable GAAP measure with equal or greater prominence and descriptions of the reconciling items, including quantifying such items, to derive the non-GAAP measure. We encourage investors to examine the reconciling adjustments between the GAAP and non-GAAP measure, which we discuss below.

Definition of Non-GAAP Measure

Adjusted Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization (“Adjusted EBITDA”) is defined as operating income excluding: (1) stock-based compensation expense; (2) depreciation; and (3) acquisition-related items consisting of amortization of intangible assets and impairments of goodwill and intangible assets, if applicable. We believe this measure is useful for analysts and investors as this measure allows a more meaningful comparison between our performance and that of our competitors. Adjusted EBITDA has certain limitations because it excludes the impact of these expenses.

Non-Cash Expenses That Are Excluded from Our Non-GAAP Measure

Stock-based compensation expense consists of expense associated with grants, including stock appreciation rights, restricted stock units (“RSUs”), stock options, performance-based RSUs (“PSUs”) and market-based awards. These expenses are not paid in cash and we view the economic costs of stock-based awards to be the dilution to our share base; we also include the related shares in our fully diluted shares outstanding for GAAP earnings per share using the treasury stock method. PSUs and market-based awards are included only to the extent the applicable performance or market condition(s) have been met (assuming the end of the reporting period is the end of the contingency period). The Company is currently settling all stock-based awards on a net basis and remits the required tax-withholding amounts from its current funds.

Depreciation is a non-cash expense relating to our capitalized software, leasehold improvements and equipment and is computed using the straight-line method to allocate the cost of depreciable assets to operations over their estimated useful lives, or, in the case of leasehold improvements, the lease term, if shorter.

Amortization of intangible assets and impairments of goodwill and intangible assets are non-cash expenses related primarily to acquisitions. At the time of an acquisition, the identifiable definite-lived intangible assets of the acquired company, such as professional relationships, technology, and trade names, are valued and amortized over their estimated lives. Value is also assigned to acquired indefinite-lived intangible assets, which comprise trade names and trademarks, and goodwill that are not subject to amortization. An impairment is recorded when the carrying value of an intangible asset or goodwill exceeds its fair value. We believe that intangible assets represent costs incurred by the acquired company to build value prior to acquisition and the related amortization and impairments of intangible assets or goodwill, if applicable, are not ongoing costs of doing business.

The following tables reconcile operating income (loss) to Adjusted EBITDA for the Company's reportable segments and net earnings (loss) attributable to Angi shareholders:

FINANCIAL POSITION, LIQUIDITY, AND CAPITAL RESOURCES

Financial Position

At December 31, 2024, all of the Company’s international cash can be repatriated without significant consequences.

For a detailed description of long-term debt, see “Note 6—Long-term Debt” to the consolidated financial statements included in “Item 8. Consolidated Financial Statements and Supplementary Data.”

Cash Flow Information

In summary, the Company’s cash flows are as follows:

Net cash provided by operating activities attributable to continuing operations consists of earnings adjusted for non-cash items and the effect of changes in working capital. Non-cash adjustments include depreciation, provision for credit losses, stock-based compensation expense, non-cash lease expense (including impairment of right-of-use assets), deferred income taxes, and amortization and impairment of intangibles.

Adjustments to net earnings attributable to continuing operations consist primarily of $86.1 million of depreciation, $57.3 million of provision for credit losses, $34.8 million of stock-based compensation expense, $16.0 million of non-cash lease expense (including impairment of right-of-use assets), partially offset by $24.0 million of deferred income taxes. The decrease from changes in working capital consists primarily of an increase of $45.4 million in accounts receivable and decreases of $19.4 million in operating lease liabilities and $7.7 million in deferred revenue, partially offset by a decrease of $28.9 million in other assets. The increase in accounts receivable is due to timing of cash receipts. The decrease in operating lease liabilities is due to cash payments on leases net of interest accretion. The decrease in deferred revenue is due primarily to lower annual memberships, primarily at Ads and Leads. The decrease in other assets is due primarily to lower capitalized sales commissions which were impacted by a reduction in the size of the salesforce, a larger portion of sales commissions being expensed rather than capitalized in the period, and a shift to annual bonuses for roles that previously received commissions as well as a payment received related to insurance coverage for previously incurred legal fees and a decrease in prepaid hosting services.

Net cash used in investing activities attributable to continuing operations includes capital expenditures of $50.5 million primarily related to investments in capitalized software to support the Company’s products and services.

Net cash used in financing activities attributable to continuing operations includes $28.6 million for the repurchase of 12.6 million shares of the Company’s Class A common stock, on a settlement date basis, at an average price of $2.27 per share,

$16.0 million for the purchase of the remaining noncontrolling interests of a foreign subsidiary, and $7.6 million for the payment of withholding taxes on behalf of employees for stock-based awards that were net settled.

Adjustments to net loss attributable to continuing operations consist primarily of $93.6 million of depreciation, $79.4 million of provision for credit losses, $43.4 million of stock-based compensation expense, $11.9 million of non-cash lease expense, and $8.0 million of amortization of intangibles, partially offset by $10.0 million of deferred income taxes. The decrease from changes in working capital consists primarily of an increase of $58.2 million in accounts receivable, a decrease of $20.7 million in operating lease liabilities, an increase of $13.9 million of other assets, and a decrease of $8.0 million in accounts payable and other liabilities. The increase in accounts receivable is due primarily to timing of cash receipts. The decrease in operating lease liabilities is due to cash payments on leases net of interest accretion. The increase in other assets is due primarily to a $10.9 million receivable related to insurance coverage for previously incurred legal fees. The decrease in accounts payable and other liabilities is due to a decrease in accrued advertising.

Net cash used in investing activities attributable to continuing operations includes capital expenditures of $47.8 million primarily related to investments in capitalized software to support the Company’s products and services and purchases of marketable debt securities of $12.4 million, partially offset by maturities of marketable debt securities of $12.5 million and $1.0 million of proceeds for the sale of THR.

Net cash used in financing activities attributable to continuing operations includes $10.9 million for the repurchase of 4.4 million shares of the Company’s Class A common stock, on a settlement date basis, at an average price of $2.50 per share and $6.0 million for the payment of withholding taxes on behalf of employees for stock-based awards that were net settled.

Discontinued Operations

Net cash provided by discontinued operations of $11.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, relates to the operations of THR. The Company does not expect cash flows from discontinued operations following the sale of THR on November 1, 2023.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

Share Repurchase Authorizations and Activity

During the year ended December 31, 2024, the Company repurchased 12.5 million shares of its Class A common stock, on a trade date basis, at an average price of $2.27 per share, or $28.4 million in aggregate. During the fourth quarter of 2023, the Company announced its intent to repurchase the 14.0 million shares remaining in its stock repurchase authorization from March 2020 (the “2020 Share Authorization”). On August 2, 2024, the board of directors of the Company approved a new stock repurchase authorization of 25 million shares (the “2024 Share Authorization”). As of August 19, 2024, the Company had no shares remaining under the 2020 Authorization. From January 1, 2025 through February 7, 2025, the Company did not repurchase any additional shares. As of February 7, 2025, the Company had 23.1 million shares remaining in the 2024 Share Authorization.

The Company may repurchase shares pursuant to the 2024 Share Authorization over an indefinite period of time in the open market and in privately negotiated transactions, depending on those factors the Company’s management deems relevant at any particular time, including, without limitation, market conditions, share price and future outlook.

Contractual Obligations

The Company enters into various contractual arrangements as a part of its continued operations. Material contractual obligations described in the accompanying notes to the financial statements within “Item 8. Consolidated Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” includes operating leases as described in “Note 5—Leases,” and principal and interest payments on long-term as debt described in “Note 6—Long-term Debt.”

The Company has material purchase obligations which represent legally binding agreements to purchase goods and services that specify all significant terms. Future payments under these agreements at December 31, 2024 are as follows:

Purchase obligations include $11.5 million related to technology contracts spend to be made in 2025.

Capital Expenditures

The Company’s 2025 capital expenditures are expected to be higher than 2024 capital expenditures of $50.5 million by approximately 15% to 25% due to an increase related to capitalized software.

Liquidity Assessment

The Company’s liquidity could be negatively affected by a decrease in demand for its products and services due to economic or other factors.

At December 31, 2024, IAC held 2.6 million of the Company’s outstanding Class A shares and all of the Company’s outstanding Class B shares, which represented 85.3% of the Company’s economic interest and 98.3% of the Company’s voting interest as of that date. As a result, IAC has the ability to control the Company’s financing activities, including the issuance of additional debt and equity securities by the Company or any of its subsidiaries, or the incurrence of other indebtedness generally. While the Company is expected to have the ability to access debt and equity markets if needed, such transactions may require the approval of IAC due to its control of the majority of the outstanding voting power of the Company’s capital stock and its representation on the Company’s board of directors.

On January 13, 2025, IAC and Joseph Levin, IAC’s Chief Executive Officer, entered into an Employment Transition Agreement (the “Agreement”). Pursuant to the Agreement, IAC transferred 5.0 million shares of Angi Class B common stock held by IAC to Mr. Levin. Also pursuant to the Agreement, Mr. Levin converted all shares of Class B common stock into shares of Class A common stock. As of February 7, 2025, IAC’s economic and voting interests in the Company were 84.2% and 98.1%, respectively.

The Company believes its existing cash, cash equivalents, and expected positive cash flows generated from operations will be sufficient to fund its normal operating requirements, including capital expenditures, debt service, the payment of withholding taxes paid on behalf of employees for net-settled stock-based awards, and investing and other commitments, for the next twelve months. We may elect to raise additional capital through the sale of additional equity or debt financing to fund business activities such as strategic acquisitions, share repurchases, or other purposes beyond the next twelve months.

Additional financing may not be available on terms favorable to the Company or at all, and may also be impacted by any disruptions in the financial markets. In addition, the Company’s existing indebtedness could limit its ability to obtain additional financing.

CRITICAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES AND ESTIMATES

The following disclosure is provided to supplement the descriptions of the Company’s accounting policies contained in “Note 2—Summary of Significant Accounting Policies” to the consolidated financial statements included “Item 8. Consolidated Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” in regard to significant areas of judgment. Management of the Company is required to make certain estimates, judgments and assumptions during the preparation of its consolidated financial statements in accordance with GAAP. These estimates, judgments and assumptions impact the reported amount of assets, liabilities, revenue and expenses and the related disclosure of assets and liabilities. Actual results could differ from these estimates. Because of the size of the financial statement elements to which they relate, some of our accounting policies and estimates have a more significant impact on our financial statements than others. What follows is a discussion of some of our more significant accounting policies and estimates.

Credit Losses

The Company makes judgments as to its ability to collect outstanding receivables and provides an allowance when it has determined that all or a portion of the receivable will not be collected. The Company maintains an allowance for credit losses to provide for the estimated amount of accounts receivable that will not be collected. The allowance for credit losses is based upon a number of factors, including the length of time accounts receivable are past due, the Company’s previous loss history, the specific customer’s ability to pay its obligation to the Company and any other forward-looking data regarding customers’ ability to pay that is available. The duration of time between the Company’s issuance of an invoice and payment due date is not significant. The carrying value of the credit loss allowance is $20.5 million and $24.7 million at December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. The provision for credit losses was $57.3 million and $79.4 million for the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively.

Recoverability of Goodwill and Indefinite-Lived Intangible Assets

The carrying value of goodwill is $883.4 million and $886.0 million at December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. Indefinite-lived intangible assets, which consist of the Company’s acquired trade names and trademarks, have a carrying value of $167.7 million and $170.8 million at December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively.

Goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets are assessed annually for impairment as of October 1, or more frequently if an event occurs or circumstances change that would indicate that it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit or the fair value of an indefinite-lived intangible asset has declined below its carrying value. In performing its annual goodwill impairment assessment, the Company has the option under GAAP to qualitatively assess whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying value; if the conclusion of the qualitative assessment is that there are no indicators of impairment, the Company does not perform a quantitative test, which would require a valuation of the reporting unit, as of October 1. GAAP provides a not all-inclusive set of examples of macroeconomic, industry, market and company specific factors for entities to consider in performing the qualitative assessment described above; management considers the factors it deems relevant in making its more likely than not assessments. While the Company also has the option under GAAP to qualitatively assess whether it is more likely than not that the fair values of its indefinite-lived intangible assets are less than their carrying values, the Company’s policy is to determine the fair value of each of its indefinite-lived intangible assets annually as of October 1, in part, because the level of effort required to perform the quantitative and qualitative assessments is essentially equivalent.

If the conclusion of our qualitative assessment is that there are indicators of impairment and a quantitative test is required, the annual or interim quantitative test of the recovery of goodwill involves a comparison of the estimated fair value of the Company’s reporting unit that is being tested to its carrying value. If the estimated fair value of a reporting unit exceeds its carrying value, goodwill of the reporting unit is not impaired. If the carrying value of a reporting unit exceeds its estimated fair value, a goodwill impairment equal to the excess is recorded.

The Company’s annual assessment of the recovery of goodwill begins with management’s reassessment of its operating segments and reporting units. A reporting unit is an operating segment or one level below an operating segment, which is referred to as a component. This reassessment of reporting units is also made each time the Company changes its operating segments to the extent that this also results in a change in reporting units. If the goodwill of a reporting unit is allocated to newly formed reporting units, the allocation is usually made to each reporting unit based upon their relative fair values.

For the Company’s annual goodwill test as of October 1, 2024, the Company performed a qualitative assessment of the International reporting unit to evaluate whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of this reporting unit was in excess of its carrying value.

The primary factors that the Company considered in its qualitative assessment for the International reporting unit at October 1, 2024 are described below:

•The Company considered the strong forecasted operating performance, in addition to actual operating results in the current year, of the International reporting unit.

•The Company prepared a valuation of the International reporting unit primarily in connection with the issuance and/or settlement of equity awards that are denominated in the equity of this business as of June 30, 2024. This valuation was prepared time proximate to, however, not as of October 1, 2024. The fair value of the International reporting unit was in excess of its October 1, 2024 carrying value.

For the Company’s annual goodwill test at October 1, 2024, the Company quantitatively tested the Ads and Leads and Services reporting units. The Company’s quantitative tests resulted in no impairments.

Given the decline in the Company’s stock price after October 1, 2024, the Company subsequently quantitatively tested all reporting units with goodwill as of December 31, 2024, and no impairments were noted.

The October 1, 2023 annual assessment of goodwill did not identify any impairments.

The fair value of the Company's reporting units is determined using both an income approach based on discounted cash flows (“DCF”) and a market approach when it tests goodwill for impairment, either on an interim basis or annual basis as of October 1 each year. Determining fair value using a DCF analysis requires the exercise of significant judgment with respect to several items, including the amount and timing of expected future cash flows and appropriate discount rates. The expected cash flows used in the DCF analyses are based on the Company’s most recent forecast and budget and, for years beyond the budget, the Company’s estimates, which are based, in part, on forecasted growth rates. The discount rates used in the DCF analyses are intended to reflect the risks inherent in the expected future cash flows of the respective reporting units. Assumptions used in the DCF analyses, including the discount rate, are assessed based on the reporting units' current results and forecasted future performance, as well as macroeconomic and industry specific factors. The discount rates used in the quantitative tests as of December 31, 2024 for determining the fair value of the Company’s Ads and Leads, Services, and International reporting units were 13%, 14%, and 15%, respectively. The discount rates used in the quantitative tests as of October 1, 2024 for determining the fair value of the Company’s Ads and Leads and Services reporting units were 12.5% and 13.5%, respectively. Determining fair value using a market approach considers multiples of financial metrics based on both acquisitions and trading multiples of a selected peer group of companies. From the comparable companies, a representative market multiple is determined which is applied to financial metrics to estimate the fair value of a reporting unit. To determine a peer group of companies for our respective reporting units, we considered companies relevant in terms of consumer use, monetization model, margin and growth characteristics, and brand strength operating in their respective sectors.

As a result of the valuation process, we determined that the fair value of the Ads and Leads and Services reporting units exceeded the carrying value and thus there was no impairment of goodwill in 2024. The fair value based on the valuation exceeded the carrying value of the Ads and Leads and Services reporting units by $494.5 million and $20.0 million, respectively, as of December 31, 2024.

The Company determines the fair value of indefinite-lived intangible assets using an avoided royalty DCF valuation analysis. Significant judgments inherent in this analysis include the selection of appropriate royalty and discount rates and estimating the amount and timing of expected future cash flows. The discount rates used in the DCF analyses are intended to reflect the risks inherent in the expected future cash flows generated by the respective intangible assets. The royalty rates used in the DCF analyses are based upon an estimate of the royalty rates that a market participant would pay to license the Company’s trade names and trademarks. The future cash flows are based on the Company's most recent forecast and budget and, for years beyond the budget, the Company’s estimates, which are based, in part, on forecasted growth rates. Assumptions used in the avoided royalty DCF analyses, including the discount rate and royalty rate, are assessed annually based on the actual and projected cash flows related to the asset, as well as macroeconomic and industry specific factors. The discount rates used in the Company’s annual indefinite-lived impairment assessment ranged from 12.5% to 14.5% in 2024 and 15% to 17% in 2023, and the royalty rates used ranged from 2.5% to 4.5% in both 2024 and 2023.

In the fourth quarter of 2024, the Company identified an impairment charge of $2.6 million related to a certain indefinite-lived trade name at Services. The discount rate used to value this trade name was 14.0%, and the royalty rate was 2.5%. The impairment of the indefinite-lived intangible asset is included in “Amortization of intangibles” in the statement of operations.

The October 1, 2023 annual assessment of indefinite-lived intangible assets did not identify any impairments.

Software Development Costs

We capitalize internally developed software costs (including employee payroll costs, stock-based compensation and benefit costs as well as third party production costs) subsequent to identifying technological feasibility of the software project. Significant management judgement is required in assessing when technological feasibility is established.

Depreciation of internally developed software commences when the software is available for release for its intended use and is recorded on a straight-line basis over the estimated useful life of the software, which is typically 2-3 years. The net carrying value of capitalized software is $73.1 million and $92.3 million at December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively.

Income Taxes

The Company is included within IAC’s tax group for purposes of federal and consolidated state income tax return filings. In all periods presented, the income tax benefit and/or provision has been computed for the Company on an as if standalone, separate return basis and payments to and refunds from IAC for the Company’s share of IAC’s consolidated federal and state tax return liabilities/receivables calculated on this basis have been reflected within cash flows from operating activities in the statement of cash flows. The tax sharing agreement between the Company and IAC governs the parties’ respective rights, responsibilities and obligations with respect to tax matters, including responsibility for taxes attributable to the Company, entitlement to refunds, allocation of tax attributes and other matters and, therefore, ultimately governs the amount payable to or receivable from IAC with respect to income taxes. Any differences between taxes currently payable to or receivable from IAC under the tax sharing agreement and the current tax provision or benefit computed on an as if standalone, separate return basis for GAAP are reflected as adjustments to additional paid-in capital in the statement of shareholders’ equity and financing activities within the statement of cash flows. The portion of the December 31, 2024 deferred tax assets that will be payable to IAC pursuant to the tax sharing agreement, upon realization, is $87.3 million.

The Company accounts for income taxes under the liability method, and deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the future tax consequences attributable to differences between the financial statement carrying values of existing assets and liabilities and their respective tax bases. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates in effect for the year in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. A valuation allowance is provided if it is determined that it is more likely than not that the deferred tax asset will not be realized. At December 31, 2024 and 2023, the balance of the Company’s net deferred tax asset is $167.6 million and $145.4 million, respectively.

The Company evaluates and accounts for uncertain tax positions using a two-step approach. Recognition (step one) occurs when the Company concludes that a tax position, based solely on its technical merits, is more-likely-than-not to be sustainable upon examination. Measurement (step two) determines the amount of benefit that is greater than 50% likely to be realized upon ultimate settlement with a taxing authority that has full knowledge of all relevant information. De-recognition of a tax position that was previously recognized would occur when the Company subsequently determines that a tax position no longer meets the more-likely-than-not threshold of being sustained. This measurement step is inherently difficult and requires subjective estimations of such amounts to determine the probability of various possible outcomes. At December 31, 2024 and 2023, the Company has unrecognized tax benefits, including interest, of $9.7 million and $8.1 million, respectively. We consider many factors when evaluating and estimating our tax positions and unrecognized tax benefits, which may require periodic adjustment and which may not accurately anticipate actual outcomes. Although management currently believes changes to unrecognized tax benefits from period to period and differences between amounts paid, if any, upon resolution of issues raised in audits and amounts previously provided will not have a material impact on the liquidity, results of operations, or financial condition of the Company, these matters are subject to inherent uncertainties and management’s view of these matters may change in the future.

The ultimate amount of deferred income tax assets realized and the amounts paid for deferred income tax liabilities and unrecognized tax benefits may vary from our estimates due to future changes in income tax law, state income tax apportionment or the outcome of any review of our tax returns by the various tax authorities, as well as actual operating results of the Company that vary significantly from anticipated results.

The Company regularly assesses the realizability of deferred tax assets considering all available evidence including, to the extent applicable, the nature, frequency and severity of prior cumulative losses, forecasts of future taxable income, tax filing status, the duration of statutory carryforward periods, available tax planning and historical experience. As of December 31, 2024, the Company is in a three-year cumulative loss position. The Company’s most significant net deferred tax asset that could expire relates to U.S. federal net operating loss (“NOL”) carryforwards of $72.6 million. The Company expects to generate sufficient future taxable income of at least $345.9 million prior to the expiration of these NOLs, the majority of which expire between 2035 and 2037, to fully realize this deferred tax asset.

Stock-Based Compensation

Stock-based compensation at the Company is inherently complex. Our desire is to attract, retain, incentivize and reward our management team and employees at the Company by allowing them to benefit directly from the value they help to create. We accomplish these objectives, in part, by issuing equity awards denominated in the equity of Angi or in the equity of one of our subsidiaries. We further refine this approach by tailoring certain equity awards to the applicable circumstances. For example, we issue certain equity awards for which vesting is linked to the achievement of a performance target such as revenue or profits; these awards are referred to as PSUs. In other cases, we link the vesting of equity awards to the achievement of a value target for a subsidiary or Angi’s stock price, as applicable; these awards are referred to as market-based awards (“MSUs”). The nature and variety of these types of equity-based awards creates complexity in our determination of stock-based compensation expense.

Business combinations may result in the modification of equity awards, which may create additional complexity and additional stock-based compensation expense. Also, our internal reorganizations can also lead to modifications of equity awards and may result in additional complexity and stock-based compensation expense.

Finally, the means by which we settle our equity-based awards also introduces complexity into our financial reporting. We provide a path to liquidity by settling the subsidiary denominated awards in IAC or Angi shares. In addition, certain former Angi stock appreciation rights can be settled in IAC or Angi awards at IAC’s election. These features increase the complexity of our earnings per share calculations.

Stock-based compensation expense reflected in our statements of operations includes expense related to the Company’s RSU awards, including MSUs and PSUs, stock options, stock appreciation rights, equity instruments denominated in shares of one of our subsidiaries, and an allocation of expense related to IAC denominated restricted stock.

The Company recorded stock-based compensation expense of $34.8 million and $43.4 million for the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively.

The Company issues RSUs, PSUs and MSUs. For RSUs, the value of the instrument is measured at the grant date as the fair value of the underlying Angi’s common stock and expensed as stock-based compensation expense over the vesting term. For PSUs, the value of the instrument is measured at the grant date as the fair value of the underlying Angi’s common stock and expensed as stock-based compensation over the vesting term when the performance targets are considered probable of being achieved. For MSUs, a lattice model is used to estimate the value of the awards. The Company also issues stock options and stock appreciation rights. The Company estimates the fair value of newly granted or modified stock appreciation rights and stock options, including equity instruments denominated in shares of one of our subsidiaries, using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model. The Black-Scholes option-pricing model requires the use of highly subjective and complex assumptions, the most significant of which include expected term, expected volatility of the underlying shares, risk-free interest rates and the expected dividend yield. In addition, the recognition of stock-based compensation expense is impacted by our estimated forfeiture rates, which are based, in part, on historical forfeiture rates. For stock appreciation rights and stock options, including equity instruments denominated in shares of one of our subsidiaries, the grant date fair value of the award is recognized as an expense on a straight-line basis, net of estimated forfeitures, over the requisite service period, which is the vesting period of the award.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

For a discussion of recent accounting pronouncements, see “Note 2—Summary of Significant Accounting Policies” to the consolidated financial statements included in “Item 8. Consolidated Financial Statements and Supplementary Data.”