NOTE 5. STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY AND PARTNERS' CAPITAL

Common Stock

During the nine months ended September 30, 2020, portions of awards of restricted common stock and market-based share awards granted to certain of the Company's officers and other employees vested. The vesting of these awards, granted pursuant to the Amended Incentive Award Plan, resulted in federal and state income tax liabilities for the recipients. As permitted by the terms of the Amended Incentive Award Plan and the award grants, certain executive officers and employees elected to surrender 117.5 thousand shares of common stock valued at $4.4 million, solely to pay the associated statutory tax withholdings during the nine months ended September 30, 2020.               

In June 2020, the Company entered into forward sale agreements with certain financial institutions acting as forward purchasers in connection with an offering of 9.2 million shares of common stock at an initial public offering price of $37.35 per share, before underwriting discounts and offering expenses. The Company did not receive any proceeds from the sale of its shares of common stock by the forward purchasers at the time of the offering. The forward sale price that the Company will receive upon physical settlement of the agreements, which was initially $35.856 per share, will be subject to adjustment for (i) a floating interest rate factor equal to a specified daily rate less a spread, (ii) the forward purchasers' stock borrowing costs and (iii) scheduled dividends during the term of the forward sale agreements. As of September 30, 2020, the Company had physically settled 2.8 million of these shares, generating gross proceeds of $106.2 million.

In November 2016, the Board of Directors approved a $500 million ATM Program. The agreement provides for the offer and sale of shares of the Corporation’s common stock having an aggregate gross sales price of up to $500.0 million through the agents, as its sales agents or, if applicable, as forward sellers for forward purchasers, or directly to the agents acting as principals. The Company may sell shares in amounts and at times to be determined by the Company but has no obligation to sell any shares in the ATM program. Since inception of the ATM Program through September 30, 2020, 5.9 million shares of the Corporation’s common stock have been sold, of which 0.7 million were sold during the nine months ended September 30, 2020. Of total shares sold since inception, 4.1 million were through forward sales agreements, including all 0.7 million shares sold during the nine months ended September 30, 2020. During the nine months ended September 30, 2020, 0.4 million of the shares were physically settled at a weighted average price per share of $49.30 for $17.9 million in gross proceeds. There were 0.3 million shares remaining under open forward sales agreements as of September 30, 2020. Assuming the full physical settlement of those open forward sales agreements, aggregate gross proceeds capacity of $234.8 million remained available under the program as of September 30, 2020.

Preferred Stock

As of September 30, 2020, the Company had 6.9 million shares of 6.00% Series A Preferred Stock outstanding. The Series A Preferred Stock pays cumulative cash dividends at the rate of 6.00% per annum on the liquidation preference of $25.00 per share (equivalent to $0.375 per share on a quarterly basis and $1.50 per share on an annual basis).  

Dividends Declared

For the nine months ended September 30, 2020, the Company's Board of Directors declared the following dividends:

The common stock dividend declared on August 25, 2020 is included in accounts payable, accrued expenses and other liabilities in the consolidated balance sheets as of September 30, 2020.