Earnings per share

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2021

The computation of basic earnings per share (EPS) is based on the weighted-average number of our common shares outstanding. The computation of diluted EPS is based on the weighted-average number of our common shares outstanding and dilutive potential common shares, which primarily include shares that may be issued under our stock option, restricted stock and performance unit award programs (collectively, dilutive securities), as determined by using the treasury stock method.

The computations for basic and diluted EPS were as follows (in millions, except per-share data):


	Three months ended September 30,				Nine months ended September 30,
	2021		2020		2021		2020
Income (Numerator):
Net income for basic and diluted EPS	$	1,884	$	2,021	$	3,994	$	5,649

Shares (Denominator):
Weighted-average shares for basic EPS	567		585		572		588
Effect of dilutive securities	3		4		4		4
Weighted-average shares for diluted EPS	570		589		576		592

Basic EPS	$	3.32	$	3.45	$	6.98	$	9.61
Diluted EPS	$	3.31	$	3.43	$	6.93	$	9.54

For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2021 and 2020, the number of antidilutive employee stock-based awards excluded from the computation of diluted EPS was not significant.