Fair Value Measurements

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2020

Fair value is defined as the exchange price that would be received for an asset or paid to transfer a liability (an exit price) in the principal or most advantageous market for the asset or liability in an orderly transaction between market participants on the measurement date.

The Company utilizes a valuation hierarchy for disclosure of the inputs to the valuations used to measure fair value. This hierarchy prioritizes the inputs into three broad levels as follows. Level 1 inputs are quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets or liabilities. Level 2 inputs are quoted prices for similar assets and liabilities in active markets or inputs that are observable for the asset or liability, either directly or indirectly through market corroboration, for substantially the full term of the financial instrument. Level 3 inputs are unobservable inputs based on the Company’s own assumptions used to measure assets and liabilities at fair value. A financial asset or liability’s classification within the hierarchy is determined based on the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement.

The following table provides the Company’s assets that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis, consistent with the fair value hierarchy, at September 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019:


	September 30, 2020		December 31, 2019
	Fair Value		Fair Value
	(In thousands)
Mutual fund investments	$	8,177	$	8,390

The fair value of mutual fund investments, which are valued as level 1 investments, was based on quoted market prices. The mutual fund investments are shown as a component of investments and other assets on the consolidated balance sheet.

For the nine months ended September 30, 2020 and 2019, gains and losses on the investments noted above were not significant. No transfers between level 1 and level 2 investments occurred during the nine months ended September 30, 2020 and 2019.

Financial Instruments

Cash, cash equivalents and mutual fund investments are recorded at fair value at September 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 in the accompanying consolidated balance sheet.

The following table provides the estimated fair values of the Company’s financial instrument liabilities, for which fair value is measured for disclosure purposes only, compared to the recorded amounts at September 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019:


	September 30, 2020				December 31, 2019
	Recorded Amount		Fair Value		Recorded Amount		Fair Value
	(In thousands)
Long-term debt, net (including current portion)	$	(2,299,924)	$	(2,492,828)	$	(2,382,041)	$	(2,531,549)

The fair value of net short-term borrowings approximates the carrying value. Net short-term borrowings are valued as level 2 liabilities as they are corroborated by observable market data. The Company’s net long-term debt is all privately held with no public market for this debt, therefore, the fair value of net long-term debt was computed based on comparable current market data for similar debt instruments and is considered a level 3 liability.

Foreign Currency

At September 30, 2020, the Company had a Canadian dollar forward contract for a total notional value of 24.0 million Canadian dollars and an immaterial unrealized gain outstanding. For the nine months ended September 30, 2020 and 2019, realized gains and losses on foreign currency forward contracts were not significant. The Company does not typically designate its foreign currency forward contracts as hedges.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the fair value of financial instruments (as defined), including financial assets and financial liabilities (collectively, as defined), and the measurements of those instruments as well as disclosures related to the fair value of non-financial assets and liabilities. Such disclosures about the financial instruments, assets, and liabilities would include: (1) the fair value of the required items together with their carrying amounts (as appropriate); (2) for items for which it is not practicable to estimate fair value, disclosure would include: (a) information pertinent to estimating fair value (including, carrying amount, effective interest rate, and maturity, and (b) the reasons why it is not practicable to estimate fair value; (3) significant concentrations of credit risk including: (a) information about the activity, region, or economic characteristics identifying a concentration, (b) the maximum amount of loss the entity is exposed to based on the gross fair value of the related item, (c) policy for requiring collateral or other security and information as to accessing such collateral or security, and (d) the nature and brief description of such collateral or security; (4) quantitative information about market risks and how such risks are managed; (5) for items measured on both a recurring and nonrecurring basis information regarding the inputs used to develop the fair value measurement; and (6) for items presented in the financial statement for which fair value measurement is elected: (a) information necessary to understand the reasons for the election, (b) discussion of the effect of fair value changes on earnings, (c) a description of [similar groups] items for which the election is made and the relation thereof to the balance sheet, the aggregate carrying value of items included in the balance sheet that are not eligible for the election; (7) all other required (as defined) and desired information.

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