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Significant Accounting Policies | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2015
Accounting Policies [Abstract] |
Significant Accounting Policies | Significant Accounting Policies Basis of Presentation – The consolidated financial statements are prepared in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America ("U.S. GAAP"). The consolidated financial statements of the Company are comprised of the consolidation of Evercore LP and Evercore LP’s wholly-owned and majority-owned direct and indirect subsidiaries, including Evercore Group L.L.C. ("EGL"), a registered broker-dealer in the U.S. The Company’s policy is to consolidate all subsidiaries in which it has a controlling financial interest, as well as any variable interest entities ("VIEs") where the Company is deemed to be the primary beneficiary, when it has the power to make the decisions that most significantly affect the economic performance of the VIE and has the obligation to absorb significant losses or the right to receive benefits that could potentially be significant to the VIE, except for certain VIEs that qualify for accounting purposes as investment companies. The Company reviews factors, including the rights of the equity holders and obligations of equity holders to absorb losses or receive expected residual returns, to determine if the investment is a VIE. In evaluating whether the Company is the primary beneficiary, the Company evaluates its economic interests in the entity held either directly or indirectly by the Company. The consolidation analysis is generally performed qualitatively. This analysis, which requires judgment, is performed at each reporting date. Per the above, the Company has concluded that Evercore Asia Limited ("Evercore Asia"), Evercore Asia (Singapore) PTE. LTD ("Evercore Singapore") and Evercore ISI UK Limited ("Evercore ISI UK") are VIEs pursuant to Accounting Standards Codification ("ASC") No. 810, "Consolidation" ("ASC 810") and that the Company is the primary beneficiary of these VIEs. Specifically, the Company provides financial support through cost plus transfer pricing agreements with these entities, which exposes the Company to losses that are potentially significant to the entities, and has decision making authority that significantly affects the economic performance of the entities. The Company included in its Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition Evercore Asia, Evercore Singapore and Evercore ISI UK assets of $31,100 and liabilities of $10,914 at December 31, 2015 and assets of $10,487 and liabilities of $7,487 at December 31, 2014. In February 2010, Accounting Standards Update ("ASU") No. 2010-10, "Amendments for Certain Investment Funds," was issued. This ASU defers the application of the revised consolidation rules for a reporting entity’s interest in an entity if certain conditions are met, including if the entity has the attributes of an investment company and is not a securitization or asset-backed financing entity. An entity that qualifies for the deferral will continue to be assessed for consolidation under the overall guidance on VIEs, before its amendment, and other applicable consolidation guidance. Generally, the Company would consolidate those entities when it absorbs a majority of the expected losses or a majority of the expected residual returns, or both, of the entities. For entities (principally funds) that the Company has concluded are not VIEs, the Company then evaluates whether the fund is a partnership or similar entity. If the fund is a partnership or similar entity, the Company evaluates the fund under the partnership consolidation guidance. Pursuant to that guidance, the Company consolidates funds in which it is the general partner and/or manages through a contract, unless presumption of control by the Company can be overcome. This presumption is overcome only when unrelated investors in the fund have the substantive ability to liquidate the fund or otherwise remove the Company as the general partner without cause, based on a simple majority vote of unaffiliated investors, or have other substantive participating rights. If the presumption of control can be overcome, the Company accounts for its interest in the fund pursuant to the equity method of accounting. All intercompany balances and transactions with the Company’s subsidiaries have been eliminated upon consolidation. At the time of the formation transaction, the members of Evercore LP (the "Members") received Class A limited partnership units of Evercore LP ("Class A LP Units") in consideration for their contribution of the various entities included in the historical combined financial statements of the Company. The Class A LP Units were subject to vesting requirements and transfer restrictions and are exchangeable on a one-for-one basis for shares of Class A common stock ("Class A Shares"). At December 31, 2013, all Class A LP Units were fully vested. On October 31, 2014, in conjunction with the acquisition of the operating businesses of International Strategy & Investment ("ISI"), the Company issued vested and unvested Class E limited partnership units of Evercore LP ("Class E LP Units") and vested and unvested Class G and H limited partnership interests of Evercore LP ("Class G and H LP Interests"). See Note 4 for further information. The Company accounts for exchanges of LP Units for Class A Shares based on the carrying amounts of the Members’ LP Units immediately before the exchange. The Company’s interest in Evercore LP is within the scope of ASC 810-20, "Determining Whether a General Partner, or the General Partners as a Group, Controls a Limited Partnership or Similar Entity When the Limited Partners Have Certain Rights". The Company consolidates Evercore LP and records noncontrolling interest for the economic interest in Evercore LP held directly by others, which includes the Members. Accounts Receivable – Accounts Receivable consists primarily of investment banking fees and expense reimbursements charged to the Company’s clients. The Company records Accounts Receivable net of any allowance for doubtful accounts. The Company maintains an allowance for bad debts to provide coverage for estimated losses from its client receivables. The Company determines the adequacy of the allowance by estimating the probability of loss based on the Company’s analysis of the client’s creditworthiness and specifically reserves against exposure where the Company determines the receivables are impaired, which may include situations where a fee is in dispute or litigation has commenced. Furniture, Equipment and Leasehold Improvements – Fixed assets, including office equipment, hardware and software and leasehold improvements, are stated at cost, net of accumulated depreciation and amortization. Furniture, equipment and computer hardware and software are depreciated using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the assets, ranging from three to seven years. Leasehold improvements are amortized over the shorter of the term of the lease or the useful life of the asset. Investment Banking Revenue – The Company earns investment banking fees from clients for providing advisory services on mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, leveraged buyouts, restructurings and similar corporate finance matters. The Company’s Investment Banking services also include services related to securities underwriting, private fund placement services and commissions for agency-based equity trading services and equity research. It is the Company’s accounting policy to recognize revenue when (i) there is persuasive evidence of an arrangement with a client, (ii) fees are fixed or determinable, (iii) the agreed-upon services have been completed and delivered to the client or the transaction or events contemplated in the engagement letter are determined to be substantially completed and (iv) collection is reasonably assured. The Company records Investment Banking Revenue on the Consolidated Statements of Operations for the following: Advisory Fees – In general, advisory fees are paid at the time the Company signs an engagement letter, during the course of the engagement or when an engagement is completed. In some circumstances, and as a function of the terms of an engagement letter, the Company may receive retainer fees for financial advisory services concurrent with, or soon after, the execution of the engagement letter where the engagement letter will specify a future service period associated with that fee. In such circumstances, these retainer fees are initially recorded as deferred revenue, which is recorded in Other Current Liabilities on the Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition, and subsequently recognized as revenue on the Consolidated Statements of Operations during the applicable time period within which the service is rendered. Revenues related to fairness or valuation opinions are recognized when the opinion has been rendered and delivered to the client and all other requirements for revenue recognition are satisfied. Success fees for advisory services, such as merger and acquisition advice, are recognized when the transaction(s) or event(s) are determined to be completed or substantially completed and all other requirements for revenue recognition are satisfied. In the event the Company were to receive an opinion or success fee in advance of the completion conditions noted above, such fee would initially be recorded as deferred revenue and subsequently recognized as advisory fee revenue when the conditions of completion have been satisfied. Placement Fees – Placement fee revenues are attributable to capital raising on both a primary and secondary basis. The Company recognizes placement advisory fees at the time of the client’s acceptance of capital or capital commitments in accordance with the terms of the engagement letter. Underwriting Fees – Underwriting fees are attributable to public and private offerings of equity and debt securities and are recognized when the offering has been deemed to be completed by the lead manager of the underwriting group. When the offering is completed, the Company recognizes the applicable management fee, selling concession and underwriting fee, the latter net of estimated offering expenses. Commissions and Related Fees – Commissions and Related Fees include commissions received from customers for the execution of agency-based brokerage transactions in listed and over-the-counter equities and are recorded on a trade-date basis or, in the case of payments under commission sharing arrangements, when earned. The Company earns subscription fees for the sales of research. Cash received before the subscription period ends is initially recorded as deferred revenue in Other Current Liabilities on the Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition, and is recognized in Investment Banking Revenue on the Consolidated Statements of Operations ratably over the period in which the related services are rendered. Taxes collected from customers and remitted to governmental authorities are presented on a net basis on the Consolidated Statements of Operations. Investment Management Revenue – The Company’s Investment Management business generates revenues from the management of client assets and the private equity funds. Investment management fees for third-party clients are generally based on the value of the assets under management and any performance fees that may be negotiated with the client. These fees are generally recognized over the period that the related services are provided, based upon the beginning, ending or average value of the assets for the relevant period. Fees paid in advance of services rendered are initially recorded as deferred revenue, which is recorded in Other Current Liabilities on the Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition, and are recognized in Investment Management Revenue on the Consolidated Statements of Operations ratably over the period in which the related service is rendered. Generally, to the extent performance fee arrangements have been negotiated, these fees are earned when the return on assets exceeds certain benchmark returns. Management fees for private equity funds are contractual and are typically based on committed capital during the private equity funds’ investment period, and on invested capital, thereafter. Management fees are recognized ratably over the period during which services are provided. The management fees may provide for a management fee offset for certain portfolio company fees the Company earns. The Company also records performance fee revenue from the private equity funds when the returns on the private equity funds’ investments exceed certain threshold minimums. These performance fees, or carried interest, are computed in accordance with the underlying private equity funds’ partnership agreements and are based on investment performance over the life of each investment partnership. Historically, the Company recorded performance fee revenue from its managed private equity funds when the private equity funds’ investment values exceeded certain threshold minimums. During 2014, the Company changed its method of recording performance fees such that the Company records performance fees upon the earlier of the termination of the investment fund or when the likelihood of clawback is mathematically improbable. This method is considered the more preferable of the two methods accepted under ASC 605-20-S99-1. Fees generated for serving as an independent fiduciary and/or trustee are either based on a flat fee, are pre-negotiated with the client or are based on the value of assets under administration. For ongoing engagements, fees are billed quarterly either in advance or in arrears. Fees paid in advance of services rendered are initially recorded as deferred revenue in Other Current Liabilities on the Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition, and are recognized in Investment Management Revenue on the Consolidated Statements of Operations ratably over the period in which the related services are rendered. Other Revenue, Including Interest and Interest Expense – Other Revenue, Including Interest and Interest Expense is derived primarily from financing transactions. These transactions are principally repurchases and resales of Mexican government securities. Revenue and expenses associated with these transactions are recognized over the term of the repurchase transaction. Other Revenue, Including Interest and Interest Expense also includes interest expense associated with the $120,000 principal amount of senior unsecured notes ("Senior Notes"), the $120,000 new term loan (the "New Loan") and other financing arrangements, as well as income earned on marketable securities and cash deposited with financial institutions and changes in amounts due pursuant to the Company's tax receivable agreements. Client Expense Reimbursement – In the conduct of its financial advisory service engagements and in advising the private equity funds, the Company receives reimbursement for certain expenses incurred by the Company on behalf of its clients and the funds. Transaction-related expenses, which are billable to clients, are recognized as revenue and recorded in Accounts Receivable on the later of the date of an executed engagement letter or the date the expense is incurred. Noncontrolling Interest – Noncontrolling interest recorded in the consolidated financial statements of the Company relates to the portions of the subsidiaries not owned by the Company. The Company allocates net income to noncontrolling interests held at Evercore LP and at the operating entity level, where required, by multiplying the relative ownership interest of the noncontrolling interest holders for the period by the net income or loss for the entity which the noncontrolling interest relates. In circumstances where the governing documents of the entity to which the noncontrolling interest relates require special allocations of profits (losses) to the controlling and noncontrolling interest holders, then the net income or loss of these entities will be allocated based on these special allocations. ASC 810 requires reporting entities to present noncontrolling (minority) interests as equity (as opposed to as a liability or mezzanine equity) and provides guidance on the accounting for transactions between an entity and noncontrolling interests. Noncontrolling Interest is presented as a component of Total Equity on the Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition and below Net Income on the Consolidated Statements of Operations. In addition, there is an allocation of the components of Total Comprehensive Income between controlling interests and noncontrolling interests. Changes in a parent's ownership interest while the parent retains control of its subsidiary are accounted for as equity transactions. Cash and Cash Equivalents – Cash and Cash Equivalents consist of short-term highly-liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less. Fair Value of Financial Instruments – The majority of the Company’s assets and liabilities are recorded at fair value or at amounts that approximate fair value. Such assets and liabilities include cash and cash equivalents, investments, marketable securities, financial instruments owned and pledged as collateral, repurchase and reverse repurchase agreements, receivables and payables and accruals. See Note 10 for further information. Marketable Securities – Marketable Securities include investments in corporate, municipal and other debt securities, as well as investments in readily-marketable equity securities, which are accounted for as available-for-sale under ASC 320-10, "Accounting for Certain Investments in Debt and Equity Securities". These securities are carried at fair value on the Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition. Unrealized gains and losses are reported as net increases or decreases to Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss), net of tax, while realized gains and losses on these securities are determined using the specific identification method and are included in Other Revenue, Including Interest on the Consolidated Statements of Operations. The readily-marketable debt and equity securities are valued using quoted market prices on applicable exchanges or markets. Marketable Securities also include investments in municipal bonds held at EGL and mutual funds, which are carried at fair value, with changes in fair value recorded in Other Revenues, Including Interest on the Consolidated Statements of Operations. Marketable Securities transactions are recorded as of the trade date. Financial Instruments Owned and Pledged as Collateral at Fair Value – The Company’s Financial Instruments Owned and Pledged as Collateral at Fair Value consist principally of foreign government obligations, which are recorded on a trade-date basis and are stated at quoted market values. Related gains and losses are reflected in Other Revenue, Including Interest on the Consolidated Statements of Operations. The Company pledges the Financial Instruments Owned and Pledged as Collateral at Fair Value to collateralize certain financing arrangements, which permits the counterparty to pledge the securities. Securities Purchased Under Agreements to Resell and Securities Sold Under Agreements to Repurchase – Securities Purchased Under Agreements to Resell and Securities Sold Under Agreements to Repurchase are treated as collateralized financing transactions. The agreements provide that the transferor will receive substantially the same securities in return at the maturity of the agreement. These transactions are carried at the amounts at which the related securities will be subsequently resold or repurchased, plus accrued interest payable or receivable. As the maturities on these transactions are short-term in nature (i.e. mature on the next business day) and the underlying securities are debt instruments of the Mexican Governments or its agencies, their carrying amounts approximate fair value. The Company periodically assesses the collectability or credit quality related to securities purchased under agreements to resell. Investments – The Company’s investments include investments in private equity partnerships, the Company’s equity interests in G5 Holdings S.A. ("G5 ǀ Evercore"), ABS Investment Management, LLC ("ABS") and Evercore Pan-Asset Capital Management ("Pan", consolidated on March 15, 2013 and sold on December 3, 2013), which are accounted for under the equity method of accounting and Trilantic Capital Partners ("Trilantic"). On December 31, 2015 the Company deconsolidated the assets and liabilities of Atalanta Sosnoff Capital, LLC ("Atalanta Sosnoff") and will account for its interest as an equity method investment from that date forward. Private Equity – The investments of private equity funds consist primarily of investments in marketable and non-marketable securities of the portfolio companies. The underlying investments held by the private equity funds are valued based on quoted market prices or estimated fair value if there is no public market. The Company determines fair value of non-marketable securities by giving consideration to a range of factors, including but not limited to, market conditions, operating performance (current and projected) and subsequent financing transactions. Due to the inherent uncertainty in the valuation of these non-marketable securities, estimated values may materially differ from the values that would have been used had a ready market existed for these investments. Investments in publicly-traded securities held by the private equity funds are valued using quoted market prices. The Company recognizes its allocable share of the changes in fair value of the private equity funds’ underlying investments as realized and unrealized gains (losses) within Investment Management Revenue in the Consolidated Statements of Operations. Affiliates – The Company’s equity interests in G5 ǀ Evercore, ABS and Pan (consolidated on March 15, 2013 and sold on December 3, 2013) include its share of the income (losses) within Income (Loss) from Equity Method Investments, as a component of Income Before Income Taxes, on the Consolidated Statements of Operations. On December 31, 2015 the Company deconsolidated the assets and liabilities of Atalanta Sosnoff and will account for its interest as an equity method investment from that date forward. See Note 4 for further information. The Company assesses its Equity Method Investments annually for impairment, or more frequently if circumstances indicate impairment may have occurred. The Company also maintains an investment in Trilantic. See Note 9 for further information. Goodwill and Intangible Assets – Goodwill is tested for impairment annually, as of November 30 th, or more frequently if circumstances indicate impairment may have occurred. The Company assesses whether any goodwill recorded by its applicable reporting unit is impaired by comparing the fair value of each reporting unit with its respective carrying amount. For acquired businesses, contingent consideration is recognized and measured at fair value as of the acquisition date and at subsequent reporting periods. Intangible assets with finite lives are amortized over their estimated useful lives and are reviewed for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of such assets may not be recoverable as prescribed by ASC 360, "Property, Plant, and Equipment" ("ASC 360"). The Company tests goodwill for impairment at the reporting unit level. In determining the fair value for each reporting unit the Company utilizes either a market multiple approach or a discounted cash flow methodology based on the adjusted cash flows from operations, or a weighted combination of both a market multiple approach and discounted cash flow methodology. The market multiple approach includes applying the average earnings multiples of comparable public companies for their respective reporting unit multiplied by the forecasted earnings of the respective reporting unit to yield an estimate of fair value. The discounted cash flow methodology begins with the forecasted adjusted cash flows from each of the reporting units and uses a discount rate that reflects the weighted average cost of capital adjusted for the risks inherent in the future cash flows. See Note 4 for further information. Compensation and Benefits – Compensation includes salaries, bonuses (discretionary awards and guaranteed amounts), severance, deferred cash and share-based compensation. Cash bonuses are accrued over the respective service periods to which they relate and deferred cash and share-based bonuses are expensed prospectively over their requisite service period. Share-Based Payments –The Company accounts for share-based payments in accordance with ASC 718, "Compensation – Stock Compensation" ("ASC 718"). See Note 17 for further information. Compensation expense recognized pursuant to share-based awards is based on the grant date fair value of the award. The fair value (as measured on the grant date) of awards that vest from one to five years ("Service-based Awards") is amortized over the vesting periods or requisite service periods as required under ASC 718, however, the vesting of some Service-based Awards will accelerate upon the occurrence of certain events. The Company amortizes the grant-date fair value of share-based compensation awards made to employees, who are or will become retirement eligible prior to the stated vesting date, over the expected substantive service period. For the purposes of calculating diluted net income per share attributable to Evercore Partners Inc. common shareholders, unvested Service-based Awards are included in the diluted weighted average Class A Shares outstanding using the treasury stock method. Once vested, restricted stock units ("RSUs") and restricted stock are included in the basic and diluted weighted average Class A Shares outstanding. Expense relating to RSUs and restricted stock is charged to Employee Compensation and Benefits within the Consolidated Statements of Operations. Compensation expense is recognized pursuant to performance-based awards if it is probable that the performance condition will be achieved. See Note 17 for a discussion of the awards issued in conjunction with the Company's acquisition of the operating businesses of ISI. Awards classified as liabilities as required under ASC 718, such as cash settled share-based awards, are re-measured at fair value at each reporting period. Foreign Currency Translation – Foreign currency assets and liabilities have been translated at rates of exchange prevailing at the end of the periods presented. Income and expenses transacted in foreign currency have been translated at average monthly exchange rates during the period. Translation gains and losses are included in the foreign currency translation adjustment as a component of Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) in the Consolidated Statements of Changes in Equity and Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) in the Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income. Exchange gains and losses arising from translating intercompany balances of a long-term investment nature are recorded in the foreign currency translation account while transactional exchange gains and losses are included in Other Revenue, Including Interest on the Consolidated Statements of Operations. Income Taxes –The Company accounts for income taxes in accordance with ASC 740, "Income Taxes" ("ASC 740"), which requires the recognition of tax benefits or expenses on temporary differences between the financial reporting and tax bases of its assets and liabilities, as disclosed in Note 20. Deferred income taxes reflect the net tax effects of temporary differences between financial reporting and tax bases of assets and liabilities and are measured using the enacted tax rates and laws that will be in effect when such differences are expected to reverse. Such temporary differences are reflected on the Company’s Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition as deferred tax assets and liabilities. Deferred tax assets are reduced by a valuation allowance when it is more-likely-than-not that some portion or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. Significant management judgment is required in determining the Company’s provision for income taxes, deferred tax assets and liabilities and any valuation allowance recorded against the Company’s net deferred tax assets. The Company adopted ASU No. 2015-17, "Balance Sheet Classification of Deferred Taxes" ("ASU 2015-17") prospectively as of December 31, 2015 and changed its presentation of deferred income tax assets and liabilities on its consolidated statement of financial condition such that the Company classifies all deferred income tax assets and liabilities as noncurrent. Historically, the Company presented deferred income tax assets and liabilities as current and noncurrent on the Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition. This change in accounting policy had no effect on the prior period information included on the Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, or the Company’s 2014 Annual Report on Form 10-K. ASC 740 provides a benefit recognition model with a two-step approach consisting of "more-likely-than-not" recognition criteria, and a measurement attribute that measures the position as the largest amount of tax benefit that is greater than 50% likely of being realized upon ultimate settlement. ASC 740 also requires the recognition of liabilities created by differences between tax positions taken in a tax return and amounts recognized in the financial statements. See Note 20 for further information.

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