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Fair Value Measurements
 12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2019
Fair Value Disclosures [Abstract]  
Fair Value Measurements Fair Value Measurements

Generally accepted accounting principles define fair value as an exit price and also establish a framework for measuring fair value. An exit price represents the amount that would be received upon the sale of an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants. Fair value should be determined based on the assumptions that market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability. As a basis for considering such assumptions, a three-tier fair value hierarchy is used, which prioritizes the inputs used in measuring fair value as follows:

•
Level 1 inputs: Quoted prices (unadjusted) for identical assets or liabilities in active markets;
•
Level 2 inputs: Inputs other than quoted prices included in Level 1 that are observable for the asset or liability either directly or indirectly; and
•
Level 3 inputs: Unobservable inputs (e.g., a reporting entity's own data).

In many cases, a valuation technique used to measure fair value includes inputs from multiple levels of the fair value hierarchy. The lowest level of significant input determines the placement of the entire fair value measurement in the hierarchy.

The following table presents the Company's assets and liabilities that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis at December 31, 2019 and 2018:
(in thousands)
December 31, 2019
Assets (liabilities)
Level 1
 
Level 2
 
Level 3
 
Total
Commodity derivatives, net (a)
$
45,682

 
$
15,683

 
$
—

 
$
61,365

Provisionally priced contracts (b)
(118,414
)
 
(68,237
)
 
—

 
(186,651
)
Convertible preferred securities (c)
—

 
—

 
8,404

 
8,404

Other assets and liabilities (d)
9,469

 
(13,507
)
 
—

 
(4,038
)
Total
$
(63,263
)
 
$
(66,061
)
 
$
8,404

 
$
(120,920
)
(in thousands)
December 31, 2018
Assets (liabilities)
Level 1
 
Level 2
 
Level 3
 
Total
Commodity derivatives, net (a)
$
37,229

 
$
(18,864
)
 
$
—

 
$
18,365

Provisionally priced contracts (b)
(76,175
)
 
(58,566
)
 
—

 
(134,741
)
Convertible preferred securities (c)
—

 
—

 
7,154

 
7,154

Other assets and liabilities (d)
5,186

 
(353
)
 
—

 
4,833

Total
$
(33,760
)
 
$
(77,783
)
 
$
7,154

 
$
(104,389
)

(a)
Includes associated cash posted/received as collateral
(b)
Included in "Provisionally priced contracts" are those instruments based only on underlying futures values (Level 1) and delayed price contracts (Level 2)
(c)
Recorded in “Other noncurrent assets” on the Company’s Consolidated Balance Sheets related to certain available for sale securities.
(d)
Included in other assets and liabilities are assets held by the Company to fund deferred compensation plans, ethanol risk management contracts, and foreign exchange derivative contracts (Level 1) and interest rate derivatives (Level 2).

Level 1 commodity derivatives reflect the fair value of the exchanged-traded futures and options contracts that the Company holds, net of the cash collateral that the Company has in its margin account.

The majority of the Company’s assets and liabilities measured at fair value are based on the market approach valuation technique. With the market approach, fair value is derived using prices and other relevant information generated by market transactions involving identical or comparable assets or liabilities.
The Company’s net commodity derivatives primarily consist of futures or options contracts via regulated exchanges and contracts with producers or customers under which the future settlement date and bushels (or gallons in the case of ethanol contracts) of commodities to be delivered (primarily wheat, corn, soybeans and ethanol) are fixed and under which the price may or may not be fixed. Depending on the specifics of the individual contracts, the fair value is derived from the futures or options prices quoted on various exchanges for similar commodities and delivery dates as well as observable quotes for local basis adjustments (the difference, which is attributable to local market conditions, between the quoted futures price and the local cash price). Because “basis” for a particular commodity and location typically has multiple quoted prices from other agribusinesses in the same geographical vicinity and is used as a common pricing mechanism in the agribusiness industry, we have concluded that “basis” is typically a Level 2 fair value input for purposes of the fair value disclosure requirements related to our commodity derivatives, depending on the specific commodity. Although nonperformance risk, both of the Company and the counterparty, is present in each of these commodity contracts and is a component of the estimated fair values, based on the Company’s historical experience with its producers and customers and the Company’s knowledge of their businesses, the Company does not view nonperformance risk to be a significant input to fair value for these commodity contracts.
These fair value disclosures exclude physical inventories measured at net realizable value. The net realizable value used to measure the Company’s agricultural commodity inventories is the fair value (spot price of the commodity in an exchange), less cost of disposal and transportation based on the local market. This valuation would generally be considered Level 2. The amount is disclosed in Note 2 Inventories. Changes in the net realizable value of commodity inventories are recognized as a component of cost of sales and merchandising revenues.
Provisionally priced contract liabilities are those for which the Company has taken ownership and possession of a commodity, but the final purchase price has not been established. In the case of payables where the unpriced portion of the contract is limited to the futures price of the underlying commodity or we have delivered provisionally priced commodity and a subsequent payable or receivable is set up for any future changes in the commodity price, quoted exchange prices are used and the liability is deemed to be Level 1 in the fair value hierarchy. For all other unpriced contracts which include variable futures
and basis components, the amounts recorded for delayed price contracts are determined on the basis of local grain market prices at the balance sheet date and, as such, are deemed to be Level 2 in the fair value hierarchy.
The risk management contract liability allows related ethanol customers to effectively unprice the futures component of their inventory for a period of time, subjecting the bushels to market fluctuations. The Company records an asset or liability for the market value changes of the commodities over the life of the contracts based on quoted exchange prices and as such, the balance is deemed to be Level 1 in the fair value hierarchy.
The convertible preferred securities are interests in several early-stage enterprises in the form of convertible debt and preferred equity securities.
A reconciliation of beginning and ending balances for the Company’s recurring fair value measurements using Level 3 inputs is as follows: 
 
Convertible Preferred Securities
(in thousands)
2019
 
2018
Assets (liabilities) at January 1,
$
7,154

 
$
7,388

New investments
1,250

 
1,086

Sales proceeds
—

 
(6,400
)
Realized gains (losses) included in earnings
—

 
3,900

Unrealized gains (losses) included in other comprehensive income
—

 
1,180

Assets (liabilities) at December 31,
$
8,404

 
$
7,154



The following tables summarize information about the Company's Level 3 fair value measurements as of December 31, 2019 and 2018:
Quantitative Information about Recurring Level 3 Fair Value Measurements
(in thousands)
Fair Value as of 12/31/19
 
Valuation Method
 
Unobservable Input
 
Weighted Average
Convertible preferred securities (a)
$
8,404

 
Implied based on market prices
 
N/A
 
N/A

(in thousands)
Fair Value as of 12/31/18
 
Valuation Method
 
Unobservable Input
 
Weighted Average
Convertible preferred securities (a)
$
7,154

 
Implied based on market prices
 
N/A
 
N/A

(a) The Company considers observable price changes and other additional market data available in order to estimate fair value, including additional capital raising, internal valuation models, progress towards key business milestones, and other relevant market data points.

Quantitative Information about Non-Recurring Level 3 Fair Value Measurements
(in thousands)
Fair Value as of 12/31/19
 
Valuation Method
 
Unobservable Input
 
Weighted Average
Frac sand assets (a)
$
16,546

 
Third party appraisal
 
Various
 
N/A
Real property (b)
608

 
Market approach
 
Various
 
N/A
Equity method investment (c)
12,424

 
Discounted cash flow analysis
 
Various
 
N/A
(a) The Company recognized impairment charges on long lived related to its frac sand business. The fair value of the assets were determined using prior transactions and third-party appraisals. These measures are considered Level 3 inputs on a nonrecurring basis.
(b) The Company recognized impairment charges on certain Trade assets and measured the fair value using Level 3 inputs on a nonrecurring basis. The fair value of the assets were determined using prior transactions in the local market and a recent sale of comparable Trade group assets held by the Company.
(c) The Company recorded an other-than-temporary impairment charge on an existing equity method investment. The fair value of the investment was determined using a discounted cash flow analysis.

Fair Value of Debt Instruments

Certain long-term notes payable and the Company’s debenture bonds bear fixed rates of interest and terms of up to 15 years. Based upon the Company’s credit standing and current interest rates offered by the Company on similar bonds and rates currently available to the Company for long-term borrowings with similar terms and remaining maturities, the Company estimates the fair values of its fixed rate long-term debt instruments outstanding at December 31, 2019 and 2018, as follows: 
(in thousands)
Carrying Amount
 
Fair Value
 
Fair Value Hierarchy Level
2019
 
 
 
 
 
Fixed rate long-term notes payable
$
300,446

 
$
307,904

 
Level 2
Debenture bonds
26,075

 
25,852

 
Level 2
 
$
326,521

 
$
333,756

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
2018
 
 
 
 
 
Fixed rate long-term notes payable
$
261,618

 
$
256,447

 
Level 2
Debenture bonds
27,324

 
26,154

 
Level 2
 
$
288,942

 
$
282,601

 
 

The fair value of the Company’s cash equivalents, accounts receivable and accounts payable approximate their carrying value as they are close to maturity.