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Note K - Stock-based Compensation Plans

12 Months Ended

Apr. 30, 2024

Notes to Financial Statements

Share-Based Payment Arrangement [Text Block]

K – Stock-Based Compensation Plans

The Company has stock-based compensation plans available to grant non-qualified stock options, incentive stock options and restricted stock to employees, directors and certain advisors of the Company. The current stock-based compensation plans being utilized at April 30, 2024 are the Amended and Restated Stock Option Plan and the Amended and Restated Stock Incentive Plan. The Company recorded total stock-based compensation expense for all plans of approximately $3.7 million ($2.9 million after tax effects), $5.3 million ($4.1 million after tax effects), $5.5 million ($4.2 million after tax effects)) for the years ended April 30, 2024, 2023 and 2022, respectively. Tax benefits were recognized for these costs at the Company’s overall effective tax rate, excluding discrete income tax benefits related to excess benefits on share-based compensation.

Stock Option Plan

The Company has options outstanding under a stock option plan approved by the shareholders, the Amended and Restated Stock Option Plan. The shareholders of the Company approved the Amended and Restated Stock Option Plan (the “Restated Option Plan”) on August 5, 2015, which extended the term of the Stock Option Plan to June 10, 2025 and increased the number of shares of common stock reserved for issuance under the plan by an additional 300,000 shares to 1,800,000 shares. On August 29, 2018, the shareholders of the Company approved an amendment to the Restated Option Plan increasing the number of shares of common stock reserved for issuance under the plan by an additional 200,000 shares to 2,000,000 shares. On August 26, 2020, the shareholders of the Company approved an amendment to the Restated Option Plan increasing the number of shares of common stock reserved for issuance under the plan by an additional 200,000 shares to 2,200,000 shares. On August 30, 2022, the shareholders of the Company approved an amendment to the Restated Option Plan increasing the number of shares of common stock reserved for issuance under the plan by an additional 185,000 shares to 2,385,000 shares. The Restated Option Plan provides for the grant of options to purchase shares of the Company’s common stock to employees, directors and certain advisors of the Company at a price not less than the fair market value of the stock on the date of grant and for periods not to exceed ten years. Options outstanding under the Company’s stock option plans expire in the calendar years 2024 through 2034.

		Restated Option Plan
Minimum exercise price as a percentage of fair market value at date of grant			100%
Last expiration date for outstanding options		January 25, 2034
Shares available for grant at April 30, 2024			102,514

The aggregate intrinsic value of outstanding options at April 30, 2024 and 2023 was $1.6 million and $9.1 million, respectively.

The fair value of options granted is estimated on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes option pricing model based on the assumptions in the table below.

		Years Ended April 30,
		2024				2023				2022
Expected term (years)			3.9				5.5				5.5
Risk-free interest rate			4.06	%			3.60	%			0.86	%
Volatility			56	%			55	%			51	%
Dividend yield			-				-				-

The expected term of the options is based on evaluations of historical and expected future employee exercise behavior. The risk-free interest rate is based on the U.S. Treasury rates at the date of grant with maturity dates approximately equal to the expected life at the grant date. Volatility is based on the historical volatility of the Company’s common stock. The Company has not historically issued dividends and does not expect to do so in the foreseeable future.

There were 197,486 options granted during fiscal 2024, 140,000 granted during fiscal 2023 and 30,000 granted during fiscal 2022. The grant-date fair value of options granted during fiscal 2024, 2023, and 2022 was $5.7 million, $5.1 million, $2.1 million, respectively. The options were granted at fair market value on the date of grant. Generally, options vest after three to five years, except for options issued to directors which are immediately vested at date of grant with a ten year expiration to exercise.

The following is an aggregate summary of the activity in the Company’s stock option plans from April 30, 2021 to April 30, 2024:

		Number				Exercise				Proceeds				Weighted Average
		of				Price				on				Exercise Price per
		Options				per Share				Exercise				Share
										(in thousands)
Outstanding at April 30, 2021			566,400							$	41,026			$	72.43
Granted			30,000				$ 150.83				4,525				150.83
Exercised			(94,000	)		$ 24.37 to $ 150.83					(6,276	)			66.76
Cancelled			(1,000	)			$ 41.86				(42	)			41.86
Outstanding at April 30, 2022			501,400							$	39,232			$	78.25
Granted			140,000			$ 61.02 to $ 94.59					9,687				69.19
Exercised			(28,000	)		$ 44.52 to $ 53.02					(1,439	)			51.38
Cancelled			-								-
Outstanding at April 30, 2023			613,400							$	47,480			$	77.41
Granted			197,486			$ 70.57 to $ 86.30					14,279				72.30
Exercised			(35,000	)		$ 36.54 to $ 54.85					(1,828	)			52.23
Cancelled			(40,000	)			$ 109.06				(4,362	)			109.06
Outstanding at April 30, 2024			735,886							$	55,569			$	75.51

Stock option compensation expense on a pre-tax basis was $1.8 million ($1.4 million after tax effects), $3.7 million ($2.9 million after tax effects), and $4.5 million ($3.4 million after tax effects) for the years ended April 30, 2024, 2023 and 2022, respectively. As of April 30, 2024, the Company had approximately $2.1 million of total unrecognized compensation cost related to unvested options that are expected to vest. These options have a weighted average remaining vesting period of 2.1 years.

The Company had the following options exercised for the periods indicated. The impact of these cash receipts is included in financing activities in the accompanying Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows.

		Years Ended April 30,
(Dollars in thousands)		2024				2023				2022

Options Exercised			35,000				28,000				94,000
Cash Received from Options Exercised		$	-			$	1,216			$	591
Intrinsic Value of Options Exercised		$	1,145			$	1,412			$	7,124

During the year ended April 30, 2024, there were 35,000 options exercised through net settlements in accordance with plan provisions, wherein the shares issued were reduced by 26,632 shares to satisfy the exercise price to acquire 8,368 shares.

As of April 30, 2024, there were 446,734 vested and exercisable stock options outstanding with an aggregate intrinsic value of $1.6 million and a weighted average remaining contractual life of 5.0 years and a weighted average exercise price of $76.79.

Stock Incentive Plan

On August 5, 2015, the shareholders of the Company approved the Amended and Restated Stock Incentive Plan (the “Restated Incentive Plan”), which extended the term of the Company’s Stock Incentive Plan to June 10, 2025. On August 29, 2018, the shareholders of the Company approved an amendment to the Restated Stock Incentive Plan that increased the number of shares of common stock that may be issued under the Restated Incentive Plan by 100,000 shares to 450,000. For shares issued under the Stock Incentive Plan, the associated compensation expense is generally recognized equally over the vesting periods established at the award date and is subject to the employee’s continued employment by the Company.

The following is a summary of the activity in the Company’s Stock Incentive Plan:

		Number of Shares				Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value

Unvested shares at April 30, 2021			192,018			$	51.70
Shares granted			11,287				121.17
Shares vested			(6,500	)			39.14
Shares cancelled			(15,691	)			59.99
Unvested shares at April 30, 2022			181,114			$	55.76
Shares granted			40,470				68.78
Shares vested			(29,500	)			35.31
Shares cancelled			(10,301	)			69.14
Unvested shares at April 30, 2023			181,783			$	61.22
Shares granted			74,647				68.56
Shares vested			(13,037	)			62.78
Shares cancelled			(32,183	)			61.14
Unvested shares at April 30, 2024			211,210			$	63.73

The fair value at vesting for Awards under the stock incentive plan was $13.5 million, $11.1 million, and $10.1 million in fiscal 2024, 2023, and 2022, respectively.

The Company recorded compensation cost of approximately $1.8 million ($1.4 million after tax effects) $1.6 million ($1.2 million after tax effects), and $981,000 ($749,000 after tax effects) related to the Restated Incentive Plan during the years ended April 30, 2024, 2023, and 2022, respectively. As of April 30, 2024, the Company had $6.7 million of total unrecognized compensation cost related to unvested awards granted under the Restated Incentive Plan, which the Company expects to recognize over a weighted-average remaining period of 2.7 years.