NOTE 14. STOCK-BASED COMPENSATION PLAN

Under the Company’s current 2015 Stock Incentive Plan (the “2015 Plan”), the Company’s Board of Directors has flexibility to determine the type and amount of awards to be granted to eligible participants, who must be employees, directors, officers or consultants of the Company or its subsidiaries. The 2015 Plan allows for grants of incentive stock options, nonqualified stock options, restricted stock awards, stock appreciation rights, and restricted units. The aggregate number of shares of common stock that may be granted through awards under the 2015 Plan to any employee in any calendar year may not exceed 500 shares. The 2015 Plan will continue in effect until December 2025 unless terminated sooner.

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Options Granted:

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During the six months ended June 30, 2024, the Company issued stock options for an aggregate of 1,240 shares under the 2015 Plan to directors and employees of the Company. Of the 1,240 options, 1,140 options vest and become exercisable over a period of two years and 100 vest in four equal consecutive quarterly tranches from the date of grant. All of the issued stock options expire ten years from the date of the grant.  

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For computing the fair value of the stock-based awards, the fair value of each option grant has been estimated as of the date of grant using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model with the following assumptions:

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Options Granted During the Six Months Ended June 30, 2024

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The grant date fair value of the stock options granted during the six months ended June 30, 2024 was $3,798, which will be recognized over the vesting period of the options.

Restricted Stock Awards Granted:

On March 11, 2024, the Company issued and granted employees restricted stock awards of 100 restricted shares under the 2015 Plan, of which 50 and 50 shares will vest and become nonforfeitable on each March 11, 2025 and March 11, 2026, respectively. As these restricted stock awards vest over time, the fair value of the restricted stock was estimated as of the date of grant using the grant price of $6.75 per share. The grant date fair value of the restricted stock awards was approximately $675 which will be amortized over the expected term of 2 years.

The total non-cash stock compensation expense for continuing operations related to restricted stock, stock options and stock awards recorded by the Company for the three months ended June 30, 2024 and 2023 was $1,528 and $1,486, respectively, and for the six months ended June 30, 2024 and 2023 was $2,706 and $2,772, respectively. For the three and six months ended June 30, 2024 and 2023, the majority of stock-based compensation costs were classified as selling, general and administrative expenses.

As of June 30, 2024, there were 1,176 unvested stock options and unrecognized compensation cost of $3,604 related to unvested stock options, as well as 1,600 unvested restricted stock awards and unrecognized compensation costs of $6,159 related to unvested restricted stock awards.