Management NCL Corporation Units

In 2009, we adopted a profits sharing agreement which authorized us to grant profits interests in the Company to certain key employees. These interests generally vested with the holders based on a combination of performance-based and time-based vesting metrics, each as specified in the profits sharing agreement and each holder’s award agreement. Genting HK, the Apollo Holders and the TPG Viking Funds were entitled to initially receive any distributions made by the Company, pro-rata based on their shareholdings in the Company. Once Genting HK, the Apollo Holders and the TPG Viking Funds received distributions in excess of certain hurdle amounts specified in the profits sharing agreement and each holder’s award agreement, each vested profits interest award generally entitled the holder of such award to a portion of such excess distribution amount. In connection with the Corporate Reorganization, NCLC’s outstanding profits interests granted under its profits sharing agreement to management (or former management) of NCLC were exchanged for an economically equivalent number of NCL Corporation Units. We refer to the NCL Corporation Units exchanged for profits interests granted under the profits sharing agreement as “Management NCL Corporation Units.” The Management NCL Corporation Units received upon the exchange of outstanding profits interests were subject to the same time-based vesting requirements and performance-based vesting requirements applicable to the profits interests for which they were exchanged.

We accounted for the exchange of the outstanding profits interests for the economically equivalent number of Management NCL Corporation Units and share-based option awards as an award modification. An award modification requires that the fair value of the awards immediately before the modification and immediately after the modification be determined. We engaged a third-party valuation firm to assist in the completion of a valuation which was derived using a binomial lattice model. It was determined that the post-modification award value derived greater value versus the pre-modification award value, resulting in the recognition of incremental compensation expense. At the date of award modification, approximately $5.5 million of incremental cost associated with vested awards was charged to share-based compensation, with the remaining unvested portion to be charged over the remaining vesting period.

The Management NCL Corporation Units, generally consisted of fifty percent of “Time-Based Units” (“TBUs”) and fifty percent of “Performance-Based Units” (“PBUs”). The TBUs generally vested over five years and upon a distribution event, the vesting amount of the PBUs was based on the amount of proceeds that are realized above certain hurdles.

In the fourth quarter of 2014, all Management NCL Corporation Units were exchanged for NCLH ordinary shares and restricted shares under a management exchange agreement (the “Management Exchange Agreement”). NCLH became the sole member and 100% owner of the economic interests in NCLC and the non-controlling interest no longer exists as of December 31, 2014. Accordingly, NCLC is now treated as a disregarded entity for U.S. federal income tax purposes. No new NCLC profits interests or Management NCL Corporation Units will be issued; however, NCLH has granted, and expects to continue to grant, equity to its employees and members of its Board of Directors under its long-term incentive plan. The exchange for NCLH ordinary shares and restricted shares, per the Management Exchange Agreement, resulted in no incremental expense after applying the modification accounting treatment as substantially all key terms and conditions remained consistent.

The termination of employment may result in forfeiture of any non-vested TBUs and all PBUs. TBUs that were vested can be either continued by the Company or cancelled and paid to the employee. Cancellation could take place any time after termination but not before two years after the grant date.

As a result of the secondary offering during August 2015, the last hurdle amount specified in the profits sharing agreement was reached and as such all outstanding PBUs vested.

Share Option Awards

In January 2013, the Company adopted a 2013 performance incentive plan which provides for the issuance of up to 15,035,106 of NCLH’s share options and ordinary shares, with no more than 5,000,000 shares being granted to one individual in any calendar year. Share options are generally granted with an exercise price equal to the closing market price of NCLH shares at the date of grant. The vesting period is typically set at 3, 4 or 5 years with a contractual life ranging from 7 to 10 years. Forfeited awards are added back to the approved reserve.

In July 2015, we granted 3.5 million share option awards to our employees at an exercise price of $56.19 with a contractual term of ten years. The share options vest equally over three years.

In August 2015, we granted 0.7 million share option awards to our employees at an exercise price of $59.43 with a contractual term of ten years. The share options vest equally over three years. In addition, on August 4, 2015, we entered into an amendment to the employment agreement with our President and Chief Executive Officer pursuant to which we awarded 625,000 time-based share option awards, 416,667 performance-based share option awards and 208,333 market-based share option awards at an exercise price of $59.43 and contractual term of ten years. The time-based share option awards vest 50% on June 30, 2017 and 50% on June 30, 2019. The performance-based and market-based share option awards vest upon the achievement of certain performance and market-related metrics during the term of the employment agreement.

The performance-based awards are subject to performance conditions such that the number of awards that ultimately vest depends on the Adjusted EPS and adjusted return on invested capital (“Adjusted ROIC”) achieved by the Company during the performance period compared to targets established at the award date. Because the terms of the performance-based awards provide discretion to make certain adjustments to the performance calculation, the service inception date of these awards precedes the grant date. Accordingly, the Company recognizes compensation expense beginning on the service inception date and remeasures the fair value of the awards until a grant date is established. The estimate of the awards’ fair value will be fixed in the period in which the grant date occurs, and cumulative compensation expense will be adjusted based on the fair value at the grant date.

The fair value of each time-based option award is estimated on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model. The estimated fair value of the share options, less estimated forfeitures, is amortized over the vesting period using the straight-line vesting method. The assumptions used within the option-pricing model for the time-based awards are as follows:

Expected volatility was determined based on the historical share prices in our industry. The risk-free rate was based on U.S. Treasury zero coupon issues with a remaining term equal to the expected option term at grant date. The expected term was calculated under the simplified method. Our forfeiture assumption is derived from historical turnover rates and those estimates are revised as appropriate to reflect the actual forfeiture results.

As a grant date is not established for the performance-based awards, their fair value is estimated on the last date of the reporting period using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model. The estimated fair value of the share options is amortized over the requisite service period using the straight-line vesting method. The assumptions used within the option-pricing model for the performance-based awards for which share-based compensation was recognized during 2015 are as follows:

Expected volatility was determined based on the historical share prices in our industry. The risk-free rate was based on U.S. Treasury zero coupon issues with a remaining term equal to the expected option term at grant date. The expected term was calculated under the simplified method.

The fair value of the market-based share option awards is estimated using a Monte-Carlo model which values financial instruments whose value is dependent on share price by sampling random paths for share price. The key inputs for the simulation include current share price, risk free rate, and share price volatility. For each simulated path, the model checks if the simulated share price reaches the vesting threshold during the performance period. For each path that reaches the vesting threshold, the payoff upon vesting is calculated. The fair value of the equity grant is determined by averaging the expected payoff across all simulated paths and discounting the average to the valuation date.

The below table summarizes the key inputs used in the Monte-Carlo simulation:

Expected volatility was determined based on the historical share prices in our industry. The risk-free rate was based on U.S. Treasury zero coupon issues with a remaining term equal to the remaining term of the measurement period.

The following is a summary of share option activity under our share option plan for the year ended December 31, 2015 (excludes the impact of 416,667 performance based awards as no grant date has been established): 

The weighted-average grant-date fair value of time-based options granted during the years 2015, 2014 and 2013 was $20.90, $16.86 and $6.38 respectively. The weighted-average reporting period date fair value of performance-based options for which share-based compensation was recognized during 2015 was $17.07. The weighted-average grant-date fair value of market-based options granted during the year 2015 was $12.37. The total intrinsic value of share options exercised during the year 2015, 2014 and 2013 was $68.0 million, $4.5 million and $1.4 million and total cash received by the Company from exercises was $69.1 million, $6.1 million and $2.0 million, respectively. As of December 31, 2015, there was approximately $106.1 million, $0, and $2.0 million of total unrecognized compensation cost net of estimate forfeitures, related to time-based, performance-based with an established grant date, and market-based options, respectively, granted under our share-based incentive plans which is expected to be recognized over a weighted-average period of 2.57 years, 0 years, and 1.95 years, respectively.

Restricted Ordinary Share Awards

The following is a summary of restricted share activity of NCLH shares for the year ended December 31, 2015:

As of December 31, 2015, there was $0.2 million of total unrecognized compensation cost related to non-vested restricted ordinary share awards. The cost is expected to be recognized over a weighted-average period of 1.2 years. Restricted shares, with the exception of those related to the Management Exchange Agreement, which maintain their original vesting conditions of time and performance, vest in substantially equal quarterly installments over 1 or 2 years or in annual installments over 4 years. The total fair value of shares vested during the year ended December 31, 2015 was $40.9 million.

Restricted Share Units (“RSUs”)

On August 4, 2015, we entered into an amendment to the employment agreement with our President and Chief Executive Officer pursuant to which we awarded 150,000 time-based RSUs, 100,000 performance-based RSUs and 50,000 market-based RSUs.

The time-based RSUs vest equally on June 30, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019, respectively. The performance-based and market-based RSUs vest upon the achievement of certain performance and market-related metrics during the term of the employment agreement.

The fair value of the time-based and performance-based RSUs is equal to the closing market price of NCLH shares at the date of grant.

The performance-based RSUs are subject to performance conditions such that the number of awards that ultimately vest depends on the Adjusted EPS and Adjusted ROIC achieved by the Company during the performance period compared to targets established at the award date. Because the terms of the performance-based awards provide discretion to make certain adjustments to the performance calculation, the service inception date of these awards precedes the grant date. Accordingly, the Company recognizes share-based compensation expense beginning on the service inception date and remeasures the fair value of the awards until a grant date occurs. The estimate of the awards’ fair value will be fixed in the period in which the grant date occurs, and cumulative share-based compensation expense will be adjusted based on the fair value at the grant date.

The fair value of the market-based RSUs is estimated using a Monte-Carlo model which values financial instruments whose value is dependent on share price by sampling random paths for share price. The key inputs for the simulation include current share price, risk free rate, and share price volatility. For each simulated path, the model checks if the simulated share price reaches the vesting threshold during the performance period. For each path that reaches the vesting threshold, the payoff upon vesting is calculated. The fair value of the equity grant is determined by averaging the expected payoff across all simulated paths and discounting the average to the valuation date.

The below table summarizes the key inputs used in the Monte-Carlo simulation:

Expected volatility was determined based on the historical share prices in our industry. The risk-free rate was based on U.S. Treasury zero coupon issues with a remaining term equal to the remaining term of the measurement period.

The following is a summary of the RSUs activity for the year ended December 31, 2015 (excludes the impact of 100,000 performance-based RSUs as no grant date was established): 

As of December 31, 2015, there was $7.9 million and $1.1 million of total unrecognized compensation cost related to non-vested time-based and market-based RSUs, respectively. The cost is expected to be recognized over a weighted-average period of 3.50 years and 1.54 years, respectively, for the time-based and market-based RSUs.

The share-based compensation expense for the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013 was $41.8 million, $20.6 million, which includes $6.0 million of non-recurring charges associated with the Management Exchange Agreement and $23.1 million, which includes $18.5 million of non-recurring charges associated with the Corporate Reorganization, respectively, and was recorded in marketing general and administrative expense.

Employee Benefit Plans

We maintain annual incentive bonus plans for our executive officers and other key employees. Bonuses under these plans become earned and payable based on the Company’s performance during the applicable performance period and the individual’s continued employment. Company performance criteria include the attainment of certain financial targets and other strategic objectives.

Certain employees are employed pursuant to agreements that provide for severance payments. Severance is generally only payable upon an involuntary termination of the employment by us without cause or a termination by the employee for good reason. Severance generally includes a cash payment based on the employee’s base salary (and in some cases, bonus), and our payment of the employee’s continued medical benefits for the applicable severance period.

We maintain a 401(k) Plan for our shoreside employees, including our executive officers. Participants may contribute up to 100% of eligible compensation each pay period, subject to certain limitations. We make matching contributions equal to 100% of the first 3% and 50% of amounts greater than 3% to and including 10% of each participant’s contributions subject to certain limitations. In addition, we may make discretionary supplemental contributions to the Plan, which shall be allocated to each eligible participant on a pro-rata basis based on the compensation of the participant to the total compensation of all participants. Our matching contributions are vested according to a five-year schedule. The 401(k) Plan is subject to the provisions of ERISA and is intended to be qualified under section 401(a) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code (the “Code”).

Our contributions are reduced by contributions forfeited by those employees who leave the 401(k) Plan prior to vesting fully in the contributions. Forfeited contributions of $0.4 million, $0.1 million and $0.1 million were utilized in the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013, respectively.

We maintained a Supplemental Executive Retirement Plan (“SERP”), which is a legacy unfunded defined contribution plan for certain executives who were employed by the Company in an executive capacity prior to 2008. The SERP was frozen to future participation following that date. The SERP provided for Company contributions on behalf of the participants to compensate them for the benefits that are limited under the 401(k) Plan. We credited participants under the SERP for amounts that would have been contributed by us to the Company’s previous Defined Contribution Retirement Plan and the former 401(k) Plan without regard to any limitations imposed by the Code. Participants did not make any elective contributions under this plan. As of December 31, 2015 and 2014, the aggregate balance of participants’ deferred compensation accounts under the SERP Plan was $0.5 million and $0.4 million, respectively. We have discontinued this plan following the 2015 contributions and will pay the deferred contributions to participants in early 2017 following the expiration of the required twelve month period.

We recorded expenses related to the above 401(k) Plan and SERP of $5.3 million, $3.7 million and $3.3 million for the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013, respectively.

We maintained a Senior Management Retirement Savings Plan (“SMRSP”), which was a legacy unfunded defined contribution plan for certain employees who were employed by the Company prior to 2001. The SMRSP provided for Company contributions on behalf of the participants to compensate them for the difference between the qualified plan benefits that were previously available under the Company’s cash balance pension plan and the redesigned 401(k) Plan. We credited participants under the SMRSP Plan for the difference in the amount that would have been contributed by us to the Company’s previous Norwegian Cruise Line Pension Plan and the qualified plan maximums of the new 401(k) Plan. We have discontinued this plan following the 2015 contributions and will pay the deferred contributions to participants in early 2017 following the expiration of the required twelve month period.

Effective January 2009, we implemented the Shipboard Retirement Plan which computes benefits based on years of service, subject to eligibility requirements of the Shipboard Retirement Plan. The Shipboard Retirement Plan is unfunded with no plan assets. The current portion of the projected benefit obligation of $1.1 million and $0.9 million was included in accrued expenses and other liabilities as of December 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively and $20.0 million and $18.8 million was included in other long-term liabilities in our consolidated balance sheet as of December 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively. The amounts related to the Shipboard Retirement Plan were as follows (in thousands):

The discount rates used in the net periodic benefit cost calculation for the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013 were 3.8%, 4.8% and 3.8%, respectively, and the actuarial loss is amortized over 18.95 years. The discount rate is used to measure and recognize obligations, including adjustments to other comprehensive income (loss), and to determine expense during the periods. It is determined by using bond indices which reflect yields on a broad maturity and industry universe of high-quality corporate bonds.

The pension benefits expected to be paid in each of the next five years and in aggregate for the five years thereafter are as follows (in thousands):

Employee Stock Purchase Plan (“ESPP”)

In April 2014, the Company’s shareholders approved the ESPP. The purpose of the ESPP is to provide eligible employees with an opportunity to purchase NCLH’s ordinary shares at a favorable price and upon favorable terms in consideration of the participating employees’ continued services. A maximum of 2,000,000 of the Company’s ordinary shares may be purchased under the ESPP. To be eligible to participate in an offering period, on the Grant Date of that period, an individual must be customarily employed by the Company or a participating subsidiary for more than twenty hours per week and for more than five months per calendar year. Participation in the ESPP is also subject to certain limitations. The ESPP is considered to be compensatory based on: a) the 15% purchase price discount and b) the look-back purchase price feature. Since the plan is compensatory, compensation expense must be recorded in the consolidated statements of operations on a straight-line basis over the six-month withholding period. For the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013, the compensation expense was $0.4 million, $90 thousand and $0 respectively. As of December 31, 2015 and 2014, we had a $1.1 million and $0.3 million liability, respectively, for payroll withholdings received.

Other Employee Matters

On January 8, 2015, Kevin M. Sheehan resigned as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company, together with all of his positions and offices with the Company and its subsidiaries or affiliates, effective immediately. In connection with Mr. Sheehan’s resignation from the Company, Mr. Sheehan and the Company entered into a Separation Agreement and Release (the “Separation Agreement”). The Separation Agreement sets forth the terms of Mr. Sheehan’s resignation from the Company, including, among other things, a general release of claims in favor of the Company and certain non-competition, non-solicitation, confidentiality and cooperation undertakings. The Separation Agreement also provides that Mr. Sheehan will receive (i) all of his accrued and unpaid base salary (and accrued and unpaid vacation time) through January 8, 2015 (the “Effective Date”), (ii) his previously approved bonus payment for fiscal year 2014 of $1,627,500, (iii) a one-time cash separation payment in an amount equal to his base salary and target bonus and (iv) vesting of a portion of his outstanding unvested equity-based awards as of the Effective Date, and all remaining unvested equity-based awards shall immediately terminate, expire and be forfeited as of the Effective Date. This resulted in a total severance expense of $13.4 million of which $8.2 million was due to the acceleration of the equity-based awards which was recorded in marketing, general and administrative expense in January 2015.

Frank J. Del Rio was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company as of January 8, 2015.