Exercise of Rights; Purchase Price (a) Subject to Section 7(e) hereof, the registered holder of any Rights Certificate may exercise the Rights evidenced thereby (except as otherwise provided herein including, without limitation, the restrictions on exercisability set forth in Section 9(c), Section 11(a)(iii) and Section 23(a) hereof) in whole or in part at any time after the Distribution Date upon surrender of the Rights Certificate, with the form of election to purchase and the certificate on the reverse side thereof duly completed and executed, to the Rights Agent at the principal office or offices of the Rights Agent designated for such purpose, together with payment of the aggregate Purchase Price with respect to the total number of Fractional Shares of Preferred Stock (or other securities, cash or other assets, as the case may be) as to which such surrendered Rights are then exercisable, at or prior to the Expiration Date.
(b) The Purchase Price for each Fractional Share of Preferred Stock pursuant to the exercise of a Right shall initially be $48.00, and shall be subject to adjustment from time to time as provided in Sections 11 and 13(a) hereof and shall be payable in accordance with paragraph (c) below.
(c) Upon receipt of a Rights Certificate representing exercisable Rights, with the form of election to purchase and the certificate on the reverse side thereof duly executed, accompanied by payment, with respect to each Right so exercised, of the Purchase Price per Fractional Share of Preferred Stock (or other shares, securities, cash or other assets, as the case may be) to be purchased as set forth below and an amount equal to any applicable transfer tax, the Rights Agent shall, subject to Section 20(k) hereof, thereupon promptly (i)
(A) requisition from any transfer agent of the shares of Preferred Stock (or make available, if the Rights Agent is the transfer agent for such shares) certificates for the total number of Fractional Shares of Preferred Stock to be purchased, and the Company hereby irrevocably authorizes its transfer agent to comply with all such requests, or (B) if the Company, in its sole discretion, shall have elected to deposit the shares of Preferred Stock issuable upon exercise of the Rights hereunder with a depositary agent, requisition from the depositary agent depositary receipts representing interests in such number of Fractional Shares of Preferred Stock as are to be purchased (in which case certificates for the shares of Preferred Stock represented by such receipts shall be deposited by the transfer agent with the depositary agent) and the Company will direct the depositary agent to comply with such request, (ii) requisition from the Company the amount of cash, if any, to be paid in lieu of fractional shares in accordance with Section 14 hereof, (iii) after receipt of such certificates or depositary receipts, cause the same to be delivered to or upon the order of the registered holder of such Rights Certificate, registered in such name or names as may be designated by such holder and (iv) after receipt thereof, deliver such cash, if any, to or upon the order of the registered holder of such Rights Certificate. The payment of the Purchase Price (as such amount may be reduced pursuant to Section 11(a)(iii) hereof) may be made in cash or by certified check, cashier's or official bank check or bank draft payable to the order of the Company or the Rights Agent. In the event that the Company is obligated to issue other securities (including Common Stock) of the Company, pay cash and/or distribute other property pursuant to Section 11(a) or Section 13(a) hereof, the Company will make all arrangements necessary so that such other securities, cash and/or other property are available for distribution by the Rights Agent, if and when appropriate. The Company reserves the right to require prior to the occurrence of a Triggering Event that, upon exercise of Rights, a number of Rights be exercised so that only whole shares of Preferred Stock would be issued.
(d) In case the registered holder of any Rights Certificate shall exercise fewer than all the Rights evidenced thereby, a new Rights Certificate evidencing Rights equivalent to the Rights remaining unexercised shall be issued by the Rights Agent and delivered to, or upon the order of, the registered holder of such Rights Certificate, registered in such name or names as may be designated by such holder, subject to the provisions of Section 14 hereof.
(e) Notwithstanding anything in this Agreement to the contrary, from and after the first occurrence of a Triggering Event, any Rights beneficially owned by or transferred to (i) an Acquiring Person or an Associate or Affiliate of an Acquiring Person other than any such Person that became such pursuant to a Permitted Offer and the Board of Directors in good faith determines was not involved in and did not cause or facilitate, directly or indirectly, such Triggering Event, (ii) a direct or indirect transferee of such Rights from such Acquiring Person (or any such Associate or Affiliate) who becomes a transferee after such Triggering Event or (iii) a direct or indirect transferee of such Acquiring Person (or of any such Associate or Affiliate) who becomes a transferee prior to or concurrently with such Triggering Event and receives such Rights pursuant to either (A) a transfer (whether or not for consideration) from such Acquiring Person (or such Affiliate or Associate) to holders of equity interests in such Acquiring Person (or such Affiliate or Associate) or to any Person with whom such Acquiring Person (or such Affiliate or Associate) has any continuing agreement, arrangement or understanding regarding the transferred Rights or (B) a transfer that the Board of Directors of the Company determines is part of a plan, arrangement or understanding that has as a primary purpose or effect the avoidance of this Section 7(e), shall become null and void without any further action, no holder of such Rights shall have any rights whatsoever with respect to such Rights, whether under any provision of this Agreement or otherwise, and such Rights shall not be transferable. The Company shall use all reasonable efforts to ensure that the provisions of this Section 7(e) and Section 4(b) hereof are complied with, but shall have no liability to any holder of Rights Certificates or other Person as a result of its failure to make any determinations with respect to an Acquiring Person or its Affiliates, Associates or transferees hereunder.
(f) Notwithstanding anything in this Agreement to the contrary, neither the Rights Agent nor the Company shall be obligated to undertake any action with respect to a registered holder upon the occurrence of any purported exercise as set forth in this Section 7 unless such registered holder shall have (i) completed and signed the certificate contained in the form of election to purchase set forth on the reverse side of the Rights Certificate surrendered for such exercise and (ii) provided such additional evidence of the identity of the Beneficial Owner (or former Beneficial Owner) or Affiliates or Associates thereof as the Company shall reasonably request.
