Qualifying Performance Criteria means any one or more of the following performance criteria, either individually, alternatively or in any combination, applied to either the Company as a whole or to a business unit, Parent, Subsidiary or business segment, either individually, alternatively or in any combination, and measured either annually or cumulatively over a period of years, on an absolute basis or relative to a pre-established target, to previous years’ results or to a designated comparison group, and on a pre-tax or after-tax basis, in each case as specified by the Committee in the Award: (i) cash flow (including operating cash flow or free cash flow); (ii) earnings (including gross margin, earnings before interest and taxes, earnings before taxes, and net earnings); (iii) earnings per share; (iv) growth in earnings or earnings per share; (v) stock price; (vi) return on equity or average stockholders’ equity; (vii) total stockholder return; (viii) return on capital; (ix) return on assets or net assets; (x) return on investment; (xi) revenue; (xii) income or net income; (xiii) operating income or net operating income; (xiv) operating profit or net operating profit; (xv) operating margin; (xvi) return on operating revenue; (xvii) market share; (xviii) contract awards or backlog; (xix) overhead or other expense reduction; (xx) growth in stockholder value relative to the moving average of the S&P 500 Index or a peer group index; (xxi) credit rating; (xxii) strategic plan development and implementation (including individual performance objectives that relate to achievement of the Company’s or any business unit’s strategic plan); (xxiii) improvement in workforce diversity; (xxiv) expenses; (xxv) economic value added; (xxvi) product quality; (xxvii) number of customers; (xxviii) objective customer indicators; (xxix) customer satisfaction; (xxx) new product invention or innovation; (xxxi) profit after taxes; (xxxii) pre-tax profit; (xxxiii) working capital; (xxxiv) sales; (xxxv) advancement of the Company’s product pipeline; (xxxvi) consummation of strategic transactions; (xxxvii) reduction in cash utilization; and (xxxviii) addition of technologies and products. The Committee may appropriately adjust any evaluation of performance under a Qualifying Performance Criteria to exclude any of the following events that occurs during a performance period: (A) asset write-downs; (B) litigation or claim judgments or settlements; (C) the effect of changes in tax law, accounting principles or other such laws or provisions affecting reported results; (D) accruals for reorganization and restructuring programs; and (E) any gains or losses classified as extraordinary or as discontinued operations in the Company’s financial statements.
Regulatory Event means, following the occurrence of a Change in Law (as defined below) with respect to the Issuer and/or Société Générale as Guarantor or in any other capacity (including without limitation as hedging counterparty of the Issuer, market maker of the Certificates or direct or indirect shareholder or sponsor of the Issuer) or any of its affiliates involved in the issuer of the Certificates (hereafter the “Relevant Affiliates” and each of the Issuer, Société Générale and the Relevant Affiliates, a “Relevant Entity”) that, after the Certificates have been issued, (i) any Relevant Entity would incur a materially increased (as compared with circumstances existing prior to such event) amount of tax, duty, liability, penalty, expense, fee, cost or regulatory capital charge however defined or collateral requirements for performing its obligations under the Certificates or hedging the Issuer’s obligations under the Certificates, including, without limitation, due to clearing requirements of, or the absence of, clearing of the transactions entered into in connection with the issue of, or hedging the Issuer’s obligation under, the Certificates, (ii) it is or will become for any Relevant Entity impracticable, impossible (in each case, after using commercially reasonable efforts), unlawful, illegal or otherwise prohibited or contrary, in whole or in part, under any law, regulation, rule, judgement, order or directive of any governmental, administrative or judicial authority, or power, applicable to such Relevant Entity (a) to hold, acquire, issue, reissue, substitute, maintain, settle, or as the case may be, guarantee, the Certificates, (b) to acquire, hold, sponsor or dispose of any asset(s) (or any interest thereof) of any other transaction(s) such Relevant Entity may use in connection with the issue of the Certificates or to hedge the Issuer’s obligations under the Certificates,(c) to perform obligations in connection with, the Certificates or any contractual arrangement entered into between the Issuer and Société Générale or any Relevant Affiliate (including without limitation to hedge the Issuer’s obligations under the Certificates) or (d) to hold, acquire, maintain, increase, substitute or redeem all or a substantial part of its direct or indirect shareholding in the Issuer’s capital or the capital of any Relevant Affiliate or to directly or indirectly sponsor the Issuer or any Relevant Affiliate, or (iii) there is or may be a material adverse effect on a Relevant Entity in connection with the issue of the Certificates.