BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF ALL SECURITIES REGISTERED UNDER SECTION 12 OF THE EXCHANGE ACT
General
As of February 1, 2023, there were 111,098,861 shares of our voting common stock issued, 109,124,750 shares of our voting common stock outstanding and no shares of our non-voting common stock issued and outstanding.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation authorizes us to issue up to 240,000,000 shares of voting common stock, $0.0001 par value per share, 50,000,000 shares of non-voting common stock, $0.0001 par value per share, and 10,000,000 shares of preferred stock, $0.0001 par value per share. All of our issued and outstanding shares of common stock and preferred stock, if any, are duly authorized, validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable. Our shares of voting common stock and non-voting common stock are not redeemable and do not have preemptive rights.
The remaining shares of authorized and unissued capital stock are available for future issuance, subject to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, amended and restated bylaws and applicable law, including any regulations governing the exchange on which our shares of capital stock are then listed. While the additional shares are not designed to deter or prevent a change of control, under some circumstances we could use the additional shares to create voting impediments or to frustrate persons seeking to effect a takeover or otherwise gain control by, for example, issuing those shares in private placements to purchasers who might side with our board of directors in opposing a hostile takeover bid.
The following description of our capital stock and provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws summarize the material terms and provisions of our capital stock. Such descriptions are qualified by reference to the amended and restated certificate of incorporation and the amended and restated bylaws, copies of which have been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”).
Voting Common Stock
Dividend Rights. Holders of our voting common stock are entitled to receive dividends, if any, as may be declared from time to time by our board of directors out of legally available funds ratably with shares of our non-voting common stock, subject to preferences that may be applicable to any then outstanding preferred stock and limitations under the Delaware General Corporation Law.
Voting Rights. Each holder of our voting common stock is entitled to one vote for each share on all matters submitted to a vote of the stockholders, including the election of directors. Our
stockholders do not have cumulative voting rights in the election of directors. Accordingly, holders of a majority of the voting shares are able to elect all of the directors properly up for election at any given stockholders’ meeting.
Liquidation. In the event of our liquidation, dissolution or winding up, holders of our voting common stock will be entitled to share ratably with shares of our non-voting common stock in the net assets legally available for distribution to stockholders after the payment of all of our debts and other liabilities and the satisfaction of any liquidation preference granted to the holders of any then outstanding shares of preferred stock.
Rights and Preferences. Holders of our voting common stock have no preemptive, conversion, subscription or other rights, and there are no redemption or sinking fund provisions applicable to our voting common stock. The rights, preferences and privileges of the holders of our voting common stock are subject to and may be adversely affected by, the rights of the holders of shares of any series of our preferred stock that we may designate in the future.
Non-Voting Common Stock
Dividend Rights. Holders of our non-voting common stock are entitled to receive dividends, if any, as may be declared from time to time by our board of directors out of legally available funds ratably with shares of our voting common stock, subject to preferences that may be applicable to any then outstanding preferred stock and limitations under the Delaware General Corporation Law.
Voting Rights. Shares of our non-voting common stock are not entitled to vote on any matters submitted to a vote of the stockholders, including the election of directors, except to the extent required under the Delaware General Corporation Law.
Conversion Rights. Shares of our non-voting common stock are convertible on a share-for-share basis into voting common stock at the election of the holder. Please see “—Limited Voting by Foreign Owners.”
Liquidation. In the event of our liquidation, dissolution or winding up, holders of our non-voting common stock will be entitled to share ratably with shares of our voting common stock in the net assets legally available for distribution to stockholders after the payment of all of our debts and other liabilities and the satisfaction of any liquidation preference granted to the holders of any then outstanding shares of preferred stock.
Rights and Preferences. Holders of our non-voting common stock have no preemptive, subscription or other rights, and there are no redemption or sinking fund provisions applicable to our non-voting common stock. The rights, preferences and privileges of the holders of our non-
voting common stock are subject to and may be adversely affected by, the rights of the holders of shares of any series of our preferred stock that we may designate in the future.
Preferred Stock
Under our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, our board of directors has the authority, without further action by our stockholders, to issue up to 10,000,000 shares of preferred stock, par value $0.0001 per share, in one or more series and to fix the rights, preferences, privileges and restrictions thereof. These rights, preferences and privileges could include dividend rights, conversion rights, voting rights, terms of redemption, liquidation preferences, sinking fund terms and the number of shares constituting any series or the designation of such series, any or all of which may be greater than the rights of common stock. Our issuance of preferred stock could adversely affect the voting power of holders of common stock and the likelihood that such holders will receive dividend payments and payments upon liquidation. In addition, the issuance of preferred stock could have the effect of delaying, deferring or preventing a change of control of our company or other corporate action.
Anti-Takeover Provisions of Our Certificate of Incorporation and Bylaws
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides for our board of directors to be divided into three classes, with staggered three-year terms. Only one class of directors will be elected at each annual meeting of our stockholders, with the other classes continuing for the remainder of their respective three-year terms. Because our stockholders do not have cumulative voting rights, our stockholders holding a majority of the shares of voting common stock outstanding will be able to elect all of our directors up for election at any given stockholders’ meeting. At any given stockholders’ meeting for the election of directors at which a quorum is present, a plurality of the votes cast shall be sufficient to elect a director up for election. Except as otherwise required by applicable law or the rights and preferences of any then-outstanding preferred stock, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws provide that a director may be removed from the board of directors with cause by a majority vote of the shares of voting common stock outstanding, but vacancies may only be filled by the board of directors. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws provide that all stockholder action must be effected at a duly called meeting of stockholders and not by a consent in writing, and that only our corporate secretary, upon the direction of our board of directors, or the Chairman of the Board may call a special meeting of stockholders. Our amended and restated bylaws also establish advance notice procedures with regard to all stockholder proposals to be brought before meetings of our stockholders, including proposals for the nomination of candidates for election as directors, all of which must be brought in a timely manner. Timely, for purposes of our amended and restated bylaws, generally means delivery of notice to us not less than 90 days nor more than 120 days prior to the first anniversary of the prior year’s annual meeting date.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws requires a 66 2/3% stockholder vote for the amendment, repeal or modification of certain provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws including, among other things, relating to the classification of our board of directors, the requirement that stockholder actions be effected at a duly called meeting, and the designated parties entitled to call a special meeting of the stockholders. The combination of the classification of our board of directors, the lack of cumulative voting and the 66 2/3% stockholder voting requirements make it more difficult for our stockholders to replace our board of directors as well as for another party to obtain control of us by replacing our board of directors. Because our board of directors has the power to retain and discharge our officers, these provisions could also make it more difficult for stockholders or another party to effect a change in management. In addition, the authorization of undesignated preferred stock makes it possible for our board of directors to issue preferred stock with voting or other rights or preferences that could impede the success of any attempt to change our control.
These provisions may have the effect of deterring hostile takeovers or delaying changes in our control or management. These provisions are intended to enhance the likelihood of continued stability in the composition of our board of directors and its policies and to discourage certain types of transactions that may involve an actual or threatened acquisition of us. These provisions are designed to reduce our vulnerability to an unsolicited acquisition proposal. The provisions also are intended to discourage certain tactics that may be used in proxy fights. However, such provisions could have the effect of discouraging others from making tender offers for our shares and, as a consequence, they also may inhibit fluctuations in the market price of our shares that could result from actual or rumored takeover attempts. Such provisions may also have the effect of preventing changes in our management.
Section 203 of the Delaware General Corporation Law. We are subject to Section 203 of the Delaware General Corporation Law, which prohibits a Delaware corporation from engaging in any business combination with any interested stockholder for a period of three years after the date that such stockholder became an interested stockholder, with the following exceptions:
•before such date, the board of directors of the corporation approved either the business combination or the transaction that resulted in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder;
•upon completion of the transaction that resulted in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder, the interested stockholder owned at least 85% of the voting stock of the corporation outstanding at the time the transaction began, excluding for purposes of determining the voting stock outstanding (but not the outstanding voting stock owned by the interested stockholder) those shares owned (i) by
persons who are directors and also officers and (ii) employee stock plans in which employee participants do not have the right to determine confidentially whether shares held subject to the plan will be tendered in a tender or exchange offer; or
•on or after such date, the business combination is approved by the board of directors and authorized at an annual or special meeting of the stockholders, and not by written consent, by the affirmative vote of at least 66 2/3% of the outstanding voting stock that is not owned by the interested stockholder.
In general, Section 203 defines business combination to include the following:
•any merger or consolidation involving (i) the corporation or any majority-owned subsidiary of the corporation and (ii) the interested stockholder or any other corporation, partnership, unincorporated association or other entity if the merger or consolidation is caused by the interested stockholder;
•any sale, lease, exchange, mortgage, pledge, transfer or other disposition of 10% or more of the assets of the corporation involving the interested stockholder;
•subject to certain exceptions, any transaction that results in the issuance or transfer by the corporation or by any majority-owned subsidiary of the corporation of any stock of the corporation to the interested stockholder;
•any transaction involving the corporation or any majority-owned subsidiary of the corporation that has the effect of increasing the proportionate share of the stock or any class or series, or securities convertible into the stock of any class or series, of the corporation, or of any such subsidiary, beneficially owned by the interested stockholder; or
•the receipt by the interested stockholder of the benefit of any loans, advances, guarantees, pledges or other financial benefits provided by or through the corporation or any majority-owned subsidiary.
In general, Section 203 defines an “interested stockholder” as an entity or person who, together with the person’s affiliates and associates, beneficially owns, or within three years prior to the time of determination of interested stockholder status did own, 15% or more of the outstanding voting stock of the corporation.
Limited Voting by Foreign Owners
To comply with restrictions imposed by federal law on foreign ownership of U.S. airlines, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws restrict voting of shares of our capital stock by non-U.S. citizens. The restrictions imposed by federal law currently require that no more than 25% of our voting stock be voted, directly or indirectly, by persons who are not U.S. citizens, and that our president and at least two-thirds of the members of our board of directors and senior management be U.S. citizens. Our amended and restated bylaws provide that no shares of our capital stock may be voted by or at the direction of non-U.S. citizens unless such shares are registered on a separate stock record, which we refer to as the foreign stock record. Our amended and restated bylaws further provide that no shares of our capital stock will be registered on the foreign stock record if the amount so registered would exceed the foreign ownership restrictions imposed by federal law.
Delaware as Sole and Exclusive Forum
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware shall be the sole and exclusive forum for (a) any derivative action or proceeding brought on behalf of us, (b) any action asserting a claim of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any of our directors or officers to us or our stockholders, (c) any action asserting a claim against us arising pursuant to any provision of the Delaware General Corporation Law or our amended and restated certificate of incorporation or amended and restated bylaws or (d) any action asserting a claim against us governed by the internal affairs doctrine. As a result, any action brought by any of our stockholders with regard to any of these matters will need to be filed in the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware and cannot be filed in any other jurisdiction.
Limitations of Liability and Indemnification
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation contains provisions that limit the liability of our directors for monetary damages to the fullest extent permitted by the Delaware General Corporation Law. Consequently, our directors will not be personally liable to us or our stockholders for monetary damages for any breach of fiduciary duties as directors, except liability for:
•any breach of the director’s duty of loyalty to us or our stockholders;
•any act or omission not in good faith or that involves intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of law;
•unlawful payments of dividends or unlawful stock repurchases or redemptions as provided in Section 174 of the Delaware General Corporation Law; or
•any transaction from which the director derived an improper personal benefit.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that we may indemnify our directors and officers, in each case to the fullest extent permitted by the Delaware General Corporation Law. Our amended and restated bylaws also provide that we are obligated to indemnify our directors and officers to the fullest extent permitted by the Delaware General Corporation Law and advance expenses incurred by a director or officer in advance of the final disposition of any action or proceeding, and they permit us to secure insurance on behalf of any officer, director, employee or other agent for any liability arising out of his or her actions in that capacity regardless of whether we would otherwise be permitted to indemnify him or her under the provisions of the Delaware General Corporation Law. We have entered into agreements to indemnify our directors, executive officers and other employees as determined by our board of directors. With specified exceptions, these agreements provide for indemnification for related expenses including, among other things, attorneys’ fees, judgments, fines and settlement amounts incurred by any of these individuals in any action or proceeding. We believe that these limitation of liability provisions and indemnification agreements are necessary to attract and retain qualified persons as directors and officers. We also maintain directors’ and officers’ liability insurance.
The limitation of liability and indemnification provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, amended and restated bylaws and indemnification agreements may discourage stockholders from bringing a lawsuit against our directors and officers for breach of their fiduciary duty.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that any such lawsuit must be brought in the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware. However, because the applicability of the exclusive forum provision is limited to the extent permitted by applicable law, we do not intend for the exclusive forum provision to apply to suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or any other claim for which the federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction, and acknowledge that federal courts have concurrent jurisdiction over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Securities Act. We note that there is uncertainty as to whether a court would enforce the provision as it applies to the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act") and that stockholders cannot waive compliance with the federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder. The foregoing provisions may also reduce the likelihood of derivative litigation against our directors and officers, even though an action, if successful, might benefit us and other stockholders.
Further, a stockholder’s investment may be adversely affected to the extent that we pay the costs of settlement and damage awards against directors and officers as required by these indemnification provisions. Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities
Act may be permitted to our directors, officers and controlling persons pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, we have been advised that, in the opinion of the SEC, such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act, and is, therefore, unenforceable. At present, there is no pending litigation or proceeding involving any of our directors, officers or employees for which indemnification is sought, and we are not aware of any threatened litigation that may result in claims for indemnification.
Market Listing
Our common stock is listed and traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “SAVE.”
