2,500,000 Shares IBERIABANK Corporation Common Stock UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT

Contract Categories: Business Finance - Underwriting Agreements
EX-1.1 2 dex11.htm EXHIBIT 1.1 Exhibit 1.1

Exhibit 1.1

2,500,000 Shares

IBERIABANK Corporation

Common Stock

UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT

December 10, 2008

STIFEL, NICOLAUS & COMPANY, INCORPORATED

    As representative of the several Underwriters

  named in Schedule I hereto

  c/o Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated

  One Financial Plaza

  501 North Broadway

  St. Louis, Missouri 63102

Ladies and Gentlemen:

IBERIABANK Corporation, a Louisiana corporation (the “Company”), proposes to issue and sell to the several underwriters named in Schedule I hereto (the “Underwriters”) for whom you are acting as representative (the “Representative”) an aggregate of 2,500,000 shares (the “Firm Shares”) of the common stock, par value $1.00 per share, of the Company (“Common Stock”). The Company also proposes to sell to the several Underwriters, for the sole purpose of covering over-allotments in connection with the sale of the Firm Shares, at the option of the Underwriters, up to an additional 375,000 shares of Common Stock (the “Option Shares”). The Firm Shares and any Option Shares purchased by the Underwriters are hereinafter referred to collectively as the “Shares”.

The Company confirms as follows its agreements with the Representative and the several other Underwriters.

1. (a) The Company represents and warrants to, and agrees with, each of the Underwriters that, as of the date hereof and as of the Closing Date (as defined herein) and each Option Closing Date (as defined herein), if any:

(i) The Company has filed an automatic shelf registration statement on Form S-3 (File No. 333-155443), including the related base prospectus, for the registration of Common Stock, serial preferred stock, depositary shares, rights, warrants and units, including the Shares (together, the “Initial Registration Statement”) with the Securities and Exchange


Commission (the “Commission”) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and the offering thereof from time to time in accordance with Rule 430B or Rule 415 of the rules and regulations of the Commission (the “Rules and Regulations”) under the Securities Act, and the Company has filed such post-effective amendments thereto as may be required prior to the execution of this Agreement; the Initial Registration Statement and any post-effective amendment thereto, each in the form heretofore delivered to you, automatically became effective under the Securities Act upon filing with the Commission pursuant to Rule 462(e) of the Rules and Regulations; other than a registration statement, if any, increasing the size of the offering (a “Rule 462(b) Registration Statement”), filed pursuant to Rule 462(b) of the Rules and Regulations, which became effective upon filing, and a Pricing Prospectus (as defined below) setting forth the terms of the offering, sale and plan of distribution of the Shares and additional information concerning the Company and its business, no other document with respect to the Initial Registration Statement has heretofore been filed with the Commission; no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Initial Registration Statement, any post-effective amendment thereto or the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement, if any, has been issued, and no proceeding for that purpose has been initiated or threatened by the Commission and any request on the part of the Commission for additional information from the Company has been satisfied in all respects; any preliminary or base prospectus included in the Initial Registration Statement, as originally filed or as part of any amendment thereto, or filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(a) of the Rules and Regulations is hereinafter called a “Preliminary Prospectus”; the various parts of the Initial Registration Statement and the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement, if any, including all schedules and exhibits thereto (including the documents incorporated by reference therein pursuant to Item 12 of Form S-3 under the Securities Act) and including the information contained in the form of final prospectus filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) of the Rules and Regulations (including the information omitted from the Initial Registration Statement in accordance with Rule 430B of the Rules and Regulations) and deemed by virtue of Rule 430A of the Rules and Regulations to be part of the Initial Registration Statement at the time it was declared effective or such part of the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement, if any, became or hereafter becomes effective, each as amended at the time such part of the Initial Registration Statement became effective, are hereinafter collectively called the “Registration Statement”; the Preliminary Prospectus relating to the Shares that was included in the Registration Statement immediately prior to the Applicable Time (as defined in Section 1(a) (iii) hereof) is hereinafter called the “Pricing Prospectus”; such final prospectus, in the form first filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) of the Rules and Regulations and any Preliminary Prospectuses that form part thereof, is hereinafter called the “Prospectus”; and any “issuer free writing prospectus” as defined in Rule 433 of the Rules and Regulations relating to the Shares is hereinafter called an “Issuer Free Writing Prospectus”; and all references to the Registration Statement, any Preliminary Prospectus, the Pricing Prospectus, the Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or any amendment or supplement to any of the foregoing shall be deemed to include the copy filed with the Commission pursuant to its Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis and Retrieval system (“EDGAR”);

(ii) (1) at the respective times the Initial Registration Statement, any Rule 462(b) Registration Statement, the Registration Statement and any post-effective amendments thereto became effective and at the Closing Date (and, if any Option Shares are

 

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purchased, at each Option Closing Date)), the Initial Registration Statement, any Rule 462(b) Registration Statement and any amendments and supplements thereto complied and will comply in all material respects with the requirements of the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations and did not and will not contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, and (2) at the time the Prospectus or any amendments or supplements thereto were filed with the Commission and at the Closing Date (and, if any Option Shares are purchased, at each Option Closing Date), neither the Prospectus nor any amendment or supplement thereto included or will include an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted or will omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; provided that the representations and warranties in clauses (1) and (2) above shall not apply to statements in or omissions from the Registration Statement or the Prospectus made in reliance upon and in strict conformity with information furnished to the Company in writing by any Underwriter through the Representative expressly for use in the Registration Statement or the Prospectus, it being understood and agreed that the only such information provided by any Underwriter is that described as such in Section 9(b) hereof. No order preventing or suspending the use of any Preliminary Prospectus, the Pricing Prospectus or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus has been issued by the Commission. Any offer that is a written communication relating to the Shares made prior to the filing of the Initial Registration Statement by the Company or any person acting on its behalf (within the meaning, for this paragraph only, of Rule 163(c) of the Rules and Regulations) has been filed with the Commission in accordance with the exemption provided by Rule 163 of the Rules and Regulations (“Rule 163”) and otherwise complied with the requirements of Rule 163, including without limitation the legending requirement, to qualify such offer for the exemption from Section 5(c) of the Securities Act provided by Rule 163;

Each Preliminary Prospectus, Pricing Prospectus, Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and the Prospectus filed as part of the Initial Registration Statement as originally filed or as part of any amendment thereto, or filed pursuant to Rule 424 of the Rules and Regulations, complied when so filed in all material respects with the requirements of the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations and each Preliminary Prospectus, Pricing Prospectus, Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and the Prospectus delivered to the Underwriters for use in connection with this offering was identical to the electronically transmitted copies thereof filed with the Commission pursuant to EDGAR, except to the extent permitted by Regulation S-T; the conditions set forth in one or more of subclauses (i) through (iv), inclusive, of Rule 433(b)(1) are satisfied, and the Initial Registration Statement relating to the offering of the Shares contemplated hereby includes a prospectus that, other than by reason of Rule 433 or Rule 431, satisfies the requirements of Section 10 of the Securities Act;

The documents incorporated or deemed to be incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, at the time they were or hereafter are filed with the Commission, complied and will comply in all material respects with the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder (the “1934 Act Regulations”), and, when read together with the other information in the Prospectus, (a) at the time the Initial Registration Statement became

 

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effective, (b) at the earlier of time the Prospectus was first used and the date and time of the first contract of sale of Shares in this offering and (c) at the Closing Date (and, if any Option Shares are purchased, at the Option Closing Date), did not and will not contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading.

(iii) For the purposes of this Agreement, the “Applicable Time” means 7:10 p.m. (Eastern time) on the date of this Agreement; the Pricing Prospectus as supplemented by the Issuer Free Writing Prospectuses and other documents listed in Schedule II hereto, taken together (collectively, the “Pricing Disclosure Package”) as of the Applicable Time, did not include any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; and each Issuer Free Writing Prospectus listed on Schedule II hereto does not conflict with the information contained in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Prospectus or the Prospectus and each such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, as supplemented by and taken together with the Pricing Disclosure Package as of the Applicable Time, did not include any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; provided, however, that this representation and warranty shall not apply to statements or omissions made in an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus in reliance upon and in strict conformity with information furnished in writing to the Company by an Underwriter through the Representative expressly for use therein;

(iv) (A) At the time of filing the Registration Statement, (B) at the time of the most recent amendment thereto, if any, for the purposes of complying with Section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act (whether such amendment was by post-effective amendment, incorporated report filed pursuant to the Exchange Act or form of prospectus), (C) at the time the Company or any person acting on its behalf (within the meaning, for this clause only, of Rule 163(c) of the Rules and Regulations) made any offer relating to the Shares in reliance on the exemption provided by Rule 163 and (D) at the date hereof, the Company was and is a “well-known seasoned issuer” as defined in Rule 405 of the Rules and Regulations. The Company has not received, from the Commission, a notice, pursuant to Rule 401(g)(2), of objection to the use of the automatic shelf registration statement form; as of the determination date applicable to the Registration Statement (and any amendment thereof) and the offering contemplated hereby, and as of each time, if any, an “offer by or on behalf of” (within the meaning of Rule 163) the Company was made prior to the initial filing of the Registration Statement, the Company is and was a “well-known seasoned issuer” as defined in Rule 405 of the Rules and Regulations. At the time of filing the Initial Registration Statement the Company was not and is not an “ineligible issuer,” as defined under Rule 405 of the Rules and Regulations;

(v) The Company has been duly incorporated and is validly existing as a corporation in good standing under the laws of the State of Louisiana, with power and authority (corporate and other) to own, lease and operate its properties and conduct its business as described in the Pricing Prospectus and to enter into and perform its obligations under this Agreement, and has been duly qualified as a foreign corporation for the transaction of business

 

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and is in good standing under the laws of each other jurisdiction in which it owns or leases properties or conducts any business so as to require such qualification, except where the failure so to qualify or be in good standing would not have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise;

(vi) Each subsidiary of the Company listed on Exhibit C attached hereto (each a “Subsidiary”) has been duly incorporated (or organized) and is validly existing as a corporation (or other organization) in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its incorporation (or organization), with power and authority to own, lease and operate its properties and conduct its business as described in the Pricing Prospectus, and has been duly qualified as a foreign corporation (or other organization) for the transaction of business and is in good standing under the laws of each other jurisdiction in which its owns or leases properties or conducts any business so as to require such qualification, except where the failure so to qualify or be in good standing would not have a material adverse effect on the Company and the Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise; all of the issued and outstanding capital stock (or other ownership interests) of each Subsidiary has been duly and validly authorized and issued, is fully paid and non-assessable and is owned by the Company, directly or through Subsidiaries, free and clear of any security interest, mortgage, pledge, lien, encumbrance, claim or equity; there are no other “significant subsidiaries” of the Company within the meaning of Rule 1-02 of Regulation S-X;

(vii) The Company has an authorized capitalization as set forth in the Pricing Prospectus, and all of the issued and outstanding shares of capital stock of the Company have been duly and validly authorized and issued, are fully paid and non-assessable and conform to the descriptions thereof contained in the Pricing Disclosure Package and such descriptions conform to the rights set forth in the instruments defining the same; and none of the issued and outstanding shares of capital stock of the Company are subject to any preemptive or similar rights;

(viii) The Shares have been duly and validly authorized and, when issued and delivered to and paid for by the Underwriters in accordance with the terms of this Agreement, will be duly and validly issued and fully paid and non-assessable and will conform to the descriptions thereof contained in the Prospectus and such descriptions conform to the rights set forth in the Company’s articles of incorporation, bylaws and other instruments defining the same; the issuance of such Shares is not subject to any preemptive or similar rights;

(ix) This Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company;

(x) The issue and sale of the Shares, the execution of this Agreement by the Company and the compliance by the Company with all of the provisions of this Agreement and the consummation of the transactions herein contemplated will not conflict with or result in a breach or violation of any of the terms or provisions of, or constitute a default under, any indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan agreement, contract or other agreement or instrument to which the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is a party or by which the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is bound or to which any of the property or assets of the Company or

 

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any of the Subsidiaries is subject, nor will such action result in any violation of the provisions of the certificate or articles of incorporation or by-laws (or other organization documents) of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries or any statute or any order, rule or regulation of any court or governmental agency or body having jurisdiction over the Company or any of the Subsidiaries or any of their properties; and no consent, approval, authorization, order, registration or qualification of or with any such court or governmental agency or body is required for the issue and sale of the Shares or the consummation by the Company of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, except the registration under the Securities Act of the Shares and such consents, approvals, authorizations, registrations or qualifications as may be required under state securities or Blue Sky laws in connection with the purchase and distribution of the Shares by the Underwriters. All options to purchase shares of the Company’s Common Stock granted by the Company to its directors, officers, employees or consultants, pursuant to the Company’s stock option plans, or otherwise, provided for an exercise price equal to no less than the fair market value of the underlying shares of Common Stock as determined under Section 409A of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), and the regulations and published interpretations thereunder on the date of grant (within the meaning of U.S. Treasury Reg. §1.421-1(c)), and no such grant involved any “back-dating,” “forward-dating” or similar practice with respect to the effective date of such grant;

(xi) Ernst & Young LLP (“Ernst & Young”) and Castaing, Hussey, & Lolan, LLC (“CHL”), each of whom have certified certain financial statements of the Company and the Subsidiaries, are each an independent registered public accounting firm as required by the Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations and the rules and regulations of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board. The financial statements, together with related schedules and notes, included in the Registration Statement and the Pricing Prospectus comply in all material respects with the requirements of the Securities Act and present fairly the consolidated financial position, results of operations and changes in financial position of the Company and the Subsidiaries on the basis stated in the Registration Statement at the respective dates or for the respective periods to which they apply; such statements and related schedules and notes have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles consistently applied throughout the periods involved, except as disclosed therein; and the selected financial data and the summary financial data included in the Pricing Prospectus present fairly the information shown therein and have been compiled on a basis consistent with that of the financial statements included in the Registration Statement. The pro forma financial statements of the Company and the Subsidiaries and the related notes thereto included in the Registration Statement and the Pricing Prospectus present fairly the information shown therein, have been prepared in accordance with the Commission’s rules and guidelines with respect to pro forma financial statements and have been properly compiled on the bases described therein, and the assumptions used in the preparation thereof are reasonable and the adjustments used therein are appropriate to give effect to the transactions and circumstances referred to therein. All disclosures contained in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus regarding “non-GAAP financial measures” (as such term is defined by the rules and regulations of the Commission) comply with Regulation G under the Exchange Act and Item 10 of Regulation S-K of the Rules and Regulations, to the extent applicable. On March 13, 2007, CHL, the Company’s then independent auditor and at such time an independent registered public

 

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accounting firm, informed the Audit Committee of the Company’s Board of Directors (the “Audit Committee”) that it would decline to stand for re-election as independent auditor. CHL’s services as independent auditor ceased upon the Company’s filing of its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2006 (the “2006 Form 10-K”). During the period from the date of CHL’s original engagement by the Company through the date of the filing of the Company’s 2006 Form 10-K, the Company had no disagreements with CHL on any matter of accounting principles or practices, financial statement disclosure, or auditing scope or procedures, which disagreements, if not resolved to the former auditors’ satisfaction, would have caused them to make reference to the subject matter of the disagreement in connection with their report on the Company’s financial statements;

(xii) Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has sustained since the date of the latest audited financial statements included in the Pricing Prospectus any material loss or interference with its business from fire, explosion, flood or other calamity, whether or not covered by insurance, or from any labor dispute or court or governmental action, order or decree, otherwise than as set forth or contemplated in the Pricing Prospectus; and, since the respective dates as of which information is given in the Registration Statement and the Pricing Prospectus, (1) there has not been any change in the capital stock or long-term debt of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries, (2) there has not been any material adverse change, or any development involving a prospective material adverse change, in or affecting the general affairs, business, prospects, management, financial position, capitalization, shareholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company and the Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise, (3) there have been no transactions entered into by, and no obligations or liabilities, contingent or otherwise, incurred by the Company or any of the Subsidiaries, whether or not in the ordinary course of business, which are material to the Company and the Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise or (4) there has been no dividend or distribution of any kind declared, paid or made by the Company on any class of its capital stock, in each case, otherwise than as set forth or contemplated in the Pricing Prospectus;

(xiii) Neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries is (1) in violation of its articles of incorporation or bylaws (or other organization documents), (2) in violation of any law, ordinance, administrative or governmental rule or regulation applicable to the Company or any of the Subsidiaries, (3) in violation of any decree of any court or governmental agency or body having jurisdiction over the Company or any of the Subsidiaries, (4) in default in the performance of any obligation, agreement or condition contained in any bond, debenture, note or any other evidence of indebtedness or in any agreement, indenture, lease or other instrument to which the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is a party or by which any of them or any of their respective properties may be bound, or (5) has taken any action that would result in any violation or default described in clauses (1), (2), (3) or (4), except, in the case of clauses (2), (3) and (4), where any such violation or default, individually or in the aggregate, would not have a material adverse effect on the general affairs, business, prospects, management, financial position, shareholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company and the Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise;

 

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(xiv) Each of the Company and each Subsidiary has good and marketable title to all real and personal property owned by it, in each case free and clear of all liens, encumbrances and defects except such as are described in the Pricing Prospectus or such as do not materially affect the value of such property and do not interfere with the use made and proposed to be made of such property by the Company or any Subsidiary; and any real property and buildings held under lease by the Company or any Subsidiary are held under valid, subsisting and enforceable leases with such exceptions as are not material and do not interfere with the use made and proposed to be made of such property and buildings by the Company or any Subsidiary;

(xv) Other than as set forth in the Pricing Prospectus, there are no legal or governmental proceedings pending to which the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is a party or of which any property of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is the subject which, if determined adversely to the Company or the Subsidiary, individually or in the aggregate, would have or may reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the general affairs, business, prospects, management, financial position, shareholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company and the Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise, or would prevent or impair the consummation of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement, or which are required to be described in the Registration Statement or the Pricing Prospectus; and, to the best of the Company’s knowledge, no such proceedings are threatened or contemplated by governmental authorities or others;

(xvi) The Company and the Subsidiaries possess all permits, licenses, approvals, consents and other authorizations (collectively, “Permits”) issued by the appropriate federal, state, local or foreign regulatory agencies or bodies necessary to conduct the businesses now operated by them; the Company and the Subsidiaries are in compliance with the terms and conditions of all such Permits and all of the Permits are valid and in full force and effect, except, in each case, where the failure so to comply or where the invalidity of such Permits or the failure of such Permits to be in full force and effect, individually or in the aggregate, would not have a material adverse effect on the general affairs, business, prospects, management, financial position, shareholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company and the Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise; and neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has received any notice of proceedings relating to the revocation or material modification of any such Permits;

(xvii) The Company and the Subsidiaries own or possess, or can acquire on reasonable terms, all licenses, inventions, copyrights, know-how (including trade secrets and other unpatented and/or unpatentable proprietary or confidential information, systems or procedures), trademarks, service marks and trade names, patents and patent rights (collectively “Intellectual Property”) material to carrying on their businesses as described in the Pricing Prospectus, and neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has received any correspondence relating to any Intellectual Property or notice of infringement of or conflict with asserted rights of others with respect to any Intellectual Property which would render any Intellectual Property invalid or inadequate to protect the interest of the Company and the Subsidiaries and which infringement or conflict (if the subject of any unfavorable decision, ruling or finding) or invalidity or inadequacy, individually or in the aggregate, would have or may reasonably be

 

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expected to have a material adverse effect on the general affairs, business, prospects, management, financial position, shareholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company and the Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise;

(xviii) No material labor dispute with the employees of the Company or the Subsidiaries exists, or, to the knowledge of the Company, is imminent. The Company is not aware of any existing or imminent labor disturbance by the employees of any of its or any Subsidiary’s principal suppliers, manufacturers, customers or contractors, which, individually or in the aggregate, may reasonably be expected to result in a material adverse effect on the general affairs, business, prospects, management, financial position, shareholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company and the Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise;

(xix) The Company and the Subsidiaries are insured by insurers of recognized financial responsibility against such losses and risks and in such amounts as are prudent and customary in the businesses in which they are engaged; neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has been refused any insurance coverage sought or applied for; and the Company has no reason to believe that either it or any Subsidiary will not be able to renew its existing insurance coverage as and when such coverage expires or to obtain similar coverage from similar insurers as may be necessary to continue its business at a cost that would not have a material adverse effect on the Company and the Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise;

(xx) The Company and each of its Subsidiaries have made and keep books, records and accounts, which, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the Company and its Subsidiaries. The Company maintains a system of internal accounting controls sufficient to provide reasonable assurance that (1) transactions are executed in accordance with management’s general or specific authorizations; (2) transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles and to maintain accountability for assets; (3) access to assets is permitted only in accordance with management’s general or specific authorization; and (4) the recorded accountability for assets is compared with the existing assets at reasonable intervals and appropriate action is taken with respect to any differences;

(xxi) Since the date of the latest audited financial statements included in the Pricing Prospectus, (a) the Company has not been advised of (1) any significant deficiencies in the design or operation of internal controls that could adversely affect the ability of the Company and each of its Subsidiaries to record, process, summarize and report financial data, or any material weaknesses in internal controls and (2) any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the internal controls of the Company and each of its Subsidiaries, and (b) since that date, there has been no change in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the Company’s internal control over financial reporting;

(xxii) The Company maintains disclosure controls and procedures (as such term is defined in Rule 13a-15 (e) of the Exchange Act) that comply with the requirements

 

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of the Exchange Act and that are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by the Company in the reports that it files or submits under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported, within the time periods specified in the Commission’s rules, regulations and forms, and is accumulated and communicated to the Company’s management, including its principal executive officer or officers and principal financial officer or officers, as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding disclosure; such disclosure controls and procedures are effective;

(xxiii) All United States federal income tax returns of the Company and the Subsidiaries required by law to be filed have been filed and all taxes shown by such returns or otherwise assessed, which are due and payable, have been paid, except assessments against which appeals have been or will be promptly taken and as to which adequate reserves have been provided. The Company and the Subsidiaries have filed all other tax returns that are required to have been filed by them pursuant to applicable foreign, state, local or other law, except insofar as the failure to file such returns, individually or in the aggregate, would not result in a material adverse effect on the general affairs, business, prospects, management, financial position, shareholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company and the Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise, and have paid all taxes due pursuant to such returns or pursuant to any assessment received by the Company or any Subsidiary except for such taxes, if any, as are being contested in good faith and as to which adequate reserves have been provided. The charges, accruals and reserves on the books of the Company and the Subsidiaries in respect of any income and corporation tax liability for any years not finally determined are adequate to meet any assessments or re-assessments for additional income tax for any years not finally determined;

(xxiv) There are no statutes, regulations, documents or contracts of a character required to be described in the Registration Statement or the Pricing Prospectus or to be filed as an exhibit to the Registration Statement which are not described or filed as required;

(xxv) Neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries is in violation of any statute, law, ordinance, code, policy, rule, regulation, rule of common law, decision, order or interpretation of any governmental agency or body or any court, domestic or foreign, relating to the use, production, disposal or release of chemicals, pollutants, contaminants, wastes, petroleum or petroleum products, asbestos-containing materials, hazardous or toxic substances or relating to the protection or restoration of the environment or human exposure to hazardous or toxic substances (collectively, “environmental laws”), owns or operates any real property contaminated with any substance that is subject to any environmental laws, is liable for any off-site disposal or contamination pursuant to any environmental laws, or is subject to any claim relating to any environmental laws, which violation, contamination, liability or claim, individually or in the aggregate, would have a material adverse effect on the general affairs, business, prospects, management, financial position, shareholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company and the Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise; and the Company is not aware of any pending investigation which might lead to such a claim;

(xxvi) Each employee benefit plan, within the meaning of Section 3(3) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”), that is

 

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maintained, administered or contributed to by the Company or any Subsidiary for employees or former employees of the Company and its affiliates has been maintained in compliance with its terms and the requirements of any applicable statutes, orders, rules and regulations, including but not limited to ERISA and the Code, except to the extent that failure to so comply, individually or in the aggregate, would not have a material adverse effect on the general affairs, business, prospects, management, financial position, shareholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company and the Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise. No prohibited transaction, within the meaning of Section 406 of ERISA or Section 4975 of the Code has occurred with respect to any such plan excluding transactions effected pursuant to a statutory or administrative exemption;

(xxvii) Neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries, or any director, officer, agent, employee or other person associated with or acting on behalf of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries, has (i) used any corporate funds for any unlawful contribution, gift, entertainment or other unlawful expense relating to political activity; (ii) made any direct or indirect unlawful payment to any foreign or domestic government official or employee from corporate funds, (iii) violated or is in violation of any provision of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, or (iv) made any bribe, unlawful rebate, payoff, influence payment, kickback or other unlawful payment;

(xxviii) Other than the U.S. Department of the Treasury, there are no persons with registration rights or other similar rights to have securities registered pursuant to the Registration Statement or otherwise registered by the Company under the Securities Act, and the securities issued to the U.S. Department of the Treasury have not been registered;

(xxix) The Company is not and, after giving effect to the offering and sale of the Shares as contemplated herein and the application of the net proceeds therefrom as described in the Pricing Prospectus, will not be an “investment company”, as such term is defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”);

(xxx) The Company has not distributed and, prior to the later to occur of the Closing Date, the Option Closing Date and completion of distribution of the Shares, will not distribute any offering materials in connection with the offering and sale of the Shares, other than the Pricing Prospectus, the Prospectus and, subject to compliance with Section 6 hereof, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus;

(xxxi) The statistical and market and industry-related data included in the Pricing Prospectus and the Prospectus are based on or derived from sources which the Company believes to be reliable and accurate or represent the Company’s good faith estimates that are made on the basis of data derived from such sources, and the Company has obtained the written consent to the use of such data from sources to the extent required;

(xxxii) Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary, nor any of their respective directors, managers or partners, as applicable, or officers, in their capacity as such, is in material breach or violation of any provision of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and the rules and regulations promulgated in connection therewith;

 

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(xxxiii) The Company has been duly registered as a bank holding company and qualified as a financial holding company under the applicable provisions of the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956, as amended and the Company has been duly registered as a savings and loan holding company under the applicable provisions of the Home Owners Loan Act of 1933. Each of the Company, IberiaBank, a Louisiana banking corporation (“IBERIABANK”), and Pulaski Bank and Trust Company (“Pulaski”, and together with IBERIABANK, the “Banks”) are in compliance in all material respects with all applicable laws administered by and regulations of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the “Federal Reserve Board”), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (the “FDIC”), the Office of Thrift Supervision (the “OTS”), the Louisiana Office of Financial Institutions (the “OFI”) and any other federal or state bank regulatory authority (collectively, the “Bank Regulatory Authorities”) with jurisdiction over the Company or the Banks, other than where such failures to comply would not have or may reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company or its Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise. Neither the Company nor the Banks are a party to any written agreement or memorandum of understanding with, or a party to, any commitment letter or similar undertaking to, or is subject to any order or directive by, or is a recipient of an extraordinary supervisory letter from, or has adopted any board resolutions at the request of, any Bank Regulatory Authority which restricts materially the conduct of its business, or in any manner relates to its capital adequacy, its credit policies or its management, nor have any of them been advised by any Bank Regulatory Authority that it is contemplating issuing or requesting (or is considering the appropriateness of issuing or requesting) any such order, decree, agreement, memorandum of understanding, extraordinary supervisory letter, commitment letter or similar submission, or any such board resolutions. The most recent regulatory rating given to each of the Banks as to compliance with the Community Reinvestment Act of 1977, as amended (the “Community Reinvestment Act”) is “satisfactory.” To the knowledge of the Company, since the Banks’ last regulatory examination of Community Reinvestment Act compliance, the Banks have not received any complaints as to Community Reinvestment Act compliance;

(xxxiv) The operations of the Company and its Subsidiaries are and have been conducted at all times in material compliance with applicable financial recordkeeping and reporting requirements of the Currency and Foreign Transactions Reporting Act of 1970, as amended, the money laundering statutes of all jurisdictions, the rules and regulations thereunder and any related or similar rules, regulations or guidelines, issued, administered or enforced by any governmental agency (collectively, the “Money Laundering Laws”) and no action, suit or proceeding by or before any court or governmental agency, authority or body or any arbitrator involving the Company or any of its Subsidiaries with respect to the Money Laundering Laws is pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened, except, in each case, as would not reasonably be likely to have or may reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company or its Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise. Neither the Company nor any of its Subsidiaries nor, to the knowledge of the Company, any director, officer, agent, employee or affiliate of the Company or any of its subsidiaries is currently subject to any U.S. sanctions administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Treasury Department

 

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(“OFAC”); and the Company will not directly or indirectly use the proceeds of the offering, or lend, contribute or otherwise make available such proceeds to any subsidiary, joint venture partner or other person or entity, for the purpose of financing the activities of any person currently subject to any U.S. sanctions administered by OFAC;

(xxxv) The Company has not taken and will not take, directly or indirectly, any action designed to cause or result in, or which constitutes or might reasonably be expected to constitute the stabilization or manipulation of the price of any security of the Company to facilitate the sale or resale of the Shares;

(xxxvi) Each “forward-looking statement” (within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act or Section 21E of the Exchange Act) contained or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement, the Preliminary Prospectuses, the Prospectus and Issuer Free Writing Prospectuses, if any, has been made or reaffirmed with a reasonable basis and in good faith;

(xxxvii) The Company has made available a “bona fide electronic road show,” as defined in Rule 433, in compliance with Rule 433(d)(8)(ii) (the “Bona Fide Electronic Road Show”) such that no filing of any “road show” (as defined in Rule 433(h)) is required in connection with the offering of the Securities. The audiovisual presentation made available to the public by the Company at http://www.netroadshow.com is a “bona fide electronic roadshow” for purposes of Rule 433(d)(8)(ii) of the Securities Act, and such presentation, together with the Pricing Prospectus, does not contain any untrue statement of material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading, except that the representations and warranties set forth in this paragraph do not apply to statements in or omissions from such presentation or Pricing Prospectus made in reliance upon and in strict conformity with information furnished to the Company in writing by any Underwriter through the Representative expressly for use therein; and

(xxxviii) Any certificate signed by any officer of the Company delivered to the Underwriters or to counsel for the Underwriters shall be deemed a representation and warranty by the Company to the Underwriters as to the matters covered thereby.

2. Subject to the terms and conditions herein set forth, (a) the Company agrees to sell to each of the Underwriters, and each of the Underwriters agrees, severally and not jointly, to purchase from the Company, at a purchase price per share of $38.20 (the “Purchase Price”), the number of Firm Shares (to be adjusted by you so as to eliminate fractional shares) determined by multiplying the aggregate number of Firm Shares to be sold by the Company hereunder by a fraction, the numerator of which is the aggregate number of Firm Shares to be purchased by such Underwriter as set forth opposite the name of such Underwriter in Schedule I hereto and the denominator of which is the aggregate number of Firm Shares to be purchased by all of the Underwriters from the Company hereunder and (b) in the event and to the extent that the Underwriters shall exercise the election to purchase Option Shares as provided below, the Company agrees to sell to each of the Underwriters, and each of the Underwriters agrees, severally and not jointly, to purchase from the Company, at the Purchase Price, the number of

 

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Option Shares (to be adjusted by you so as to eliminate fractional shares) determined by multiplying the number of Option Shares as to which such election shall have been exercised by the fraction set forth in clause (a) above.

The Company hereby grants to the Underwriters the right to purchase at their election up to 375,000 Option Shares, at the Purchase Price, for the sole purpose of covering over-allotments in connection with the sale of the Firm Shares. The Underwriters may exercise their option to acquire Option Shares in whole or in part from time to time only by written notice from the Representative to the Company, given within a period of 30 calendar days after the date of this Agreement and setting forth the aggregate number of Option Shares to be purchased and the date on which such Option Shares are to be delivered, as determined by the Representative but in no event earlier than the Closing Date or, unless the Representative and the Company otherwise agree in writing, earlier than two or later than ten business days after the date of such notice.

3. It is understood that the several Underwriters propose to offer the Firm Shares for sale to the public upon the terms and conditions set forth in the Prospectus.

4. The Company will deliver the Firm Shares to the Representative through the facilities of the Depository Trust Company (“DTC”) for the accounts of the Underwriters, against payment of the purchase price therefor in Federal (same day) funds by official bank check or checks or wire transfer drawn to the order of the Company at the office of Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated, One Financial Plaza, 501 North Broadway, St. Louis, Missouri 63102, at 10:00 A.M., St. Louis time, on December 16, 2008, or at such other time not later than seven full business days thereafter as Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated (“Stifel Nicolaus”) and the Company determine, such time being herein referred to as the “Closing Date”. For purposes of Rule 15c6-1 under the Exchange Act, the Closing Date (if later than the otherwise applicable settlement date) shall be the settlement date for payment of funds and delivery of securities for all the Firm Shares. The certificates for the Firm Shares so to be delivered will be in definitive form, in such denominations and registered in such names as the Representative request and will be made available for checking and packaging at the above office of Stifel Nicolaus at least 24 hours prior to the Closing Date.

Each time for the delivery of and payment for the Option Shares, being herein referred to as an “Option Closing Date”, which may be the Closing Date, shall be determined by the Representative as provided above. The Company will deliver the Option Shares being purchased on each Option Closing Date to the Representative through the facilities of DTC for the accounts of the Underwriters, against payment of the purchase price therefor in Federal (same day) funds by official bank check or checks or wire transfer drawn to the order of the Company at the above office of Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated, One Financial Plaza, 501 North Broadway, St. Louis, Missouri 63102, at 10:00 A.M., St. Louis time on the applicable Option Closing Date. The certificates for the Option Shares so to be delivered will be in definitive form, in such denominations and registered in such names as the Representative request and will be made available for checking and packaging at the above office of Stifel Nicolaus at least 24 hours prior to such Option Closing Date.

 

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5. The Company covenants and agrees with each of the Underwriters as follows:

(a) The Company, subject to Section 5(c), will comply with the requirements of Rule 430A and Rule 430B of the Rules and Regulations, and will notify the Representative immediately, and confirm the notice in writing, (i) when any post-effective amendment to the Registration Statement shall become effective, or any supplement to the Prospectus or any amended prospectus shall have been filed, to furnish the Representative with copies thereof, and to file promptly all material required to be filed by the Company with the Commission pursuant to Rule 433(d) of the Rules and Regulations, (ii) of the receipt of any comments from the Commission, (iii) of any request by the Commission for any amendment to the Registration Statement or any amendment or supplement to the Prospectus or for additional information, (iv) of the issuance by the Commission of any stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or of any order preventing or suspending the use of any Preliminary Prospectus, or of the suspension of the qualification of the Shares for offering or sale in any jurisdiction, or of the initiation or threatening of any proceedings for any of such purposes and (v) if the Company becomes the subject of a proceeding under Section 8A of the Securities Act in connection with the offering of the Shares. The Company will promptly effect the filings necessary pursuant to Rule 424(b) of the Rules and Regulations and will take such steps as it deems necessary to ascertain promptly whether the form of prospectus transmitted for filing under Rule 424(b) of the Rules and Regulations was received for filing by the Commission and, in the event that it was not, it will promptly file such prospectus. The Company will make every reasonable effort to prevent the issuance of any stop order and, if any stop order is issued, to obtain the lifting thereof at the earliest possible moment.

(b) If, at any time during the period when a prospectus is required by the Securities Act to be delivered (whether physically or through compliance with Rule 172 of the Rules and Regulations or any similar rule) in connection with any sale of Shares, the Registration Statement shall cease to comply with the requirements of the Securities Act with respect to eligibility for the use of the form on which the Registration Statement was filed with the Commission or the Registration Statement shall cease to be an “automatic shelf registration statement” (as defined in Rule 405 of the Rules and Regulations) or the Company shall have received, from the Commission, a notice, pursuant to Rule 401(g)(2) of the Rules and Regulations, of objection to the use of the form on which the Registration Statement was filed with the Commission”, to (i) promptly notify you, (ii) promptly file with the Commission a new registration statement under the Securities Act, relating to the Shares, or a post-effective amendment to the Registration Statement, which new registration statement or post-effective amendment shall comply with the requirements of the Securities Act and shall be in a form satisfactory to you, (iii) use its best efforts to cause such new registration statement or post-effective amendment to become effective under the Securities Act as soon as practicable, (iv) promptly notify you of such effectiveness and (v) take all other action necessary or appropriate to permit the public offering and sale of the Shares to continue as contemplated in the Prospectus; all references herein to the Registration Statement shall be deemed to include each such new registration statement or post-effective amendment, if any;

 

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(c) The Company will give the Representative notice of its intention to file or prepare any amendment to the Registration Statement (including any filing under Rule 462(b)), or any amendment, supplement or revision to the Prospectus, or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, will furnish the Representative with copies of any such documents a reasonable amount of time prior to such proposed filing or use, as the case may be, and will not file or use any such document to which the Representative or counsel for the Underwriters shall reasonably object.

(d) If the third anniversary of the initial effective date of the Registration Statement (within the meaning of Rule 415(a)(5) of the Rules and Regulations) shall occur at any time during the period when a prospectus is required by the Securities Act to be delivered (whether physically or through compliance with Rule 172 of the Rules and Regulations or any similar rule) in connection with any sale of Shares, to file with the Commission, prior to such third anniversary, a new registration statement under the Securities Act relating to the Shares, which new registration statement shall comply with the requirements of the Securities Act (including, without limitation, Rule 415(a)(6) of the Rules and Regulations) and shall be in a form satisfactory to you; such new registration statement shall constitute an “automatic shelf registration statement” (as defined in Rule 405 of the Rules and Regulations); provided, however, that if the Company is not then eligible to file an “automatic shelf registration statement” (as defined in Rule 405 of the Rules and Regulations), then such new registration statement need not constitute an “automatic shelf registration statement”, but the Company shall use its best efforts to cause such new registration statement to become effective under the Securities Act as soon as practicable, but in any event within 180 days after such third anniversary and promptly notify you of such effectiveness; the Company shall take all other action necessary or appropriate to permit the public offering and sale of the Shares to continue as contemplated in the Prospectus; all references herein to the Registration Statement shall be deemed to include each such new registration statement, if any;

(e) To pay the fees applicable to the Registration Statement in connection with the offering of the Shares within the time required by Rule 456(b)(1)(i) of the Rules and Regulations (without reliance on the proviso to Rule 456(b)(1)(i) of the Rules and Regulations) and in compliance with Rule 456(b) and Rule 457(r) of the Rules and Regulations;

(f) The Company will use its best efforts to qualify the Shares for offering and sale under the securities laws of such jurisdictions as you may reasonably request and to comply with such laws so as to permit the continuance of sales and dealings therein in such jurisdictions for as long as may be necessary to complete the distribution of the Shares, provided that nothing in this Section 5(f) shall require the Company to qualify as a foreign corporation in any jurisdiction in which it is not already so qualified, or to file a general consent to service of process in any jurisdiction.

(g) The Company has furnished or will deliver to the Representative, without charge, four signed copies of the Initial Registration Statement as originally filed, any Rule 462(b) Registration Statement and of each amendment to each (including exhibits filed therewith or incorporated by reference therein) and signed copies of all consents and certificates of experts,

 

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and will also, upon your request, deliver to the Representative, without charge, a conformed copy of the Registration Statement as originally filed and of each amendment thereto (without exhibits) for each of the Underwriters. The copies of the Registration Statement and each amendment thereto furnished to the Underwriters will be identical to the electronically transmitted copies thereof filed with the Commission pursuant to EDGAR, except to the extent permitted by Regulation S-T.

(h) The Company has delivered to each Underwriter, without charge, as many written and electronic copies of each Preliminary Prospectus as such Underwriter reasonably requested, and the Company hereby consents to the use of such copies for purposes permitted by the Securities Act. The Company will furnish to each Underwriter, without charge, prior to 5:00 P.M. on the business day next succeeding the date of this Agreement and from time to time thereafter during the period when the Prospectus is required to be delivered in connection with sales of the Shares under the Securities Act or the Exchange Act or in lieu thereof, the notice referred to in Rule 173(a) of the Rules and Regulations, such number of written and electronic copies of the Prospectus (as amended or supplemented) as such Underwriter may reasonably request. The Prospectus and any amendments or supplements thereto furnished to the Underwriters will be identical to the electronically transmitted copies thereof filed with the Commission pursuant to EDGAR, except to the extent permitted by Regulation S-T.

(i) The Company will comply with the Securities Act, the Exchange Act, the 1934 Act Regulations and the Rules and Regulations so as to permit the completion of the distribution of the Shares as contemplated in this Agreement and in the Prospectus. If at any time when, in the opinion of counsel for the Underwriters, a prospectus is required to be delivered in connection with sales of the Shares under the Securities Act or the Exchange Act (or in lieu thereof, the notice referred to in Rule 173(a) of the Rules and Regulations), any event shall occur or condition shall exist as a result of which it is necessary, in the opinion of counsel for the Underwriters or for the Company, to amend the Registration Statement or amend or supplement the Prospectus in order that the Prospectus will not include any untrue statements of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein not misleading in the light of the circumstances existing at the time it (or in lieu thereof, the notice referred to in Rule 173(a) of the Rules and Regulations) is delivered to a purchaser, or if it shall be necessary, in the opinion of either such counsel, at any such time to amend the Registration Statement or amend or supplement the Prospectus in order to comply with the requirements of the Securities Act or the Rules and Regulations, the Company will promptly prepare and file with the Commission, subject to Section 5(c), such amendment or supplement as may be necessary to correct such statement or omission or to make the Registration Statement or the Prospectus comply with such requirements and the Company shall use best efforts to have such amendment declared effective as soon as practicable (if it is not an automatic shelf registration statement at such time with respect to the Shares), and the Company will furnish to the Underwriters such number of written and electronic copies of such amendment or supplement as the Underwriters may reasonably request. The Company will provide the Representative with notice of the occurrence of any event during the period specified above that may give rise to the need to amend or supplement the Registration Statement or the Prospectus as provided in the preceding sentence promptly after the occurrence of such event. If at any time following

 

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issuance of an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus there occurred or occurs an event or development as a result of which such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus conflicted or would conflict with the information contained in the Registration Statement (or any other registration statement relating to the Shares) or the Prospectus or any preliminary prospectus or included or would include an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted or would omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances prevailing at that subsequent time, not misleading, the Company will promptly notify the Representative and will promptly amend or supplement, at its own expense, such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus to eliminate or correct such conflict, untrue statement or omission.

(j) The Company will make generally available (within the meaning of Section 11(a) of the Securities Act) to its security holders and to the Representative as soon as practicable, but not later than the due date (excluding the use of Rule 12b-25 of the 1934 Act Regulations) of the periodic report for its fiscal quarter in which the first anniversary date of the effective date of the Registration Statement occurs, an earnings statement (in form complying with the provisions of Rule 158 of the Rules and Regulations) covering a period of at least twelve consecutive months beginning after the effective date of the Registration Statement.

(k) The Company will use the net proceeds received by it from the sale of the Shares in the manner specified in the Pricing Prospectus under the heading “Use of Proceeds”.

(l) The Company will use its best efforts to effect and maintain the listing of the Common Stock (including the Shares) on the NASDAQ Global Select Market.

(m) During a period of 90 days from the date of the Prospectus, the Company will not, without the prior written consent of Stifel Nicolaus (which shall not be unreasonably withheld), (i) offer, pledge, sell, contract to sell, sell any option or contract to purchase, purchase any option or contract to sell, grant any option, right or warrant to purchase, lend or otherwise transfer or dispose of, directly or indirectly, any Common Stock or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Common Stock or (ii) enter into any swap or other agreement that transfers, in whole or in part, any of the economic consequences of ownership of Common Stock, whether any such transaction described in clause (i) or (ii) above is to be settled by delivery of Common Stock or such other securities, in cash or otherwise, other than (1) the Shares to be sold hereunder, (2) the issuance of options to acquire shares of Common Stock granted pursuant to the Company’s benefit plans existing on the date hereof that are referred to in the Prospectus, as such plans may be amended, (3) the warrant to acquire shares of Common Stock issued to the U.S. Department of the Treasury, or (4) the issuance of shares of Common Stock upon the exercise of any such options and warrants.

(n) The Company, during the period when the Prospectus is required to be delivered in connection with sales of the Shares under the Securities Act or the Exchange Act (or in lieu thereof, the notice referred to in Rule 173(a) under the Securities Act), will file all documents required to be filed with the Commission pursuant to the Exchange Act within the time periods required by the Exchange Act and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder.

 

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(o) The Company will file with the Commission such information on Form 10-Q or Form 10-K as may be required pursuant to Rule 463 of the Rules and Regulations.

(p) During a period of five years from the effective date of the Registration Statement, the Company will furnish to you copies of all reports or other communications (financial or other) furnished to shareholders generally, and to deliver to you (i) as soon as they are available, copies of any reports and financial statements furnished to or filed with the Commission or any national securities exchange on which any class of securities of the Company is listed; and (ii) such additional information concerning the business and financial condition of the Company as you may from time to time reasonably request (such financial statements to be on a consolidated basis to the extent the accounts of the Company and the Subsidiaries are consolidated in reports furnished to its shareholders generally or to the Commission).

(q) If the Company elects to rely upon Rule 462(b), the Company will file a Rule 462(b) Registration Statement with the Commission in compliance with Rule 462(b) by 10:00 P.M., Washington, D.C. time, on the date of this Agreement, and at the time of filing either to pay to the Commission the filing fee for the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement or to give irrevocable instructions for the payment of such fee pursuant to Rule 111(b) of the Rules and Regulations.

(r) If so requested by the Representative, the Company shall cause to be prepared and delivered, at its expense, within one business day from the effective date of this Agreement, to the Representative an “electronic Prospectus” to be used by the Underwriters in connection with the offering and sale of the Shares. As used herein, the term “electronic Prospectus” means a form of the most recent Preliminary Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or the Prospectus, and any amendment or supplement thereto, that meets each of the following conditions: (i) it shall be encoded in an electronic format, satisfactory to the Representative, that may be transmitted electronically by the Representative and the other Underwriters to offerees and purchasers of the Shares, (ii) it shall disclose the same information as such paper Preliminary Prospectus, Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or the Prospectus, as the case may be; and (iii) it shall be in or convertible into a paper format or an electronic format, satisfactory to the Representative, that will allow investors to store and have continuously ready access to such Preliminary Prospectus, Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or the Prospectus at any future time, without charge to investors (other than any fee charged for subscription to the Internet generally). The Company hereby confirms that, if so requested by the Representative, it has included or will include in the Prospectus filed with the Commission an undertaking that, upon receipt of a request by an investor or his or her representative, the Company shall transmit or cause to be transmitted promptly, without charge, a paper copy of such paper Preliminary Prospectus, Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or the Prospectus to such investor or representative.

6. (a) The Company represents and agrees that, without the prior consent of the Representative, it has not made and will not make any offer relating to the Shares that would constitute a “free writing prospectus” as defined in Rule 405 of the Rules and Regulations; each Underwriter represents and agrees that, without the prior consent of the Company and the

 

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Representative, it has not made and will not make any offer relating to the Shares that would constitute a free writing prospectus; any such free writing prospectus the use of which has been consented to by the Company and the Representative is listed on Schedule II hereto;

(b) The Company has complied and will comply with the requirements of Rule 433 of the Rules and Regulations applicable to any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, including timely filing with the Commission or retention where required and legending; the Company represents that it has satisfied and agrees that it will satisfy the conditions under Rule 433 of the Rules and Regulations to avoid a requirement to file with the Commission any electronic road show; any free writing prospectus the use of which is consented to by the Representative or by the Company and the Representative is referred to as a “Permitted Free Writing Prospectus” and the Company agrees that it will treat each Permitted Free Writing Prospectus as an “issuer free writing prospectus” as defined in Rule 433 of the Rules and Regulations, and has complied and will comply with the requirements of Rule 433 of the Rules and Regulations applicable to any Permitted Free Writing Prospectus, including timely filing with the Commission or retention where required and legending;

(c) The Company agrees that if at any time following issuance of an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus any event occurred or occurs as a result of which such Issuer Free Writing Prospectus would conflict with the information in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Prospectus or the Prospectus or would include an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances then prevailing, not misleading, the Company will give prompt notice thereof to the Representative and, if requested by the Representative, will prepare and furnish without charge to each Underwriter an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus or other document which will correct such conflict, statement or omission; provided, however, that this representation and warranty shall not apply to any statements or omissions in an Issuer Free Writing Prospectus made in reliance upon and in strict conformity with information furnished in writing to the Company by an Underwriter through the Representative expressly for use therein.

7. The Company covenants and agrees with the several Underwriters that, whether or not the transactions contemplated by this Agreement are consummated, the Company will pay or cause to be paid all expenses incident to the performance of its obligations under this Agreement, including (i) the fees, disbursements and expenses of the Company’s counsel, accountants and other advisors; (ii) filing fees and all other expenses in connection with the preparation, printing and filing of the Registration Statement, each Preliminary Prospectus, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus and the Prospectus and amendments and supplements thereto and the mailing and delivering of copies thereof to the Underwriters and dealers; (iii) the cost of printing or producing this Agreement, closing documents (including any compilations thereof) and such other documents as may be required in connection with the offering, purchase, sale and delivery of the Shares; (iv) all expenses in connection with the qualification of the Shares for offering and sale under state securities laws as provided in Section 5(c), including filing fees and the reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel for the Underwriters in connection with such qualification and in connection with the Blue Sky survey; (v) all fees and expenses in connection with listing the Common Stock (including the Shares) on the NASDAQ Global Select Market; (vi) the filing fees

 

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incident to, and the reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel for the Underwriters in connection with, securing any required review by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) of the terms of the sale of the Shares; (vii) all fees and expenses in connection with the preparation, issuance and delivery of the certificates representing the Shares to the Underwriters, including any stock or other transfer taxes and any stamp or other duties payable upon the sale, issuance or delivery of the Shares to the Underwriters; (viii) the cost and charges of any transfer agent or registrar; (ix) the transportation and other expenses incurred by the Company in connection with presentations to prospective purchasers of Shares; and (x) all other costs and expenses incident to the performance of its obligations hereunder which are not otherwise specifically provided for in this Section.

8. The several obligations of the Underwriters hereunder to purchase the Shares on the Closing Date or each Option Closing Date, as the case may be, are subject to the performance by the Company of its obligations hereunder and to the following additional conditions:

(a) The Prospectus (which shall contain the information required by Rule 430B of the Rules and Regulations) shall have been filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) of the Rules and Regulations within the applicable time period prescribed for such filing by the Rules and Regulations and in accordance with Section 5(a) under the Securities Act; all material required to be filed by the Company pursuant to Rule 433(d) of the Rules and Regulations shall have been filed with the Commission within the applicable time period prescribed for such filing by Rule 433 of the Rules and Regulations; if the Company has elected to rely upon Rule 462(b) of the Rules and Regulations, the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement shall have become effective by 10:00 P.M., Washington, D.C. time, on the date of this Agreement; no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or any part thereof or the Prospectus or any part thereof or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus shall have been issued and no proceeding for that purpose shall have been initiated or threatened by the Commission or any state securities commission; and all requests for additional information on the part of the Commission shall have been complied with to your reasonable satisfaction. The Company shall have paid the required Commission filing fees relating to the Shares within the time period required by Rule 456(b)(1)(i) of the Rules and Regulations without regard to the proviso therein and otherwise in accordance with Rules 456(b) and 457(r) of the Rules and Regulations and, if applicable, shall have updated the “Calculation of Registration Fee” table in accordance with Rule 456(b)(1)(ii) of the Rules and Regulations either in a post-effective amendment to the Registration Statement or on the cover page of a prospectus filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) of the Rules and Regulations.

(b) The representations and warranties of the Company contained herein are true and correct on and as of the Closing Date or the Option Closing Date, as the case may be, as if made on and as of the Closing Date or the Option Closing Date, as the case may be, and the Company shall have complied with all agreements and all conditions on its part to be performed or satisfied hereunder at or prior to the Closing Date or the Option Closing Date, as the case may be.

 

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(c) Subsequent to the execution and delivery of this Agreement and prior to the Closing Date or the Option Closing Date, as the case may be, there shall not have occurred any downgrading, nor shall any notice have been given of (i) any downgrading, (ii) any intended or potential downgrading or (iii) any surveillance, review or possible change that does not indicate an improvement, in the rating accorded any securities of or guaranteed by the Company or any Subsidiary by any “nationally recognized statistical rating organization”, as such term is defined for purposes of Rule 436(g)(2) of the Rules and Regulations (and no such rating has been assigned).

(d) (i) Neither the Company nor any Subsidiary shall have sustained since the date of the latest audited financial statements included in the Pricing Prospectus any material loss or interference with its business from fire, explosion, flood or other calamity, whether or not covered by insurance, or from any labor dispute or court or governmental action, order or decree, otherwise than as set forth or contemplated in the Pricing Prospectus, and (ii) since the respective dates as of which information is given in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, (1) there shall not have been any change in the capital stock or long-term debt of the Company or any Subsidiary or (2) there shall not have been any material adverse change, or any development involving a prospective material adverse change, in or affecting the general affairs, business, prospects, management, financial position, shareholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company and the Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise;

(e) the Representative shall have received on and as of the Closing Date or the Option Closing Date, as the case may be, (i) a certificate of two executive officers of the Company, at least one of whom has specific knowledge about the Company’s financial matters, satisfactory to the Representative, to the effect (1) set forth in Sections 8(b) and 8(c), (2) that none of the situations set forth in clause (i) or (ii) of Section 8(d) shall have occurred and (3) that no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement has been issued and to the knowledge of the Company, no proceedings for that purpose have been instituted or are pending or contemplated by the Commission;

(f) On the Closing Date or Option Closing Date, as the case may be, Jones, Walker, Waechter, Poitevent, Carrère & Denègre, L.L.P., special counsel for the Company, shall have furnished to the Representative their favorable written opinion, dated the Closing Date or the Option Closing Date, as the case may be, in form and substance satisfactory to counsel for the Underwriters, to the effect set forth in Exhibit A hereto and to such further effect as counsel for the Underwriters may reasonably request.

(g) On the Closing Date or the Option Closing Date, as the case may be, Ernst & Young LLP shall have furnished to the Representative a letter, dated the date of delivery thereof, in form and substance satisfactory to the Representative, containing statements and information of the type customarily included in accountants’ “comfort letters” to underwriters with respect to the financial statements and certain financial information contained in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, related to fiscal year 2007 and any interim or other period (whether quarterly, monthly or otherwise) in fiscal year 2008.

 

22


(h) On the Closing Date or the Option Closing Date, as the case may be, Castaing, Hussey & Lolan, LLC shall have furnished to the Representative a letter, dated the date of delivery thereof, in form and substance satisfactory to the Representative, containing statements and information of the type customarily included in accountants’ “comfort letters” to underwriters with respect to the financial statements and certain financial information contained in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus, related to fiscal years 2006, 2005 and 2004.

(i) On the Closing Date or Option Closing Date, as the case may be, DLA Piper LLP (US), counsel for the Underwriters, shall have furnished to the Representative their favorable opinion dated the Closing Date or the Option Closing Date, as the case may be, with respect to the due authorization and valid issuance of the Shares, the Registration Statement, the Prospectus and other related matters as the Representative may reasonably request, and such counsel shall have received such papers and information as they may reasonably request to enable them to pass upon such matters.

(j) The Shares to be delivered on the Closing Date or Option Closing Date, as the case may be, shall have been approved for listing on the NASDAQ Global Select Market, subject to official notice of issuance.

(k) The Representative shall have received “lock-up” agreements, each substantially in the form of Exhibit B hereto, from all the shareholders, officers and directors of the Company and such agreements shall be in full force and effect on the Closing Date or Option Closing Date, as the case may be.

(l) On or prior to the Closing Date or Option Closing Date, as the case may be, the Company shall have furnished to the Representative such further information, certificates and documents as the Representative shall reasonably request.

(m) On or after the Applicable Time there shall not have occurred any of the following: (i) a suspension or material limitation in trading in securities generally on the NASDAQ Global Select Market; (ii) a suspension or material limitation in trading in the Company’s securities on the NASDAQ Global Select Market; (iii) a general moratorium on commercial banking activities declared by any of Federal, Arkansas, Louisiana, Missouri or New York State authorities or a material disruption in commercial banking or securities settlement or clearance services in the United States; (iv) the outbreak or escalation of hostilities involving the United States or the declaration by the United States of a national emergency or war or (v) the occurrence of any other calamity or crisis or any change in financial, political or economic conditions in the United States or elsewhere, if the effect of any such event specified in clause (iv) or (v) in the judgment of the Representative makes it impracticable or inadvisable to proceed with the public offering or the delivery of the Shares being delivered at such Closing Date or Option Closing Date, as the case may be, on the terms and in the manner contemplated in the Prospectus;

If any condition specified in this Section 8 shall not have been fulfilled when and as required to be fulfilled, this Agreement may be terminated, subject to the provisions of Section 12,

 

23


by the Representative by notice to the Company at any time at or prior to the Closing Date or Option Closing Date, as the case may be, and such termination shall be without liability of any party to any other party, except as provided in Section 12.

9. (a) The Company agrees to indemnify and hold harmless each Underwriter and each person, if any, who controls any Underwriter within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20(a) of the Exchange Act against any and all losses, liabilities, claims, damages and expenses whatsoever as incurred (including without limitation, reasonable attorneys’ fees and any and all reasonable expenses whatsoever incurred in investigating, preparing or defending against any litigation, commenced or threatened, or any claim whatsoever, and any and all amounts paid in settlement of any claim or litigation), joint or several, to which they or any of them may become subject under the Securities Act, the Exchange Act or otherwise, insofar as such losses, liabilities, claims, damages or expenses (or actions in respect thereof) arise out of or are based upon any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Initial Registration Statement, as originally filed or any amendment thereof, the Registration Statement, or any post-effective amendment thereof, any Preliminary Prospectus, the Pricing Prospectus or the Prospectus, or in any supplement thereto or amendment thereof, any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, or any “issuer information” filed or required to be filed pursuant to Rule 433(d) of the Rules and Regulations, or arise out of or are based upon the omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading; provided, however, that the Company will not be liable in any such case to the extent that any such loss, liability, claim, damage or expense arises out of or is based upon any such untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission made in the Initial Registration Statement, as originally filed or any amendment thereof, the Registration Statement, or any post-effective amendment thereof, any Preliminary Prospectus, the Pricing Prospectus or the Prospectus, or in any supplement thereto or amendment thereof, or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus in reliance upon and in strict conformity with written information furnished to the Company by or on behalf of any Underwriter through Stifel Nicolaus expressly for use therein, it being understood and agreed that the only such information furnished by any Underwriter is the information described as such in Section 9(b) below.

(b) Each Underwriter severally, and not jointly, agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Company, each of the directors of the Company, each of the officers of the Company who shall have signed the Registration Statement, and each other person, if any, who controls the Company within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20(a) of the Exchange Act, against any losses, liabilities, claims, damages and expenses whatsoever as incurred (including without limitation, reasonable attorneys’ fees and any and all reasonable expenses whatsoever incurred in investigating, preparing or defending against any litigation, commenced or threatened, or any claim whatsoever, and any and all amounts paid in settlement of any claim or litigation), joint or several, to which they or any of them may become subject under the Securities Act, the Exchange Act or otherwise, insofar as such losses, liabilities, claims, damages or expenses (or actions in respect thereof) arise out of or are based upon any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Initial Registration Statement, as originally filed or any amendment thereof, the Registration Statement,

 

24


or any post-effective amendment thereof, or any Preliminary Prospectus, the Pricing Prospectus or the Prospectus, or in any supplement thereto or amendment thereof, or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus, or arise out of or are based upon the omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, in each case to the extent, but only to the extent, that any such loss, liability, claim, damage or expense arises out of or is based upon any such untrue statement or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission made therein in reliance upon and in strict conformity with written information furnished to the Company by or on behalf of such Underwriter through Stifel Nicolaus expressly for use therein, it being understood and agreed that the only such information furnished by any Underwriter consists of the following information in the Prospectus furnished on behalf of each Underwriter: the last paragraph at the bottom of the cover page concerning the terms of the offering by the Underwriters, the concession and reallowance figures appearing in the first paragraph under the caption “Underwriting – Commissions and Expenses” and the information contained in paragraphs under the caption “Underwriting - Stabilization”.

(c) Promptly after receipt by an indemnified party under Section 9(a) or 9(b) of notice of the commencement of any action, such indemnified party shall, if a claim in respect thereof is to be made against the indemnifying party under such Section, notify each party against whom indemnification is to be sought in writing of the commencement thereof (but the failure so to notify an indemnifying party shall not relieve it from any liability which it may have under this Section 9). In case any such action is brought against any indemnified party, and it notifies an indemnifying party of the commencement thereof, the indemnifying party will be entitled to participate therein, and jointly with any other indemnifying party similarly notified, to the extent it may elect by written notice delivered to the indemnified party promptly after receiving the aforesaid notice from such indemnified party, to assume the defense thereof with counsel reasonably satisfactory to such indemnified party (who shall not, except with the consent of the indemnified party, be counsel to the indemnified party). Notwithstanding the foregoing, the indemnified party or parties shall have the right to employ its or their own counsel in any such case, but the fees and expenses of such counsel shall be at the expense of such indemnified party or parties unless (i) the employment of such counsel shall have been authorized in writing by one of the indemnifying parties in connection with the defense of such action, (ii) the indemnifying parties shall not have employed counsel to have charge of the defense of such action within a reasonable time after notice of commencement of the action, or (iii) such indemnified party or parties shall have reasonably concluded that there may be defenses available to it or them which are different from or additional to those available to one or all of the indemnifying parties (in which case the indemnifying parties shall not have the right to direct the defense of such action on behalf of the indemnified party or parties), in any of which events such fees and expenses shall be borne by the indemnifying parties. In no event shall the indemnifying parties be liable for fees and expenses of more than one counsel (in addition to any local counsel) separate from their own counsel for all indemnified parties in connection with any one action or separate but similar or related actions in the same jurisdiction arising out of the same general allegations or circumstances, which counsel, in the event of indemnified parties under Section 9(a), shall be selected by Stifel Nicolaus. No indemnifying party shall, without the written consent of the indemnified party, effect the settlement or compromise of, or consent to the entry of any judgment with respect to, any pending or threatened action or claim in respect of which

 

25


indemnification or contribution may be sought hereunder (whether or not the indemnified party is an actual or potential party to such action or claim) unless such settlement, compromise or judgment (i) includes an unconditional release of the indemnified party from all liability arising out of such action or claim and (ii) does not include a statement as to or an admission of fault, culpability or a failure to act, by or on behalf of any indemnified party.

(d) If the indemnification provided for in this Section 9 is unavailable to or insufficient to hold harmless an indemnified party under Section 9(a) or, 9(b) or 9(c) in respect of any losses, liabilities, claims, damages or expenses (or actions in respect thereof) referred to therein, then each indemnifying party shall contribute to the amount paid or payable by such indemnified party as a result of such losses, liabilities, claims, damages or expenses (or actions in respect thereof) in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect the relative benefits received by the Company on the one hand and the Underwriters on the other from the offering of the Shares. If, however, the allocation provided by the immediately preceding sentence is not permitted by applicable law, then each indemnifying party shall contribute to such amount paid or payable by such indemnified party in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect not only such relative benefits but also the relative fault of the Company on the one hand and the Underwriters on the other in connection with the statements or omissions which resulted in such losses, liabilities, claims, damages or expenses (or actions in respect thereof), as well as any other relevant equitable considerations. The relative benefits received by the Company on the one hand and the Underwriters on the other from the offering of the Shares shall be deemed to be in the same proportion as the total net proceeds from the offering (before deducting expenses) received by the Company bear to the total underwriting discounts and commissions received by the Underwriters, in each case as set forth in the table on the cover page of the Prospectus. The relative fault shall be determined by reference to, among other things, whether the untrue or alleged untrue statement of a material fact or the omission or alleged omission to state a material fact relates to information supplied by the Company on the one hand or the Underwriters on the other and the parties’ relative intent, knowledge, access to information and opportunity to correct or prevent such statement or omission.

The Company and the Underwriters agree that it would not be just and equitable if contributions pursuant to this Section 9(d) were determined by pro rata allocation (even if the Underwriters were treated as one entity for such purpose) or by any other method of allocation which does not take account of the equitable considerations referred to above in this Section 9(d). The amount paid or payable by an indemnified party as a result of the losses, liabilities, claims, damages or expenses (or actions in respect thereof) referred to above in this Section 9(d) shall be deemed to include any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by such indemnified party in connection with investigating or defending any such action or claim. Notwithstanding the provisions of this Section 9(d), no Underwriter shall be required to contribute any amount in excess of the amount by which the total price at which the Shares underwritten by it and distributed to the public were offered to the public exceeds the amount of any damages which such Underwriter has otherwise been required to pay by reason of such untrue or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission.

 

26


No person guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation (within the meaning of Section 11(f) of the Securities Act) shall be entitled to contribution from any person who was not guilty of such fraudulent misrepresentation. The Underwriters’ obligations in this Section 9(d) to contribute are several in proportion to their respective underwriting obligations and not joint.

(e) The obligations of the parties to this Agreements contained in this Section 9 are not exclusive and shall not limit any rights or remedies which may otherwise be available to any indemnified party at law or in equity.

10. If any Underwriter or Underwriters default in its or their obligations to purchase Shares hereunder on the Closing Date or any Option Closing Date and the aggregate number of Shares that such defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters agreed but failed to purchase does not exceed 10% of the total number of Shares that the Underwriters are obligated to purchase on such Closing Date or Option Closing Date, as the case may be, the Representative may make arrangements satisfactory to the Company for the purchase of such Shares by other persons, including any of the Underwriters, but if no such arrangements are made by such Closing Date or Option Closing Date, as the case may be, the non-defaulting Underwriters shall be obligated severally, in proportion to their respective commitments hereunder, to purchase the Shares that such defaulting Underwriters agreed but failed to purchase on such Closing Date or Option Closing Date, as the case may be. If any Underwriter or Underwriters so default and the aggregate number of Shares with respect to which such default or defaults occur exceeds 10% of the total number of Shares that the Underwriters are obligated to purchase on such Closing Date or Option Closing Date, as the case may be, and arrangements satisfactory to the Representative and the Company for the purchase of such Shares by other persons are not made within 36 hours after such default, this Agreement will terminate, subject to the provisions of Section 12, without liability on the part of any non-defaulting Underwriter or the Company, except as provided in Section 12. Nothing herein will relieve a defaulting Underwriter from liability for its default.

In the event of any such default which does not result in a termination of this Agreement, either the Representative or the Company shall have the right to postpone the Closing Date or the relevant Option Closing Date, as the case may be, for a period not exceeding seven days in order to effect any required changes in the Registration Statement or Prospectus or in any other documents or arrangements. As used in this Agreement, the term “Underwriter” includes any person substituted for an Underwriter under this Section 10.

11. Notwithstanding anything herein contained, this Agreement (or the obligations of the several Underwriters with respect to any Option Shares which have yet to be purchased) may be terminated, subject to the provisions of Section 12, in the sole and absolute discretion of the Representative, by notice given to the Company, if after the execution and delivery of this Agreement and prior to the Closing Date or the Option Closing Date, as the case may be, (a) trading generally on the NASDAQ Global Select Market or the NASDAQ Global Market shall have been suspended or materially limited, or minimum or maximum prices for trading have been fixed, or maximum ranges for prices have been required, by any of said exchanges or by such system or by order of the Commission, FINRA or any other governmental authority, (b) trading of any securities of or guaranteed by the Company or any Subsidiary shall have been

 

27


suspended on any exchange or in any over-the-counter market, (c) a general moratorium on commercial banking activities in Arkansas, Louisiana, Missouri or New York shall have been declared by Federal, Arkansas, Louisiana, Missouri or New York State authorities or a new restriction materially adversely affecting the distribution of the Firm Shares or the Option Shares, as the case may be, shall have become effective, (d) there shall have occurred any downgrading or any notice have been given of any downgrading or any intended or potential downgrading by any “nationally recognized statistical rating organization”, as such term is defined for purposes of Rule 436(g)(2) under the Securities Act, or if any such organization shall have publicly announced that it has under surveillance or review, with possible negative implications, its rating of any of the Company’s securities, or (e) there has occurred (i) any material adverse change or any development involving a prospective material adverse change, in or affecting the general affairs, business, prospects, management, financial position, shareholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company or its Subsidiaries considered as one enterprise, whether or not arising in the ordinary course of business, (ii) any material adverse change in the financial markets in the United States or in the international financial markets or (iii) any outbreak of hostilities or escalation thereof or other calamity or crisis or any change or development involving a prospective change in national or international political, financial or economic conditions, in each case the effect of which is such as to make it, in the judgment of the Representative, impracticable to market the Shares to be delivered on the Closing Date or Option Closing Date, as the case may be, or to enforce contracts for the sale of the Shares.

If this Agreement is terminated pursuant to this Section 11, such termination will be without liability of any party to any other party except as provided in Section 12 hereof.

12. The respective indemnities, agreements, representations, warranties and other statements of the Company or its officers and of the several Underwriters set forth in or made pursuant to this Agreement will remain in full force and effect, regardless of any investigation, or statement as to the results thereof, made by or on behalf of any Underwriter, the Company or any of their respective Representative, officers or directors or any controlling person, and will survive delivery of and payment for the Shares. If this Agreement is terminated pursuant to Section 9, 10 or 11 or if for any reason the purchase of any of the Shares by the Underwriters is not consummated, the Company shall remain responsible for the expenses to be paid or reimbursed by it pursuant to Section 7, the respective obligations of the Company and the Underwriters pursuant to Section 9 and the provisions of Sections 12, 13 and 16 shall remain in effect and, if any Shares have been purchased hereunder the representations and warranties in Section 1 and all obligations under Section 5, Section 6 and Section 7 shall also remain in effect. If this Agreement shall be terminated by the Underwriters, or any of them, under Section 9 or otherwise because of any failure or refusal on the part of the Company to comply with the terms or to fulfill any of the conditions of this Agreement, or if for any reason the Company shall be unable to perform its obligations under this Agreement or any condition of the Underwriters’ obligations cannot be fulfilled, the Company agrees to reimburse the Underwriters or such Underwriters as have so terminated this Agreement with respect to themselves, severally, for all out-of-pocket expenses (including the fees and expenses of its counsel) reasonably incurred by the Underwriter in connection with this Agreement or the offering contemplated hereunder.

 

28


13. This Agreement shall inure to the benefit of and be binding upon the Company and the Underwriters, the officers and directors of the Company referred to herein, any controlling persons referred to herein and their respective successors and assigns. Nothing expressed or mentioned in this Agreement is intended or shall be construed to give any other person, firm or corporation any legal or equitable right, remedy or claim under or in respect of this Agreement or any provision herein contained. No purchaser of Shares from any Underwriter shall be deemed to be a successor or assign by reason merely of such purchase.

14. All notices and other communications hereunder shall be in writing and shall be deemed to have been duly given upon receipt thereof by the recipient if mailed or transmitted by any standard form of telecommunication. Notices to the Underwriters shall be given to the Representative, c/o Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated, One Financial Plaza, 501 North Broadway, St. Louis, Missouri 63102 (fax no.: (314)  ###-###-####); Attention: Rick E. Maples, with a copy to DLA Piper (US) LLP, 500 Eighth Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20004, Attention: Frank M. Conner III and Michael Paul Reed. Notices to the Company shall be given to it at 200 West Congress Street, Lafayette, Louisiana 70501 (fax no.: (337)  ###-###-####); Attention: Daryl G. Byrd, President and Chief Executive Officer, with a copy to Jones, Walker, Waechter, Poitevent, Carrère & Denègre, L.L.P., 2600 Virginia Avenue, N.W., Suite 1113, Washington, D.C. 20037, Attention: Edward B. Crosland, Jr.

15. This Agreement may be signed in counterparts, each of which shall be an original and all of which together shall constitute one and the same instrument.

16. THIS AGREEMENT SHALL BE GOVERNED BY AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, WITHOUT REGARD TO SUCH STATE’S PRINCIPLES OF CONFLICTS OF LAWS.

17. The parties hereby submit to the jurisdiction of and venue in the federal courts located in the City of St. Louis, Missouri in connection with any dispute related to this Agreement, any transaction contemplated hereby, or any other matter contemplated hereby.

18. The Company acknowledges and agrees that (i) the purchase and sale of the Shares pursuant to this Agreement, including the determination of the public offering price of the Shares and any related discounts and commissions, is an arm’s-length commercial transaction between the Company on the one hand, and the several Underwriters, on the other, (ii) in connection therewith and with the process leading to such transaction each Underwriter is acting solely as a principal and not the agent or fiduciary of the Company or its respective stockholders, creditors, employees or any other party, (iii) no Underwriter has assumed an advisory or fiduciary responsibility in favor of the Company with respect to the offering contemplated hereby or the process leading thereto (irrespective of whether such Underwriter has advised or is currently advising the Company on other matters) or any other obligation to the Company except the obligations expressly set forth in this Agreement, (iv) the Underwriters and their respective affiliates may be engaged in a broad range of transactions that involve interests that differ from those of the Company, and (iv) the Underwriters have not provided any legal, accounting, regulatory or tax advice with respect to the offering contemplated hereby and the Company has

 

29


consulted its own legal and financial advisors to the extent it deemed appropriate. The Company agrees that it will not claim that the Underwriters, or any of them, has rendered advisory services of any nature or respect, or owes a fiduciary or similar duty to the Company, in connection with such transaction or the process leading thereto.

19. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, the Company is authorized to disclose to any persons the U.S. federal and state income tax treatment and tax structure of the potential transaction and all materials of any kind (including tax opinions and other tax analyses) provided to the Company relating to that treatment and structure, without the Underwriters imposing any limitation of any kind. However, any information relating to the tax treatment and tax structure shall remain confidential (and the foregoing sentence shall not apply) to the extent necessary to enable any person to comply with securities laws. For this purpose, “tax structure” is limited to any facts that may be relevant to that treatment.

20. This Agreement supersedes all prior agreements and understandings (whether written or oral) between the Company and the Underwriters, or any of them, with respect to the subject matter hereof.

21. The Company and each of the Underwriters hereby irrevocably waives, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, any and all right to trial by jury in any legal proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement or the transactions contemplated hereby.

(Signatures begin on the next page.)

 

30


If the foregoing is in accordance with your understanding of our agreement, please sign and return to the Company a counterpart hereof, whereupon this instrument will become a binding agreement among the Company and the Underwriters.

 

Very truly yours,
IBERIABANK Corporation
By:  

/s/ Anthony J. Restel

Name:   Anthony J. Restel
Title:   Senior Executive Vice President

Accepted as of the date hereof:

 

STIFEL, NICOLAUS & COMPANY, INCORPORATED
By:   Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated
By:  

/s/ Rick Maples

Title:   Co-Head of Investment Banking, Head of Financial Institutions Group

For themselves and as Representative of the

other Underwriters named in Schedule I hereto

 

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SCHEDULE I

 

Underwriter

   Number of Firm Shares
to be Purchased

Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated

   1,500,000

Suntrust Robinson Humphrey, Inc.

   750,000

Stern, Agee & Leach, Inc.

   250,000

Total:

   2,500,000
    

 

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SCHEDULE II

Issuer Free Writing Prospectuses

None.

 

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EXHIBIT A

OPINION OF COUNSEL TO THE COMPANY

(i) The Company is incorporated and validly existing as a corporation in good standing under the laws of the State of Louisiana, with power and authority (corporate and other) to own, lease and operate its properties and conduct its business as described in the Pricing Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus and to enter into and perform its obligations under the Agreement, and has been duly qualified as a foreign corporation for the transaction of business and is in good standing under the laws of each other jurisdiction in which it owns or leases properties or conducts any business so as to require such qualification, except where the failure so to qualify or be in good standing would not have a material adverse effect on the Company and the Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise;

(ii) Each of IBERIBANK, Pulaski Bank and Trust Company, and Lenders Title Company (each a “Subsidiary”), is incorporated and validly existing as a corporation in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its incorporation, with power and authority to own, lease and operate its properties and conduct its business as described in the Pricing Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus and has been duly qualified as a foreign corporation for the transaction of business and is in good standing under the laws of each other jurisdiction in which its owns or leases properties or conducts any business so as to require such qualification, except where the failure so to qualify or be in good standing would not have a material adverse effect on the Company and the Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise; all of the issued and outstanding capital stock (or other ownership interests) of each Subsidiary has been duly and validly authorized and issued, is fully paid and non-assessable and, except as otherwise described in the Pricing Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus is owned by the Company, directly or through Subsidiaries, free and clear of any security interest, mortgage, pledge, lien, encumbrance, claim or equity;

(iii) The Company has an authorized capitalization as set forth in the Pricing Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus and all of the issued and outstanding shares of capital stock of the Company have been duly and validly authorized and issued, are fully paid and non-assessable and conform to the descriptions thereof contained in the Pricing Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus; and none of the issued and outstanding shares of capital stock of the Company are subject to any preemptive or similar rights. The form of certificate used to evidence the Shares complies in all material respects with all applicable statutory requirements, with any applicable requirements of the Company’s articles of incorporation and bylaws and the requirements of the NASDAQ Global Select Market;

(iv) The Shares have been duly and validly authorized and, when issued and delivered to and paid for by the Underwriters in accordance with the terms of the Agreement, will be duly and validly issued and fully paid and non-assessable and will conform to the descriptions thereof contained in the Pricing Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the

 

34


Prospectus; and the issuance of such Shares is not subject to any preemptive or similar rights. No holder of the Shares is or will be subject to personal liability by reason of being such a holder. The Shares have been approved for listing on the NASDAQ Global Select Market;

(v) The Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company;

(vi) The issue and sale of the Shares, the execution of the Agreement by the Company and the compliance by the Company with all of the provisions of the Agreement and the consummation of the transactions therein contemplated will not conflict with or result in a breach or violation of any of the terms or provisions of, or constitute a default under, any indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan agreement or other agreement or instrument known to such counsel after reasonable investigation to which the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is a party or by which the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is bound or to which any of the property or assets of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is subject, nor will such action result in any violation of the provisions of the certificate or articles of incorporation or by-laws of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries or any statute or any order, rule or regulation of any court or governmental agency or body known to such counsel after reasonable investigation having jurisdiction over the Company or any of the Subsidiaries or any of their properties; and no consent, approval, authorization, order, filing, registration or qualification of or with any such court or governmental agency or body is required for the issue and sale of the Shares or the consummation by the Company of the transactions contemplated by the Agreement, except the registration under the Securities Act of the Shares, such consents, approvals, authorizations, registrations or qualifications as may be required under state securities or Blue Sky laws in connection with the purchase and distribution of the Shares by the Underwriters and any necessary approval of the Corporate Financing Department of FINRA;

(vii) To such counsel’s knowledge, neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries is (1) in violation of its certificate or articles of incorporation or bylaws, or (2) in violation of any law, ordinance, administrative or governmental rule or regulation applicable to the Company or any of the Subsidiaries, or (3) in violation of any decree of any court or governmental agency or body having jurisdiction over the Company or any of the Subsidiaries, or (4) in default in the performance of any obligation, agreement or condition contained in any bond, debenture, note or any other evidence of indebtedness or in any agreement, indenture, lease or other instrument to which the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is a party or by which any of them or any of their respective properties may be bound, except, in the case of clauses (2), (3) and (4), where any such violation or default, individually or in the aggregate, would not have a material adverse effect on the general affairs, business, prospects, management, financial position, shareholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company and the Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise;

(viii) Each of the Company and each Subsidiary has good and marketable title to all real and personal property owned by it, in each case free and clear of all liens, encumbrances and defects except such as are described in the Pricing Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus or such as do not materially affect the value of such property and do

 

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not interfere with the use made and proposed to be made of such property by the Company or any Subsidiary; and any real property and buildings held under lease by the Company or any Subsidiary are held under valid, subsisting and enforceable leases with such exceptions as are not material and do not interfere with the use made and proposed to be made of such property and buildings by the Company or any Subsidiary;

(ix) Other than as set forth in the Pricing Prospectus or the Pricing Disclosure Package, to such counsel’s knowledge, there are no legal or governmental proceedings pending to which the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is or could be a party or of which any property of the Company or any of the Subsidiaries is or could be the subject which, if determined adversely to the Company or the Subsidiary, individually or in the aggregate, would have or may reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the general affairs, business, prospects, management, financial position, shareholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company and the Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise, or would prevent or impair the consummation of the transactions contemplated by the Agreement, or which are required to be described in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus; and, to such counsel’s knowledge, no such proceedings are threatened or contemplated by governmental authorities or others;

(x) The Company and the Subsidiaries possess all Permits issued by the appropriate federal, state or local regulatory agencies or bodies necessary to conduct the businesses now operated by them; to such counsel’s knowledge after reasonable investigation, the Company and the Subsidiaries are in compliance with the terms and conditions of all such Permits and all of the Permits are valid and in full force and effect, except, in each case, where the failure so to comply or where the invalidity of such Permits or the failure of such Permits to be in full force and effect, individually or in the aggregate, would not have a material adverse effect on the general affairs, business, prospects, management, financial position, shareholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company and the Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise;

(xi) The Company and the Subsidiaries own or possess, or can acquire on reasonable terms, all Intellectual Property material to carrying on their businesses as described in the Pricing Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, and, to such counsel’s knowledge, neither the Company nor any Subsidiary has received any correspondence relating to any Intellectual Property or notice of infringement of or conflict with asserted rights of others with respect to any Intellectual Property which would render any Intellectual Property invalid or inadequate to protect the interest of the Company and the Subsidiaries and which infringement or conflict (if the subject of any unfavorable decision, ruling or finding) or invalidity or inadequacy, individually or in the aggregate, would have or may reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the general affairs, business, prospects, management, financial position, shareholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company and the Subsidiaries considered as one enterprise;

(xii) Except as set forth in the Pricing Prospectus or the Pricing Disclosure Package, neither the Company nor any of the Subsidiaries is in violation of any statute or any rule, regulation, decision or order of any governmental agency or body or any court, domestic or

 

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foreign, relating to the use, disposal or release of hazardous or toxic substances or relating to the protection or restoration of the environment or human exposure to hazardous or toxic substances (collectively, “environmental laws”), owns or operates any real property contaminated with any substance that is subject to any environmental laws, is liable for any off-site disposal or contamination pursuant to any environmental laws, or is subject to any claim relating to any environmental laws, which violation, contamination, liability or claim individually or in the aggregate would have a material adverse effect on the general affairs, business, prospects, management, financial position, shareholders’ equity or results of operations of the Company and the Subsidiaries, considered as one enterprise; and such counsel is not aware of any pending investigation which might lead to such a claim;

(xiii) The Company is not and, after giving effect to the offering and sale of the Shares as contemplated herein and the application of the net proceeds therefrom as described in the Pricing Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, will not be an “investment company”, as such term is defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended;

(xiv) The information in the Pricing Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus under the captions “Prospectus Supplement Summary,” “Capitalization,” “Underwriting,” “Description of IberiaBank Corporation Capital Stock” and “Rights of IberiaBank Corporation Shareholders” and in the Registration Statement under Item 15 insofar as it constitutes matters of law, summaries of legal matters or documents, summaries of the Company’s charter or articles of incorporation and by-laws or legal proceedings, or legal conclusions is correct in all material respects;

(xv) The Registration Statement, including any Rule 462(b) Registration Statement, has been declared effective under the Securities Act; any required filing of the Prospectus pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act has been made in the manner and within the time period required by Rule 424(b); all material required to be filed by the Company pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the Securities Act shall have been filed with the Commission within the applicable time period prescribed for such filing by Rule 433 under the Securities Act; and to such counsel’s knowledge after reasonable investigation, no stop order suspending the effectiveness or use of the Registration Statement, the Prospectus or any Issuer Free Writing Prospectus has been issued under the Securities Act and no proceedings for that purpose have been instituted or are pending or threatened by the Commission;

(xvi) To such counsel’s knowledge, there are no statutes or regulations that are required to be described in the Pricing Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus that are not described as required;

(xvii) The Registration Statement, the Pricing Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus and any further amendments and supplements thereto made by the Company prior to such Closing Date or Option Closing Date, as the case may be (other than the financial statements, related schedules and other financial data therein, as to which such counsel need express no opinion), comply as to form in all material respects with the requirements of the

 

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Securities Act and the Rules and Regulations; and such counsel does not know of any amendment to the Registration Statement, the Pricing Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus required to be filed or of any contracts or other documents of a character required to be filed as an exhibit to the Registration Statement or required to be described in the Registration Statement or the Prospectus which are not filed or described as required and all descriptions in Registration Statement of contracts and other documents to which the Company or any of its Subsidiaries are a party are accurate in all material respects;

(xviii) To our knowledge, (i) the Company is not an “ineligible issuer” (as defined in Rule 405 of the Rules and Regulations) as of the eligibility determination date for purposes of Rules 164 and 433 of the Rules and Regulations with respect to the offering of the Shares contemplated by the Registration Statement and (ii) the Registration Statement constitutes an “automatic shelf registration statement” (as defined in Rule 405 of the Rules and Regulations);

In addition, such counsel shall state in separate correspondence that, although they are not passing upon and do not assume any responsibility for nor have they independently verified, the accuracy, completeness or fairness of the statements contained in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, except to the extent set forth in opinions (iii), (iv) and (xiv) above, in connection with the preparation of the Registration Statement, the Pricing Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, such counsel has participated in conferences with the Representative and counsel of the Representative and with certain officers and employees of, and counsel and independent certified public accountants for, the Company, at which conferences the contents of the Registration Statement, the Prospectus and related matters were discussed, and such counsel advises the Representative that nothing has come to such counsel’s attention that would lead such counsel to believe that, as of its effective date, the Registration Statement or any further amendment thereto made by the Company prior to such Closing Date or Option Closing Date, as the case may be (other than the financial statements, related schedules and other financial data therein, as to which such counsel need express no opinion), contained an untrue statement of a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading or that, as of its date, the Prospectus or any further amendment or supplement thereto made by the Company prior to such Closing Date or Option Closing Date, as the case may be (other than the financial statements, related schedules and other financial data therein, as to which such counsel need express no opinion) contained an untrue statement of a material fact or omitted to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading or that, as of the Applicable Time, such Closing Date or Option Closing Date, as the case may be, any of the Registration Statement, the Pricing Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus or any further amendment or supplement thereto made by the Company prior to the Applicable Time, such Closing Date or Option Closing Date, as the case may be (other than the financial statements, related schedules and other financial data therein, as to which such counsel need express no opinion) contains an untrue statement of a material fact or omits to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading.

 

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In rendering such opinion, such counsel may (1) rely as to matters governed by the laws of states other than Louisiana on local counsel in such jurisdictions, provided that in such case such counsel shall state that they believe that they and the Underwriters are justified in relying on such other counsel and (2) rely as to matters of fact (but not as to legal conclusions), to the extent they deem proper on certificates of responsible officers of the Company and public officials. Such opinion may state that it is to be governed or qualified by the Legal Opinion Accord of the ABA Section of Business Law (1991).

 

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EXHIBIT B

FORM OF LOCK-UP AGREEMENT

IBERIABANK Corporation

200 West Congress Street

Lafeytte, Louisiana 70501

STIFEL, NICOLAUS & COMPANY, INCORPORATED

One Financial Plaza

501 North Broadway

St. Louis, Missouri 63102

Ladies and Gentlemen:

The undersigned refers to the proposed Underwriting Agreement (the “Underwriting Agreement”) among IBERIABANK Corporation, a Louisiana corporation (the “Company”) and the several underwriters named therein (the “Underwriters”). As an inducement to the Underwriters to execute the Underwriting Agreement in connection with the proposed public offering of shares of the Company’s common stock, par value $1.00 per share (“Common Stock”), pursuant to a Registration Statement on Form S-3, the undersigned hereby agrees that from the date hereof and until 90 days after the public offering date set forth on the final prospectus used to sell the Common Stock (the “Public Offering Date”) pursuant to the Underwriting Agreement (such 90 day period being referred to herein as the “Lock-Up Period”), to which you are or expect to become parties, the undersigned will not (and will cause any spouse or immediate family member of the spouse or the undersigned living in the undersigned’s household, any partnership, corporation or other entity within the undersigned’s control, and any trustee of any trust that holds Common Stock or other securities of the Company for the benefit of the undersigned or such spouse or family member not to) offer, sell, contract to sell (including any short sale), pledge, hypothecate, establish an open “put equivalent position” within the meaning of Rule 16a-1(h) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, grant any option, right or warrant for the sale of, purchase any option or contract to sell, sell any option or contract to purchase, or otherwise encumber, dispose of or transfer, or grant any rights with respect to, directly or indirectly, any shares of Common Stock or securities convertible into or exchangeable or exercisable for any shares of Common Stock, enter into a transaction which would have the same effect, or enter into any swap, hedge or other arrangement that transfers, in whole or in part, any of the economic consequences of ownership of the Common Stock, whether any such aforementioned transaction is to be settled by delivery of the Common Stock or such other securities, in cash or otherwise, or publicly disclose the intention to make any such offer, sale, pledge or disposition, or to enter into any such transaction, swap, hedge or other arrangement, without, in each case, the prior written consent of Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated (“Stifel Nicolaus”), which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld.

The undersigned hereby acknowledges and agrees that written notice of any extension of the Lock-Up Period pursuant to the previous paragraph will be delivered by Stifel Nicolaus to the


Company (in accordance with Section 8(m) of the Underwriting Agreement) and that any such notice properly delivered will be deemed to have been given to, and received by, the undersigned. The undersigned further agrees that, prior to engaging in any transaction or taking any other action that is subject to the terms of this Agreement during the Lock-Up Period under this Agreement, the undersigned will give notice thereof to Stifel Nicolaus and will not consummate such transaction or take any such action unless it has received written confirmation from Stifel Nicolaus that the Lock-Up Period (as may have been extended pursuant to the previous paragraph) has expired.

In addition, the undersigned agrees that, during the period commencing on the date hereof and ending 90 days after the Public Offering Date, without the prior written consent of Stifel Nicolaus (which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld): (a) the undersigned will not request, make any demand for or exercise any right with respect to, the registration of any Common Stock or any security convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Common Stock and (b) the undersigned waives any and all notice requirements and rights with respect to the registration of any such security pursuant to any agreement, understanding or otherwise to which the undersigned is a party.

Any Common Stock received upon exercise of options granted to the undersigned will also be subject to this Agreement. Any Common Stock acquired by the undersigned in the open market on or after the Public Offering Date (pursuant to a “friends and family” or directed share program or otherwise) will not be subject to this Agreement. A transfer of Common Stock to a family member or a trust for the benefit of the undersigned or a family member may be made, provided the transferee agrees in writing prior to such transfer to be bound by the terms of this Agreement as if the transferee were a party hereto.

In furtherance of the foregoing, the Company and its transfer agent and registrar are hereby authorized to (a) decline to make any transfer of shares of Common Stock if such transfer would constitute a violation or breach of this Agreement and (b) place legends and stop transfer instructions on any such shares of Common Stock owned or beneficially owned by the undersigned.

Notwithstanding anything else in this Agreement to the contrary, (1) the undersigned may surrender shares of Common Stock to the Company in satisfaction of all or a portion of the exercise price with respect to an option outstanding, (2) the undersigned may surrender shares of Common Stock to the Company with respect to the withholding taxes for shares of restricted Common Stock vesting, (3) shares of Common Stock subject to a Rule 10b5-1 plan [and shares of Common Stock pledged, as of the date of this Agreement, as collateral for any loan for which the undersigned is the primary borrower and which are outstanding as of the date of this Agreement shall not be subject to this Agreement] [and (4) Stifel Nicolaus agrees to allow the undersigned to sell, or to pledge as security for a bona fide loan, shares of Common Stock held by the undersigned during the Lock-Up Period in an aggregate amount not in excess of [•] shares of Common Stock; provided, that such any such sales are at prices above $40.00 per share and are made in a manner reasonably designed to minimize any negative impact on the subject offering or the trading or market price of the Common Stock.]

 


This Agreement is irrevocable and shall be binding on the undersigned and the successors, heirs, personal Representative and assigns of the undersigned. This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York, without regard to choice of law rules. This Agreement shall lapse and become null and void if the Public Offering Date shall not have occurred on or before December 31, 2008.

 

Very truly yours,

 

Printed Name:  

 

Date: