Good afternoon, and welcome. I'm Ed Stack, Chairman and CEO of DICK'S Sporting Goods and chairman of today's meeting. The representatives from Deloitte & Touche, our independent auditors, are here today and will be glad to respond to questions during the discussion period. The company's board of directors and a number of our executive officers are also here today. John Hayes, Senior Vice President and General Counsel, is the company secretary. John, can you confirm that notice of this meeting was duly and properly given and a quorum is present?
Yes, I can confirm that the notices were mailed on April 29, 2016, in accordance with the bylaws. Additionally, the company's stock records as of April 13th have been available for at least the past 10 days and are available for inspection at this meeting. A quorum is present today. Record holders representing in the aggregate at 308,747,532 votes are present at this meeting, either in person or by proxy.
Thank you, John. Since a quorum is present, I declare that the annual meeting of the stockholders of DICK'S Sporting Goods Inc. duly convened. There are three matters to be voted at the annual meeting as described in your proxy statement: the election of directors, an advisory vote to approve executive compensation, and the ratification and appointment of Deloitte & Touche as the independent auditors for the current fiscal year. Nate Gilch, Director of Investor Relations, has been appointed as the Inspector of Election for this meeting. He will determine the validity of the proxies and the voting results, which will be calculated during the meeting. Nate, please present the board of directors' recommendations to the stockholders at this time.
The first matter is the election of three Class B directors for terms that expire in 2019. The board's nominees are Mark J. Barrenechea, Emanuel Chirico, and Allen R. Weiss. I move that these nominees be elected to the board of directors.
Is there a second?
Second.
The company has not received notice of any other nominations as required by the bylaws. Therefore, I declare the nominations closed. The matter is the ratification and the appointment of Deloitte & Touche as the company's independent registered accounting firm for fiscal 2016.
I move that the appointment of Deloitte & Touche be ratified.
Is there a second?
Second.
The final matter is the advisory vote on executive compensation. I move that the compensation of the named executive officers, as described in the proxy statement, be approved.
Is there a second?
Second.
I'll now ask all stockholders who have not already done so to please turn in their proxy cards to John Hayes. Any stockholder who wants a ballot should raise his or her hand. If you have a legal proxy, you will be given a ballot. It is not necessary to ask for a ballot if you've already sent in your proxy. If you have previously sent in a proxy, please do not execute a separate ballot unless you desire to revoke your proxy. I now declare the polls closed. The Inspector of Election will now tally all votes and return the results to the Secretary. The Secretary has received the report of the Inspector of Elections. John, will you please give us the results?
Yes. The requisite number of shares present have voted to approve all three matters presented. Vote tallies for each item will be contained in the written report of the Inspector of Elections.
The three nominees have been duly elected as Class B directors of the company for terms that expire in 2019. The compensation of the named executive officers has been approved, Deloitte & Touche's selection as the company's independent registered public accounting firm for the next fiscal year has been ratified. The formal business of the meeting is now adjourned. Thank you again for attending today's meeting and for your interest in our company. We will now give our stockholders an opportunity to ask questions or to make comments. Please state your name and confirm that you are a stockholder or shareholder representative before addressing your questions or comments to me. Questions? There being no questions, I'd like to thank you all for attending the meeting, and that concludes the business today. Thank you.