Document:

wstg_Ex4_3

		
			Exhibit 4.3
		

		
			 
		

		
			DESCRIPTION OF THE REGISTRANT’S SECURITIES
		

		
			REGISTERED PURSUANT TO SECTION 12 OF THE
		

		
			SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
		

		
			 
		

		
			Wayside Technology Group, Inc. (the “Company,” “we” or “our”) has one class of securities registered under Section 12 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), which is our common stock, par value $0.01 per share (“Common Stock”). The following summary of the material terms of our Common Stock is qualified by reference to our Restated Certificate of Incorporation, as amended (the “Certificate of Incorporation”) and our Restated Bylaws (the “Bylaws”), each of which is incorporated by reference as an exhibit to our Annual Report on Form 10-K, as well as applicable provisions of the Delaware General Corporation Law (“DGCL”).
		

		
			 
		

		
			Capitalization
		

		
			 
		

		
			Our authorized capital stock consists of 10,000,000 shares of Common Stock and 10,000 shares of preferred stock, par value $0.01 per share (“Preferred Stock”).
		

		
			 
		

		
			Common Stock
		

		
			 
		

		
			Holders of our Common Stock are entitled to receive dividends and other distributions when authorized by our Board of Directors and declared by us out of assets legally available for the payment thereof. Holders of our Common Stock are also entitled, in the event of any voluntary or involuntary liquidation, dissolution or winding up of the Company, to receive a pro rata distribution of any remaining assets after payment or provision for payment of our debts or liabilities. These rights are subject to the preferential rights of any Preferred Stock outstanding at any time.
		

		
			 
		

		
			Each share of Common Stock shall be entitled to one vote per share on all matters to be voted on by the stockholders of the Company, including the election of Directors. Except as provided by the terms of any outstanding Preferred Stock, our common stockholders will possess exclusive voting power. Cumulative voting in the election of Directors is not permitted. Directors will be elected by a plurality of voting power of the shares of capital stock of the Company which are present in person or by proxy and entitled to vote in the election of Directors at a duly called meeting at which a quorum is present.  The affirmative vote of the holders of a majority in voting power of the shares of capital stock of the Company which are present in person or by proxy and entitled to vote thereon cast at a meeting of stockholders duly called and at which a quorum is present shall be sufficient to approve any matter which may properly come before the meeting, unless more than a majority of the votes present is required by statute or the Certificate of Incorporation.
		

		
			 
		

		
			Holders of our Common Stock have no preemptive, subscription, redemption, sinking fund or conversion rights. The rights, preferences and privileges of holders of our Common Stock are subject to, and may be adversely affected by, the rights of the holders of shares of any series of Preferred Stock which we may designate and issue in the future.
		

		
			 
		

		
			
		

		
			

		 

		

		
			Our Common Stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “WSTG.”
		

		
			 
		

		
			Preferred  Stock
		

		
			 
		

		
			Our Certificate of Incorporation authorizes our Board of Directors, without further action by our stockholders, to establish one or more series of Preferred Stock and to determine, with respect to any series of Preferred Stock, the voting powers, full or limited, or no voting powers, and with such designations, preferences and relative, participating, optional or other rights, and qualifications or restrictions thereof.  As a result, our Board of Directors could authorize the issuance of shares of Preferred Stock that have priority over shares of our Common Stock with respect to dividends or other distributions or rights upon liquidation, voting rights or with other terms and conditions that could have the effect of delaying, deferring or preventing a transaction or a change of control of our Company.  As of the date hereof, we have no outstanding shares of Preferred Stock.
		

		
			 
		

		
			Certain Provisions of Delaware Law and Our Charter and Bylaws
		

		
			 
		

		
			Our Board of Directors
		

		
			 
		

		
			Our Certificate of Incorporation provides that the number of Directors of our Company may not be fewer than three and may be fixed only by the resolution of Directors then in office. We currently have 7  Directors. Subject to the rights of the holders of any outstanding Preferred Stock, any vacancy in the Board of Directors (including a vacancy caused by an increase in the number of Directors) may be filled solely by resolution adopted by a majority of Directors then in office, whether or not such majority constitutes less than a quorum, or by a sole remaining Director; provided however that any vacancy created by a removal of a Director by the stockholders may be filled by action of the stockholders taken at the same meeting at which the vacancy was created; such action to be upon the affirmative vote of the holders of not less than a majority of the voting power of the outstanding capital stock entitled to vote in the election of Directors, voting as a single class. Subject to the rights of holders of any outstanding Preferred Stock to elect Directors or to remove Directors so elected, a Director may be removed only for cause and only by the affirmative vote of the holders of at least a majority of the voting power of the outstanding capital stock entitled to vote in the election of Directors, voting as a single class.
		

		
			 
		

		
			Special Meetings of Stockholders
		

		
			 
		

		
			Special meetings of stockholders of the Company may be called only by the Chairman of the Board of Directors,  our Chief Executive Officer, our President or the record holders of at least 35% of the voting power of the issued and outstanding capital stock of the Company.
		

		
			 
		

		
			Amendments to our Certificate of Incorporation and Bylaws
		

		
			 
		

		
			Any amendment of our Certificate of Incorporation must first be declared advisable by our Board of Directors and, if required by the DGCL or our Certificate of Incorporation, thereafter be approved by a majority of the outstanding shares entitled to vote on the amendment, and a majority of the outstanding shares of each class entitled to vote thereon as a class. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, the affirmative vote of stockholders holding 66-2/3% of the outstanding shares of capital stock then entitled to vote thereon shall be required in order to amend any provision of, or to adopt any provision which is inconsistent with Article V (Board of Directors; Stockholders’ Meetings), Article VI (Director Liability) or Article VII (Amendments to the Restated Certificate of Incorporation) of our Certificate of Incorporation.  Our Bylaws may be amended by our Board of Directors and may also be amended by the affirmative vote of stockholders holding not less than 66-2/3% of the voting power of the Company then entitled to vote thereon.
		

		
			 
		

		
			
		

		
			

		 

		

		
			Requirements for Advance Notice of Shareholder Proposals and Nominations
		

		
			 
		

		
			Except as provided in Rule 14a-8 of the Exchange Act, a stockholder who intends to propose business at an annual or special meeting of the stockholders of the Company must comply with the notice and informational requirements set forth in our Certificate of Incorporation. Pursuant to our Certificate of Incorporation a shareholder’s notice must be delivered to the Secretary of the Company at the principal executive offices of the Company not later than the earlier to occur of (i) the date which is 60 days prior to the meeting and (ii) the date determined by the Company in compliance with the Exchange Act as the last date on which stockholder proposals may be submitted to the Company for inclusion in the Company’s proxy materials; provided that, if the Company provides less than 60 days’ notice or prior public disclosure of the date of the meeting, to be timely, any such stockholder proposal must be received no later than the close of business on the tenth day following the day on which such notice or prior disclosure was made, whichever first occur
		

		
			 
		

		
			Delaware Anti-Takeover Law
		

		
			We are subject to Section 203 of the DGCL. Section 203 generally prohibits a public Delaware corporation from engaging in a business combination with an “interested stockholder” for a period of three years following the date on which the stockholder became an interested stockholder, unless:
		

		
			prior to the date of the business combination, the board of directors of the corporation approved either the business combination or the transaction which resulted in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder;
		

		
			upon consummation of the transaction which resulted in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder, the interested stockholder owned at least 85% of the voting stock of the corporation outstanding at the time the transaction commenced, excluding for purposes of determining the voting stock outstanding (but not the outstanding voting stock owned by the interested stockholder) (a) shares owned by persons who are directors and also officers and (b) shares owned by employee stock plans in which employee participants do not have the right to determine confidentially whether shares held subject to the plan will be tendered in a tender or exchange offer; or
		

		
			on or subsequent to the date of the business combination, the business combination is approved by the board of directors and authorized at an annual or special meeting of stockholders, and not by written consent, by the affirmative vote of at least 66-2/3% of the outstanding voting stock which is not owned by the interested stockholder.
		

		
			 
		

		
			The term “interested stockholder” is defined generally as any person who is the owner of 15% or more of the corporation’s outstanding voting stock or any person who is an affiliate or associate of the corporation and was the owner of 15% or more of the corporation’s outstanding voting stock at any time within the three-year period immediately prior to the date on which it is sought to be determined whether such person is an interested stockholder, and the affiliates and associates of such person.
		

		
			 
		

		
			Anti-Takeover Effects of Various Provisions
		

		
			 
		

		
			Certain provisions of the DGCL, our Certificate of Incorporation and our Bylaws summarized above may have an anti-takeover effect and could make the following transactions more difficult: acquisition of the Company by means of a tender offer; acquisition of the Company by means of a proxy contest or otherwise; or removal of the Company’s incumbent officers and directors. It is possible that these provisions could make it more difficult to accomplish or could deter transactions that stockholders may otherwise consider to be in their best interest or in
		

		
			
		

		
			

		 

		

		
			the best interests of the Company, including transactions that might result in a premium over the market price for shares of our Common Stock.ryi-ex44_86.htm

 

Exhibit 4.4

DESCRIPTION OF THE REGISTRANT’S SECURITIES 

REGISTERED PURSUANT TO SECTION 12 OF THE 

SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

The following summary describes the material terms of the securities of Ryerson Holding Corporation (the “Company”) that are registered under Section 12 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. This description also summarizes relevant provisions of Delaware law. The following summary does not purport to be complete and is subject to, and is qualified in its entirety by reference to, applicable law and our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and our bylaws, copies of which are incorporated by reference as an exhibit to the Annual Report on Form 10-K of which this Exhibit 4.4 is a part. We encourage you to read our certificate of incorporation, our bylaws and the applicable provisions of Delaware law for additional information.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that our authorized capital stock consists of 100 million shares of common stock, par value $0.01 per share, and 7 million shares of preferred stock, par value $0.01 per share, that are undesignated as to series. 

The holders of common stock are entitled to one vote for each share held of record on all matters submitted to a vote of stockholders and are not entitled to cumulative votes with respect to the election of directors. The holders of common stock are entitled to receive dividends as may be declared by our Board of Directors out of legally available funds. Upon our liquidation, dissolution or winding up, the holders of common stock are entitled to share ratably in all assets that are legally available for distribution after payment of all debts and other liabilities, subject to the prior rights of any holders of preferred stock then outstanding. The holders of common stock have no other preemptive, subscription, redemption, sinking fund or conversion rights. All outstanding shares of our common stock are fully paid and nonassessable. The shares of common stock to be issued upon completion of the offering will also be fully paid and nonassessable. The rights, preferences and privileges of holders of common stock are subject to, and may be negatively impacted by, the rights of the holders of shares of any series of preferred stock which we may designate and issue in the future. 

Our transfer agent and registrar for our common stock is American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC.

Our common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “RYI.”

Anti-Takeover Provisions of Delaware Law 

We are subject to Section 203 of the Delaware General Corporation Law. In general, Section 203 prohibits a publicly held Delaware corporation from engaging in a business combination with an interested stockholder for a period of three years following the date the person became an interested stockholder, unless the business combination or the transaction in which the person became an interested stockholder is approved in a prescribed manner. Generally, a business combination includes a merger, asset or stock sale, or other transaction resulting in a financial benefit to the interested stockholder. Generally, an interested stockholder is a person who, together with affiliates and associates, owns or, in the case of affiliates or associates of the corporation, within three years prior to the determination of interested stockholder status, owned 15% or more of a corporation’s voting stock. 

The existence of this provision could have anti-takeover effects with respect to transactions not approved in advance by our Board of Directors, such as discouraging takeover attempts that might result in a premium over the market price of our common stock. For these purposes Platinum Equity, LLC (“Platinum”), does not constitute “interested stockholders.” 

Stockholders are not entitled to cumulative voting in the election of directors. The authorization of undesignated preferred stock makes it possible for our Board of Directors to issue preferred stock with voting or other rights or preferences that could impede the success of any attempt to effect a change of control of our company. The foregoing provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and the Delaware 

 

 

General Corporation Law may have the effect of deterring or discouraging hostile takeovers or delaying changes in control of our company. 

Charter and Bylaws Anti-Takeover Provisions 

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and our amended and restated bylaws each provide that on and following the date that Platinum no longer beneficially owns a majority of the voting power of all of our capital stock, any action required or permitted to be taken by our stockholders at an annual meeting or special meeting of the stockholders may only be taken at such annual or special meeting, and not by written consent without a meeting, if it is properly brought before such annual or special meeting. 

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that our Board of Directors will be divided into three classes of directors, with the number of directors in each class to be as nearly equal as possible. Our classified board staggers terms of the three classes and, following the initial public offering of 11 million of our common stock completed on August 13, 2014, was implemented through one, two and three-year terms for the initial three classes, followed in each case by full three-year terms. With a classified board, only one-third of the members of our Board of Directors are elected each year. This classification of directors has the effect of making it more difficult for stockholders to change the composition of our Board of Directors. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and our amended and restated bylaws provide that the number of directors will be fixed from time to time exclusively pursuant to a resolution adopted by our Board of Directors, but must consist of not less than three directors. This provision prevents stockholders from circumventing the provisions of our classified board. 

 

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that, on and following the date that Platinum no longer beneficially owns a majority of the voting power of all of our capital stock, the affirmative vote of the holders of at least 66 2/3% of the voting power of our issued and outstanding capital stock, voting together as a single class, is required for the following: 

	
 
	
• 
	
alteration, amendment or repeal of the staggered Board of Directors provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation; and 

	
 
	
• 
	
alteration, amendment or repeal of certain provisions of our amended and restated bylaws, including the provisions relating to our stockholders’ ability to call special meetings, notice provisions for stockholder business to be conducted at an annual meeting, requests for stockholder lists and corporate records, nomination and removal of directors and filling of vacancies on our Board of Directors. 

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides for the issuance by the Board of Directors of up to 7 million shares of preferred stock, with voting power, designations, preferences and other special rights. The issuance of preferred stock could decrease the amount of earnings and assets available for distribution to the holders of common stock or could adversely affect the rights and powers, including voting rights, of holders of common stock. In certain circumstances, such issuance could have the effect of decreasing the market price of the common stock. Preferred stockholders could also make it more difficult for a third party to acquire our company. No shares of preferred stock are outstanding and we currently have no plans to issue any shares of preferred stock. 

Our amended and restated bylaws establish an advance notice procedure for stockholders to bring matters before special stockholder meetings, including proposed nominations of persons for election to our Board of Directors. These procedures specify the information stockholders must include in their notice and the timeframe in which they must give us notice. At a special stockholder meeting, stockholders may only consider nominations or proposals specified in the notice of meeting. A special stockholder meeting for any purpose may only be called by our Board of Directors, our Chairman, our Chief Executive Officer or, prior to the date that Platinum no longer beneficially owns a majority of the voting power of all of our capital stock, the holders of a majority of the voting power of our then outstanding voting stock. 

Our amended and restated bylaws do not give the Board of Directors the power to approve or disapprove stockholder nominations of candidates or proposals regarding other business to be conducted at a meeting. However, our amended and restated bylaws may have the effect of precluding the conduct of that item of business at a meeting if the proper procedures are not followed. These provisions may discourage or deter a potential third party from 

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conducting a solicitation of proxies to elect its own slate of directors or otherwise attempting to obtain control of our company. 

The foregoing provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, our amended and restated bylaws and the Delaware General Corporation Law may have the effect of deterring or discouraging hostile takeovers or delaying changes in control of the company. 

Limitation on Liability and Indemnification of Directors and Officers 

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and bylaws limit our directors’ and officers’ liability to the fullest extent permitted under Delaware corporate law. Specifically, our directors and officers are not liable to us or our stockholders for monetary damages for any breach of fiduciary duty by a director or officer, except for liability: 

	
 
	
•
	
for any breach of the director’s or officer’s duty of loyalty to us or our stockholders; 

	
 
	
•
	
for acts or omissions not in good faith or which involve intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of law; 

 

	
 
	
•
	
under Section 174 of the Delaware General Corporation Law; or 

	
 
	
• 
	
for any transaction from which a director or officer derives an improper personal benefit. 

If the Delaware General Corporation Law is amended to authorize corporate action further eliminating or limiting the personal liability of directors or officers, then the liability of a director or officer of the Company shall be eliminated or limited to the fullest extent permitted by the Delaware General Corporation Law, as so amended. 

The provision regarding indemnification of our directors and officers in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will generally not limit liability under state or federal securities laws. 

Delaware law and our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and bylaws provide that we will, in certain situations, indemnify any person made or threatened to be made a party to a proceeding by reason of that person’s former or present official capacity with our company against judgments, penalties, fines, settlements and reasonable expenses including reasonable attorney’s fees. Any person is also entitled, subject to certain limitations, to payment or reimbursement of reasonable expenses in advance of the final disposition of the proceeding. In addition, Ryerson is party to certain indemnification agreements pursuant to which it has agreed to indemnify the employees who are party thereto. 

The limitation of liability and indemnification provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation may discourage stockholders from bringing a lawsuit against directors for breach of their fiduciary duty. These provisions may also have the effect of reducing the likelihood of derivative litigation against directors and officers, even though such an action, if successful, might otherwise benefit us and our stockholders. In addition, your investment may be adversely affected to the extent that, in a class action or direct suit, we pay the costs of settlement and damage awards against directors and officers pursuant to these indemnification provisions. 

 

 

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