Item 5. Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters, and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

Market Information for Common Stock

Our common stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “MTD.”

Holders

At January 25, 2021, there were 39 holders of record of common stock and 23,408,050 shares of common stock outstanding. We estimate we have approximately 116,897 beneficial owners of common stock.

Dividend Policy

Historically, we have not paid dividends on our common stock. However, we will evaluate this policy on a periodic basis taking into account our results of operations, financial condition, capital requirements including potential acquisitions, our share repurchase program, the taxation of dividends to our shareholders, and other factors deemed relevant by our Board of Directors.

Share Performance Graph

The following graph compares the cumulative total returns (assuming reinvestment of dividends) on $100 invested on December 31, 2015 through December 31, 2020 in our common stock, the Standard & Poor’s 500 Composite Stock Index (S&P 500 Index), and the SIC Code 3826 Index — Laboratory Analytical Instruments.

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Comparison of Cumulative Total Return Among Mettler-Toledo International Inc., the S&P 500 Index, and SIC Code 3826 Index — Laboratory Analytical Instruments**(a)**

(a) The Performance Graph will not be deemed to be incorporated by reference into any filing under the Securities Act of 1933 or the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, except to the extent that the Company specifically incorporates it by reference. In addition, the Performance Graph will not be deemed to be "soliciting material" or to be "filed" with the SEC or subject to Regulation 14A or 14C, other than as provided in Regulation S-K, or to the liabilities of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, except to the extent that the Company specifically requests that such information be treated as soliciting material or specifically incorporates it by reference into a filing under the Securities Act or the Exchange Act.

Purchases of Equity Securities by the Issuer and Affiliated Purchasers

Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

In November 2020, the Company’s Board of Directors authorized an additional $2.5 billion to the share repurchase program which has $3.1 billion of remaining availability as of December 31, 2020. The share repurchases are expected to be funded from cash generated from operating activities, borrowings, and cash balances. Repurchases will be made through open market transactions, and the amount and timing of purchases will depend on business and market conditions, the stock price, trading restrictions, the level of acquisition activity, and other factors.

We have purchased 29.4 million common shares since the inception of the program in 2004 through December 31, 2020, at a total cost of $5.9 billion. During the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, we spent $775 million in both years on the repurchase of 815,652 shares and 1,094,648 shares at an average price per share of $950.14 and $707.97, respectively. We reissued 162,176 shares and 298,002 shares held in treasury for the exercise of stock options and restricted stock units during 2020 and 2019, respectively.

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