Exhibit 3.4
CERTIFICATE OF DESIGNATION
of
SERIES A JUNIOR PARTICIPATING PREFERRED STOCK
of
NEW SWIFT ENERGY COMPANY
Pursuant to Article 2.13(D) of the
Texas Business Corporation Act
NEW SWIFT ENERGY COMPANY, a corporation organized and existing under the
Texas Business Corporation Act (the "Corporation"), in accordance with the
applicable provisions thereof, DOES HEREBY CERTIFY:
That pursuant to the authority vested in the Board of Directors in
accordance with the provisions of the Articles of Incorporation of the said
Corporation, the said Board of Directors effective as of December 15, 2005 duly
adopted the following resolution creating a series of shares of Preferred Stock
effective at 9:00 a.m., local time in Austin, Texas on December 28, 2005
designated as "Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock":
RESOLVED, that pursuant to the authority vested in the Board of
Directors of this Corporation in accordance with the provisions of the
Articles of Incorporation, a series of Preferred Stock, par value $.01
per share, of the Corporation be and hereby is created, and that the
designation and number of shares thereof and the voting and other
powers, preferences and relative, participating, optional or other
rights of the shares of such series and the qualifications,
limitations and restrictions thereof are as follows:
Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock
1. Designation and Amount. There shall be a series of Preferred Stock that
shall be designated as "Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock," and the
number of shares constituting such series shall be 1,000,000. Such number of
shares may be increased or decreased by resolution of the Board of Directors;
provided, however, that no decrease shall reduce the number of shares of Series
A Junior Participating Preferred Stock to less than the number of shares then
issued and outstanding plus the number of shares issuable upon exercise of
outstanding rights, options or warrants or upon conversion of outstanding
securities issued by the Corporation.
2. Dividends and Distribution.
(A) Subject to the prior and superior right of the holders of any shares of
any class or series of stock of the Corporation ranking prior and superior to
the shares of Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock with respect to
dividends, the holders of shares of Series A Junior Participating Preferred
Stock, shall be entitled to receive, when, as and if declared by the Board of
Directors out of funds legally available for the purpose, quarterly dividends
payable in cash on the 15th day of January, April, July and October, in each
year (each such date being referred to herein as a "Quarterly Dividend Payment
Date"), commencing on the first Quarterly Dividend Payment Date after the first
issuance, of a share or fraction of a share of Series A Junior Participating
Preferred Stock, in an amount per share (rounded to the nearest cent) equal to
the Adjustment Number (as defined below) times the aggregate per share amount of
all cash dividends, and the Adjustment Number times the aggregate per share
amount (payable in kind) of all non-cash dividends or other distributions other
than a dividend payable in shares of Common Stock or a subdivision of the
outstanding shares of Common Stock (by reclassification or otherwise), declared
on the Common Stock, par value $.01 per share, of the Corporation (the "Common
Stock") since the immediately preceding Quarterly Dividend Payment Date, or,
with respect to the first Quarterly Dividend Payment Date, since the first
issuance of any share or fraction of a share of Series A Junior Participating
Preferred Stock. The "Adjustment Number" shall initially be 1000. In the event
that the Corporation (or Swift Energy Company as to which the Corporation is a
successor in part) shall at any time after August 12, 1997 (the "Rights
Declaration Date") (i) declare and pay any dividend on Common Stock payable in
shares of Common Stock, (ii) subdivide the outstanding Common Stock or (iii)
combine the outstanding Common Stock into a smaller number of shares, then in
each such case the Adjustment Number in effect immediately prior to such event
shall be adjusted by multiplying such Adjustment Number by a fraction, the
numerator of which is the number of shares of Common Stock outstanding
immediately after such event and the denominator of which is the number of
shares of Common Stock that were outstanding immediately prior to such event.
(B) The Corporation shall declare a dividend or distribution on the Series
A Junior Participating Preferred Stock as provided in paragraph (A) above
immediately after it declares a dividend or distribution on the Common Stock
(other than a dividend payable in shares of Common Stock).
(C) The Board of Directors may fix a record date for the determination of
holders of shares of Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock entitled to
receive payment of a dividend or distribution declared thereon, which record
date shall be no more than 60 days prior to the date fixed for the payment
thereof.
3. Voting Rights. The holders of shares of Series A Junior Participating
Preferred Stock shall have the following voting rights:
(A) Each share of Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock shall
entitle the holder thereof to a number of votes equal to the Adjustment Number
on all matters submitted to a vote of the stockholders of the Corporation.
(B) Except as required by law and by Section 10 hereof, holders of Series A
Junior Participating Preferred Stock shall have no special voting rights and
their consent shall not be required (except to the extent they are entitled to
vote with holders of Common Stock as set forth herein) for taking any corporate
action.
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4. Certain Restrictions.
(A) Whenever quarterly dividends or other dividends or distributions
payable on the Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock as provided in
Section 2 are in arrears, thereafter and until all accrued and unpaid dividends
and distributions, whether or not declared, on shares of Series A Junior
Participating Preferred Stock outstanding shall have been paid in full, the
Corporation shall not:
(i) declare or pay dividends on, make any other distributions on, or redeem
or Purchase or otherwise acquire for consideration any shares of stock ranking
junior (either as to dividends or upon liquidation, dissolution or winding up)
to the Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock;
(ii) declare or pay dividends on or make any other distributions on
any shares of stock ranking on a parity (either as to dividends or upon
liquidation, dissolution or winding up) with the Series A Junior
Participating Preferred Stock, except dividends paid ratably on the Series
A Junior Participating Preferred Stock and all such parity stock on which
dividends are payable or in arrears in proportion to the total amounts to
which the holders of all such shares are then entitled; or
(iii) purchase or otherwise acquire for consideration any shares of
Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock, or any shares of stock
ranking on a parity with the Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock,
except in accordance with a purchase offer made in writing or by
publication (as determined by the Board of Directors) to all holders of
Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock, or to such holders and
holders of any such shares ranking on a parity therewith, upon such terms
as the Board of Directors, after consideration of the respective annual
dividend rates and other relative rights and preferences of the respective
series and classes, shall determine in good faith will result in fair and
equitable treatment among the respective series or classes.
(B) The Corporation shall not permit any subsidiary of the Corporation to
purchase or otherwise acquire for consideration any shares of stock of the
Corporation unless the Corporation could, under paragraph (A) of this Section 4,
purchase or otherwise acquire such shares at such time and in such manner.
5. Reacquired Shares. Any shares of Series A Junior Participating Preferred
Stock purchased or otherwise acquired by the Corporation in any manner
whatsoever shall be retired promptly after the acquisition thereof. All such
shares shall upon their retirement become authorized but unissued shares of
Preferred Stock and may be reissued as part of a new series of Preferred Stock
to be created by resolution or resolutions of the Board of Directors, subject to
any conditions and restrictions on issuance set forth herein.
6. Liquidation, Dissolution or Winding Up.
(A) Upon any liquidation, dissolution or winding up of the Corporation,
voluntary or otherwise, no distribution shall be made to the holders of shares
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of stock ranking junior (either as to dividends or upon liquidation, dissolution
or winding up) to the Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock unless,
prior thereto, the holders of shares of Series A Junior Participating Preferred
Stock shall have received an amount per share (the "Series A Liquidation
Preference") equal to the greater of (i) $1.00 plus an amount equal to accrued
and unpaid dividends and distributions thereon whether or not declared, to the
date of such payment, or (ii) the Adjustment Number times the per share amount
of all cash and other property to be distributed in respect of the Common Stock
upon such liquidation, dissolution or winding up of the Corporation.
(B) In the event, however, that there are not sufficient assets available
to permit payment in full of the Series A Liquidation Preference and the
liquidation preferences of all other classes and series of stock of the
Corporation, if any, that rank on a parity with the Series A Junior
Participating Preferred Stock in respect thereof, then the assets available for
such distribution shall be distributed ratably to the holders of the Series A
Junior Participating Preferred Stock and the holders of such parity shares in
proportion to their respective liquidation preferences.
(C) Neither the merger or consolidation of the Corporation into or with
another corporation nor the merger or consolidation of any other corporation
into or with the Corporation shall be deemed to be a liquidation, dissolution or
winding up of the Corporation within the meaning or this Section 6.
7. Consolidation, Merger, Etc. In case the Corporation shall enter into any
consolidation, merger, combination or other transaction in which the outstanding
shares of Common Stock are exchanged for or changed into other stock or
securities, cash and/or any other property, then in any such case each share of
Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock shall at the same time be
similarly exchanged or changed in an amount per share equal to the Adjustment
Number times the aggregate amount of stock, securities, cash and/or any other
property (payable in kind), as the case may be, into which or for which each
share of Common Stock is changed or exchanged.
8. No Redemption. Shares of Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock
shall not be subject to redemption by the Company.
9. Ranking. The Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock shall rank
junior to all other series of the Preferred Stock as to the payment of
dividends, and as to the distribution of assets upon liquidation, dissolution or
winding up, unless the terms of any such series shall provide otherwise, and
shall rank senior to the Common Stock as to such matters.
10. Amendment. At any time that any shares of Series A Junior Participating
Preferred Stock are outstanding, the Articles of Incorporation of the
Corporation, as amended or restated from time to time, shall not be amended in
any manner which would materially alter or change the powers, preferences or
special rights of the Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock so as to
affect them adversely without the affirmative vote of the holders of two-thirds
of the outstanding shares of Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock,
voting separately as a class.
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11. Fractional Shares. Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock may be
issued in fractions of a share that shall entitle the holder, in proportion to
such holder's fractional shares, to exercise voting rights, receive dividends,
participate in distributions and to have the benefit of all other rights of
holders of Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned has executed this Certificate as of
this 15th day of December, 2005.
NEW SWIFT ENERGY COMPANY
By: /s/ Bruce H. Vincent
-------------------------------------
Bruce H. Vincent
President
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