On January $1,2023,$ Kent Company granted $10$ executives a performance$-$based stock option plan that allowed each of them to buy a maximum of $3,000$ shares of the company's $$5$ par value common stock at an exercise price of $$15$ a share. On the grant date, the fair value per option was $$8.$ The shares will be awarded based on the increase in sales over a three$-$year service period as follows:

Sales Increase

At Least No$,$ of Shares

$3\%,1,000$

$6\%,2,000$

$9\%,3,000$

On Dec. $31,2023,$ the company estimated sales would increase by $5\%$ during the service period and that $9$ employees would get vested. On Dec. $31,2024,$ the company estimated that $8$ employees would get vested, and sales would increase by $9\mathrm{.}5\%.$ At the end of the three$-$year period $($Dec$.31,2025),$ options actual vested for the remaining $7$ executives and sales actually increased only by $7\%.$ On this date, the fair value per option changed to $$8\mathrm{.}50.$

On June $18,2026,6$ executives each exercised $2,000$ options to buy the company' common stock at $$15$ per share when the stock is selling for $$26$ per share.

Required:

A$.$ Compute compensation expense for each of the three$-$year service period;

B$.$ Prepare the journal entries for this compensatory option plan for $2023,2024,2025,$ and $2026.$