Summary of Significant Accounting Policies | Summary of Significant Accounting Policies The Company’s significant accounting policies are described in Note 2, “Summary of Significant Accounting Policies,” in the notes to the audited consolidated financial statements included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") on March 5, 2018. Basis of Presentation The accompanying financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States ("GAAP") and include all adjustments necessary for the fair presentation of the Company's financial position for the periods presented. Segment and geographic information Operating segments are defined as components of an enterprise about which separate discrete information is available for evaluation by the chief operating decision maker, or decision-making group, in deciding how to allocate resources and in assessing performance. The Company views its operations and manages its business in one operating and reporting segment. Use of Estimates The preparation of financial statements and related disclosures in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and judgments that affect the amounts reported in the financial statements and accompanying notes. The Company bases its estimates and judgments on historical experience and on various other assumptions that it believes are reasonable under the circumstances. The amounts of assets and liabilities reported in the Company's Balance Sheets and the amount of expenses reported for each of the periods presented are affected by estimates and assumptions, which are used for, but not limited to, accounting for research and development costs, revenue recognition, accounting for share-based compensation and accounting for income taxes. Actual results could differ from those estimates. Cash and Cash Equivalents The Company considers all highly liquid investments with an original maturity of 90 days or less when purchased to be cash equivalents. The carrying amounts reported in the Balance Sheets for cash and cash equivalents are valued at cost, which approximates their fair value. As of June 30, 2018 , the Company had cash and cash equivalents of approximately $146.0 million . Available for Sale Securities The Company considers securities with original maturities of greater than 90 days when purchased to be available for sale securities. Available for sale securities with original maturities of greater than one year are recorded as non-current assets. Available for sale securities are recorded at fair value and unrealized gains and losses are recorded within accumulated other comprehensive loss. The estimated fair value of the available for sale securities is determined based on quoted market prices or rates for similar instruments. In addition, the cost of debt securities in this category is adjusted for amortization of premium and accretion of discount to maturity. The Company evaluates securities with unrealized losses to determine whether such losses, if any, are other than temporary. The Company did not hold any available for sale securities at June 30, 2018 or December 31, 2017. Revenue Recognition Collaboration Revenue Prior to 2018, the Company's revenue resulted from payments received under its May 2014 licensing and commercialization agreement (the “Novartis Agreement”) with Novartis Pharma AG ("Novartis"), as modified by the July 2017 letter agreement entered into by the Company and Novartis in relation to the Novartis Agreement (the "Letter Agreement"). See "Note 5—Licensing and Commercialization Agreements" below for a description of these agreements. The Company used the relative selling price method to allocate arrangement consideration to the Company’s performance obligations under the Novartis Agreement. The Company completed the deliverables under the Novartis Agreement and the Letter Agreement during the third quarter of 2017. On October 23, 2017, following the failure of the Phase 3 Fovista program and pursuant to the terms of the Letter Agreement, Novartis elected to terminate the Novartis Agreement with immediate effect. As the Company has no products approved for sale, the Company will not receive any revenue from any product candidates that it develops until it obtains regulatory approval and commercializes such products, or until the Company potentially enters into agreements with third parties for the development and commercialization of product candidates. If the Company's development efforts for any of its product candidates result in regulatory approval or the Company enters into collaboration agreements with third parties, the Company may generate revenue from product sales or from such third parties. In the future, the Company will evaluate revenue contracts and arrangements, if any, following the provisions of the Financial Accounting Standards Board, or FASB, Accounting Standards Codification, or ASC, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606). Concentration of Credit Risk The Company's financial instruments that are exposed to concentration of credit risk consist primarily of cash and cash equivalents. The Company maintains its cash in bank accounts, the balances of which generally exceed federally insured limits. The Company maintains its cash equivalents in investments in money market funds and, at times, in U.S. Treasury securities and investment-grade corporate debt securities with original maturities of 90 days or less. The Company's available for sale securities are also invested in U.S. Treasury securities and investment-grade corporate debt securities. The Company believes it is not exposed to significant credit risk on its cash, cash equivalents and available for sale securities. Concentration of Suppliers The Company currently relies exclusively upon a single third-party manufacturer to provide supplies of the active pharmaceutical ingredient, or API, for Zimura on a purchase order basis. The Company also engages a single third-party manufacturer to provide fill/finish services for clinical supplies of Zimura. In addition, the Company currently relies upon a single third-party supplier to supply it with the proprietary polyethylene glycol ("PEG") reagent used to manufacture Zimura on a purchase order basis. Furthermore, the Company and its contract manufacturers currently rely upon sole-source suppliers of certain raw materials and other specialized components of production used in the manufacture and fill/finish of Zimura. The Company is in the process of establishing manufacturing capabilities with a third-party contract manufacturer for its RHO-adRP gene therapy product candidate and does not currently have any contractual commitments for the supply of such product candidate. If the Company’s third-party manufacturers or fill/finish service providers should become unavailable to the Company for any reason, including as a result of capacity constraints, financial difficulties or insolvency, the Company believes that there are a limited number of potential replacement manufacturers, and the Company likely would incur added costs and delays in identifying or qualifying such replacements. Foreign Currency Translation The Company considers the U.S. dollar to be its functional currency. Expenses denominated in foreign currencies are translated at the exchange rate on the date the expense is incurred. The effect of exchange rate fluctuations on translating foreign currency assets and liabilities into U.S. dollars is included in the Statements of Operations. Foreign exchange transaction gains and losses are included in the results of operations and are not material in the Company's financial statements. Financial Instruments Cash equivalents and available for sale securities are reflected in the accompanying financial statements at fair value. The carrying amount of accounts payable and accrued expenses, including accrued research and development expenses, approximates fair value due to the short-term nature of those instruments. Property and Equipment Property and equipment, which consists mainly of manufacturing and clinical equipment, furniture and fixtures, computers, software, other office equipment, and leasehold improvements, are carried at cost less accumulated depreciation. Depreciation is computed over the estimated useful lives of the respective assets, generally three to ten years, using the straight-line method. Amortization of leasehold improvements is recorded over the shorter of the lease term or estimated useful life of the related asset. Research and Development Research and development expenses primarily consist of costs associated with the manufacturing, development and clinical testing of Zimura and, historically, Fovista, as well as costs associated with the preclinical development of other product candidates, formulations and technologies, including costs associated with the preclinical development of the Company's RHO-adRP gene therapy product candidate, including related sponsored research with the University of Pennsylvania, and costs associated with the Company's ongoing gene therapy research collaboration with the University of Massachusetts Medical School ("UMMS"). Research and development expenses consist of: • external research and development expenses incurred under arrangements with third parties, such as academic research collaborators, contract research organizations ("CROs") and other vendors and contract manufacturing organizations ("CMOs") for the production of drug substance and drug product; and • employee-related expenses for employees dedicated to research and development activities, including salaries, benefits and share-based compensation expense. Research and development expenses also include costs of acquired product licenses and related technology rights where there is no alternative future use, costs of prototypes used in research and development, consultant fees and amounts paid to collaborative partners. All research and development expenses are charged to operations as incurred in accordance with ASC 730, Research and Development . The Company accounts for non-refundable advance payments for goods and services that will be used in future research and development activities as expenses when the service has been performed or when the goods have been received, rather than when the payment is made. Income Taxes The Company utilizes the liability method of accounting for deferred income taxes, as set forth in ASC 740, Income Taxes. Under this method, deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the expected future tax consequences of temporary differences between the carrying amounts and the tax basis of assets and liabilities. A valuation allowance is established against deferred tax assets when, based on the weight of available evidence, it is more likely than not that some or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. The Company's policy is to record interest and penalties on uncertain tax positions as income tax expense. Share-Based Compensation The Company follows the provisions of ASC 718, Compensation—Stock Compensation, which requires the measurement and recognition of compensation expense for all share-based payment awards made to employees and non-employee directors, including employee stock options, restricted stock units (“RSUs”) and options granted to employees to purchase shares under the 2016 Employee Stock Purchase Plan (the “ESPP”). Share-based compensation expense is based on the grant date fair value estimated in accordance with the provisions of ASC 718 and is generally recognized as an expense over the requisite service period, net of estimated forfeitures. For grants containing performance-based vesting provisions, expense is recognized over the estimated achievement period. Stock Options The Company estimates the fair value of stock options granted to employees and non-employee directors on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model. Due to the lack of trading history, the Company's computation of stock-price volatility is based on the volatility rates of comparable publicly held companies over a period equal to the expected term of the options granted by the Company. The Company's computation of expected term is determined using the "simplified" method, which is the midpoint between the vesting date and the end of the contractual term. The Company believes that it does not have sufficient reliable exercise data in order to justify the use of a method other than the "simplified" method of estimating the expected exercise term of employee stock option grants. The Company utilizes a dividend yield of zero based on the fact that the Company has never paid cash dividends to stockholders and has no current intentions to pay cash dividends. The risk-free interest rate is based on the zero-coupon U.S. Treasury yield at the date of grant for a term equivalent to the expected term of the option. For stock options and RSUs granted as consideration for services rendered by consultants, the Company recognizes expense in accordance with the requirements of ASC 505-50, Equity Based Payments to Non-Employees . Consultant stock option grants are recorded as an expense over the vesting period of the underlying stock options. At the end of each financial reporting period prior to vesting, the value of these options, as calculated using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model, will be re-measured using the fair value of the Company's common stock and the non-cash expense recognized during the period will be adjusted accordingly. Since the fair value of options granted to consultants is subject to change in the future, the amount of the future expense will include fair value re-measurements until the stock options are fully vested. The weighted-average assumptions used to estimate grant date fair value of stock options using the Black-Scholes option pricing model were as follows for the three and six months ended June 30, 2018 and 2017 : Three Months Ended June 30, Six Months Ended June 30, 2018 2017 2018 2017 Expected common stock price volatility 85% 82% 83% 81% Risk-free interest rate 2.83%-2.83% 1.82%-1.95% 2.39%-2.83% 1.82%-2.38% Expected term of options (years) 5.3 5.7 5.6 6.1 Expected dividend yield — — — — RSUs The Company estimates the fair value of RSUs granted to employees using the closing market price of the Company's common stock on the date of grant. ESPP In April 2016, the board of directors adopted the ESPP pursuant to which the Company may sell up to an aggregate of 1,000,000 shares of common stock. The ESPP was approved by the Company’s stockholders in June 2016. The ESPP is considered compensatory and the fair value of the discount and look back provision are estimated using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model and recognized over the six month withholding period prior to purchase. Share-based compensation expense includes expenses related to stock options and RSUs granted to employees, non-employee directors and consultants, as well as options granted to employees to purchase shares under the ESPP, all of which have been reported in the Company’s Statements of Operations as follows: Three Months Ended June 30, Six Months Ended June 30, 2018 2017 2018 2017 Research and development $ 1,106 $ 2,897 $ 2,546 $ 7,047 General and administrative 1,556 2,091 3,198 4,005 Total $ 2,662 $ 4,988 $ 5,744 $ 11,052 Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements In May 2014, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Codification 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (“ASC 606”). ASC 606 outlines a new, single comprehensive model for entities to use in accounting for revenue arising from contracts with customers and supersedes most current revenue recognition guidance, including industry-specific guidance. This new revenue recognition model provides a five-step analysis in determining when and how revenue is recognized. The new model requires revenue recognition to depict the transfer of promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration a company expects to receive in exchange for those goods or services. On January 1, 2018, the Company adopted this guidance using the modified retrospective approach. Due to the termination of the Novartis Agreement and the Company's current lack of other revenue sources, the Company's financial statements were not impacted by adoption of this standard. The future impact of ASC 606 will be dependent on the nature of the Company’s future revenue contracts and arrangements, if any. In August 2016, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update (ASU) No. 2016-15, Statement of Cash Flows (Topic 230): Classification of Certain Cash Receipts and Cash Payments , which clarifies the presentation of certain specific cash flow issues in the Statement of Cash Flows. For public companies, the amendments are effective for annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2017, and interim periods within those annual periods and early adoption is permitted. During the three months ended March 31, 2018, the Company adopted this guidance. The adoption did not have a material impact on the Company's financial statements. In January 2017, the FASB issued ASU No. 2017-01, Business Combinations (Topic 805): Clarifying the Definition of a Business , in an effort to clarify the definition of a business with the objective of adding guidance to assist entities with evaluating whether transactions should be accounted for as acquisitions (or disposals) of assets or businesses. The amendments of this ASU are effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2017, and interim periods within those fiscal years. Early adoption is permitted. This new guidance will be applicable for the Company’s acquisitions on or after January 1, 2018. Recent Accounting Pronouncements In February 2016, the FASB issued ASU No. 2016-2, Leases (Topic 842) . Under the new guidance, lessees will be required to recognize the following for all leases (with the exception of short-term leases) at the commencement date: (1) a lease liability, which is a lessee’s obligation to make lease payments arising from a lease, measured on a discounted basis; and (2) a right-of-use asset, which is an asset that represents the lessee’s right to use, or control the use of, a specified asset for the lease term. Under the new guidance, lessor accounting is largely unchanged. Certain targeted improvements were made to align, where necessary, lessor accounting with the lessee accounting model and Topic 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers . The new lease guidance simplified the accounting for sale and leaseback transactions primarily because lessees must recognize lease assets and lease liabilities. Lessees will no longer be provided with a source of off-balance sheet financing. Publicly-traded business entities should apply the amendments in ASU 2016-2 for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2018, including interim periods within those fiscal years (i.e., January 1, 2019, for a calendar year entity). Early application is permitted for all publicly-traded business entities and all nonpublicly-traded business entities upon issuance. Lessees (for capital and operating leases) and lessors (for sales-type, direct financing, and operating leases) must apply a modified retrospective transition approach for leases existing at, or entered into after, the beginning of the earliest comparative period presented in the financial statements. The modified retrospective approach would not require any transition accounting for leases that expired before the earliest comparative period presented. Lessees and lessors may not apply a full retrospective transition approach. The Company is currently assessing the impact that adopting this new accounting guidance will have on its financial statements and footnote disclosures. In June 2018 the FASB issued ASU No. 2018-07, Improvements to Nonemployee Share-Based Payment Accounting, which supersedes ASC 505-50 and expands the scope of ASC 718 to include all share-based payments arrangements related to the acquisition of goods and services from both employees and nonemployees. For public companies, the amendments are effective for annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2018, including interim periods within those annual periods. Early adoption is permitted, but no earlier than a company's adoption date of ASC 606. The Company is currently assessing the impact that adopting this new accounting guidance will have on its financial statements and footnote disclosures. |