STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY | NOTE 9 Common Stock – At the Market Offering During March 2021, the Company entered into a sales agreement (“Sales Agreement”) with BTIG, LLC (“BTIG”), as sales agent, to establish an At-The-Market (“ATM”) offering program of up to $45 million of common stock, subject to certain limitations on the amount of common stock that may be offered and sold by the Company set forth in the sales agreement. During August 2023, the Company and BTIG entered into Amendment No. 1 to the Sales Agreement. The Company is required to pay BTIG a commission of 3% of the gross proceeds from the sale of shares. During July 2023, the Company sold 75,697 shares of its common stock at an average price of $10.56 per share under the ATM program. The aggregate net proceeds were approximately $775,000 after offering expenses. These shares were inadvertently sold under a registration statement filed with the SEC that had in fact expired prior to the time the shares were sold. Consequently, the Company may be subject to claims for rescission by purchasers who purchased shares of common stock under the ATM program. Under Section 12(a)(1) of the Securities Act, a purchaser of security in a transaction made in violation of Section 5 of the Securities Act may obtain recovery of the consideration paid in connection with its purchase, plus statutory interest, or, if it had already sold the shares, recover damages resulting from its purchase. While the Company believes, it is unlikely that a successful claim will be asserted against the Company by any purchasers who purchased shares of common stock under the ATM Agreement in July 2023, the Company cannot guarantee that no such legal claims will be asserted against the Company by any purchasers. In addition, the Company could become subject to enforcement actions and/or penalties and fines by federal authorities, and the Company is unable to predict the likelihood of any such enforcement actions being brought, or the amount of any such potential penalties or fines. As of December 31, 2023, there have been no claims or demands to exercise such rights. As a result of these potential rescission rights, the Company reclassified 75,697 shares, with an aggregate purchase price of $799,000 of its common stock as temporary equity presented outside stockholders’ equity. The reclassification of these shares shall remain for a period of one year from transaction date. These shares have been treated as issued and outstanding for financial reporting purposes. At December 31, 2023, the Company has $28.7 million of common stock available under the ATM program. Common Stock – Issuance to Directors and Officers During the year ended December 31, 2022, directors and officers of the Company purchased 82,900 shares of the Company’s common stock from the Company at $8.43 per share (which was the closing price of the Company’s common stock on March 22, 2022) for gross proceeds of $699,000. Stock options On June 1, 2023, the Company’s shareholders approved an amendment to the 2021 Incentive Stock Plan (“2021 Amended and Restated Incentive Stock Plan”) to increase the shares of the Company’s common stock available for issuance thereunder to 4,000,000 shares. During 2023, the Company granted certain employees and directors options to purchase 665,000 shares of its common stock pursuant to the 2017 and 2019 Incentive Stock Plans and 2021 Amended and Restated Incentive Stock Plan. The stock options had a fair value of approximately $4.9 million that was calculated using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model. Variables used in the Black-Scholes option-pricing model include: (1) discount rate of 3.84% – 3.99% based on the applicable US Treasury bill rate (2) expected life of 6.0 – 6.25 years, (3) expected volatility of approximately 91% based on the trading history of similar companies, and (4) zero expected dividends. During 2022, the Company granted certain employees and directors options to purchase 819,000 shares of its common stock pursuant to the 2021 Incentive Stock Plan. The stock options had a fair value of approximately $5.5 million that was calculated using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model. Variables used in the Black-Scholes option-pricing model include: (1) discount rate of 1.60% - 3.06% based on the applicable US Treasury bill rate (2) expected life of 6.0 – 10.0 At December 31, 2023, the Company had 1,952,525 shares reserved for issuance pursuant to the 2021 Amended and Restated Incentive Stock Plan. The following table summarizes stock option activity: (in thousands, except share and per share amounts) Number of Weighted- Weighted- Aggregate Outstanding at December 31, 2021 4,097,000 $ 8.67 7.21 - Options granted 819,000 $ 8.01 10.0 - Options exercised - $ - - - Options cancelled (74,583 ) $ 11.68 - - Outstanding at December 31, 2022 4,841,417 $ 8.60 6.28 - Options granted 665,000 $ 9.69 10.0 - Options cancelled (10,417 ) $ 12.44 - - Outstanding at December 31, 2023 5,496,000 $ 8.73 6.18 $ 21,509 Exercisable at December 31, 2023 4,319,605 $ 8.16 5.67 $ 19,354 During the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, the Company recognized stock-based compensation expense of $7,368,000 and $7,149,000, respectively, related to stock options. As of December 31, 2023, there was $8,592,000 of total unrecognized compensation cost related to non-vested stock options which is expected to be recognized over a weighted-average period of 2.05 years. Warrants The Company issued warrants to the Company’s lenders upon obtaining its loan in June 2021. The warrants have a 10-year term and an exercise price of $14.05. At December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively, 45,386 of these warrants are outstanding and the intrinsic value of these warrants is $0. During the year ended December 31, 2023, a third party exercised 28,688 warrants on a cashless basis in exchange for 4,781 shares of common stock. During the year ended December 31, 2022, a third party exercised 19,792 warrants in exchange for 19,792 shares of common stock for cash proceeds of approximately $30,000. Stock-based Compensation by Class of Expense The following summarizes the components of stock-based compensation expense in the consolidated statements of operations for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively: Year Ended Year Ended Research and development $ 2,743,000 $ 2,645,000 General and administrative 4,625,000 4,504,000 Total $ 7,368,000 $ 7,149,000 Shareholder Rights Agreement On December 30, 2020, the Board of Directors (the “Board”) of the Company approved and adopted a Rights Agreement, dated as of December 30, 2020, by and between the Company and VStock Transfer, LLC, as rights agent, pursuant to which the Board declared a dividend of one preferred share purchase right (each, a “Right”) for each outstanding share of the Company’s common stock held by stockholders as of the close of business on January 11, 2021. When exercisable, each right initially would represent the right to purchase from the Company one one-thousandth of a share of a newly designated series of preferred stock, Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock, par value $0.001 per share, of the Company, at an exercise price of $300.00 per one one-thousandth of a Series A Junior Participating Preferred Share, subject to adjustment. Subject to various exceptions, the Rights become exercisable in the event any person (excluding certain exempted or grandfathered persons) becomes the beneficial owner of twenty percent or more of the Company’s common stock without the approval of the Board. The Rights Agreement was amended in 2021, 2022 and 2023 to extend the expiration date and shall expire on December 30, 2024. Preferred Stock In 2020, the Company designated 45,000 shares of its preferred stock with par value of $0.001 per share as Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock. The remaining 9,955,000 shares of preferred stock with par value of $0.001 remain undesignated. None of the preferred shares were issued and outstanding at December 31, 2023 and 2022. |