Stockholders’ Equity | Note 6 — Stockholders’ Equity Authorized Capital On February 23, 2022, in connection with the closing of the IPO, the Company filed with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware its second amended and restated certificate of incorporation (the “A&R COI”), which became effective immediately. There was no change to the Company’s authorized shares of common stock and preferred stock of 250,000,000 shares and 10,000,000 shares, respectively, or the par value, which is $0.00001 for both common and preferred stock. Common Stock As of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, there were 16,371,597 and 15,724,957 shares of common stock issued, respectively, and 15,879,230 and 15,265,228 shares of common stock outstanding, respectively. Holders of the Company’s common stock are entitled to one vote for each share held of record, and are entitled upon liquidation of the Company to share ratably in the net assets of the Company available for distribution after payment of all obligations of the Company and after provision has been made with respect to each class of stock, if any, having preference over the common stock. The shares of common stock are not redeemable and have no preemptive or similar rights. On February 17, 2022, the Company entered into an underwriting agreement (the “Underwriting Agreement”) with Boustead Securities, LLC, acting as representative of the underwriters (“Boustead”), in relation to the Company’s IPO, pursuant to which the Company agreed to sell to the underwriters an aggregate of 2,222,222 shares of the Company’s common stock, at a price of $9.00 per share. The IPO closed on February 23, 2022 and resulted in net proceeds to the Company, after deducting the 8% underwriting discount, and other offering costs, of approximately $17.1 million. Treasury Stock On November 10, 2022, the board of directors of the Company (the “Board”) approved a stock repurchase program (the “Repurchase Program”) to allow the Company to repurchase up to 5.0 million shares of common stock with a maximum price of $1.00 per share, with discretion to management to make purchases subject to market conditions. On November 18, 2022, the Board approved an increase to the maximum price to $2.00 per share. There is no expiration date for this program. During the three months ended March 31, 2023, the Company repurchased 32,638 shares of common stock at an average price of $1.03 per share, for an aggregate of approximately $33,500. Shares that are repurchased are classified as treasury stock pending future use and reduce the number of shares outstanding used in calculating earnings per share. As of March 31, 2023, there are approximately 4.5 million shares remaining, that can be repurchased under the Repurchase Program. Private Investments in Public Equity April Private Placement On April 19, 2022, the Company consummated the closing of a private placement (the “April Private Placement”), pursuant to the terms and conditions of a securities purchase agreement, dated as of April 13, 2022. At the closing of the April Private Placement, the Company issued 590,406 shares of common stock, pre-funded warrants to purchase an aggregate of 590,406 shares of common stock and preferred investment options to purchase up to an aggregate of 1,180,812 shares of common stock. The purchase price of each share of common stock together with the associated preferred investment option was $6.775, and the purchase price of each pre-funded warrant together with the associated preferred investment option was $6.774. The aggregate net cash proceeds to the Company from the April Private Placement were approximately $6.9 million, after deducting placement agent fees and other offering expenses. The pre-funded warrants had an exercise price of $0.001 per share and were exercised in full on May 24, 2022. The preferred investment options, which had an exercise price of $6.65 per share, were exchanged in connection with the August Private Placement, as discussed below. H.C. Wainwright & Co., LLC (“Wainwright”) acted as the exclusive placement agent for the April Private Placement. The Company agreed to pay Wainwright a placement agent fee and management fee equal to 7.5% and 1.0%, respectively, of the aggregate gross proceeds from the April Private Placement and reimburse certain out-of-pocket expenses up to an aggregate of $85,000. In addition, the Company issued warrants to Wainwright (the “April Wainwright Warrants”) to purchase up to 70,849 shares of common stock. The Wainwright Warrants are in substantially the same form as the preferred investment options, except that the exercise price is $8.46875. The form of the preferred investment options is a warrant, and as such the preferred investment options, the pre-funded warrants, and the Wainwright Warrants are collectively referred to as the “April Private Placement Warrants”. Further, upon any exercise for cash of any preferred investment options, the Company agreed to issue to Wainwright additional warrants to purchase the number of shares of common stock equal to 6.0% of the aggregate number of shares of common stock underlying the preferred investment options that have been exercised, also with an exercise price of $8.46875 (the “April Contingent Warrants”). The maximum number of April Contingent Warrants issuable under this provision is 70,849. The Company evaluated the terms of the April Private Placement Warrants and determined that they should be classified as equity instruments based upon accounting guidance provided in ASC 480 and ASC 815-40. Since the Company determined that the April Private Placement Warrants were equity-classified, the Company recorded the proceeds from the April Private Placement, net of issuance costs, within common stock at par value and the balance of the net proceeds to additional paid in capital. The Company evaluated the terms of the April Contingent Warrants and determined that they should be classified as a liability based upon accounting guidance provided in ASC 815-40. Since the April Contingent Warrants are a form of compensation to Wainwright, the Company recorded the value of the liability as a reduction of additional paid in capital, with subsequent changes in the value of the liability recorded in other income in the accompanying statements of operations. August Private Placement On August 11, 2022, the Company consummated the closing of a private placement (the “August Private Placement”), pursuant to the terms and conditions of a securities purchase agreement, dated as of August 9, 2022. At the closing of the August Private Placement, the Company issued 1,350,000 shares of common stock, pre-funded warrants to purchase an aggregate of 2,333,280 shares of common stock and preferred investment options to purchase up to an aggregate of 4,972,428 shares of common stock. The purchase price of each share of common stock together with the associated preferred investment option was $2.715, and the purchase price of each pre-funded warrant together with the associated preferred investment option was $2.714. The aggregate net cash proceeds to the Company from the August Private Placement were approximately $8.7 million, after deducting placement agent fees and other offering expenses. In addition, the investors in the August Private Placement, who are the same investors from the April Private Placement, agreed to cancel preferred investment options to purchase up to an aggregate of 1,180,812 shares of the Company’s common stock issued in April 2022. The pre-funded warrants had an exercise price of $0.001 per share. During 2022, an aggregate of 1,686,640 of the pre-funded warrants were exercised. The remaining 646,640 of pre-funded warrants were exercised during the three months ended March 31, 2023. The preferred investment options are exercisable at any time on or after August 11, 2022 through August 12, 2027, at an exercise price of $2.546 per share, subject to certain adjustments as defined in the agreement. No preferred investment options have been exercised as of March 31, 2023. Wainwright acted as the exclusive placement agent for the August Private Placement. The Company agreed to pay Wainwright a placement agent fee and management fee equal to 7.5% and 1.0%, respectively, of the aggregate gross proceeds from the August Private Placement and reimburse certain out-of-pocket expenses up to an aggregate of $85,000. In addition, the Company issued warrants to Wainwright (the “August Wainwright Warrants”) to purchase up to 220,997 shares of common stock. The August Wainwright Warrants are in substantially the same form as the preferred investment options, except that the exercise price is $3.3938. The form of the preferred investment options is a warrant, and as such the preferred investment options, the pre-funded warrants, and the August Wainwright Warrants are collectively referred to as the “August Private Placement Warrants”. Further, upon any exercise for cash of any preferred investment options, the Company agreed to issue to Wainwright additional warrants to purchase the number of shares of common stock equal to 6.0% of the aggregate number of shares of common stock underlying the preferred investment options that have been exercised, also with an exercise price of $3.3938 (the “August Contingent Warrants”). The maximum number of August Contingent Warrants issuable under this provision is 298,346, which includes 70,849 of April Contingent Warrants that were modified in connection with the August Private Placement. The Company evaluated the terms of the August Private Placement Warrants and determined that they should be classified as equity instruments based upon accounting guidance provided in ASC 480 and ASC 815-40. Since the Company determined that the August Private Placement Warrants were equity-classified, the Company recorded the proceeds from the August Private Placement, net of issuance costs, within common stock at par value and the balance of the net proceeds to additional paid in capital. The investors in the April Private Placement agreed to cancel the aggregate of 1,180,812 preferred investment options issued in the April Private Placement, as part of their participation in the August Private Placement. The preferred investment options that were cancelled were effectively exchanged for 1,289,148 new preferred investment options in the August Private Placement, and accordingly have been accounted for as a modification or exchange of equity-linked instruments. In accordance with ASC 815-40, as the preferred investment options were classified as equity instruments before and after the exchange, and as the exchange is directly attributable to an equity offering, the Company recognized the effect of the exchange as an equity issuance cost. The Company evaluated the terms of the August Contingent Warrants and determined that they should be classified as a liability based upon accounting guidance provided in ASC 815-40. As a result of the exchange of the preferred investment options issued in the April Private Placement, the underlying equity-linked instruments that would trigger issuance of the April Contingent Warrants was replaced, and therefore the 70,849 of April Contingent Warrants were exchanged for 70,849 of the August Contingent Warrants. The value of the April Contingent Warrant liability was adjusted to fair value on the date of modification, using a Monte Carlo simulation, with the change in fair value recognized in the accompanying statements of operations. The remaining 227,497 August Contingent Warrants were measured as a liability upon the close of the August Private Placement. Since the Contingent Warrants are a form of compensation to the placement agent, the Company recorded the value of the liability as a reduction of additional paid in capital. At the Market Offering Agreement On March 29, 2023, the Company entered into an At The Market Offering Agreement (the “ATM Agreement”) with H.C. Wainwright & Co., LLC, as sales agent (the “Agent”), to create an at-the-market equity program under which it may sell up to $3,900,000 of shares of the Company’s common stock (the “Shares”) from time to time through the Agent (the “ATM Offering”). Under the ATM Agreement, the Agent will be entitled to a commission at a fixed rate of 3.0% of the gross proceeds from each sale of Shares under the ATM Agreement. Sales of the Shares, if any, under the ATM Agreement may be made in transactions that are deemed to be “at-the-market equity offerings” as defined in Rule 415 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), including sales made by means of ordinary brokers’ transactions, including on the Nasdaq Capital Market, at prevailing market prices at the time of sale or as otherwise agreed with the Agent. The Company has no obligation to sell, and the Agent is not obligated to buy or sell, any of the Shares under the Agreement and may at any time suspend offers under the Agreement or terminate the Agreement. The ATM Offering will terminate upon the termination of the ATM Agreement as permitted therein. The Shares will be issued pursuant to the Company’s previously filed Registration Statement on Form S-3 (File No. 333-270383) that was declared effective on March 16, 2023 and a prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus relating to the ATM Offering filed with the with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on March 29, 2023. Deferred offering costs associated with the ATM Agreement are reclassified to additional paid in capital on a pro-rata basis when the Company completes offerings under the ATM Agreement. Any remaining deferred costs will be expensed to the statements of operations should the planned offering be abandoned. As of March 31, 2023, no shares have been sold under the ATM Offering. Warrants The following summarizes activity related to the Company’s outstanding warrants, excluding contingent warrants issuable upon exercise of the preferred investment options, for the three months ended March 31, 2023: Weighted Average Weighted Remaining Average Contractual Number of Exercise Life Shares Price (in years) Outstanding as of December 31, 2022 5,910,914 $ 2.37 4.7 Granted — — Exercised (646,640 ) 0.001 Cancelled — — Outstanding as of March 31, 2023 5,264,274 2.66 4.4 Warrants vested and exercisable as of March 31, 2023 5,264,274 $ 2.66 4.4 As of March 31, 2023, the outstanding warrants include 70,849 April Private Placement Warrants and 5,193,425 August Private Placement Warrants, which are exercisable into 5,264,274 shares of common stock which had a fair value of $1.07 per share, based on the closing trading price on that day. Additionally, as of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, the value of the April Contingent Warrants and the August Contingent Warrants (collectively the “Contingent Warrants”) was approximately $12,000 and $14,000, respectively, and none of the Contingent Warrants have been issued, as no preferred investment options have been exercised. Equity Incentive Plans The Company’s 2019 Equity Incentive Plan (the “2019 Plan”) was adopted by the Board and by its stockholders on July 1, 2019. The Company has reserved 1,400,000 shares of common stock for issuance pursuant to the 2019 Plan. There were no share-based awards granted under the 2019 Plan during the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022. In addition, on February 23, 2022 and in connection with the closing of the IPO, the Board adopted the Company’s 2022 Equity Incentive Plan (the “2022 Plan”), which is the successor and continuation of the Company’s 2019 Plan. Under the 2022 Plan, the Company may grant stock options, restricted stock, restricted stock units, stock appreciation rights, and other forms of awards to employees, directors and consultants of the Company. Upon its effectiveness, a total of 1,600,000 shares of common stock were reserved for issuance under the 2022 Plan. In August 2022, the number of shares of common stock reserved for issuance under the 2022 Plan was increased to 2,600,000. The stock options granted during the three months ended March 31, 2023 were all granted under the 2022 Plan. As of March 31, 2023, there are 965,446 options available for issuance under the 2022 Plan. Stock Options The following summarizes activity related to the Company’s stock options under the 2019 Plan and the 2022 Plan for the three months ended March 31, 2023: Weighted Average Weighted Remaining Average Total Contractual Number of Exercise Intrinsic Life Shares Price Value (in years) Outstanding as of December 31, 2022 1,392,654 $ 3.30 $ 670,161 8.2 Granted 102,386 1.19 — — Forfeited / cancelled (25,938 ) 2.65 — — Exercised — — — — Outstanding as of March 31, 2023 1,469,102 3.17 $ 635,147 8.1 Options vested and exercisable as of March 31, 2023 1,024,322 $ 2.87 $ 557,559 7.7 The fair value of options granted in 2023 was estimated using the following assumptions: For the 2023 Exercise price $ 1.05 – 1.29 Term (years) 5.00 – 10.00 Expected stock price volatility 113.1% – 119.5 % Risk-free rate of interest 3.5% – 3.6 % The weighted average grant date fair value of stock options granted during the three months ended March 31, 2023 was $1.08. The aggregate fair value of stock options that vested during the three months ended March 31, 2023 was approximately $272,000. Stock-Based Compensation Stock-based compensation expense for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022 was as follows: For the Three Months Ended March 31, 2023 2022 General and administrative $ 99,207 $ 6,417 Research and development 86,371 12,915 Total $ 185,578 $ 19,332 As of March 31, 2023, unrecognized stock-based compensation expense relating to outstanding stock options is approximately $659,000, which is expected to be recognized over a weighted-average period of 1.90 years. |