Basis of Presentation

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2014

Accounting Policies [Abstract]

Basis of Presentation

1. Basis of Presentation

The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements of ACADIA Pharmaceuticals Inc. should be read in conjunction with the audited financial statements and notes thereto as of and for the year ended December 31, 2013 included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K (“Annual Report”) filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). The accompanying financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“GAAP”) for interim financial information and in accordance with the instructions to Form 10-Q and Article 10 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, since they are interim statements, the accompanying financial statements do not include all of the information and notes required by GAAP for complete financial statements. In the opinion of management, the accompanying financial statements reflect all adjustments (consisting of normal recurring adjustments) that are necessary for a fair statement of the financial position, results of operations and cash flows for the interim periods presented. Interim results are not necessarily indicative of results for a full year. The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in the financial statements and the accompanying notes. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

The Company has incurred substantial operating losses since its inception due in large part to expenditures for its research and development activities. As of September 30, 2014, the Company had an accumulated deficit of $469.8 million. The Company expects to continue to incur operating losses for at least the next few years as it pursues the development and commercialization of its product candidates.

The Company may require significant additional financing in the future to fund its operations. Future capital requirements will depend on many factors, including the progress in, the outcome of and the costs of the Company’s development and regulatory activities, including the ability of the Company to obtain regulatory approval for its products, costs associated with establishing necessary sales and marketing capabilities, the amount of product sales, if any, the scope, prioritization and number of its research and development programs, the ability of its collaborators and the Company to reach milestones and other events or developments under its collaboration and license agreements, and the ability of the Company to enter into new, and to maintain existing, collaboration and license agreements. Unless and until the Company can generate significant cash from operations, it expects to fund its operations through its existing cash, cash equivalents and investment securities, payments from existing and potential future collaborations, proceeds from public or private sales of its equity securities, debt financing, grant funding, or by licensing all or a portion of its product candidates or technology. The Company cannot be certain that adequate additional funding will be available on acceptable terms, or at all. Conditions in the financial markets and other factors could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s ability to access sufficient funding on acceptable terms, or at all. If the Company needs but cannot raise adequate additional capital, it will be required to delay, reduce the scope of, or eliminate one or more of its research or development programs or its commercialization efforts. In such circumstances, the Company may also be required to relinquish greater, or even all, rights to product candidates at earlier stages of development or commercialization or on less favorable terms than it would otherwise choose.