Significant Accounting Policies |
12 Months Ended |
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Dec. 31, 2022 | |
Accounting Policies [Abstract] | |
Significant Accounting Policies | NOTE 2. SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES Basis of Presentation The accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) and include all adjustments necessary for the fair presentation of the Company’s financial position for the periods presented. Principles of Consolidation The consolidated financial statements include the balances of the Company and its subsidiaries. All intercompany transactions and balances are eliminated in consolidation. Liquidity As of December 31, 2022, the Company has an accumulated deficit of approximately $267.0 million and net cash used in operating activities was approximately $96.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. Management expects to continue to incur operating losses and negative cash flows from operations for the foreseeable future. As of December 31, 2022, the Company had cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities of $661.0 million. The Company believes that its existing cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities will be sufficient to meet its cash commitments for at least the next 12 months after the date that these consolidated financial statements are issued. The Company’s research and development activities can be costly, and the timing and outcomes are uncertain. The assumptions upon which the Company has based its estimates are routinely evaluated and may be subject to change. The actual amount of the Company’s expenditures will vary depending upon a number of factors including but not limited to the progress of the Company’s research and development activities and the level of financial resources available. Significant Risks and Uncertainties The Company’s operations are subject to a number of factors that can affect its operating results and financial condition. Such factors include, but are not limited to: the results of research and development, clinical testing and trial activities of the Company’s products, the Company’s ability to obtain regulatory approval to market its products, competition from products manufactured and sold or being developed by other companies, the price of, and demand for, Company’s products, the Company’s ability to negotiate favorable licensing or other manufacturing and marketing agreements for its products, and the Company’s ability to raise capital. The Company currently has no commercially approved products and there can be no assurance that the Company’s research and development will be successfully commercialized. Developing and commercializing a product requires significant time and capital and is subject to regulatory review and approval as well as competition from other biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. The Company operates in an environment of rapid change and is dependent upon the continued services of its employees and vendors and obtaining and protecting intellectual property. The COVID-19 pandemic has not had a material adverse impact on the Company’s operations to date, however this disruption, if sustained or recurrent, could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s operating results and the Company’s overall financial condition. Use of Estimates The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amount of revenue and expenses during the year. Accordingly, actual results could differ from those estimates and those differences could be significant. Significant estimates and assumptions reflected in the accompanying consolidated financial statements include, but are not limited to, the fair value of in-process research and development acquired, warrant liabilities, leases, stock options granted and depreciation expense. Cash and Cash Equivalents Cash equivalents include short-term, highly liquid instruments, consisting of money market accounts, a money market mutual fund and short-term investments with maturities from the date of purchase of 90 days or less. The majority of cash and cash equivalents are maintained with major financial institutions in North America. Deposits with these financial institutions may exceed the amount of insurance provided on such deposits. These deposits may be redeemed upon demand which reduces counterparty performance risk. Marketable Securities Debt securities have been classified as available-for-sale which may be sold before maturity or are not classified as held to maturity or trading. Marketable debt securities classified as available-for-sale are carried at fair value with unrealized gains or losses reported in other comprehensive income (loss). Exchange traded funds are equity securities, which are reported as marketable securities, with readily determinable fair values are also carried at fair value with unrealized gains and losses included in other (expense) income, net. Realized gains and losses on both debt and equity securities are included in other (expense) income, net. For securities in an unrealized loss positions, management considers the extent and duration of the unrealized loss, and the financial condition and near-term prospects of the issuer. Management also assesses whether it intends to sell, or it is more likely than not that it will be required to sell, a security in an unrealized loss position before recovery of its amortized cost basis. If management determines there is any other than temporary impairment, the entire difference between amortized cost and fair value is recognized as impairment through earnings. Interest income includes amortization and accretion of purchase premium and discount. Premiums and discounts on debt securities are amortized on the effective-interest method. Gains and losses on sales are recorded on the settlement date and determined using the specific identification method. Concentration of Credit Risk Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to concentrations of credit risk are primarily cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities. The Company maintains its cash and cash equivalent balances in the form of business checking accounts and money market accounts, the balances of which, at times, may exceed federally insured limits. Exposure to cash and cash equivalents credit risk is reduced by placing such deposits with major financial institutions and monitoring their credit ratings. Marketable securities consist primarily of government and corporate bonds, municipal securities and exchange traded fund with fixed interest rates. Exposure to credit risk of marketable securities is reduced by maintaining a diverse portfolio and monitoring their credit ratings. Property and Equipment Property and equipment are stated at cost less accumulated depreciation. Property and equipment are depreciated using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the related assets of generally five years for computers and seven years for furniture and equipment. The cost of leasehold improvements is amortized on the straight-line method over the lesser of the estimated asset life or remaining term of the lease. Maintenance costs are expensed as incurred, while major betterments are capitalized. Impairment of Long-Lived Assets The Company reviews long-lived assets for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of an asset may not be recoverable and an impairment assessment may be performed on the recoverability or the carrying amounts. If an impairment occurs, the loss is measured by comparing the fair value of the asset to its carrying amount. Warrants The Company accounts for warrants as either equity-classified or liability-classified instruments based on an assessment of the warrant’s specific terms and applicable authoritative guidance in Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 480, Distinguishing Liabilities from Equity (“ASC 480”) and ASC 815, Derivatives and Hedging (“ASC 815”). The assessment considers whether the warrants are freestanding financial instruments pursuant to ASC 480, meet the definition of a liability pursuant to ASC 480, and whether the warrants meet all of the requirements for equity classification under ASC 815, including whether the warrants are indexed to the Company’s own ordinary shares, among other conditions for equity classification. This assessment, which requires the use of professional judgment, is conducted at the time of warrant issuance and as of each subsequent quarterly period end date while the warrants are outstanding. For issued or modified warrants that meet all of the criteria for equity classification, the warrants are required to be recorded as a component of additional paid-in capital at the time of issuance. For issued or modified warrants that do not meet all the criteria for equity classification, the warrants are required to be recorded as a liability at their fair value on the date of issuance and each balance sheet date thereafter. Changes in the estimated fair value of the warrants are recognized as a non-cash gain or loss on the statements of operations. Following the Merger, there were 5,787,472 warrants to purchase common stock outstanding, consisting of 4,791,639 Public Warrants, 162,500 Private Placement Warrants and 833,333 Forward Purchase Warrants (as defined below). Each whole warrant entitles the registered holder to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share. Pursuant to the warrant agreement, a warrant holder may exercise its warrants only for a whole number of shares of our Class A common stock. The Company evaluated Public Warrants, Private Placement Warrants and Forward Purchase Warrants (the “Warrants”) under ASC 815-40, Derivatives and Hedging—Contracts in Entity’s Own Equity, and concluded that they do not meet the criteria to be classified in stockholders’ equity. Specifically, the settlement value of the Warrants is dependent, in part, on the holder of the Warrants at the time of settlement. Because the holder of an instrument is not an input into the pricing of a fixed-for-fixed option on our common stock, the Warrants fail the indexation guidance in ASC 815-40, which would preclude classification in stockholders’ equity. Additionally, the exercise of the Warrants may be settled in cash upon the occurrence of a tender offer or exchange that involves more than 50% of the outstanding shares of the Company’s common stock. Because not all of the Company’s stockholders need to participate in such tender offer or exchange to trigger the potential cash settlement and the Company does not control the occurrence of such an event, the Company concluded that the Warrants do not meet the conditions to be classified in equity. Since the Warrants meet the definition of a derivative under ASC 815, the Company recorded these Warrants as liabilities on the balance sheet at fair value upon the closing of the Merger, with subsequent changes in their respective fair values recognized in the consolidated statement of operations and comprehensive loss at each reporting date. The fair value of Public and Forward Purchase Warrants was determined using the closing price of the warrants on the NYSE market. The fair value of the Private Warrants was estimated using a Black-Scholes option pricing formula (see Note 4). Leases The Company determines if an arrangement contains a lease at inception. For arrangements where the Company is the lessee, operating leases are included in operating lease right-of-use, or ROU assets; current operating lease liabilities; and non-current operating lease liabilities on its balance sheets. The Company currently does not have any finance leases. Operating lease ROU assets and operating lease liabilities are recognized based on the present value of the future minimum lease payments over the lease term at the commencement date. ROU assets also include any initial direct costs incurred and any lease payments made on or before the lease commencement date, less lease incentives received. The Company uses its incremental borrowing rate based on the information available at the commencement date in determining the lease liabilities as the Company’s leases generally do not provide an implicit rate. The incremental borrowing rate is reevaluated upon a lease modification. The operating lease ROU asset also includes any initial direct costs and prepaid lease payments made less any lease incentives. The Company considered information available at the adoption date of Topic 842 to determine the incremental borrowing rate for leases in existence as of this date. The incremental borrowing rate used was the weighted average rate between secured and unsecured lending arrangement. Lease terms may include options to extend or terminate the lease when the Company is reasonably certain that the option will be exercised. Variable payments included in the lease agreement are expensed as incurred. Lease expense is recognized on a straight-line basis over the lease term. The Company elected to apply each of the practical expedients described in ASC Topic 842-10-65-1(f) which allow companies not to reassess: (i) whether any expired or existing agreements contain leases, (ii) the classification of any expired or existing leases, and (iii) the capitalization of initial direct costs for any existing leases. The Company also elected to apply the short-term lease measurement and recognition exemption in which ROU assets and lease liabilities are not recognized for short-term operating leases. A short-term operating lease is a lease that, at the commencement date, has a lease term of 12 months or less and does not include an option to purchase the underlying asset that the lessee is reasonably certain to exercise. The Company also elected not to separate non-lease components from lease components and instead to account for each separate lease component and the non-lease components associated with that lease component as a single lease component. Segment Information The Company manages its operations as a single segment for the purposes of assessing performance and making operating decisions. The Company’s operations are focused on oncology development activities. Research and Development Costs Costs incurred in connection with research and development activities are expensed as incurred. These costs include fees paid to consultants, vendors and various entities that perform certain research and testing on behalf of the Company. Stock-based Compensation The Company recognizes compensation cost for grants of employee stock options using a fair-value measurement method, that is recognized in operating results as compensation expense based on fair value over the requisite service period of the awards. Forfeitures are recorded as they occur instead of estimating forfeitures that are expected to occur. The Company determines the fair value of stock-based awards that are based only on a service condition using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model which uses both historical and current market data to estimate fair value. The method incorporates various assumptions such as the risk-free interest rate, volatility, dividend yield, and expected life of the options. The Company determines the fair value of stock-based awards that are based on both a service condition and achievement of the first to occur of a market or performance condition using a Monte Carlo simulation. Income Taxes The Company accounts for income taxes using the asset and liability method, which requires the recognition of deferred tax assets and liabilities for the expected future tax consequences of events that have been recognized in the consolidated financial statements or in the Company’s tax returns. The difference between the financial statement and tax basis of assets and liabilities is determined annually. Deferred income tax assets and liabilities are computed for those differences that have future tax consequences using the currently enacted tax laws and rates that apply to the years in which they are expected to affect taxable income. The Company assesses the likelihood that its deferred tax assets will be recovered from future taxable income and, to the extent it believes, based upon the weight of available evidence, that it is more likely than not that all or a portion of the deferred tax assets will not be realized, a valuation allowance is established through a charge to income tax expense. The Company uses a recognition threshold and measurement attribute for the financial statement recognition and measurement of a tax position taken, or expected to be taken, in a tax return. The provision for income taxes includes the effects of any resulting tax reserves, or unrecognized tax benefits, that are considered appropriate. The Company’s policy is to record interest and penalties related to income taxes as part of the tax provision. Returns for tax years beginning with those filed for the period ended December 31, 2018 are open to federal and state tax examination. Recent Accounting Pronouncements Standard Not Yet Effective In June 2016, the FASB issued Topic 326 on the measurement of credit losses for financial assets measured at amortized cost, which includes accounts receivable, and available-for-sale debt securities. The new guidance replaces the existing incurred loss impairment model with an expected loss methodology, which will result in more timely recognition of credit losses and additional disclosures. As a smaller reporting company, this guidance is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2022. We do not expect the adoption of this guidance to have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements. |