S-8 1 d137290ds8.htm S-8 S-8

As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 12, 2021

Registration No. 333-          

 

 

 

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

 

 

FORM S-8

REGISTRATION STATEMENT

UNDER

THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

 

 

Terns Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)

 

 

 

Delaware   98-1448275

(State or other jurisdiction of

incorporation or organization)

  

(I.R.S. Employer

Identification Number)

1065 East Hillsdale Blvd., Suite 100

Foster City, California

   94404
(Address of Principal Executive Offices)   (Zip Code)

2017 Equity Incentive Plan

2021 Incentive Award Plan

2021 Employee Stock Purchase Plan

(Full Title of the Plan)

Senthil Sundaram

Chief Executive Officer

Terns Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

1065 East Hillsdale Blvd., Suite 100

Foster City, California 94404

(650) 525-5535

(Name, address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of agent for service)

Copies to:

Brian J. Cuneo, Esq.

Nathan Ajiashvili, Esq.

Michael Podolny, Esq.

Latham & Watkins LLP

140 Scott Drive

Menlo Park, California 94025

Telephone: (650) 328-4600

Facsimile: (650) 463-2600

 

 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

 

Large accelerated filer   ☐    Accelerated filer   ☐
Non-accelerated filer   ☒    Smaller reporting company   ☐
     Emerging growth company   ☒

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act.  ☐

 

 

CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE

 

 

Title of Each Class of

Securities to be Registered

  

Amount

to be

Registered(1)

  

Proposed

Maximum

Offering Price

Per Share(2)

  

Proposed

Maximum

Aggregate

Offering Price(2)

  

Amount of

Registration Fee

Common Stock, $0.0001 par value per share

   5,100,277   $8.16-$18.25   $67,540,831   $7,368.70

 

 

(1)

Pursuant to Rule 416(a) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), this registration statement shall also cover any additional shares of the Registrant’s common stock that become issuable under the 2017 Equity Incentive Plan, as amended (the “2017 Plan”), the 2021 Incentive Award Plan (the “2021 Plan”) and the 2021 Employee Stock Purchase Plan (the “ESPP”) by reason of any stock dividend, stock split, recapitalization or similar transaction effected without the Registrant’s receipt of consideration which would increase the number of outstanding shares of common stock.

(2)

Estimated solely for the purpose of calculating the amount of the registration fee pursuant to Rule 457(h) and Rule 457(c) promulgated under the Securities Act. The offering price per share and the aggregate offering price (a) for outstanding options granted under the 2017 Plan and the 2021 Plan are based upon the weighted-average exercise price of such outstanding options, (b) for shares reserved for future issuance under the 2021 Plan are based on the average of the high ($19.89) and low ($16.60) price of the Registrant’s common stock as reported on the Nasdaq Global Select Market on February 8, 2021, which date is within five business days prior to filing this Registration Statement and (c) for shares reserved for future issuance under the ESPP are based on the average of the high and the low price of the Registrant’s common stock as reported on the Nasdaq Global Select Market on February 8, 2021 multiplied by 85%, which reflects the discount to the purchase price applicable to purchase under the ESPP. The chart below details the calculations of the registration fee.

 

 

Securities  

Number of

Shares

  

Offering Price

Per Share

  

Aggregate

Offering Price

Shares issuable upon the exercise of outstanding options granted under the 2017 Plan(3)

   2,460,270   $8.16(2)(a)   $20,075,803

Shares issuable upon the exercise of outstanding options granted under the 2021 Plan

   46,000   $17.00 (2)(a)   $782,000

Shares reserved for future grant under the 2021 Plan(3)

   2,354,007   $18.25(2)(b)   $42,960,628

Shares reserved for future grant under the ESPP

   240,000   $15.51(2)(c)   $3,722,400

Proposed Maximum Aggregate Offering Price

           $67,540,831

 

 

(3)

Pursuant to the terms of the 2021 Plan, any shares subject to outstanding options originally granted under the 2017 Plan that terminate, expire or lapse for any reason without the delivery of shares to the holder thereof shall become available for issuance pursuant to awards granted under the 2021 Plan.

Proposed sale to take place as soon after the effective date of the

registration statement as awards under the plans are exercised and/or vest.

 

 

 

PART I

INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE SECTION 10(a) PROSPECTUS

The information called for in Part I of Form S-8 is not being filed with or included in this Form S-8 (by incorporation by reference or otherwise) in accordance with the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”).

PART II

INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT

In this registration statement, Terns Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is sometimes referred to as “Registrant,” “we,” “us” or “our.”

Item 3. Incorporation of Documents by Reference.

The SEC allows us to incorporate by reference the information we file with them, which means that we can disclose important information to you by referring you to those documents. The information incorporated by reference is considered to be part of this registration statement, and later information filed with the SEC will update and supersede this information. We hereby incorporate by reference into this registration statement the following documents previously filed with the SEC:

(a) The prospectus filed by the Registrant with the SEC pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act, on February 8, 2021, relating to the registration statement on Form S-1, as amended (File No. 333-252180), which contains the Registrant’s audited financial statements for the latest fiscal year for which such statements have been filed; and

(b) The description of the Registrant’s common stock contained in the Registrant’s registration statement on Form 8-A (File No. 001-39926), filed by the Registrant with the SEC under Section 12(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), on January 22, 2021 including any amendments or reports filed for the purpose of updating such description.

All documents that the Registrant subsequently files pursuant to Sections 13(a), 13(c), 14 and 15(d) of the Exchange Act prior to the filing of a post-effective amendment to the registration statement which indicates that all of the shares of common stock offered have been sold or which deregisters all of such shares then remaining unsold, shall be deemed to be incorporated by reference in this registration statement and to be a part hereof from the date of the filing of such documents, except as to any portion of any future annual or quarterly report to stockholders or document or current report furnished under current Items 2.02 or 7.01 of Form 8-K, and exhibits furnished on such form that relate to such items, that is not deemed filed under such provisions. For the purposes of this registration statement, any statement contained in a document incorporated or deemed to be incorporated by reference herein shall be deemed to be modified or superseded to the extent that a statement contained herein or in any other subsequently filed document which also is or is deemed to be incorporated by reference herein modifies or supersedes such statement. Any such statement so modified or superseded shall not be deemed, except as so modified or superseded, to constitute a part of this registration statement.

Under no circumstances will any information filed under current Items 2.02 or 7.01 of Form 8-K, and exhibits furnished on such form that relate to such items, be deemed incorporated herein by reference unless such Form 8-K expressly provides to the contrary.

Item 4. Description of Securities.

Not applicable.

Item 5. Interests of Named Experts and Counsel.

None.

 

1

Item 6. Indemnification of Directors and Officers.

As permitted by Section 102 of the Delaware General Corporation Law, we have adopted provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (the “Certificate of Incorporation”) filed with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware and our amended and restated bylaws (the “Bylaws”) that limit or eliminate the personal liability of our directors for a breach of their fiduciary duty of care as a director. The duty of care generally requires that, when acting on behalf of the corporation, directors exercise an informed business judgment based on all material information reasonably available to them. Consequently, a director will not be personally liable to us or our stockholders for monetary damages for breach of fiduciary duty as a director, except for liability for:

 

  •  

any breach of the director’s duty of loyalty to us or our stockholders;

 

  •  

any act or omission not in good faith or that involves intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of law;

 

  •  

any act related to unlawful stock repurchases, redemptions or other distributions or payment of dividends; or

 

  •  

any transaction from which the director derived an improper personal benefit.

These limitations of liability do not affect the availability of equitable remedies such as injunctive relief or rescission. Our Certificate of Incorporation also authorizes us to indemnify our officers, directors and other agents to the fullest extent permitted under Delaware law.

As permitted by Section 145 of the Delaware General Corporation Law, our Bylaws provide that:

 

  •  

we may indemnify our directors, officers and employees to the fullest extent permitted by the Delaware General Corporation Law, subject to limited exceptions;

 

  •  

we may advance expenses to our directors, officers and employees in connection with a legal proceeding to the fullest extent permitted by the Delaware General Corporation Law, subject to limited exceptions; and

 

  •  

the rights provided in our Bylaws are not exclusive.

Our Certificate of Incorporation and our Bylaws provide for the indemnification provisions described above. We have entered or will enter into, and intend to continue to enter into, separate indemnification agreements with our directors and officers that may be broader than the specific indemnification provisions contained in the Delaware General Corporation Law. These indemnification agreements generally require us, among other things, to indemnify our officers and directors against certain liabilities that may arise by reason of their status or service as directors or officers, other than liabilities arising from willful misconduct. These indemnification agreements also generally require us to advance any expenses incurred by the directors or officers as a result of any proceeding against them as to which they could be indemnified. These indemnification provisions and the indemnification agreements may be sufficiently broad to permit indemnification of our officers and directors for liabilities, including reimbursement of expenses incurred, arising under the Securities Act.

We have purchased and currently intend to maintain insurance on behalf of each and every person who is or was a director or officer of the company against any loss arising from any claim asserted against him or her and incurred by him or her in any such capacity, subject to certain exclusions.

Item 7. Exemption from Registration Claimed.

Not applicable.

 

2

Item 8. Exhibits.

 

Exhibit

Number

        Incorporated by Reference    Filed
 

Exhibit Description

   

Form

   

Date

   

Number

   

Herewith

4.1   Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, to be in effect immediately prior to the completion of the Registrant’s initial public offering.    8-K    2/9/2021    3.1   
4.2   Amended and Restated Bylaws, to be in effect immediately prior to the completion of the Registrant’s initial public offering.    8-K    2/9/2021    3.2   
4.3   Form of Common Stock Certificate.    S-1/A    2/1/2021    4.2   
5.1   Opinion of Latham & Watkins LLP.             X
23.1   Consent of Ernst & Young LLP, independent registered public accounting firm.             X
23.2   Consent of Latham & Watkins LLP (included in Exhibit 5.1).             X
24.1   Power of Attorney. Reference is made to the signature page to the Registration Statement.             X
99.1(a)#   2017 Equity Incentive Plan, as amended.    S-1    1/15/2021    10.4(a)   
99.1(b)#   Form of Stock Option Grant Notice and Stock Option Agreement under 2017 Equity Incentive Plan, as amended.    S-1    1/15/2021    10.4(b)   
99.1(c)#   Form of Early Exercise Stock Option Grant Notice and Stock Option Agreement under 2017 Equity Incentive Plan, as amended.    S-1    1/15/2021    10.4(c)   
99.1(d)#   Form of International Stock Option Agreement under 2017 Equity Incentive Plan.    S-1    1/15/2021    10.4(d)   
99.2(a)#   2021 Incentive Award Plan.             X
99.2(b)#   Form of Stock Option Grant Notice and Stock Option Agreement under the 2021 Incentive Award Plan.    S-1/A    2/1/2021    10.5(b)   
99.2(c)#   Form of Restricted Stock Award Grant Notice and Restricted Stock Award Agreement under the 2021 Incentive Award Plan.    S-1/A    2/1/2021    10.5(c)   
99.2(d)#   Form of Restricted Stock Unit Award Grant Notice and Restricted Stock Unit Award Agreement under the 2021 Incentive Award Plan.    S-1/A    2/1/2021    10.5(d)   
99.3#   2021 Employee Stock Purchase Plan.             X

 

#

Indicates management contract or compensatory plan.

Item 9. Undertakings.

 

(a)

The Registrant hereby undertakes:

 

  (1)

To file, during any period in which offers or sales are being made, a post-effective amendment to this registration statement:

 

  (i)

To include any prospectus required by Section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act;

 

  (ii)

To reflect in the prospectus any facts or events arising after the effective date of the registration statement (or the most recent post-effective amendment thereof) which, individually or in the aggregate, represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in the registration statement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any increase or decrease in volume of securities offered (if the total dollar value of securities offered would not exceed that which was registered) and any deviation from the low or high end of the estimated maximum offering range may be reflected in the form of prospectus filed with the SEC pursuant to Rule 424(b) if, in the aggregate, the changes in volume and price represent no more than 20 percent change in the maximum aggregate offering price set forth in the “Calculation of Registration Fee” table in the effective registration statement; and

 

3

  (iii)

To include any material information with respect to the plan of distribution not previously disclosed in the registration statement or any material change to such information in the registration statement;

Provided, however, that paragraphs (a)(1)(i) and (a)(1)(ii) do not apply if the registration statement is on Form S-8, and the information required to be included in a post-effective amendment by those paragraphs is contained in reports filed with or furnished to the SEC by the Registrant pursuant to section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act that are incorporated by reference in the registration statement.

 

  (2)

That, for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each such post-effective amendment shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.

 

  (3)

To remove from registration by means of a post-effective amendment any of the securities being registered which remain unsold at the termination of the offering.

(b) The Registrant hereby undertakes that, for purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act, each filing of the Registrant’s annual report pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act (and, where applicable, each filing of an employee benefit plan’s annual report pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act) that is incorporated by reference in the registration statement shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.

(h) Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the Registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the Registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the SEC such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by the Registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the Registrant in the successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, the Registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.

 

4

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, the Registrant certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it meets all of the requirements for filing on Form S-8 and has duly caused this registration statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the City of Foster City, State of California, on this 12th day of February, 2021.

 

Terns Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

 

By:

  

/s/ Senthil Sundaram

       Senthil Sundaram
  Chief Executive Officer

POWER OF ATTORNEY

KNOW ALL PERSONS BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose signature appears below does hereby constitute and appoint Senthil Sundaram and Mark Vignola, Ph.D., and each of them, with full power of substitution and full power to act without the other, as his or her true and lawful attorney-in-fact and agent to act for him or her in his or her name, place and stead, in any and all capacities, to sign any and all amendments (including post-effective amendments) to this registration statement, and to file this registration statement, with all exhibits thereto, and other documents in connection therewith, with the Securities and Exchange Commission, granting unto said attorneys-in-fact and agents, and each of them, full power and authority to do and perform each and every act and thing requisite and necessary to be done in order to effectuate the same as fully, to all intents and purposes, as they or he or she might or could do in person, hereby ratifying and confirming all that said attorneys-in-fact and agents, or any of them, may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, this registration statement has been signed by the following persons in the capacities and on the date indicated.

 

Signature

   

Title

  

Date

/s/ Senthil Sundaram

     Senthil Sundaram

   

Chief Executive Officer and Director

(Principal Executive Officer)

   February 12, 2021

/s/ Mark Vignola, Ph.D.

     Mark Vignola, Ph.D.

   

Chief Financial Officer

(Principal Financial and Accounting Officer)

   February 12, 2021

/s/ Weidong Zhong, Ph.D.

     Weidong Zhong, Ph.D.

   

Chief Scientific Officer and

Chairman of the Board of Directors

   February 12, 2021

/s/ David Fellows

    Director   February 12, 2021
     David Fellows  

/s/ Carl Gordon, Ph.D., C.F.A.

     Carl Gordon, Ph.D., C.F.A.

    Director   February 12, 2021

/s/ Jeffrey Kindler

     Jeffrey Kindler

    Director   February 12, 2021

/s/ Hongbo Lu, Ph.D.

Hongbo Lu, Ph.D.

    Director   February 12, 2021

/s/ Jill Quigley, J.D.

     Jill Quigley, J.D.

    Director   February 12, 2021