grepcent public filings, reorganized for comparison

PULSE BIOSCIENCES, INC. (PLSE) FY 2023 MD&A

Verbatim Item 7 Management's Discussion and Analysis from PULSE BIOSCIENCES, INC.'s 10-K for fiscal year 2023. Filing date: 2024-03-28. Report date: 2023-12-31. Accession: 0001437749-24-009815.

This page reproduces the company's own Item 7 MD&A text from the linked SEC filing. It is filer text, not grepcent analysis, scoring, or investment advice.

Extracted structurally from real Item 7 body heading to real Item 7A/8 boundary. Confidence: high.

Company profile: PLSE · All MD&A years: index · Previous year: FY 2022 · Next year: FY 2024

Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

You should read the following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations together with our consolidated financial statements and the related notes thereto included in Item 8 under the heading “Financial Statements and Supplementary Data”. Some of the information contained in this discussion and analysis or set forth elsewhere in this Form 10-K contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, including statements regarding our expected financial results in future periods. The words “anticipates,” “believes,” “could,” “estimates,” “expects,” “intends,” “may,” “might,” “plans,” “projects,” “will,” “would,” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements, although not all forward-looking statements contain these identifying words. We may not actually achieve the plans, intentions or expectations disclosed in our forward-looking statements and you should not place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements. Actual results or events could differ materially from the plans, intentions and expectations disclosed in the forward-looking statements that we make. You should read the “Risk Factors” section of this Form 10-K for a discussion of important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the results described in or implied by the forward-looking statements contained in the following discussion and analysis. We do not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements.

Overview

Pulse Biosciences, Inc. is a novel bioelectric medicine company committed to health innovation using its patented Nano-pulse Stimulation (“NPS”) technology, a revolutionary energy modality that delivers nanosecond-duration pulses of electrical energy, each less than a millionth of a second long, to non-thermally clear targeted cells while sparing adjacent noncellular tissue. NPS technology, also referred to as Nanosecond Pulsed-Field Ablation (“nsPFA”) technology when used to ablate cellular tissue, can be used to treat a variety of medical conditions for which an optimal solution remains unfulfilled. The Company developed its proprietary CellFX System, a novel nsPFA delivery platform, and commercialized the initial application of its nsPFA technology to treat benign lesions of the skin. In parallel, the Company has designed a variety of applicators, or end-effectors, to explore the potential use of the CellFX platform to treat disorders in other medical specialties, such as cardiology, gastroenterology, gynecology, and ear, nose and throat. These applicators include devices for open surgical procedures, endoscopic or minimally invasive procedures, and endoluminal catheters, and each has been used in preclinical studies. Based on our preclinical experience and the potential to significantly improve outcomes for patients in a large and growing market, the Company decided in 2022 to focus its primary efforts on the use of nsPFA energy and the CellFX platform in the treatment of atrial fibrillation (“AF”).

Our Cardiac Program

AF is a type of heart arrythmia, or irregular heartbeat, caused by faulty electrical signals in the heart. AF is a highly prevalent condition and is growing significantly with an ageing population. It is estimated that 43 million people worldwide are affected by AF. Treatment requires the precise and safe ablation of heart tissue to block or otherwise prevent these faulty electrical signals from causing the irregular heartbeat, and we believe nsPFA technology is uniquely suited to perform an integral role for this application and that it will prove to be highly differentiated from standard thermal energy modalities in use today. The Company has developed a cardiac ablation clamp for use in cardiac surgery and a cardiac ablation catheter for use in electrophysiology. In December 2023, we initiated a clinical study in Prague, Czech Republic, to test our CellFX nsPFA 360° Cardiac Catheter in patients with AF and early acute data and remapping data from this study have been promising. More recently, we have taken steps to initiate a clinical study of our CellFX nsPFA Cardiac Clamp in the Netherlands and, in January 2024, we filed a premarket notification 510(k) with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (the “FDA”) for clearance to commercialize our novel CellFX nsPFA Cardiac Clamp in the United States. In parallel, we have taken initial steps towards a CE mark approval in Europe for the cardiac clamp. The results of preclinical testing of both cardiac products have exceeded our expectations and much of the data have been published or presented at physician or industry conferences. While these devices serve different physicians, the application of the energy to safely and effectively ablate cardiac tissue and the treatment of AF are the same, and we believe there will be important synergies realized through their contemporaneous development. The Company’s cardiac ablation clamp and cardiac ablation catheter both use the CellFX System to generate our proprietary pulses of electrical energy.

CellFX nsPFA Cardiac Clamp

Our surgical cardiac ablation clamp is designed for use by cardiac surgeons during the surgical treatment of AF. The standard of care surgical procedure for the treatment of AF is performed by cardiac surgeons and called the Cox-Maze procedure. The Cox-Maze procedure typically uses thermal ablation technologies, such as heat with radiofrequency ablation or cold with cryoablation, to create specific ablation lines in the heart muscle. The ablation lines block the conduction of electrical impulses and can cure the patient of their atrial fibrillation.

We believe our CellFX nsPFA technology can provide important advantages over today’s thermal modalities in creating these ablation lines. For example, surgeons using the CellFX System should be able to deliver faster ablations through thicker tissue than thermal modalities because of the nonthermal mechanism of action that nsPFA employs, which is not affected by heatsinks such as the blood in the heart. In preclinical studies, our CellFX nsPFA Cardiac Clamp has consistently achieved transmural ablations in 1.25 seconds, independent of tissue type or thickness. Moreover, thermal modalities are also known to have problems with char formation on electrode surfaces which can cause gaps in the ablation lines leading to treatment failure and require the char to be scraped off by the surgeon during the procedure. Again, this should not be an issue with CellFX nsPFA ablation given its nonthermal nature. Also, because nsPFA ablation does not impact acellular tissue, such as collagen or cartilage, our technology has the potential to offer significant safety advantages over thermal modalities by allowing surgeons to ablate near and into vessels and valves without concern of permanent damage. And finally, nsPFA ablation has been shown to spare nerves of any permanent damage, even when treated directly, which is another concern for thermal modalities. We believe these advantages will be important to cardiac surgeons, so we are working with leaders in the field to develop this technology quickly. In May 2023, we appointed Dr. Gan Dunnington as our Chief Medical Officer, Cardiac Surgery. Dr. Dunnington is a cardiothoracic surgeon and the Director of Cardiothoracic Surgery at St. Helena Hospital (Napa Valley). He specializes in minimally invasive complex cardiothoracic procedures for the treatment of AF. And, in October 2023, we appointed Dr. Niv Ad as our Chief Science Officer, Cardiac Surgery. Dr. Ad specializes in the surgical treatment of atrial fibrillation, minimally invasive heart surgery and other advanced heart surgery techniques and transcatheter therapies.

Over the last several years, we have been developing the cardiac ablation clamp from proof-of-concept to prototype, and we now have what we believe is our initial commercial design. The device was designed with the input of key physicians in cardiac surgery, and we believe it will offer a highly differentiated option relative to the standard of care thermal modalities. Since 2023, we have been meeting with the FDA to discuss the regulatory requirements for a potential 510(k) clearance or other approval to market our cardiac clamp in the United States. In 2023, with guidance from the FDA, we completed a preclinical study, known as a Good Laboratory Practices or “GLP” study and, in January 2024, we filed a premarket notification 510(k) with the FDA for our novel CellFX nsPFA Cardiac Clamp.

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CellFX nsPFA 360° Cardiac Catheter

We believe our cardiac catheter ablation device will have many of the same advantages that the cardiac ablation clamp appears to have with respect to both performance and safety compared to standard thermal modalities. Our catheter is uniquely designed to provide a circumferential, or circular, ablation in a single treatment cycle. We believe this will enable faster treatment times compared to what is currently performed with thermal modalities, especially when ablating around the pulmonary veins, a common treatment approach for AF.

In recent years, Pulsed Field Ablation (“PFA”) has gained attention in electrophysiology for the treatment of AF because of its safety profile and potential to improve efficacy. PFA differs from CellFX nsPFA technology in that the pulse widths are longer, typically in the 10’s to 100’s of microseconds. We believe CellFX nsPFA can offer similar safety advantages as PFA and may provide improved efficacy advantages based on the circumferential design of our catheter and because it appears CellFX nsPFA technology can create deeper ablations. Another potential advantage of nsPFA ablation is a much shorter pulse duration which appears to stimulate less muscle contraction than does millisecond or microsecond PFA.

Similar to the cardiac ablation clamp, our proprietary catheter has been in development for several years and we have been working with leaders in the electrophysiology field to test the catheter in preclinical studies. After seeing encouraging preclinical results, in December 2023, we initiated a clinical study in Prague, Czech Republic, to test our CellFX nsPFA 360° Cardiac Catheter in patients with AF and early acute data and remapping data from this study have been promising. In the United States, we believe the catheter will need to go through the FDA’s Pre-Market Approval (“PMA”) process for FDA approval to market and sell our cardiac catheter in the United States.

CellFX nsPFA Percutaneous Electrode System

Since early 2023, we have made tremendous progress in our percutaneous electrode program. After years of pre-clinical development and testing, as a supplemental point of validation of the Company’s engineering capabilities, and to demonstrate our technology’s unique mechanism of action on internal organs, in June 2023 we initiated a first-in-human study using our novel and proprietary nsPFA-enabled surgical end-effector, our percutaneous electrode. This study is being conducted by Professor Stefano Spiezia at the Ospedale del Mare in Naples, Italy, to help us better understand and confirm the mechanism of action and tissue response of nsPFA energy in internal organs as we advance into human cardiac tissue. Initially, ten subjects were treated and evaluated in the study. All of the initial patients in the study tolerated the procedure well with no reported pain or serious side effects. Ultrasound imaging 90 days post procedure showed that the treated portions of the nodules had been completely resorbed with no sign of scarring or fibrosis, which can be a side effect of other ablation modalities. Based on these positive initial results, in November 2023, we amended the thyroid study protocol to expand enrollment to focus on optimizing treatment parameters.

In parallel, in November 2023, we filed a premarket notification 510(k) with the FDA for clearance to commercialize our novel CellFX nsPFA Percutaneous Electrode System in the United States. In March 2024, the Company received FDA 510(k) clearance for its CellFX nsPFA Percutaneous Electrode System for use in the ablation of soft tissue in percutaneous and intraoperative surgical procedures.

Having secured regulatory approval to market and sell the CellFX nsPFA Percutaneous Electrode System in the United States, we have initiated a limited market release, targeting a handful of select accounts.

The CellFX Console

The CellFX Console is a tunable, software-enabled, console-based platform, designed to accommodate the clinical workflow preferred by physicians. The CellFX System is configured to accept a variety of end-effectors or electrodes across a range of clinical applications. In February 2021, the Company received 510(k) clearance from the FDA for the CellFX System for dermatologic procedures requiring ablation and resurfacing of the skin. In January 2021, the Company received Conformité Européene (“CE”) marking approval for the CellFX System, which allows for marketing of the system in the European Union (“EU”). Shortly after these regulatory clearances the Company began commercializing the CellFX System in dermatology for the treatment of benign skin lesions. However, in September 2022, the Company announced a shift in its focus from dermatology to cardiology and the treatment of AF. The Company has ceased all commercial sales and marketing operations in dermatology. At the present time, we continue to support our remaining commercial users and remain open to a potential commercial partnership. The CellFX System is being used for our current efforts in the treatment of AF and as part of the CellFX nsPFA Percutaneous Electrode System.

We continue to believe nsPFA ablation, as well as NPS technology more broadly, has the potential to provide superior outcomes across a variety of medical disciplines and we may seek partnership opportunities to develop additional applications.

We have incurred substantial operating losses and have used cash in our operating activities since inception. Based on our current operating plan, we believe we have sufficient cash and cash equivalents on hand to support current operations for the twelve months following the filing of this Annual Report. We plan to seek to raise capital from time to time, to fund our future operations through public or private equity offerings, debt financings, or by entering into collaborations with third parties, to fund our future operations.

Over the past few years, Robert Duggan, our majority stockholder and Executive Director, has made significant investments in our Company to fund its operations. In June 2022, we completed a common stock rights offering to our existing stockholders of record, which raised $15 million in aggregate. Mr. Duggan purchased approximately 56% of the shares offered through this offering. Then, in September 2022, we entered into the 2022 Loan Agreement with Mr. Duggan pursuant to which he lent the Company $65 million to fund its product development operations. In April 2023, the 2022 Loan Agreement was terminated upon Mr. Duggan and the Company entering into a Securities Purchase Agreement whereby the shares were paid for through the cancellation of both the principal sum of $65.0 million and all accrued and unpaid interest owed at the time under the 2022 Loan Agreement, which totaled approximately $0.2 million. Mr. Duggan may or may not elect to participate in any number of our future fundraisings, as described above, and he may choose to invest more than his current pro rata share in any of these fundraisings, or alternatively he may offer to provide additional debt financing as may be needed in order to maintain the Company as a going concern.

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The source, timing and availability of any future financing will depend largely upon market conditions and perceived progress in the Company’s on-going product development initiatives, as well as future clinical and regulatory developments concerning the CellFX System and our other NPS-based technologies. Funding may not be available when needed, at all or on terms acceptable to us. Lack of necessary funds may require us to, among other things, delay, scale back or eliminate some or all of our commercial activities, reduce headcount, trim research and product development programs, discontinue clinical trials, stop all or some of our manufacturing operations, defer capital expenditures, deregister from being a publicly traded company and delist from Nasdaq, or license our potential products or technologies to third parties, possibly on terms that cannot sustain our current business. In addition, the recent decline in economic activity caused by the armed conflicts in Ukraine and Israel and the current banking environment, together with the deterioration of the credit, banking and capital markets, could have an adverse impact on potential sources of future financing.

Critical Accounting Policies and Significant Judgments

The discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations is based upon our consolidated financial statements, which have been prepared in accordance with the rules and regulations of the SEC. Certain accounting policies and estimates are particularly important to the understanding of our financial position and results of operations and require the application of significant judgment by management or can be materially affected by changes from period to period in economic factors or conditions that are outside of the Company’s control. As a result, these issues are subject to an inherent degree of uncertainty. In applying these policies, management uses its judgment to determine the appropriate assumptions to be used in the determination of certain estimates. Those estimates are based on our historical operations, future business plans and the projected financial results, the terms of existing contracts, trends in the industry and information available from other outside sources. We continually evaluate the accounting policies and estimates used in preparing our consolidated financial statements.

Stock-Based Compensation

Our stock-based compensation programs include stock options and an employee stock purchase program. We periodically issue stock options to officers, directors, employees, and consultants for their services to the Company. Such issuances vest and expire according to terms established at the issuance date. Stock-based payments to officers, directors and employees, including grants of employee stock options, are recognized in the financial statements based on their grant date fair values, which are estimated using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model. Stock-based compensation expense is charged to operations on a straight-line basis over the requisite service period. We have granted stock options with time-based, performance-based, and market-based vesting conditions.

For stock options with performance-based vesting conditions, we do not recognize compensation expense until it is probable that the performance-based vesting condition will be achieved. The analysis to determine such probability involves estimates and judgements from management. The estimate of expense may be revised periodically based on the probability of achieving the required performance targets.

The vesting conditions for stock options with market-based vesting conditions relate to the achievement of certain market capitalization targets of the Company. The grant date fair value for these stock options was determined using a Monte Carlo simulation. The expense is recognized over the requisite service period for each tranche of the awards. The requisite service period is the service period derived from the Monte Carlo simulation model. If the market capitalization targets are met sooner than the derived service period, we will accelerate the recognition of stock-based compensation expense to reflect the cumulative expense associated with the vested shares. The Monte Carlo simulation requires the Company to make assumptions and judgements about the variables used in the calculation including the expected term, volatility of the Company's common stock, an assumed risk-free interest rate, and cost of equity. The assumptions used represent management’s best estimates.

Income Taxes

We account for income taxes using the asset and liability method, whereby deferred tax assets and liability account balances are determined based on differences between the financial reporting and tax bases of assets and liabilities, and are measured using the enacted rates and laws that will be in effect when the differences are expected to reverse.

We provide a valuation allowance to reduce its deferred tax assets to the amount that is more likely than not to be realized. If we determine that we would be able to realize deferred tax assets in the future in excess of the recorded amount, an adjustment to the deferred tax assets would be credited to operations in the period such determination was made. Likewise, should we determine that we would not be able to realize all or part of its deferred tax assets in the future, an adjustment to the deferred tax assets would be charged to operations in the period such determination was made.

We account for uncertainties in income tax law under a comprehensive model for the financial statement recognition, measurement, presentation and disclosure of uncertain tax positions taken or expected to be taken in income tax returns as prescribed by Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 740-10- Accounting for Uncertainty in Income Taxes. The tax effects of a position are recognized only if it is “more-likely-than-not” to be sustained by the taxing authority as of the reporting date. If the tax position is not considered “more-likely-than-not” to be sustained, then no benefits of the position are recognized.

We are subject to U.S. federal income taxes and income taxes in California and various states. As our net operating losses have yet to be utilized, previous tax years remain open to examination by federal authorities and other jurisdictions in which we currently operate or have operated in the past. We are not currently under examination by any tax authority.

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Results of Operations

Comparison of the Years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022

Our consolidated statements of operations as discussed herein are presented below:

Year Ended
December 31,
(in thousands)20232022$ Change
Revenues:
Product revenues$$700$(700)
Total revenues700(700)
Cost and expenses:
Cost of revenues11,944(11,944)
Research and development27,79720,8396,958
Sales and marketing12,019(12,019)
General and administrative15,77713,9551,822
Total cost and expenses43,57458,757(15,183)
Loss from operations(43,574)(58,057)14,483
Other income (expense):
Interest income (expense), net1,364(448)1,812
Total other income (expense)1,364(448)1,812
Loss from operations, before income taxes(42,210)(58,505)16,295
Income tax benefit
Net loss$(42,210)$(58,505)$16,295

Revenues

Revenues decreased by $0.7 million to zero for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to the same period in 2022. The decrease in revenues was driven by the September 2022 announcement to shift our strategic direction and advance our core NPS technology outside of dermatology, discontinuing further sales in the dermatology market.

Cost of Revenues

Cost of revenues decreased by $11.9 million to zero for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to the same period in 2022, driven by a $8.5 million charge for the write-off of excessive and obsolete inventory in September 2022 due to the decision to shift our strategic direction and advance our core NPS technology outside of dermatology. The Company has discontinued further sales in the dermatology market, which is currently the only market that the Company has regulatory clearance to market and sell into. As we are no longer selling the CellFX System, we are no longer incurring costs of revenues. Going forward, we will evaluate the classification of expenses as research and development or general and administrative in accordance with ASC Topic 730, Research and Development.

Research and Development

Research and development expenses consist of compensation and other employee related expenses for research and development personnel, clinical trials and consulting costs related to the design, development and enhancement of our potential future products, prototype material and devices. Research and development expenses increased by $7.0 million to $27.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $20.8 million during the same period in 2022, primarily due to increases of $4.0 million in paid services, $1.9 million in stock-based compensation, $0.7 million in compensation and other employee related expenses and $0.6 million in supplies, partially offset by a decrease of $0.2 million in facilities and IT cost allocations driven by our shift in focus.

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Sales and Marketing

Sales and marketing expenses consisted of compensation and other employee related expenses for sales and marketing personnel, expenses associated with advertising and training, and marketing studies including our Controlled Launch program. The Company has discontinued further sales in the dermatology market and is performing research and development activities to advance its core NPS technology outside of dermatology. Because we have no current sales activities and we cannot market any products outside of dermatology, we will therefore classify costs previously booked as sales and marketing within general and administrative expenses. Sales and marketing expenses decreased by $12.0 million to zero for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $12.0 million during the same period in 2022, primarily due to decreases of $8.0 million in compensation and other employee related expenses, $2.2 million in paid services and promotional activities, $0.7 million in stock-based compensation, $0.9 million in facilities and IT cost allocations driven by our shift in focus, and $0.1 million in supplies. As noted under the Cost of Revenues section, going forward, we will evaluate the classification of expenses as research and development or general and administrative in accordance with ASC Topic 730, Research and Development.

General and Administrative

General and administrative expenses consist of compensation and other related employee expenses for executives, finance, legal, human resources, information technology, and administrative personnel, professional fees, patent fees and costs, insurance costs and other general corporate expenses. General and administrative expenses increased by $1.8 million to $15.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $14.0 million during the same period in 2022, primarily due to increases of $1.3 million in facilities and IT cost allocations driven by our shift in focus, $1.0 million in stock-based compensation, and $0.9 million in compensation and other employee related expenses. These were partially offset by decreases of $1.3 million in paid services and $0.1 million in supplies.

Other Income (Expense), net

Interest income increased by $1.8 million to $2.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $0.7 million during the same period in 2022, driven by increased returns on higher cash balances. Other expense decreased by $0.2 million to zero for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $0.2 million during the same period in 2022, driven primarily by losses on disposal of assets in 2022. This is offset by an increase in interest expense of $0.2 million to $1.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $0.9 million during the same period in 2022, driven by interest on the 2022 Loan Agreement.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

On June 9, 2022, we completed the 2022 Rights Offering resulting in the sale of 7,317,072 Units, at a price of $2.05 per Unit, with each Unit consisting of one share of the Company’s common stock, par value $0.001 per share, and one warrant to purchase one share of common stock at $2.05 per share. 7,317,072 shares of common stock and warrants to acquire up to an additional 7,317,072 shares of common stock were issued in the 2022 Rights Offering. The Company received aggregate gross proceeds from the 2022 Rights Offering of $15 million. In May 2023, the Company delivered an irrevocable notice of redemption to warrant holders and, on June 16, 2023, it redeemed the last of the outstanding 2022 Rights Offering Warrants at a price of $0.01 per warrant share.  Prior to the redemption date, warrants to purchase 7,250,897 shares were exercised, generating approximately $14.9 million of total gross proceeds to the Company. As of December 31, 2023, there were no 2022 Rights Offering Warrants outstanding. Robert W. Duggan, the Company’s majority stockholder and Executive Chairman, purchased approximately 56% of the shares offered through the 2022 Rights Offering.

In September 2022, we entered into the 2022 Loan Agreement with Robert W. Duggan, our majority stockholder and Executive Chairman, in connection with Mr. Duggan lending the principal sum of $65.0 million to the Company. The 2022 Loan Agreement had a maturity date of March 20, 2024. Under the 2022 Loan Agreement, Mr. Duggan provided us, subject to certain conditions, an unsecured term loan facility in an original aggregate principal amount of $65.0 million. The 2022 Loan Agreement bore interest at a rate per annum equal to 5.0%, payable quarterly, commencing on January 1, 2023. On March 17, 2023, the Company and Mr. Duggan amended certain terms of the Loan Agreement. There were no changes to the interest rate, the principal sum repayment date was changed to September 30, 2024. However, on April 30, 2023, we entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement with Mr. Duggan, pursuant to which we agreed to issue and sell to Mr. Duggan 10,022,937 shares of our common stock, par value $0.001 per share, in a Private Placement, at a price per share of $6.51. These shares were paid for through the cancellation of the amounts then owed by the Company under the 2022 Loan Agreement, the principal sum of $65.0 million and all accrued and unpaid interest outstanding, which totaled approximately $0.2 million as of April 30, 2023. The parties completed the Private Placement on May 9, 2023 and, upon closing and satisfaction of the outstanding debt, the 2022 Loan Agreement terminated, without early termination fees or penalties being owed by the Company. No additional amounts are owed to Mr. Duggan under the 2022 Loan Agreement.

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Our consolidated statements of cash flows as discussed herein are presented below:

Year Ended December 31,
(in thousands)20232022
Net cash used in operating activities$(33,041)$(47,013)
Net cash used in investing activities$(121)$(401)
Net cash provided by financing activities$16,388$79,939
Net (decrease) increase in cash and cash equivalents$(16,774)$32,525

To date, we have generated limited revenue and used cash in our operating activities. As a result, we have incurred significant operating losses in each year since our inception and we may continue to incur additional losses for the next several years. As of December 31, 2023, we had cash and cash equivalents of $44.4 million. We believe that our existing cash and cash equivalents will be sufficient to fund our projected operating requirements for at least the next twelve months from the filing date of this Annual Report on Form 10-K. However, we plan to raise additional capital in the future. We can give no assurance, at this time, that additional financing or a collaboration will be available when needed on terms acceptable to us, however.

These expectations are based on our current operating and financing plans which are subject to change. Until we are able to generate sustainable product revenues at profitable levels, we expect to finance our future cash needs through public or private equity offerings, debt financings, and/or potential new collaborations. Such additional funds may not be available on terms acceptable to us or at all. If we raise funds by issuing equity or equity-linked securities, the ownership of some or all of our stockholders may be diluted, and the holders of new equity securities may have priority rights over our existing stockholders. If adequate funds are not available, we may be required to curtail operations significantly or obtain funds by entering into agreements on unattractive terms. Our inability to raise capital could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. For example, lack of necessary funds may require us to, among other things, reduce headcount, trim research and product development programs, discontinue clinical trials, defer capital expenditures, deregister from being a publicly traded company and delist from Nasdaq, or license our potential products or technologies to third parties, possibly on terms that cannot sustain our current business. In addition, the recent decline in economic activity caused by the armed conflicts in Ukraine and Israel, together with the deterioration of the credit, banking and capital markets, could have an adverse impact on potential sources of future financing.

Operating Activities

During 2023, we used cash of $33.0 million in operating activities. The difference between cash used in operating activities and net loss consisted primarily of stock-based compensation, depreciation and amortization, accrued interest, and right-of-use assets, partially offset by increases in and accounts payable and accrued expenses.

During 2022, we used cash of $47.0 million in operating activities. The difference between cash used in operating activities and net loss consisted primarily of stock-based compensation, reserve for excessive and obsolete inventory, depreciation and amortization, accounts payable and accrued expenses, and right-of-use assets, partially offset by increases in accrued interest and inventory.

Investing Activities

Our investing activities consist primarily of investment purchases, sales and maturities and capital expenditures.

During 2023, cash used in investing activities was $0.1 million, which was for the purchase of property and equipment.

During 2022, cash used in investing activities was $0.4 million, which was for the purchase of property and equipment.

Financing Activities

During 2023, cash provided from financing activities was $16.3 million, primarily due to $14.8 million of proceeds from the exercise of common stock warrants, $1.2 million of proceeds from the exercise of stock options, and $0.4 million from the sale of stock under our employee stock purchase plan.

During 2022, cash provided from financing activities was $79.9 million, primarily due to $65.0 million of proceeds from our 2022 Loan Agreement, $14.9 million of proceeds from the sale of common stock in our rights offering and $0.5 million from the sale of stock under our employee stock purchase plan, partially offset by payments made on the Insurance Loan Agreement.

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Contractual Obligations

Frank Reidy Research Center Agreement

As provided for in the license agreement with Old Dominion University Research Foundation (“ODURF”) and Eastern Virginia Medical School (“EVMS”), effective on November 6, 2014, we sponsored certain approved research activities at ODURF’s Frank Reidy Research Center under a sponsored research agreement (“SRA”). In March 2021, we agreed to sponsor a task order for research in the amount of $0.3 million and in May 2021 we sponsored an additional task order for $0.3 million each to be performed during their respective subsequent 12-month periods. These sponsored researches are funded through monthly payments made upon ODURF certifying, to our reasonable satisfaction, that ODURF has met its obligations pursuant to the specified task order and statement of work. The principal investigator may transfer funds within the budget as needed with our approval so long as the obligations of ODURF under the task order and statement of work remain unchanged and unimpaired. During the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, we incurred costs relating to the SRA equal to zero and $0.2 million, respectively. As of December 31, 2023, there are no unbilled SRAs left under the task orders.

Operating Lease

We currently lease approximately 50,300 square feet of premises located in Hayward, California, which is used for our corporate headquarters and principal operating facility. The term of the original lease included approximately 15,700 square feet for 62 months and commenced on July 1, 2017. In May 2019, we entered into an amendment which enabled us to expand the lease by approximately 34,600 additional square feet, for a total of approximately 50,300 square feet. The amendment also included an option to extend the term of the lease. Approximately 13,300 square feet of the additional space was occupied in November 2019 as part of the first phase, and the remaining approximately 21,300 square feet was occupied in May 2020 as part of the second phase. The term of the total lease was extended through October 2029.

The following table summarizes our contractual obligations as of December 31, 2023 (in thousands):

Payments Due by Period
(in thousands)TotalLess Than 1 Year1 to 3 Years3 to 5 YearsMore Than 5 Years
Operating leases$12,124$1,910$4,023$4,308$1,883

Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements

At December 31, 2023, we did not have any transactions, obligations or relationships that constitute off-balance sheet arrangements.

In the ordinary course of business, we enter into standard indemnification arrangements. Pursuant to these arrangements, we indemnify, hold harmless, and agree to reimburse the indemnified parties for losses suffered or incurred by the indemnified party in connection with any trade secret, copyright, patent or other intellectual property infringement claim by any third party with respect to its technology, or from claims relating to our performance or non-performance under a contract. The maximum potential amount of future payments we could be required to make under these agreements is not determinable because it involves claims that may be made against us in future periods, but have not yet been made. To date, we have not incurred costs to defend lawsuits or settle claims related to these indemnification agreements.

We also enter and have entered into indemnification agreements with our directors and officers that may require us to indemnify them against liabilities that arise by reason of their status or service as directors or officers, except as prohibited by applicable law. In addition, we may have obligations to hold harmless and indemnify third parties involved with our fundraising efforts and their respective affiliates, directors, officers, employees, agents or other representatives against any and all losses, claims, damages and liabilities related to claims arising against such parties pursuant to the terms of agreements entered into between us and such third parties in connection with such fundraising efforts. No liability associated with such indemnification agreements has been recorded as of December 31, 2023.

Trends, Events and Uncertainties

Research and development of new technologies are, by their nature, unpredictable. Although we undertake development efforts with commercially reasonable diligence, there can be no assurance that the net proceeds from our financings will be sufficient to enable us to develop our technology to the extent needed to generate future sales to sustain our operations. If we do not continue to have enough funds to sustain our operations, we will consider other options to continue the research and development of our technology, including, but not limited to, additional financing through follow-on stock offerings, debt financings, or co-development agreements and /or other alternatives.

We cannot assure investors that our technology will be adopted or that we will ever achieve sustainable revenues sufficient to support our operations. Even if we are able to generate revenues, there can be no assurances that we will be able to achieve profitability or positive operating cash flows. There can be no assurances that we will be able to secure additional financing in the future on acceptable terms or at all. If our technology cannot be used to successfully treat AF or if our cash resources are insufficient to satisfy our ongoing cash needs, we would be required to, among other things, delay, scale back or eliminate some or all of our activities, reduce headcount, trim research and product development programs, discontinue clinical trials, stop all or some of our manufacturing operations, defer capital expenditures, deregister from being a publicly traded company and delist from Nasdaq, license our potential products or technologies to third parties, possibly on terms that cannot sustain our current business, or curtail, suspend or discontinue our operations entirely.

Other than as discussed above and elsewhere in this Annual Report, we are not currently aware of any trends, events or uncertainties that are likely to have a material effect on our financial condition in the near term, although it is possible that new trends or events may develop in the future that could have a material effect on our financial condition.

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