Tectonic Therapeutic, Inc. (TECX) FY 2023 MD&A

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

Our management’s discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations are based upon our consolidated financial statements included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, which have been prepared by us in accordance with United States generally accepted accounting principles, or GAAP, and with Regulation S-X promulgated under the Exchange Act. This discussion and analysis should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and the notes thereto included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. Some of the information contained in this discussion and analysis or set forth elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, including information with respect to our plans and strategy for our business, includes forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. As a result of many factors, including those factors set forth in Part I, Item 1A. Risk Factors of this Annual Report on Form 10-K, our actual results could differ materially from the results described in or implied by the forward-looking statements contained in the following discussion and analysis.

Overview

We are a gene therapy company with a purpose to free people from a lifetime of genetic disease. Our company has been focused on developing potentially curative HSC gene therapies to treat patients with rare diseases following a single dose treatment regimen. The gene therapies we had been developing employ HSCs that are harvested from the patient and then modified with a lentiviral vector to insert the equivalent of a functional copy of the gene that is mutated in the target disease. We believe that our approach, which is designed to transform stem cells from patients into therapeutic products, has the potential to provide curative benefit for a range of diseases. Our development focus has been on a group of rare genetic diseases referred to as lysosomal disorders, some of which today are primarily managed with enzyme replacement therapies, or ERTs.

On July 12, 2023, following a comprehensive review of our business by the AVROBIO Board, we announced our intention to halt development of our programs and explore strategic alternatives focused on maximizing stockholder value, which may include, but are not limited to, an acquisition, a merger, business combination or divestiture.

Subsequently, in connection with ongoing cost reduction efforts related to our ongoing review of potential strategic alternatives, we have terminated all Company-sponsored treatment-related and Company-sponsored long-term follow-up clinical studies relating to our AVR-RD-02, or Gaucher disease type 1, program, and Company-sponsored long term follow-up studies relating to our AVR-RD-01, or Fabry disease, program (which we previously deprioritized). In addition, in September 2023, we terminated our agreements with the University of Manchester for the license and development of a gene therapy for MPSII and discontinued our AVR-RD-05, or Hunter syndrome gene therapy program. Previously, in June 2023, we sold our cystinosis gene therapy program to Novartis. As of the date of the filing of this Annual Report, we currently have a total of three gene therapy product candidates, none of which are currently in active clinical development, including AVR-RD-02 for the treatment of Gaucher disease type 1 and type 3, AVR-RD-03 for the treatment of Pompe disease and AVR-RD-01 for the treatment of Fabry disease.

After a comprehensive review of strategic alternatives, including identifying and reviewing potential candidates for a strategic transaction, on January 30, 2024, AVROBIO entered into the Merger Agreement, with Merger Sub and Tectonic, pursuant to which Merger Sub will merge with and into Tectonic, with Tectonic surviving as AVROBIO’s wholly-owned subsidiary. The merger was unanimously approved by the AVROBIO Board, and the AVROBIO Board resolved to recommend approval of the Merger Agreement to AVROBIO stockholders. In connection with the merger, certain investors have agreed to purchase shares of Tectonic common stock at a purchase price of $12.39908 per share, subject to and immediately prior to the closing of the merger, pursuant to the terms of the Subscription Agreement, and certain investors have consummated or will consummate certain additional purchases of Tectonic common stock pursuant to the Tectonic SAFEs for an aggregate purchase price among the transactions contemplated by the Subscription Agreement and such Tectonic SAFEs of approximately $130.7 million. At the effective time of the merger, each share of then-outstanding Tectonic common stock will be converted into the right to receive a number of shares of AVROBIO common stock, equal to the exchange ratio as set forth in the Merger Agreement. Concurrently with the closing of the merger, and assuming approval by AVROBIO stockholders, AVROBIO anticipates effecting a reverse stock split at a ratio in the range between 1:3 to 1:30, inclusive. Additionally, at or prior to the effective time of the merger, AVROBIO and a rights agent will enter into a CVR Agreement, pursuant to which AVROBIO stockholders of record as of immediately prior to such effective time (including holders of AVROBIO common stock issued upon settlement of the AVROBIO RSUs) will receive one non-transferable CVR for each outstanding share of AVROBIO common stock held by such stockholder on such date.

The closing of the merger is subject to approval by AVROBIO stockholders and Tectonic stockholders, as well as other customary closing conditions, including the effectiveness of a registration statement on Form S-4 filed with the SEC in connection with the transaction and Nasdaq’s approval of the listing of the shares of the AVROBIO common stock to be issued in connection with the proposed merger. The closings of the private financings are conditioned upon the satisfaction or

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waiver of the conditions to the closing of the merger as well as certain other conditions. If the transactions are completed, the business of Tectonic will continue as the business of the combined company.

AVROBIO’s future operations are highly dependent on the success of the merger and there can be no assurances that the merger will be successfully consummated. There can be no assurance that the strategic review process or any transaction relating to a specific asset, including the merger and any AVROBIO asset sale (as defined below), will result in AVROBIO pursuing such a transaction(s), or that any transaction(s), if pursued, will be completed on terms favorable to AVROBIO and its stockholders in the existing AVROBIO entity or any possible entity that results from a combination of entities. If the strategic review process is unsuccessful, and if the merger is not consummated, the AVROBIO Board may decide to pursue a dissolution and liquidation of AVROBIO.

Since our inception in 2015, we have devoted substantially all of our resources to organizing and staffing our company, business planning, raising capital, acquiring or discovering product candidates and securing related intellectual property rights, conducting discovery, research and development activities for our programs and planning for potential commercialization. To date, we have not generated any product revenue and have financed our operations primarily through the private placement of our securities and through public offerings of our common stock. Through December 31, 2023, we had received gross cash proceeds of $87.5 million from sales of our preferred stock; gross cash proceeds, before deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and expenses, of $428.1 million from sales of our common stock through our IPO and follow-on offerings; gross cash proceeds, before deducting commissions and expenses, of $23.5 million from sales of our common stock under our prior ATM facility; $15.0 million drawn in term loans under our Term Loan Agreement, which was repaid in full and terminated on June 9, 2023; and gross proceeds, before deducting transaction costs, of $87.5 million from the sale of our cystinosis gene therapy program.

Additionally, we have incurred significant operating losses. Our ability to generate product revenue sufficient to achieve profitability will depend heavily on the successful development and eventual commercialization of one or more of our current or future product candidates and programs. Our net income (losses) were $12.2 million and $(105.9) million for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. As of December 31, 2023, we had an accumulated deficit of $477.3 million. Should we resume development of our product candidates, we would expect to continue to incur significant expenses for at least the next several years as we advance our product candidates from preclinical development and clinical trials and seek regulatory approval of our product candidates. Should we resume development of our product candidates, we would expect to expend significant resources to advance these candidates. In addition, if we obtain marketing approval for any of our product candidates, we expect to incur significant commercialization expenses related to product manufacturing, marketing, sales and distribution.

Should we resume development of our product candidates, we would need substantial additional funding to support our continuing operations and pursue our growth strategy. Until such time as we can generate significant revenue from product sales, if ever, we would expect to finance our operations with proceeds from outside sources, with a majority of such proceeds expected to be derived from sales of equity. We may also pursue additional funding from outside sources, including borrowing arrangements and entry into potential future collaboration agreements for one or more of our programs. We may be unable to raise additional funds or enter into such other agreements or arrangements when needed on favorable terms, or at all.

Because of the numerous risks and uncertainties associated with product development, we are unable to predict the timing or amount of increased expenses or when or if we will be able to achieve or maintain profitability, should we resume development of our product candidates. Even if we are able to generate product sales, we may not become profitable. If we fail to become profitable or are unable to sustain profitability on a continuing basis, we may be unable to continue our operations at planned levels and be forced to reduce or terminate our operations.

Components of Our Consolidated Results of Operations

Operating Expenses

Research and Development Expenses

Research and development expenses consist primarily of costs incurred in connection with the discovery and development of our product candidates. We expense research and development costs as incurred. These expenses consist of costs incurred in connection with the development of our product candidates, including:

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license maintenance fees and milestone fees incurred in connection with various license agreements;

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expenses incurred under agreements with CROs, CMOs, as well as investigative sites and consultants that conduct our clinical trials, preclinical studies and other scientific development services;

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manufacturing scale-up expenses and the cost of acquiring and manufacturing preclinical and clinical trial materials and commercial materials, including manufacturing validation batches;

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costs of purchasing lab supplies and non‑capital equipment used in our preclinical activities;

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employee-related expenses, including salaries, related benefits, travel and stock-based compensation expense for employees engaged in research and development functions;

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costs related to compliance with regulatory requirements; and

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allocated facilities costs, depreciation and other expenses, which include rent and utilities.

We recognize external development costs based on an evaluation of the progress to completion of specific tasks using information provided to us by our service providers.

Our direct research and development expenses are tracked on a program-by-program basis for our product candidates and consist primarily of external costs, such as fees paid to outside consultants, CROs, CMOs, and central laboratories in connection with our preclinical development, process development, manufacturing and clinical development activities. Our direct research and development expenses by program also include fees incurred under license agreements. We do not allocate employee costs or facility expenses, including depreciation or other indirect costs, to specific programs because these costs are deployed across multiple programs and, as such, are not separately classified. We use internal resources primarily to oversee the research and discovery as well as for managing our preclinical development, process development, manufacturing and clinical development activities. These employees work across multiple programs and, therefore, we do not track their costs by program.

The table below summarizes our research and development expenses related to our product candidates (in thousands):

Research and development activities are central to our business model. Product candidates in later stages of clinical development generally have higher development costs than those in earlier stages of clinical development, primarily due to the increased size and duration of later-stage clinical trials. Should we resume development of our product candidates, we would expect our research and development expenses to increase substantially over the next several years, particularly as we increase personnel costs, including stock-based compensation, contractor costs and facilities costs, and advance the development of our product candidates. Should we resume development of our product candidates, we would also expect to incur additional expenses related to milestone and royalty payments payable to third parties with whom we have entered into license agreements to acquire the rights to our product candidates.

The successful development and commercialization of our product candidates is highly uncertain. At this time, we cannot reasonably estimate or know the nature, timing and costs of the efforts that will be necessary to complete the preclinical and clinical development of any of our product candidates should we resume their development, or when, if ever, material net cash inflows may commence from any of our product candidates. This uncertainty is due to the numerous risks and uncertainties associated with product development and commercialization, including the uncertainty of:

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the scope, progress, outcome and costs of our preclinical development activities, clinical trials and other research and development activities;

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establishing an appropriate safety profile with IND-enabling studies;

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successful patient enrollment in, and the design, initiation and completion of, clinical trials;

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the timing, receipt and terms of any marketing approvals from applicable regulatory authorities;

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establishing commercial manufacturing capabilities or making arrangements with third-party manufacturers;

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development and timely delivery of commercial-grade drug formulations that can be used in our clinical trials and for commercial launch;

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obtaining, maintaining, defending and enforcing patent claims and other intellectual property rights;

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significant and changing government regulation;

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launching commercial sales of our product candidates, if and when approved, whether alone or in collaboration with others;

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maintaining a continued acceptable safety profile of the product candidates following approval; and

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the risks disclosed in the section entitled “Risk Factors” of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Should we resume development of our product candidates, we may never succeed in achieving regulatory approval for any of our product candidates. We may obtain unexpected results from our clinical trials. We may elect to discontinue, delay or modify clinical trials of some product candidates or focus on others. Any changes in the outcome of any of these variables with respect to the development of our product candidates in preclinical and clinical development could mean a significant change in the costs and timing associated with the development of these product candidates. For example, if the FDA, or another regulatory authority were to delay our planned start of clinical trials or require us to conduct clinical trials or other testing beyond those that we currently expect, or if we experience significant delays in enrollment in any of our planned clinical trials, we could be required to expend significant additional financial resources and time on the completion of clinical development of that product candidate. Identifying potential product candidates and conducting preclinical testing and clinical trials is a time-consuming, expensive and uncertain process that takes years to complete, and we may never generate the necessary data or results required to obtain marketing approval and achieve product sales. In addition, our product candidates, if approved, may not achieve commercial success.

General and Administrative Expenses

General and administrative expenses consist primarily of salaries, related benefits, travel and stock-based compensation expense for personnel in executive, finance and administrative functions. General and administrative expenses also include professional fees for legal, consulting, accounting and audit services.

Should we resume development of our product candidates, we would anticipate that our general and administrative expenses would increase as we increase our headcount to support research activities and development of our product candidates. We also anticipate that we would incur increased accounting, audit, legal, compliance, director and officer insurance costs as well as investor and public relations expenses associated with being a public company. We anticipate the additional costs for these services would substantially increase our general and administrative expenses. Additionally, if and when we believe a regulatory approval of a product candidate appears likely, we anticipate an increase in payroll and other commercialization-related expenses as a result of our preparation for commercial operations, especially as it relates to the sales and marketing of our product candidate.

Other Income (Expense), Net

Other (expense) income, net primarily consists of interest income earned on our cash and cash equivalents, changes in foreign currency, and interest expense related to our prior Term Loan Agreement.

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Consolidated Results of Operations

Comparison of the Years Ended December 31, 2023 and 2022

The following table summarizes our consolidated results of operations (in thousands):

Research and Development Expenses

Research and development expenses decreased by $24.5 million to $47.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, from approximately $72.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. This decrease was driven by a $12.3 million decrease in personnel-related and consulting costs, including non-cash stock-based compensation, a $7.8 million decrease in manufacturing costs, a $2.5 million decrease in preclinical costs, a $1.5 million decrease in allocated facility expense, and a $0.3 million decrease in development costs, which includes a payment made in connection with the termination of the MPSII License Agreement.

General and Administrative Expenses

General and administrative expenses decreased by $9.3 million to $24.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, from $33.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. This decrease was driven by a $10.8 million decrease in personnel-related and consulting costs, including non-cash stock-based compensation and a $0.9 million decrease in information technology-related costs which was partially offset by a $2.4 million increase in legal expenses.

Gain on Asset Sale

For the year ended December 31, 2023 we recognized $83.7 million as a gain on asset sale, net of $3.8 million in transaction costs. We completed the Asset Sale on June 9, 2023.

Loss on Impairment

For the year ended December 31, 2023 we recognized a $1.9 million loss on impairment. Of this amount, $0.9 million is related to the loss on impairment of property, plant, and equipment as a result of the reclassification of these assets to held for sale. In addition, $0.9 million is related to the loss on impairment of the right of use asset for the subleased lab space located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, which is no longer in use.

Other Income (Expense), Net

Other income (expense), net was $2.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $(0.5) million of other income (expense), net for the year ended December 31, 2022. The increase in income was driven by a $2.8 million increase in interest income earned on short-term money market funds. Interest expense is relatively consistent period over

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period. The Term Loan Agreement was terminated in the second quarter of 2023 which resulted in an increase in interest expense from the loss on the extinguishment of debt due to the write-off of the debt discount balance.

Provision for Income Tax Expense

For the year ended December 31, 2023 we recognized $0.4 million as a provision for income tax expense as a result of income recognized from the Asset Sale.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

Since our inception, we have not generated any revenue and have incurred significant operating losses and negative cash flows from our operations. We have funded our operations to date primarily with proceeds from the sale of preferred stock and our common stock through our IPO, and we have raised additional capital through subsequent follow-on offerings and our prior ATM facility. Through December 31, 2023, we had received gross cash proceeds of $87.5 million from sales of our preferred stock; gross cash proceeds, before deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and expenses, of $428.1 million from sales of our common stock through our IPO and follow-on offerings; gross cash proceeds, before deducting commissions and expenses, of $23.5 million from sales of our common stock under our prior ATM facility; $15.0 million drawn in term loans under our Term Loan Agreement, which was repaid in full and terminated on June 9, 2023; and gross proceeds, before deducting transaction costs, of $87.5 million from the sale of our cystinosis gene therapy program.

On July 1, 2019, we filed a shelf registration statement on Form S-3 with the SEC, or the July 2019 Shelf, which covers the offering, issuance and sale by us of up to an aggregate of $200.0 million of our common stock, preferred stock, debt securities, warrants and/or units. We simultaneously entered into a Sales Agreement with Cowen and Company, LLC, as sales agent, to provide for the offering, issuance and sale by us of up to $50.0 million of our common stock from time to time in ATM offerings under the July 2019 Shelf. The July 2019 Shelf was declared effective by the SEC on July 10, 2019.

On December 20, 2019, we filed a shelf registration statement on Form S-3 with the SEC, or the December 2019 Shelf, which covers the offering, issuance and sale by us of up to an aggregate of $250.0 million of our common stock, preferred stock, debt securities, warrants and/or units. The December 2019 Shelf was declared effective by the SEC on January 14, 2020.

In July 2019, we closed an underwritten public offering, or the July 2019 Follow-On Offering, under the July 2019 Shelf of 7,475,000 shares of our common stock at a public offering price of $18.50 per share, which included 975,000 shares of our common stock resulting from the full exercise of the underwriters’ option to purchase additional shares at the public offering price. The net proceeds to us from this offering, after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and other offering expenses payable by us, were $129.5 million.

In February 2020, we closed an underwritten public offering, or the February 2020 Follow-On Offering, under the December 2019 Shelf of 4,350,000 shares of our common stock at a public offering price of $23.00 per share. The net proceeds to us from this offering, after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and other offering expenses payable by us, were $93.6 million.

In June 2020, we sold an aggregate of 384,140 shares of common stock under the prior ATM facility for net proceeds, after deducting commissions and other offering expenses payable by us, of $8.1 million.

In November 2020, we closed an underwritten public offering, or the November 2020 Follow-On Offering, of 5,000,000 shares of our common stock at a public offering price of $15.00 per share. The net proceeds to us from the November 2020 Follow-On Offering, after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and other offering expenses payable by us, were $70.2 million.

In May 2021, we sold an aggregate of 1,829,268 shares of common stock under the prior ATM facility for net proceeds, after deducting commissions and other offering expenses payable by us, of $14.5 million. As of September 30, 2023, approximately $26.5 million of common stock remained available for future issuance under the prior ATM facility.

On November 2, 2021, or the Closing Date, we entered into the Term Loan Agreement. The Term Loan Agreement provided for (i) on the Closing Date, $30.0 million aggregate principal amount of term loans available through October 31, 2023; (ii) an additional $20.0 million in term loan facilities available through October 31, 2023 upon the achievement of certain regulatory or clinical milestones prior to the time of draw, or the Milestone Funding; and (iii) an additional

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discretionary $15.0 million term loan facility available upon our request and approval by the Agent and the Lenders, or, collectively, the Term Loans. We drew $15.0 million in term loans on the Closing Date. On June 9, 2023, upon the closing of the Asset Sale, all outstanding amounts due and owed, including principal, interest, and other charges, under the Term Loan Agreement, dated as of November 2, 2021, by and among the Company, Silicon Valley Bank, a division of First-Citizens Bank & Trust and the other parties thereto, were repaid in full and the Term Loan Facility was terminated. Upon repayment, the obligations of the Company under the Term Loan Facility were satisfied in full, the Term Loan Facility and all related loan documents were terminated and all liens and security interests granted thereunder were released and terminated (excluding certain indemnification obligations that expressly survive termination of the Term Loan Facility).

In July 2022, the July 2019 Shelf expired, and on November 8, 2022, we filed a shelf registration statement on Form S-3 with the SEC, or the November 2022 Shelf, which covered the offering, issuance and sale by us of up to an aggregate of $250.0 million of our common stock, preferred stock, debt securities, warrants and/or units. The December 2019 Shelf expired in December 2022, and the November 2022 Shelf carried forward unsold securities previously covered by the December 2019 Shelf, thus registering an aggregate total of $250.0 million of our common stock, preferred stock, debt securities, warrants and/or units. In connection with the November 2022 Shelf, we simultaneously entered into a new Sales Agreement with Cowen and Company, LLC, as sales agent, to provide for the offering, issuance and sale by us of up to $50.0 million of our common stock from time to time in “at-the-market” offerings under the November 2022 Shelf, or the 2022 ATM Facility. As of the date of this report, we have not made any sales under the 2022 ATM Facility. On November 3, 2023, we withdrew the November 2022 Shelf. We will not make any potential sales under the 2022 ATM Facility unless a new shelf registration statement on Form S-3 is filed and declared effective.

As of December 31, 2023, we had cash and cash equivalents of $98.0 million. Cash in excess of immediate requirements is invested primarily with a view to liquidity and capital preservation.

Our material cash requirements include contractual obligations with third parties. We have non-cancelable operating leases for office and laboratory space, which are located in Cambridge, Massachusetts and will expire in April 2024. As of December 31, 2023, we expect our future minimum lease payments under this commitment to total approximately $0.9 million in 2024. These minimum lease payments do not include any related common area maintenance charges or real estate taxes.

We enter into contracts in the normal course of business with CROs, CMOs and other third parties for clinical trials, preclinical research studies and testing and manufacturing services. Payments due upon cancellation consist only of payments for services provided or expenses incurred, including noncancelable obligations of our service providers, up to the date of cancellation. These payments are not included above as the amount and timing of such payments are not known.

In addition, pursuant to our current or former license agreements with UHN, BioMarin, The University of Manchester, Papillon and the Lund University rights holders, we are or were required to make certain milestone and royalty payments to our licensors. See “Business—License Agreements” for additional details regarding our payment obligations to these licensors.

Cash Flows

The following table summarizes our cash flows for each of the periods presented (in thousands):

Operating Activities

During the year ended December 31, 2023, operating activities used $63.2 million of cash and cash equivalents, resulting from our net income of $12.2 million, including gain on asset sale of $83.7 million, which was offset by the gain on asset sale that is classified as investing activities, net non-cash charges of $12.7 million and changes in our operating assets

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and liabilities of $4.3 million. Net cash used by changes in our operating assets and liabilities for the year ended December 31, 2023 was primarily due to a $6.7 million decrease in accrued expenses and other current liabilities and a $2.5 million decrease in current and non-current operating lease liabilities, partially offset by a $5.2 million decrease in prepaids and other current assets. The non-cash charges included $6.9 million of stock-based compensation expense, $1.9 million in non-cash asset impairment charges, $1.1 million in non-cash interest expense, $1.9 million in non-cash lease expense, and $0.6 million in depreciation and amortization expense.

During the year ended December 31, 2022, operating activities used $97.2 million of cash and cash equivalents, resulting from our net loss of $(105.9) million and cash used by changes in our operating assets and liabilities of $7.4 million which was offset by non-cash charges of $16.1 million. Net cash used by changes in our operating assets and liabilities for the year ended December 31, 2022 consists primarily of a $2.5 million decrease in prepaid expenses and other current assets, a $3.9 million decrease in accrued expenses and other current liabilities, a $3.1 million decrease in accounts payable, and a $2.9 million decrease in current and non-current operating lease liabilities. The increase in accrued expenses and other current liabilities was primarily due to an increase in accrued compensation and benefit costs.

Investing Activities

Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities was $85.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to $(0.3) million for the year ended December 31, 2022. The increase in cash provided by investing activities is related to the net proceeds received for the sale of the cystinosis program in the second quarter of 2023 for proceeds net of transaction costs of $83.7 million, and $1.4 million in proceeds from the sale of property, plant, and equipment.

Financing Activities

Net cash used by financing activities was $16.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to net cash provided by financing activities of $0.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. The change is related to the repayment of the Term Loan Agreement in the second quarter of 2023.

Funding Requirements

Should we resume development of our product candidates, we would expect our expenses to increase substantially in connection with such activities, particularly with respect to preclinical activities and clinical trials of our product candidates. Our expenses would also increase should we:

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continue our development of our product candidates, including enrollment and dosing of patients in clinical trials;

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initiate clinical trials and preclinical studies for product candidates;

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seek to identify and develop or in-license or acquire additional product candidates and technologies;

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seek to industrialize our HSC gene therapy approach into a robust, scalable and, if approved, commercially viable process;

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seek marketing approvals for our product candidates that successfully complete clinical trials, if any;

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establish a sales, marketing and distribution infrastructure to commercialize any product candidates for which we may obtain marketing approval;

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hire and retain additional personnel, such as clinical, quality control, and scientific personnel;

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expand our infrastructure, office space and facilities to accommodate our employee base, including adding equipment and physical infrastructure to support our research and development; and

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continue to incur additional public company-related costs.

Until such time, if ever, that we can generate product revenue sufficient to achieve profitability, we expect to finance our cash needs through a combination of equity offerings, debt financings, collaboration agreements, government and other third-party funding, strategic alliances, licensing arrangements or marketing and distribution arrangements. Debt financing and preferred equity financing, if available, may involve agreements that include covenants limiting or restricting our ability to take specific actions, such as incurring additional debt, making capital expenditures or declaring dividends. If we raise additional funds through government and other third-party funding, collaboration agreements, strategic alliances, licensing arrangements or marketing and distribution arrangements, we may have to relinquish valuable rights to our technologies,

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future revenue streams, research programs or product candidates or grant licenses on terms that may not be favorable to us. If we are unable to raise additional funds through equity or debt financings when needed, we may be required to delay, limit, reduce or terminate our product development or future commercialization efforts or grant rights to develop and market products or product candidates that we would otherwise prefer to develop and market ourselves.

Critical Accounting Policies and Significant Judgments and Estimates

Our consolidated financial statements are prepared in accordance with GAAP principles in the United States. The preparation of our consolidated financial statements and related disclosures requires us to make estimates and judgments that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenue, costs and expenses, and the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities in our financial statements. We base our estimates on historical experience, known trends and events and various other factors that we believe are reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. We evaluate our estimates and assumptions on an ongoing basis. Our actual results may differ from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions.

While our significant accounting policies are described in more detail in Note 2 “Summary of Significant Accounting Policies” to our consolidated financial statements appearing elsewhere in this Annual Report, we believe that the following accounting policies are those most critical to the judgments and estimates used in the preparation of our consolidated financial statements.

Accrued Research and Development Expenses

As part of the process of preparing our consolidated financial statements, we are required to estimate our accrued research and development expenses. This process involves reviewing open contracts and purchase orders, communicating with our personnel to identify services that have been performed on our behalf and estimating the level of service performed and the associated cost incurred for the service when we have not yet been invoiced or otherwise notified of actual costs. The majority of our service providers invoice us in arrears for services performed, on a pre-determined schedule or when contractual milestones are met; however, some require advanced payments. We make estimates of our accrued expenses as of each balance sheet date in the consolidated financial statements based on facts and circumstances known to us at that time. We periodically confirm the accuracy of these estimates with the service providers and make adjustments if necessary. Examples of estimated accrued research and development expenses include fees paid to:

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vendors, including central laboratories, in connection with preclinical development activities;

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CROs and investigative sites in connection with preclinical and clinical studies; and

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CMOs in connection with drug substance and drug product formulation of preclinical and clinical trial materials.

We base our expenses related to preclinical studies and clinical trials on our estimates of the services received and efforts expended pursuant to quotes and contracts with multiple research institutions and CROs that conduct and manage preclinical studies and clinical trials on our behalf. The financial terms of these agreements are subject to negotiation, vary from contract to contract and may result in uneven payment flows. There may be instances in which payments made to our vendors will exceed the level of services provided and result in a prepayment of the expense. Payments under some of these contracts depend on factors such as the successful enrollment of patients and the completion of clinical trial milestones. In accruing service fees, we estimate the time period over which services will be performed and the level of effort to be expended in each period. If the actual timing of the performance of services or the level of effort varies from the estimate, we adjust the accrual or the amount of prepaid expenses accordingly. Although we do not expect our estimates to be materially different from amounts actually incurred, our understanding of the status and timing of services performed relative to the actual status and timing of services performed may vary and may result in reporting amounts that are too high or too low in

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any particular period. To date, there have not been any material adjustments to our prior estimates of accrued research and development expenses.

Stock-Based Compensation

We measure stock options and other stock-based awards granted to employees and members of our board of directors for their services as directors based on the fair value on the date of the grant and recognize the corresponding compensation expense of those awards over the requisite service period, which is generally the vesting period of the respective award. We have issued stock options, restricted stock and RSUs with service-based vesting conditions.

Modifications to stock-based awards are treated as an exchange of the original award for a new award with total compensation equal to the grant-date fair value of the original award plus any incremental value of the modification. The incremental value is based on the excess of the fair value of the modified award over the fair value of the original award immediately before the modification.

Prior to the adoption of Accounting Standards Update (ASU) No. 2018-07, Compensation—Stock Compensation (Topic 718): Improvements to Nonemployee Share-Based Payment Accounting (ASU 2018-07), as discussed in Note 2 “Summary of Significant Accounting Policies” to our consolidated financial statements appearing elsewhere in this Annual Report, the measurement date for non-employee awards was generally the date the services were completed, resulting in financial reporting period adjustments to stock-based compensation during the vesting terms for changes in the fair value of the awards. After the adoption of ASU 2018-07, the measurement date for non-employee awards is the later of the adoption date of ASU 2018-07, or the date of grant, without change in the fair value of the award.

We estimate the fair value of each stock option grant using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model, which uses as inputs the estimated fair value of our common stock and assumptions we make for the volatility of our common stock, the expected term of our stock options, the risk-free interest rate for a period that approximates the expected term of our stock options and our expected dividend yield.

We determined the assumptions for the Black-Scholes option-pricing model as discussed below. Each of these inputs is subjective and generally requires significant judgment to determine.

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Determination of the Fair Value of Common Stock. The fair value of our common stock is determined based on the quoted market price of our common stock. Prior to our IPO, there was no public market for our common stock, and consequently, the estimated fair value of our common stock was determined by our board of directors as of the date of each option grant, with input from management, considering third-party valuations of our common stock as well as our board of directors’ assessment of additional objective and subjective factors that it believed were relevant and which may have changed from the date of the most recent third-party valuation through the date of the grant. These third-party valuations were performed in accordance with the guidance outlined in the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants’ Accounting and Valuation Guide, Valuation of Privately-Held-Company Equity Securities Issued as Compensation. Following the closing of our IPO, it was no longer necessary for our board of directors to estimate the fair market value of our common stock in connection with our accounting for granted equity awards.

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Expected Term. The expected term represents the period that the stock-based awards are expected to be outstanding. The expected term of stock options granted has been determined using the simplified method, which uses the midpoint between the vesting date and the contractual term.

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Risk-Free Interest Rate. The risk-free interest rate is based on the U.S. Treasury yield curve in effect at the date of grant for zero-coupon U.S. Treasury constant maturity notes with terms approximately equal to the stock-based award’s expected term.

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Expected Volatility. Because we do not have long-term trading history of our common stock, the expected volatility was derived from the average historical stock volatilities of several public companies within our industry that we consider to be comparable to our business over a period equivalent to the expected term of the stock-based awards.

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Dividend Rate. The expected dividend is zero as we have not paid and do not anticipate paying any dividends in the foreseeable future.

If any of the assumptions used in the Black-Scholes model change significantly, stock-based compensation for future awards may differ materially compared with the awards granted previously.

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Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements

We did not have, during the periods presented, and we do not currently have, any off-balance sheet arrangements, as defined in the rules and regulations of the SEC.

Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements

A description of recently issued accounting pronouncements that may potentially impact our financial position and results of operations is disclosed in Note 2 “Summary of Significant Accounting Policies” to our audited financial statements appearing elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

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