Quarterly report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

Stock Based Awards

v3.20.2
Stock Based Awards
9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2020
Share-based Payment Arrangement [Abstract]  
Stock Based Awards

6. Stock Based Awards

 

Equity Incentive Plans

 

The Company adopted an equity incentive plan in 2007 (the “2007 Plan”) under which 1,786,635 shares of common stock had been reserved for issuance to employees and nonemployee directors and consultants of the Company. The Company no longer issues any awards under the 2007 Plan. Holders of outstanding incentive stock options granted under the 2007 Plan are eligible to purchase shares of the Company’s common stock at an exercise price equal to no less than the fair market value of such stock on the date of grant. The maximum term of options granted under the 2007 Plan was ten years.

 

The Company adopted a second equity incentive plan in 2015 (the “2015 Plan”) under which 2,705,237 (including 1,038,570 initially transferred from the 2007 Plan) shares of common stock have been reserved for issuance to employees, and nonemployee directors and consultants of the Company. Recipients of incentive stock options granted under the 2015 Plan shall be eligible to purchase shares of the Company’s common stock at an exercise price equal to no less than the estimated fair market value of such stock on the date of grant. The maximum term of options granted under the 2015 Plan is ten years. As of September 30, 2020, 2,718,020 options remain available for future grants under the 2015 Plan.

 

The following table summarizes stock option transactions for the 2007 Plan and 2015 Plan, collectively, for the nine months ended September 30, 2020 (in thousands, except per share amounts):

 

    Number of
Shares
Available
for Grant
    Total
Options
Outstanding
    Weighted
Average
Exercise
Price
    Aggregate
Intrinsic
Value
 
Balance at December 31, 2019     3,588       931     $ 4.14     $ -  
Exercised     -       -       -               -  
Granted     (878 )     878       1.33         _
Cancelled     8       (8 )     2.94       -  
Balance at September 30, 2020     2,718       1,801       2.78         _

 

The Company accounts for share-based awards to employees and nonemployee directors and consultants in accordance with the provisions of ASC 718, Compensation—Stock Compensation., and under the recently issued guidance following FASB’s pronouncement, ASU 2018-07, Compensation—Stock Compensation (Topic 718): Improvements to Nonemployee Share-Based Payment Accounting. Under ASC 718, and applicable updates adopted, share-based awards are valued at fair value on the date of grant and that fair value is recognized over the requisite service, or vesting, period. The Company values its equity awards using the Black-Scholes option pricing model, and accounts for forfeitures when they occur. For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2020 and 2019, equity-based compensation expense recorded was $237,000 and $463,000, and $108,000 and $253,000, respectively.

 

During the nine months ended September 30, 2020 the Company granted stock options to officers, directors, employees and consultants to purchase a total of 878,000 shares of common stock. The options have an exercise price of $1.33 per share, expire in ten years, and vest as follows: one half vests on the one year anniversary of the grant date and the remainder will vest in eight equal quarterly increments with the first such quarterly increment vesting on September 30, 2021. The total fair value of these options at the grant date was approximately $944,000 using the Black-Scholes Option pricing model.

 

The fair value of share option award is estimated using the Black-Scholes option pricing method based on the following weighted-average assumptions:

 

    Nine Months Ended September 30,  
    2020     2019  
Risk-free interest rate     0.43 %     2.99 %
Average expected term (years)     5.9       6.1  
Expected volatility     107.45 %     90.00 %
Expected dividend yield     0.00       0.00  

 

The risk-free interest rate is based on the U.S. Treasury yield curve in effect at the time of measurement corresponding with the expected term of the share option award; the expected term represents the weighted-average period of time that share option awards granted are expected to be outstanding giving consideration to vesting schedules and historical participant exercise behavior; the expected volatility is based upon historical volatility of the Company’s common stock; and the expected dividend yield is based on the fact that the Company has not paid dividends in the past and does not expect to pay dividends in the future.

 

As of September 30, 2020, there was approximately $1,661,000 of total unrecognized compensation expense related to non-vested stock options that is expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of 8.5 years. For options granted and outstanding, there were 515,564 options outstanding which were fully vested or expected to vest, with an aggregate intrinsic value of $0, a weighted average exercise price of $2.77, and weighted average remaining contractual term of 6.8 years at September 30, 2020. For vested and exercisable options, outstanding shares totaled 515,564, with an aggregate intrinsic value of $0. These options had a weighted average exercise price of $5.24 per share and a weighted-average remaining contractual term of 6.8 years at September 30, 2020.

 

The aggregate intrinsic value of outstanding and exercisable options at September 30, 2020 was calculated based on the closing price of the Company’s common stock as reported on The Nasdaq Capital Market on September 30, 2020 of $0.93 per share less the exercise price of the options. The aggregate intrinsic value is calculated based on the positive difference between the closing fair market value of the Company’s common stock and the exercise price of the underlying options.

 

Common Stock Reserved for Future Issuance

 

The following table presents information concerning common stock available for future issuance (in thousands) as of:

 

    September 30, 2020     September 30, 2019  
Stock options issued and outstanding     1,801       931  
Shares authorized for future option grants     2,718       3,588  
Warrants outstanding     243       243  
Total     4,762       4,762