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INDEX TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets as of

Key Takeaway: INDEX TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets as of September 30, 2019 and December 31, 2018 (Unaudited) F-2 Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Loss for the Three and Nine Months Ended September 30, 2019

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INDEX TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets as of September 30, 2019 and December 31, 2018 (Unaudited) F-2
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Loss for the Three and Nine Months Ended September 30, 2019 and 2018 (Unaudited) F-3
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Shareholders' Equity for the Three and Nine Months Ended September 30, 2019 and 2018 (Unaudited) F-4
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the Nine Months Ended September 30, 2019 and 2018 (Unaudited) F-6
Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited) F-7
AUTOLUS THERAPEUTICS PLC
Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (Unaudited)
(In thousands, except share and per share amounts)
September 30, 2019 December 31, 2018
Assets
Current assets:
Cash $ 229,366 $ 217,450
Restricted cash 681 105
Prepaid expenses and other current assets 30,136 15,411
Total current assets 260,183 232,966
Non-current assets:
Property and equipment, net 28,413 19,968
Right of use asset, net 24,133 -
Long-term deposits 1,912 1,276
Total assets $ 314,641 $ 254,210
Liabilities and shareholders' equity
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable 2,733 2,022
Accrued expenses and other liabilities 15,548 19,054
Lease liability 2,282 -
Total current liabilities 20,563 21,076
Non-current liabilities:
Lease liability 24,407 -
Long-term lease incentive obligation - 207
Other long-term payables 30 285
Total liabilities 45,000 21,568
Shareholders' equity:
Ordinary shares, $0.000042 par value; 200,000,000 shares authorized as of September 30, 2019 and December 31, 2018; 44,982,378 and 40,145,617 shares issued and outstanding at September 30, 2019 and December 31, 2018, respectively 2 2
Deferred shares, 0.00001 par value; 34,425 shares authorized, issued and outstanding at September 30, 2019 and December 31, 2018 - -
Deferred B shares, 0.00099 par value; 88,893,548 shares authorized, issued and outstanding at September 30, 2019 and December 31, 2018 118 118
Deferred C shares, 0.000001 par value; 1 share authorized, issued and outstanding at September 30, 2019 and December 31, 2018 - -
Additional paid-in capital 494,080 361,311
Accumulated other comprehensive loss (28,353 ) (15,488 )
Accumulated deficit (196,206 ) (113,301 )
Total shareholders' equity 269,641 232,642
Total liabilities and shareholders' equity $ 314,641 $ 254,210
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated financial statements.
AUTOLUS THERAPEUTICS PLC
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Loss (Unaudited)
(In thousands, except share and per share amounts)
Three Months Ended September 30, Nine Months Ended September 30,
2019 2018 2019 2018
Grant income $ 297 $ 307 $ 2,599 $ 1,176
Operating expenses:
Research and development (27,310 ) (10,096 ) (76,050 ) (30,586 )
General and administrative (8,605 ) (7,273 ) (29,531 ) (19,706 )
Total operating expenses, net (35,618 ) (17,062 ) (102,982 ) (49,116 )
Other income (expense):
Interest income 509 796 2,124 1,351
Other income 3,263 1,206 6,659 4,655
Total other income, net 3,772 2,002 8,783 6,006
Net loss before income tax (31,846 ) (15,060 ) (94,199 ) (43,110 )
Income tax benefit 4,598 2,200 11,294 5,883
Net loss attributable to ordinary shareholders (27,248 ) (12,860 ) (82,905 ) (37,227 )
Other comprehensive loss:
Foreign currency exchange translation adjustment (9,044 ) (973 ) (12,865 ) (7,215 )
Total comprehensive loss $ (36,292 ) $ (13,833 ) $ (95,770 ) $ (44,442 )
Basic and diluted net loss per ordinary share $ (0.61 ) $ (0.33 ) $ (1.95 ) $ (1.14 )
Weighted-average basic and diluted ordinary shares 44,505,383 39,214,334 42,547,755 32,516,001
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated financial statements.
AUTOLUS THERAPEUTICS PLC
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Shareholders' Equity (Unaudited)
(In thousands, except share amounts)
Three Months Ended September 30, 2019
Ordinary Shares Deferred Shares Deferred B Shares Deferred C Shares
Shares Amount Shares Amount Shares Amount Shares Amount Additional Paid in Capital Accumulated other comprehensive gain/(loss) Accumulated deficit Total
Balance at June 30, 2019 44,981,860 $ 2 34,425 $ - 88,893,548 $ 118 1 $ - $ 486,369 $ (19,309 ) $ (168,958 ) $ 298,222
Share-based compensation expense - - - - - - - - 7,709 - - 7,709
Restricted shares - forfeited - - - - - - - - - - - -
Exercise of stock options 518 - - - - - - - 2 - - 2
Unrealized gain on foreign currency translation - - - - - - - - - (9,044 ) - (9,044 )
Net loss - - - - - - - - - - (27,248 ) (27,248 )
Balance at September 30, 2019 44,982,378 $ 2 34,425 $ - 88,893,548 $ 118 1 $ - $ 494,080 $ (28,353 ) $ (196,206 ) $ 269,641
Three Months Ended September 30, 2018
Ordinary Shares Deferred Shares Deferred B Shares Deferred C Shares
Shares Amount Shares Amount Shares Amount Shares Amount Additional Paid in Capital Accumulated other comprehensive gain/(loss) Accumulated deficit Total
Balance at June 30, 2018 40,149.586 $ 2 34.425 $ - 88,893.548 $ 118 1 $ - $ 355,726 $ (8,947 ) $ (79,793 ) $ 267,106
Share-based compensation expense - - - - - - - - 2,192 - - 2,192
Restricted shares - forfeited (3,404 ) - - - - - - - - - - -
Unrealized loss on foreign currency translation - - - - - - - - - (973 ) - (973 )
Net loss - - - - - - - - - - (12,860 ) (12,860 )
Balance at September 30, 2018 40,146.182 $ 2 34,425 $ - 88,893,548 $ 118 1 $ - $ 357,918 $ (9,920 ) $ (92,653 ) $ 255,465
AUTOLUS THERAPEUTICS PLC
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Shareholders' Equity (Unaudited) Continued
(In thousands, except share amounts)
Nine Months Ended September 30, 2019
Ordinary Shares Deferred Shares Deferred B Shares Deferred C Shares
Shares Amount Shares Amount Shares Amount Shares Amount Additional Paid in Capital Accumulated other comprehensive gain/(loss) Accumulated deficit Total
Balance at December 31, 2018 40,145,617 $ 2 34,425 $ - 88,893,548 $ 118 1 $ - $ 361,311 $ (15,488 ) $ (113,301 ) $ 232,642
Issuance of ordinary shares, net of issuance costs 4,830,000 - - - - - - - 108,815 - - 108,815
Share-based compensation expense - - - - - - - - 23,940 - - 23,940
Restricted shares - forfeited (380 ) - - - - - - - - - - -
Exercise of stock options 7,141 - - - - - - - 14 - - 14
Unrealized gain on foreign currency translation - - - - - - - - - (12,865 ) - (12,865 )
Net loss - - - - - - - - - - (82,905 ) (82,905 )
Balance at September 30, 2019 44,982,378 $ 2 34,425 $ - 88,893,548 $ 118 1 $ - $ 494,080 $ (28,353 ) $ (196,206 ) $ 269,641
Nine Months Ended September 30, 2018
Ordinary Shares Deferred Shares Deferred B Shares Deferred C Shares
Shares Amount Shares Amount Shares Amount Shares Amount Additional Paid in Capital Accumulated other comprehensive gain/(loss) Accumulated deficit Total
Balance at December 31, 2017 30,004,605 $ 1 - $ - - $ - - $ - $ 195,644 $ (2,705 ) $ (55,426 ) $ 137,514
Issuance of ordinary shares, net of issuance costs 10,147,059 1 - - - - - - 156,369 - - 156,370
Issuance of deferred shares - - 34,425 - 88,893,548 118 1 - - - - 118
Share-based compensation expense - - - - - - - - 5,905 - - 5,905
Restricted shares - forfeited (5,482 ) - - - - - - - - - - -
Unrealized loss on foreign currency translation - - - - - - - - - (7,215 ) - (7,215 )
Net loss - - - - - - - - - - (37,227 ) (37,227 )
Balance at September 30, 2018 40,146,182 $ 2 34,425 $ - 88,893.548 $ 118 1 $ - 357,918 $ (9,920 ) $ (92,653 ) $ 255,465
AUTOLUS THERAPEUTICS PLC
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (Unaudited)
Nine Months Ended September 30,
2019 2018
Cash flows from operating activities:
Net loss $ (82,905 ) $ (37,227 )
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization 3,322 1,341
Share-based compensation (net of amount capitalized) 23,810 5,905
Loss on disposal of property and equipment 43 8
Changes in operating assets and liabilities
Prepaid expenses and other current assets (15,841 ) (5,758 )
Long-term deposits (724 ) -
Right of use asset, net 1,870 -
Accounts payable 362 2,026
Accrued expenses and other liabilities 1,772 10,965
Lease liability 74 -
Net cash used in operating activities (68,217 ) (22,740 )
Cash flows from investing activities:
Purchases of property and equipment (16,754 ) (8,355 )
Purchase of intangible assets - (412 )
Net cash used in investing activities (16,754 ) (8,767 )
Cash flows from financing activities:
Proceeds of issuance of ordinary shares, net of issuance costs 108,829 156,487
Net cash provided by financing activities 108,829 156,487
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and restricted cash (11,366 ) (6,875 )
Net increase in cash and restricted cash 12,492 118,105
Cash and restricted cash, beginning of period 217,555 128,984
Cash and restricted cash, end of period $ 230,047 $ 247,089
Supplemental cash flow information
Property and equipment purchases included in accounts payable and accrued expenses $ 1,471 $ 328
Capitalized share-based compensation $ 130 $ -
Reconciliation of cash and restricted cash reported within the condensed consolidated balance sheets:
Cash $ 229,366 $ 247,089
Restricted cash 681 -
Total cash and restricted cash $ 230,047 $ 247,089
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated financial statements.
AUTOLUS THERAPEUTICS PLC
Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited)
Note 1. Nature of the Business
Autolus Therapeutics plc (the "Company") is a biopharmaceutical company developing next-generation programmed T cell therapies for the treatment of cancer. Using its broad suite of proprietary and modular T cell programming technologies, the Company is engineering precisely targeted, controlled and highly active T cell therapies that are designed to better recognize cancer cells, break down their defense mechanisms and attack and kill these cells. The Company believes its programmed T cell therapies have the potential to be best-in-class and offer cancer patients substantial benefits over the existing standard of care, including the potential for cure in some patients.
The Company is a public limited company incorporated in England and Wales. On June 22, 2018, the Company completed its initial public offering ("IPO") of American Depositary Shares ("ADSs"). In the IPO, the Company sold an aggregate of 10,147,059 ADSs representing the same number of ordinary shares, including 1,323,529 ADSs pursuant to the underwriters' option to purchase additional ADSs, at a public offering price of $17.00 per ADS. Net proceeds were $156.5 million, after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and offering expenses paid by the Company.
On April 15, 2019, the Company completed an underwritten public offering of 4,830,000 ADSs representing 4,830,000 ordinary shares, at a public offering price of $24.00 per ADS, which includes an additional 630,000 ADSs issued upon the exercise in full of the underwriters' option to purchase additional ADSs. Aggregate net proceeds to the Company, after underwriting discounts and offering expenses, were $108.8 million.
Autolus Therapeutics plc is a continuation of Autolus Limited and its subsidiaries. In connection with the IPO, the Company completed a corporate reorganization, which has been accounted for as a combination of entities under common control. The corporate reorganization has been given retrospective effect in these financial statements and such financial statements represent the financial statements of Autolus Therapeutics plc. In connection with the corporate reorganization, outstanding restricted share awards and option grants of Autolus Limited were exchanged for share awards and option grants of Autolus Therapeutics plc with identical restrictions.
The Company is subject to risks and uncertainties common to early-stage companies in the biotechnology industry, including, but not limited to, development by competitors of new technological innovations, dependence on key personnel, protection of proprietary technology, compliance with government regulations and the ability to secure additional capital to fund operations. Product candidates currently under development will require significant additional research and development efforts, including preclinical and clinical testing and regulatory approval, prior to commercialization. These efforts require significant amounts of capital, adequate personnel and infrastructure and extensive compliance-reporting capabilities. Even if the Company's product development efforts are successful, it is uncertain when, if ever, the Company will realize revenue from its product sales.
The Company has funded its operations primarily with proceeds from the sale of its equity securities. The Company has incurred recurring losses since its inception, including net losses of $27.2 million and $12.9 million for the three months ended September 30, 2019 and 2018, respectively, and $82.9 million and $37.2 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2019 and 2018, respectively. In addition, the Company had an accumulated deficit of $196.2 million and $113.3 million as of September 30, 2019 and December 31, 2018, respectively. The Company expects to continue to generate operating losses for the foreseeable future. The future viability of the Company is dependent on its ability to raise additional capital to finance its operations. The Company's inability to raise additional capital as and when needed could have a negative impact on its financial condition and ability to pursue its business strategies. There can be no assurances, however, that the current operating plan will be achieved or that additional funding will be available on terms acceptable to the Company, or at all. The Company believes the cash on hand at September 30, 2019 of $229.4 million will be sufficient to fund the Company's operations for at least twelve months from the issuance of these financial statements.
AUTOLUS THERAPEUTICS PLC
Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited) - Continued
Note 2. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
Basis of Presentation
The accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements include those of the Company, its wholly-owned subsidiary, Autolus Limited, and its U.S. subsidiary, Autolus Inc., and have been prepared in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America ("U.S. GAAP"). All intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated upon consolidation.
The preparation of condensed consolidated financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the condensed consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of income and expenses during the reporting periods. Significant estimates and assumptions reflected in these condensed consolidated financial statements include, but are not limited to, the accrual for research and development expenses, the fair value of ordinary shares, share-based compensation and income taxes. Estimates are periodically reviewed in light of changes in circumstances, facts and experience. Changes in estimates are recorded in the period in which they become known. Actual results could differ materially from those estimates.
Cash and Cash Equivalents
The Company considers cash and cash equivalents in the condensed consolidated financial statements to include cash at banks with a maturity of less than three months, which is subject to an insignificant risk of changes in value.
The Company entered into a lease that requires a letter of credit supported by $0.6 million deposit held by the Company's bank for the duration of the lease and a credit card arrangement that requires a security deposit of $0.1 million. The Company includes the restricted cash balance in cash and cash equivalents when reconciling beginning-of-period and end-of-period total amounts shown on the Company's condensed consolidated statements of cash flows.
Fair Value Measurements
The carrying amounts reported in the balance sheets for cash, prepaid expenses and other assets, accounts payable and accrued expenses and other liabilities approximate their fair value because of the short-term nature of these instruments.
Concentration of Credit Risk
Financial instruments that subject the Company to credit risk consist primarily of cash and cash equivalents. The Company places cash and cash equivalents in established financial institutions. The Company has no significant off-balance-sheet risk or concentration of credit risk, such as foreign exchange contracts, options contracts, or other foreign hedging arrangements.
AUTOLUS THERAPEUTICS PLC
Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited) - Continued
Property and Equipment
Property and equipment are recorded at cost and depreciated or amortized using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the respective assets. As of September 30, 2019 and December 31, 2018, the Company's property and equipment consisted of office equipment, lab equipment, furniture and fixtures, and leasehold improvements. The office equipment has an estimated useful life of three years and the lab equipment and furniture and fixtures have an estimated useful life of five years. Leasehold improvements are depreciated over the shorter of the lease term or the estimated useful life of the asset. Assets under construction primarily consist of costs incurred with leasehold improvements, and, once placed into service, will be depreciated over the shorter of the lease term or the estimated useful life of the asset. Upon retirement or sale, the cost of assets disposed of, and the related accumulated depreciation, are removed from the accounts and any resulting gain or loss is included in the statement of operations and other comprehensive loss. Repairs and maintenance expenditures, which are not considered improvements and do not extend the useful life of property and equipment, are expensed as incurred. The Company did not recognize a disposal loss in the three months ended September 30, 2019 and recognized a $43,000 disposal loss nine months ended September 30, 2019. The Company recognized an asset disposal of less than $10,000 for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018.
The Company evaluates an asset for potential impairment when events or changes in circumstances indicate the carrying value of the asset may not be recoverable. Recoverability is measured by comparing the book value of the asset to the expected future net undiscounted cash flows that the asset is expected to generate. If such asset is considered to be impaired, the impairment to be recognized is measured by the amount by which the book value of the asset exceeds the fair value.
The reported cash flows for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 includes $8.4 million of purchases of property and equipment of which $2.2 million was disclosed as cash outflows in the six months ending June 30, 2018 consolidated statement of cash flows which was a cash outflow in the three months ending September 30, 2018.
Effective January 1, 2019, the Company adopted Accounting Standards Codification ("ASC"), Topic 842, Leases ("ASC 842"), using the required modified retrospective approach and utilizing the effective date as its date of initial application, for which prior periods are presented in accordance with the previous guidance in ASC 840, Leases.
At the inception of an arrangement, the Company determines whether the arrangement is or contains a lease based on the unique facts and circumstances present. Most leases with a term greater than one year are recognized on the balance sheet as right-of-use assets, lease liabilities and, if applicable, long-term lease liabilities. The Company has elected not to recognize on the balance sheet leases with terms of one year or less. Operating lease liabilities and their corresponding right-of-use assets are recorded based on the present value of lease payments over the expected remaining lease term. However, certain adjustments to the right-of-use asset may be required for items such as incentives received, initial direct costs, or prepayments. The interest rate implicit in lease contracts is typically not readily determinable. As a result, the Company utilizes its incremental borrowing rates, which are the rates incurred to borrow on a collateralized basis over a similar term an amount equal to the lease payments in a similar economic environment.
In accordance with the guidance in ASC 842, components of a lease should be split into three categories: lease components (e.g. land, building, etc.), non-lease components (e.g. common area maintenance, consumables, etc.), and non-components (e.g. property taxes, insurance, etc.). Then the fixed and in-substance fixed contract consideration (including any related to non-components) must be allocated based on the respective relative fair values to the lease components and non-lease components.
Although separation of lease and non-lease components is required, certain practical expedients are available. Entities may elect the practical expedient to not separate lease and non-lease components. Rather, they would account for each lease component and the related non-lease component together as a single component. For new and amended leases beginning in 2019, the Company has elected this practical expedient to account for the lease and non-lease components for leases for classes of all underlying assets and allocate all of the contract consideration to the lease
AUTOLUS THERAPEUTICS PLC
Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited) - Continued
component only. The Company determined the underlying lease to be the predominant component, and therefore, the entire agreement will be accounted for under ASC 842.
Intangible Assets Subject to Amortization
The Company's intangible assets with finite lives are amortized over their useful lives and reviewed for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of the asset may not be recoverable. If any indicators were present, the Company would test for recoverability by comparing the carrying amount of the asset to the net undiscounted cash flows expected to be generated from the asset. If those net undiscounted cash flows do not exceed the carrying amount (i.e., the asset is not recoverable), the Company would perform the next step, which is to determine the fair value of the asset and record an impairment loss, if any. The Company evaluates the useful lives for these intangible assets each reporting period to determine whether events and circumstances warrant a revision in their remaining useful lives. The Company did not recognize an impairment loss in the three and nine months ended September 30, 2019 and 2018.
Operating segments are defined as components of an enterprise about which separate discrete information is available for evaluation by the chief operating decision maker in deciding how to allocate resources and assess performance. The Company and it's chief operating decision maker, the Company's Chief Executive Officer, view the Company's operations and manage its business as a single operating segment, which is the business of developing and commercializing gene therapies; however, the Company operates in two geographic regions: the United Kingdom and the United States. Substantially all of the Company's assets are held in the United Kingdom.
Deferred Rent and Lease Incentives
Prior to the adoption of ASC 842, rent expense and lease incentives from operating leases were recognized on a straight-line basis over the lease term. The Company has operating leases that include rent escalation payment terms and a rent free period. Deferred rent represents the difference between actual operating lease payments and straight-line rent expense over the term of the lease. Upon adoption of ASC 842, the Company no longer records or presents deferred rent.
Research and Development Costs
Research and development costs are expensed as incurred. Research and development expenses consist of costs incurred in performing research and development activities, including salaries, share-based compensation and benefits, depreciation expense, third-party license fees, external costs of outside vendors engaged to conduct clinical development activities, clinical trials, costs to manufacture clinical trial materials and certain tax credits associated with research and development activities. The Company recorded the U.K. research and development expenditure credit ("RDEC") in the amount of $126,000 and $53,000 for the three months ended September 30, 2019 and 2018, respectively, and $227,000 and $136,000 for the nine months ended September 30, 2019 and 2018, respectively, as reductions of research and development expenses within the Company's statement of operations and comprehensive loss.
Accrued Research and Development Expenses
As part of the process of preparing its condensed consolidated financial statements, the Company is required to estimate accruals for research and development expenses. This process involves reviewing and identifying services which have been performed by third parties on the Company's behalf and determining the value of these services. In addition, the Company makes estimates of costs incurred to date but not yet invoiced, in relation to external clinical research organizations and clinical site costs. The Company analyzes the progress of clinical trials, including levels of patient enrollment, invoices received and contracted costs, when evaluating the adequacy of the accrued liabilities for research and development. The Company makes judgments and estimates in determining the accrued balance in any accounting period.
AUTOLUS THERAPEUTICS PLC
Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited) - Continued
Share-Based Compensation
The Company recognizes compensation expense for equity awards based on the grant date fair value of the award. The Company recognizes share-based compensation expense for awards granted to employees that have a graded vesting schedule based on a service condition only on a straight-line basis over the requisite service period for each separately vesting portion of the award as if the award was, in substance, multiple awards (the "graded-vesting attribution method"), based on the estimated grant date fair value for each separately vesting tranche. For equity awards with a graded vesting schedule and a combination of service and performance conditions, the Company recognizes share-based compensation expense using a graded-vesting attribution method over the requisite service period when the achievement of a performance-based milestone is probable, based on the relative satisfaction of the performance condition as of the reporting date.
For share-based awards granted to consultants and non-employees, compensation expense is recognized using the graded-vesting attribution method over the period during which services are rendered by such consultants and non-employees until completed. The measurement date for employee awards is the date of grant, and share-based compensation costs are recognized as expense over the employees' requisite service period, which is the vesting period, on an accelerated basis. The Company has adopted Accounting Standards Update ("ASU") No. 2018-07, "Compensation -Stock Compensation (Topic 718): Improvements to Non-employee Share-Based Payment Accounting" ("ASU No. 2018-07"), as discussed below under "Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements," prior to which the measurement date for non-employee awards was generally the date the services were completed, resulting in financial reporting period adjustments to share-based compensation during the vesting terms for changes in the fair value of the awards. After the adoption of ASU No. 2018-07, the measurement date for non-employee awards is the later of the adoption date of ASU No. 2018-07 or the date of grant, without changes in the fair value of the award.
The Company accounts for forfeitures as they occur. Forfeitures to date have been infrequent and immaterial.
The fair value of each share option grant is estimated on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes option pricing model. See Note 7 for the Company's assumptions used in connection with option grants made during the periods covered by these condensed consolidated financial statements. Assumptions used in the option pricing model include the following:
Expected volatility. The Company lacks company-specific historical and implied volatility information for its ADSs. Therefore, the Company estimates the expected share volatility based on the historical volatility of publicly traded peer companies and expects to continue to do so until such time as it has adequate historical data regarding the volatility of its own traded share price.
Expected term. The expected term of the Company's share options has been determined utilizing the "simplified" method for awards that qualify as "plain-vanilla" options.
Risk-free interest rate. The risk-free interest rate is determined by reference to the U.S. Treasury yield curve in effect at the time of grant of the award for time periods that are approximately equal to the expected term of the award.
Expected dividend. Expected dividend yield of zero is based on the fact that the Company has never paid cash dividends on ordinary shares and does not expect to pay any cash dividends in the foreseeable future.
Fair value of ordinary shares. Options granted after the Company's IPO are issued at the fair market value of the Company's ADS at the date the grant is approved by the Board.
Prior to the IPO, the Company calculated the fair value of its ordinary shares in accordance with the guidelines in the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants' Accounting and Valuation Guide, Valuation of Privately-Held-Company Equity Securities Issued as Compensation. The Company's valuations of ordinary shares were prepared using a market approach, based on precedent transactions in the shares, to estimate the Company's total equity value
AUTOLUS THERAPEUTICS PLC
Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited) - Continued
using the option-pricing method ("OPM"), which used a combination of market approaches and an income approach to estimate the Company's enterprise value.
The OPM derives an equity value such that the value indicated is consistent with the investment price, and it provides an allocation of this equity value to each class of the Company's securities. The OPM treats the various classes of shares as call options on the total equity value of a company, with exercise prices based on the value thresholds at which the allocation among the various holders of a company's securities changes. Under this method, each class of shares has value only if the funds available for distribution to shareholders exceed the value of the share liquidation preferences of the class or classes of shares with senior preferences at the time of the liquidity event. Key inputs and assumptions used in the OPM calculation include the following:
Expected volatility. The Company applied re-levered equity volatility based on the historical unlevered and re-levered equity volatility of publicly traded peer companies.
Expected dividend. Expected dividend yield of zero is based on the fact that the Company has never paid cash dividends on ordinary shares and does not expect to pay any cash dividends in the foreseeable future.
Expected term. The expected term of the option or the estimated time until a liquidation event.
Risk-free interest rate. The risk-free interest rate is determined by reference to the U.S. Treasury yield curve for the period commensurate with the expected of the exit event.
When considering the fair value of options granted in the period prior to the IPO, the Company considered probability-weighted scenarios based on the relative likelihoods of completing the IPO and remaining a privately-held company. In the IPO scenarios, the fair value was calculated by dividing the total estimated equity value by the number of fully diluted ordinary shares outstanding, and then discounting the implied per-share value at a rate intended to approximate the Company's cost of equity between share option grant date and the expected IPO date. The stay-private scenario utilized an OPM "Backsolve" calculation to estimate its equity value implied by the purchase price of the series A preference shares in September 2017. In March and May 2018, the Company issued share option grants to employees that applied a 50% and 80% probability weighting of an IPO, respectively, to the fair value of the underlying ordinary share utilized in the Black-Scholes option pricing model.
Foreign Currency Remeasurement and Translation
The Company maintains its condensed consolidated financial statements in its functional currency, which is the pounds sterling. Monetary assets and liabilities denominated in currencies other than the functional currency are remeasured into the functional currency at rates of exchange prevailing at the balance sheet dates. Non-monetary assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies are remeasured into the functional currency at the exchange rates prevailing at the date of the transaction. Exchange gains or losses arising from foreign currency transactions are included in the determination of net loss for the respective periods. The Company recorded foreign exchange gain of $3.3 million and $1.2 million for the three months ended September 30, 2019 and 2018, respectively, and $6.7 million and $4.7 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2019 and 2018, respectively. Foreign exchange gains are included in other income in the statements of operations and comprehensive loss.
For financial reporting purposes, the condensed consolidated financial statements of the Company have been translated into U.S. dollars. Assets and liabilities have been translated at the exchange rates at the balance sheet dates, while revenue and expenses are translated at the average exchange rates over the reporting period and shareholders' equity amounts are translated based on historical exchange rates as of the date of each transaction. Translation adjustments are not included in determining the Company's net loss but are included in foreign exchange adjustment to other comprehensive loss, a component of shareholders' equity.
AUTOLUS THERAPEUTICS PLC
Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited) - Continued
The Company expenses patent prosecution and related legal costs as they are incurred and classifies such costs as general and administrative expenses in the accompanying statements of operations and comprehensive loss. The Company recorded patent expenses of $0.5 million and $0.3 million for the three months ended September 30, 2019 and 2018, respectively, and $1.4 million and $1.0 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2019 and 2018, respectively.
The Company has received research grants under which it is reimbursed for specific research and development activities. Payments received are recognized as income in the statements of operations and comprehensive loss over the period in which the Company recognizes the related costs. At the time the Company recognizes grant income, it has complied with the conditions attached to it and the receipt of the reimbursement is reasonably assured. The Company has received grants from the U.K. government, which are repayable under certain circumstances, including breach or noncompliance. For grants with refund provisions, the Company reviews the grant to determine the likelihood of repayment. If the likelihood of repayment of the grant is determined to be remote, then the grant is recognized as grant income. The Company has determined that the likelihood of any repayment events included in its current grants is remote.
The Company accounts for income taxes under the asset and liability method which includes the recognition of deferred tax assets and liabilities for the expected future tax consequences of events that have been included in the Company's condensed consolidated financial statements. Under this approach, deferred taxes are recorded for the future tax consequences expected to occur when the reported amounts of assets and liabilities are recovered or paid. The provision for income taxes represents income taxes paid or payable for the current year plus deferred taxes. Deferred taxes result from differences between the condensed consolidated financial statements and tax bases of the Company's assets and liabilities, and are adjusted for changes in tax rates and tax law when changes are enacted. The effects of future changes in income tax laws or rates are not anticipated.
The Company is subject to income taxes in the United Kingdom and the United States. The calculation of the Company's tax provision involves the application of United Kingdom tax law and requires judgement and estimates.
The Company evaluates the realizability of its deferred tax assets at each reporting date, and establishes a valuation allowance when it is more likely than not that all or a portion of its deferred tax assets will not be realized.
The ultimate realization of deferred tax assets is dependent upon the generation of future taxable income of the same character and in the same jurisdiction. The Company considers all available positive and negative evidence in making this assessment, including, but not limited to, the scheduled reversal of deferred tax liabilities, projected future taxable income, and tax planning strategies. In circumstances where there is sufficient negative evidence indicating that the Company's deferred tax assets are not more likely than not realizable, the Company establishes a valuation allowance.
The Company uses a two-step approach for recognizing and measuring uncertain tax positions. The first step is to evaluate tax positions taken or expected to be taken in a tax return by assessing whether they are more likely than not sustainable, based solely on their technical merits, upon examination, and including resolution of any related appeals or litigation process. The second step is to measure the associated tax benefit or each position as the largest amount that the Company believes is more likely than not realizable. Differences between the amount of tax benefits taken or expected to be taken in the Company's income tax returns and the amount of tax benefits recognized in the its condensed consolidated financial statements represent the Company's unrecognized income tax benefits, which it either records as a liability or reduction of deferred tax assets.
Last updated: Nov 7, 2019