Medpace Holdings, Inc. - Annual Report: 2017 (Form 10-K)

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

(Mark One)

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017

or

For the transition period from             to             .

Commission file number: 001-37856

Medpace Holdings, Inc.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

5375 Medpace Way, Cincinnati, OH 45227

(Address of principal executive offices) (Zip Code)

(513) 579-9911

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes    ☐  No    ☒

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes    ☐  No    ☒

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.  Yes   ☒   No    ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files).  Yes    ☒  No    ☐

Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K (§229.405 of this chapter) is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of registrant's knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K.  ☐

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

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act.☒

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes    ☐  No    ☒

The aggregate market value of the voting and non‑voting common equity held by non‑affiliates of the registrant, based upon the closing sale price as reported on the Nasdaq Global Select Market on June 30, 2017, the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter, was approximately $182 million. For purposes of this computation, shares of the registrant’s common stock held by each executive officer, director, and each person known to the registrant to own 10% or more of the outstanding voting power have been excluded in that such persons are affiliates.

Indicate the number of shares outstanding of each of the issuer’s classes of Common Stock, as of the latest practicable date.

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

Portions of the registrant's definitive proxy statement to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission relating to the 2018 Annual Meeting of Stockholders are incorporated herein by reference into Part III of this Annual Report on Form 10-K to the extent stated herein.

MEDPACE HOLDINGS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

ANNUAL REPORT ON FORM 10-K

FOR FISCAL YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2017

TABLE OF CONTENTS

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FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This Annual Report on Form 10-K contains forward-looking statements. We intend such forward-looking statements to be covered by the safe harbor provisions for forward-looking statements contained in Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. All statements other than statements of historical facts contained herein, including statements regarding our results of operations; financial position and performance; liquidity and our ability to fund our business operations and initiatives; capital expenditure and debt service obligations; business strategies, plans and goals, including those related to marketing, acquisitions and expansion of our business; product approvals and plans; industry trends; expectations regarding consumer behaviors and trends; our culture and operating philosophy; human resource management; arrangements with and delivery of our services to the customers; conversion of backlog; dividend policy; legal proceedings; and our objectives for future operations, are forward-looking statements. The words “expect,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “plan,” “believe,” “seek,” “see,” “will,” “would,” “target,” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based largely on our current expectations and projections about future events and financial trends that we believe may affect our financial condition, results of operations, business strategy, short-term and long-term business operations and objectives, and financial needs. These forward-looking statements are subject to inherent uncertainties, risks, changes in circumstances and other important factors that are difficult to predict. Moreover, we operate in a very competitive and rapidly changing environment in which new risks emerge from time to time. It is not possible for our management to predict all risks, nor can we assess the impact of all important factors on our business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of such factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements we may make. In light of these risks, uncertainties and assumptions, the forward-looking events and circumstances discussed may not occur and our financial condition and actual results could differ materially and adversely from those anticipated or implied in the forward-looking statements. We caution you therefore against relying on these forward-looking statements.  Some of the important factors that could cause actual results to differ from our expectations include regional, national, or global political, economic, business, competitive, market and regulatory conditions and the other important factors included in “Item 1A Risk Factors” of Part I of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.  We qualify all of our forward-looking statements by these cautionary statements. Except as required by applicable law, we do not plan to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements contained herein, whether as a result of any new information, future events, changed circumstances or otherwise. For a further discussion of the risks relating to our business, see “Item 1A Risk Factors” of Part I of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

WEBSITE AND SOCIAL MEDIA DISCLOSURE

We use our website (www.medpace.com) and our corporate Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, Vimeo, Instagram and Twitter accounts as channels of distribution of company information. The information we post through these channels may be deemed material. Accordingly, investors should monitor these channels, in addition to following our press releases, Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC, filings and public conference calls and webcasts. The contents of our website and social media channels are not, however, a part of this report.

TRADEMARKS

We own or have the rights to use various trademarks referred to in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, including, among others, Medpace and ClinTrak and their respective logos. Solely for convenience, we may refer to trademarks in this Annual Report on Form 10-K without the TM and ^® symbols. Such references are not intended to indicate, in any way, that we will not assert, to the fullest extent permitted by law, our rights to our trademarks. Other trademarks appearing in this Annual Report on Form 10-K are the property of their respective owners.

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MARKET AND INDUSTRY INFORMATION

Market data used throughout this Annual Report on Form 10-K is based on management’s knowledge of the industry and the good faith estimates of management. All of management’s estimates presented herein are based on industry sources, including analyst reports and management’s knowledge. We also relied, to the extent available, upon management’s review of independent industry surveys and publications prepared by a number of sources and other publicly available information. We are responsible for all of the disclosure in this Annual Report on Form 10-K and while we believe that each of the publications, studies and surveys used throughout this Annual Report on Form 10-K are prepared by reputable sources, we have not independently verified market and industry data from third-party sources.

All of the market data used in this Annual Report on Form 10-K involves a number of assumptions and limitations, and you are cautioned not to give undue weight to such estimates. While we believe the estimated market position, market opportunity and market size information included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K is generally reliable, such information, which in part is derived from management’s estimates and beliefs, is inherently uncertain and imprecise and has not been verified by any independent source. Projections, assumptions and estimates of our future performance and the future performance of the industry in which we operate are necessarily subject to a high degree of uncertainty and risk due to a variety of factors, including those described in “Item 1A Risk Factors” of Part I of this Annual Report on Form 10-K and elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. These and other factors could cause results to differ materially from those expressed in our estimates and beliefs and in the estimates prepared by independent parties. See “Forward-Looking Statements” above.

GLOSSARY

We define the terms below that appear throughout this report as follows:

“Large pharmaceutical companies.” Large pharmaceutical companies represent the top 20 pharmaceutical companies by worldwide prescription drug sales in the year ended December 31, 2016 as classified by Evaluate Ltd in EvaluatePharma© World Preview 2017 Outlook to 2022, an industry report.

“Mid-sized biopharmaceutical companies.” Mid-sized biopharmaceutical companies represent biopharmaceutical companies with at least $250 million in sales in the year ended December 31, 2016, based on publicly available data and management’s knowledge, that are not classified as a top 20 pharmaceutical company by Evaluate Ltd in EvaluatePharma© World Preview 2017 Outlook to 2022, an industry report.

“Phase I.” Phase I trials are typically conducted in healthy individuals or, on occasion, in patients, and typically involve 20 to 80 subjects and range from a few months to several years. These trials are designed to establish the basic safety, dose tolerance, absorption, metabolism, distribution and excretion of the clinical product candidate, the side effects associated with increasing doses, and if possible, early evidence of effectiveness. If the trial establishes the basic safety and metabolism of the clinical product candidate, Phase II trials are generally initiated.

“Phase II.” Phase II trials are conducted in a limited population of patients with the disease or condition that the clinical product candidate is intended to treat. These trials typically test a few hundred patients and last on average 12 to 18 months. Phase II trials are typically designed to identify possible adverse effects and safety risks, to preliminarily evaluate the efficacy of the clinical product candidate for specific targeted diseases or conditions, and to determine dose tolerance, optimal dosage and dosing schedule. Phase II trials are sometimes divided into two phases: Phase IIa trials typically evaluate the dose response of the clinical product candidate and Phase IIb trials typically evaluate the efficacy of the clinical product candidate at the prescribed doses. If the Phase II trials indicate that the clinical product candidate may be safe and effective, Phase III trials are generally initiated.

“Phase III.” Phase III trials evaluate the clinical product candidate in significantly larger and more diverse patient populations than Phase I and II trials and are conducted at multiple, geographically dispersed sites. On average, this phase lasts from one to three years. Depending on the size and complexity, Phase III CRO contracts may include multiple sequential trials. During this phase, the clinical product candidate’s overall benefit/risk ratio and the basis for product approval are established. If the clinical product candidate successfully completes Phase III, then the sponsor may submit a New Drug Application, or NDA, or Biologics License Application for approval by the United

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States Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, or a similar marketing authorization application for approval by non-U.S. regulatory agencies.

“Phase IV.” Phase IV or “post-approval” trials are intended to monitor the drug’s long-term risks and benefits, to analyze different dosage levels, to evaluate different safety and efficacy parameters in target populations or to substantiate marketing claims. Phase IV trials typically enroll thousands of patients and last from six months to several years. The FDA may require Phase IV testing and surveillance programs to monitor the effect of approved drugs which have been commercialized, and the FDA has the power to prevent or limit further marketing of a product based on the results of post-marketing programs.

“Small biopharmaceutical companies.” Small biopharmaceutical companies represent biopharmaceutical companies that have less than $250 million in sales in the year ended December 31, 2016, based on publicly available data and management’s knowledge.

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Part I 

Item 1. Business 

Overview

We are one of the world’s leading clinical contract research organizations, or CROs, by revenue, solely focused on providing scientifically-driven outsourced clinical development services to the biotechnology, pharmaceutical and medical device industries. Our mission is to accelerate the global development of safe and effective medical therapeutics. We differentiate ourselves from our competitors by our disciplined operating model centered on providing full-service Phase I-IV clinical development services and our therapeutic expertise. We believe this combination results in timely and cost-effective delivery of clinical development services for our customers. We believe that we are a partner of choice for small and mid-sized biopharmaceutical companies based on our ability to consistently utilize our full-service, disciplined operating model to deliver timely and high-quality results for our customers. Accordingly, we believe we are well positioned to continue to expand our market share in the growing Phase I-IV CRO market.

We were founded in 1992 by Dr. August J. Troendle, an industry pioneer, as a Phase II-IV focused CRO with a strong, scientifically-driven and disciplined operating model, and we continue today as a founder-led enterprise with Dr. Troendle retaining a significant ownership stake in Medpace. Throughout our 25-year history, we have grown almost exclusively organically, with our core founding members having been integrally involved in developing and instilling our differentiated culture and operating philosophy across our company. We focus on conducting clinical trials across all major therapeutic areas, with particular strength in Cardiology, Metabolic Disease, Oncology, Endocrinology, Central Nervous System, or CNS, and Antiviral and Anti-infective or AVAI, as well as therapeutic expertise in Medical Devices. Our global platform includes approximately 2,500 employees across 35 countries, providing our customers with broad access to diverse markets and patient populations as well as local regulatory expertise and market knowledge.

Our singular focus on executing our disciplined, full-service operating model is a core tenet of our differentiated approach. Our operating model entails partnering with our customers from the beginning of the clinical trial process and holistically navigating all subsequent components of the process. This approach differs from other leading CROs that provide functional or partial outsourcing services as a core component of their business. We believe our full-service approach allows us to deliver timely and high-quality results for our customers. By clearly communicating and aligning our expectations with those of our customers at the beginning of an engagement, we develop a trusted relationship where our customers typically grant us greater control over the clinical trial process. This results in greater accountability on our part and, we believe, more consistent delivery of our services. We believe our partnering approach, coupled with our full-service, scientifically-driven model, ensures efficient and high-quality trial execution, limits changes in the scope of trials and enables timely completion of trials.

We focus on providing clinical development solutions primarily to companies that recognize the benefits of utilizing our full-service outsourcing model. We believe our model is particularly attractive to small and mid-sized biopharmaceutical companies, which seek specialized capabilities and infrastructure required for complex and global clinical trials, including therapeutic expertise, insightful protocol design, project feasibility assessment and timely and high-quality trial execution. We expect that outsourced development expenditures for small and mid-sized biopharmaceutical companies will continue to grow. We believe we can expand our market share with this customer segment given our continued strategic focus and the attractiveness of our model to these companies. Furthermore, as the clinical development and regulatory processes grow increasingly more global and complex, we believe large pharmaceutical companies will increasingly recognize the benefits of our disciplined, full-service operating model. For the year ended December 31, 2017, we generated 64%, 25% and 11% of our net service revenue from small biopharmaceutical companies, mid-sized biopharmaceutical companies and large pharmaceutical companies, respectively.

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Our Market

Clinical Development Process

Before a new drug can be commercialized, it often must undergo extensive pre-clinical and clinical testing and regulatory review to verify safety and efficacy. CROs provide a comprehensive range of product development services for Phase I-IV clinical trials. These clinical trials are separated into distinct phases in order to thoroughly evaluate the product. Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, 2017 Biopharmaceutical Research Industry Profile, a trade group publication, indicates that from drug discovery through approval by the United States Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, developing a new medicine takes 10 to 15 years and costs approximately $2.6 billion.

The following graphic, based on data presented in the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, 2013 Biopharmaceutical Research Industry Profile and 2017 Biopharmaceutical Research Industry Profile, industry trade group publications, illustrates the various stages and typical timeline of the clinical development process:

Stages of Clinical Development

Pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies outsource product development services to CROs in order to efficiently and cost-effectively manage the clinical development process and obtain regulatory approval and reach the market in as timely a manner as possible. Historically, outsourcing was driven primarily by the need for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies to reduce cost and maintain focus on core competencies, or to provide services or capabilities that these companies did not have internally. In recent years, the role of a CRO has evolved and CROs are now increasingly an integral component of the product development process, providing their customers with regulatory and therapeutic expertise, complex clinical trial design, broader geographic coverage, access to diverse population pools and consistent and reliable data systems and procedures.

CRO Market Size

We estimate, based on industry sources, including analyst reports and management’s knowledge, that total global biopharmaceutical clinical development expenditures were approximately $106 billion in 2016. We further estimate, based on these industry sources, that the portion of these expenditures attributable to Phase I-IV clinical development services was $53 billion, of which we estimate $27 billion was outsourced.

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CRO Market Trends

Increasing Development Expenditures. We estimate that biopharmaceutical development expenditures will grow from approximately $106 billion in 2016 to approximately $116 billion in 2019, representing a CAGR of approximately 3%. We believe that the growth in development expenditures is primarily attributed to the heightened pace of biopharmaceutical innovation, pressure on companies to replenish pipelines with new therapies, the favorable regulatory environment and the significant amount of capital raised by biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies during the last several years. There were 14,872 drugs in the development pipeline in January 2017, as identified by PharmaProjects Pharma R&D Annual Review 2017, an industry publication, which was an increase of approximately 53% compared to the 9,737 that were in development in 2010. In line with the significant capital raised by biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies, based upon financial data available from FactSet Research Systems Inc. and S&P Global Market Intelligence Inc., providers of financial information, as of September 30, 2017, the companies comprising the NASDAQ Biotechnology Index, or NBI, had approximately $136.7 billion in cash available to support ongoing clinical development. This figure represents a 26.0% increase above the cash balance of approximately $108.5 billion held by the companies comprising the NBI as of December 31, 2016, and a 135.3% increase above the cash balance of approximately $58.1 billion held by companies comprising the NBI as of December 31, 2012.

Continued Outsourcing Penetration. Outsourcing penetration is the percentage of biopharmaceutical clinical development costs that are outsourced to CROs. We estimate, based on industry sources, including analyst reports and management’s knowledge, that approximately 51% of Phase I-IV clinical development expenditures were outsourced in 2016, driven by increased clinical trial complexity, the need for regulatory and therapeutic expertise and global access to patient populations.

Pressures Facing Biopharmaceutical Industry. The biopharmaceutical industry continues to experience significant challenges, including regulatory and pricing pressures resulting from healthcare reform, intensifying generic competition, pipeline failures and the need for continued innovation. In order to combat these challenges and maintain revenue growth and operating margins, biopharmaceutical companies increasingly seek clinical expertise and seek to outsource clinical services to CROs to accelerate clinical development and maximize commercialization success.

Increasing Clinical Trial Complexity. Clinical trial design and structure have become increasingly complex based on regulatory agency sophistication, more complicated protocols and a growing focus by biopharmaceutical companies on developing new cutting-edge drug therapies. For example, based on the data available in the FDA’s Orphan Drug Product designation database, the number of orphan drug designations granted increased by approximately 151% from 190 in 2012 to 476 in 2017. This growing complexity brings new challenges in study feasibility, site selection, patient recruitment and retention due to the rarity of orphan diseases, which globally may only have hundreds or thousands of patients. Additionally, measures of clinical trial complexity significantly increased over the last decade, with the mean number of procedures per protocol increasing by 68% as indicated by the Tufts Center for the Study of Drug Development, an independent non-profit research group. We believe full-service CROs with noted therapeutic leadership, full-service clinical operations, a proprietary technology platform, strategic regulatory guidance and integrated laboratories are well suited to successfully support these types of studies.

Small and Mid-Sized Biopharmaceutical Segment

We believe small and mid-sized biopharmaceutical companies are important to the continued growth of the CRO industry. These companies are primary centers of innovation, developing new, cutting-edge therapies for niche or previously untreatable diseases, which frequently require sophisticated clinical trials. These companies have limited ability to conduct global clinical trials independently, and as a result, they typically seek a strategic partner that can provide the therapeutic experience and infrastructure required to deliver timely completion of complex, global clinical trials. In 2016, we estimate, based on industry sources, including analyst reports and management’s knowledge, that small and mid-sized biopharmaceutical companies outsourced approximately 58% of their development expenditures, representing an estimated addressable CRO market of approximately $8 billion.

Biopharmaceutical companies have a variety of options for raising money to support the funding of their drug development, including raising private equity, raising public equity and partnering with large biopharmaceutical

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companies to jointly develop drug candidates. We believe the level of capital raised for small and mid-sized biopharmaceutical companies over the last few years is sufficient to fund significant clinical trial activity for these companies going forward. We believe that companies that are progressing with good results through a clinical trial will be able to continue to fund those clinical trials with available cash and will have additional avenues to fund these programs as necessary, including partnerships with large biopharmaceutical companies.

Our Competitive Strengths

We believe we are well positioned to capitalize on positive trends in the CRO industry based on our key competitive strengths set forth below:

Disciplined and Integrated Full-Service Model. Since our founding in 1992, we have focused on building and executing our disciplined, full-service operating model to provide clinical development services to the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries. At the center of our differentiated operating model is our full-service focused, end-to-end approach to delivering clinical development services. We partner with customers from the beginning of the clinical trial process and holistically navigate all subsequent components of the process. While many CROs engage in functional or partial outsourcing services as a significant component of their business model, we take a disciplined approach and do not typically provide such piecemeal services. We believe that a full-service approach delivers greater efficiency, better quality and, ultimately, higher value for our customers. 

In executing our operating model, we have demonstrated durable success across multiple therapeutic areas. We embed therapeutic leads, each of whom holds a Doctor of Philosophy, or Ph.D., a Doctor of Medicine, or M.D., or other doctorate level degrees into every aspect of the project, and our customers rely on this expertise throughout the entire clinical process. By clearly communicating and aligning our expectations with those of our customers at the beginning of an engagement, we tend to develop a close working relationship that is built on a level of trust that results in us being granted greater control over the clinical trial process. We have developed and consistently utilize effective standard operating procedures, or SOPs, that we believe result in high-quality and timely clinical development outcomes for our customers. Our operating model utilizes our proprietary ClinTrak clinical trial management software, or ClinTrak, which is customized and streamlined to our SOPs. We house our key decision-makers, our internally-developed technology and our corporate infrastructure in our corporate headquarters in Cincinnati, Ohio. This centralization allows us to maintain highly integrated, standardized and flexible operations, while preserving our operating philosophy and extending our global reach, resulting in a disciplined business model and attractive financial performance.

High-Science Approach with Deep Therapeutic Expertise. Customers generally seek a CRO with extensive therapeutic expertise in their focus areas. Our therapeutic expertise encompasses areas that are among the largest, most complex and fastest growing in pharmaceutical development, including Oncology, Cardiology, Metabolic Disease, Endocrinology, CNS and AVAI, as well as Medical Devices. Our core therapeutic expertise covers the therapeutic areas where a majority of all drugs are currently in development, as identified by Citeline Pharma R&D Annual Review 2016, an industry publication.

We leverage the insights of our senior leaders who have specific therapeutic expertise to employ a high-science approach to our projects. Because we believe that therapeutic expertise plays a significant role in CRO selection, we focus heavily on hiring and training our therapeutic leads in order to maximize therapeutic insights to inform clinical trial design and execution. In clinical trial execution, our therapeutic leads are embedded into every aspect of the process from start to finish. Our scientific and medical staff is fundamental to delivering high-quality trial execution and enabling timely completion of complex processes.

Attractive and Diversified Customer Base. We have a strong track record of serving our core customer base of small and mid-sized biopharmaceutical companies, which we believe represents an attractive growth opportunity. We believe outsourced development expenditures in our core customer base will continue to grow. Small and mid-sized biopharmaceutical companies, many of which are now well capitalized, have firmly established themselves at the forefront of medical innovation and the search for new therapies for previously untreatable diseases, which require increasingly complex clinical trials. CROs are integral to the clinical development process for these customers, providing regulatory and therapeutic expertise, complex clinical trial design, broader geographic

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coverage, access to diverse population pools and consistent and reliable data systems and procedures, since these customers often lack the infrastructure and global breadth required for efficient and high-quality trial execution.

In addition, we have a highly diversified customer base comprising many of the largest global biopharmaceutical companies, as well as high-growth small and mid-sized biopharmaceutical companies. For the year ended December 31, 2017, we generated 64%, 25% and 11% of our net service revenue from small biopharmaceutical companies, mid-sized biopharmaceutical companies and large pharmaceutical companies, respectively. For the years ended December 31, 2017 and 2016, our largest customer accounted for 5.3% and 6.0% of our net service revenue, respectively, and our top 10 customers represented 32.2% and 37.0% of our net service revenue, respectively.

Partner of Choice for Biopharmaceutical Customers. Based on our extensive operating history and therapeutic experience, we believe that we have established a reputation as a partner of choice to our core customer segment of small and mid-sized biopharmaceutical companies. Acting as incubators of pharmaceutical development, small and mid-sized biopharmaceutical companies are responsible for a number of innovative drug candidates currently being developed to address unmet medical needs. Many of these drug candidates are being developed for niche and severe indications with relatively small patient populations, which require increasingly complex clinical trials. These biopharmaceutical customers, sometimes new to the clinical development process, seek to partner with us based on our differentiated approach and expertise to execute trials in a timely and efficient manner.

Global Platform with Scalable Infrastructure. We believe that we are one of the leading CROs with the scale and therapeutic expertise necessary to effectively conduct global clinical trials. We began our disciplined international expansion in 2004 and have since increased the breadth and depth of our international footprint significantly. We now offer our services through a highly skilled staff of approximately 2,500 employees across 35 countries as of December 31, 2017. As clinical trials become increasingly global, our platform provides our customers with broad access to diverse markets and patient populations, as well as local regulatory expertise and market knowledge, which can reduce the time and cost of these trials, while also helping to optimize the commercialization potential for new therapies.

Highly Regarded, Experienced and Committed Management Team. We are led by a dedicated and experienced senior management team with significant industry experience and knowledge focused on clinical development. We were founded in 1992 by Dr. August J. Troendle, an industry pioneer, and we continue today as a founder-led enterprise with Dr. Troendle retaining a significant ownership stake in Medpace. Our management team has been responsible for developing our scientifically-driven, disciplined operating model, building our global platform and realizing our significant organic growth in revenue and earnings. Our senior management team has an average tenure with Medpace of 13 years, including four senior managers with over 20 years with us, and brings a healthy balance of significant experience with Medpace, regulators and other companies in the industry, including public companies. 

Our Growth Strategy

Key elements of our growth strategy include:

Continued Focus on Organic Growth. Our strong organic growth has been the result of consistently reinvesting our positive cash flow to support our therapeutic capabilities, service offerings and global expansion. We intend to continue to emphasize preserving our unique culture and operating philosophy as we grow our scientific capabilities and clinical trial expertise by further investing in human capital. In addition to leveraging our operating model, we intend to continue to selectively hire employees to strengthen and expand our expertise in high-growth therapeutic areas, including Oncology, CNS and AVAI. We methodically look to hire employees early in their careers and thoroughly train them to excel in our disciplined operating model, while instilling within them our corporate culture and philosophy. We apply this same training and standardization globally in order to maintain consistency and minimize inefficiencies in our operations. From 2012 through 2017, we successfully organically grew our business from approximately 1,000 employees to approximately 2,500 employees and organically grew our net service revenue from $177.4 million to $386.5 million. We intend to continue to utilize our disciplined organic growth model and robust cash flows to drive future revenue growth.

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Leverage Our Experience and Reputation in the Attractive Clinical Development Market. Our customers value the knowledge and therapeutic expertise we have developed from a long history of successfully executing clinical trials. Given the rapid emergence of new therapies and resulting evolution of commercial priorities among many biopharmaceutical companies, we believe consistently maintaining the necessary infrastructure and human capital required to retain clinical and therapeutic expertise internally is not the most cost-effective solution for these companies. As the regulatory landscape adapts to greater clinical trial complexity, we believe that biopharmaceutical companies will increasingly engage CROs with the requisite global resources as well as therapeutic and regulatory expertise to assume full responsibility of the clinical trial process. Based on our successful execution of clinical trials across many therapeutic areas in multiple countries, as well as our focus on closely partnering with our customers through all aspects of the clinical trial process, we believe we have developed a strong reputation in the industry as a leading CRO. We believe that this reputation positions us to continue capturing additional share of the attractive clinical development market as the industry increasingly recognizes the benefits of our operating model.

Deepen Existing and Develop New Relationships with Our Core Customer Segment. We look to continue to deepen our long-standing relationships with existing customers through new engagements and expand our relationships with new small and mid-sized biopharmaceutical customers. As a strategic partner of choice, we clearly communicate and align our expectations with our customers at the beginning of an engagement to develop a close working relationship that is built on trust. We believe this trust, supported by our high-quality execution and frequent dialogue with our customers’ key decision makers, positions us to be awarded additional business in existing and new therapies, allowing us to grow alongside our customers and leading to an increasingly significant, and growing, contribution from repeat business.

While our successes to date have built a substantial customer base, we believe that there is opportunity for continued growth and penetration in our core customer segment. We place our therapeutic leads alongside our sales team to actively participate in the procurement of new customers whose portfolios align with our therapeutic expertise, which we believe further differentiates us from our competitors.

Pursue Selective and Complementary Bolt-On Acquisitions. We intend to evaluate selective targeted acquisitions to augment our organic growth and expand our current capabilities and service offerings. Our acquisition strategy is driven by our comprehensive commitment to serve customer needs. While we are continuously assessing the market for attractive opportunities, we do so selectively with a focus on targeting opportunities to acquire and integrate complementary and strategic, non-transformative acquisitions within the CRO sector in order to strengthen our competitive position and provide enhanced value to our customers.

Position Ourselves to Increase Our Presence Among Large Pharmaceutical Companies as These Customers Adopt and Appreciate the Full-Service Approach. Given the growing pressures large pharmaceutical companies are facing, including complex clinical development and regulatory processes, these companies seek solutions beyond simply outsourcing clinical development. These companies are seeking strategic partnerships that provide more holistic clinical development services and also the expertise that CRO partners offer. Given our differentiated operating model, we believe larger pharmaceutical companies will be increasingly appreciative of our proven approach to clinical development and expertise.

Our Services

We provide a full suite of services supporting the entire clinical development process from Phase I to Phase IV. We offer these services across a wide range of therapeutic areas.

Our comprehensive suite of clinical development services includes, but is not limited to, the following:

Medical Affairs

The medical affairs group consists of therapeutic leads who provide strategic direction for study design and planning, train operational staff, work with primary investigators, provide medical monitoring and meet with regulatory agencies. Our customers rely on our expertise throughout the entire clinical trial process with therapeutically-focused physicians fully engaged throughout the study. We believe this depth of therapeutic

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leadership and engagement on each project results in a close working relationship with customers built on a level of trust that results in us being granted greater control over the clinical trial process.

Clinical Trial Management

Our team of clinical trial managers are responsible for leading all aspects of study execution. The clinical trial manager, or CTM, drives accountability across the functional team members and is responsible for successful operational execution. The CTM serves as the primary contact for the customer. Experience and therapeutic expertise are main factors when assigning CTMs to projects.

ClinTrak is integrated with our SOPs, allowing the CTMs to access real-time study metrics. ClinTrak is constantly evaluated and enhanced with our processes.

Study Feasibility

We have a dedicated feasibility team consisting of clinical experts who are an integrated part of the project team. Our feasibility team is able to analyze a specific protocol, using many data sources to determine countries and sites that are most appropriate for the study.

Study Start-Up

Our global Study Start-Up staff is well-versed in all aspects of clinical trial start up activities, including study documentation submission processes to independent Institutional Review Boards, or IRBs, ethics committees and to ex-US competent authorities. Our study start-up team includes fully dedicated budget and legal associates to ensure focused negotiations and execution of site contracts.

Clinical Monitoring

Our clinical monitoring group consists of highly experienced clinical research associates, or CRAs. With their experience and training, our CRAs are able to provide unparalleled site management services that includes both in-house and onsite monitoring. Their knowledge of local regulations and laws, in addition to Good Clinical Practice, or GCP, and International Council on Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Registration of Pharmaceuticals for Human Use, or ICH, guidelines ensure compliance and data quality. Our CRAs report into a global matrix structure to ensure consistent training, oversight and management. Each CRA receives comprehensive, hands-on training in an individualized curriculum consisting of in-house and field-based training, supplemented with clinical research department core rotations and ongoing study-specific training.

Global Regulatory Affairs

Our Global Regulatory Affairs department has a strong track record of providing expert strategic, operational, and tactical regulatory guidance, as well as creating thorough, scientifically-grounded regulatory compliant documentation to regulatory agencies around the globe. Members of this team bring a long tenure of regulatory experience and scientific knowledge to each project. The group, led by former government officials and experienced drug development subject matter experts, provides comprehensive international support at each stage of the drug and biologics development processes. They have particular expertise within the areas of advanced therapeutics, accelerated development pathways, pediatrics, and rare diseases. The group also has a dedicated publishing function that has full electronic and paper publishing capabilities to support all types of international regulatory submissions.

Medical Writing

Medical writers work closely with Medpace’s medical experts, biostatisticians, and other members of the study team to develop study protocols, clinical and statistical study reports, and integrated submission documents according to regulatory guidelines. Members of Medpace’s medical writing group possess substantial scientific knowledge and experience as well as strong communication skills. This skill set and collaborative approach coupled with a thorough

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quality control document review process, allow Medpace to produce high-quality, submission-ready documents for each contracted project.

Biometrics

We provide customers with high-quality data collected during clinical trials that is the foundation of a successful clinical trial and forms the backbone of regulatory submissions, including New Drug Applications. We use global GCP-compliant SOPs, combined with continuous quality control, to ensure that data is consistent, efficient, and comprehensive.

Data Management: Our data management team develops detailed specifications for the collection, organization, validation, analysis and quality control of clinical trial data ensuring the most cost-effective, secure and regulatory compliant process.

Biostatistics: Our experienced team of biostatisticians provides trial design consulting, statistical methodology recommendations, programming expertise and reporting accuracy necessary to deliver clinical trials efficiently and on time. We offer comprehensive data analysis plans, thoroughly tested and validated customized programs, interpretation of study results, integrated efficacy and safety analysis for regulatory submissions, adaptive design and statistical support throughout the clinical trial.

Pharmacovigilance

Our safety and pharmacovigilance group collects, evaluates, analyzes and reports safety information. We provide global adverse event management, physician reviewed safety narrative writing and custom safety surveillance. Monitored by licensed physicians who are trained to provide oversight and to analyze and evaluate the emerging safety profile of the compound, we have designed our process to ensure safety and expedite approvals.

Core Laboratory

Our core laboratory services include both imaging services and cardiovascular core laboratory services. We partner with imaging experts from major academic and clinical institutions involved in research to provide image reading in a secure environment utilizing identical software and workstations integrated into ClinTrak allowing for prompt turnaround and oversight. Our imaging experts have clinical trial experience utilizing imaging modalities such as CT, MRI, PET/CT, 3D volumetric analysis, ultrasound, DEXA, angiography, endoscopy and photography. Our cardiovascular core laboratory provides state-of-the-art standardized electrocardiogram services and data analysis to support clinical trials.

Laboratories

Central Laboratory. Through our Central Laboratory, we provide comprehensive, full-service capabilities globally in four locations, including Cincinnati, Ohio; Leuven, Belgium; Beijing, China; and Singapore. The Central Laboratory has longstanding core competency in specialized esoteric testing, including biomarkers for efficacy in addition to standard assay offerings. Data consistency and harmonization are maintained utilizing global SOPs and reference ranges, identical analytic platforms, methodologies, reagent systems, calibrator and quality control programs, within a strict framework compliant with GCP requirements and regulatory guidelines to ensure laboratory data reflect the impact of the investigational compound and not differences in testing practices.

Bioanalytical Laboratory. Through our Bioanalytical Laboratory we provide highly scientific and value-added testing of biological samples using proprietary methods. Working in a Good Laboratory Practice compliant setting following FDA and European Medicines Agency, or EMA, guidelines, the Bioanalytical Laboratory delivers method transfer, development, validation, sample analysis and metabolite screening and identification of pre-clinical and clinical biological samples with expertise in developing proprietary, highly scientific, esoteric and sensitive tests. Areas of specific bioanalytical expertise include advanced mass spectrometry and immunoassay technologies for bioanalytical analysis and all bioanalytical aspects for small and large molecules. Our Bioanalytical Laboratory is located on our clinical research campus in Cincinnati, Ohio.

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The majority of our laboratory services are performed as a component of a full-service clinical development arrangement with our customers. We also offer our laboratory services on a stand-alone basis, although this has historically represented an immaterial amount of our net service revenue. Regardless of the nature of the arrangement, our laboratory services are delivered consistently to our customers as a component of their clinical development activities.

Clinics

Our Clinics offering conducts studies in normal healthy volunteers, special populations, and patient populations over a spectrum of diseases including endocrine, cardiovascular and metabolic. Experience includes, but is not limited to: first-in-human, bioavailability/bioequivalence, single and multiple ascending dose, drug to drug interaction, food effect and device studies. Our 57,340 square-foot facility is located on our clinical research campus in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Quality Assurance

Our quality assurance team works closely with study teams to ensure compliance with protocols, SOPs and regulatory guidelines to ultimately protect research subject safety as well as the integrity and validity of study data. Our quality assurance team also provides services including regulatory training, internal system audits, SOP oversight, hosting of audits and regulatory inspections, as well as performs third party audits of critical vendors and investigative sites on behalf of our customers.

Customers

We have a well-diversified, attractively-positioned customer base that includes small biopharmaceutical companies, mid-sized biopharmaceutical companies and large pharmaceutical companies. We have conducted trials for many of the world’s leading pharmaceutical, biotechnology and medical device companies.

For the year ended December 31, 2017, we generated 64%, 25% and 11% of our net service revenue from small biopharmaceutical companies, mid-sized biopharmaceutical companies and large pharmaceutical companies, respectively.

For the years ended December 31, 2017 and 2016, our largest customer accounted for 5.3% and 6.0% of our net service revenue, respectively, and our top 10 customers represented 32.2% and 37.0% of our net service revenue, respectively.

We have in the past and may in the future enter into arrangements with our customers or other drug, biologic or medical device companies in which we take on payment risk by making strategic investments in our customers or other drug companies, providing flexible payment terms or fee financing to customers or other companies, or entering into other risk sharing arrangements on trial execution. We expect that the use of such arrangements will be very limited, and they are not a part of our core growth strategy.

Net New Business Awards and Backlog

New business awards represent the value of anticipated future net service revenue that has been awarded during the period that is recognized in backlog. This value is recognized upon the signing of a contract or receipt of a written pre-contract confirmation from a customer that confirms an agreement in principle on budget and scope. New business awards also include contract amendments, or changes in scope, where the customer has provided written authorization for changes in budget and scope or has approved us to perform additional work as of the measurement date. Awards may not be recognized as backlog after consideration of a number of factors, including whether (i) the relevant net service revenue is expected only after a pending regulatory hurdle, which might result in cancellation of the study, (ii) the customer funding needed for commencement of the study is not believed to have been secured or (iii) study timelines are uncertain or not well defined timeline. In addition, study amounts that extend beyond a three-year timeline are not included in backlog. The number and amount of new business awards can vary

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significantly from period to period, and an award’s contractual duration can range from several months to several years based on customer and project specifications.

Cancellations arise in the normal course of business and are reflected when we receive written confirmation from the customer to cease work on a contractual agreement. The majority of our customers can terminate our contracts without cause upon 30 days’ notice. Similar to new business awards, the number and amount of cancellations can vary significantly period over period due to timing of customer correspondence and study-specific circumstances.

Net new business awards represent gross new business awards received in a period offset by total cancellations in that period. Net new business awards were $426.1 million, $427.0 million and $359.5 million for the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, respectively.

Backlog represents anticipated future net service revenue from net new business awards that have commenced, but have not been completed. Reported backlog will fluctuate based on new business awards, changes in scope to existing contracts, cancellations, net service revenue recognition on existing contracts and foreign exchange adjustments from non-U.S. dollar denominated backlog. As of December 31, 2017, our backlog increased by $40.5 million, or 8.4%, to $524.4 million compared to $483.9 million as of December 31, 2016. Our backlog as of December 31, 2015 was approximately $429.7 million. Included within backlog as of December 31, 2017 is approximately $285 million to $295 million that we expect to convert to net service revenue in 2018, with the remainder expected to convert to net service revenue in years after 2018.

Backlog and net new business award metrics may not be reliable indicators of our future period net service revenue as they are subject to a variety of factors that may cause material fluctuations from period to period. These factors include, but are not limited to, changes in the scope of projects, cancellations and duration and timing of services provided. No assurance can be given that we will be able to realize the net service revenue that is included in backlog. See “Item 1A. Risk Factors—Risks Relating to Our Business—Our backlog may not convert to net service revenue at our historical conversion rates,” and “Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—New Business Awards, Cancellations and Backlog” of Parts I and II, respectively, of this Annual Report on Form 10-K for more information.

Sales and Marketing

We employ an integrated sales and marketing team to sell our services to biotechnology, pharmaceutical and medical device companies.

We have an experienced and highly trained global team of professional business development representatives and business development support staff focused on securing business from both new and existing customers, through a consultative and strategic sales approach. We embed our medical and scientific experts from the beginning of the sales process when we first engage potential customers, and they remain embedded across the lifecycle of the sale and throughout the life of the project, program or partnership.

As part of its sales strategy, our business development team focuses on a customer segmentation model. Our team targets and engages customers in our addressable market, matches customer characteristics with therapeutic fit and maintains a mindset of full-service outsourcing. Our structured and disciplined approach facilitates strong account evaluation, which results in increased focus by the sales team, the development of effective and productive territories, the management of sales force effectiveness and the creation of a process whereby both marketing and sales operate under the same guiding principles.

We are able to consult collaboratively with our customers and help optimize timely completion of their clinical trials and programs, in part, because we engage our therapeutic experts from the beginning of the sales process and involve our regulatory affairs experts and highly trained operations team throughout the clinical trial process. Our sales team is then able to take the study design, regulatory plan and execution plan discussed up front and carry that through to the proposal and provide a final concept during one-on-one customer discussions and final CRO evaluations.

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Our marketing team supports the business development function in three key areas, generating brand awareness through customized campaigns and web-site development, conference planning and lead generation through market research and business intelligence analysis. The marketing team is set up in two mirrored teams, one team to address our therapeutic strategy and tactics, and the second team to monitor and address market environment across our lines of business. All of our sales and marketing data are housed within a third party customer relationship management tool that provides us the analytics we need to make sales planning and sales management decisions.

Segment and Geographic Information

We operate in one reportable segment and have operations in the North America, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America. See Note 3 “Summary of Significant Accounting Policies” to our consolidated financial statements for further information regarding our reportable segment. See Note 16 “Entity Wide Disclosures” to our consolidated financial statements for geographic information including revenues and long-lived assets attributed to our country of domicile and foreign countries (including any individual foreign country if material).  

Competition

We compete primarily against other full-service CROs as well as services provided by in-house research and development, or R&D, departments of biopharmaceutical companies. Our major CRO competitors include Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings, ICON plc, Syneos Health, Inc., PAREXEL International Corporation, Pharmaceutical Product Development, LLC, PRA Health Sciences, Inc., IQVIA Holdings Inc. and numerous specialty and regional CROs.

We generally compete on the basis of a number of factors, including experience within specific therapeutic areas, quality of staff and services, reliability, range of provided services, ability to recruit principal investigators and patients into studies expeditiously, ability to organize and manage large-scale, global clinical trials, global presence with strategically located facilities, speed to completion, price and overall value. We believe we compete effectively with our competitors across these factors, particularly due to our full-service operating model, our deep therapeutic expertise in areas that are among the largest, most complex and fastest growing in pharmaceutical development, our global platform and our experienced and committed management team. However, some of our competitors have greater financial resources and a wider range of service offerings over a greater geographic area than we do, which could put us at a competitive disadvantage with respect to these competitors.

The CRO industry remains fragmented, with several hundred smaller, narrowly focused service providers and a small number of full-service companies with global capabilities. We believe there are significant barriers to others becoming a global provider offering a broad range of services and products including the cost and experience necessary to develop strong therapeutic areas, expertise to manage complex clinical programs, infrastructure to support large global programs, ability to deliver high-quality services and expertise required to prepare regulatory submissions in numerous jurisdictions.

Government Regulation

Development of Drugs, Biologics and Medical Devices

The development of drugs, biologics and medical devices is highly regulated in the United States and other countries. Our services are subject to varying regulatory requirements designed to ensure the quality and integrity of the pre-clinical and clinical trial process. In the United States, the FDA has primary authority to regulate these activities, in addition to the approval process, and the subsequent manufacturing, safety, labeling, storage, record keeping and marketing for these products, which are the responsibility of our customers. Before a marketing application for a drug is ready for submission to regulatory authorities, the candidate drug must often undergo rigorous testing in clinical trials. In the United States, these trials must be conducted in accordance with the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, its implementing regulations, and other federal and state requirements that require the drug to be tested and studied in certain ways prior to approval. The FDA has similar authority and requirements with respect to the clinical testing of biological products and medical devices. Before a human clinical trial may begin in the United States, the manufacturer or sponsor of the clinical product candidate must file an Investigational

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New Drug Application, or IND, with the FDA, which contains, among things, the results of pre-clinical tests, manufacturer information and other analytical data. A separate submission to an existing IND must also be made for each successive clinical trial conducted during product development. Each clinical trial must be conducted pursuant to, and in accordance with, an effective IND. Each human clinical trial we conduct is subject to the oversight of an IRB, which is an independent committee that has the regulatory authority to review, approve and monitor a clinical trial for which the IRB has responsibility. The FDA and IRB receive reports on the progress of each phase of clinical testing and may require the modification, suspension, or termination of clinical trials if, among other things, an unreasonable risk is presented to patients or if the design of the trial is insufficient to meet its stated objective. In addition, information about certain clinical trials must be made publicly available on the federal government website, www.clinicaltrials.gov.

In the United States, GCP regulations govern the design, conduct, performance, monitoring, auditing, recording, analysis, and reporting of clinical trials. In order to comply with GCP and other requirements, we must, among other things:

Clinical trials conducted outside the United States are subject to the laws and regulations of the country where the trials are conducted. These laws and regulations may or may not be similar to the laws and regulations administered by the FDA and other laws and regulations regarding the protection of patient safety and privacy and the control of clinical trial pharmaceuticals, medical devices or other clinical trial materials. Within the EU, these requirements are enforced by the EMA and requirements may vary slightly from one member state to another. In Canada, clinical trials are regulated by the Health Products and Food Branch of Health Canada as well as provincial regulations. Similar requirements also apply in other jurisdictions, including countries outside the EU and countries in Asia and Latin America where we operate or where our customers may intend to apply for marketing authorization. Clinical trials conducted outside the United States also may be subject to FDA regulation if the clinical trials are conducted pursuant to an IND or an Investigational Device Exemption for a product candidate that will seek FDA approval or clearance. In addition, clinical trial sponsors follow ICH E6 guidelines as a principle for GCP.

The clinical trial customer and the parties conducting the clinical trials share in responsibilities to ensure that all applicable legal and regulatory requirements are fulfilled. Many of the functions we regularly perform in the conduct of clinical trials subject us directly to regulations (e.g., compliance with GCP), and in some circumstances, we will take on legal and regulatory responsibility either through a transfer of obligations to us from our clinical trial customers or our acting as local legal representative for certain of our clinical trial customers. We may be subject to regulatory action if we fail to comply with these requirements. Failure to comply with certain regulations may also result in the termination of ongoing research and disqualification of data collected during the clinical trials. For example, violations of GCP could result, depending on the nature of the violation and the type of product involved, in the issuance of a warning letter, suspension or termination of a clinical trial, refusal of the FDA to approve clinical trial or marketing applications or withdrawal of such applications, injunction, seizure of investigational

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products, civil penalties, criminal prosecutions or debarment from assisting in the submission of new drug applications. See “Item 1A. Risk Factors—Risks Relating to Our Business—If we fail to perform our services in accordance with contractual requirements, government regulations and ethical considerations, we could be subject to significant costs or liability and our reputation could be adversely affected” of Part I of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

We monitor our clinical trials to test for compliance with applicable laws and regulations in the United States and the foreign jurisdictions in which we operate. We have adopted SOPs that are designed to satisfy regulatory requirements and serve as a mechanism for controlling and enhancing the quality of our clinical trials. In the United States, our procedures were developed to ensure compliance with GCP and associated requirements.

Health Information Privacy

The confidentiality of personal health information, including patient-specific information collected during clinical trials, is heavily regulated in the United States and other countries. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has promulgated rules under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, as amended by the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act of 2009 and their implementing regulations, including the Privacy and Security Rules, or collectively, HIPAA, that govern the use, handling and disclosure of personally identifiable medical information. These regulations also establish procedures for the exercise of an individual’s rights and the methods permissible for de-identification of health information. HIPAA applies to “covered entities,” which include certain types of healthcare providers, as well as service providers to covered entities which access protected health information, known as “business associates.” Two of our subsidiaries, Medpace Clinical Pharmacology, LLC and C-MARC, LLC, are covered entities under HIPAA. Further, many investigators with whom we are involved in clinical trials are also directly subject to HIPAA as covered entities. There are instances where we may be considered a business associate of a covered entity investigator, and we have signed business associate agreements with some investigators. If we are determined to be a business associate, we would be directly liable for any breaches of protected health information and other HIPAA violations. We are also liable contractually under any business associate agreements we have signed with covered entities. In addition, we are also subject to privacy legislation in Canada under the federal Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act, the Act Respecting the Protection of Personal Information in the Private Sector and the Personal Health Information Protection Act and privacy legislation in the EU under the 95/46/EC Privacy Directive on the protection and free movement of personal data, as replaced by the General Data Protection Regulation from early 2018 onwards. See “Item 1A. Risk Factors—Risks Relating to Our Industry—Current and proposed laws and regulations regarding the protection of personal data could result in increased risks of liability or increased cost to us or could limit our service offerings” of Part I of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Health Industry Arrangements

The conduct of pre-clinical and clinical trials may be subject to laws and regulations that are intended to prevent the misuse of government healthcare program funding. In the United States, these laws include, among others, the False Claims Act, which prohibits submitting or causing the submission of false statements or improper claims for government healthcare program payments; and the Anti-Kickback statute, which prohibits paying, offering to pay or receiving payment with the intent to induce the referral of services or items that are covered under a federal healthcare program. Violations of these laws and regulations may incur administrative, civil, and criminal penalties.

Employee Safety and Workplace Conditions

Most of our employees are office based and subject to health and safety regulations covering offices, with which we comply. In addition to its comprehensive regulation of safety in the workplace, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration has established extensive requirements relating to workplace safety for healthcare employers whose workers might be exposed to blood-borne pathogens such as HIV and the hepatitis B virus, which apply to our clinic and laboratories. Furthermore, certain employees might have to receive initial and periodic training to ensure compliance with applicable hazardous materials regulations and health and safety guidelines. We are subject to similar regulations with respect to our laboratories in Belgium, Singapore and China.

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Environmental Regulation and Liability

We are subject to various laws and regulations relating to the protection of the environment and human health and safety in the countries in which we do business, including laws and regulations governing the management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes, the cleanup of contaminated sites and the maintenance of a safe workplace. Our operations include the use, generation and disposal of hazardous materials and medical wastes. We may, in the future, incur liability under environmental statutes and regulations for contamination of sites we own or operate (including contamination caused by prior owners or operators of such sites), the off-site disposal of hazardous substances and for personal injuries or property damage arising from exposure to hazardous materials from our operations. We believe that we have been and are in substantial compliance with all applicable environmental laws and regulations and that we currently have no liabilities under such environmental requirements that could reasonably be expected to materially harm our business, results of operations or financial condition.

Intellectual Property

We develop and use a number of proprietary methodologies, analytics, systems, technologies and other intellectual property in the conduct of our business. We rely upon a combination of confidentiality policies, nondisclosure agreements and other contractual arrangements to protect our trade secrets, and copyright and trademark laws to protect other intellectual property rights. We have obtained or applied for trademarks and copyright protection in the United States and in a number of foreign countries. Our material trademarks include Medpace and ClinTrak. Although the duration of trademark registrations varies from country to country, trademarks generally may be renewed indefinitely so long as they are in use and/or their registrations are properly maintained, and so long as they have not been found to have become generic. Although we believe the ownership of trademarks is an important factor in our business and that our success does depend in part on the ownership thereof, we rely primarily on the innovative skills, technical competence and marketing abilities of our employees. We do not have any material licenses, franchises or concessions.

Employees

As of December 31, 2017 we had approximately 2,500 employees worldwide. None of our employees are currently covered by a collective bargaining agreement specific to our company. We believe our overall relations with our employees are good. As of December 31, 2016 and 2015, we had approximately 2,500 and 2,000 employees, respectively.

The success of our business depends upon our ability to attract and retain qualified professional, scientific and technical staff. The level of competition among employers in the United States and overseas for skilled personnel, particularly for those with Ph.D., M.D. or equivalent degrees or training, is high. We believe that our brand recognition and our multinational presence are advantages in attracting qualified candidates. We also believe that the wide range of clinical trials in which we participate allows us to offer broad experience to clinical researchers. In addition, our disciplined and centralized approach to hiring and training has fostered, and we believe will continue to foster, strong employee loyalty and a low turnover rate.

Liability and Insurance

We may be liable to our customers for any failure to conduct their clinical trials properly according to the agreed-upon protocol and contract. If we fail to conduct a clinical trial properly in accordance with the agreed-upon procedures, we may have to repeat a clinical trial or a particular portion of the services at our expense, reimburse the customer for the cost of the services and/or pay additional damages.

At our Phase I clinic, we study the effects of drugs on healthy volunteers. In addition, in our clinical business we, on behalf of our customers, contract with physicians who render professional services, including the administration of the substance being tested to participants in clinical trials, many of whom are seriously ill and are at great risk of further illness or death as a result of factors other than their participation in a trial. As a result, we could be held liable for bodily injury, death, pain and suffering, loss of consortium or other personal injury claims and medical expenses arising from a clinical trial. In addition, we sometimes engage the services of vendors necessary for the conduct of a clinical trial, such as laboratories or medical diagnostic specialists. Because these vendors are engaged

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as subcontractors, we are responsible for their performance and may be held liable for damages if the subcontractors fail to perform in the manner specified in their contract.

To reduce our potential liability, and as a requirement of the GCP regulations, informed consent is required from each volunteer and patient. In addition, our customers provide us with contractual indemnification for all of our service related contracts. These indemnities generally do not, however, protect us against certain of our own actions such as those involving negligence or misconduct. Our business, financial condition and operating results could be harmed if we were required to pay damages or incur defense costs in connection with a claim that is not indemnified, that is outside the scope of an indemnity or where the indemnity, although applicable, is not honored in accordance with its terms.

We maintain professional liability insurance in amounts we believe to be appropriate. This insurance provides coverage for vicarious liability due to negligence of the investigators who contract with us, as well as claims by our customers that a clinical trial was compromised due to an error or omission by us. If our insurance coverage is not adequate, or if insurance coverage does not continue to be available on terms acceptable to us, our business, financial condition and operating results could be materially harmed.

Available Information

We are subject to the informational requirements of the Exchange Act and, in accordance therewith, file reports, including annual, quarterly and current reports, proxy statements and other information with the Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC. Copies of our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K and our Proxy Statements for our annual meetings of stockholders, and any amendments to those reports, as well as Section 16 reports filed by our insiders, are available free of charge on our website as soon as reasonably practicable after we file the reports with, or furnish the reports to the SEC. Our website address is http://www.medpace.com, and our investor relations website is located at investor.medpace.com. Information on our website is not incorporated by reference herein. Our SEC filings are also available for reading and copying at the SEC's Public Reference Room at 100 F Street, NE, Washington, DC 20549. Information on the operation of the Public Reference Room may be obtained by calling the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330. In addition, the SEC maintains an Internet site (http://www.sec.gov) containing reports, proxy and information statements, and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC.

Item 1A. Risk Factors

Investing in our common stock involves a high degree of risk. You should consider carefully the risks and uncertainties described below, together with the other information included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. The occurrence of any of the following risks may materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and future prospects. In these circumstances, the market price of our common stock could decline. Other events that we do not currently anticipate or that we currently deem immaterial may also affect our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations.  

Risks Relating to Our Business

The potential loss, delay or non-renewal of our contracts, or the non-payment by our customers for services that we have performed, could adversely affect our results.

We experience termination, cancellation and non-renewals of contracts by our customers in the ordinary course of business, and the number and dollar value of cancellations can vary significantly from year to year.

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The time between when a clinical trial is awarded and when it goes to contract is typically several months, and prior to a new business award going to contract, our customers can cancel the award without notice. Moreover, once an award goes to contract, most of our customers for clinical trial services can terminate our contracts without cause upon 30 days’ notice. Our customers may delay, terminate or reduce the scope of our contracts for a variety of reasons beyond our control, including, but not limited to:

As a result, contract terminations, delays and modifications are a regular part of our business. In the event of termination, our contracts often provide for payment to us of fees for services provided up to the point of termination and for close-out activities for winding down the clinical trial, and reimbursement of all non-cancellable expenses. These payments may not be sufficient for us to maintain our profit margins, and termination or non-renewal may result in lower resource utilization rates, including with respect to personnel who we are not able to place on another customer engagement. Historically, cancellations and delays have negatively impacted our operating results.

Clinical trials can be costly and for the year ended December 31, 2017, 64% and 25% of our net service revenue was derived from small biopharmaceutical companies and mid-sized biopharmaceutical companies, respectively, which may have limited access to capital. In addition, we provide services to our customers before they pay us for some of our services. There is a risk that we may initiate a clinical trial for a customer, and the customer subsequently becomes unwilling or unable to fund the completion of the trial. In such a situation, notwithstanding the customer’s ability or willingness to pay for or otherwise facilitate the completion of the trial, we may be legally or ethically bound to complete or wind down the trial at our own expense.

Because the contracts included in our backlog are generally terminable without cause, we do not believe that our backlog as of any date is necessarily a meaningful predictor of future results. In addition, we may not realize the full benefits of our backlog of contractually committed services if our customers cancel, delay or reduce their commitments under our contracts with them. Thus, the loss or delay of a large contract or the loss or delay of multiple contracts could adversely affect our net service revenue and profitability. In addition, the terminability of our contracts puts increased pressure on our quality control efforts, since not only can our contracts be terminated by customers as a result of poor performance, but any such termination may also affect our ability to obtain future contracts from the customer involved and others.

Our backlog may not convert to net service revenue at our historical conversion rates.

Backlog represents anticipated future net service revenue from net new business awards that have commenced, but have not been completed. Reported backlog will fluctuate based on new business awards, changes in scope to

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existing contracts, cancellations, revenue recognition on existing contracts and foreign exchange adjustments from non-U.S. dollar denominated backlog. Our backlog as of December 31, 2017 was approximately $524.4 million. Once work begins on a project, net service revenue is recognized over the duration of the project. Projects may be terminated or delayed by the customer or delayed by regulatory authorities for reasons beyond our control. To the extent projects are delayed, the timing of our net service revenue could be adversely affected. Moreover, in the event that a customer cancels a contract, we often would be entitled to receive payment for services provided up to the point of cancellation and for close-out activities for winding down the clinical trial, and reimbursement of all non-cancellable expenses. Typically, however, we have no contractual right to the full amount of the future net service revenue reflected in our backlog in the event of a contract cancellation or subsequent changes in scope that reduce the value of the contract. The duration of the projects included in our backlog, and the related net service revenue recognition, generally range from a few months to several years. Our backlog may not be indicative of our future net service revenue, and we may not realize all of the anticipated future net service revenue reflected in our backlog. A number of factors may affect the realization of our net service revenue from backlog, including:

Fluctuations in our reported backlog levels also result from the fact that we may receive a small number of relatively large projects in any given reporting period that may be included in our backlog. Because of these large projects, our backlog in that reporting period may reach levels that may not be sustained in subsequent reporting periods. Additionally, although an increase in backlog will generally result in an increase in net service revenue over time, an increase in backlog at a particular point in time does not necessarily correspond directly to an increase in net service revenue during any particular period, or at all. The extent to which contracts in backlog will result in net service revenue depends on many factors, including, but not limited to, delivery against project schedules, scope changes, contract terminations and the nature, duration and complexity of the contracts, and can vary significantly over time.

As we increasingly compete for and enter into large contracts that are more global in nature, there can be no assurance about the rate at which our backlog will convert into net service revenue. A decrease in this conversion rate would mean that the rate of net service revenue recognized on contracts may be slower than what we have experienced in the past, which could impact our net service revenue and results of operations on a quarterly and annual basis. The revenue recognition on larger, more global projects could be slower than on smaller, less global projects for a variety of reasons, including, but not limited to, an extended period of negotiation between the time the project is awarded to us and the actual execution of the contract, as well as an increased timeframe for obtaining the necessary regulatory approvals. Additionally, delayed projects will remain in backlog and will not generate revenue at the rate originally expected. Thus, the relationship of backlog to realized revenues is indirect and may vary significantly over time.

Additionally, if small and mid-sized biopharmaceutical companies become less able to access capital in the future, we may see a decrease in backlog conversion to net service revenue and net new business awards due to project delays or cancellations. These companies have contributed materially to our historical net service revenue. If they cannot commit the same or a greater level of capital to our services going forward, our results of operations may suffer.

Our operating results have historically fluctuated between fiscal quarters and years and may continue to fluctuate in the future, which may adversely affect the market price of our stock.

Our operating results have fluctuated in previous quarters and years and may continue to vary significantly from quarter to quarter and year to year and are influenced by a variety of factors, such as:

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Our operating results for any particular quarter or year are not necessarily a meaningful indicator of future results and fluctuations in our quarterly or yearly operating results could negatively affect the market price and liquidity of shares of our common stock.

Our operating margins could decrease due to increased pricing pressure or other pressures.

Historically, we have been able to generate the operating margins that we do because of our disciplined, full-service operating model. However, we operate in a highly competitive environment, and, if we experience increased levels of competitive pricing pressure, our operating margins may decrease. In addition, we may adapt our operating model to achieve greater levels of growth or in response to investor demands. Such changes could result in lower operating margins.

If we fail to perform our services in accordance with contractual requirements, government regulations and ethical considerations, we could be subject to significant costs or liability and our reputation could be adversely affected.

We contract with biopharmaceutical companies to perform a wide range of services to assist them in bringing new drugs to market. Our services include monitoring clinical trials, data and laboratory analysis, electronic data capture, patient recruitment and other related services. Such services are complex and subject to contractual requirements, government regulations, and ethical considerations. For example, we are subject to regulation by the FDA, and comparable foreign regulatory authorities relating to our activities in conducting pre-clinical studies and clinical trials. Before clinical trials begin in the United States, a drug is tested in pre-clinical trials that must comply with Good Laboratory Practice and other requirements. An applicant must file an IND, which must become effective before human clinical testing may begin. Further, an independent IRB, for each medical center proposing to participate in the clinical trial must review and approve the protocol for the clinical trial. Once initiated, clinical trials must be conducted pursuant to and in accordance with the applicable IND conditions, the requirements of the relevant IRBs, the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and its implementing regulations, including GCP, and other requirements. We are also subject to regulation by the Drug Enforcement Administration, or DEA, which regulates the distribution, recordkeeping, handling, security, and disposal of controlled substances. If we fail to perform our services in accordance with these requirements, regulatory authorities may take action against us or our customers. Such actions may include injunctions or failure of such regulatory authority to grant marketing approval of our customers’ products, imposition of clinical holds or delays, suspension or withdrawal of approvals, rejection of data collected in our clinical trials, license revocation, product seizures or recalls, operational restrictions, civil or criminal penalties or prosecutions, damages or fines. Customers may also bring claims against us for breach of our contractual obligations, and patients in the clinical trials and patients taking drugs approved on the basis of those trials may bring personal injury claims against us. Any such action could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, cash flows or reputation.

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Such consequences could arise if, among other things, the following occur:

Improper performance of our services. The performance of clinical development services is complex and time-consuming. For example, we may make mistakes in conducting a clinical trial that could negatively impact or obviate the usefulness of results of the trial or cause the results of the trial to be reported improperly. If the trial results are compromised, we could be subject to significant costs or liability, which could have an adverse impact on our ability to perform our services and our reputation would be harmed. As examples:

The services we provide in connection with large clinical trials can cost tens of millions of dollars, and while we endeavor to contractually limit our exposure to such risks, improper performance of our services could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, damage our reputation and result in the cancellation of current contracts by the affected customer or other current customers or failure to obtain future contracts from the affected customer or other current or potential customers.

Investigation of customers. From time to time, one or more of our customers are investigated by regulatory authorities or enforcement agencies with respect to regulatory compliance of their clinical trials, programs or the marketing and sale of their drugs. In these situations, we have often provided services to our customers with respect to the clinical trials, programs or activities being investigated, and we are called upon to respond to requests for information by the authorities and agencies. There is a risk that either our customers or regulatory authorities could claim that we performed our services improperly or that we are responsible for clinical trial or program compliance. If our customers or regulatory authorities make such claims against us, we could be subject to significant costs in defending our activities and potential damages, fines or penalties. In addition, negative publicity regarding regulatory compliance of our customers’ clinical trials, programs or products could have an adverse effect on our business and reputation.

Insufficient customer funding to complete a clinical trial. As noted above, clinical trials can cost tens of millions of dollars. There is a risk that we may initiate a clinical trial for a customer, and then the customer becomes unwilling or unable to fund the completion of the trial. In such a situation, notwithstanding the customer’s ability or willingness to pay for or otherwise facilitate the completion of the trial, we may be ethically bound to complete or wind down the trial at our own expense.

Interactive voice/web response service malfunction. We develop and maintain our own, and also use third-parties to run, interactive voice/web response systems. These systems automatically manage the randomization of patients in a given clinical trial to different treatment arms and regulate the supply of investigational drugs. An error in the design, programming or validation of these systems could lead to inappropriate assignment or dosing of patients which could give rise to patient safety issues, invalidation of the trial or liability claims against us. Furthermore, negative publicity associated with such a malfunction could have an adverse effect on our business and reputation. Additionally, errors in randomization may require us to repeat the trial at no further cost to our customer, but at a substantial cost to us.

In addition to the above U.S. laws and regulations, we must comply with the laws of all countries where we do business, including laws governing clinical trials in the jurisdiction where the trials are performed. Failure to comply with applicable requirements could subject us to regulatory risk, liability and potential costs associated with redoing the trials, which could damage our reputation and adversely affect our operating results.

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We bear financial risk if we underprice our fixed-fee contracts or overrun cost estimates, and our financial results can also be adversely affected by failure to receive approval for change orders or delays in documenting change orders.

The majority of our Phase I–IV contracts are fixed-fee contracts. We bear the financial risk if we initially underprice our contracts or otherwise overrun our cost estimates. In addition, contracts with our customers are subject to change orders, which we commonly experience and which occur when the scope of work we perform needs to be modified from that originally contemplated by our contract with the customer. Modifications can occur, for example, when there is a change in a key trial assumption or parameter, a significant change in timing or a change in staffing needs. Furthermore, we may be unable to successfully negotiate changes in scope or change orders on a timely basis or at all, which could require us to incur cost outlays ahead of the receipt of any additional revenue. In addition, under US GAAP, we cannot recognize additional revenue anticipated from change orders until appropriate documentation is received by us from the customer authorizing the change. However, if we incur additional expense in anticipation of receipt of that documentation, we must recognize the expense as incurred. Such underpricing, significant cost overruns or delay in documentation of change orders could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition or cash flows.

If we are unable to successfully execute our growth strategies, our results of operations or financial condition could be adversely affected.

Our key growth strategies include: continued organic growth, continued maintenance of industry-leading margins (compared to our public competitors), increasing capture of the high-growth clinical development market, deepening existing and developing new relationships with our core customer segment, pursuing selective and complementary bolt-on acquisitions and increasing our capture of the large pharmaceutical company market. Though we will strive to meet these goals, we may not have or adequately build the competencies necessary to achieve our objectives. In addition, we may not receive market acceptance for our services and we may face increased competition. If we are unable to successfully continue our organic growth, continue to maintain our margins, increase our capture of the clinical development market, deepen existing and develop new relationships with our core customer segment, pursue complementary and non-transformative acquisitions or attract additional large pharmaceutical company customers, our future business, reputation, results of operations and financial condition could be adversely affected.

If we lose the services of key personnel or are unable to recruit experienced personnel, our business could be adversely affected.

Our success substantially depends on the collective performance, contributions and expertise of our senior management team, including Dr. August J. Troendle, our Chief Executive Officer and founder, and other key personnel including qualified management, professional, scientific and technical operating staff. There is significant competition for qualified personnel in the biopharmaceutical services industry, particularly for those with higher educational degrees, such as a medical or nursing degree, a Ph.D., or an equivalent degree, and our industry generally tends to experience relatively high levels of employee turnover. If any of our key employees were to join a competitor or to form a competing company, some of our customers might choose to use the services of that competitor or new company instead of our own. Furthermore, customers or other companies seeking to develop in-house capabilities may hire some of our senior management or other key employees. The departure of any key contributor, the payment of increased compensation to attract and retain qualified personnel or our inability to continue to identify, attract and retain qualified personnel or replace any departed personnel in a timely fashion may impact our ability to grow our business and compete effectively in our industry and may negatively affect our business, financial condition, results of operations, cash flows or reputation.  

Our business depends on the continued effectiveness and availability of our information systems, including the information systems we use to provide our services to our customers, such as ClinTrak, and failures of these systems may materially limit our operations.

Due to the global nature of our business and our reliance on information systems to provide our services, we intend to increase our use of web-enabled and other integrated information systems in delivering our services. We already provide access to such an information system, ClinTrak, to certain of our customers in connection with the services we provide to them. As the breadth and complexity of our information systems continue to grow, we will

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increasingly be exposed to the risks inherent in the development, integration and ongoing operation of evolving information systems, including:

The materialization of any of these risks may impede the processing of data, the delivery of databases and services and the day-to-day management of our business and could result in the corruption, loss or unauthorized disclosure of proprietary, confidential or other data. While we have disaster recovery plans in place, they might not adequately protect us in the event of a system failure. Despite any precautions we take, damage from fire, floods, hurricanes, power loss, telecommunications failures, computer viruses, information system security breaches and similar events at our facilities or at those of our third party provider that backs up our data centers could result in interruptions in the flow of data to our servers and from our servers to our customers. Corruption or loss of data may result in the need to repeat a trial at no cost to the customer, but at significant cost to us, or result in the termination of a contract or damage to our reputation. Moreover, regulatory authorities may impose requirements on the use of electronic records and signatures for regulatory purposes. For example, FDA’s regulations at 21 CFR Part 11 establish the criteria pursuant to which the FDA will consider electronic records and signatures to be trustworthy, reliable, and generally equivalent to paper records and handwritten signatures. Any failures to comply with those regulatory requirements could impact our customers’ ability to rely on the data contained in those electronic records in our systems or result in the FDA’s rejection of the data. Additionally, in order for our information systems to continue to be effective going forward, we periodically need to upgrade our technology systems and increase our capacity to keep pace with technological developments and our growth as a company. Significant delays in system enhancements or inadequate performance of new or upgraded systems once completed could damage our reputation and harm our business. Our operations also may suffer if we are unable to effectively manage the implementation of and adapt to new technology systems. Any such shortcoming may require us to make substantial further investments in our IT platform, which could adversely affect our financial results. Finally, long-term disruptions in the infrastructure caused by events such as natural disasters, the outbreak of war, the escalation of hostilities and acts of terrorism, particularly involving cities in which we have offices, could adversely affect our business. As our business continues to expand globally, these types of risks may be further increased by instability in the geopolitical climate of certain regions, underdeveloped and less stable utilities and communications infrastructure and other local and regional factors. Although we carry property and business interruption insurance, our coverage might not be adequate to compensate us for all losses that may occur.

Unauthorized disclosure of sensitive or confidential data, whether through system failure or breaches or employee negligence, fraud or misappropriation, could damage our reputation and cause us to lose customers. Similarly, unauthorized access to or through our information systems or those we develop for our customers, whether by our employees or third parties, including a cyberattack by computer programmers and hackers who may develop and deploy viruses, worms or other malicious software programs, could result in negative publicity, significant remediation costs, legal liability and damage to our reputation and could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations. In addition, our liability insurance might not be sufficient in type or amount to adequately cover us against claims related to security breaches, cyberattacks and other related breaches.

If the security of confidential information used in connection with our services is breached or otherwise subject to unauthorized access, our reputation and business may be materially harmed.

Our services require us to collect, store, use, and transmit significant amounts of confidential information, including personally identifiable information, and other critical data. We employ a range of information technology solutions, controls, procedures, and processes designed to protect the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of our critical assets, including our data and information technology systems. While we engage in a number of measures aimed to protect against security breaches and to minimize problems if a data breach were to occur, our information technology systems and infrastructure may be vulnerable to damage, compromise, disruption, and shutdown due to attacks or breaches by hackers or due to other circumstances, such as error or malfeasance by employees or third

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party service providers or technology malfunction. The occurrence of any of these events, as well as a failure to promptly remedy these events should they occur, could compromise our systems, and the information stored in our systems could be accessed, publicly disclosed, lost, stolen, or damaged. Any such circumstance could adversely affect our ability to attract and maintain customers, cause us to suffer negative publicity, and subject us to legal claims and liabilities or regulatory penalties. In addition, unauthorized parties might alter information in our databases, which would adversely affect both the reliability of that information and our ability to market and perform our services. Techniques used to obtain unauthorized access or to sabotage systems change frequently, are constantly evolving and generally are difficult to recognize and react to effectively. We may be unable to anticipate these techniques or to implement adequate preventive or reactive measures. Several recent, highly publicized data security breaches at other companies have heightened consumer awareness of this issue and may embolden individuals or groups to target our systems or those of our strategic partners or enterprise customers.

Our business could be harmed if we are unable to manage our growth effectively.

We believe that sustained growth places a strain on operational, human and financial resources. To manage our growth, we must continue to improve our operating and administrative systems and to attract and retain qualified management, professional, scientific and technical operating personnel. We believe that maintaining and enhancing both our systems and personnel at reasonable cost are instrumental to our success. We cannot assure you that we will be able to enhance our current technology or obtain new technology that will enable our systems to keep pace with developments and the needs of our customers. The nature and pace of our growth introduces risks associated with quality control and customer dissatisfaction due to delays in performance or other problems. In addition, foreign operations involve the additional risks of assimilating differences in foreign business practices, hiring and retaining qualified personnel and overcoming language barriers. Failure to manage growth effectively could have a material adverse effect on our business.

Our customer or therapeutic area concentration may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

Although we did not have any customer that represented 10% or more of our net service revenue during the year ended December 31, 2017, we derive a significant portion of our revenues from a limited number of large customers. For the year ended December 31, 2017, we derived 32.2% and 5.3% of our net service revenue from our top 10 customers and our largest customer, respectively. In addition, approximately 45.5% and 6.3% of our backlog, as of December 31, 2017, was concentrated among our top 10 customers and our largest customer by backlog concentration, respectively. Moreover, 6.3% of our backlog, as of December 31, 2017, was concentrated with our largest customer by net service revenue. If any large customer decreases or terminates its relationship with us, our business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows could be materially adversely affected. Also, consolidation in our actual or potential customer base results in increased competition for important market segments and fewer available customer accounts.

Additionally, conducting multiple clinical trials for different sponsors in a single therapeutic class, involving similar drugs, biologics or medical devices, may adversely affect our business if some or all of the trials are terminated because of new scientific information or regulatory decisions that affect the products as a class. Moreover, even if these trials are not terminated, they may compete with each other, thereby limiting our potential revenue going forward.

Our business is subject to international economic, political and other risks that could negatively affect our results of operations and financial condition.

We have significant operations in foreign countries, including, but not limited to, countries in Europe, Latin America, Asia, the Middle East and Africa, that may require complex arrangements to deliver services on global contracts for our customers. For the year ended December 31, 2017, 7.6% of our revenue was denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. As a result, we are subject to heightened risks inherent in conducting business internationally, including the following:

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These risks and uncertainties could negatively impact our ability to, among other things, perform large, global projects for our customers. Furthermore, our ability to deal with these issues could be affected by applicable U.S. laws and the need to protect our assets. In addition, we may be more susceptible to these risks as we enter and continue to target growth in emerging countries and regions, including Asia, Eastern Europe and Latin America, which may be subject to a relatively higher risk of political instability, economic volatility, crime, corruption and social and ethnic unrest, all of which are exacerbated in many cases by a lack of an independent and experienced judiciary and uncertainties in how local law is applied and enforced. The materialization of any such risks could have an adverse impact on our financial condition, results of operations, cash flows or reputation.

Due to the global nature of our business, we may be exposed to liabilities under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and various other anti-corruption laws, and any allegation or determination that we violated these laws could have a material adverse effect on our business.

We are required to comply with the FCPA, UK Bribery Act of 2010 and other U.S. and foreign anti-corruption laws, which prohibit companies from engaging in bribery including corruptly or improperly offering, promising, or providing money or anything else of value to foreign officials and certain other recipients. In addition, the FCPA imposes certain books, records and accounting control obligations on public companies and other issuers. We operate in parts of the world in which corruption can be common and compliance with anti-bribery laws may conflict with local customs and practices. Our global operations face the risk of unauthorized payments or offers

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being made by employees, consultants, sales agents and other business partners outside of our control or without our authorization. It is our policy to implement safeguards (including mandatory training) to prohibit these practices by our employees and business partners with respect to our operations. However, irrespective of these safeguards, or as a result of monitoring compliance with such safeguards, it is possible that we or certain other parties may discover or receive information at some point that certain employees, consultants, sales agents, or other business partners may have engaged in corrupt conduct for which we might be held responsible. Violations of the FCPA or other foreign anti-corruption laws may result in restatements of, or irregularities in, our financial statements as well as severe criminal or civil sanctions, and we may be subject to other liabilities, which could negatively affect our business, operating results and financial condition. In some cases, companies that violate the FCPA may be debarred by the U.S. government and/or lose their U.S. export privileges. Changes in anti-corruption laws or enforcement priorities could also result in increased compliance requirements and related costs which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, the U.S. or other governments may seek to hold us liable for FCPA violations or violations of other anti-corruption laws committed by companies in which we invest or that we acquired or will acquire.

In the past, we have had net losses and we may report net losses in the future, which could negatively impact our ability to achieve or sustain profitability.

In the past, we have had net losses and we cannot assure you that we will achieve or sustain profitability on a quarterly or annual basis in the future. For the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, our net income (loss) was $39.1 million, $13.4 million and $(8.7) million, respectively. If we cannot maintain profitability, the value of our stock price may be impacted.

Our effective income tax rate may fluctuate, which may adversely affect our operations, earnings and earnings per share.

Our effective income tax rate is influenced by our projected profitability in the various taxing jurisdictions in which we operate. The global nature of our business increases our tax risks. In addition, for various reasons, revenue authorities in many of the jurisdictions in which we operate are known to have become more active in their tax collection activities. Changes in the distribution of profits and losses among taxing jurisdictions may have a significant impact on our effective income tax rate, which in turn could have an adverse effect on our net income and earnings per share. The application of tax laws in various taxing jurisdictions, including the United States, is subject to interpretation, and tax authorities in various jurisdictions may have diverging and sometimes conflicting interpretations of the application of tax laws. Changes in tax laws or tax rulings, in the United States or other tax jurisdictions in which we operate, could materially impact our effective tax rate.

Factors that may affect our effective income tax rate include, but are not limited to:

These changes may cause fluctuations in our effective income tax rate that could adversely affect our results of operations and cause fluctuations in our earnings and earnings per share.

On December 22, 2017, President Trump signed into law the “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act” (TCJA) that significantly reforms the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. The TCJA, among other things, includes changes to U.S.

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federal tax rates, imposes significant additional limitations on the deductibility of interest, allows for the expensing of capital expenditures, and puts into effect the migration from a “worldwide” system of taxation to a territorial system. We continue to examine the impact this tax reform legislation may have on our business. The impact of this tax reform on holders of our common stock is uncertain and could be adverse. This Annual Report on Form 10-K does not discuss any such tax legislation or the manner in which it might affect purchasers of our common stock. We urge our stockholders to consult with their legal and tax advisors with respect to such legislation and the potential tax consequences of investing in our common stock.

Governmental authorities may question our intercompany transfer pricing policies or change their laws in a manner that could increase our effective tax rate or otherwise harm our business.

As a U.S. company doing business in international markets through subsidiaries, we are subject to foreign tax and intercompany pricing laws, including those relating to the flow of funds between the parent and subsidiaries. Tax authorities in the United States and in foreign markets closely monitor our corporate structure and how we account for intercompany fund transfers. If tax authorities challenge our corporate structure, transfer pricing mechanisms or intercompany transfers, our operations may be negatively impacted and our effective tax rate may increase. Tax rates vary from country to country and if regulators determine that our profits in one jurisdiction should be increased, we might not be able to fully utilize all foreign tax credits that are generated, which would increase our effective tax rate. Additionally, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, or OECD, has issued certain proposed guidelines regarding base erosion and profit sharing. Once these guidelines are formally adopted by the OECD, it is possible that separate taxing jurisdictions may also adopt some form of these guidelines. In such case, we may need to change our approach to intercompany transfer pricing in order to maintain compliance under the new rules. Our effective tax rate may increase or decrease depending on the current location of global operations at the time of the change. Finally, we might not always be in compliance with all applicable customs, exchange control, Value Added Tax and transfer pricing laws despite our efforts to be aware of and to comply with such laws. In such case, we may need to adjust our operating procedures and our business could be adversely affected.

If we are unable to recruit suitable investigators and enroll patients for our customers’ clinical trials, our clinical development business may suffer.

The recruitment of investigators and patients for clinical trials is essential to our business. Investigators are typically located at hospitals, clinics or other sites and supervise the administration of the investigational drug, biologic or device to patients during the course of a clinical trial. Patients typically include people from the communities in which the clinical trials are conducted. Our clinical development business could be adversely affected if we are unable to attract suitable and willing investigators or patients for clinical trials on a consistent basis. For example, if we are unable to engage investigators to conduct clinical trials as planned or enroll sufficient patients in clinical trials, we may need to expend additional funds to obtain access to resources or else be compelled to delay or modify the clinical trial plans, which may result in additional costs to us. These considerations might result in our being unable to successfully achieve our projected development timelines, or potentially even lead to the termination of ongoing clinical trials or development of a product.

Our clinical development services could subject us to potential liability that may adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.

Our business involves the testing of new drugs, biologics and medical devices on patients in clinical trials. Our involvement in the clinical trial and development process creates a risk of liability for personal injury to or death of patients, particularly for those with life-threatening illnesses, resulting from adverse reactions to the products administered during testing or after regulatory approval. For example, we may be sued in the future by individuals alleging personal injury due to their participation in clinical trials and seeking damages from us under a variety of legal theories. If we are required to pay damages or incur defense costs in connection with any personal injury claim that is outside the scope of indemnification agreements we have with our customers, if any indemnification agreement is not performed in accordance with its terms or if our liability exceeds the amount of any applicable indemnification limits or available insurance coverage, our business, financial condition, results of operations, cash flows or reputation could be materially and adversely affected. We might also not be able to obtain adequate insurance or indemnification for these types of risks at reasonable rates in the future.

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We also contract with institutions and physicians to serve as investigators in conducting clinical trials. Investigators are typically located at hospitals, clinics or other sites and supervise the administration of the investigational products to patients during the course of a clinical trial. If the investigators or study staff commit errors or make omissions during a clinical trial that result in harm to trial patients, or patients suffer harm with a delayed onset after a clinical trial is completed and the product has obtained regulatory approval, claims for personal injury or products liability damages may result. Additionally, if the investigators engage in fraudulent or negligent behavior, trial data may be compromised, which may require us to repeat the clinical trial or subject us to liability or regulatory action. We do not believe we are legally responsible for the medical care rendered by such third party investigators, and we would vigorously defend any claims brought against us. However, it is possible we could be found liable for claims with respect to the actions of third party investigators and the institutions at which clinical trials may be conducted.

Some of our services involve direct interaction with clinical trial patients and operation of a Phase I clinical facility, which could create potential liability that may adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.

We operate a facility where Phase I clinical trials are conducted, which ordinarily involve testing an investigational drug, biologic or medical device on a limited number of individuals to evaluate its safety, determine a safe dosage range and identify side effects. Failure to operate such a facility and clinical trials in accordance with FDA, DEA and other applicable regulations could result in disruptions to our operations. Additionally, we face risks associated with adverse events resulting from the administration of such drugs, biologics and medical devices and the professional malpractice of medical care providers. We also directly employ nurses and other trained employees who assist in implementing the testing involved in our clinical trials, such as drawing blood from subjects. Any professional malpractice or negligence by such investigators, nurses or other employees could potentially result in liability to us in the event of personal injury to or death of a subject in clinical trials. This liability, particularly if it were to exceed the limits of any indemnification agreements and insurance coverage we may have, may adversely affect our financial condition, results of operations and reputation.

Our insurance may not cover all of our indemnification obligations and other liabilities associated with our operations.

We maintain insurance designed to provide coverage for ordinary risks associated with our operations and our ordinary indemnification obligations, which we believe to be customary for our industry. The coverage provided by such insurance may not be adequate for all claims we may make or may be contested by our insurance carriers. If our insurance is not adequate or available to pay liabilities associated with our operations, or if we are unable to purchase adequate insurance at reasonable rates in the future, our business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows may be materially adversely impacted.

Exchange rate fluctuations may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

For the year ended December 31, 2017, approximately 7.6% of our revenue was denominated in currencies other than U.S. dollars, and 28.6% of our operational costs, including, but not limited to, salaries, wages and other employee benefits were denominated in foreign currencies. Of these exposures, 89.0% of our revenue denominated in foreign currencies, and 49.6% of our operational costs denominated in foreign currencies, were Euro denominated. Because a large portion of our net service revenue and expenses are denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar and our financial statements are reported in U.S. dollars, changes in foreign currency exchange rates could significantly affect our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

The revenue and expenses of our foreign operations are generally denominated in local currencies and translated into U.S. dollars for financial reporting purposes. Accordingly, exchange rate fluctuations will affect the translation of foreign results into U.S. dollars for purposes of reporting our consolidated results.

We are subject to foreign currency transaction risk for fluctuations in exchange rates during the period of time between the consummation and cash settlement of a transaction. We earn revenue from our service contracts over a period of several months and, in some cases, over several years. Accordingly, exchange rate fluctuations during such periods may affect our profitability with respect to such contracts.

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Additionally, the majority of our global contracts are denominated in U.S. dollars or Euros, while the currency used to fund our operating costs in foreign countries is denominated in various different currencies. Fluctuations in the exchange rates of the currencies we use to contract with our customers and the currencies in which we incur cost to complete those contracts can have a significant impact on our results of operations.

We may limit these risks through exchange rate fluctuation provisions stated in our service contracts. We have not, however, mitigated all of our foreign currency transaction risk, and we may experience fluctuations in financial results from our operations outside the United States and foreign currency transaction risk associated with our service contracts.

Our relationships with existing or potential customers who are in competition with each other may adversely impact the degree to which other customers or potential customers use our services, which may adversely affect our results of operations.

The biopharmaceutical industry is highly competitive, with companies each seeking to persuade payors, providers and patients that their drug therapies are more cost-effective than competing therapies marketed or being developed by competing firms. In addition to the adverse competitive interests that biopharmaceutical companies have with each other, these companies also have adverse interests with respect to drug selection, coverage and reimbursement with other participants in the healthcare industry, including payors and providers. Biopharmaceutical companies also compete to be first to the market with new drug therapies. We regularly provide services to biopharmaceutical companies who compete with each other, and we sometimes provide services to such customers regarding competing drugs in development. Our existing or future relationships with our biopharmaceutical customers may deter other biopharmaceutical customers from using our services or, in certain instances, may result in our customers seeking to place limits on our ability to serve their competitors and other industry participants. In addition, our further expansion into the broader healthcare market may adversely impact our relationships with biopharmaceutical customers, and such customers may elect not to use our services, reduce the scope of services that we provide to them or seek to place restrictions on our ability to serve customers in the broader healthcare market with interests that are adverse to theirs. Any loss of customers or reductions in the level of revenues from a customer could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

If we are unable to successfully integrate potential future acquisitions, our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows could be adversely affected.

We anticipate that a portion of our future growth may come from targeted acquisitions to expand our current capabilities and service offerings. The success of any acquisition will depend upon, among other things, our ability to effectively integrate acquired personnel, operations, products and technologies into our business and to retain the key personnel and customers of our acquired businesses. In addition, we may be unable to identify suitable acquisition opportunities or obtain any necessary financing on commercially acceptable terms. We may also spend time and money investigating and negotiating with potential acquisition targets but not complete the transaction. Any acquisition could involve other risks, including, among others, the assumption of additional liabilities and expenses, difficulties and expenses in connection with integrating the acquired companies and achieving the expected benefits, issuances of potentially dilutive securities or interest-bearing debt, loss of key employees of the acquired companies, transaction expenses, diversion of management’s attention from other business concerns and, with respect to the acquisition of international companies, the inability to overcome differences in international business practices, language and customs. Our failure to successfully integrate potential future acquisitions could have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

We have a significant amount of goodwill and intangible assets on our balance sheet, and our results of operations may be adversely affected if we fail to realize the full value of our goodwill and intangible assets.

Our balance sheet reflects goodwill and intangibles assets of $661.0 million and $98.7 million, respectively, as of December 31, 2017. Collectively, goodwill and intangibles assets represented 79.9% of our total assets as of December 31, 2017. Our goodwill was recorded in connection with Cinven’s acquisition of us in 2014. In accordance with US GAAP, goodwill and indefinite lived intangible assets are not amortized, but are subject to a periodic impairment evaluation. We assess the realizability of our indefinite lived intangible assets and goodwill annually and conduct an interim evaluation whenever events or changes in circumstances, such as operating losses

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or a significant decline in earnings associated with the acquired business or asset, indicate that these assets may be impaired. In addition, we review long-lived assets for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of the assets might not be recoverable. If indicators of impairment are present, we evaluate the carrying value in relation to estimates of future discounted cash flows. Our ability to realize the value of the goodwill and intangible assets will depend on the future cash flows of our businesses. The carrying amount of the goodwill could be impaired if there is a downturn in our business or our industry or other factors that affect the fair value of our business, in which case a charge to earnings would become necessary. If we are not able to realize the value of the goodwill and intangible assets, we may be required to incur material charges relating to the impairment of those assets. For example, in conjunction with the 2015 fourth quarter annual assessment of goodwill, we determined that goodwill related to our Clinics reporting unit was impaired and we recognized an impairment charge of $9.3 million, which represented 100% of the goodwill that had been allocated to this reporting unit. Such impairment charges in the future could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

Our ability to utilize our net operating loss carryforwards or certain other tax attributes may be limited.

Under Sections 382 and 383 of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, if a corporation undergoes an “ownership change” (generally defined as a greater than 50 percentage point change, by value, in the aggregate stock ownership of certain shareholders over a three-year period), the corporation’s ability to use its pre-change net operating loss carryforwards to offset its future taxable income and other pre-change tax attributes may be limited. We have experienced at least one ownership change in the past. We may experience additional ownership changes in the future. In addition, future changes in our stock ownership (including future sales by Cinven) could result in additional ownership changes. Any such ownership changes could limit our ability to use our net operating loss carryforwards to offset any future taxable income and other tax attributes. State and foreign tax laws may also impose limitations on our ability to utilize net operating loss carryforwards and other tax attributes.

Our operations involve the use and disposal of hazardous substances and waste which can give rise to liability that could adversely impact our financial condition.

We conduct activities that have involved, and may continue to involve, the controlled use of hazardous materials and the creation of hazardous substances, including medical waste and other highly regulated substances. As a result, our operations pose the risk of accidental contamination or injury caused by the release of these materials and/or the creation of hazardous substances, including medical waste and other highly regulated substances. In the event of such an accident, we could be held liable for damages and cleanup costs which, to the extent not covered by existing insurance or indemnification, could harm our business. In addition, other adverse effects could result from such liability, including reputational damage resulting in the loss of additional business from certain customers.

The failure of third parties to provide us critical support services could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations, cash flows or reputation.

We depend on third parties for support services vital to our business. Such support services include, but are not limited to, laboratory services, third-party transportation and travel providers, technology providers, freight forwarders and customs brokers, drug depots and distribution centers, suppliers or contract manufacturers of drugs for patients participating in clinical trials and providers of licensing agreements, maintenance contracts or other services. In addition, we also rely on third-party CROs and other contract clinical personnel for clinical services either in regions where we have limited resources, or in cases where demand cannot be met by our internal staff. The failure of any of these third parties to adequately provide us critical support services could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, cash flows or reputation.

We have only a limited ability to protect our intellectual property rights, and these rights are important to our success.

Our success depends, in part, upon our ability to develop, use and protect our proprietary methodologies, analytics, systems, technologies and other intellectual property. Existing laws of the various countries in which we provide services or solutions offer only limited protection of our intellectual property rights, and the protection in some countries may be very limited. We rely upon a combination of trade secrets, confidentiality policies, nondisclosure,

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invention assignment and other contractual arrangements, and copyright, trademark and trade secret laws, to protect our intellectual property rights. These laws are subject to change at any time and certain agreements may not be fully enforceable, which could further restrict our ability to protect our innovations. Our intellectual property rights may not prevent competitors from independently developing services similar to or duplicative of ours. Further, the steps we take in this regard might not be adequate to prevent or deter infringement or other misappropriation of our intellectual property by competitors, former employees or other third parties, and we might not be able to detect unauthorized use of, or take appropriate and timely steps to enforce, our intellectual property rights. Enforcing our rights might also require considerable time, money and oversight, and we may not be successful in enforcing our rights.

The results of the United Kingdom’s referendum on withdrawal from the European Union may have a negative effect on global economic conditions, financial markets and our business.

In June 2016, a majority of voters in the United Kingdom elected to withdraw from the European Union, or the EU, in a national referendum. The referendum was advisory, and the terms of any withdrawal are subject to a negotiation period that could last at least two years after the government of the United Kingdom formally initiates a withdrawal process. Nevertheless, the referendum has created significant uncertainty about the future relationship between the United Kingdom and the EU, including with respect to the laws and regulations that will apply as the United Kingdom determines which EU laws to replace or replicate in the event of a withdrawal. The referendum has also given rise to calls for the governments of other EU member states to consider withdrawal. These developments, or the perception that any of them could occur, have had and may continue to have a material adverse effect on global economic conditions and the stability of global financial markets, and may significantly reduce global market liquidity and restrict the ability of key market participants to operate in certain financial markets. Any of these factors could depress economic activity and restrict our access to capital, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations and reduce the price of our common stock.

Potential future investments in our customers’ businesses or products could have a negative impact on our financial results.

We have in the past and may in the future enter into arrangements with our customers or other drug, biologic or medical device companies in which we take on payment risk by making strategic investments in our customers or other drug companies, providing flexible payment terms or fee financing to customers or other companies, or entering into other risk sharing arrangements on trial execution. Our financial results would be adversely affected if the amount realized from any such risk sharing arrangement was less than the value of our services under the contract related to such arrangement.  

Our operations might be affected by the occurrence of a natural disaster or other catastrophic event.

We depend on our customers, investigators, laboratories and other facilities for the continued operation of our business. Although we have contingency plans in place for natural disasters or other catastrophic events, these events, including terrorist attacks, pandemic flu, hurricanes, floods and ice and snow storms, could nevertheless disrupt our operations or those of our customers, investigators and collaboration partners, which could also affect us. Even though we carry business interruption insurance policies and typically have provisions in our contracts that protect us in certain events, we might suffer losses as a result of business interruptions that exceed the coverage available under our insurance policies or for which we do not have coverage. Any natural disaster or catastrophic event affecting us or our customers, investigators or collaboration partners could have a significant negative impact on our operations and financial performance.

Risks Relating to Our Industry

Outsourcing trends in the biopharmaceutical industry and changes in aggregate expenditures and R&D budgets could adversely affect our operating results and growth rate.

Our revenues depend on the level of R&D expenditures, size of the drug development pipelines and outsourcing trends of the biopharmaceutical industry, including the amount of such R&D expenditures that is outsourced and subject to competitive bidding among CROs. Accordingly, economic factors and industry trends that affect

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biopharmaceutical companies affect our business. For example, if biopharmaceutical companies become less able to access capital in the future, they may commit less capital to our services going forward. Also, biopharmaceutical companies continue to seek long-term strategic collaborations with global CROs with favorable pricing terms. Many of our competitors seek out these collaborations, while we generally do not. If our competitors can successfully enter into these collaborations, it may reduce the share of the biopharmaceutical outsourcing business that we might otherwise be positioned to capture.

In addition, if the biopharmaceutical industry reduces its outsourcing of clinical trials or such outsourcing fails to grow at projected or expected rates, or at all, our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows could be materially and adversely affected. We may also be negatively impacted by consolidation and other factors in the biopharmaceutical industry, which may slow decision making by our customers, result in the delay or cancellation of existing projects, cause reductions in overall R&D expenditures or lead to increased pricing pressures. Further, in the event that one of our customers combines with a company that is using the services of one of our competitors, the combined company could decide to use the services of that competitor or another provider. All of these events could adversely affect our business, financial condition, cash flows or results of operations.

We face intense competition in many areas of our business and, if we do not compete effectively, our business may be harmed.

The CRO industry is highly competitive. We often compete for business with other CROs as well as internal development departments at some of our customers, some of which could be considered large CROs in their own right. We also compete with universities and teaching hospitals. Some of these competitors have greater financial resources and a wider range of service offerings over a greater geographic area than we do. If we do not compete successfully, our business will suffer. The industry is highly fragmented, with numerous smaller specialized companies and a handful of full-service companies with global capabilities similar to ours. Increased competition has led to price and other forms of competition, such as acceptance of less favorable contract terms, which could adversely affect our operating results. In recent years, our industry has experienced consolidation. This trend is likely to produce more competition from the resulting larger companies. Further, certain of our key competitors are private and, therefore, they do not contend with the cost pressures of being a public company. We compete with both large CROs and mid-sized CROs, and have increasingly faced more competition from larger CROs. Our ability to continue to grow and perform effectively will directly impact our success against our competitors. In addition, there are few barriers to entry for smaller specialized companies considering entering the industry. Because of their size and focus, small CROs might compete effectively against larger companies such as us, especially in lower cost geographic areas, which could have a material adverse effect on our business.

We may be affected by healthcare reform and potential additional regulatory reforms, which may adversely impact the biopharmaceutical industry or otherwise reduce the need for our services or negatively impact our profitability.

Numerous government bodies are considering or have adopted various healthcare reforms and may undertake, or are in the process of undertaking, efforts to control growing healthcare costs through legislation, regulation and voluntary agreements with healthcare providers and biopharmaceutical companies, including many of our customers. By way of example, in March 2010, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, as amended by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act, or collectively, the Affordable Care Act, was signed into law, which, among other things, expanded, over time, health insurance coverage, imposed health industry cost containment measures, enhanced remedies against healthcare fraud and abuse, added new transparency requirements for healthcare and health insurance industries, imposed new taxes and fees on pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers, added new requirements for certain applicable drug and device manufacturers to disclose payments to physicians, including principal investigators, and imposed additional health policy reforms, any of which may significantly impact the biopharmaceutical industry. We are uncertain as to the full effects of these reforms on our business and are unable to predict what legislative proposals, if any, will be adopted in the future. If regulatory cost containment efforts limit the profitability of new drugs, our customers may reduce their R&D expenditures, which could reduce the business they outsource to us. Similarly, if regulatory requirements for product testing are relaxed or harmonized across jurisdictions, or simplified drug approval procedures are adopted, the demand for our services could decrease. The result of the recent presidential election in the United States has added to the uncertainty regarding healthcare policies and regulations as the new presidential administration and U.S. Congress have called for the repeal of the Affordable Care Act.

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Government bodies may also adopt healthcare legislation or regulations that are more burdensome than existing regulations. For example, product safety concerns and recommendations by the Drug Safety Oversight Board could change the regulatory environment for drug products, and new or heightened regulatory requirements may increase our expenses or limit our ability to offer some of our services. Additionally, new or heightened regulatory requirements may have a negative impact on the ability of our customers to conduct industry sponsored clinical trials, which could reduce the need for our services. These developments and the lack of clarity regarding future healthcare policies and regulations have created significant uncertainty that could adversely affect our business, financial condition, cash flows or results of operations.

Consolidation in the biopharmaceutical industry could lead to a reduction in our revenues.

The biopharmaceutical and CRO industries are currently undergoing a period of increased merger activity. Several large biopharmaceutical companies have recently completed mergers and acquisitions that will consolidate the outsourcing trends and R&D expenditures into fewer companies, and many larger and medium sized biopharmaceutical companies have been acquiring smaller biopharmaceutical companies. As a result of this and future consolidations, our customer diversity may decrease and our business may be adversely affected.

If we fail to comply with federal, state and foreign healthcare laws, including fraud and abuse laws, we could face substantial penalties and our business, results of operations, financial condition and prospects could be adversely affected.

Even though we do not order healthcare services or bill directly to Medicare, Medicaid or other third party payors, certain federal and state healthcare laws and regulations pertaining to fraud and abuse are applicable to our business. We could be subject to healthcare fraud and abuse laws of both the federal government and the states in which we conduct our business. Because of the breadth of these laws and the narrowness of available statutory and regulatory exceptions, it is possible that some of our business activities could be subject to challenge under one or more of such laws. If we or our operations are found to be in violation of any of the laws described above or any other governmental regulations that apply to us, we may be subject to penalties, including civil and criminal penalties, damages, fines, imprisonment and the curtailment or restructuring of our operations, any of which could materially adversely affect our ability to operate our business and our financial results.

Laws and regulations regarding the protection of personal data could result in increased risks of liability or increased cost to us or could limit our service offerings.

The confidentiality, collection, use and disclosure of personal data, including clinical trial patient-specific information, are subject to governmental regulation generally in the country in which the personal data was collected or used. For example, U.S. federal regulations under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, as amended by the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act of 2009 and their implementing regulations, including the Privacy and Security Rules, or collectively, HIPAA, generally require individuals’ written authorization, in addition to any required informed consent, before protected health information may be used for research and such regulations specify standards for de-identifications and for limited data sets. We may also be subject to applicable state privacy and security laws and regulations in states in which we operate. Two of our subsidiaries, Medpace Clinical Pharmacology, LLC and C-MARC, LLC, are covered entities under HIPAA. Further, because of amendments to the HIPAA Privacy and Security Rules that were promulgated on January 25, 2013, known as the Omnibus Final Rule, service providers to covered entities under HIPAA, known as business associates, are now directly subject to HIPAA. There are some instances where we may be a HIPAA “business associate” of a “covered entity,” meaning that we may be directly liable for any breaches of protected health information and other HIPAA violations. We are also liable contractually under any business associate agreements we have signed with covered entities. If we are determined to be a business associate, we would be subject to HIPAA’s enforcement scheme, which, as amended, can result in up to $1.5 million in annual civil penalties for each HIPAA violation. A single breach incident can result in multiple violations of the HIPAA standards, meaning that penalties could be in excess of $1.5 million. In addition, the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Improvement Act of 2015 required all federal agencies to adjust their civil monetary penalties to inflation, no later than August 1, 2016. As a result, the minimum annual penalties for each HIPPA violation which occurs later than February 17, 2009 is now $1.7 million.

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HIPAA also authorizes state attorneys general to file suit on behalf of their residents for violations. Courts are able to award damages, costs and attorneys’ fees related to violations of HIPAA in such cases. While HIPAA does not create a private right of action allowing individuals to file suit against us in civil court for violations of HIPAA, its standards have been used as the basis for duty of care cases in state civil suits such as those for negligence or recklessness in the misuse or breach of protected health information. In addition, HIPAA mandates that the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services conduct periodic compliance audits of HIPAA covered entities and their business associates for compliance with the HIPAA privacy and security standards, and Phase two of these audits, focusing on business associates has begun.

In the EU, personal data includes any information that relates to an identified or identifiable natural person with health information carrying additional obligations, including obtaining the explicit consent from the individual for collection, use or disclosure of the information. In addition, we are subject to EU rules with respect to export of such data out of the EU. Such data export rules are constantly changing, for example, following a decision of the European Court of Justice in October 2015, transferring personal data to U.S. companies like us that had certified as a member of the EU-U.S. Safe Harbor Scheme was declared invalid and the other methods to permit transfer are now under review. In July 2016, the European Commission approved the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield, which replaces the U.S. Safe Harbor Scheme. The United States, the EU and its member states, and other countries where we have operations, such as Singapore and Russia, continue to issue new privacy and data protection rules and regulations that relate to personal data and health information. Failure to comply with certain certification/registration and annual re-certification/registration provisions associated with these data protection and privacy regulations and rules in various jurisdictions, or to resolve any serious privacy or security complaints, could subject us to regulatory sanctions, criminal prosecution or civil liability. Federal, state and foreign governments may propose or have adopted additional legislation governing the collection, possession, use or dissemination of personal data, such as personal health information, and personal financial data as well as security breach notification rules for loss or theft of such data. Additional legislation or regulation of this type might, among other things, require us to implement new security measures and processes or bring within the legislation or regulation de-identified health or other personal data, each of which may require substantial expenditures or limit our ability to offer some of our services. Additionally, if we violate applicable laws, regulations or duties relating to the use, privacy or security of personal data, we could be subject to civil liability or criminal prosecution, be forced to alter our business practices and suffer reputational harm. The laws in the EU are under reform and from early 2018 onwards, we will be subject to the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation, or GDPR, because we are processing data in the EU. The GDPR increases the deadline for data breach notifications, imposes additional obligations when we process personal data on behalf of our customers, including in relation to security measures, and increases administrative burdens on companies processing personal data. If we do not comply with our obligations under the GDPR we could be exposed to significant fines of up to 20 million EUR or up to 4% of the total worldwide annual turnover of the preceding financial year, whichever is higher.

The biopharmaceutical industry has a history of patent and other intellectual property litigation, and we might be involved in costly intellectual property lawsuits.

The biopharmaceutical industry has a history of intellectual property litigation, and these lawsuits will likely continue in the future. Accordingly, even without wrongdoing on our part, we may face patent infringement suits by companies that have patents for similar business processes or other suits alleging infringement of their intellectual property rights. Legal proceedings relating to intellectual property could be expensive, take significant time and divert management’s attention from other business concerns, regardless of the outcome of the litigation. If we do not prevail in an infringement lawsuit brought against us, we might have to pay substantial damages, and we could be required to stop the infringing activity or obtain a license to use technology on unfavorable terms. Further, our customers could be similarly exposed to intellectual property suits and the resulting economic and operational strain defending such claims could negatively impact such customers’ ability to fund or continue ongoing clinical trials on which we are working.

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Actions by regulatory authorities or customers to limit the scope of or withdraw an approved drug, biologic or medical device from the market could result in a loss of revenue.

Government regulators have the authority, after approving a drug, biologic or medical device, to limit its indication for use by requiring additional labeled warnings or to withdraw the product’s approval for its approved indication based on safety or other concerns. Similarly, customers may act to voluntarily limit the availability of approved products or withdraw them from the market after we begin our work. If we are providing services to customers for products that are limited in availability or withdrawn, we may be required to narrow the scope of or terminate our services with respect to such products, which would prevent us from earning the full amount of net service revenue anticipated under the related service contracts.

If we do not keep pace with rapid technological changes, our services may become less competitive or obsolete.

The biopharmaceutical industry generally, and drug development and clinical research more specifically, are subject to rapid technological changes. Our current competitors or other businesses might develop technologies or services that are more effective or commercially attractive than, or render obsolete, our current or future technologies and services. If our competitors introduce superior technologies or services and if we cannot make enhancements to remain competitive, our competitive position would be harmed. If we are unable to compete successfully, we may lose customers or be unable to attract new customers, which could lead to a decrease in our revenue and have a material adverse effect on our financial condition.

Circumstances beyond our control could cause the CRO industry to suffer reputational or other harm that could result in an industry-wide reduction in demand for CRO services, which could harm our business.

Demand for our services may be affected by perceptions of our customers regarding the CRO industry as a whole. For example, other CROs could engage in conduct that could render our customers less willing to do business with us or any CRO. Likewise, a widely reported injury to clinical trial participants could result in negative perceptions of clinical trial activity, thereby adversely impacting our industry. One or more CROs could engage in or fail to detect malfeasance, such as inadequately monitoring sites, producing inaccurate databases or analysis, falsifying patient records, and performing incomplete lab work, or take other actions that would reduce the confidence of our customers in the CRO industry. As a result, the willingness of biopharmaceutical companies to outsource R&D services to CROs could diminish and our business could thus be harmed materially by events outside our control.

Risks Relating to Our Indebtedness

Our indebtedness could adversely affect our financial condition and prevent us from fulfilling our debt obligations and may otherwise restrict our activities.

Our Senior Secured Credit Facilities (as defined below) consist of a $165.0 million Senior Secured Term Loan Facility maturing in December 2021, or the Senior Secured Term Loan Facility, and a $150.0 million Senior Secured Revolving Credit Facility maturing in December 2021, or the Senior Secured Revolving Credit Facility, and, together with the Senior Secured Term Loan Facility, the Senior Secured Credit Facilities. At December 31, 2017, we had $152.6 million of outstanding indebtedness under our Senior Secured Term Loan Facility and $70.0 million of borrowings outstanding under our Senior Secured Revolving Credit Facility. In addition, we had up to $80.0 million of additional borrowing capacity available under our Senior Secured Revolving Credit Facility. Our indebtedness could adversely affect our financial condition and thus make it more difficult for us to satisfy our obligations with respect to our Senior Secured Credit Facilities. If our cash flow is not sufficient to service our debt and adequately fund our business, we may be required to seek further additional financing or refinancing or dispose of assets. We might not be able to influence any of these alternatives on satisfactory terms or at all. Our indebtedness could also:

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For more information about our indebtedness, see “Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Indebtedness” of Part II of this Annual Report on Form 10-K and Note 8 to our audited consolidated financial statements included in Item 8 of Part II of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Despite our current level of indebtedness, we may incur more debt and undertake additional obligations. Incurring such debt or undertaking such additional obligations could further exacerbate the risks to our financial condition.

Although the credit agreement governing the Senior Secured Credit Facilities contains restrictions on our incurrence of additional indebtedness, these restrictions are subject to a number of qualifications and exceptions and the indebtedness incurred in compliance with these restrictions could increase. To the extent new debt is added to our current debt levels, the risks to our financial condition would increase.

While the credit agreement governing the Senior Secured Credit Facilities also contains restrictions on our ability to make loans and investments, these restrictions are subject to a number of qualifications and exceptions, and the investments incurred in compliance with these restrictions could be substantial.

Covenant restrictions under our Senior Secured Credit Facilities may limit our ability to operate our business.

The agreement governing our Senior Secured Credit Facilities contains covenants that may restrict our ability to, among other things:

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In addition, we are required to report compliance with two financial covenants that are tested at the end of each fiscal quarter. We are required to maintain a ratio of consolidated funded indebtedness minus unrestricted cash and cash equivalents (in the aggregate not to exceed $50 million and to include not more than $25 million of foreign unrestricted cash and cash equivalents) to consolidated EBITDA for the most recent four fiscal quarter period not to exceed 4.00:1.00; provided that we shall be permitted to increase the ratio to 4.50:1.00 in connection with any permitted acquisition or any other acquisition consented to by the Administrative Agent and the Required Lenders (each as defined in the Senior Secured Credit Agreement) with total cash consideration in excess of $25 million.  Such increase shall be applicable for the fiscal quarter in which such acquisition is consummated and the three consecutive test periods thereafter.  We are also required to maintain a ratio of consolidated EBITDA to consolidated interest expense, in each case for the most recent four fiscal quarter period, of not less than 3.00:1.00. As of December 31, 2017, we were in compliance with all covenants under our Senior Secured Credit Agreement.

Although the covenants in our Senior Secured Credit Facilities are subject to various exceptions, we cannot assure you that these covenants will not adversely affect our ability to finance future operations or capital needs or to engage in other activities that may be in our best interest. In addition, in certain circumstances, our long-term debt requires us to maintain a specified financial ratio and satisfy certain financial condition tests, which may require that we take action to reduce our debt or to act in a manner contrary to our business objectives. A breach of any of these covenants could result in a default under our Senior Secured Credit Facilities. If an event of default under our Senior Secured Credit Facilities occurs, the lenders thereunder could elect to declare all amounts outstanding thereunder, together with accrued interest, to be immediately due and payable. In such case, we might not have sufficient funds to repay all the outstanding amounts. In addition, our Senior Secured Credit Facilities are secured by first priority security interests on substantially all of our assets, including the capital stock of certain of our subsidiaries. If an event of default under our Senior Secured Credit Facilities occurs, the lenders thereunder could exercise their rights under the related security documents. Any acceleration of amounts due under the Senior Secured Credit Facilities or the substantial exercise by the lenders of their rights under the security documents would likely have a material adverse effect on us.

We may not be able to generate sufficient cash to service all of our indebtedness, and may be forced to take other actions to satisfy our obligations under our indebtedness that may not be successful.

Our ability to satisfy our debt obligations will depend upon, among other things:

We cannot assure you that our business will generate sufficient cash flow from operations, or that future borrowings will be available to us under our Senior Secured Credit Facilities or otherwise, in an amount sufficient to fund our liquidity needs.

If our cash flows and capital resources are insufficient to service our indebtedness, we may be forced to reduce or delay capital expenditures, sell assets, seek additional capital or restructure or refinance our indebtedness. These alternative measures may not be successful and may not permit us to meet our scheduled debt service obligations. Our ability to restructure or refinance our debt will depend on the condition of the capital markets and our financial condition at such time. Any refinancing of our debt could be at higher interest rates and may require us to comply with more onerous covenants, which could further restrict our business operations. In addition, the terms of existing or future debt agreements, may restrict us from adopting some of these alternatives. In the absence of such operating results and resources, we could face substantial liquidity problems and might be required to dispose of material assets or operations to meet our debt service and other obligations. We may not be able to consummate those dispositions for fair market value or at all, and any proceeds that we could realize from any such dispositions may not be adequate to meet our debt service obligations then due.

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Interest rate fluctuations may affect our results of operations and financial condition.

Because our debt is variable-rate debt, fluctuations in interest rates could have a material effect on our business. As a result, we may incur higher interest costs if interest rates increase. These higher interest costs could have a material adverse impact on our financial condition and the levels of cash we maintain for working capital.

We are dependent upon our lenders for financing to execute our business strategy and meet our liquidity needs. If our lenders are unable to fund borrowings under their credit commitments or we are unable to borrow, it could negatively impact our business.

During periods of volatile credit markets, there is risk that any lenders, even those with strong balance sheets and sound lending practices, could fail or refuse to honor their legal commitments and obligations under existing credit commitments, including but not limited to, extending credit up to the maximum permitted by a credit facility. If our lenders are unable to fund borrowings under their revolving credit commitments or we are unable to borrow (such as having insufficient capacity under our borrowing base), it could be difficult in such environments to obtain sufficient liquidity to meet our operational needs.

Risks Relating to Ownership of Our Common Stock

Cinven and our Chief Executive Officer and founder collectively control a substantial majority of our outstanding common stock and their interests may be different from or conflict with those of our other shareholders.

As of December 31, 2017, Cinven owned approximately 46.2% of the outstanding shares of our common stock and Dr. August J. Troendle, our Chief Executive Officer and founder, through his direct ownership of 1,221,416 shares of our common stock and his beneficial ownership of 9,145,510 shares of our common stock held by MPI, controls approximately 29.2% of the outstanding shares of our common stock. Upon a distribution of our common stock held by MPI, our Chief Executive Officer would receive approximately 76.0% of such distributed shares. Accordingly, both Cinven and Dr. Troendle are able to exert a significant degree of influence or actual control over our management and affairs and control all corporate actions requiring shareholder approval, irrespective of how our other shareholders may vote, including:

Moreover, Cinven’s and Dr. Troendle’s share ownership may also adversely affect the trading price for our common stock to the extent investors perceive disadvantages in owning shares of a company with controlling shareholders. In addition, Cinven is in the business of making investments in companies and may, from time to time, acquire interests in businesses that directly or indirectly compete with our business, as well as businesses that are significant existing or potential customers. Cinven may acquire or seek to acquire assets that we seek to acquire and, as a result, those acquisition opportunities may not be available to us or may be more expensive for us to pursue, and as a result, the interests of Cinven may not coincide and may even conflict with the interests of our other shareholders.

We are a “controlled company” within the meaning of the NASDAQ rules and, as a result, we qualify for, and rely on, exemptions from certain corporate governance requirements. Our shareholders do not have the same protections afforded to shareholders of companies that are subject to such requirements.

Substantially concurrently with the closing of our initial public offering, or the IPO, Cinven and Dr. August J. Troendle, our Chief Executive Officer and founder, entered into a voting agreement, or the Voting Agreement. Pursuant to the terms of the Voting Agreement, for so long as Cinven and Dr. Troendle collectively hold at least 40% of our outstanding voting shares, or the Voting Agreement is otherwise terminated in accordance with its terms, Cinven has agreed to vote its shares of our common stock in favor of the election of Dr. Troendle to our Board (so long as Dr. Troendle remains our Chief Executive Officer) upon his nomination by our Board and Dr. Troendle has

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agreed to vote his shares of our common stock in favor of the election of the directors affiliated with Cinven upon their nomination by our Board; provided, that in the event that Cinven holds less than (a) 40% but greater than or equal to 25% of our voting shares then outstanding, Dr. Troendle shall be required to vote for two directors affiliated with Cinven, after giving effect to the directors then sitting on the Board, (b) 25% but greater than or equal to 10% of our voting shares then outstanding, Dr. Troendle shall be required to vote for one director affiliated with Cinven, after giving effect to the directors then sitting on the Board and (c) 10% of our voting shares then outstanding, Dr. Troendle shall not be required to vote for any directors affiliated with Cinven.

Because of the Voting Agreement and the aggregate voting power of Cinven and Dr. Troendle, we are considered a “controlled company” within the meaning of the corporate governance standards of NASDAQ. Under these rules, a company of which more than 50% of the voting power for the election of directors is held by an individual, group or another company is a “controlled company” and may elect not to comply with certain corporate governance requirements, including the requirements that, within one year of the date of the listing of our common stock:

After we cease to be a “controlled company,” we will be required to comply with the above-referenced requirements within one year.

We currently do not have a nominating and corporate governance committee. Accordingly, our shareholders do not have the same protections afforded to shareholders of companies that are subject to all of the corporate governance requirements of NASDAQ. Cinven and Dr. Troendle, however, are not subject to any contractual obligation to retain their controlling interest. There can be no assurance as to the period of time during which Cinven and Dr. Troendle will maintain their ownership of our common stock. As a result, there can be no assurance as to the period of time during which we will be able to avail ourselves of the controlled company exemptions.

Upon the sale of a sufficient number of shares by Cinven or Dr. Troendle, we will no longer be a controlled company, and we may have difficulties complying with the NASDAQ rules listed above. We intend to comply with these NASDAQ rules if we cease to be a controlled company. However, there can be no assurance that we will be able to comply with such rules before the end of the phase-in period for compliance.

Our anti-takeover provisions could prevent or delay a change in control of our company, even if such change in control would be beneficial to our shareholders.

Provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws, as well as provisions of Delaware law could discourage, delay or prevent a merger, acquisition or other change in control of our company, even if such change in control would be beneficial to our shareholders. These provisions include:

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These provisions could also discourage proxy contests and make it more difficult for our shareholders to elect directors of their choosing and cause us to take other corporate actions our shareholders desire. In addition, because our Board is responsible for appointing the members of our management team, these provisions could in turn affect any attempt by our shareholders to replace current members of our management team.

In addition, the Delaware General Corporation Law, or the DGCL, to which we are subject, prohibits us, except under specified circumstances, from engaging in any mergers, significant sales of stock or assets or business combinations with any shareholder or group of shareholders who owns at least 15% of our common stock for three years following their becoming the owner of 15% of our common stock.

Cinven and our non-employee directors may acquire interests and positions that could present potential conflicts with our and our shareholders’ interests.

Cinven and our non-employee directors make investments in companies and may, from time to time, acquire and hold interests in businesses that compete directly or indirectly with us. Cinven and our non-employee directors may also pursue, for their own accounts, acquisition opportunities that may be complementary to our business, and as a result, those acquisition opportunities might not be available to us. Our organizational documents contain provisions renouncing any interest or expectancy held by Cinven or by our non-employee directors in corporate opportunities. Accordingly, the interests of Cinven and our non-employee directors may supersede ours, causing Cinven or its affiliates or our non-employee directors and their affiliates to compete against us or to pursue opportunities instead of us, for which we have no recourse. Such actions on the part of Cinven or our non-employee directors and inaction on our part could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

Full-time investment professionals of Cinven occupy three seats on our Board. Because Cinven could invest in entities that directly or indirectly compete with us, when conflicts arise between the interests of Cinven and the interests of our shareholders, these directors may not be disinterested.

We may issue shares of preferred stock in the future, which could make it difficult for another company to acquire us or could otherwise adversely affect holders of our common stock, which could depress the price of our common stock.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation authorizes us to issue one or more series of preferred stock. Our Board has the authority to determine the preferences, limitations and relative rights of the shares of preferred stock and to fix the number of shares constituting any series and the designation of such series, without any further vote or action by our shareholders. Our preferred stock could be issued with voting, liquidation, dividend and other rights superior to the rights of our common stock. The potential issuance of preferred stock may delay or prevent a change in control of us, discourage bids for our common stock at a premium to the market price, and materially and adversely affect the market price and the voting and other rights of the holders of our common stock.

The provision of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation requiring exclusive venue in the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware for certain types of lawsuits may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against our directors and officers.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation requires, to the fullest extent permitted by law, that (i) any derivative action or proceeding brought on our behalf, (ii) any action asserting a claim of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any of our directors, officers or other employees to us or our shareholders, (iii) any action asserting a claim against us arising pursuant to any provision of the DGCL or our amended and restated certificate of incorporation or the bylaws or (iv) any action asserting a claim against us governed by the internal affairs doctrine will have to be brought only in the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware. Although we believe this provision benefits us by providing increased consistency in the application of Delaware law in the types of lawsuits to which it applies, the provision may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against our directors and officers.

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Failure to establish and maintain effective internal controls in accordance with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act could have a material adverse effect on our business and stock price.

As a public company, we are now required to comply with the rules of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC, implementing Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, or the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, and are therefore required to make a formal assessment of the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting for that purpose. We are required to comply with the SEC’s rules implementing Sections 302 and 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which require management to certify financial and other information in our quarterly and annual reports and provide an annual management report on the effectiveness of controls over financial reporting. As an emerging growth company, our independent registered public accounting firm is not required to formally attest to the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting pursuant to Section 404 until the later of the year following our first annual report required to be filed with the SEC or the date we are no longer an emerging growth company. At such time, our independent registered public accounting firm may issue a report that is adverse in the event it is not satisfied with the level at which our controls are documented, designed or operating.

To comply with the requirements of being a newly public company, we have undertaken various actions, and may need to take additional actions, such as implementing new internal controls and procedures and hiring additional accounting or internal audit staff. Testing and maintaining internal control can divert our management’s attention from other matters that are important to the operation of our business. Additionally, when evaluating our internal control over financial reporting, we may identify material weaknesses that will cause us to be out of compliance with the requirements of Section 404. If we are unable to comply with the requirements of Section 404 or assert that our internal control over financial reporting is effective, or if our independent registered public accounting firm is unable to express an opinion as to the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting once we are no longer an emerging growth company, investors may lose confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports and the market price of our common stock could be negatively affected, and we could become subject to investigations by NASDAQ, the SEC or other regulatory authorities, which could require additional financial and management resources.

We have incurred and will continue to incur significant costs as a result of operating as a public company, and our management will devote substantial time to new compliance initiatives.

As a publicly traded company, we have incurred and will continue to incur significant legal, accounting and other expenses that we were not required to incur prior to our IPO. Further, these costs may increase after we are no longer an “emerging growth company” as defined under the JOBS Act. In addition, compliance with new and changing laws, regulations and standards relating to corporate governance and public disclosure, including the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Customer Protection Act, or the Dodd-Frank Act, and the rules and regulations promulgated and to be promulgated thereunder, as well as under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, and the rules and regulations of the SEC, has increased and will continue to increase our legal and financial compliance costs and make some activities more difficult, time-consuming or costly. For example, the Exchange Act requires us, among other things, to file annual, quarterly and current reports with respect to our business and operating results. Being a public company and being subject to new rules and regulations has made it more expensive for us to obtain director and officer liability insurance, and we may be required to accept reduced coverage or incur substantially higher costs to continue to obtain coverage. As such, we expect to continue to incur additional annual expenses of $3.0 million to $4.0 million related to operating as a public company. These factors may therefore strain our resources, divert management’s attention, and affect our ability to attract and retain qualified members of our Board and adversely affect our operating margins.

Furthermore, the need to continue to establish the corporate infrastructure demanded of a public company may divert management’s attention from implementing our growth strategy, which could prevent us from improving our business, results of operations and financial condition. We have made, and will continue to make, changes to our internal controls and procedures for financial reporting and accounting systems to meet our reporting obligations as a publicly traded company. However, the measures we take may not be sufficient to satisfy our obligations as a publicly traded company.

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Our operating results and share price may be volatile, and the market price of our common stock may drop.

Our quarterly operating results have fluctuated, and are likely to fluctuate in the future. In addition, securities markets worldwide have experienced, and are likely to continue to experience, significant price and volume fluctuations. This market volatility, as well as general economic, market or political conditions, could subject the market price of shares of our common stock to wide price fluctuations regardless of our operating performance. The public market for our common stock is new and the trading price of shares of our common stock may fluctuate in response to various factors, including:

These and other factors, many of which are beyond our control, may cause our operating results and the market price and demand for shares of our common stock to fluctuate substantially. While we believe that operating results for any particular quarter are not necessarily a meaningful indication of future results, fluctuations in our quarterly operating results could limit or prevent investors from readily selling their shares and may otherwise negatively affect the market price and liquidity of shares of our common stock. In addition, in the past, when the market price of a stock has been volatile, holders of that stock have sometimes instituted securities class action litigation against the company that issued the stock. If any of our shareholders brought a lawsuit against us, we could incur substantial costs defending the lawsuit. Such a lawsuit could also divert the time and attention of our management from our business, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

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Shares of our common stock may be sold into the market in the near future. This could cause the market price of our common stock to drop significantly, even if our business is doing well.

Sales of a substantial number of shares of our common stock in the public market could occur at any time. As of December 31, 2017, we had 35,466,510 shares of outstanding common stock. Outstanding shares of our common stock are freely tradable without restriction under the Securities Act, except for any shares of our common stock that are held or acquired by our directors, executive officers and other affiliates, as that term is defined in the Securities Act, which will be or are restricted securities under the Securities Act. Restricted securities may not be sold in the public market unless the sale is registered under the Securities Act or an exemption from registration is available.

We are also party to a registration rights agreement, or the Registration Rights Agreement, pursuant to which the shares of common stock held by Cinven and Dr. August J. Troendle, our Chief Executive Officer and founder, are eligible for resale, subject to certain limitations set forth therein.

In connection with the IPO, we filed a registration statement on Form S-8 under the Securities Act to register all shares of common stock issued or issuable under the 2016 Incentive Award Plan, which became effective upon filing. Accordingly, shares registered under such registration statement will be available for sale in the open market following the expiration of the applicable lock-up period. The registration statement on Form S-8 covers 6,000,000 shares of our common stock.

As shares are registered or otherwise sold pursuant to an exemption from registration under the Securities Act, our share price could drop significantly if the holders of these shares sell them or are perceived by the market as intending to sell them. These sales might also make it more difficult for us to sell securities in the future at a time and at a price that we deem appropriate.

In the future, we may also issue additional securities if we need to raise capital or make acquisitions, which could constitute a material portion of our then-outstanding shares of common stock.

Because we have no current plans to pay regular cash dividends on our common stock, our shareholders may not receive any return on investment unless they sell their common stock for a price greater than that which they paid for it.

We do not anticipate paying any regular cash dividends on our common stock for the foreseeable future. Any decision to declare and pay dividends in the future will be made at the discretion of our Board and will depend on, among other things, our results of operations, financial condition, cash requirements, contractual restrictions and other factors that our Board may deem relevant. In addition, our ability to pay dividends is, and may continue to be, limited by covenants of existing and any future outstanding indebtedness we or our subsidiaries incur, including under our existing Senior Secured Credit Facilities. Therefore, any return on investment in our common stock is solely dependent upon the appreciation of the price of our common stock on the open market, which may not occur.

We are a holding company and rely on dividends and other payments, advances and transfers of funds from our subsidiaries to meet our obligations and pay any dividends.

We have no direct operations and no significant assets other than ownership of 100% of the capital stock of our subsidiaries. Because we conduct our operations through our subsidiaries, we depend on those entities for dividends and other payments to generate the funds necessary to meet our financial obligations, and to pay any dividends with respect to our common stock. Legal and contractual restrictions in our Senior Secured Credit Facilities and other agreements which may govern future indebtedness of our subsidiaries, as well as the financial condition and operating requirements of our subsidiaries, may limit our ability to obtain cash from our subsidiaries. The earnings from, or other available assets of, our subsidiaries might not be sufficient to pay dividends or make distributions or loans to enable us to pay any dividends on our common stock or other obligations. Any of the foregoing could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

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If securities or industry analysts do not publish research or reports about our business, if they adversely change their recommendations regarding our common stock or if our results of operations do not meet their expectations, our share price and trading volume could decline.

The trading market for shares of our common stock is influenced by the research and reports that industry or securities analysts publish about us or our business. We do not have any control over these analysts. If one or more of these analysts cease coverage of our company or fail to publish reports on us regularly, we could lose visibility in the financial markets, which in turn could cause our share price or trading volume to decline. Moreover, if one or more of the analysts who cover us downgrade our stock, or if our results of operations do not meet their expectations, our share price could decline.

We are an “emerging growth company” and as a result of the reduced disclosure and governance requirements applicable to emerging growth companies, our common stock may be less attractive to investors.

The JOBS Act provides that, so long as a company qualifies as an “emerging growth company,” it will, among other things:

We currently take advantage of each of the exemptions described above. In connection with our IPO, we irrevocably elected not to take advantage of the extension of time to comply with new or revised financial accounting standards available under Section 107(b) of the JOBS Act. We could be an emerging growth company up to the last day of the fiscal year following the fifth anniversary of the completion of our IPO. We cannot predict if investors will find our common stock less attractive if we elect to rely on these exemptions, or if taking advantage of these exemptions would result in less active trading or more volatility in the price of our common stock.

Investment funds affiliated with Cinven pledged all of its owned shares of our common stock as collateral for borrowings under a credit agreement unaffiliated with Medpace.

On June 16, 2017, Cinven informed us that Medpace Limited Partnership (“MLP”), an entity formed by Cinven to hold all Cinven’s equity interests in us, entered into a credit agreement (the “MLP Credit Agreement”) with Credit Suisse AG, Cayman Islands Branch, and Morgan Stanley Bank, N.A., as lenders (together, the “Lenders”), Credit Suisse AG, Cayman Islands Branch, as administrative agent, and Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC, as calculation agent. Pursuant to the MLP Credit Agreement, MLP entered into a pledge agreement (the “MLP Pledge Agreement”) with Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC, as secured party and Morgan Stanley Bank, N.A., as secured party (together, the “Secured Parties”). Pursuant to the MLP Pledge Agreement, MLP pledged all of its shares of the Company’s common stock, $0.01 par value per share, to the Secured Parties.

On June 21, 2017 (the “MLP Funding Date”), MLP borrowed $150.0 million under the MLP Credit Agreement. Pursuant to the MLP Pledge Agreement, to secure any borrowings under the MLP Credit Agreement, MLP pledged 22,999,997 shares (collectively, the “MLP Pledged Shares”) of the Company’s common stock as of the MLP Funding Date. The MLP Pledged Shares represented approximately 46.2% of the Company’s issued and outstanding Common Stock as of December 31, 2017. All of the MLP Pledged Shares were contributed to MLP from Cinven’s Fifth Cinven Fund (No. 1) Limited Partnership, Fifth Cinven Fund (No. 2) Limited Partnership, Fifth Cinven Fund (No. 3) Limited Partnership, Fifth Cinven Fund (No. 4) Limited Partnership, Fifth Cinven Fund (No. 5) Limited

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Partnership, Fifth Cinven Fund (No. 6) Limited Partnership, Fifth Cinven Fund FCP-SIF and Fifth Cinven Fund Co-Investment Partnership, which collectively own all of the equity interest in MLP.

The MLP Credit Agreement contains customary default provisions. In the event of a default under the MLP Credit Agreement by MLP, the Lenders and their affiliates and assignees may foreclose upon any and all MLP Pledged Shares and may seek recourse against MLP.  The Company is not a party to the MLP Credit Agreement or the MLP Pledge Agreement and has no obligations thereunder, but has delivered a letter agreement to the Lenders in which it has, among other things, agreed, subject to applicable law and stock exchange rules, not to take any action intended to hinder or delay the exercise of any remedies by the Lenders under the MLP Credit Agreement or the MLP Pledge Agreement.

In the event of a foreclosure upon any or all of the MLP Pledged Shares, we may no longer be a controlled company, and we may have difficulties complying with certain NASDAQ rules that we take advantage of as a controlled company if we cease to be a controlled company. We intend to comply with these NASDAQ rules if we cease to be a controlled company. However, there can be no assurance that we will be able to comply with such rules before the end of the applicable phase-in period for compliance.  See “Risk Factors—Risks Relating to Ownership of Our Common Stock—We are a “controlled company” within the meaning of the NASDAQ rules and, as a result, we qualify for, and rely on, exemptions from certain corporate governance requirements.

Our shareholders do not have the same protections afforded to shareholders of companies that are subject to such requirements” in Item 1A of Part I of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.  Additionally, any foreclosure upon the MLP Pledged Shares could result in sales of a substantial amount of shares of our common stock in the public market, which could cause the market price of our common stock to drop significantly, even if our business is doing well.  See “Risk Factors—Risks Relating to Ownership of Our Common Stock—Shares of our common stock may be sold into the market in the near future. This could cause the market price of our common stock to drop significantly, even if our business is doing well” in Item 1A of Part I of the Annual Report on Form 10-K. Moreover, the occurrence of a foreclosure, and a subsequent sale of all, or substantially all, of the MLP Pledged Shares could result in a change of control under our Senior Secured Credit Facilities, even when such change may not be in the best interest of our stockholders.  Such sale of the MLP Pledged Shares may also result in another shareholder beneficially owning a significant amount of our common stock and being able to exert a significant degree of influence or actual control over our management and affairs.  Such shareholder’s interests may be different from or conflict with those of our other shareholders.  See “Risk Factors—Risks Relating to Ownership of Our Common Stock—Cinven and our Chief Executive Officer and founder collectively control a substantial majority of our outstanding common stock and their interests may be different from or conflict with those of our other shareholders” in Item 1A of Part I of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments.

None.

Item 2. Properties.

As of December 31, 2017, we had 39 leased commercial locations in 27 countries across North America, Europe, Asia/Pacific, South America and Africa. We also own lab and office space in Leuven, Belgium. Most of these facilities consist solely of office space; however, we have five laboratories located across four facilities and a logistics warehouse. Our principal executive offices are located on a corporate campus in Cincinnati, Ohio consisting of three buildings totaling approximately 332,000 square feet. The leases for the buildings in our Cincinnati site expire in 2022, 2026 and 2027, respectively. None of our leases are individually material to our business model and all have either options to renew or are located in major markets with what we believe are adequate opportunities to continue business operations on terms satisfactory to us.

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Item 3. Legal Proceedings.

We are party to legal proceedings incidental to our business and may become subject to additional legal proceedings in the future. While the outcome of these matters could differ from management’s expectations, we do not believe that the resolution of these matters, individually and in the aggregate, is reasonably likely to have a material adverse effect to our consolidated financial statements. Litigation is subject to inherent uncertainties. See Note 9 “Commitments, Contingencies and Guarantees—Legal Proceedings” to our consolidated financial statements included in Item 8 of Part II in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures

Not applicable.

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PART II

Item 5. Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities.

Market Information for Common Stock

On August 11, 2016, our common stock began trading on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol “MEDP”. Prior to that time, there was no public market for our common stock. The following table sets forth the high and low sales prices per share of our common stock as reported by the NASDAQ Global Select Market for the period indicated.

Holders of Record

On February 23, 2018, there were approximately 45 shareholders of record of our common stock. Because many of the shares of our common stock are registered in “nominee” or “street” names, we believe that the total number of beneficial owners is considerably higher.

Dividend Policy

We have not paid any dividends to date, nor do we have current plans to pay any cash dividends on our common stock for the foreseeable future and instead intend to retain earnings, if any, for future operations, expansion and debt repayment. However, in the future, subject to the factors described below and our future liquidity and capitalization, we may change this policy and choose to pay dividends.

We are a holding company which does not conduct any business operations of our own. As a result, our ability to pay cash dividends on our common stock is dependent upon cash dividends and distributions and other transfers from our subsidiaries. The ability of our subsidiaries to pay dividends is currently restricted by the terms of our Senior Secured Credit Facilities and may be further restricted by any future indebtedness we or they incur.

In addition, under Delaware law, our Board may declare dividends only to the extent of our surplus (which is defined as total assets at fair market value minus total liabilities, minus statutory capital) or, if there is no surplus, out of our net profits for the then current and/or immediately preceding fiscal year.

Any future determination to declare dividends will be at the discretion of our Board and will take into account:

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See “Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Liquidity and Capital Resources—Indebtedness” of Part II of this Annual Report on Form 10-K and Note 8 “Debt” to our audited consolidated financial statements in Item 8 of Part II on this Annual Report on Form 10-K for restrictions on our ability to pay dividends.

Recent Sales of Unregistered Securities

On January 10, 2017, an employee exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 1,851 shares of our common stock at a price of $16.21 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $30,000.

On February 2, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 925 shares of our common stock at a price of $14.41 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $13,300 and 277 shares of our common stock at a price of $16.21 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $4,500.

On February 10, 2017, an employee exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 1,000 shares of our common stock at a price of $14.41 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $14,400.

On February 15, 2017, an employee exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 1,851 shares of our common stock at a price of $16.21 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $30,000.

On February 21, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 1,500 shares of our common stock at a price of $14.41 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $21,600 and 462 shares of our common stock at a price of $16.89 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $7,800.

On February 28, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 2,555 shares of our common stock at a price of $14.41 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $36,800 and 832 shares of our common stock at a price of $16.21 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $13,500.

On March 2, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 1,185 shares of our common stock at a price of $14.41 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $17,100 and 250 shares of our common stock at a price of $16.21 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $4,100.

On April 1, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 8,154 shares of our common stock at a price of $14.41 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $117,500.

On April 5, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 370 shares of our common stock at a price of $14.41 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $5,300 and 1,851 shares of our common stock at a price of $18.23 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $33,700.

On April 6, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 648 shares of our common stock at a price of $16.21 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $10,500.

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On May 2, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 11,648 shares of our common stock at a price of $14.41 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $167,800, 4,259 shares of our common stock at a price of $16.21 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $69,000 and 2,222 shares of our common stock at a price of $16.88 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $37,500.

On May 5, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 9,260 shares of our common stock at a price of $16.21 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $150,100.

On May 24, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 2,777 shares of our common stock at a price of $16.21 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $45,000.

On June 12, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 6,666 shares of our common stock at a price of $14.41 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $96,100 and 1,851 shares of our common stock at a price of $16.20 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $30,000.

On June 23, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 8,334 shares of our common stock at a price of $14.41 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $120,100 and 1,851 shares of our common stock at a price of $16.20 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $30,000.

On July 7, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 370 shares of our common stock at a price of $16.20 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $6,000.

On July 19, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 1,852 shares of our common stock at a price of $18.23 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $33,800.

On July 25, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 1,600 shares of our common stock at a price of $14.41 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $23,100.

On August 4, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 464 shares of our common stock at a price of $14.41 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $6,700.

On August 18, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 463 shares of our common stock at a price of $14.41 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $6,700 and 278 shares of our common stock at a price of $16.20 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $4,500.

On September 5, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 50 shares of our common stock at a price of $14.41 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $700.

On September 25, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 4,167 shares of our common stock at a price of $14.41 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $60,000 and 1,852 shares of our common stock at a price of $16.20 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $30,000.

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On October 9, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 2,221 shares of our common stock at a price of $14.41 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $32,000.

On October 16, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 23,000 shares of our common stock at a price of $16.88 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $388,200.

On October 20, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 450 shares of our common stock at a price of $14.41 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $6,500.

On November 2, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 250 shares of our common stock at a price of $16.20 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $4,100.

On December 4, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 554 shares of our common stock at a price of $14.41 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $8,000.

On December 6, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 306 shares of our common stock at a price of $16.20 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $5,000.

On December 12, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 473 shares of our common stock at a price of $14.41 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $6,800.

On December 18, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 1,850 shares of our common stock at a price of $14.41 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $26,700.

On December 19, 2017, employees exercised stock options granted under the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan to purchase a total of 4,008 shares of our common stock at a price of $14.41 per share for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $57,800.

The sales of the above securities were deemed to be exempt from registration under the Securities Act in reliance upon Rule 701 promulgated under Section 3(b) of the Securities Act as transactions pursuant to benefit plans and contracts relating to compensation as provided under Rule 701.

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Purchases of Equity Securities by the Issuer and Affiliated Purchasers

Share Repurchases

This table provides certain information with respect to our purchases of shares of the Company’s common stock during the fourth fiscal quarter of 2017:

Issuer’s Purchases of Equity Securities

Stock Performance Graph

The information included under the heading “Stock Performance Graph” is “furnished” and not “filed” for purposes of Section 18 of the Exchange Act, or otherwise subject to the liabilities of that section, nor shall it be deemed to be “soliciting material” subject to Regulation 14A or incorporated by reference in any filing under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.

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Our common stock is listed for trading on the NASDAQ under the symbol “MEDP.” The Stock Price Performance Graph set forth below compares the cumulative total shareholder return on our common stock for the period from August 11, 2016 through December 31, 2017, with the cumulative total return of the Nasdaq Composite Index and the Nasdaq Health Care Index over the same period. The comparison assumes $100 was invested on August 11, 2016 in the common stock of Medpace Holdings, Inc., in the Nasdaq Composite Index, and in the Nasdaq Health Care Index and assumes reinvestment of dividends, if any. The stock price performance of the following graph is not necessarily indicative of future stock price performance. Information used in the graph was obtained from the Nasdaq Stock Market, a source believed to be reliable, but we are not responsible for any errors or omissions in such information.

Equity Compensation Plans

The information required by Part II, Item 5 of the Annual Report on Form 10-K regarding equity compensation plans is incorporated herein by reference to “Part III, Item 12. Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters.”

Item 6. Selected Financial Data

The following tables set forth, for the periods and at the dates indicated, our selected historical consolidated financial data. We have derived the selected consolidated financial data as of December 31, 2017 and 2016, and for the Successor years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015 from our audited consolidated financial statements appearing elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. We have derived the selected consolidated financial data as of December 31, 2014 and for the Successor nine month period ended December 31, 2014, the Predecessor three month period ended March 31, 2014 and the Predecessor year ended December 31, 2013 from our audited consolidated financial statements not appearing elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. Our historical results are not necessarily indicative of the results we may achieve in any future period.

On July 25, 2016, the Board approved, and made legally effective, a 1-for-1.35 reverse stock split of the Company’s common stock. All share, stock option and per share information presented in the consolidated financial statements have been adjusted to reflect the reverse stock split on a retroactive basis for all periods presented. There was no change in the par value of the Company’s common stock.

The accompanying consolidated statements of operations, cash flows and shareholders' equity are presented for two periods: “Predecessor” and “Successor”, which relate to the period preceding and succeeding, respectively, the

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Change in Control as discussed in Note 2 of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2016. The Company refers to the operations of Medpace Holdings, Inc. and subsidiaries for both the Predecessor and Successor periods.

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

You should read the following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and the notes thereto included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. This item and the related discussion contain forward-looking statements reflecting current expectations that involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results and the timing of events may differ materially from those indicated in such forward-looking statements. Important factors that may cause such differences include, but are not limited to, those discussed under the “Forward-Looking Statements” above and “Item IA. Risk Factors” in Part I of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Business Overview

We are one of the world’s leading clinical contract research organizations, or CROs, by revenue, solely focused on providing scientifically-driven outsourced clinical development services to the biotechnology, pharmaceutical and medical device industries. Our mission is to accelerate the global development of safe and effective medical therapeutics. We differentiate ourselves from our competitors by our disciplined operating model centered on providing full-service Phase I-IV clinical development services and our therapeutic expertise. We believe this combination results in timely and cost-effective delivery of clinical development services for our customers. We believe that we are a partner of choice for small- and mid-sized biopharmaceutical companies based on our ability to consistently utilize our full-service, disciplined operating model to deliver timely and high-quality results for our customers.

We focus on conducting clinical trials across all major therapeutic areas, with particular strength in Cardiology, Metabolic Disease, Oncology, Endocrinology, Central Nervous System, or CNS, Antiviral and Anti-infective, or AVAI, as well as therapeutic expertise in Medical Devices. Our global platform includes approximately 2,500 employees across 35 countries, providing our customers with broad access to diverse markets and patient populations as well as local regulatory expertise and market knowledge.

Asset Acquisition

In May 2017, the Company acquired out of bankruptcy NephroGenex, Inc. (“Nephrogenex” or the “Debtor”), a publicly-held pharmaceutical company that had previously filed for relief under Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code. The Company, which was the largest unsecured creditor of Nephrogenex, entered into an agreement through the bankruptcy process, to exchange its unsecured claim for 100% of the common stock in the post-bankruptcy, debt-free Debtor. The assets of the acquired Debtor consist primarily of tax attributes as well as in-process research and development and other intangible assets.  An analysis by the Company determined that substantially all the fair value of the assets on the date of acquisition is captured in the tax attributes, as the intangible assets account for a relatively immaterial portion of the fair market value of the total assets received. The acquisition of the Debtor was accounted for as an asset purchase.

The Company allocated its consideration paid of $1.2 million, consisting of accounts receivable and unbilled receivables and transaction related costs, on a pro rata basis to the assets acquired based on their respective fair values.  Acquired assets include intangible assets of $0.5 million, deferred tax assets of $22.2 million, consisting of tax effected net operating losses in the amount of $13.5 million, tax effected capitalized research and development expenses of $8.5 million and tax effected federal tax credits of $0.2 million, and deferred tax liabilities of $0.1 million. The excess amount of fair value received over consideration paid of $21.4 million was recorded as a Deferred credit in the consolidated balance sheets and will be recognized within income tax provision in proportion to the realization of the deferred tax assets and federal tax credits prospectively.

During the fourth quarter of the year ended December 31, 2017, the Deferred tax assets and related Deferred credit balances were revalued due primarily to the impact of tax reform. See Note 12 of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for further discussion of the impact of tax reform on our consolidated financial statements.

How We Generate Revenue

Our revenue consists of net service revenue and reimbursed-out-of-pocket revenue.

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Net Service Revenue

We earn customer fees through the performance of services detailed in our customer contracts. Contract scope and pricing is typically based on either a fixed-fee or unit-of-service model and our contracts can range in duration from a few months to several years. These contracts are individually priced and negotiated based on the anticipated project scope, including the complexity of the project and the performance risks inherent in the project. The majority of our contracts are structured with an upfront fee that is collected at the time of contract signing, and the balance of the fee is collected over the duration of the contract either through an arranged billing schedule or upon completion of certain performance targets or defined milestones. This payment structure is standard in the CRO industry.

Net service revenue, which is distinct from billing and cash receipt, is generally recognized based on the proportional performance methodology, which is determined by assessing the proportion of performance completed or delivered to date compared to total specific measures to be delivered or completed under the terms of the contract. The measures utilized to assess performance are specific to the service provided. Net service revenue for unit-of-service contracts is recognized as services are performed or delivered. Cancellation provisions in our contracts allow our customers to terminate a contract either immediately or according to advance notice terms specified within the applicable contract, which is typically 30 days. Contract cancellation may occur for various reasons, including, but not limited to, adverse patient reactions, lack of efficacy, or inadequate patient enrollment. Upon cancellation, we are entitled to fees for services rendered through the date of termination, including payment for subsequent services necessary to conclude the study or close out the contract. These fees are agreed upon with the customer and are realized as net service revenue when collection is reasonably assured. Changes in net service revenue from period to period are driven primarily by new business volume and task order execution activity, project cancellations, and the mix of active studies during a given period that can vary based on therapeutic area and or study life cycle stage.

Reimbursed Out-of-Pocket Revenue

Reimbursed out-of-pocket revenue consists primarily of expenses we incur in relation to projects that are reimbursed by our customers with no profit or mark-up. These expenses are defined in our contracts and generally include, but are not limited to, travel, meetings, printing, and shipping and handling fees. Such reimbursements received are included in revenue with the expenditures reflected as a separate component of operating expense. Certain fees paid to investigators and other disbursements in which we act as an agent on behalf of the study sponsor are reflected in the consolidated statements of operations with no resulting effect on our revenue or expenses.

Costs and Expenses

Our costs and expenses are comprised primarily of our direct costs, selling, general and administrative costs, depreciation and amortization and income taxes. In addition, as noted above, we also have reimbursed out-of-pocket expenditures that are directly offset by our reimbursed out-of-pocket revenue.

Direct Costs, Excluding Depreciation and Amortization

Direct costs, excluding depreciation and amortization, are primarily driven by labor and related employee benefits, but also include laboratory supplies and other expenses contributing to service delivery. The other costs of service delivery can include office rent, utilities, supplies and software license expenses, which are allocated between direct costs, excluding depreciation and amortization and selling, general and administrative expenses based on the estimated contribution among service delivery and support function efforts on a percentage basis. Direct costs, excluding depreciation and amortization exclude reimbursed out-of-pocket expenses. Direct costs, excluding depreciation and amortization are expensed as incurred and are not deferred in anticipation of contracts being awarded or finalization of changes in scope. Direct costs, excluding depreciation and amortization as a percentage of net service revenue can vary from period to period due to project labor efficiencies, changes in workforce, compensation/bonus programs and service mix.

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Selling, General and Administrative

Selling, general and administrative expenses are primarily driven by compensation and related employee benefits, as well as rent, utilities, supplies, software licenses, professional fees (e.g., legal and accounting expenses), travel, marketing and other operating expenses.

Depreciation

Depreciation is provided on our property and equipment on the straight-line method at rates adequate to allocate the cost of the applicable assets over their estimated useful lives, which is three to five years for computer hardware, software, phone, and medical imaging equipment, five to seven years for furniture and fixtures and other equipment, and thirty to forty years for buildings. Leasehold improvements and deemed assets from landlord building construction are amortized on a straight-line basis over the shorter of the estimated useful life of the improvement or the associated remaining lease term.

Amortization

Amortization relates to finite-lived intangible assets recognized as expense using the straight-line method or using an accelerated method over their estimated useful lives, which range in term from 17 months to 15 years. 

Income Tax Provision

Income tax provision consists of federal, state and local taxes on income in multiple jurisdictions.  Our income tax is impacted by the pre-tax earnings in jurisdictions with varying tax rates and any related tax credits that may be available to us.  Our current and future provision for income taxes will vary from statutory rates due to the impact of valuation allowances in certain countries, income tax incentives, certain non-deductible expenses, and other discrete items.

Key Performance Metrics

To evaluate the performance of our business, we utilize a variety of financial and performance metrics. These key measures include net new business awards and backlog.

Net New Business Awards and Backlog

New business awards represent the value of anticipated future net service revenue that has been awarded during the period that is recognized in backlog. This value is recognized upon the signing of a contract or receipt of a written pre-contract confirmation from a customer that confirms an agreement in principle on budget and scope. New business awards also include contract amendments, or changes in scope, where the customer has provided written authorization for changes in budget and scope or has approved us to perform additional work as of the measurement date. Awards may not be recognized as backlog after consideration of a number of factors, including whether (i) the relevant net service revenue is expected only after a pending regulatory hurdle, which might result in cancellation of the study, (ii) the customer funding needed for commencement of the study is not believed to have been secured or (iii) study timelines are uncertain or not well defined. In addition, study amounts that extend beyond a three-year timeline are not included in backlog. The number and amount of new business awards can vary significantly from period to period, and an award’s contractual duration can range from several months to several years based on customer and project specifications.

Cancellations arise in the normal course of business and are reflected when we receive written confirmation from the customer to cease work on a contractual agreement. The majority of our customers can terminate our contracts without cause upon 30 days’ notice. Similar to new business awards, the number and amount of cancellations can vary significantly period over period due to timing of customer correspondence and study-specific circumstances.

Net new business awards represent gross new business awards received in a period offset by total cancellations in that period. Net new business awards were $426.1 million, $427.0 million and $359.5 million for the years ended December 31, 2017, 2016 and 2015, respectively.

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Backlog represents anticipated future net service revenue from net new business awards that have commenced, but have not been completed. Reported backlog will fluctuate based on new business awards, changes in the scope of existing contracts, cancellations, revenue recognition on existing contracts and foreign exchange adjustments from non-U.S. dollar denominated backlog. As of December 31, 2017, our backlog increased by $40.5 million, or 8.4%, to $524.4 million compared to $483.9 million as of December 31, 2016. Included within backlog as of December 31, 2017 was approximately $285 million to $295 million that we expect to convert to net service revenue in 2018, with the remainder expected to convert to net service revenue in years after 2018.

The effect of foreign currency adjustments on backlog was as follows: favorable foreign currency adjustments of $3.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2017; unfavorable foreign currency adjustments of $3.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2016; and unfavorable foreign currency adjustments of $3.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2015.

Backlog and net new business award metrics may not be reliable indicators of our future period revenue as they are subject to a variety of factors that may cause material fluctuations from period to period. These factors include, but are not limited to, changes in the scope of projects, cancellations, and duration and timing of services provided.

Exchange Rate Fluctuations

The majority of our contracts and operational transactions are U.S. dollar denominated.  The Euro represents the largest foreign currency denomination of our contractual and operational exposure.  As a result, a portion of our revenue and expenses is subject to exchange rate fluctuations. We have translated the Euro into U.S. dollars using the following average exchange rates based on data obtained from www.xe.com:

Results of Operations

Year Ended December 31, 2017 compared to Year Ended December 31, 2016

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Service revenue, net and Reimbursed out-of-pocket revenue

For the year ended December 31, 2017 service revenue, net increased by $15.8 million to $386.5 million, from $370.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2016. The increase was primarily driven by strong activity within the Oncology, Metabolic, and other uncategorized therapeutic areas.

Reimbursed out-of-pocket revenue decreased by $1.3 million to $49.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2017, from $51.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2016. Reimbursed out-of-pocket revenues can fluctuate significantly from period to period based on the timing of program initiation or closeout, and these changes do not necessarily correlate to changes in net service revenue. The reimbursements were offset by an equal amount of reimbursed out-of-pocket expenses.

Direct costs, excluding depreciation and amortization and Reimbursed out-of-pocket expenses

Our direct costs, excluding depreciation and amortization increased by $13.3 million, to $211.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2017 from $198.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2016. The increase was primarily attributed to higher personnel costs of $9.3 million, laboratory costs of $2.8 million, office rents of $0.8 million and computer, software licenses and maintenance costs of $0.6 million in the year ended December 31, 2017, compared to the prior year, all to support the growth in project activities.

Selling, general and administrative

Selling, general and administrative expenses increased by $1.9 million, to $63.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2017 from $61.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2016. The increase was primarily driven by higher personnel costs of $2.5 million and professional service costs of $1.3 million in the year ended December 31, 2017, compared to the prior year, to support growth in project activities. This was offset by a reduction in bad debt expense of $2.1 million due primarily to net bad debt recoveries for the year ended December 31, 2017, compared to bad debt expense in the prior year. 

Depreciation and Amortization

Depreciation and amortization expense decreased by $11.6 million, to $46.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2017 from $58.1 for the year ended December 31, 2016. The decrease in depreciation and amortization was primarily related to the amortization of our definite lived intangible assets, which are amortized on an accelerated basis.

Loss on extinguishment of debt

During the year ended December 31, 2016, in connection with entering into the Senior Secured Credit Facilities (as defined below), the Company recorded a loss on extinguishment of long-term debt of $10.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2016, of which $10.2 million related to unamortized loan origination fees from the credit agreement for our 2014 Senior Secured Credit Facilities (as defined below) and $0.5 million related to third party fees incurred during the fourth quarter of 2016.  There was no extinguishment of long-term debt in the year ended December 31, 2017.

Miscellaneous expense, net

Miscellaneous expense, net decreased by $0.1 million to $0.4 million of expense for the year ended December 31, 2017 from $0.4 million of expense for the year ended December 31, 2016. These changes were mainly attributable to foreign exchange gains or losses that arise in connection with the revaluation of short-term inter-company balances between our domestic and international subsidiaries, gains or losses from foreign currency transactions, such as those resulting from the settlement of third-party accounts receivables and payables denominated in a currency other than the local currency of the entity making the payment and exit costs related to the previous headquarter lease.

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Interest expense, net

Interest expense, net decreased by $11.8 million to $7.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2017 from $19.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2016. The decrease in interest expense, net for the year ended December 31, 2017 was related to the average lower outstanding balance under our Senior Secured Term Loan Facility (as defined below), as well as a lower effective interest rate as a result of the new credit agreement entered into in December 2016 (as described below).

Income tax provision

Income tax provision increased by $9.3 million, to $17.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2017 from $8.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2016. The overall effective tax rates for the years ended December 31, 2017 and 2016 were 31.3% and 38.9%, respectively. On December 22, 2017, the U.S. government enacted comprehensive tax legislation commonly referred to as “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act” (TCJA). The effective tax rate for 2017 decreased from 2016 primarily due to the impact from the TCJA. Excluding the impacts of the new federal tax reform legislation, our effective income tax rate in 2017 would have been an expense of 36.2%. The remaining difference was primarily attributable to the impact of state taxes, domestic and foreign uncertain tax positions and the tax impact associated with acquired tax attributes.  

The 2017 TCJA significantly reforms the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. The TCJA, among other things, includes a reduction in the U.S. federal tax rate from 35% to 21%, allows for the expensing of capital expenditures and puts into effect the migration from a “worldwide” system of taxation to a territorial system.  The provisional impact on the year ended December 31, 2017 effective tax rate from the TCJA was primarily attributable to a one-time transition tax of $0.6 million on unrepatriated earnings of foreign subsidiaries as well as a tax benefit of $3.4 million related to the revaluation of the Deferred Credit which was partially offset by the revaluation of our deferred tax assets and liabilities and other miscellaneous tax attributes due to the reduction of the U.S. corporate tax rate from 35% to 21%.

We are still evaluating the impact of the TCJA on our future effective tax rate, but at this time, we expect that the overall impact of the TCJA will decrease our effective tax rate compared to prior years.

Year ended December 31, 2016 compared to Year ended December 31, 2015

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Service revenue, net and Reimbursed out-of-pocket revenue

For the year ended December 31, 2016 service revenue, net increased by $50.5 million to $370.6 million, from $320.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2015. The increase was primarily driven by strong activity within the Oncology and AVAI therapeutic areas. 

Reimbursed out-of-pocket revenue increased by $12.0 million to $51.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2016, from $39.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2015. Reimbursed out-of-pocket revenues can fluctuate significantly from period to period based on the timing of program initiation or closeout, and these changes do not necessarily correlate to changes in net service revenue. The reimbursements were offset by an equal amount of reimbursed out-of-pocket expenses.      

Direct costs, excluding depreciation and amortization and Reimbursed out-of-pocket expenses

Our direct costs, excluding depreciation and amortization increased by $34.8 million, to $198.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2016 from $163.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2015. The increase was primarily attributed to increases in employee related costs for additional personnel of $23.7 million, contracted services of $4.7 million, and laboratory costs of $2.3 million, all to support the growth in project activities.

Selling, general and administrative

Selling, general and administrative expenses increased by $4.5 million, to $61.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2016 from $57.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2015. The increase was primarily driven by an increase in bad debt of $3.0 million in the year ended December 31, 2016 compared to the prior year, primarily due to higher bad debt expense incurred in 2016 of approximately $1.3 million compared to 2015, and a net bad debt recovery in the year ended December 31, 2015 of $1.6 million that did not recur in 2016. The year ended December 31, 2015 also benefitted from a $1.1 million gain on litigation from the settlement of an employment matter. The costs for certain advisory and professional fees related to the IPO in 2016 resulted in increases in expenses of $0.9 million while charitable contributions increased $0.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2016 compared to the prior year. These increases were partially offset by a $1.4 million decrease in employee related costs for the year ended December 31, 2016 compared to the prior year. This decrease was the result of a $4.3 million one-time stock based compensation award to our Chief Executive Officer during the year ended December 31, 2015, partially offset by an increase in other employee related costs of $2.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2016.  

Impairment of goodwill

There was no impairment of goodwill for the year ended December 31, 2016. During the year ended December 31, 2015, we determined that the fair value of our Clinics reporting unit did not exceed its carrying value resulting in a $9.3 million impairment of goodwill. This impairment was identified during the annual impairment assessment in the fourth quarter of 2015 when we updated our forecasted discounted cash flows to reflect operating results that lagged prior forecasted results.

Depreciation and Amortization

Depreciation and amortization expense decreased by $11.4 million, to $58.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2016 from $69.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2015. The decrease in depreciation and amortization was primarily related to the amortization of our definite lived intangible assets, which are amortized on an accelerated basis.

Loss on extinguishment of debt

During the year ended December 31, 2016, in connection with entering into the Senior Secured Credit Facilities (as defined below), the Company recorded a loss on extinguishment of long-term debt of $10.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2016, of which $10.2 million related to unamortized loan origination fees from the credit agreement for our 2014 Senior Secured Credit Facilities (as defined below) and $0.5 million related to third party fees incurred

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during the fourth quarter of 2016.  There was no extinguishment of long-term debt in the year ended December 31, 2015.

Miscellaneous expense, net

Miscellaneous expense, net decreased by $0.7 million to $0.4 million of expense for the year ended December 31, 2016 from $1.1 million of expense for the year ended December 31, 2015. These changes were mainly attributable to foreign exchange gains or losses that arise in connection with the revaluation of short-term inter-company balances between our domestic and international subsidiaries, and gains or losses from foreign currency transactions, such as those resulting from the settlement of third-party accounts receivables and payables denominated in a currency other than the local currency of the entity making the payment. Additionally, a $0.5 million gain was recognized during the year ended December 31, 2016 in connection with the settlement of certain liabilities related to a prior year change in control.

Interest expense, net

Interest expense, net decreased by $7.9 million to $19.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2016 from $27.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2015. The decrease in interest expense, net for the year ended December 31, 2016 was primarily related to the lower average outstanding balance under our Senior Secured Term Loan Facility (as defined below) and 2014 Senior Secured Term Loan Facility (as defined below) compared to the prior year. Additionally, our Senior Secured Term Loan Facility, which we entered into in the fourth quarter of 2016, has a lower rate of interest compared to the 2014 Senior Secured Term Loan Facility.     

Income tax provision

Income tax provision increased by $7.7 million, to $8.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2016 from $0.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2015. The overall effective tax rates for the years ended December 31, 2016 and 2015 were 38.9% and negative 10.8%, respectively. The change in effective tax rates and the increase in income tax provision was primarily due to an increase in pre-tax book income coupled with relatively consistent year over year rate reconciliation drivers. 

Liquidity and Capital Resources

We assess our liquidity in terms of our ability to generate cash to fund our operating, investing and financing activities. Our principal sources of liquidity are operating cash flows and funds available for borrowing under our Senior Secured Revolving Credit Facility (as defined below). As of December 31, 2017, we had cash and cash equivalents of $26.5 million, including less than $0.1 million of restricted cash, related to advanced payments received pursuant to certain sponsor contracts. Approximately $9.4 million of our cash and cash equivalents, none of which was restricted, was held by our foreign subsidiaries as of December 31, 2017.

On August 16, 2016, the Company completed its IPO of its common stock at a price of $23.00 per share.  We issued and sold 8,050,000 shares of common stock in the IPO.  The IPO raised net proceeds of approximately $173.6 million after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions.  We used the proceeds from our IPO, combined with cash on hand, to repay $175.0 million of outstanding borrowings under our 2014 Senior Secured Term Loan Facility.

On December 8, 2016, the Company entered into a credit agreement (the “Senior Secured Credit Agreement”) consisting of a $165.0 million term loan (the “Senior Secured Term Loan Facility”) and a $150.0 million revolving credit facility (the “Senior Secured Revolving Credit Facility” and, together with the Senior Secured Term Loan Facility, the “Senior Secured Credit Facilities”). As of December 31, 2017, we had $80.0 million available for borrowing under our Senior Secured Revolving Credit Facility. Proceeds from the Senior Secured Term Loan Facility were used to repay and extinguish our obligations under the 2014 Senior Secured Credit Facilities as well as pay any fees, costs and expenses related thereto.

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Our expected primary cash needs on both a short and long-term basis are for investment in operational growth, capital expenditures, payment of debt, share repurchases, selective strategic bolt-on acquisitions, other investments, and other general corporate needs. We have historically funded our operations and growth with cash flow from operations and borrowings under our credit facilities. We expect to continue expanding our operations through organic growth and potentially highly selective bolt-on acquisitions and investments. We expect these activities will be funded from existing cash, cash flow from operations and, if necessary, borrowings under our existing or future credit facilities or other debt.  We have deemed that foreign earnings will be indefinitely reinvested and therefore we have not provided taxes on these earnings.  While we do not anticipate the need to repatriate these foreign earnings for liquidity purposes given our cash flows from operations and available borrowings under existing and future credit facilities, we would incur taxes on these earnings if the need for repatriation due to liquidity purposes arises. We believe that our sources of liquidity and capital will be sufficient to finance our cash needs for the next 12 months and on a longer-term basis.  However, we cannot assure you that our business will generate sufficient cash flow from operations, or that future borrowings will be available to us under our Senior Secured Credit Facilities or otherwise, in an amount sufficient to fund our liquidity needs. If our cash flows and capital resources are insufficient to service our indebtedness, we may be forced to reduce or delay capital expenditures, sell assets, seek additional capital or restructure or refinance our indebtedness. See “Item 1A. Risk Factors—Risks Relating to our Indebtedness—We may not be able to generate sufficient cash to service all of our indebtedness, and may be forced to take other actions to satisfy our obligations under our indebtedness that may not be successful” in Part I of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Cash Flows from Operating Activities

Cash flows from operations are driven mainly by net income and net movement in accounts receivable and unbilled, net, advanced billings, pre-funded liabilities, accounts payable and accrued expenses. Accounts receivable and unbilled, net, advanced billings and pre-funded liabilities fluctuate on a regular basis as we perform our services, bill our customers and ultimately collect on those receivables. We attempt to negotiate payment terms in order to provide for payments prior to or soon after the provision of services, but this timing of collection can vary significantly on a period by period comparative basis.

Net cash flows provided by operating activities were $97.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2017 consisting of net income of $39.1 million. Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities were $45.4 million, primarily related to amortization of intangibles of $37.9 million, depreciation of $8.6 million, stock based compensation expense of $4.5 million, and deferred income tax provision of $3.2 million, offset by $8.8 million of amortization and adjustment of deferred credit. Changes in operating assets and liabilities provided $12.9 million in operating cash flows and were primarily driven by increased accounts payable of $4.8 million, increased advanced billings of $7.7 million, and increased pre-funded study costs of $5.3 million, offset by increased prepaid expenses and other current assets of $3.5 million.

Net cash flows provided by operating activities was $91.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2016 consisting of net income of $13.4 million. Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities were $71.2 million, primarily related to amortization of intangibles of $50.7 million, depreciation of $7.4 million, loss on extinguishment of debt of $10.7 million, and stock based compensation expense of $9.8 million, offset by $9.0 million of benefit from deferred taxes. Changes in operating assets and liabilities provided $7.1 million in

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operating cash flows and were primarily driven by increased accrued expenses of $4.5 million primarily related to employee related costs, increased advanced billings of $14.7 million, offset by increased accounts receivable and unbilled services, net of $13.7 million, increased prepaid expenses and other current assets of $3.7 million, and a decrease in other assets and liabilities, net of $0.8 million.

Net cash provided by operating activities was $85.9 million for the year ended December 31, 2015, consisting of a net loss of $(8.7) million. Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash provided by operating activities were $90.9 million, primarily related to amortization of intangibles of $63.1 million, depreciation of $6.4 million, impairment of goodwill of $9.3 million and stock based compensation expense of $22.3 million, offset by a tax benefit of $12.7 million. Changes in operating assets and liabilities provided $3.7 million in operating cash flows and were driven primarily by an increase in pre-funded cash and a decrease in prepaid assets, partially offset by a decrease in advanced billings.

Cash Flow from Investing Activities

Net cash used in investing activities was $12.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2017 primarily consisting of property and equipment expenditures.

Net cash used in investing activities was $13.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2016 primarily consisting of property and equipment expenditures.

Net cash used in investing activities was $6.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2015 primarily consisting of property and equipment expenditures.

Cash Flow from Financing Activities

Net cash used in financing activities was $97.8 million in the year ended December 31, 2017, primarily related to $155.6 million in repurchases of common stock and $42.4 million in payments on our Senior Secured Credit Facilities, offset by $100.0 million in proceeds from the Senior Secured Revolving Credit Facility.

Net cash used in financing activities was $58.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2016 primarily related to $390.1 million in principal payments on our 2014 Senior Secured Term Loan Facility, offset by the IPO proceeds received of $173.6 million, and the proceeds from the issuance of debt, net of original issue discount of $164.5 million related to the Senior Secured Credit Facilities. The remaining activity consisted of rental payments on deemed landlord assets, payment of debt issuance costs, and the payment of common stock issuance costs.

Net cash used in financing activities was $116.5 million in the year ended December 31, 2015, primarily related to $116.1 million in principal payments on our 2014 Senior Secured Term Loan Facility.

Share Repurchases

In November 2017, the Board members who are not affiliated with Cinven (the “Disinterested Directors”) approved an agreement to repurchase 2,000,000 shares of the Company’s common stock from Cinven in connection with a Secondary Offering (as described in Note 1 of the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements) for aggregate consideration of approximately $60.3 million, representing a purchase price of $30.16 per share. The Company funded the repurchase with approximately $60.0 million in borrowings under the Senior Secured Revolving Credit Facility and cash on hand.

In August 2017, the Disinterested Directors of the Company approved a stock repurchase agreement with Medpace Limited Partnership, a Guernsey limited partnership (the “Limited Partnership” acting through its general partner, Medpace GP Limited, a Guernsey company, the “General Partner” and, the Limited Partnership acting through the General Partner, “Cinven”), pursuant to which the Company repurchased 2,000,000 shares of the Company’s common stock from Cinven for aggregate consideration of approximately $60.5 million, representing a purchase price of $30.27 per share. The Company funded the repurchase with cash on hand and $40.0 million in borrowings under our Senior Secured Revolving Credit Facility.

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In April 2017, the Board of the Company authorized a share repurchase program with an authorized repurchase level of $50.0 million. The share repurchase program was cancelled in the fourth quarter of 2017. Repurchases under the repurchase program took place in the open market or negotiated transactions, at the discretion of the Company’s management. During the year ended December 31, 2017, the Company repurchased 1,342,786 shares of its outstanding common stock for $34.7 million under this share repurchase program.

The Company has elected to constructively retire all repurchased shares with all amounts paid in excess of Common stock par value reflected within Accumulated deficit in the Company’s consolidated balance sheets, except for 200,000 shares, which are reflected within treasury stock in the Company’s consolidated balance sheets.

Indebtedness

On December 8, 2016 (the “Closing Date”), Medpace IntermediateCo, Inc., as borrower (the “Borrower”), and Medpace Acquisition, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company, as parent guarantor (the “Parent Guarantor”), entered into the Senior Secured Credit Agreement, which provides for the Senior Secured Term Loan Facility of $165.0 million and the Senior Secured Revolving Credit Facility of $150.0 million. The Senior Secured Term Loan Facility and Senior Secured Revolving Credit Facility expire in December 2021. Borrowings under the Senior Secured Credit Facilities were utilized to repay and extinguish our obligations under our existing senior secured term loan facility (the “2014 Senior Secured Term Loan Facility”) and our existing senior secured revolving credit facility (the “2014 Senior Secured Revolving Credit Facility” and, together with the 2014 Senior Secured Term Loan Facility, the “2014 Senior Secured Credit Facilities”), as well as pay any related fees, costs and expenses.

The Senior Secured Credit Facilities are guaranteed by the Parent Guarantor and its material, direct or indirect wholly owned domestic subsidiaries, with certain exceptions, including where providing such guarantees is not permitted by law, regulation or contract or would result in adverse tax consequences. All of the obligations under the Senior Secured Credit Facilities are secured, subject to certain permitted liens and other exceptions, by substantially all of the assets of the Borrower and each guarantor, including, but not limited to, a perfected pledge of all of the capital stock of the Borrower and of each guarantor (other than the Parent Guarantor) and, subject to certain exceptions, perfected security interests in substantially all other tangible and intangible assets of the Borrower and each guarantor.

As of December 31, 2017, there was $152.6 million outstanding under the Senior Secured Term Loan Facility and $70.0 million in borrowings outstanding under the Senior Secured Revolving Credit Facility. In connection with entering into the Senior Secured Credit Facilities, the Company recorded a loss on extinguishment of long-term debt of $10.7 million during the fourth quarter of 2016, of which $10.2 million related to unamortized loan origination fees from the credit agreement for our 2014 Senior Secured Credit Facilities and $0.5 million related to third party fees incurred during the fourth quarter of 2016.

Borrowings under the Senior Secured Credit Facilities bear interest at a rate equal to, at our option, either (i) the adjusted Eurocurrency rate based on LIBOR for U.S. dollar deposits for loans denominated in dollars, EURIBOR for Euro deposits for loans denominated in Euros and the offer rate for any other currencies for loans denominated in such other currencies for the relevant interest period plus an applicable margin from 1.25% to 2.25% based on the total net leverage ratio from less than 1.50:1.00 to greater than 3.75:1:00, or (ii) an alternative base rate (determined by reference to the highest of (a) the prime commercial lending rate of the administrative agent, as established from time to time, (b) the Federal Funds Rate plus 0.50% and (c) the one-month adjusted Eurocurrency rate for loans in U.S. dollars plus 1.00%) plus an applicable margin from 0.25% to 1.25% based on the total net leverage ratio from less than 1.50:1.00 to greater than 3.75:1:00.  The applicable margin as of December 31, 2017 was 1.25% for Eurocurrency loans and 0.25% for base rate loans. At our discretion, we may choose interest periods of one, two, three or six months, which determines the interest rate to be applied. Interest on the Eurocurrency rate loan continues to be payable at the end of the selected Eurocurrency term and interest on the base rate tranche of the Senior Secured Term Loan Facility is payable quarterly in conjunction with any required principal payments.

We also pay commitment fees on a quarterly basis at an annual rate of 0.375% of the unused borrowings under the Senior Secured Revolving Credit Facility for the first full fiscal quarter after the Closing Date, and thereafter at

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0.50% if the total net leverage ratio is greater than or equal to 3.00:1.00, or 0.375% if the total net leverage ratio is less than 3.00:1.00.  

The Senior Secured Term Loan Facility will amortize in quarterly installments in aggregate annual amounts equal to (i) 7.5% of the original principal amount of the Senior Secured Term Loan Facility during the first year after the Closing Date, (ii) 10.0% of the original principal amount of the Senior Secured Term Loan Facility during the second year after the Closing Date, (iii) 10.0% of the original principal amount of the Senior Secured Term Loan Facility during the third year after the Closing Date, (iv) 12.5% of the original principal amount of the Senior Secured Term Loan Facility during the fourth year after the Closing Date and (v) 15.0% of the original principal amount of the Senior Secured Term Loan Facility during the fifth year after the Closing Date. The first amortization payment was due on March 31, 2017 and the remaining balance of the original principal amount of the Senior Secured Term Loan Facility outstanding at maturity will be paid in a final balloon payment. The Senior Secured Revolving Credit Facility terminates on the fifth anniversary of the Closing Date and loans thereunder may be borrowed, repaid, and re-borrowed up to such date.

The following amounts are required to be prepaid in addition to quarterly installment payments and will be applied to repay the Senior Secured Term Loan Facility, subject to certain thresholds, carve-outs, exceptions and reinvestment rights: (a) to the extent that the net cash proceeds of non-ordinary course asset sales or other dispositions of property in a transaction or related transactions by the Borrower and its subsidiaries (including, without limitation, insurance and condemnation proceeds) exceeds $10 million in any fiscal year, 100% of such excess net cash proceeds; (b) 100% of the net cash proceeds of certain debt incurred by the Borrower and its restricted subsidiaries after the Closing Date; and (c) to the extent that net cash proceeds received by the Borrower and its restricted subsidiaries in connection with the disposition of any accounts receivable or related assets to a permitted receivables financing subsidiary exceeds $5 million at any time, 100% of such excess net cash proceeds. In addition to the mandatory payments above, the Borrower may voluntarily repay the outstanding Senior Secured Term Loan Facility without premium or penalty, subject to certain restrictions.

The Senior Secured Credit Facilities are subject to customary negative covenants that, among other things, limit the Borrower and its restricted subsidiaries to, subject to certain exceptions and carve outs: