Ovid Therapeutics Inc. - Quarter Report: 2018 September (Form 10-Q)

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, DC 20549

FORM 10-Q

(Mark One)

For the quarterly period ended September 30, 2018

OR

For the transition period from ______________________ to ______________________

Commission File Number: 001-38085

Ovid Therapeutics Inc.

(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in its Charter)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (646) 661-7661

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 every Interactive Data File required to be submitted 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 such files).    Yes  ☒    No  ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth 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  ☒

As of November 1, 2018, the registrant had 24,654,114 shares of common stock, $0.001 par value per share, outstanding.

Table of Contents

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SPECIAL NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q contains forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as “aim,” “anticipate,” “assume,” “believe,” “contemplate,” “continue,” “could,” “design,” “due,” “estimate,” “expect,” “goal,” “intend,” “may,” “objective,” “plan,” “predict,” “positioned,” “potential,” “seek,” “should,” “target,” “will,” “would” and other similar expressions that are predictions of or indicate future events and future trends, or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. We have based these forward-looking statements 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 and financial needs. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions, including risks described in the section titled “Risk Factors” and elsewhere in this report, regarding, among other things:

You should not rely upon forward-looking statements as predictions of future events.  Although we believe that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we cannot guarantee future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements. Except as required by law, we are under no duty to update or revise any of the forward-looking statements, whether because of new information, future events or otherwise, after the date of this report.

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PART I—FINANCIAL INFORMATION

Item 1. Financial Statements.

OVID THERAPEUTICS INC.

Condensed Balance Sheets

See accompanying notes to these unaudited condensed financial statements

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OVID THERAPEUTICS INC.

Condensed Statements of Operations

(unaudited)

See accompanying notes to these unaudited condensed financial statements

4

OVID THERAPEUTICS INC.

Condensed Statements of Comprehensive Loss

(unaudited)

See accompanying notes to these unaudited condensed financial statements

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OVID THERAPEUTICS INC.

Condensed Statements of Cash Flows

(unaudited)

See accompanying notes to these unaudited condensed financial statements

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OVID THERAPEUTICS INC.

NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

(unaudited)

NOTE 1 – NATURE OF OPERATIONS

Ovid Therapeutics Inc. (the “Company”) was incorporated under the laws of the state of Delaware on April 1, 2014 and maintains its principal executive office in New York, New York. The Company commenced operations on April 1, 2014 (date of inception). The Company is a biopharmaceutical company focused exclusively on developing impactful medicines for patients and families living with rare neurological disorders.

Since its inception, the Company has devoted substantially all its efforts to business development, research and development, recruiting management and technical staff, and raising capital, and has financed its operations through issuance of convertible preferred stock (“Preferred Stock”), common stock and other equity instruments. The Company has not generated any revenue. The Company is subject to risks and uncertainties common to early-stage companies in the biotechnology industry, including, but not limited to, development by competitors of new technological innovations, development of viable treatments, dependence on key personnel, protection of proprietary technology, compliance with government regulations, and ability to secure additional capital to fund operations.

On May 10, 2017, the Company completed its initial public offering (“IPO”) of 5,000,000 shares of the Company's common stock at a public offering price of $15.00 per share. The gross proceeds from the IPO were $75.0 million and the net proceeds were $66.7 million, after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and other offering expenses.  At the time of the IPO, the Series A Preferred Stock, the Series B Preferred Stock, and the Series B-1 Preferred Stock were converted into common stock (see Note 7).

In June 2018, the Company filed a shelf registration statement on Form S-3 (Registration No. 333-225391) that allows it to sell up to an aggregate of $200 million of our common stock, which includes up to $50.0 million designated in the prospectus supplement for an at-the-market offering program. In connection with the at-the-market offering, the Company entered into a Sales Agreement (“ATM Agreement”) with Cowen and Company, LLC (“Cowen”) under which the Company may offer and sell, from time to time at its sole discretion through Cowen, as its sales agent, shares of the Company’s common stock having an aggregate offering price of up to $50.0 million. The Company will pay Cowen a commission equal to 3.0% of the gross sales proceeds of any common stock sold through Cowen under the ATM Agreement and also have provided Cowen with indemnification and contribution rights. To date, the Company has not sold any common stock under the ATM Agreement.

The Company has incurred operating losses since inception and had an accumulated deficit of $139.8 million as of September 30, 2018. The Company expects to continue to incur net losses for at least the next several years and is highly dependent on its ability to find additional sources of funding in the form of debt or equity financing or expanded partnering arrangements to fund its operations. Management believes that the Company’s existing cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments as of September 30, 2018, will be sufficient to fund its current operating plans through at least the next 12 months from the date of filing of the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. Adequate additional funding may not be available to the Company on acceptable terms or at all. The failure to raise capital as and when needed could have a negative impact on the Company’s financial condition and ability to pursue its business strategy. The Company may be required to delay, reduce the scope of or eliminate research and development programs, or obtain funds through arrangements with collaborators or others that may require the Company to relinquish rights to certain drug candidates that the Company might otherwise seek to develop or commercialize independently.

NOTE 2 – SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

The Company’s significant accounting policies are described in Note 2, “Summary of Significant Accounting Policies,” in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on March 29, 2018. There have been no material changes to the significant accounting policies during the period ended September 30, 2018, except for items mentioned below.

(A) Unaudited Interim Condensed Financial Statements

The interim condensed balance sheet at September 30, 2018, the condensed statements of operations and comprehensive loss for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017, and condensed statements of cash flows for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017 are unaudited. The accompanying unaudited condensed financial statements have been prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) and following the requirements of the SEC for interim reporting. As permitted under those rules, certain footnotes or other financial information that are normally required by GAAP are condensed or omitted. These condensed financial statements have been prepared on the same basis as the Company’s annual financial

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statements and, in the opinion of management, reflect all adjustments, consisting only of normal recurring adjustments that are necessary for a fair statement of its financial information. The results of operations for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017 are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for the year ending December 31, 2018 or for any other future annual or interim period. The balance sheet as of December 31, 2017 included herein was derived from the audited financial statements as of that date. These interim condensed financial statements should be read in conjunction with the Company’s audited financial statements as of and for the year ended December 31, 2017 included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K.

(B) Use of Estimates

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of income and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ materially from those estimates.

(C) Fair Value of Financial Instruments

Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) guidance specifies a hierarchy of valuation techniques based on whether the inputs to those valuation techniques are observable or unobservable. Observable inputs reflect market data obtained from independent sources, while unobservable inputs reflect market assumptions. The hierarchy gives the highest priority to unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities (Level 1 measurement) and the lowest priority to unobservable inputs (Level 3 measurement).

The three levels of the fair value hierarchy are as follows:

The carrying amounts reported in the balance sheets for cash and cash equivalents approximate their fair value based on the short-term maturity of these instruments.

(D) Short-term Investments

Short-term investments consist of debt securities with maturities greater than three months from the date of purchase.  The Company classifies all of its investments as available-for-sale securities. Accordingly, these investments are recorded at fair value with unrealized gains and losses included in other comprehensive income (loss) as a component of stockholders’ equity until realized. Realized gains and losses, amortization and accretion of premiums and discounts are included within net loss.

(E) Recent Accounting Pronouncements

Recent accounting standards which have been adopted

In May 2017, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) No. 2017-09, Compensation – Stock Compensation (Topic 718): Scope of Modification Accounting. This new standard clarifies when to account for a change to the terms or conditions of share-based payment award as a modification. Under the new guidance, modification accounting is required unless the fair value, the vesting conditions, and the classification of the modified award remain the same as the original award. The adoption of this standard on January 1, 2018, did not have a material impact on the Company’s financial statements.

In January 2017, the FASB issued ASU No. 2017-01, Business Combinations (Topic 805): Clarifying the Definition of a Business. This new standard clarifies the definition of a business and provides a screen to determine when an integrated set of assets and activities is not a business. The screen requires that when substantially all of the fair value of the gross assets acquired (or disposed of) is concentrated in a single identifiable asset or a group of similar identifiable assets, the set is not a business. ASU 2017-01 is effective

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for the Company as of January 1, 2018. The adoption of this standard on January 1, 2018, did not have an impact on the Company’s financial statements.

In August 2016, the FASB issued ASU No. 2016-15, Statement of Cash Flows (Topic 230): Classification of Certain Cash Receipts and Cash Payments. The new standard clarifies certain aspects of the statement of cash flows, including the classification of debt prepayment or debt extinguishment costs, settlement of zero-coupon debt instruments or other debt instruments with coupon interest rates that are insignificant in relation to the effective interest rate of the borrowing, contingent consideration payments made after a business combination, proceeds from the settlement of insurance claims, proceeds from the settlement of corporate-owned life insurance policies, distributions received from equity method investees and beneficial interests in securitization transactions. In situations in which cash receipts and payments have aspects of more than one class of cash flows and cannot be separated by source or use, the appropriate classification should depend on the activity that is likely to be the predominant source or use of cash flows for the item. The adoption of this standard on January 1, 2018 did not have a material impact on the Company’s statements of cash flows.

In January 2016, the FASB issued ASU No. 2016-01, Financial Instruments - Overall (Subtopic 825-10): Recognition and Measurement of Financial Assets and Financial Liabilities. This new standard amends certain aspects of accounting and disclosure requirements for financial instruments, including the requirement that equity investments (other than equity method investees) with readily determinable fair values are to be measured at fair value with any changes in fair value recognized in a company's results of operations. Equity investments that do not have readily determinable fair values may be measured at fair value or at cost minus impairment adjusted for changes in observable prices. The standard also includes certain amendments for the accounting for a financial liability that is measured at fair value in accordance with the fair value option and prescribes that a valuation allowance should be evaluated on deferred tax assets related to available-for-sale debt securities in combination with other deferred tax assets. The ASU makes targeted changes to the presentation requirements for financial instruments under current GAAP. All entities are required to disclose financial assets and financial liabilities separately, grouped by measurement category and form of financial asset. ASU No. 2016-01 is effective for the Company as of January 1, 2018. As the Company does not have equity investments, financial liabilities measured at fair value in accordance with the fair value option or deferred tax assets, the recognition and measurement guidance of this new standard is not applicable to the Company. However, since the Company does have financial asset investments, it has adopted the presentation and disclosure requirements of this standard.

New accounting standards which have not yet been adopted

On August 29, 2018, the FASB issued ASU No. 2018-15, Intangibles – Goodwill and Other - Internal-Use Software (Subtopic 350-40) - which amends ASC 350-40 to address a customer’s accounting for implementation costs incurred in a cloud computing arrangement (“CCA”) that is a service contract. ASU No. 2018-15 aligns the accounting for costs incurred to implement a CCA that is a service arrangement with the guidance on capitalizing costs associated with developing or obtaining internal-use software. Specifically, the ASU amends ASC 350 to include in its scope implementation costs of a CCA that is a service contract and clarifies that a customer should apply ASC 350-40 to determine which implementation costs should be capitalized in a CCA that is considered a service contract. According to the standard the balance sheet line item for the presentation of capitalized implementation costs should be the same as that for the prepayment of fees related to the hosting arrangement and the manner in which an entity classifies the cash flows related to capitalized implementation costs should be the same as that in which it classifies the cash flows for the fees related to the hosting arrangement. ASU 2018-15 is effective for the Company for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2019, including interim periods therein. Entities are permitted to apply either a retrospective or prospective transition approach to adopt the guidance. When prospective transition is chosen, entities must apply the transition requirements to any eligible costs incurred after adoption. The Company is in the process of assessing the impact of this standard on its financial statements.

On August 28, 2018, the FASB issued ASU No. 2018-13, Fair Value Measurement (Topic 820): Disclosure Framework — Changes to the Disclosure Requirements for Fair Value Measurement.  This standard changes the fair value measurement disclosure requirements of ASC 820. The new standard eliminated certain disclosures, added new disclosures with regard to unrealized gains or losses included in other comprehensive income for recurring Level 3 fair value measurements held at the end of the reporting period and the range and weighted average used to develop significant unobservable inputs for Level 3 fair value measurements, as well as modified certain disclosure. ASU 2018-13 is effective for all entities for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2019, including interim periods therein. Early adoption is permitted. The ASU requires application of the prospective method of transition for the aforementioned new disclosure requirements and for modified disclosure with regard to measurement uncertainty while all other amendments made by the ASU must be applied retrospectively to all periods presented. The Company is in the process of assessing the impact of this standard on its financial statements.

On June 20, 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-07, Compensation – Stock Compensation (Topic 718): Improvements to Nonemployee Share-Based Payment Accounting. This new standard simplifies the accounting for share-based payments granted to nonemployees for goods and services. The standard supersedes ASC 505-50 and expands the scope of ASC 718 to include all share-based payment arrangements related to the acquisition of goods and services from both nonemployees and employees. As such, among others, the

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measurement date for nonemployee awards would generally be the grant date same as the measurement date for employee equity awards and for performance-based awards, an entity is required to recognize any cost on the basis of the probable outcome of the performance conditions using the grant-date fair value of the award. ASU 2018-07 is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2018, including interim periods within those fiscal years.  Due to the immaterial volume of nonemployee equity-based awards as well as the immaterial fair value of such awards the Company does not expect ASU 2018-07 to have a material impact on its financial statements.

On March 30, 2017, the FASB issued ASU 2017-08, Receivables – Nonrefundable Fees and Other Costs (Subtopic 310-20): Premium Amortization and Purchased Callable Debt Securities.  This new standard requires premiums on callable debt securities, that have explicit, non-contingent call features that are callable at fixed prices on preset dates, to be amortized to the earliest call date. The amortization period for callable debt securities purchased at a discount will not be impacted. Under current GAAP, premiums on callable debt securities are generally amortized over the contractual life of the security. The guidance is applicable to the Company beginning on January 1, 2019. The Company will be impacted if it will have on January 1, 2019 callable debt purchased with a premium. However, based on the Company’s current investment strategy where it purchases debt securities with maturity dates of less than a year, it does not expect to have significant premiums for callable debt.

In June 2016, the FASB issued ASU No. 2016-13, Financial Instruments – Credit Losses (Topic 326): Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments.  This new standard requires the measurement and recognition of expected credit losses for financial assets held at amortized cost, including loans and trade and other receivables. ASU 2016-13 replaces the existing incurred loss impairment model with an expected loss methodology, which will result in more timely recognition of credit losses. The standard also amends the impairment model for available-for-sale debt securities and requires entities to determine whether all or a portion of the unrealized loss on an available-for-sale debt security is a credit loss. Under the new guidance, an entity will recognize an allowance for credit losses on available-for-sale debt securities as a contra-account to the amortized cost basis rather than as a direct reduction of the amortized cost basis of the investment, as is currently required. ASU 2016-13 is effective for annual reporting periods, and interim periods within those years, beginning after December 15, 2019. The Company does not expect this standard to have a material impact on its financial statements due to the immaterial level of its unrealized losses on available-for-sale securities and its immaterial level of loans and receivables.

In February 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-02, Leases (Topic 842). This new standard was issued to increase transparency and comparability among entities by recognizing for all leases lease assets and lease liabilities on the balance sheet and disclosing key information about lease arrangements. This new standard is effective for public companies for fiscal years, and interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2018. The Company does not expect ASU 2016-02 to have a material impact on its financial statements.

NOTE 3 – PRECLINICAL AND CLINICAL AGREEMENTS

During the ordinary course of business, the Company contracts with clinical research organizations.  In connection with these contracts, the Company provides upfront payments for services to be provided over a period greater than 12 months that are applied against final expenses.  As of September 30, 2018, the Company reflected $4.5 million within long-term prepaid expenses on the balance sheet related to these contracts.

On August 26, 2016, the Company contracted with a clinical research organization for the study entitled “Safety and Efficacy of Gaboxadol in Angelman Syndrome: A Phase 2 Study of OV101 in adolescents and adults.” In connection with the execution of this contract, the Company provided an upfront retainer of $355,435. At September 30, 2018, this retainer is reflected within current assets on the balance sheet. During the nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017, the Company has expensed approximately $2,305,127 and $3,169,550 related to this contract, respectively. The expense related to this contract is reflected within research and development on the statement of operations.

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NOTE 4 – CASH EQUIVALENTS AND SHORT-TERM INVESTMENTS

All short-term investments are classified as available-for-sale. The following tables summarize the fair value of cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments, as well as gross unrealized holding gains and losses as of September 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017:

As of September 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, the aggregate fair value of securities that were in an unrealized loss position for less than 12 months was $22.0 million and zero, respectively. The Company did not hold any securities in an unrealized loss position for more than 12 months as of September 30, 2018.

There were no realized gains or losses on available-for-sale securities during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018.

NOTE 5 – PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT AND INTANGIBLE ASSETS

Property and equipment is summarized as follows:

Depreciation expense was $25,551 and $19,155 for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017, respectively. Depreciation expense was $6,746 and $7,171 for the three months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017, respectively.

Intangible assets, net of accumulated amortization, were $406,078 and $124,194 as of September 30, 2018 and December 31, 2017, respectively, and are included in other assets. Amortization expense was $60,890 and $39,436 for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017, respectively. Amortization expense was $24,615 and $13,864 for the three months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017, respectively.

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NOTE 6 – ACCRUED EXPENSES

Accrued expenses consist of the following:

NOTE 7 – STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY AND PREFERRED STOCK

The Company’s capital structure consists of common stock and preferred stock.

Upon inception, the Company was initially authorized to issue 1,000 shares of common stock at $0.001 par value per share. The Company’s certificate of incorporation was amended on January 6, 2017 to increase the authorized shares of common stock available for issuance to 62,000,000 at $0.001 par value per share, and shares of preferred stock to 20,991,252.

On May 10, 2017, the Company filed an amended and restated certificate of incorporation with the Secretary of the State of Delaware, which was approved by the Company’s Board of Directors and stockholders on April 12, 2017 and April 24, 2017, respectively, and which went effective immediately after the closing of the Company’s IPO on May 10, 2017.  Pursuant to the amended and restated certificate of incorporation, the Company is authorized to issue 125,000,000 shares of common stock and 10,000,000 shares of preferred stock.  Upon completion of its IPO, on May 10, 2017, the Company issued 5,000,000 shares of its common stock, and 2,382,069 shares of Series A Preferred Stock, 5,599,282 shares of Series B Preferred Stock and 1,781,996 shares Series B-1 Preferred Stock were converted into 9,763,346 shares of common stock.

NOTE 8 – STOCK-BASED COMPENSATION

On August 29, 2014, the Company’s Board of Directors adopted and approved the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan (the “2014 Plan”), which authorized the Company to grant shares of common stock in the form of incentive stock options, nonstatutory stock options, stock appreciation rights, restricted stock and restricted stock units. The types of stock-based awards, including share purchase rights amount, terms, and exercisability provisions of grants are determined by the Company’s Board of Directors.

The Company's Board of Directors adopted, and the Company's stockholders approved the 2017 equity incentive plan (“2017 Plan”), which became effective on May 4, 2017. The initial reserve of shares of common stock under the 2017 Plan was 3,052,059 shares.  The 2017 Plan provides for the grant of incentive stock options, non-statutory stock options, restricted stock awards, restricted stock unit awards, stock appreciation rights, performance-based stock awards, and other forms of stock-based awards.  Additionally, the 2017 Plan provides for the grant of performance cash awards. The Company's employees, officers, directors and consultants and advisors are eligible to receive awards under the 2017 Plan.  Upon the adoption of the 2017 Plan, no further awards will be granted under the 2014 Plan. Pursuant to the terms of the 2017 Plan, on each January 1^st, the plan limit shall be increased by the lesser of (x) 5% of the number of shares of common stock outstanding as of the immediately preceding December 31 and (y) such lesser number as the Board of Directors may determine in its discretion.  Accordingly, on January 1, 2018, an additional 1,230,312 shares were reserved for issuance under the 2017 Plan. As of September 30, 2018, there were 3,174,440 shares of the Company’s common stock reserved for issuance under the 2017 Plan. 

The Company's Board of Directors adopted, and the Company's stockholders approved the 2017 employee stock purchase plan (the “2017 ESPP”), which became effective immediately prior to the execution of the underwriting agreement related to the IPO on May 4, 2017. The initial reserve of shares of common stock that may be issued under the 2017 ESPP was 279,069 shares. On September 20, 2017, the Company’s Compensation Committee approved an offering period under the 2017 ESPP, which began on October 20, 2017. The ESPP allows employees to purchase common stock of the Company at a 15% discount to the market price on designated purchase dates. During the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018, 22,142 and 32,114 shares were purchased under the ESPP and the Company recorded expense of $30,040 and $76,669, respectively. The number of shares of common stock reserved for issuance under the 2017 ESPP will automatically increase on January 1 of each year, beginning on January 1, 2018 and continuing through and including January 1, 2027, by the lesser of (i) 1% of the total number of shares of the Company’s common stock outstanding on December 31 of the preceding calendar year, (ii) 550,000 shares or (iii) such lesser number of shares determined by our Board. On

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January 1, 2018, an additional 246,062 shares were reserved for issuance under the 2017 ESPP. As of September 30, 2018, there were 493,017 shares of the Company’s common stock reserved for issuance under the 2017 ESPP.

Unless specified otherwise in an individual option agreement, stock options granted under the 2014 Plan and 2017 Plan generally have a ten-year term and a four-year graded vesting period. The vesting requirement is conditioned upon the grantee’s continued service with the Company during the vesting period. Once vested, all awards are exercisable from the date of grant until they expire. The option grants are non-transferable. Vested options generally remain exercisable for 90 days subsequent to the termination of the option holder’s service with the Company. In the event of option holder’s death or disability while employed by or providing service to the Company, the exercisable period extends to 12 months.

Performance-based option awards generally have similar terms, with vesting contingent upon the achievement of specified performance condition and expire in accordance to the specific terms of the agreement. At September 30, 2018, there were zero performance-based options outstanding and unvested.

The fair value of options granted during the nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017 was estimated using the Black-Scholes option valuation model. The inputs for the Black-Scholes option valuation model require management’s significant assumptions and are detailed in the table below. Prior to the IPO, the common stock price was determined by the Board of Directors. In the absence of market data for the Company’s common stock, the Board of Directors considered various factors in estimating the fair value of the common stock at the time of each option grant which included but was not limited to the common stock valuation performed by a third party independent valuation firm, the Company’s performance and future economic outlook, the potential financing available to the Company, and the valuation of common stock of similar companies in the industry. The risk-free interest rates were based on the rate for U.S. Treasury securities at the date of grant with maturity dates approximately equal to the expected life at the grant date. The expected life was based on the simplified method in accordance with the SEC Staff Accounting Bulletin No. Topic 14D. The expected volatility was estimated based on historical volatility information of peer companies that are publicly available.

All assumptions used to calculate the grant date fair value of nonemployee options are generally consistent with the assumptions used for options granted to employees. In the event the Company terminates any of its consulting agreements, the unvested options underlying the agreements would also be cancelled. Unvested nonemployee options are marked-to-market at each reporting period until vested.

The Company granted zero and 27,906 stock options to nonemployee consultants for services rendered during the nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017, respectively. There were 12,356, and 44,333 unvested nonemployee options outstanding as of September 30, 2018, and 2017, respectively. Total expense recognized related to the nonemployee stock options for the three months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017 was $40,730, and $52,348, respectively. Total expense recognized related to the nonemployee stock options for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017 was $133,460 and $358,554, respectively. Total unrecognized compensation expenses related to the nonemployee stock options was $34,049 as of September 30, 2018. During the nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017, the Company recognized zero and $162,700 in expenses for nonemployee performance-based option awards, respectively.

The Company granted 1,352,578 and 1,475,087 stock options to employees during the nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017 respectively. There were 2,493,308 and 2,686,393 unvested employee options outstanding as of September 30, 2018, and 2017, respectively. Total expense recognized related to the employee stock options for the three months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017 was $1,622,836 and $1,323,198, respectively. Total expense recognized related to the employee stock options for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017 was $5,122,652 and $4,628,534 respectively. Total unrecognized compensation expense related to employee stock options was $13,161,142 as of September 30, 2018. During the nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017, the Company recognized zero and $830,997 in expenses for employee performance-based option awards.

The Company’s stock-based compensation expense was recognized in operating expense as follows:

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The fair value of employee options granted during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017 was estimated by utilizing the following assumptions:

The fair value of nonemployee options granted and remeasured during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017 was estimated by utilizing the following assumptions:

The following table summarizes the number of options outstanding and the weighted average exercise price:

At September 30, 2018 there was approximately $13,195,191 of unamortized share–based compensation expense, which is expected to be recognized over a remaining average vesting period of 2.28 years.

NOTE 9 – INCOME TAXES

The Company did not record a federal or state income tax provision for the periods presented as it has incurred net losses since inception. In addition, the net deferred tax assets generated from the net operating losses have been fully reserved as the Company believes it is not more likely than not that the benefit will be realized.

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During the nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017, the Company recorded a $186,218 and $200,251 refundable credit towards future New York City tax expense as a reduction to operating expenses, respectively. The credit is for qualified emerging technology companies focused on biotechnology located in New York City.

NOTE 10 – COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

License Agreements

On March 26, 2015, the Company entered into an exclusive agreement with H. Lundbeck A/S (“Lundbeck”) for a worldwide perpetual licensing right related to the research, development and commercialization of OV101.

Pursuant to the Lundbeck license agreement, the Company agreed to make milestone payments totaling up to $181.0 million upon the achievement of certain development, regulatory and sales milestones. The first payment of $10.0 million is due upon the successful completion of the first Phase 3 trial for a product in which OV101 is an active ingredient. In addition, the agreement calls for the Company to pay royalties for an initial term based on a low double-digit percentage of sales and provides for the reduction of royalties in certain limited circumstances.

On December 15, 2016, the Company entered into a license agreement with Northwestern University, (“Northwestern”), pursuant to which Northwestern granted the Company an exclusive, worldwide license to patent rights in certain inventions, (“Northwestern Patent Rights”), which relate to a specific compound and related methods of use for such compound, along with certain Know-How related to the practice of the inventions claimed in the Northwestern Patents.

Under the Northwestern agreement, the Company was granted exclusive rights to research, develop, manufacture and commercialize products utilizing the Northwestern Patent Rights for all uses. The Company has agreed that it will not use the Northwestern Patent Rights to develop any products for the treatment of cancer, but Northwestern may not grant rights in the technology to others for use in cancer. The Company also has an option, exercisable during the term of the agreement to an exclusive license under certain intellectual property rights covering novel compounds with the same or similar mechanism of action as the primary compound that is the subject of the license agreement.  Northwestern has retained the right, on behalf of itself and other non-profit institutions, to use the Northwestern Patent Rights and practice the inventions claimed therein for educational and research purposes and to publish information about the inventions covered by the Northwestern Patent Rights.

Upon entry into the Northwestern agreement, the Company paid an upfront non-creditable one-time license issuance fee of $75,000, and is required to pay an annual license maintenance fee of $20,000, which will be creditable against any royalties payable to Northwestern following first commercial sale of licensed products under the agreement.  The Company is responsible for all ongoing costs of filing, prosecuting and maintaining the Northwestern Patents, but also has the right to control such activities using its own patent counsel.  In consideration for the rights granted to the Company under the Northwestern agreement, the Company is required to pay to Northwestern up to an aggregate of $5.3 million upon the achievement of certain development and regulatory milestones for the first product covered by the Northwestern Patents, and, upon commercialization of any such products, will be required to pay to Northwestern a tiered royalty on net sales of such products by the Company, its affiliates or sublicensees, at percentages in the low to mid single-digits, subject to standard reductions and offsets.  The Company’s royalty obligations continue on a product-by-product and country-by-country basis until the later of the expiration of the last-to-expire valid claim in a licensed patent covering the applicable product in such country and 10 years following the first commercial sale of such product in such country.  If the Company sublicenses a Northwestern Patent Right, it will be obligated to pay to Northwestern a specified percentage of sublicense revenue received by the Company, ranging from the high single digits to the low-teens.  

The Northwestern agreement requires that the Company use commercially reasonable efforts to develop and commercialize at least one product that is covered by the Northwestern Patent Rights.

Unless earlier terminated, the Northwestern agreement will remain in force until the expiration of the Company’s payment obligations thereunder.  The Company has the right to terminate the agreement for any reason upon prior written notice or for an uncured material breach by Northwestern.  Northwestern may terminate the agreement for the Company’s uncured material breach or insolvency.

As of September 30, 2018, the Company does not believe that the payment of any of the aforementioned potential milestones is probable.

Contingencies

In the ordinary course of business, the Company is from time to time involved in lawsuits, claims, investigations, proceedings, and threats of litigation relating to intellectual property, commercial arrangements, employment and other matters. The Company accrues

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for loss contingencies when available information indicates that it is probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount of such loss can be reasonably estimated. In the cases where the Company believes that a reasonably possible loss exists, the Company discloses the facts and circumstances of the litigation, including an estimable range, if possible. Legal costs incurred in connection with loss contingencies are expensed as incurred.

The Company does not believe that it is probable that a liability has been incurred or that the amount of any potential liability can be reasonably estimated for any of its legal proceedings described in Part II, Item 1, Legal Proceedings, of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, which includes matters pertaining to the Northwestern agreement. As a result, the Company did not record a loss contingency related to any of these legal proceedings. Particularly with respect to the litigation related to the Northwestern license agreement, the Company is presently unable to predict the outcome of such claim or to reasonably estimate the possible loss, or range of potential losses, if any, related to such claim.

Severance Benefits

Under the terms of their respective employment agreements, each of our named executive officers is eligible to receive severance payments and benefits upon a termination without “cause” or due to “permanent disability,” or upon “resignation for good reason,” contingent upon the named executive officer’s delivery to us of a satisfactory release of claims, and subject to the named executive officer’s compliance with non-competition and non-solicitation restrictive covenants for two years following the termination date.

NOTE 11 – COLLABORATION AGREEMENT

Takeda Collaboration

On January 6, 2017, the Company entered into a license and collaboration agreement with Takeda, pursuant to which Takeda granted the Company an exclusive license to commercialize the compound TAK-935, which the Company now refers to as OV935, in certain territories, and a co-exclusive worldwide license, together with Takeda, to develop OV935. In consideration of certain license rights granted to the Company pursuant to the Takeda collaboration, the Company issued 1,781,996 shares of its Series B-1 Preferred Stock, pursuant to a Series B-1 preferred stock purchase agreement entered into on January 6, 2017, at an ascribed price per share of $14.513 on January 6, 2017 for an aggregate fair value of $25,861,228, which was recorded as research and development expense at the date of the transaction. The 1,781,996 shares of Series B-1 Preferred Stock held by Takeda was automatically converted into 1,781,996 shares of the Company’s common stock upon the completion of its IPO.  Under the Takeda collaboration, the Company is obligated to pay Takeda future payments if and when certain milestones are achieved. Upon the first patient enrollment in the first Phase 3 trial for the first of the initial indications the Company and Takeda are focusing on in the Takeda collaboration, the Company is obligated to issue to Takeda the number of unregistered shares of the Company’s common stock equal to the lesser of (a) 8% of the Company outstanding capital stock on the issuance date or (b) $50.0 million divided by the applicable share price. The remaining potential global commercial and regulatory milestone payments equal approximately $35.0 million and can be satisfied in cash or unregistered shares of the Company’s common stock at its election, unless certain events occur.  In the event a payment settled in shares of the Company’s common stock would cause Takeda to own over 19.99% of the Company’s outstanding capital stock or certain other events occur, such payment must be paid in cash.  None of these potential milestone payments mentioned above are deemed probable at balance sheet date.

During the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018, the Company recognized a credit in research and development expenses of $776,129 and $680,721 respectively, representing costs reimbursed to the Company from Takeda. During the three and nine months ended September 30, 2017, the Company recognized $790,962 and $3,567,110 in research and development expenses representing research and development expenses reimbursed to Takeda in respect of this collaboration agreement.  

The Takeda collaboration will expire upon the cessation of commercialization of the products by both the Company and Takeda. Either party may terminate the Takeda collaboration because of the other party’s uncured material breach or insolvency, for safety reasons, or, after completion of the first proof of mechanism clinical trial, for convenience. Takeda may terminate the Takeda collaboration for the Company’s (or the Company’s sublicensee’s) challenge to the patents licensed under the Takeda collaboration. If the collaboration is terminated by Takeda for material breach by the Company, bankruptcy or patent challenge or by the Company for convenience or safety reasons, the Company’s rights to the products will cease, the Company will transition all activities related to the products to Takeda, and the Company will grant Takeda an exclusive, royalty-bearing license under certain patents and other intellectual property controlled by the Company to commercialize OV935 and products containing OV935 for the treatment of certain rare neurological disorders. If the collaboration is terminated by the Company for Takeda’s material breach or bankruptcy or by Takeda for convenience or safety reasons, Takeda’s rights to the products will cease, Takeda will transition all activities related to the products to the Company, and Takeda will grant the Company an exclusive, royalty-bearing license under certain patents and other intellectual property controlled by Takeda to commercialize OV935 and products containing OV935 for the treatment of certain rare neurological disorders.

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NOTE 12 – NET LOSS PER SHARE

Basic and diluted net loss per common share is determined by dividing net loss attributable to common stockholders by the weighted-average common shares outstanding during the period. For all periods presented, the common shares underlying the options have been excluded from the calculation because their effect would be anti-dilutive. Therefore, the weighted-average shares outstanding used to calculate both basic and diluted loss per common share are the same.

The following potentially dilutive securities have been excluded from the computations of diluted weighted-average shares outstanding as they would be anti-dilutive:

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Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

The following information should be read in conjunction with the unaudited condensed financial statements and the notes thereto included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and the audited financial information and the notes thereto included in the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017, which was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on March 29, 2018. In addition to historical financial information, the following discussion contains forward-looking statements based upon our current plans, expectations and beliefs that involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Our actual results may differ materially from those described in or implied by these forward-looking statements because of many factors, including those set forth under the section titled “Risk Factors” in Part II, Item 1A.

Overview

We are a biopharmaceutical company focused exclusively on developing impactful medicines for patients and families living with rare neurological disorders. We believe these disorders represent an attractive area for drug development as the understanding of the underlying biology has grown meaningfully over the last few years; yet has remained underappreciated by the industry. Our experienced team began with a vision to integrate the biology and symptomology of rare neurological conditions to employ innovative research and clinical strategies for the development of our drug candidates. Based on recent scientific advances in genetics and the biological pathways of the brain, we created a proprietary map of disease-relevant pathways and used it to identify and acquire novel compounds for the treatment of rare neurological disorders. We are executing on our strategy by in-licensing and collaborating with leading biopharmaceutical companies and academic institutions. We are developing a robust pipeline of clinical assets with an initial focus on neurodevelopmental disorders and developmental and epileptic encephalopathies (“dEE”). Our most advanced candidate, OV101, has completed a Phase 2 trial in adults and adolescents with Angelman syndrome.  As announced on August 6, 2018, the Phase 2 trial achieved its primary endpoint of safety and tolerability and showed an improvement in the once-daily and combined OV101 dosing groups on the prespecified physician-rated Clinical Global Impressions-Improvement (“CGI-I”) endpoint. We also completed a Phase 1 trial in adolescents with Angelman syndrome or Fragile X syndrome in which, OV101 was found to be generally well tolerated and its pharmacokinetic (“PK’), profile in adolescents was similar to previous data generated in young adults.  Along with our collaborator, Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited, (“Takeda”), we initiated patient recruitment in our Phase 1b/2a trial of OV935 in adults with dEE in June 2017.  The trial is fully enrolled, and we expect data from the phase 1b/2a trial of OV935 in the fourth quarter of 2018.

Since our inception in April 2014, we have devoted substantially all of our efforts to organizing and planning our business, building our management and technical team, conducting research and development activities, acquiring operating assets and raising capital.

We have not generated any revenue and have funded our business primarily through the sale of our capital stock. Through September 30, 2018, we have raised net proceeds of $142.3 million from the sale of convertible preferred stock and our IPO. As of September 30, 2018, we had $30.5 million in cash and cash equivalents and $22.0 million in short-term investments. We recorded net losses of $39.1 million and $53.8 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017, respectively. As of September 30, 2018, we had an accumulated deficit of approximately $139.8 million.

We expect to continue to incur significant expenses and increasing operating losses for at least the next several years. Our net losses may fluctuate significantly from period to period, depending on the timing of our planned clinical trials and expenditures on our other research and development and commercial development activities. We expect our expenses will increase substantially over time as we:

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Clinical Developments

STARS Phase 2 Clinical Trial

Other Preclinical/Clinical Development Updates

Financial Operations Overview

Revenue

We have not generated any revenue from commercial drug sales and do not expect to generate any revenue unless or until we obtain regulatory approval of and commercialize one or more of our current or future drug candidates. In the future, we may also seek to generate revenue from a combination of research and development payments, license fees and other upfront or milestone payments.

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Research and Development Expenses

Research and development expenses consist primarily of costs incurred for our research activities, including our product discovery efforts and the development of our product candidates, which include, among other things:

Costs incurred in connection with research and development activities are expensed as incurred. Costs for certain development activities, such as clinical trials, are recognized based on an evaluation of the progress to completion of specific tasks using data such as patient enrollment, clinical site activations or other information provided to us by our vendors.

Research and development activities are and will continue to be central to our business model. We expect our research and development expenses to increase for the foreseeable future as we advance our current and future drug candidates through preclinical studies and clinical trials. The process of conducting preclinical studies and clinical trials necessary to obtain regulatory approval is costly and time-consuming. It is difficult to determine with certainty the duration and costs of any preclinical study or clinical trial that we may conduct. The duration, costs and timing of clinical trial programs and development of our current and future drug candidates will depend on a variety of factors that include, but are not limited to, the following:

In addition, the probability of success for any of our current or future drug candidates will depend on numerous factors, including competition, manufacturing capability and commercial viability. We will determine which programs to pursue and how much to fund each program in response to the scientific and clinical success of each drug candidate, as well as an assessment of each drug candidate’s commercial potential.

General and Administrative Expenses

General and administrative expenses consist primarily of employee-related expenses, including salaries, benefits and stock-based compensation expense, related to our executive, finance, business development and support functions. Other general and administrative expenses include costs associated with operating as a public company, travel expenses, conferences, professional fees for auditing, tax and legal services and facility-related costs.

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We expect that general and administrative expenses will increase in the future as we expand our operating activities and incur additional costs associated with being a publicly traded company. These increases will include legal and accounting fees, costs associated with maintaining compliance with The Nasdaq Global Market LLC and the SEC, directors’ and officers’ liability insurance premiums and fees associated with investor relations. In addition, if our current or future drug candidates are approved for sale, we expect that we would incur expenses associated with building our commercial and distribution infrastructure.

Interest Income

Interest income consists of interest income earned on our cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments maintained in money market funds, U.S. treasury notes, and corporate bonds.

Results of Operations

Comparison of the three months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017

The following table summarizes the results of our operations for the periods indicated:

Research and Development Expenses

Research and development expenses were $8.5 million for the three months ended September 30, 2018 compared to $5.9 million for the three months ended September 30, 2017. The increase of $2.6 million was primarily due to an increase in preclinical and development expenses and payroll and payroll-related expenses for the clinical studies of OV101 and our Takeda collaboration expenses related to OV935. During the three months ended September 30, 2018, total research and development expenses consisted of $5.7 million in preclinical and development expenses, which includes a credit of $0.8 million representing costs reimbursed to us from Takeda, $2.8 million in payroll and payroll-related expenses, of which $0.8 million related to stock-based compensation, and $0.1 million in other expenses. During the three months ended September 30, 2017, total research and development expenses consisted of $3.4 million in preclinical and development expenses, of which $0.8 million represents amounts reimbursable to Takeda in respect of the Takeda collaboration, $2.2 million in payroll and payroll-related expenses, of which $0.8 million related to stock-based compensation due to increased headcount in the research and development department, and $0.3 million in other expenses.

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General and Administrative Expenses

General and administrative expenses were $4.6 million for the three months ended September 30, 2018 compared to $3.5 million for the three months ended September 30, 2017. The increase of $1.1 million primarily consisted of increases in payroll and payroll-related expenses of $0.6 million due to increased headcount including an increase of $0.3 million in stock-based compensation offset by prior year employee performance-based awards of $0.8 million, and an increase of $0.3 million due to increased professional fees associated with operating as a public company.

Interest Income

Interest income increased to $0.2 million for the three months ended September 30, 2018 from $0.1 million for the three months ended September 30, 2017. The increase is attributable to increased interest and investment income on our cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments due to the investment of the net proceeds received from our IPO.

Comparison of the nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017

The following table summarizes the results of our operations for the periods indicated:

Research and Development Expenses

Research and development expenses were $25.2 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 compared to $43.3 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2017. The decrease of $18.1 million was primarily due to the issuance of Series B-1 Preferred Stock to Takeda as an upfront payment upon signing the collaboration agreement during the three months ended March 31, 2017. During the nine months ended September 30, 2018, total research and development expenses consisted of $14.4 million in preclinical and development expenses, including a credit of $0.7 million representing costs reimbursed to the Company from Takeda in respect of the Takeda collaboration, $8.4 million in payroll and payroll-related expenses, of which $2.3 million related to stock-based compensation, and $2.3 million in other expenses. During the nine months ended September 30, 2017, total research and development expenses consisted of $36.7 million in preclinical and development expenses, of which

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$25.9 million related to the issuance of Series B-1 Preferred Stock associated with the collaboration rights to OV935, $3.6 million represents amounts reimbursable to Takeda in respect of the Takeda collaboration, $5.8 million in payroll and payroll-related expenses, of which $2.0 million related to stock-based compensation due to increased headcount in the research and development department, and $0.8 million in other expenses. 

General and Administrative Expenses

General and administrative expenses were $14.6 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 compared to $10.7 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2017. The increase of $3.9 million primarily consisted of increases in payroll and payroll-related expenses of $1.3 million due to an increase in headcount and a decrease of $0.9 million in stock-based compensation due to prior year employee performance-based awards of $0.8 million, and an increase of $1.5 million due to increased professional fees associated with operating as a public company.

Interest Income

Interest income increased to $0.7 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 from $0.1 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2017. The increase is attributable to increased interest and investment income on our cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments due to the investment of the net proceeds received from our IPO.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

Overview

As of September 30, 2018, we had total cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments of $52.5 million as compared to $87.1 million of cash and cash equivalents as of December 31, 2017. The $34.6 million decrease in total cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments was due primarily to funding of operations, which mainly consisted of research and development activities and general and administrative activities. Cash in excess of immediate requirements is invested in accordance with our investment policy, primarily with a view to liquidity and capital preservation. Currently, our funds are held in cash and money market bank accounts and short-term investments, all of which have maturities of less than one year.

In June 2018, we filed a prospectus supplement for an at-the-market offering (ATM) program with the SEC related to the offer and sale from time to time of our common stock at an aggregate offering price of up to $50.0 million through Cowen and Company, LLC, as sales agent. The shares of common stock will be issued pursuant to our shelf registration statement on Form S-3 (File No. 333-225391). No shares of common stock have been sold under this program.

We have incurred losses and experienced negative operating cash flows since our inception and anticipate that we will continue to incur losses for at least the next several years. We incurred net losses of approximately $39.1 million and $53.8 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2017, respectively. As of September 30, 2018, we had an accumulated deficit of approximately $139.8 million and working capital of $44.8 million.

We believe that our existing cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments as of September 30, 2018 will be sufficient to fund our current operating plans through at least the next 12 months from the date of the filing of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.

Until such time, if ever, as we can generate revenue from drug sales, we expect to finance our cash needs through a combination of equity offerings, debt financings and potential collaborations, and license and development agreements. To the extent that we raise additional capital through future equity offerings or debt financings, ownership interests may be diluted, and the terms of these securities may include liquidation or other preferences that adversely affect your rights as a common stockholder. Debt and equity financings, if available, may involve agreements that include covenants limiting or restricting our ability to take specific actions, such as incurring additional debt, making capital expenditures or declaring dividends. There can be no assurance that such financings will be obtained on terms acceptable to us, if at all. If we are unable to raise additional capital in sufficient amounts or on terms acceptable

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to us we may have to significantly delay, scale back or discontinue our research and development programs or future commercialization efforts. If we raise additional funds through collaborations, strategic alliances or marketing, distribution or licensing arrangements with third parties for one or more of our current or future drug candidates, we may be required to relinquish valuable rights to our technologies, future revenue streams, research programs or drug candidates or to grant licenses on terms that may not be favorable to us. Our failure to raise capital as and when needed would have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and our ability to pursue our business strategy.

Cash Flows

The following table summarizes our cash flows for the periods indicated:

Net Cash Used in Operating Activities

Net cash used in operating activities was $34.6 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2018, which consisted of net losses of $39.1 million offset by $5.4 million of net non-cash charges, compared to $22.5 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2017. The increase of $12.1 million in net cash used in operating activities was primarily due to an increase in our costs and upfront payments related to our research and development programs and an increase in our payroll and payroll-related expenses as the result of increased headcount as we continue to build our management team and expand our operations.

Net Cash Used in Investing Activities

Net cash used in investing activities was $22.3 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2018, compared to $0.1 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2017. The increase in net cash used for investing activities was primarily due to purchases of short-term investments.

Net Cash Provided by Financing Activities

Net cash provided by financing activities of $0.3 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 was primarily due to the proceeds from the exercise of stock options and purchases of shares under the 2017 employee stock purchase plan. Net cash provided by financing activities of $66.7 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2017 was primarily due to the receipt of $66.7 million of net proceeds from our IPO, after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and other offering expenses.  

Contractual Obligations and Commitments

As of September 30, 2018, there were no other material changes in our contractual obligations from those disclosed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K, which was filed with the SEC on March 29, 2018.

Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements

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

Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

Our management’s discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations is based on our financial statements, which have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States. The preparation of these financial statements requires us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, as well as the income and expenses incurred

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during the reported periods. On an ongoing basis, we evaluate our estimates and judgments, including those related to accrued expenses and stock-based compensation. We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other factors that we believe are reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying value of assets and liabilities that are not apparent from other sources. Changes in estimates are reflected in reported results for the period in which they become known. Actual results may differ from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions.

During the nine months ended September 30, 2018, there were no material changes to our critical accounting policies as reported for the year ended December 31, 2017 as part of our Annual Report on Form 10-K, which was filed with the SEC on March 29, 2018.  In addition, see Note 2 of our Condensed Financial Statements under the heading “Recent Accounting Pronouncements” for new accounting pronouncements or changes to the accounting pronouncements during the nine months ended September 30, 2018.

Emerging Growth Company Status

We are an “emerging growth company” (“EGC”), as defined in the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012 (the “JOBS Act”) and may remain an emerging growth company for up to five years. For so long as we remain an emerging growth company, we are permitted and intend to rely on exemptions from certain disclosure requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies.  

We have taken advantage of reduced reporting requirements in this report and may continue to do so until such time that we are no longer an emerging growth company. We will remain an “emerging growth company” until the earliest of (a) the last day of the fiscal year in which we have total annual gross revenues of $1.07 billion or more, (b) December 31, 2022, the last day of the fiscal year following the fifth anniversary of the completion of the our IPO, (c) the date on which we have issued more than $1.0 billion in nonconvertible debt during the previous three years or (d) the date on which we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer under the rules of the SEC.  Section 107 of the JOBS Act provides that an emerging growth company can take advantage of the extended transition period for complying with new or revised accounting standards. We have irrevocably elected not to avail ourselves of this extended transition period and, as a result, we will adopt new or revised accounting standards on the relevant dates on which adoption of such standards is required for other public companies.

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Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk.

The primary objectives of our investment activities are to ensure liquidity and to preserve capital. As of September 30, 2018, we had cash equivalents of $30.5 million that were held in an interest-bearing money market account and $22.0 million of short-term investments invested in treasury notes. Our primary exposure to market risk is interest rate sensitivity, which is affected by changes in the general level of U.S. interest rates. Due to the short-term maturities of our cash equivalents and short-term investments and the low risk profile of our investments, an immediate 100 basis point change in interest rates would not have a material effect on the fair market value of our cash equivalents and short-term investments. To minimize the risk in the future, we intend to maintain our portfolio of cash equivalents and short-term investments in institutional market funds that are comprised of U.S. Treasury and U.S. Treasury-backed repurchase agreements as well as treasury notes and high quality short-term corporate bonds.

Item 4. Controls and Procedures.

Management’s Evaluation of our Disclosure Controls and Procedures

We maintain disclosure controls and procedures that are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in the reports that we file or submit under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) is (1) recorded, processed, summarized, and reported within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms and (2) accumulated and communicated to our management, including our principal executive officer and principal financial officer, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.

As of September 30, 2018, our management, with the participation of our principal executive officer and principal financial officer, evaluated the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Exchange Act). Our management recognizes that any controls and procedures, no matter how well designed and operated, can provide only reasonable assurance of achieving their objectives, and management necessarily applies its judgment in evaluating the cost-benefit relationship of possible controls and procedures. Our principal executive officer and principal financial officer have concluded based upon the evaluation described above that, as of September 30, 2018, our disclosure controls and procedures were effective at the reasonable assurance level.

Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting

During the quarter ended September 30, 2018, we substantially completed the implementation of our new enterprise resource planning (“ERP”) system. The new ERP system was designed and implemented, in part, to enhance the overall system of internal controls over financial reporting through further automation and integration of business processes.

Except for the changes related to the ERP implementation, there have been no changes in our internal control over financial reporting that occurred during our most recent quarter ended September 30, 2018 that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

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PART II—OTHER INFORMATION

Item 1. Legal Proceedings.

On December 15, 2016, we and Northwestern University (“Northwestern”) entered into a license agreement (the “License Agreement”), pursuant to which Northwestern granted us an exclusive license to certain patent rights and know-how, including a patent application covering a specified composition of matter (the “Patent Application”).  Northwestern previously entered into a license agreement with Catalyst Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (“Catalyst”), dated August 27, 2009, pursuant to which Northwestern granted Catalyst rights under certain intellectual property rights covering a different composition of matter (the “Catalyst License”).  In addition, we are a party to a confidential disclosure agreement with Catalyst, dated September 16, 2016 (the “CDA”). On June 25, 2018, Catalyst sent a letter to Northwestern and the Company alleging, among other things, that Northwestern breached the Catalyst License by licensing the Patent Application to us. Catalyst’s letter also asserted that we had breached our obligations under the CDA by allegedly failing to disclose that we had a license to the Patent Application, and that a further breach would occur if the Company makes any use of information obtained under the CDA in connection with its development program arising from the rights granted under the License Agreement.  Catalyst has asserted that the combined conduct of Northwestern and the Company gives rise to various claims, including breach of contract, fraud, and tortious interference. We believe that Catalyst’s claims are without merit and responded by letter dated June 28, 2018, which denies any and all liability to Catalyst, and further denies that Catalyst has been damaged in any way.

As previously disclosed in Part 1, Item 3 of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the period ended December 31, 2017 (the “Annual Report”), in July 2017, a notice of opposition and petition for cancellation was filed at the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board of the USPTO by Ovid Technologies, Inc. (“OTI”) relating to certain current and pending trademarks.  OTI also instituted proceedings with the Canadian Trademark Office and European Union Intellectual Property Office opposing applications in both jurisdictions.  On October 9, 2018, we entered into a settlement agreement with OTI in resolution of this matter.  We will amend certain of our trademark registrations and applications and, upon acceptance of such amendments, OTI will withdraw all opposition and cancellation actions (with prejudice where possible). The parties have agreed to work in good faith to agree on alternative language if the proposed amendments are not accepted.  Please refer to the Annual Report for additional information.

Item 1A. Risk Factors.

An investment in our securities involves a high degree of risk. You should carefully consider the following information about these risks, together with the other information appearing elsewhere in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, including our unaudited condensed financial statements and related notes hereto, before deciding to invest in our common stock. The occurrence of any of the following risks could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and future growth prospects or cause our actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking statements we have made in this report and those we may make from time to time. In these circumstances, the market price of our common stock could decline and you may lose all or part of your investment. We cannot assure you that any of the events discussed below will not occur.

Risks Related to Our Financial Position and Need For Additional Capital

We have incurred significant operating losses since inception and anticipate that we will continue to incur substantial operating losses for the foreseeable future and may never achieve or maintain profitability.

Since inception in April 2014, we have incurred significant operating losses. Our net loss for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018 was $13.0 million and $39.1 million, respectively. As of September 30, 2018, we had an accumulated deficit of $139.8 million. We expect to continue to incur significant expenses and increasing operating losses for the foreseeable future. Since inception, we have devoted substantially all of our efforts to research and preclinical and clinical development of our drug candidates, as well as hiring employees and building our infrastructure. It could be several years, if ever, before we have a commercialized drug. The net losses we incur may fluctuate significantly from quarter to quarter and year to year. We anticipate that our expenses will increase substantially if, and as, we:

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In addition, because of the numerous risks and uncertainties associated with pharmaceutical products and development, we are unable to accurately predict the timing or amount of increased expenses or when, or if, we will be able to achieve profitability. Our expenses could increase and profitability could be further delayed if we decide to or are required by the FDA, or other regulatory authorities such as the European Medicines Agency (“EMA”), to perform studies or trials in addition to those currently expected, or if there are any delays in the development, or in the completion of any planned or future preclinical studies or clinical trials of our current and future drug candidates. Even if we complete the development and regulatory processes described above, we anticipate incurring significant costs associated with launching and commercializing our current and future drug candidates.

Even if we do achieve profitability, we may not be able to sustain or increase profitability on a quarterly or annual basis. Our failure to become and remain profitable would decrease the value of our Company and could impair our ability to raise capital, maintain our research and development efforts, expand our business or continue our operations.

We have a limited operating history and have never generated any revenue from drug sales. Our limited operating history may make it difficult to evaluate the success of our business to date and to assess our future viability.

We are a clinical-stage company founded in April 2014. Our operations have consumed substantial amounts of cash since our inception, primarily due to organizing and staffing our company, business planning, raising capital, acquiring assets and undertaking the development of OV101 and OV935. We have not yet demonstrated the ability to, obtain marketing approvals, manufacture a commercial-scale drug or conduct sales and marketing activities necessary for successful commercialization. Consequently, any predictions about our future success or viability may not be as accurate as they could be if we had more experience developing drug candidates.

Our ability to generate revenue from drug sales and achieve profitability depends on our ability, alone or with any current or future collaborative partners, to successfully complete the development of, and obtain the regulatory approvals necessary to commercialize, our current and future drug candidates. We do not anticipate generating revenue from drug sales for the next several years, if ever. Our ability to generate revenue from drug sales depends heavily on our, or any current or future collaborators’, success in:

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We expect our financial condition and operating results to continue to fluctuate from quarter to quarter and year to year due to a variety of factors, many of which are beyond our control. We will need to eventually transition from a company with a research and development focus to a company capable of undertaking commercial activities. We may encounter unforeseen expenses, difficulties, complications and delays and may not be successful in such a transition.

We will require additional capital to finance our operations, which may not be available on acceptable terms, if at all. Failure to obtain this necessary capital when needed may force us to delay, limit or terminate certain of our drug development efforts or other operations.

Our operations have consumed substantial amounts of cash since our inception. We expect our expenses to increase in connection with our ongoing and planned activities, particularly as we continue to develop and commercialize our drug candidates, in addition to costs associated with the acquisition or in-licensing of any additional drug candidates we may pursue. Our expenses could increase beyond expectations if the FDA or other regulatory authorities require us to perform clinical and other studies in addition to those that we currently anticipate. In addition, if we obtain marketing approval for our drug candidates, we expect to incur significant expenses related to manufacturing, marketing, sales and distribution. Furthermore, we expect to incur additional costs associated with operating as a public company.

As of September 30, 2018, our cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments was $52.5 million. We believe that our existing cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments, will fund our current operating plans through at least 12 months from the filing of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. However, our operating plans may change because of many factors currently unknown to us, and we may need to seek additional funds sooner than planned, through public or private equity or debt financings, third-party funding, marketing and distribution arrangements, as well as other collaborations, strategic alliances and licensing arrangements, or any combination of these approaches.

In any event, we will require more capital to pursue additional preclinical and clinical activities, regulatory approval and the commercialization of our current or future drug candidates. Even if we believe we have sufficient capital for our current or future operating plans, we may seek additional capital if market conditions are favorable or if we have specific strategic considerations. Any additional capital raising efforts may divert our management from their day-to-day activities, which may adversely affect our ability to develop and commercialize our current and future drug candidates.

If we do not raise additional capital in sufficient amounts, or on terms acceptable to us, we may be prevented from pursuing development and commercialization efforts, which will harm our business, operating results and prospects.

Raising additional capital or acquiring or licensing assets by issuing equity or debt securities may cause dilution to our stockholders, and raising funds through lending and licensing arrangements may restrict our operations or require us to relinquish proprietary rights.

Until such time as we can generate substantial revenue from drug sales, if ever, we expect to finance our cash needs through a combination of equity and debt financings, strategic alliances, and license and development agreements in connection with any collaborations. We do not have any committed external source of funds. To the extent that we issue additional equity securities, our stockholders may experience substantial dilution, and the terms of these securities may include liquidation or other preferences that adversely affect your rights as a stockholder. In addition, we may issue equity or debt securities as consideration for obtaining rights to additional compounds. For example, in our arrangement with Takeda, upon the achievement of a certain development milestone, we will be obligated to issue to Takeda additional securities equal to up to 8% of our outstanding capital stock in certain situations which will dilute our stockholders. In addition, further dilution may occur if we elect to issue shares of common stock to Takeda as payment for the remaining potential global commercial and regulatory milestone payments, which aggregate to approximately $35.0 million.

Debt and equity financings, if available, may involve agreements that include covenants limiting or restricting our ability to take specific actions, such as redeeming our shares, making investments, issuing additional equity, incurring additional debt, making capital expenditures, declaring dividends or placing limitations on our ability to acquire, sell or license intellectual property rights and

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other operating restrictions that could negatively impact our ability to conduct our business. If we raise additional capital through future collaborations, strategic alliances or third-party licensing arrangements, we may have to relinquish valuable rights to our intellectual property, future revenue streams, research programs or drug candidates, or grant licenses on terms that may not be favorable to us.

If we are unable to raise additional capital when needed, we may be required to delay, limit, reduce or terminate our drug development or future commercialization efforts, or grant rights to develop and market drug candidates that we would otherwise develop and market ourselves.

We may be required to make significant payments in connection with our licenses of OV101 from Lundbeck and OV935 from Takeda.

We acquired rights to OV101, pursuant to a license agreement with H. Lundbeck A/S (“Lundbeck”) in March 2015 (the “Lundbeck agreement”). Under the Lundbeck agreement, we are subject to significant obligations, including payment obligations upon achievement of specified milestones and royalties on drug sales, as well as other material obligations. We are obligated to pay Lundbeck milestone payments up to an aggregate of $181.0 million upon the achievement of certain development, regulatory and sales milestone events. In addition, we are obligated to pay Lundbeck tiered royalties based on net sales of OV101. If these payments become due under the terms of the Lundbeck agreement, we may not have sufficient funds available to meet our obligations and our development efforts may be harmed.

We also acquired rights to OV935 pursuant to a license and collaboration agreement with Takeda (the “Takeda collaboration”) in January 2017. Under the Takeda collaboration, we are obligated to pay Takeda future payments upon achievement of specified milestones. Upon the first patient enrollment in the first Phase 3 trial for the first of the initial indications we and Takeda are focusing on pursuant to the Takeda collaboration, we are obligated to issue to Takeda the number of unregistered shares of our common stock equal to the lesser of (i) 8% of our outstanding capital stock on the issuance date or (ii) $50.0 million divided by the applicable share price, unless certain events occur. The remaining potential global commercial and regulatory milestone payments equal approximately $35.0 million and can be satisfied in cash or unregistered shares of our common stock at our election, unless certain events occur in which Takeda can require us to pay such payments in cash. In the event a payment settled in shares of our common stock would cause Takeda to own over 19.99% of our outstanding capital stock or other events occur, such payment must be paid in cash. If these payments become due under the terms of the Takeda collaboration and we can only pay, or choose to pay, these payments in cash, we may not have sufficient funds available to meet our obligations and our development efforts may be harmed.

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

We have incurred substantial losses since inception and do not expect to become profitable in the near future, if ever. To the extent that we continue to generate taxable losses, unused losses will carry forward to offset future taxable income, if any, until such unused losses expire. 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 its equity ownership by certain stockholders over a three-year period, the corporation’s ability to use its pre-change net operating losses (“NOLs”) and other pre-change tax attributes (such as research tax credits) to offset its post-change income or taxes may be limited. We may have experienced ownership changes in the past and may experience ownership changes in the future as a result of shifts in our stock ownership (some of which shifts are outside our control). As a result, if we earn net taxable income, our ability to use our pre-change NOLs to offset such taxable income will be subject to limitations. Similar provisions of state tax law may also apply to limit our use of accumulated state tax attributes. In addition, at the state level, there may be periods during which the use of NOLs is suspended or otherwise limited, which could accelerate or permanently increase state taxes owed. As a result, even if we attain profitability, we may be unable to use a material portion of our NOLs and other tax attributes, which could negatively impact our future cash flows.

Comprehensive tax reform legislation could adversely affect our business and financial condition.

On December 22, 2017, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (the “Tax Act”) was signed into law. The Tax Act, among other things, contains significant changes to corporate taxation, including (i) reduction of the corporate tax rate from a top marginal rate of 35% to a flat rate of 21%, (ii) limitation of the tax deduction for interest expense to 30% of adjusted earnings (except for certain small businesses), (iii) limitation of the deduction for net operating losses to 80% of current year taxable income in respect of net operating losses generated during or after 2018 and elimination of net operating loss carrybacks, (iv) one-time taxation of offshore earnings at reduced rates regardless of whether they are repatriated, (v) immediate deductions for certain new investments instead of deductions for depreciation expense over time, and (vi) modifying or repealing many business deductions and credits. Any federal net operating loss incurred in 2018 and in future years may now be carried forward indefinitely pursuant to the Tax Act. It is uncertain if and to what extent various states will conform to the newly enacted federal tax law. We will continue to examine the impact the Tax Act may have on our business.

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Risks Related to the Development and Commercialization of Our Drug Candidates

Our future success is dependent on the successful clinical development, regulatory approval and commercialization of our current and future drug candidates. If we are not able to obtain required regulatory approvals, we will not be able to commercialize our drug candidates, and our ability to generate revenue will be adversely affected.

We do not have any drugs that have received regulatory approval. Our business is dependent on our ability to successfully complete preclinical and clinical development of, obtain regulatory approval for, and, if approved, successfully commercialize our current and future drug candidates in a timely manner. Activities associated with the development and commercialization of our current and future drug candidates are subject to comprehensive regulation by the FDA and other regulatory agencies in the United States and similar regulatory authorities outside the United States. Failure to obtain regulatory approval in the United States or other jurisdictions will prevent us from commercializing and marketing our current and future drug candidates.

Even if we obtain approval from the FDA and comparable foreign regulatory authorities for our current and future drug candidates, any approval might contain significant limitations related to use restrictions for specified age groups, warnings, precautions or contraindications, or may be subject to burdensome post-approval study or risk management requirements. If we are unable to obtain regulatory approval, or any approval contains significant limitations, we may not be able to obtain sufficient funding or generate sufficient revenue to continue the development of that drug candidate or any other drug candidate that we may in-license, develop or acquire in the future.

Furthermore, even if we obtain regulatory approval for our current and future drug candidates, we will still need to develop a commercial organization, establish a commercially viable pricing structure and obtain approval for adequate reimbursement from third-party and government payors. If we are unable to successfully commercialize our current and future drug candidates, we may not be able to generate sufficient revenue to continue our business.

Because the results of preclinical studies or earlier clinical trials are not necessarily predictive of future results, our drug candidates may not have favorable results in planned or future preclinical studies or clinical trials in other indications, or may not receive regulatory approval.

Success in preclinical testing and early clinical trials does not ensure that subsequent clinical trials will generate similar results or otherwise provide adequate data to demonstrate the efficacy and safety of a drug candidate. Frequently, drug candidates that have shown promising results in early clinical trials have subsequently suffered significant setbacks in later clinical trials. For instance, our STARS trial was the first clinical trial evaluating efficacy of OV101 in patients with Angelman syndrome and OV101 has not been evaluated in a clinical trial to treat Fragile X syndrome. We may be unable to demonstrate efficacy in any future trials, including any future clinical trials of OV101 to treat Angelman syndrome. In addition, OV935 has not been shown to have efficacy in patients with dEE, or the related indications of Dravet syndrome, Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, CDKL5 deficiency or Duplication 15q syndrome and the FDA has not yet made any determination regarding safety and efficacy of OV935 in any of these indications. The results from preclinical studies of OV101 and OV935 in animal models and the results from our STARS clinical trial of OV101 in patients with Angelman syndrome and clinical trials of OV101 in patients with primary insomnia may not be predictive of the effects of these compounds in later stage clinical trials. Our approach of targeting the extrasynaptic GABA_A receptor with OV101, and cholesterol 24-hydroxylase (CH24H) with OV935, are both novel and unproven, and as such, the cost and time needed to develop OV101 and OV935 is difficult to predict and our efforts may not be successful. If we do not observe favorable results in clinical trials of one of our drug candidates, we may decide to delay or abandon clinical development of that drug candidate. Any such delay or abandonment could harm our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.

Risks associated with the in-licensing or acquisition of drug candidates could cause substantial delays in the preclinical and clinical development of our drug candidates.

Prior to March 2015, we had no involvement with or control over the preclinical and clinical research and development of OV101. We have relied on Lundbeck or its prior licensee to have conducted such research and development in accordance with the applicable protocol, legal, regulatory and scientific standards, having accurately reported the results of all clinical trials conducted prior to our acquisition of OV101 and having correctly collected and interpreted the data from these trials. If the research and development processes or the results of the development programs prior to our acquisition of OV101 prove to be unreliable, this could result in increased costs and delays in the development of OV101, which could adversely affect any future revenue from this drug candidate.

Similarly, we acquired rights to OV935 from Takeda in January 2017. Because we were not involved in the development of OV935 prior to January 2017, we may experience difficulties in the transition of certain development activities from Takeda and its affiliates to us, which may result in delays in clinical trials, as well as problems in our development efforts, particularly if we do not receive all of the necessary products, information, reports and data from Takeda and its affiliates in a timely manner. To the extent any

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of these has not occurred, expected development time and costs may be increased which could adversely affect any future revenue from this drug candidate.

We may also acquire or in-license additional drug candidates for preclinical or clinical development in the future as we continue to build our pipeline. The risks associated with acquiring or in-licensing current or future drug candidates could result in delays in the commencement or completion of our preclinical studies and clinical trials, if ever, and our ability to generate revenues from our drug candidates may be delayed.

We may encounter substantial delays in our clinical trials or we may fail to demonstrate safety and efficacy to the satisfaction of applicable regulatory authorities.

Before obtaining marketing approval from regulatory authorities for the sale of our drug candidates, we must conduct extensive clinical trials to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of the drug candidate for its intended indications. Clinical trials are expensive, time-consuming and uncertain as to outcome. We cannot guarantee that any clinical trials will be conducted as planned or completed on schedule, if at all. A failure of one or more clinical trials can occur at any stage of testing. Events that may prevent successful or timely completion of clinical development include:

Further, clinical endpoints for certain diseases we are targeting, such as Angelman syndrome and Fragile X syndrome, have not been established, and accordingly we may have to develop new modalities or modify existing endpoints to measure efficacy, which may increase the time it takes for us to commence or complete clinical trials. In addition, we believe investigators in this area may be inexperienced in conducting trials in this area due to the current lack of drugs to treat these disorders, which may result in increased time and expense to train investigators and open clinical sites.

Any inability to successfully complete preclinical and clinical development could result in additional costs to us or impair our ability to generate revenue from future drug sales and regulatory and commercialization milestones. In addition, if we make manufacturing or formulation changes to our drug candidates, we may need to conduct additional testing to bridge our modified drug candidate to earlier versions. Clinical trial delays could also shorten any periods during which we may have the exclusive right to commercialize our drug candidates, if approved, or allow our competitors to bring comparable drugs to market before we do, which could impair our ability to successfully commercialize our drug candidates and may harm our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.

Additionally, if the results of our clinical trials are inconclusive or if there are safety concerns or serious adverse events associated with our drug candidates, we may:

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Our drug development costs will also increase if we experience delays in testing or obtaining marketing approvals. We do not know whether any of our preclinical studies or clinical trials will begin as planned, need to be restructured or be completed on schedule, if at all.

Further, we, the FDA or an institutional review board (“IRB”) may suspend our clinical trials at any time if it appears that we or our collaborators are failing to conduct a trial in accordance with regulatory requirements, including the FDA’s current Good Clinical Practice (“GCP) regulations, that we are exposing participants to unacceptable health risks, or if the FDA finds deficiencies in our investigational new drug (“IND”) applications or the conduct of these trials. Therefore, we cannot predict with any certainty the schedule for commencement and completion of future clinical trials. If we experience delays in the commencement or completion of our clinical trials, or if we terminate a clinical trial prior to completion, the commercial prospects of our drug candidates could be negatively impacted, and our ability to generate revenues from our drug candidates may be delayed.

Angelman syndrome has no FDA-approved treatments, and the clinical endpoints to obtain approval are not well defined.

We intend to seek a broad indication for OV101 to treat Angelman syndrome. However, Angelman syndrome is characterized by a variety of signs and symptoms, such as delayed development, intellectual disability, severe speech impairment, problems with movement and balance, seizures, sleep disorders and anxiety. In order to obtain a broad indication for treatment of Angelman syndrome from the FDA, we would need to demonstrate efficacy on several of the key symptoms of Angelman syndrome. If we fail to do so, our clinical development may be delayed and/or our label may be limited. In addition, the FDA has not endorsed any primary efficacy endpoints with respect to development of drugs to treat Angelman syndrome. As a result, we must develop acceptable endpoints and seek the FDA’s agreement before seeking approval of OV101. If we fail to reach such an agreement with the FDA as to how to measure efficacy in Angelman syndrome patients in our trials, our clinical development plan will be delayed.

While OV101 showed a statistically significant improvement compared to placebo in CGI-I, this endpoint may not be sufficient for regulatory approval, and/or future clinical trials may not meet their respective clinical endpoints.

We released full data from our Phase 2 STARS trial of OV101 to treat adults and adolescents with Angelman syndrome. At 12 weeks of treatment in the once-daily and combined dosing groups, OV101 showed a statistically significant improvement compared to placebo in the physician-rated clinical global impressions of improvement (“CGI-I”), a measure commonly used in neurology and psychiatry clinical trials to allow the physician to capture a constellation of clinical symptoms. Analyses conducted on a prespecified subset of scales across the domains of behavior, sleep and gait did not show a statistically significant difference from placebo.  However, additional data and analyses suggest that in the OV101 15 mg once-daily dose group, changes in sleep parameters and motor domains contributed to the statistically significant improvement in overall clinical global symptoms (CGI-I), and therefore support further clinical development of OV101 in Angelman syndrome. While we are not aware of any circumstance where the FDA has accepted a CGI-I endpoint as the sole basis for regulatory approval, we intend to discuss these data with FDA to determine the next steps for a registrational pathway, but we cannot be certain that the FDA will accept CGI-I as an approvable endpoint in any future pivotal trial, and we may not be able to demonstrate statistically significant results on CGI-I or any other clinical endpoints that we incorporate.

We may need to conduct additional clinical or non-clinical studies in order to enroll children younger than 13 in any pivotal or other clinical trials.

The STARS trial enrolled adults and adolescents aged 13 to 49 years of age. It is our intention to seek approval of OV101 in all patients, including pediatric patients. While a post-hoc analysis of the data from this trial suggests that younger patients may benefit more than older patients, we may be required to conduct additional studies before we can enroll any pediatric patients in any future studies. In addition, we may need to develop additional oral formulations of OV101 to be used in young children. If we are delayed in enrolling pediatric patients in any future clinical trials, our development and any regulatory approval could be delayed.

We may need to develop a new liquid pediatric formulation of OV101 for use in young children initially, and eventually for infants and toddlers, and we may be unable to successfully develop an appropriate formulation.

Our existing formulation of OV101 is an oral capsule. We have recently developed lower strength capsules that can be opened and sprinkled on applesauce or similar semi-solid foods. However, for use in very young pediatric patients, we may need to develop

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an oral liquid formulation of OV101. While we have begun developing this formulation, we do not know if our efforts will be successful or if the FDA will agree that the new formulation is comparable to our current formulation. We may experience manufacturing problems such as with solubility or stability or we may discover that the new formulation is less effective than an oral capsule. In addition, we will need to conduct bridging studies to demonstrate that the new formulation is equivalent to our oral capsule, which could result in delays in development and additional costs.

We may not be able to obtain or maintain orphan drug designations or exclusivity for our drug candidates, which could limit the potential profitability of our drug candidates.

Regulatory authorities in some jurisdictions, including the United States, may designate drugs for relatively small patient populations as orphan drugs. Under the Orphan Drug Act of 1983, the FDA may designate a drug as an orphan drug if it is a drug intended to treat a rare disease or condition, which is generally defined as a patient population of fewer than 200,000 individuals in the United States. Generally, if a drug with an orphan drug designation subsequently receives the first marketing approval for an indication for which it receives the designation, then the drug is entitled to a period of marketing exclusivity that precludes the applicable regulatory authority from approving another marketing application for the same drug for the same indication for the exclusivity period except in limited situations. For purposes of small molecule drugs, the FDA defines “same drug” as a drug that contains the same active moiety and is intended for the same use as the drug in question. A designated orphan drug may not receive orphan drug exclusivity if it is approved for a use that is broader than the indication for which it received orphan designation.

For OV101, the FDA granted orphan drug designation for the treatment of Angelman syndrome and for the treatment of Fragile X syndrome in September 2016 and October 2017, respectively, and fast track designation for the treatment of Angelman Syndrome and Fragile X syndrome in December 2017 and March 2018, respectively. The FDA granted orphan drug designation for OV935 for the treatment of Dravet syndrome and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome both in December 2017. We intend to pursue orphan drug designation for OV101 in additional indications, as well as for OV935 and potential other future drug candidates. Obtaining orphan drug designations is important to our business strategy; however, obtaining an orphan drug designation can be difficult and we may not be successful in doing so. Even if we were to obtain orphan drug designation for a drug candidate, we may not obtain orphan exclusivity and that exclusivity may not effectively protect the drug from the competition of different drugs for the same condition, which could be approved during the exclusivity period. Additionally, after an orphan drug is approved, the FDA could subsequently approve another application for the same drug for the same indication if the FDA concludes that the later drug is shown to be safer, more effective or makes a major contribution to patient care. Orphan drug exclusive marketing rights in the United States also may be lost if the FDA later determines that the request for designation was materially defective or if the manufacturer is unable to assure sufficient quantity of the drug to meet the needs of patients with the rare disease or condition. The failure to obtain an orphan drug designation for any drug candidates we may develop, the inability to maintain that designation for the duration of the applicable period, or the inability to obtain or maintain orphan drug exclusivity could reduce our ability to make sufficient sales of the applicable drug candidate to balance our expenses incurred to develop it, which would have a negative impact on our operational results and financial condition.

If we are not successful in discovering, developing and commercializing additional drug candidates, our ability to expand our business and achieve our strategic objectives would be impaired.

A key element of our strategy is to develop and potentially commercialize a portfolio of drug candidates to treat rare neurological disorders. We intend to do so by in-licensing and entering into collaborations with leading biopharmaceutical companies or academic institutions for new drug candidates. Identifying new drug candidates requires substantial technical, financial and human resources, whether or not any drug candidates are ultimately identified. Our approach to business development, including our efforts to map the biological pathways related to orphan disorders of the brain and our relationships among the pharmaceutical industry, may not result in viable drug candidates for clinical development. Even if we identify drug candidates that initially show promise, we may fail to in-license or acquire these assets and may also fail to successfully develop and commercialize such drug candidates for many reasons, including the following:

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We have limited financial and management resources and, as a result, we may forego or delay pursuit of opportunities with other drug candidates or for other indications that later prove to have greater market potential. Our resource allocation decisions may cause us to fail to capitalize on viable commercial drugs or profitable market opportunities. If we do not accurately evaluate the commercial potential or target market for a particular drug candidate, we may relinquish valuable rights to that drug candidate through collaboration, licensing or other royalty arrangements in circumstances under which it would have been more advantageous for us to retain sole development and commercialization rights to such drug candidate.

If we are unsuccessful in identifying and developing additional drug candidates or are unable to do so, our key growth strategy and business will be harmed.

We are heavily dependent on our relationship with Takeda for the development and commercialization of OV935. Any disruption in our relationship with Takeda could lead to delays in, or the termination of, the development of OV935, which would materially harm our business.

We are jointly developing OV935 with Takeda pursuant to the Takeda collaboration, which also granted us intellectual property rights to OV935. The development and commercialization of OV935 is highly dependent upon our relationship with Takeda, including Takeda’s submission of the IND to the FDA. If for any reason the Takeda collaboration is terminated, or we otherwise lose the intellectual property rights to OV935, our business would be adversely affected. The Takeda collaboration imposes on us rights and obligations, including but not limited to exclusivity, territorial rights, development, commercialization, funding, payment, diligence, sublicensing, insurance and intellectual property protection. After a negotiated time period, each party has the right to terminate the license for convenience upon six to twelve months’ notice to the other party, which would result in us being unable to co-develop and sell OV935. Further, if we breach any material obligations, or use the intellectual property licensed to us in an unauthorized manner, we may be required to pay damages to Takeda, and Takeda may have the right to terminate the license. Takeda could also breach its obligations under the agreement, or may not commit a sufficient amount of resources to satisfy its obligations, which would result in the development of OV935 being materially delayed or terminated.

We may explore additional strategic collaborations that may never materialize or may fail.

Our business strategy is based on acquiring or in-licensing compounds directed at rare neurological disorders. As a result, we intend to periodically explore a variety of possible additional strategic collaborations in an effort to gain access to additional drug candidates or resources. At the current time, we cannot predict what form such a strategic collaboration might take. We are likely to face significant competition in seeking appropriate strategic collaborators, and strategic collaborations can be complicated and time consuming to negotiate and document. We may not be able to negotiate strategic collaborations on acceptable terms, or at all. We are unable to predict when, if ever, we will enter into any additional strategic collaborations because of the numerous risks and uncertainties associated with establishing them.

Clinical trials are very expensive, time-consuming and difficult to design and implement.

Our drug candidates will require clinical testing before we are prepared to submit a new drug application (“NDA”) for regulatory approval. We cannot predict with any certainty if or when we might submit an NDA for regulatory approval for any of our drug candidates or whether any such NDA will be approved by the FDA. Human clinical trials are very expensive and difficult to design and implement, in part because they are subject to rigorous regulatory requirements. For instance, the FDA may not agree with our proposed endpoints for any future clinical trial of our drug candidates, which may delay the commencement of our clinical trials. In addition, we may not succeed in developing and validating disease-relevant clinical endpoints based on insights regarding biological pathways for the disorders we are studying. The clinical trial process is also time-consuming. We estimate that the successful completion of clinical trials of our drug candidates will take at least several years to complete, if not longer. Furthermore, failure can occur at any stage and we could encounter problems that cause us to abandon or repeat clinical trials.

Enrollment and retention of patients in clinical trials is an expensive and time-consuming process and could be made more difficult or rendered impossible by multiple factors outside our control.

Identifying and qualifying patients to participate in our clinical trials is critical to our success. The number of patients suffering from Angelman syndrome, Fragile X syndrome and dEE, such as Dravet syndrome, Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and Tuberous Sclerosis Complex, is small and has not been established with precision. If the actual number of patients with these disorders is

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smaller than we anticipate, we may encounter difficulties in enrolling patients in our clinical trials, thereby delaying or preventing development and approval of our drug candidates. Even once enrolled we may be unable to retain a sufficient number of patients to complete any of our trials. Patient enrollment and retention in clinical trials depends on many factors, including the size of the patient population, the nature of the trial protocol, the existing body of safety and efficacy data, the number and nature of competing treatments and ongoing clinical trials of competing therapies for the same indication, the proximity of patients to clinical sites and the eligibility criteria for the trial. Because we are focused on addressing rare neurological disorders, there are limited patient pools from which to draw in order to complete our clinical trials in a timely and cost-effective manner. Furthermore, our efforts to build relationships with patient communities may not succeed, which could result in delays in patient enrollment in our clinical trials. In addition, any negative results we may report in clinical trials of our drug candidate may make it difficult or impossible to recruit and retain patients in other clinical trials of that same drug candidate. Delays or failures in planned patient enrollment or retention may result in increased costs, program delays or both, which could have a harmful effect on our ability to develop our drug candidates, or could render further development impossible. In addition, we may rely on CROs and clinical trial sites to ensure proper and timely conduct of our future clinical trials and, while we intend to enter into agreements governing their services, we will be limited in our ability to compel their actual performance.

Our drug candidates may cause undesirable side effects or have other properties that could delay or prevent their regulatory approval, limit the commercial potential or result in significant negative consequences following any potential marketing approval.

During the conduct of clinical trials, patients report changes in their health, including illnesses, injuries and discomforts, to their doctor. Often, it is not possible to determine whether or not the drug candidate being studied caused these conditions. Regulatory authorities may draw different conclusions or require additional testing to confirm these determinations, if they occur. In addition, it is possible that as we test our drug candidates in larger, longer and more extensive clinical programs, or as use of these drug candidates becomes more widespread if they receive regulatory approval, illnesses, injuries, discomforts and other adverse events that were observed in earlier trials, as well as conditions that did not occur or went undetected in previous trials, will be reported by subjects. Many times, side effects are only detectable after investigational drugs are tested in large-scale, Phase 3 trials or, in some cases, after they are made available to patients on a commercial scale after approval. For example, in one of the trials conducted by Lundbeck, there were reports of hallucinations in drug abusers at 30mg and 45mg doses of OV101, which are higher than the 10mg and 15mg doses that were effective for insomnia. In addition, some patients treated with OV101 in the Lundbeck Phase 3 trials experienced headaches, nausea and dizziness. In the STARS study, the most frequent adverse events for OV101 treated arms that were greater than placebo arm included pyrexia, rash, seizure, enuresis, myoclonic epilepsy, otitis media and viral infection. Patients in our ongoing or planned clinical trials may experience similar or other adverse events after treatment with OV101. If additional clinical experience indicates that any of our current drug candidates, including OV101 and OV935, or any future drug candidates has adverse events or causes serious or life-threatening adverse events, the development of that drug candidate may fail or be delayed, or, if the drug candidate has received regulatory approval, such approval may be revoked, which would harm our business, prospects, operating results and financial condition.

Moreover, if we elect, or are required, to delay, suspend or terminate any clinical trial of our drug candidates, the commercial prospects of our drug candidates may be harmed and our ability to generate revenue through their sale may be delayed or eliminated. Any of these occurrences may harm our business, financial condition and prospects significantly.

Additionally, if any of our drug candidates receive marketing approval, the FDA could require us to include a black box warning in our label or adopt REMS to ensure that the benefits outweigh its risks, which may include, among other things, a medication guide outlining the risks of the drug for distribution to patients and a communication plan to health care practitioners. Furthermore, if we or others later identify undesirable side effects caused by our drug candidates, several potentially significant negative consequences could result, including:

Any of these events could prevent us from achieving or maintaining market acceptance of our drug candidates and could significantly harm our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations.

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We may be required to relinquish important rights to and control over the development and commercialization of our drug candidates to any future collaborators.

Our current and future collaborations could subject us to a number of risks, including:

If the market opportunities for our drug candidates are smaller than we believe they are, even assuming approval of a drug candidate, our business may suffer. Because the patient populations in the market for our drug candidates may be small, we must be able to successfully identify patients and acquire a significant market share to achieve profitability and growth.

We focus our research and drug development on treatments of rare neurological disorders. Given the small number of patients who have the disorders that we are targeting, our eligible patient population and pricing estimates may differ significantly from the actual market addressable by our drug candidates. Our projections of both the number of people who have these disorders, as well as the subset of people with these disorders who have the potential to benefit from treatment with our drug candidates, are based on our beliefs and estimates. These estimates have been derived from a variety of sources, including the scientific literature, patient foundations, or market research, and may prove to be incorrect. Further, new studies may change the estimated incidence or prevalence of these disorders. The number of patients may turn out to be lower than expected. Likewise, the potentially addressable patient population for each of our drug candidates may be limited or may not be amenable to treatment with our drug candidates, and new patients may become increasingly difficult to identify or gain access to, which would adversely affect our results of operations and our business.

We face substantial competition, which may result in others developing or commercializing drugs before or more successfully than us.

The development and commercialization of new drugs is highly competitive. We face competition with respect to our current drug candidates and will face competition with respect to any other drug candidates that we may seek to develop or commercialize in the future, from major pharmaceutical companies, specialty pharmaceutical companies and biotechnology companies worldwide.

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There are a number of large pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies that currently market and sell drugs or are pursuing the development of drug candidates for the treatment of the indications that we are pursuing. Potential competitors also include academic institutions, government agencies and other public and private research organizations that conduct research, seek patent protection and establish collaborative arrangements for research, development, manufacturing and commercialization.

More established companies may have a competitive advantage over us due to their greater size, resources and institutional experience. In particular, these companies have greater experience and expertise in securing reimbursement, government contracts, relationships with key opinion leaders, conducting testing and clinical trials, obtaining and maintaining regulatory approvals and distribution relationships to market products, and marketing approved drugs. These companies also have significantly greater research and marketing capabilities than we do. If we are not able to compete effectively against existing and potential competitors, our business and financial condition may be harmed.

As a result of these factors, our competitors may obtain regulatory approval of their drugs before we are able to, which may limit our ability to develop or commercialize our drug candidates. Our competitors may also develop therapies that are safer, more effective, more widely accepted and cheaper than ours, and may also be more successful than us in manufacturing and marketing their drugs. These appreciable advantages could render our drug candidates obsolete or non-competitive before we can recover the expenses of such drug candidates’ development and commercialization.

Mergers and acquisitions in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries may result in even more resources being concentrated among a smaller number of our competitors. Smaller and other early-stage companies may also prove to be significant competitors, particularly through collaborative arrangements with large and established companies. These third parties compete with us in recruiting and retaining qualified scientific, management and commercial personnel, establishing clinical trial sites and subject registration for clinical trials, as well as in acquiring technologies complementary to, or necessary for, our programs.

Even if our current or future drug candidates receive marketing approval, they may fail to achieve market acceptance by physicians, patients, third-party payors or others in the medical community necessary for commercial success.

Even if our current or future drug candidates receive marketing approval, they may fail to gain sufficient market acceptance by physicians, patients, third-party payors and others in the medical community. If they do not achieve an adequate level of acceptance, we may not generate significant drug revenue and may not become profitable. The degree of market acceptance of our current or future drug candidates, if approved for commercial sale, will depend on a number of factors, including but not limited to:

Our efforts to educate physicians, patients, third-party payors and others in the medical community on the benefits of our drug candidates may require significant resources and may never be successful. Such efforts may require more resources than are typically required due to the complexity and uniqueness of our drug candidates. Because we expect sales of our drug candidates, if approved, to generate substantially all of our drug revenues for the foreseeable future, the failure of our drugs to find market acceptance would harm our business and could require us to seek additional financing.

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Even if we obtain regulatory approval for our current or future drug candidates, they will remain subject to ongoing regulatory oversight.

Even if we obtain any regulatory approval for our current or future drug candidates, such approvals will be subject to ongoing regulatory requirements for manufacturing, labeling, packaging, storage, advertising, promotion, sampling, record-keeping and submission of safety and other post-market information. Any regulatory approvals that we receive for our current or future drug candidates may also be subject to a REMS, limitations on the approved indicated uses for which the drug may be marketed or to the conditions of approval, or contain requirements for potentially costly post-marketing testing, including Phase 4 trials, and surveillance to monitor the quality, safety and efficacy of the drug.

In addition, drug manufacturers and their facilities are subject to payment of user fees and continual review and periodic inspections by the FDA and other regulatory authorities for compliance with cGMP requirements and adherence to commitments made in the NDA or foreign marketing application. If we, or a regulatory authority, discover previously unknown problems with a drug, such as adverse events of unanticipated severity or frequency, or problems with the facility where the drug is manufactured or if a regulatory authority disagrees with the promotion, marketing or labeling of that drug, a regulatory authority may impose restrictions relative to that drug, the manufacturing facility or us, including requesting a recall or requiring withdrawal of the drug from the market or suspension of manufacturing.

If we fail to comply with applicable regulatory requirements following approval of our current or future drug candidates, a regulatory authority may: