RESEARCH FRONTIERS INC - Quarter Report: 2019 September (Form 10-Q)

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-Q

QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 or 15(d) of

THE SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

RESEARCH FRONTIERS INCORPORATED

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code (516) 364-1902

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

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

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

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 [X] No [  ]

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§ 232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files). Yes [X] 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. (Check one):

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 Act). Yes [  ] No [X]

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

Indicate the number of shares outstanding of each of the issuer’s classes of common stock, as of the latest practicable date: As of November 7, 2019, there were outstanding 31,090,291 shares of Common Stock, par value $0.0001 per share.

RESEARCH FRONTIERS INCORPORATED

Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets

See accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements.

RESEARCH FRONTIERS INCORPORATED

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations

(Unaudited)

See accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements.

RESEARCH FRONTIERS INCORPORATED

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Shareholders’ Equity

(Unaudited)

For the nine months ended September 30, 2018 and 2019

For the three months ended September 30, 2018 and 2019

See accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements.

RESEARCH FRONTIERS INCORPORATED

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows

(Unaudited)

See accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements.

RESEARCH FRONTIERS INCORPORATED

Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements

September 30, 2019

(Unaudited)

Note 1. Basis of Presentation

The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) for interim financial information and with the instructions to Rule 8-03 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, they do not include all of the information and footnotes required by GAAP for complete financial statements. In the opinion of management, all adjustments considered necessary for a fair presentation have been included. All such adjustments are of a normal recurring nature. Operating results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2019 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2019. The balance sheet at December 31, 2018 has been derived from the audited consolidated financial statements at that date. For further information, refer to the consolidated financial statements and footnotes thereto included in the Annual Report on Form 10-K relating to Research Frontiers Incorporated (the “Company”) for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2018.

Note 2. Business

Research Frontiers Incorporated (“Research Frontiers” or the “Company”) operates in a single business segment which is engaged in the development and marketing of technology and devices to control the flow of light. Such devices, often referred to as “light valves” or suspended particle devices (SPDs), use colloidal particles that are either incorporated within a liquid suspension or a film, which is usually enclosed between two sheets of glass or plastic having transparent, electrically conductive coatings on the facing surfaces thereof. At least one of the two sheets is transparent. SPD technology, made possible by a flexible light-control film invented by Research Frontiers, allows the user to instantly and precisely control the shading of glass/plastic manually or automatically. SPD technology has numerous product applications, including SPD-Smart™ windows, sunshades, skylights and interior partitions for homes and buildings; automotive windows, sunroofs, sun-visors, sunshades, rear-view mirrors, instrument panels and navigation systems; aircraft windows; museum display panels, eyewear products; and flat panel displays for electronic products. SPD-Smart light control film is now being developed for, or used in, architectural, automotive, marine, aerospace and appliance applications.

The Company has historically utilized its cash, cash equivalents, short-term investments, and the proceeds from the sale of its investments to fund its research and development of SPD light valves, for marketing initiatives, and for other working capital purposes. The Company’s working capital and capital requirements depend upon numerous factors, including the results of research and development activities, competitive and technological developments, the timing and cost of patent filings, and the development of new licensees and changes in the Company’s relationships with its existing licensees. The degree of dependence of the Company’s working capital requirements on each of the foregoing factors cannot be quantified; increased research and development activities and related costs would increase such requirements; the addition of new licensees may provide additional working capital or working capital requirements, and changes in relationships with existing licensees would have a favorable or negative impact depending upon the nature of such changes. We have incurred recurring losses since inception and expect to continue to incur losses as a result of costs and expenses related to our research and continued development of our SPD technology and our corporate general and administrative expenses. Our capital resources and operations to date have been substantially funded through sales of our common stock, exercise of options and warrants and royalty fees collected. As of September 30, 2019, we had working capital of approximately $7.6 million, cash of approximately $7.0 million, shareholders’ equity of approximately $7.8 million and an accumulated deficit of approximately $114.2 million. Our quarterly projected cash flow shortfall, based on our current operations adjusted for any non-recurring cash expenses for the next 12 months, is approximately $450,000-$550,000 per quarter. We may eliminate some operating expenses in the future, which will further reduce our cash flow shortfall if needed. We expect to have sufficient working capital for at least the next 3 years to fund operations based upon current expense levels.

In the event that we are unable to generate sufficient cash from our operating activities or raise additional funds, we may delay, reduce or curtail our operations. The Company may seek to obtain additional funding through future equity issuances. There can be no assurance as to the availability or terms upon which such financing and capital might be available. Eventual success of the Company and generation of positive cash flow will be dependent upon the commercialization of products using the Company’s technology by the Company’s licensees and payments of continuing royalties on account thereof. To date, the Company has not generated sufficient revenue from its licensees to fund its operations.

Note 3. Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncement

Effective January 1, 2019, the Company adopted the Financial Accounting Standards Board’s Standard, Leases (Topic 842), as amended. The standard requires all leases to be recorded on the balance sheet as a right of use asset and a lease liability. The standard provides practical expedients in order to simplify adoption, including the following:

The Company used the above practical expedients as the transition method in the application of the new lease standard at January 1, 2019. The Company applied a policy election to exclude short-term leases from balance sheet recognition and elected certain practical expedients at adoption. As permitted, the Company did not reassess whether existing contracts are or contain leases, the lease classification for any existing leases or the initial direct costs for any existing leases which were not previously accounted for as leases, are or contain a lease. At adoption on January 1, 2019, an operating lease liability of $1,134,000 and an operating lease right of use asset of $941,000 were recorded. The operating lease liability was $193,000 more than the operating lease right of use asset due to unamortized lease incentive from periods prior to the adoption of the new lease standard. There was no cumulative earnings effect adjustment.

Note 4. Fair Value Measurements

The fair value of a financial instrument is the amount at which the instrument could be exchanged in a current transaction between willing parties. The carrying amounts of all financial instruments classified as a current asset or current liability are deemed to approximate fair value because of the short maturity of those instruments.

Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 820 “Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures” (“ASC Topic 820”) establishes a framework for measuring fair value in generally accepted accounting principles and expands disclosures about fair value measurements. ASC Topic 820 applies other previously issued accounting pronouncements that require or permit fair value measurements but does not require any new fair value measurements.

ASC Topic 820 defines fair value as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. ASC Topic 820 establishes a fair value hierarchy that distinguishes between (1) market participant assumptions developed based on market data obtained from independent sources (observable inputs) and (2) an entity’s own assumptions about market participant assumptions developed based on the best information available in the circumstances (unobservable inputs).

We value financial instruments using a three-tier fair value hierarchy, which prioritizes the inputs used in measuring fair value. These tiers include: Level 1, defined as observable inputs such as quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities; Level 2, defined as inputs other than quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets that are either directly or indirectly observable; and Level 3, defined as unobservable inputs in which little or no market data exists, therefore requiring an entity to develop its own assumptions.

As of September 30, 2019, and December 31, 2018, the fair value of the Company’s financial assets and non-warrant liabilities including cash and cash equivalents, royalties receivable, accounts payable and accrued expenses approximated carrying value due to the short-term maturity of these instruments. The carrying value of the previous warrant liabilities was adjusted to fair value each reporting period using the Black-Scholes method to determine the fair value of the warrants. The issued warrants treated as warrant liabilities had different exercise prices depending on the date of exercise. The lowest exercise price for these warrants was used in the Black Scholes method to value the warrant liabilities since it was deemed a reasonable approximation of fair market value. The Company’s warrant liability was considered a Level 3 financial instrument and the corresponding liabilities were reclassified to equity during the three months ended June 30, 2019, therefore there was no warrant liability as of September 30, 2019. The estimated fair value for warrant liabilities for the period ended December 31, 2018 using the Black-Scholes method was $501,414.

Note 5. Patent Costs

The Company expenses costs relating to the development, acquisition or enforcement of patents due to the uncertainty of the recoverability of these items.

Note 6. Revenue Recognition

Company recognizes revenue in accordance with ASC 606 Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606). The standard provides a single comprehensive revenue recognition model for all contracts with customers and supersedes existing revenue recognition guidance. The revenue standard contains principles that an entity will apply to determine the measurement of revenue and timing of when it is recognized. The underlying principle is that an entity will recognize revenue to depict the transfer of goods or services to customers at an amount that the entity expects to be entitled to in exchange for those goods or services.

This new ASC 606 guidance was adopted by the Company beginning January 1, 2018. ASC 606 was applied using the modified retrospective method, with the cumulative effect of the initial adoption being recognized as an adjustment to opening retained earnings at January 1, 2018.

ASC 606 follows a five-step approach to determining revenue recognition including: 1) Identification of the contract; 2) Identification of the performance obligations; 3) Determination of the transaction price; 4) Allocation of the transaction price and 5) Recognition of revenue.

The Company determined that its license agreements provide for three performance obligations which include: (i) the Grant of Use to its Patent Portfolio (“Grant of Use”), (ii) Stand-Ready Technical Support (“Technical Support”) including the transfer of trade secrets and other know-how, production of materials, scale-up support, analytical testing, etc., and (iii) access to new Intellectual Property (“IP”) that may be developed sometime during the course of the contract period (“New Improvements”). Given the nature of IP development, such New Improvements are on an unspecified basis and can occur and be made available to licensees at any time during the contract period.

When a contract includes more than one performance obligation, the Company needs to allocate the total consideration to each performance obligation based on its relative standalone selling price or estimate the standalone selling price if it is not observable. A standalone selling price is not available for our performance obligations since we do not sell any of the services separately and there is no competitor pricing that is available. As a consequence, the best method for determining standalone selling price of our Grant of Use performance obligation is through a comparison of the average royalty rate for comparable license agreements as compared to our license agreements. Comparable license agreements must consider several factors including: (i) the materials that are being licensed, (ii) the market application for the licensed materials, and (iii) the financial terms in the license agreements that can increase or decrease the risk/reward nature of the agreement.

Based on the royalty rate comparison referred to above, any pricing above and beyond the average royalty rate would relate to the Technical Support and New Improvements performance obligations. The Company focuses a significant portion of its time and resources to provide the Technical Support and New Improvements services to its licensees which further supports the conclusions reached using the royalty rate analysis.

The Technical Support and New Improvements performance obligations are co-terminus over the term of the license agreement. For purposes of determining the transaction price, and recognizing revenue, the Company combined the Technical Support and New Improvements performance obligations because they have the same pattern of transfer and the same term. We maintain a staff of scientists and other professionals whose primary job responsibilities throughout the year are: (i) being available to respond to Technical Support needs of our licensees, and (ii) developing improvements to our technology which are offered to our licensees as New Improvements. Since the costs incurred to satisfy the Technical Support and New Improvements performance obligations are incurred evenly throughout the year, the value of the Technical Support and New Improvements services are recognized throughout the initial contract period as these performance obligations are satisfied. If the agreement is not terminated at the end of the initial contract period, it will renew on the same terms as the initial contract for a one-year period. Consequently, any fees or minimum annual royalty obligations relating to this renewal contract will be allocated similarly to the initial contract over the additional one-year period.

We recognize revenue when or as the performance obligations in the contract are satisfied. For performance obligations that are fulfilled at a point in time, revenue is recognized at the fulfillment of the performance obligation. Since the IP is determined to be a functional license, the value of the Grant of Use is recognized in the first period of the contract term in which the license agreement is in force. The value of the Technical Support and New Improvements obligations is allocated throughout the contract period based on the satisfaction of its performance obligations. If the agreement is not terminated at the end of the contract period, it will renew on the same terms as the original agreement for a one-year period. Consequently, any fees or minimum annual royalties (“MAR”) relating to this renewal contract will be allocated similarly over that additional year.

The Company’s license agreements have a variable royalty fee structure (meaning that royalties are a fixed percentage of sales that vary from period to period) and frequently include a minimum annual royalty commitment. In instances when sales of licensed products by its licensees exceed the MAR, the Company recognizes fee income as the amounts have been earned. Typically, the royalty rate for such sales is 10-15% of the selling price. While this is variable consideration, it is subject to the sales/usage royalty exception to recognition of variable consideration in ASC 606 10-55-65 and therefore is not recognized until the subsequent sales or usage occurs or the MAR period commences.

Because of the immediate recognition of the Grant of Use performance obligation: (i) the first period of the contract term will generally have a higher percent allocation of the transaction price under ASC 606 than under the accounting guidance used prior to the adoption of ASC 606, and (ii) the remaining periods in the year will have less of the transaction price recognized under ASC 606 than under the accounting guidance used prior to the adoption of ASC 606. After the initial period in the contract term, the revenue for the remaining periods will be based on the satisfaction of the technical support and New Improvements obligations. Since most of our license agreements start as of January 1st, the revenue recognized for the contract under ASC 606 in our first quarter will tend to be higher than the accounting guidance used prior to the adoption of ASC 606.

The Company does not have any contract assets under ASC 606 as of September 30, 2019.

Certain of the contract fees are accrued by, or paid to, the Company in advance of the period in which they are earned resulting in deferred revenue. Such excess amounts are recorded as deferred revenue and are recognized into income in future periods as earned.

The Company operates in a single business segment which is engaged in the development and marketing of technology and devices to control the flow of light. Our revenue source comes from the licensing of this technology and all of these license agreements have similar terms and provisions. The majority of the Company’s licensing fee income comes from the activities of several licensees participating in the automotive market. The Company currently believes that the automotive market will be the largest source of its royalty income over the next several years. The Company’s royalty income from this market may be influenced by numerous factors including various trends affecting demand in the automotive industry and the rate of introduction of new technology in OEM product lines. In addition to these macro factors, the Company’s royalty income from the automotive market could also be influenced by specific factors such as whether the Company’s SPD-SmartGlass technology appears as standard equipment or as an option on a particular vehicle, the number of additional vehicle models that SPD-SmartGlass appears on, the size of each window on a vehicle and the number of windows on a vehicle that use SPD SmartGlass, fluctuations in the total number of vehicles produced by a manufacturer, and in the percentage of cars within each model produced with SPD-SmartGlass, and changes in pricing or exchange rates.

As of September 30, 2019, the Company has seven license agreements that are in their initial multiyear term (“Initial Term”) with continuing performance obligations going forward. The Initial Term of four of these agreements will end as of December 31, 2019, one will end as of December 31, 2020, one will end as of December 31, 2021, and one will end as of December 31, 2022. The Company currently expects that all seven of these agreements will renew annually at the end of the Initial Term. As of September 30, 2019, the aggregate amount of the revenue to be recognized upon the satisfaction of the remaining performance obligations for the seven license agreements is $282,632. The revenue for these remaining performance obligations for each of the seven license agreements is expected to be recognized evenly throughout their remaining period of the Initial Term.

Note 7. Fee Income

Fee income represents amounts earned by the Company under various license and other agreements relating to technology developed by the Company. During the first nine months of 2019, three licensees accounted for 10% or more of fee income of the Company; these licensees accounted for approximately 43%, 15% and 10% of fee income recognized during such period. During the first nine months of 2018, four licensees accounted for 10% or more of fee income of the Company; these licensees accounted for approximately 33%, 14%, 11% and 10%, respectively, of fee income recognized during this period. During the three-month period ended September 30, 2019, two licensees accounted for 10% or more of fee income of the Company; these licensees accounted for approximately 53% and 15% of fee income recognized during such period. During the three-month period ended September 30, 2018, three licensees accounted for 10% or more of fee income of the Company; these licensees accounted for approximately 33%, 14% and 14%, respectively, of fee income recognized during such period.

Note 8. Stock-Based Compensation

The Company has granted options/warrants to consultants. GAAP requires that all stock-based compensation be recognized as an expense in the financial statements and that such costs be measured at the fair value of the award at the date of grant. These awards generally vest ratably over 12 to 60 months from the date of grant and the Company charges to operations quarterly the current market value of the options using the Black-Scholes method. During the three and nine months ended September 30, 2019 and 2018 there were no charges related to options granted to consultants.

During the nine-month period ended September 30, 2018, the Company granted 150,182 fully vested options to employees and recorded share-based compensation of $69,309. All of the options granted to employees during the nine-month period ended September 30, 2018 occurred during the second quarter of 2018. The Company valued these grants using the Black-Scholes option pricing model with the following assumptions:

During the nine-month period ended September 30, 2019, the Company granted 233,500 fully vested options to employees and directors and recorded share-based compensation of $356,228. All of the options granted to employees during the nine-month period ended September 30, 2019 occurred during the second quarter of 2019. The Company valued these grants using the Black-Scholes option pricing model with the following assumptions:

There was no compensation expense recorded relating to restricted stock grants to employees and directors during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2019 and 2018.

As of September 30, 2019, there were 1,166,500 shares available for future grant under our 2019 Equity Incentive Plan, which was approved by the Company’s shareholders in June 2019.

Note 9. Income Taxes

Since inception, the Company has incurred losses from operations and as a result has not recorded income tax expense. Benefits related to net operating loss carryforwards and other deferred tax items have been fully reserved since it was more likely than not that the Company would not achieve profitable operations and be able to utilize the benefit of the net operating loss carryforwards.

Note 10. Basic and Diluted Loss Per Common Share

Basic loss per share excludes any dilution. It is based upon the weighted average number of common shares outstanding during the period. Dilutive loss per share reflects the potential dilution that would occur if securities or other contracts to issue common stock were exercised or converted into common stock. The Company’s dilutive loss per share equals basic loss per share for the periods ended September 30, 2019 and 2018, respectively, because all common stock equivalents (i.e., options and warrants) were antidilutive in those periods. The number of options and warrants that were not included (because their effect is antidilutive) was 3,324,213 and 2,975,985 for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2019 and 2018, respectively.

Note 11. Equity

During the nine months ended September 30, 2019, the Company received $1,170,546 in proceeds from the exercise of outstanding options and warrants and issued 1,060,718 shares of its common stock in connection with these exercises. In addition, during the nine months ended September 30, 2019, the Company issued 363,125 shares of its common stock in connection with the cashless exercise of 603,569 of its outstanding options and warrants. During the three-month period ended September 30, 2019, the Company received $64,647 in proceeds from the exercise of outstanding options and warrants and issued 56,848 shares of its common stock in connection with these exercises. There were no proceeds from the exercise of outstanding warrants and/or options during the three or nine month period ended September 30, 2018.

On or around February 16, 2018, a small group of long-time shareholders of the Company who are accredited investors made an interest-free five-year convertible loan of $1.25 million to the Company which, upon the occurrence of certain conditions which have already occurred, automatically converted into 1,388,893 shares of common stock at a price equal to the market price of the Company’s common stock when the loan was made, plus warrants expiring February 28, 2023 to purchase 1,388,893 shares of common stock at an exercise price of $1.10, $1.20 or $1.35 per share depending on the exercise date. No payments are due on this note during its five-year term or after conversion into equity. On April 23, 2018, Research Frontiers Incorporated filed a prospectus supplement relating to the issuance and sale of the above common stock and warrant securities with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company recorded this transaction as an equity transaction whereby the proceeds were accounted for as the issuance of the Company’s common stock on the date that the proceeds were received.

On September 7, 2018, the Company announced that it had sold common stock to a group of investors led by Gauzy Ltd., a licensee of the Company’s SPD technology (Gauzy). The aggregate proceeds from these stock offerings was $2.0 million. At the closing, the investors received 2,173,916 shares of Research Frontiers common stock at a price of $0.92 per share, as well as five-year warrants to purchase 1,086,957 shares of Research Frontiers common stock at an exercise price of $1.10, $1.20 or $1.38 per share depending on the exercise date. In connection with the issuance of certain of these warrants during the third quarter of 2018, the Company recorded $223,370 as a warrant liability upon the issuance of these warrants on August 13, 2018 and recorded a non-cash expense of $278,044 to mark the warrants to their estimated market value as of December 31, 2018. This resulted in a liability of $501,414 recorded on the Company’s December 31, 2018 balance sheet.

On or around May 30, 2019, the Company sold to accredited investors a total of 1,276,599 shares of common stock and warrants expiring May 31, 2024 to purchase 638,295 shares of common stock at an exercise price of $3.384, $3.666 or $4.23 per share depending on the exercise date. Research Frontiers Incorporated also sold to Gauzy, at a price of $1.38 per unit, with each unit comprised of one share of unregistered common stock and one half of one warrant. The warrant can be converted into one share of unregistered common stock at an exercise price of $1.656, $1.794 or $2.07 per share depending on the exercise date. Gauzy received a total of 724,638 shares of unregistered common stock and warrants expiring May 31, 2024 to purchase 362,319 shares of common stock. The aggregate proceeds from these stock offerings was $4.6 million.

Investors that participated in the May 30, 2019 offering agreed to amending/clarifying language to the terms of the warrants that they received in the September 7, 2018 offering. Those investors that received warrants in the September 7, 2018 offering that did not participate in the May 30, 2019 offering, separately agreed as of June 27, 2019 to the same amending/clarifying language used in the May 30, 2019 offering. The amending/clarifying language relating to the September 7, 2018 warrants does not allow for a net cash settlement option for the warrants even if no registered shares of common stock are available upon the exercise of the warrant. The Company recorded a non-cash expense of $0 and $652,025 respectively for the three- and nine-month periods ended September 30, 2019 to mark these warrants to their estimated market value as of their respective amendment/clarification date. The warrant liability was valued at $1,153,439 (including all valuation adjustments since their issuance) through the date of these new agreements and amendments and, based on the amended warrant terms, the warrant liability was reclassified to equity as of these dates.

As of September 30, 2019, there were 2,029,462 warrants outstanding.

Note 12. Leases

The Company determines if an arrangement is a lease at its inception. This determination generally depends on whether the arrangement conveys the right to control the use of an identified fixed asset explicitly or implicitly for a period of time in exchange for consideration. Control of an underlying asset is conveyed if the Company obtains the rights to direct the use of, and to obtain substantially all of the economic benefits from the use of, the underlying asset. Lease expense for variable leases and short-term leases is recognized when the obligation is incurred.

The Company has operating leases for certain facilities, vehicles and equipment with a weighted average remaining lease term of 5.4 years as of September 30, 2019. Operating leases are included in right of use lease assets, other current liabilities and long-term lease liabilities on the condensed consolidated balance sheet. Right of use lease assets and liabilities are recognized at each lease’s commencement date based on the present value of its lease payments over its respective lease term. The Company does not have an established incremental borrowing rate as it does not have any debt. The Company uses the stated borrowing rate for a lease when readily determinable. When the interest rates implicit in its lease agreements is not readily determinable, the Company used an interest rate based on the marketplace for public debt. The weighted-average discount rate associated with operating leases as of September 30, 2019 is 5.5%.

Operating lease expense for the three months ended September 30, 2019 was approximately $53,000 and approximately $164,000 for the nine months ended September 30, 2019. The Company has no material variable lease costs or sublease income for the nine months ended September 30, 2019. Subsequent to the Company’s adoption of the new lease accounting guidance on January 1, 2019, the Company recorded new right of use lease assets of approximately $900,000 and associated lease liabilities of approximately $1.1 million.

Maturities of operating lease liabilities as of September 30, 2019 were as follows:

Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

Critical Accounting Policies

The following accounting policies are important to understanding our financial condition and results of operations and should be read as an integral part of the discussion and analysis of the results of our operations and financial position. For additional accounting policies, see Note 2 to our December 31, 2018 consolidated financial statements, “Summary of Significant Accounting Policies.”

The Company adopted ASC 606, the new revenue recognition standard, beginning January 1, 2018. The Company determined that its license agreements provide for three performance obligations: (i) Grant of Use, (ii) Technical Support, and (iii) New Improvements.

The best method for determining standalone selling price of our Grant of Use performance obligation is through a comparison of the average royalty rate for comparable license agreements as compared to our license agreements. Based on the royalty rate comparison referred to above, any pricing above and beyond the average royalty rate would relate to the Technical Support and New Improvements performance obligations.

We recognize revenue when or as the performance obligations in the contract are satisfied. For performance obligations that are fulfilled at a point in time, revenue is recognized at the fulfillment of the performance obligation. Since the IP is determined to be a functional license, the value of the Grant of Use is recognized in the first period of the contract term in which the license agreement is in force. Since the costs incurred to satisfy the Technical Support and New Improvements performance obligations are incurred evenly throughout the year, the value of the Technical Support and New Improvements services are recognized throughout the contract period as these performance obligations are satisfied.

The Company operates in a single business segment which is engaged in the development and marketing of technology and devices to control the flow of light. Our revenue source comes from the licensing of this technology and all of these license agreements have similar terms and provisions.

The Company has entered into license agreements covering products using the Company’s SPD technology. When royalties from the sales of licensed products by a licensee exceed its contractual minimum annual royalties, the excess amount is recognized by the Company as fee income in the period that it was earned. Certain of the fees are accrued by, or paid to, the Company in advance of the period in which they are earned resulting in deferred revenue.

Royalty receivables are stated less allowance for doubtful accounts. The allowance represents estimated uncollectible receivables usually due to licensees’ potential insolvency. The allowance includes amounts for certain licensees where risk of default has been specifically identified. The Company evaluates the collectability of its receivables on at least a quarterly basis and records appropriate allowances for uncollectible accounts when necessary.

The Company expenses costs relating to the development or acquisition of patents due to the uncertainty of the recoverability of these items. All of our research and development costs are charged to operations as incurred. Our research and development expenses consist of costs incurred for internal and external research and development. These costs include direct and indirect overhead expenses.

The Company has historically used the Black-Scholes option-pricing model to determine the estimated fair value of each option grant. The Black-Scholes model includes assumptions regarding dividend yields, expected volatility, expected lives, and risk-free interest rates. These assumptions reflect our best estimates, but these items involve uncertainties based on market conditions generally outside of our control. As a result, if other assumptions had been used in the current period, stock-based compensation expense could have been materially impacted. Furthermore, if management uses different assumptions in future periods, stock-based compensation expense could be materially impacted in future years.

On occasion, the Company may issue to consultants either options or warrants to purchase shares of common stock of the Company at specified share prices. These options or warrants may vest based upon specific services being performed or performance criteria being met. In accounting for equity instruments that are issued to other than employees for acquiring, or in conjunction with selling, goods or services, the Company is required to record consulting expenses based upon the fair value of such options or warrants on the earlier of the service period or the period that such options or warrants vest as determined using a Black-Scholes option pricing model and are marked to market quarterly using the Black-Scholes option valuation model.

Effective January 1, 2019, the Company adopted the Financial Accounting Standards Board’s Standard, Leases (Topic 842), as amended. The standard requires all leases to be recorded on the balance sheet as a right of use asset and a lease liability. The Company used a transition method that applies the new lease standard at January 1, 2019. The Company applied a policy election to exclude short-term leases from balance sheet recognition and also elected certain practical expedients at adoption. As permitted, the Company did not reassess whether existing contracts are or contain leases, the lease classification for any existing leases, initial direct costs for any existing lease, which were not previously accounted for as leases, are or contain a lease. At adoption on January 1, 2019, an operating lease liability of $1,133,821 and an operating lease right of use asset of $941,000 was recorded. The operating lease liability was $192,537 more than the operating lease right of use asset due to unamortized lease incentive from periods prior to the adoption of the new lease standard. There was no cumulative earnings effect adjustment.

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America requires us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and the disclosure of contingent liabilities at the date of the financial statements, and reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting periods. Actual results could differ from these estimates. An example of a critical estimate is the full valuation allowance for deferred taxes that was recorded based on the uncertainty that such tax benefits will be realized in future periods.

Results of Operations

Overview

The majority of the Company’s fee income comes from the activities of several licensees participating in the automotive market. The Company currently believes that the automotive market will be the largest source of its royalty income over the next several years. The Company’s royalty income from this market may be influenced by numerous factors including various trends affecting demand in the automotive industry and the rate of introduction of new technology in OEM product lines. In addition to these macro factors, the Company’s royalty income from the automotive market could also be influenced by specific factors such as whether the Company’s SPD-SmartGlass technology appears as standard equipment or as an option on a particular vehicle, the number of additional vehicle models that SPD-SmartGlass appears on, the size of each window on a vehicle and the number of windows on a vehicle that use SPD-SmartGlass, fluctuations in the total number of vehicles produced by a manufacturer, and in the percentage of cars within model like produced with SPD-SmartGlass, and changes in pricing or exchange rates. Certain license fees, which are paid to the Company in advance of the accounting period in which they are earned resulting in the recognition of deferred revenue for the current accounting period, which will be recognized as fee income in future periods. Also, licensees offset some or all of their royalty payments on sales of licensed products for a given period by applying these advance payments towards such earned royalty payments.

In 2019 and 2018, the Company received royalty revenues from sales of the Magic Sky Control option on the S-Class Coupe, Maybach and S-Class Sedan, and SL and SLK/SLC. In addition to Daimler, one of the Company’s licensees started commercial production of SPD products for McLaren Automotive in the first quarter of 2019. Production efficiencies are expected to continue and accelerate with the introduction of the higher vehicle production volumes for various car models going forward, and the Company expects that lower pricing per square foot of the Company’s technology could expand the market opportunities, adoption rates, and revenues for its technology in automotive and non-automotive applications. The Company expects to generate additional royalty income from the near-term introduction of additional new car and aircraft models from other OEMs (original equipment manufacturers), continued growth of sales of products using the Company’s technology for the marine industry in yachts and other watercraft, in trains, in museums, and in larger architectural projects.

Because the Company’s license agreements typically provide for the payment of royalties by a licensee on product sales within 45 days after the end of the quarter in which a sale of a licensed product occurs (with some of the Company’s more recent license agreements providing for payments on a monthly basis), and because of the time period which typically will elapse between a customer order and the sale of the licensed product and installation in a home, office building, automobile, aircraft, boat or any other product, there could be a delay between when economic activity between a licensee and its customer occurs and when the Company gets paid its royalty resulting from such activity.

Three months ended September 30, 2019 compared to the three months ended September 30, 2018

The Company’s fee income from licensing activities for the three months ended September 30, 2019 was $462,869 as compared to $359,725 for the three months ended September 30, 2018, representing a $103,144 increase between these two periods. Higher fees in the automotive and aircraft markets were partially offset by lower fee income from licensees in the architect and display markets.

Operating expenses increased by $93,388 for the three months ended September 30, 2019 to $666,356 from $572,968 for the three months ended September 30, 2018. This increase was the result of higher marketing and investor relations cost ($29,000) and higher patent costs ($46,000).

Research and development expenditures increased by $16,721 to $207,368 for the three months ended September 30, 2019 from $190,647 for the three months ended September 30, 2018. This increase was the result of higher payroll and related costs ($13,000) plus higher allocated facility costs ($4,000).

In connection with the issuance of certain warrants during the third quarter of 2018, the Company recorded a non-cash expense of $286,631 to mark these warrant liabilities to their market value as of September 30, 2018. The warrant liability reclassified to equity as of the end of the second quarter of 2019, thus no adjustment in the market value of the warrant liabilities was needed for the three-month period ended September 30, 2019.

The Company’s net investment income for the three months ended September 30, 2019 was $13,143 as compared to $2,220 for the three months ended September 30, 2018. The difference was primarily due to higher cash balances available for investment.

As a consequence of the factors discussed above, the Company’s net loss was $397,712 ($0.01 per common share) for the three months ended September 30, 2019 as compared to $688,301 ($0.03 per common share) for the three months ended September 30, 2018.

Nine months ended September 30, 2019 compared to the nine months ended September 30, 2018

The Company’s fee income from licensing activities for the nine months ended September 30, 2019 was $1,182,560 as compared to $1,117,849 for the nine months ended September 30, 2018, representing a $64,711 increase between these two periods. Higher fees in the automotive and aircraft markets were partially offset by lower fee income from licensees in the architect and display markets.

Operating expenses increased by $128,118 for the nine months ended September 30, 2019 to $2,356,875 from $2,228,757 for the nine months ended September 30, 2018. This increase was the result of higher non-cash charges related to the grant of fully-vested stock options to employees and directors ($230,000), higher investor relations and marketing costs ($49,000) and higher accounting fees ($42,000) partially offset by lower cash payroll and related costs ($154,000) and lower expenses relating to the Company’s discontinued VariGuard business unit ($75,000).

Research and development expenditures increased by $91,226 to $751,312 for the nine months ended September 30, 2019 from $660,086 for the nine months ended September 30, 2018. This increase was the result of higher cash payroll and related costs ($33,000), higher non-cash charges related to the grant of fully vested options to employees ($56,000), as well as higher allocated facility costs ($10,000).

In connection with the issuance of certain warrants during the third quarter of 2018, the Company recorded a non-cash expense of $652,025 for the nine months ended September 30, 2019 to mark these warrants to their market value through the date that they were reclassified to equity in 2019. The Company recorded a non-cash expense of $286,631 for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 to mark these warrants to their market value.

The Company’s net investment income for the nine months ended September 30, 2019 was $25,565 as compared to $5,665 for the nine months ended September 30, 2018. The difference was primarily due to higher cash balances available for investment.

As a consequence of the factors discussed above, the Company’s net loss was $2,552,087 ($0.09 per common share) for the nine months ended September 30, 2019 as compared to $2,051,960 ($0.08 per common share) for the nine months ended September 30, 2018.

Financial Condition, Liquidity and Capital Resources

The Company has primarily utilized its cash, cash equivalents, short-term investments, and the proceeds from its investments to fund its research and development, for marketing initiatives, and for other working capital purposes. The Company’s working capital and capital requirements depend upon numerous factors, including, but not limited to, the results of research and development activities, competitive and technological developments, the timing and costs of patent filings, and the development of new licensees and changes in the Company’s relationship with existing licensees. The degree of dependence of the Company’s working capital requirements on each of the foregoing factors cannot be quantified; increased research and development activities and related costs would increase such requirements; the addition of new licensees may provide additional working capital or working capital requirements, and changes in relationships with existing licensees would have a favorable or negative impact depending upon the nature of such changes.

During the nine months ended September 30, 2019, the Company’s cash and cash equivalents balance increased by $4,047,506 principally as a result of cash proceeds of $5,770,545 from the issuance of common stock and the exercise of warrants, partially offset by cash used for operations of $1,657,958 and cash used for the purchase of property and equipment of $65,081. As of September 30, 2019, the Company had cash and cash equivalents of $7,016,922, working capital of $7,591,547 and total shareholders’ equity of $7,827,615.

Our quarterly projected cash flow shortfall, based on our current operations adjusted for any non-recurring cash expenses for the next 12 months, is approximately $450,000-$550,000 per quarter. We expect to have sufficient working capital for at least the next 3 years of operations. We may seek to eliminate some operating expenses in the future to reduce our cash flow shortfall.

The Company expects to use its cash to fund its research and development of SPD light valves, its expanded marketing initiatives, and for other working capital purposes. The Company believes that its current cash and cash equivalents would fund its operations until at least the third quarter of 2022. There can be no assurances that expenditures will not exceed the anticipated amounts or that additional financing, if required, will be available when needed or, if available, that its terms will be favorable or acceptable to the Company. Eventual success of the Company and generation of positive cash flow will be dependent upon the extent of commercialization of products using the Company’s technology by the Company’s licensees and payments of continuing royalties on account thereof. To date the Company has not generated sufficient revenue from its licensees to fully fund its operations.

Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk

The information required by Item 3 has been disclosed in Item 7A of the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018. There has been no material change in the disclosure regarding market risk.

Item 4. Controls and Procedures

Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

Our disclosure controls and procedures, as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) of the Exchange Act, are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in the reports that we file or submit under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the rules and forms of the SEC. We designed our disclosure controls and procedures to ensure that information required to be disclosed in the reports that we file or submit under the Exchange Act is accumulated and communicated to our management, including our principal executive and principal financial officer, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure. Our chief executive officer and chief financial officer, with assistance from other members of our management, have reviewed the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures as of September 30, 2019, and, based on their evaluation, have concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures were effective.

Changes in Internal Control Over Financial Reporting

There were no changes in our internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) of the Exchange Act) during the three months ended September 30, 2019 that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

Forward-Looking Statements

The information set forth in this Report and in all publicly disseminated information about the Company, including the narrative contained in “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” above, includes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and is subject to the safe harbor created by that section. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements as they speak only as of the date hereof and are not guaranteed.

PART II. OTHER INFORMATION

Item 6. Exhibits

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunder duly authorized.

Date: November 7, 2019