e10vq
UNITED STATES
U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 10-Q
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QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(D) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 |
For the quarterly period ended September 30, 2007
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TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(D) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 |
For
the transition period from
to .
Commission File Number 0-51110
VIACELL, INC.
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter)
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Delaware
(State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation or
Organization)
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04-3244816
(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.) |
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245 First Street, Cambridge, MA
(Address of Principal Executive Offices)
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02142
(Zip Code) |
(617) 914-3400
(Registrants telephone number, including area code)
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
þ No o
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated
filer, or a non-accelerated filer. See definition of accelerated filer and large accelerated
filer in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. (Check one):
Large accelerated filer o Accelerated filer þ Non-accelerated filer o
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934).
Yes
o No þ
As
of November 1, 2007, 40,542,174 shares of the Companys common stock, $0.01 par value, were
outstanding.
ViaCell, Inc.
Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q
For the Fiscal Quarter Ended September 30, 2007
NOTE ABOUT REFERENCES TO VIACELL
Throughout this report, the words we, our, us and ViaCell refer to ViaCell, Inc. and its
subsidiaries.
NOTE ABOUT TRADEMARKS
ViaCell® and ViaCord® are registered trademarks of ViaCell, Inc.
ViaCytesm is a service mark of ViaCell, Inc. Cell
Sentineltm is a trademark of ViaCell, Inc. Motherhood Maternity®, A
Pea in the Pod®, Mimi Maternity®, and Destination
Maternitytm are trademarks of Mothers Work, Inc. Gonal-f® and
Ovidrel® are registered trademarks of EMD Serono or its affiliates.
NOTE ABOUT FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This report contains forward-looking statements, including statements about the proposed
merger with PerkinElmer, Inc., our current projections as to future financial performance, our
expectations as to the potential and anticipated results of our research and development programs,
and the possible outcome of litigation related to our intellectual property portfolio and other
disputes. We have based these forward-looking statements on our current expectations about such
future events. While we believe these expectations are reasonable, forward-looking statements are
inherently subject to risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control. Our actual
results may differ materially from those suggested by these forward-looking statements for various
reasons, including those discussed in this report in Part II, Item 1A Risk Factors. Given these
risks and uncertainties, you are cautioned not to place substantial weight on forward-looking
statements. The forward-looking statements included in this report are made only as of the date of
this report. We do not undertake any obligation to update or revise any of these statements.
2
PART I FINANCIAL INFORMATION
Item 1 Financial Statements
ViaCell, Inc.
Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets
(amounts in thousands except share and per share data)
(unaudited)
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September 30, |
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December 31, |
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2007 |
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2006 |
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ASSETS |
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Current assets: |
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Cash and cash equivalents |
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$ |
14,598 |
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$ |
18,039 |
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Short-term investments |
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28,689 |
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33,206 |
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Accounts receivable, less allowances of
$2,314 and $1,787 at September 30, 2007 and
December 31, 2006, respectively |
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15,476 |
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12,616 |
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Prepaid expenses and other current assets |
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1,783 |
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2,008 |
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Total current assets |
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60,546 |
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65,869 |
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Property and equipment, net |
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7,756 |
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8,376 |
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Goodwill |
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3,621 |
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3,621 |
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Intangible assets, net |
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2,470 |
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2,621 |
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Restricted cash |
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1,795 |
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1,795 |
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Total assets |
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$ |
76,188 |
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$ |
82,282 |
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LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS EQUITY |
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Current liabilities: |
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Current portion of long-term debt obligations |
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$ |
41 |
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$ |
55 |
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Accounts payable |
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930 |
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960 |
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Accrued expenses |
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10,703 |
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9,550 |
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Deferred revenue |
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9,111 |
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7,300 |
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Total current liabilities |
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20,785 |
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17,865 |
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Deferred revenue |
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19,705 |
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14,666 |
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Deferred rent |
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3,040 |
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3,252 |
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Contingent purchase price |
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6,000 |
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8,155 |
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Long-term debt obligations, net of current portion |
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9 |
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27 |
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Total liabilities |
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49,539 |
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43,965 |
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Commitments and contingencies (Note 5) |
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Stockholders equity: |
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Preferred stock, $0.01 par value; authorized
5,000,000 shares at September 30, 2007 and
December 31, 2006, none outstanding |
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Common stock, $0.01 par value; authorized
100,000,000 shares at September 30, 2007 and
December 31, 2006; issued and outstanding
38,837,620 and 38,525,036 shares at September 30,
2007 and December 31, 2006, respectively |
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388 |
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385 |
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Additional paid-in capital |
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234,655 |
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232,215 |
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Accumulated deficit |
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(208,531 |
) |
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(194,490 |
) |
Accumulated other comprehensive income |
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137 |
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207 |
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Total stockholders equity |
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26,649 |
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38,317 |
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Total liabilities and stockholders equity |
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$ |
76,188 |
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$ |
82,282 |
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The accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated financial statements.
4
ViaCell, Inc.
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations
(amounts in thousands, except per share data)
(unaudited)
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Three Months Ended |
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Nine Months Ended |
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September 30, |
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September 30, |
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2007 |
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2006 |
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2007 |
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2006 |
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Processing and storage revenues |
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$ |
18,004 |
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$ |
14,466 |
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$ |
48,096 |
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$ |
39,765 |
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Grant revenues |
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201 |
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95 |
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521 |
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Total revenues |
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18,004 |
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14,667 |
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48,191 |
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40,286 |
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Operating expenses: |
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Cost of processing and storage revenues |
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2,974 |
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2,893 |
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8,237 |
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7,757 |
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Research and development |
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2,835 |
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3,570 |
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8,824 |
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10,696 |
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Sales and marketing |
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12,375 |
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9,901 |
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35,404 |
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27,818 |
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General and administrative |
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4,427 |
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4,474 |
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13,542 |
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14,124 |
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In-process technology |
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(2,155 |
) |
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Restructuring |
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(890 |
) |
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267 |
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(1,070 |
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Total operating expenses |
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22,611 |
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19,948 |
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64,119 |
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59,325 |
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Loss from operations |
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(4,607 |
) |
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(5,281 |
) |
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(15,928 |
) |
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(19,039 |
) |
Interest income (expense): |
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Interest income |
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578 |
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827 |
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1,889 |
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2,354 |
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Interest expense |
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(1 |
) |
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(8 |
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(2 |
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(50 |
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Total interest income, net |
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577 |
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819 |
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1,887 |
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2,304 |
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Loss from operations before cumulative effect of
change in accounting principle |
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(4,030 |
) |
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(4,462 |
) |
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(14,041 |
) |
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(16,735 |
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Cumulative effect of change in accounting principle |
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283 |
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Net loss |
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$ |
(4,030 |
) |
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$ |
(4,462 |
) |
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$ |
(14,041 |
) |
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$ |
(16,452 |
) |
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Net loss per share: |
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Basic and diluted net loss per share before
cumulative effect of change in accounting
principle |
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$ |
(0.10 |
) |
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$ |
(0.12 |
) |
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$ |
(0.36 |
) |
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$ |
(0.44 |
) |
Cumulative effect of change in accounting principle |
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0.01 |
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Basic and diluted net loss per common share |
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$ |
(0.10 |
) |
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$ |
(0.12 |
) |
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$ |
(0.36 |
) |
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$ |
(0.43 |
) |
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Weighted average shares used in basic and diluted
net loss per share computation |
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38,836 |
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38,377 |
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38,762 |
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38,345 |
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The accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated financial statements.
5
ViaCell, Inc.
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Loss
(amounts in thousands)
(unaudited)
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Three Months Ended |
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Nine Months Ended |
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September 30, |
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September 30, |
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2007 |
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2006 |
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2007 |
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2006 |
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Net loss |
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$ |
(4,030 |
) |
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$ |
(4,462 |
) |
|
$ |
(14,041 |
) |
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$ |
(16,452 |
) |
Foreign currency translation adjustment |
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(94 |
) |
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(28 |
) |
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(70 |
) |
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(17 |
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Comprehensive loss |
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$ |
(4,124 |
) |
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$ |
(4,490 |
) |
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$ |
(14,111 |
) |
|
$ |
(16,469 |
) |
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The accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated financial statements.
6
ViaCell, Inc.
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
(amounts in thousands)
(unaudited)
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Nine Months Ended |
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September 30, |
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2007 |
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2006 |
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Cash flows from operating activities: |
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Net loss |
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$ |
(14,041 |
) |
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$ |
(16,452 |
) |
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities: |
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Depreciation and amortization |
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|
1,702 |
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|
|
1,687 |
|
Cumulative effect of change in accounting principle |
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(283 |
) |
Stock-based compensation |
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|
1,849 |
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|
2,285 |
|
Non-cash disposal of property and equipment |
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|
269 |
|
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|
45 |
|
Warrant expense |
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19 |
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Non-cash credit to in-process technology |
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(2,155 |
) |
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Reserve for bad debt |
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|
960 |
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|
1,090 |
|
Tenant improvement allowance |
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|
60 |
|
Changes in assets and liabilities: |
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Accounts receivable |
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(3,819 |
) |
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|
18 |
|
Prepaid expenses and other current assets |
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|
224 |
|
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|
(424 |
) |
Accounts payable |
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(30 |
) |
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|
(449 |
) |
Accrued expenses |
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|
1,153 |
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|
1,887 |
|
Deferred revenue |
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|
6,850 |
|
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|
5,024 |
|
Deferred rent |
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(213 |
) |
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|
(854 |
) |
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Net cash used in operating activities |
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(7,232 |
) |
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(6,366 |
) |
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Cash flows from investing activities: |
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Purchases of property and equipment |
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(1,199 |
) |
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|
(1,405 |
) |
Proceeds from the sale of equipment |
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|
25 |
|
Proceeds from maturities of investments |
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|
50,225 |
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|
37,482 |
|
Purchase of investments |
|
|
(45,708 |
) |
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|
(39,214 |
) |
Decrease in restricted cash |
|
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|
158 |
|
|
|
|
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Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities |
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|
3,318 |
|
|
|
(2,954 |
) |
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|
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Cash flows from financing activities: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
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|
Proceeds from exercise of stock options |
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|
575 |
|
|
|
57 |
|
Proceeds from refund of security deposit |
|
|
|
|
|
|
443 |
|
Repayments on credit facilities |
|
|
|
|
|
|
(1,333 |
) |
Payments on capital lease principal |
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|
(32 |
) |
|
|
(50 |
) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities |
|
|
543 |
|
|
|
(883 |
) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Effect of change in exchange rates on cash |
|
|
(70 |
) |
|
|
42 |
|
Net decrease in cash and cash equivalents |
|
|
(3,441 |
) |
|
|
(10,161 |
) |
Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of period |
|
|
18,039 |
|
|
|
33,138 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Cash and cash equivalents, end of period |
|
$ |
14,598 |
|
|
$ |
22,977 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
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|
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated financial statements.
7
ViaCell, Inc.
Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements
(unaudited)
1. Organization, Nature of Business and Merger Agreement
ViaCell is a biotechnology company dedicated to enabling the widespread application of
human cells as medicine. The Company has a commercial business focused on womens health that
generates revenues from cord blood banking service offerings through which families can preserve
their babys umbilical cord blood for possible future medical use. Stem cells from umbilical cord
blood are a treatment option today for over 40 diseases, including certain blood cancers and
genetic diseases. The Company is also working to leverage its commercial infrastructure and
product development capabilities by developing ViaCyte sm , a product candidate being
studied for its potential to broaden reproductive choices for women through the cryopreservation of
human unfertilized eggs. The Companys other research and development efforts are focused on
investigating the potential for new therapeutic uses of umbilical cord blood-derived stem cells and
on technology for expanding populations of these cells. The Company is concentrating these efforts
in the areas of cancer, cardiac disease and diabetes.
ViaCell was incorporated in the State of Delaware on September 2, 1994. The Companys
corporate headquarters and research facility are located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The Company
has a processing and storage facility in Hebron, Kentucky.
On October 12, 2007, Victor Acquisition Corp., a Delaware corporation (Purchaser), and an
indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of PerkinElmer, Inc., a Massachusetts corporation (PerkinElmer),
commenced a tender offer to purchase all of the outstanding shares of the Companys common stock at
a purchase price of $7.25 per share. The Purchaser is making the tender offer pursuant to the
Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated as of October 1, 2007, by and among PerkinElmer, the Purchaser
and the Company (the Merger Agreement). The Merger Agreement provides that, among other things,
subject to the satisfaction or waiver of certain conditions, following completion of the tender
offer, and in accordance with the Delaware General Corporation Law (the DGCL), the Purchaser will
be merged with and into the Company (the Merger) and the Company will continue as an indirect
wholly-owned subsidiary of PerkinElmer. At the effective time of the Merger, each issued and
outstanding share of the Companys common stock (other than shares owned by the Company,
PerkinElmer, any direct or indirect subsidiary of the Company or PerkinElmer and shares held by
stockholders who have perfected their statutory dissenters rights of appraisal under Section 262
of the DGCL) will be automatically converted into the right to receive $7.25 in cash per share (or
any such higher price per share as may be paid in the tender offer) from the Purchaser. The Merger
Agreement provides for the payment of a termination fee by the Company of up to $8.5 million under
certain termination scenarios. In connection with the proposed merger in October 2007, the Company
paid its financial advisor $750,000 and has agreed to pay its financial advisor up to 1.5% of the
transaction equity value, less amounts paid previously.
8
2. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
Basis of Presentation
The accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements as of September 30, 2007 and
for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2007 and 2006, and related notes, are unaudited
but, in managements opinion include all adjustments, consisting only of normal recurring
adjustments, that the Company considers necessary for fair statement of the interim periods
presented. The Company has prepared its unaudited, condensed consolidated financial statements
following the requirements of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for interim reporting.
As permitted under these rules, the Company has condensed or omitted certain footnotes and other
financial information that are normally required by accounting principles generally accepted in the
U.S. (GAAP). The Companys accounting policies are described in the Notes to the Consolidated
Financial Statements in the Companys Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended
December 31, 2006 and updated, as necessary, in this Form 10-Q. Results for the nine months ended
September 30, 2007 are not necessarily indicative of results for the entire fiscal year or future
periods. The accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the
Company and its wholly-owned subsidiaries. All intercompany accounts and transactions have been
eliminated. The year-end condensed consolidated balance sheet was derived from audited financial
statements, but does not include all disclosures required by GAAP.
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 revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ
from those estimates.
Stock-Based Compensation
On January 1, 2006, the Company adopted Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 123R
Share-Based Payment (SFAS 123R) using the modified prospective method, which results in the
provisions of SFAS 123R only being applied to the condensed consolidated financial statements on a
going-forward basis (that is, the prior period results have not been restated). Under the fair
value recognition provisions of SFAS 123R, stock-based compensation expense is measured using the
Black-Scholes option pricing model at the grant date based on the value of the award and is
recognized as expense on a straight-line basis over the requisite service period. Employee
stock-based compensation expense was $0.6 million and $0.8 million for the three months ended
September 30, 2007 and September 30, 2006, respectively. Employee stock-based compensation expense
was $1.8 million and $2.3 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2007 and September 30,
2006, respectively. The Company had previously followed Accounting Principles Board Opinion No. 25,
Accounting for Stock Issued to Employees, and related interpretations, which resulted in the
accounting for employee stock options at their intrinsic value in the condensed consolidated
financial statements.
Net Loss Per Common Share
Basic net loss per share is computed by dividing net loss attributable to common
stockholders by the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding during the
period. Diluted net loss per share is computed by dividing the net loss attributable to common
stockholders for the period by the weighted average number of common and potentially dilutive
common shares outstanding during the period. Potentially dilutive common shares consist of the
common shares issuable upon the exercise of stock options and warrants and the conversion of
convertible preferred stock (using the if-converted method). Potentially dilutive common shares are excluded from the calculation if their effect is
anti-dilutive.
9
The following sets forth the computation of basic and diluted net loss per share (in
thousands, except per share data):
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Three Months Ended September 30, |
|
|
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
|
|
|
2007 |
|
|
2006 |
|
|
2007 |
|
|
2006 |
|
Basic and diluted net loss per share |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Net loss |
|
$ |
(4,030 |
) |
|
$ |
(4,462 |
) |
|
$ |
(14,041 |
) |
|
$ |
(16,452 |
) |
Weighted average number of
common shares outstanding |
|
|
38,836 |
|
|
|
38,377 |
|
|
|
38,762 |
|
|
|
38,345 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Basic and diluted net loss per share |
|
$ |
(0.10 |
) |
|
$ |
(0.12 |
) |
|
$ |
(0.36 |
) |
|
$ |
(0.43 |
) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The following reflects the weighted average of potentially dilutive securities that were excluded
from the calculation of basic and diluted net loss per share because their effect was antidilutive
(in thousands):
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Three Months Ended September 30, |
|
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
|
|
2007 |
|
2006 |
|
2007 |
|
2006 |
Options |
|
|
4,271 |
|
|
|
4,270 |
|
|
|
4,011 |
|
|
|
4,049 |
|
Warrants |
|
|
1,193 |
|
|
|
1,443 |
|
|
|
1,216 |
|
|
|
1,597 |
|
In-Process Research and Development Expense
As part of the Companys acquisition of Kourion Therapeutics AG in September 2003, the
Company was obligated to make up to four future milestone payments of $3.0 million each to former
shareholders of Kourion Therapeutics if certain product development goals are achieved within
specified timeframes. These milestone payments are payable in cash or stock, valued at its fair
market value at the time of issuance, at the election of each former Kourion shareholder. Two of
these milestone payments expired on December 31, 2006 and June 30, 2007, respectively. The Company
is not obligated to make either of these milestone payments because the related development goals
were not met within the required time frame. As of December 31, 2006, the Company had recorded
$8.2 million in contingent purchase price as a long-term liability on its condensed consolidated
balance sheet associated with the then remaining outstanding milestone payments, which were
originally recorded as part of the purchase accounting associated with the acquisition of Kourion
Therapeutics to offset negative goodwill. On June 30, 2007, as a result of the failure to meet the
development goals required to be met by June 30, 2007, the Company reduced its long-term
liabilities to $6.0 million which represents the two remaining potential milestone payments. Since
there are no other long-lived assets on the Companys condensed consolidated balance sheet, the
reduction in long-term liabilities was recorded as a credit to in-process research and development
expense of $2.2 million in the quarter ended June 30, 2007. The remaining potential future
milestones must be achieved by December 31, 2011 and December 31, 2012 respectively, or they will
also expire.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements
In February 2007, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued Statement of
Financial Accounting Standards No. 159, The Fair Value Option for Financial Assets and Financial
Liabilities Including an amendment of FASB Statement No. 115 (SFAS 159), which permits
entities to choose to measure many financial instruments and certain other items at fair value.
SFAS 159 will be effective for the first fiscal year that begins after November 15, 2007. The
Company has not yet completed its evaluation of the impact of adoption of SFAS 159 on its financial
condition or results of operations.
10
In March 2007, FASB issued Emerging Issues Task Force (Task Force) 07-3 (EITF 07-3)
Accounting for Nonrefundable Advance Payments for Goods or Services to Be Used in Future Research
and Development Activities. EITF 07-03 provides guidance on whether non-refundable advance
payments for goods that will be used or services that will be performed in future research and
development activities (R&D Activities) should be accounted for as research and development costs
or deferred and capitalized until the goods have been delivered or the related services have been
rendered. EITF 07-3 will be effective for the first fiscal year that begins after December 15,
2007. The Company has not yet completed its evaluation of the impact and adoption of EITF 07-3 on
its financial condition or results of operations.
On September 15, 2006, the FASB issued SFAS 157, Fair Value Measurements, which addresses
how companies should measure fair value when they are required to do so for recognition or
disclosure purposes. The standard provides a common definition of fair value and is intended to
make the measurement of fair value more consistent and comparable as well as improving disclosures
about those measures. The standard is effective for financial statements for fiscal years beginning
after November 15, 2007. This standard formalizes the measurement
principles to be utilized in determining fair value for purposes such as derivative valuation and
impairment analysis. The Company is still evaluating the implications of this standard, but does
not currently expect it to have a significant impact on its financial condition on results of operations.
3. Accrued Expenses
At September 30, 2007 and December 31, 2006, accrued expenses consisted of the following
(in thousands):
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
September 30, |
|
|
December 31, |
|
|
|
2007 |
|
|
2006 |
|
Payroll and payroll related |
|
$ |
1,656 |
|
|
$ |
1,904 |
|
Management incentive |
|
|
897 |
|
|
|
1,047 |
|
Professional fees |
|
|
2,431 |
|
|
|
1,829 |
|
Accrued marketing |
|
|
3,676 |
|
|
|
2,079 |
|
Accrued restructuring |
|
|
21 |
|
|
|
|
|
Deferred rent, current |
|
|
357 |
|
|
|
345 |
|
Accrued taxes |
|
|
256 |
|
|
|
459 |
|
Other |
|
|
1,409 |
|
|
|
1,887 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Accrued expenses |
|
$ |
10,703 |
|
|
$ |
9,550 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
4. Income Taxes
On January 1, 2007, the Company adopted the provisions of FASB Interpretation No. 48 -
Accounting for Uncertainty in Income Taxes (FIN 48), an interpretation of FASB Statement No.
109. FIN 48 establishes a single model to address accounting for uncertain tax positions. FIN 48
clarifies the accounting for income taxes by prescribing a minimum recognition threshold a tax
position is required to meet before it can be recognized in the financial statements. FIN 48 also
provides guidance on derecognition, measurement clarification, interest and penalties, accounting
in interim periods, disclosure and transition. Upon adoption of FIN 48, the Company did not
recognize any material adjustments in its liability for unrecognized income tax benefits.
11
As of January 1, 2007, the Company had net deferred tax assets of approximately
$61.0 million representing unrecognized tax benefits. The Company has recorded a full valuation
allowance against its net deferred tax assets as the realization of such assets is uncertain.
The Company conducts business in the U.S. and previously conducted business in Singapore
and Germany. The Company is subject to examination in the normal course of business by taxing
authorities in all of these jurisdictions. All of the Companys tax years remain potentially open
to examination by the taxing authorities in jurisdictions in which the Company has federal and
state net operating loss (NOL) carry forwards. As of September 30, 2007, no examination related
to income taxes has occurred.
At December 31, 2006, the Company had federal and state NOL carry forwards of
approximately $87.8 million and $93.3 million, respectively, which begin to expire in 2009 and 2007,
respectively, and federal and state research and development (R&D) credit carry forwards of $3.4
million and $1.6 million, respectively, which begin to expire in
2009 and 2013, respectively. At
December 31, 2006, the Company also had foreign NOL carry forwards of $14.8 million. These carry
forwards expire through 2024 and are subject to review and possible adjustment by the local tax
authorities. Under Section 382 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, and similar state
and foreign provisions, utilization of the NOL and R&D credit carry forwards may be subject to a
substantial annual limitation in the event of ownership changes that have occurred previously or
that could occur in the future. These ownership changes may limit the amount of NOL and R&D credit
carry forwards that the Company can utilize annually to offset future taxable income and tax,
respectively. In general, an ownership change, as defined by Section 382, results from transactions
increasing the ownership of certain shareholders or public groups in the stock of a corporation by
more than 50 percentage points over a three-year period. Since the Companys formation, the Company
has raised capital through the issuance of capital stock on several occasions which, combined with
the purchasing shareholders subsequent disposition of those shares, may have resulted in a change
of control, as defined by Section 382, or could result in a change of control in the future upon
subsequent disposition.
The Company has not currently completed a study to assess whether a change of control has
occurred or whether there have been multiple changes of control since its formation due to the
significant complexity and cost associated with such a study and that there could be additional
changes of control in the future. If the Company has experienced a change of control at any time
since its formation, utilization of its NOL or R&D credit carry forwards would be subject to an
annual limitation under Section 382, which is determined by first multiplying the value of the
Companys stock at the time of the ownership change by the applicable long-term tax-exempt rate,
and then could be subject to additional adjustments, as required. Any limitation may result in
expiration of a portion of the Companys NOL or R&D credit carry forwards before utilization.
Until the Company completes a study and any limitations are known, no amounts are being presented
as an uncertain tax position under FIN 48.
The merger with PerkinElmer, if completed, would constitute a
change in control for purposes of Section 382. The Company has
not assessed the impact on the merger or its ability to utilize its
NOL or R&D credit carry forwards.
The Company has elected to recognize interest and penalties related to uncertain tax
positions in income tax expense on its condensed consolidated statements of operations. As of
September 30, 2007, the Company has not accrued any interest or penalties related to uncertain tax
positions.
12
5. Commitments and Contingencies
Agreements
In August 2007, the Company entered into an agreement under which EMD Serono, Inc., an
affiliate of Merck KGaA, will provide certain quantities of two of its products, Gonal-f® RFF Pen
(follitropin alfa injection) and Ovidrel® Prefilled Syringe (choriogonadotropin alfa injection),
for the treatment of patients participating in the ViaCyte study. EMD Serono also agreed to
provide financial support related to the clinical development of
ViaCyte. In addition, the agreement provides EMD Serono with rights to
negotiate a collaboration with the Company on the commercialization of ViaCyte.
In August 2006, the Company entered into a data license and marketing services agreement with
Mothers Work, Inc., a designer and retailer of maternity apparel. Mothers Work operates several
maternity store retail chains such as Motherhood Maternity, A Pea in the Pod, Mimi Maternity, and
Destination Maternity. Under the terms of the agreement, Mothers Work has granted the Company an
exclusive license within the field of preserving stem cells from cord blood and other sources to
market directly to those Mothers Work customers who have affirmatively agreed to permit disclosure
of their data and information. Mothers Work has also agreed to provide certain in-store marketing
services related to the cord blood service offerings. Under the terms of the agreement, the Company
will pay Mothers Work $5.0 million per year over the three-year term of the agreement which began
on January 1, 2007 and, unless earlier terminated, ends on December 31, 2009. Under certain
circumstances, the Company will also be obligated, at the beginning of 2009, to issue Mothers Work
a warrant to purchase 100,000 shares of the Companys common stock with an exercise price of $6.29,
which represents a 30% premium to the average closing price of the Companys common stock over the
ten trading days immediately preceding January 1, 2007. The warrant would be exercisable for a one
year period beginning on January 1, 2010. The Company remeasures the fair market value of the
warrant at each reporting period and is recognizing expense over the three year term of the
agreement. The agreement can be terminated early by either company if the other company commits a
material breach of the agreement or under certain circumstances arising from claims by a third
party alleging that the third party has rights that supersede Mothers Works commitment to the
Company. The dispute between Mothers Work and the third party was the subject of an arbitration
proceeding. In February 2007, the arbitrator ruled in favor of Mothers Work and subsequently denied
a challenge to his ruling by the third party. While there is no assurance that the third party will
not again challenge the ruling, the Company believes that reversal of this ruling is unlikely and
that the termination rights under its agreement with Mothers Work are unlikely to be triggered. As
a condition to commencing the agreement on January 1, 2007, the Company agreed to indemnify Mothers
Work for any damages that Mothers Work may be assessed in the event that Mothers Work is found to
be in breach of its agreement with the third party as a result of having entered into an agreement
with the Company. The Company also agreed to reimburse Mothers Work for certain legal fees if the
fees exceed a specified threshold. The Companys potential obligation to Mothers Work under the
indemnification agreement is unlimited. However, based on the Companys assessment of the low
likelihood that it might have to pay damages or legal fees given the arbitrators ruling, the
Company concluded that the fair value of its indemnification obligation is not material and has not
recorded a liability as of September 30, 2007.
In June 2006, the Company entered into a research collaboration agreement with the Stem
Cell Internal Venture (SCIV) of Centocor Research and Development, Inc. to evaluate ViaCells
proprietary cord blood-derived multi-potent stem cells in preclinical testing as a potential
treatment for cardiac disease. The collaboration is also supported by the Biologics Delivery
Systems Group of Cordis Corporation, and is focused on dosing, delivery and targeting of ViaCells
expanded proprietary cord blood stem cells using Cordis Myostar injection catheter and NOGA XP
cardiac navigation system. Under the terms of the agreement, ViaCell received an initial up-front
payment of $350,000 which it
13
recorded as a liability and is amortizing as a reduction of research and development expense, as
work is performed. SCIV is responsible for its own costs under the collaboration and is obligated
to pay 50% of the research costs that ViaCell incurs under the collaboration, consistent with the
agreed upon budget. As of September 30, 2007, SCIV has reimbursed the Company approximately
$0.6 million of these costs. In addition, the agreement provides SCIV with the first right to
negotiate a collaboration with ViaCell on the clinical development and commercialization of a
cardiac product offering based on ViaCells proprietary cord blood stem cells.
In January 2005, the Company entered into a supply agreement with Miltenyi Biotec GmbH
(Miltenyi). The supply agreement with Miltenyi provided for the exclusive supply by Miltenyi to
ViaCell of cell separation kits used by the Company in its CB001 program, an investigational cord
blood stem cell product for hematopoietic stem cell transplantation being studied for the treatment
of a variety of cancers, which was terminated in the first quarter of 2007. In July 2007, as provided for
under the terms of the agreement, the Company terminated the supply agreement. The effective date
of the termination will be in January 2008. The costs incurred in conjunction with the Companys
remaining commitment to purchase cell separation kits, which totaled approximately $0.2 million,
were accrued as research and development expenses during the quarter ended June 30, 2007. The
Company has since paid Miltenyi the full amount of the approximate $0.2 million that it had
previously accrued. Separate from these costs, the Company has received correspondence from
Miltenyi requesting payment of $0.6 million for alleged additional purchase obligations under the
supply agreement. Based upon the terms of the supply agreement, the Company does not believe it is
obligated to pay Miltenyi the $0.6 million and that it is unlikely that it will be required to
make such payment. Accordingly, the Company has not accrued for this $0.6 million claim as of
September 30, 2007.
In addition to the revenues generated by the Companys cord blood banking service
offerings, the Company recorded revenues in the prior periods presented from a grant agreement with
the Economic Development Board (EDB) of the Government of Singapore. The Company and the EDB
finalized an agreement in the quarter ended June 30, 2007 with respect to the conclusion of the
grant, which expired in May 2007. The agreement resolved a dispute related to the impact of a
prior period increase in the EDBs cost reimbursement percentage provisions of the grant, and a
related dispute concerning an assertion by the EDB that the Company had not fulfilled a commitment
to employ a specified number of people in Singapore which was an original condition of the grant.
The Company ceased operations in Singapore in the quarter ended June 30, 2007. As
a result, the Company recorded a restructuring charge of $0.3 million related to employee severance
and facility-related costs in the quarter ended June 30, 2007, all of which was paid as of June 30,
2007. The Company does not
have any ongoing rights to receive grant payments from EDB nor does it have any continuing
obligations to EDB or to its former employees in Singapore. Prior to conclusion of the EDB grant
agreement, the Company had received grant payments from EDB totaling approximately $1.9 million.
14
Litigation
In 2002, PharmaStem Therapeutics, Inc. filed suit against the Company and several other
defendants in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, alleging infringement of U.S.
Patents No. 5,004,681 (681) and No. 5,192,553 (553), relating to certain aspects of the
collection, cryopreservation and storage of hematopoietic stem cells and progenitor cells from
umbilical cord blood. In July 2007, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit issued a
decision, described below, confirming the Companys belief that it does not infringe these patents
and that the patents are invalid.
In 2003, a jury ruled against the Company and other defendants, CBR Systems Inc., CorCell,
Inc., a subsidiary of Cord Blood America Inc., and Cryo-Cell International Inc, who represent a
majority of the family cord blood preservation industry. The jury found that the patents were
valid and enforceable and that the defendants infringed the patents. A judgment was entered against
the Company for approximately $2.9 million, based on 6.125% royalties on the Companys revenue from
the processing and storage of umbilical cord blood since April 2000. In 2004, the District Court
judge in the case overturned the jurys verdict and entered judgment in the Companys favor and
against PharmaStem, stating that PharmaStem had failed to prove infringement of both patents. PharmaStem
appealed that decision, and the Company appealed the jurys finding as to validity of the patents.
On July 9, 2007, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled that the Company did not
infringe the two PharmaStem patents at issue and that the two patents are invalid. On July 23,
2007, PharmaStem filed a petition for a re-hearing of the case before the full bench of the Court
of Appeals. In September 2007, the Court of Appeals denied PharmaStems petition.
Consequently, the Company has not recorded a liability as of September 30, 2007.
In July 2004, PharmaStem filed a second complaint against the Company. The second complaint
was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, alleging infringement of
U.S. Patents No. 6,461,645 (645) and 6,569,427 (427), which also relate to certain aspects of the
collection, cryopreservation and storage of hematopoietic stem cells and progenitor cells from
umbilical cord blood. On January 7, 2005, PharmaStem filed a Motion for a Preliminary Injunction,
which is currently stayed. At the same time, PharmaStem brought suit against other defendants,
including other family cord blood banks, regarding the 645 and 427 patents. The Company filed a
motion to consolidate the Massachusetts case with six other actions against other defendants in a
single proceeding in the District of Delaware. On February 16, 2005, the Companys request was
granted, and the cases were consolidated in the District of Delaware. The Company believes that
the issues presented in this case are substantially the same as the issues presented in the
original Delaware case. The Company also believes that it does not infringe the 645 and 427
patents asserted in this second case and that those patents are invalid for the same reasons that
the Court of Appeals found the 681 and 553 patents to be invalid.
On October 6, 2005, the Delaware court granted the Companys motion to stay all discovery in
the consolidated cases pending the decision from the Federal Circuit on the appeal of the District
Court of Delawares ruling in the Delaware case and from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
(U.S. PTO) on the patent re-examinations described below. In June 2007, the Company informed the
Delaware Court of the status of the re-examinations. On July 10, 2007, the Company also informed
the Delaware court that the Federal Circuit had ruled in its favor. The Delaware Court has yet to
take any action in response to these notices.
In late 2006, the U.S. PTO issued final decisions in the initial re-examination of the patents
at issue in both cases. The U.S. PTO subsequently issued notice of its intent to allow the
remaining claims of all of the patents. In July 2007, additional re-examination requests
challenging each of the patents were filed with the U.S. PTO. The U.S. PTO has granted all of the
requests for re-examination and is currently in the process of re-examining each patent.
15
In either of the pending cases, if the Company is ultimately found to infringe valid claims of
the PharmaStem patents, the Company could have significant damage awards entered against it. If the
Company is found to infringe at any time during the course of either case, including if the Supreme
Court were to overturn both the non-infringement and invalidity rulings of the Court of Appeals,
the Company could also face the risk of an injunction, which could prohibit the Company from
further engaging in the umbilical cord stem cell business absent a license from PharmaStem.
PharmaStem would be under no legal obligation to grant the Company a license or to do so on
economically reasonable terms, and PharmStem previously informed the Company that it would not do
so after October 15, 2004. Although the Company does not believe that the foregoing outcome is
likely to occur, if the Company is enjoined and is unable to obtain a license on economically
reasonable terms or at all, and the Company cannot operate under an equitable doctrine known as
intervening rights, the Company could be required to stop preserving and storing cord blood and
to cease using cryopreserved umbilical cord blood as a source for stem cell products. The Company
may enter into settlement negotiations with PharmaStem regarding the litigation. The Company cannot
predict whether any such negotiations would lead to a settlement of these lawsuits or what the
terms or timing of any such settlement might be, if at all.
The Company has undertaken a review of its various job classifications for legal compliance
under state and federal employment laws. Based on that review, the Company has identified certain
job classifications that may be subject to possible challenge and for which there is a reasonable
possibility that the Company could incur a liability, although the Company also believes that the
present classifications can be supported and defended. It is not possible based on the current
available information to reasonably estimate the scope of any potential liability.
ITEM
2. MANAGEMENTS DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL
CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
The following discussion and analysis by our management of our financial condition and
results of operations should be read in conjunction with our unaudited consolidated financial
statements and the accompanying notes appearing at the beginning of this report. This discussion
and other parts of this report contain forward-looking statements that involve risks and
uncertainties, such as statements of our plans, objectives, expectations and intentions. Our actual
results could differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements. Factors
that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, those discussed
in Part II Item 1A (Risk Factors) of this report.
Overview and Merger Agreement
ViaCell is a biotechnology company dedicated to enabling the widespread application
of human cells as medicine. We have a womens health business that generated revenues of
$48.1 million in the nine months ended September 30, 2007 and $39.8 million in the nine months
ended September 30, 2006 from cord blood banking service offerings through which expectant families
can preserve their babys umbilical cord blood for possible future medical use. Stem cells from
umbilical cord blood are a treatment option today for over 40 diseases, including certain blood
cancers and genetic diseases. We are also working to leverage our commercial infrastructure and
product development capabilities by developing ViaCyte, our product candidate being studied for its
potential to broaden reproductive choices for women through the cryopreservation of human
unfertilized eggs. Our other research and development efforts are focused on investigating the
potential for new therapeutic uses of umbilical cord blood-derived stem cells and on technology for
expanding populations of these cells. We are concentrating these efforts in the areas of cancer,
cardiac disease and diabetes.
Our management uses consolidated financial information in determining how to allocate
resources and assess performance. We have determined that we conduct operations in one business
segment.
The majority of our revenues since inception have been generated in the U.S. and the majority of our
long-lived assets are located in the U.S.
16
On October 12, 2007, Victor Acquisition Corp., a Delaware corporation (Purchaser), and an
indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of PerkinElmer, Inc., a Massachusetts corporation (PerkinElmer),
commenced a tender offer to purchase all of our outstanding shares of common stock at a purchase
price of $7.25 per share. The Purchaser is making the tender offer pursuant to the Agreement and
Plan of Merger, dated as of October 1, 2007, by and among PerkinElmer, the Purchaser and us (the
Merger Agreement). The Merger Agreement provides that, among other things, subject to the
satisfaction or waiver of certain conditions, following completion of the tender offer, and in
accordance with the Delaware General Corporation Law (the DGCL), the Purchaser will be merged
with and into us (the Merger) and we will continue as an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of
PerkinElmer. At the effective time of the Merger, each issued and outstanding share of our common
stock (other than shares owned by us, PerkinElmer, any of ours or PerkinElmers direct or indirect
subsidiaries and shares held by stockholders who have perfected their statutory dissenters rights
of appraisal under Section 262 of the DGCL) will be automatically converted into the right to
receive $7.25 in cash per share (or any such higher price per share as may be paid in the tender
offer) from the Purchaser. The Merger Agreement provides for the payment of a termination fee by us
of up to $8.5 million under certain termination scenarios. In connection with the proposed merger,
in October 2007, we paid our financial advisor $750,000 and have
agreed to pay our financial advisor up to an additional 1.5%
of the transaction equity value, less amounts previously paid.
Except as otherwise stated, the discussion and analysis below is based upon the operations of
ViaCell as an independent company without consideration for the effects of the proposed Merger with
PerkinElmer.
Revenues
Our current revenues are derived primarily from fees charged to families for the processing
and storage of a childs umbilical cord blood stem cells collected at birth. These fees consist of
an initial charge for collection, processing and freezing of the umbilical cord blood stem cells
and an annual storage fee. The annual storage fee provides an annuity of future revenue which grows
as the number of stored umbilical cord blood stem cells increases. Our revenues are recorded net of
discounts and rebates that we offer our customers from time to time under certain circumstances.
Our revenues have increased substantially over the last several years as umbilical cord blood
banking has gained increased popularity; however, we are unable to predict our long-term future
revenues from our umbilical cord blood preservation business and any previous growth in revenue is
not necessarily predictive of future results. We offer our customers the opportunity to pay
directly to us or to finance them with a third party credit provider. The majority of our customers
pay their fees directly to us; accordingly, we assume the risk of losses due to unpaid accounts. We
maintain a reserve for doubtful accounts to allow for this exposure and consider the amount of this
reserve to be adequate as of September 30, 2007.
We are in ongoing litigation with PharmaStem Therapeutics, Inc. over PharmaStems claims that
our umbilical cord blood preservation business infringes certain claims of PharmaStems patents. In
the second half of 2004, the Delaware District Court overturned a jury verdict of infringement
against us. PharmaStem appealed the District Courts decision and filed a separate suit claiming
that we infringe additional patents. On July 9, 2007, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal
Circuit ruled that we did not infringe the two PharmaStem patents at issue in the Delaware case and
that the two patents are invalid. Based on these two rulings and the subsequent denial of
PharmaStems petition for a re-hearing of the case argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals to the
full bench of the Court of Appeals, we do not expect the PharmaStem litigation to have a material
adverse impact on our net sales, revenues or income from continuing operations. However, PharmaStem
may appeal the decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals
17
to the U.S. Supreme Court. Should the U.S. Supreme Court agree to review the matter and decide
to overturn both the non-infringement and invalidity rulings of the Court of Appeals and were we to
ultimately lose the Delaware litigation or the additional ongoing litigation with PharmaStem, it
could have a material adverse effect on our revenues or income from continuing
operations, including, possibly, resulting in an injunction preventing us from operating our
umbilical cord blood preservation business.
Operating Expenses
Cost of processing and storage revenues reflects the cost of transporting, testing, processing
and storing umbilical cord blood stem cells at our processing facility in Hebron, Kentucky. Cost of
processing and storage revenues includes expenses incurred by third party vendors relating to the
transportation of cord blood stem cells to our processing facility and certain assay testing
performed by a third party on the umbilical cord blood before preservation. Other variable costs
include collection materials, labor, and processing and storage supplies. Other fixed costs include
rent, utilities and other general facility overhead expenses. Cost of processing and storage
revenues does not include costs associated with our grant revenues. These costs are included in
research and development expenses.
Our research and development expenses consist primarily of costs associated with
development of our product candidates, including ViaCyte, our oocyte cryopreservation product
candidate, our preclinical research evaluating our proprietary cord blood-derived multi-potent stem
cells as a potential treatment for cardiac disease, and CB001, an investigational cord blood stem
cell product for hematopoietic stem cell transplantation being studied for the treatment of a
variety of cancers, the development of which we stopped in the first quarter of 2007. Our research
and development expenses also include costs associated with improving and expanding our cord blood
banking service offerings. Our research and development expenses primarily consist of preclinical
and clinical development costs, and costs associated with non-clinical support activities such as
toxicological testing, manufacturing, process development and regulatory services. The cost of our
research and development staff is the most significant category of our research and development
expenses, however, we also incur research and development expenses for external service providers,
including those involved in preclinical studies, consulting, and lab supplies. The cost of
developing our new product candidates is difficult to predict due to the uncertainties inherent in
our research and development programs, the timing and scope of our clinical trials, the rate of
patient enrollment in our clinical trials, and the detailed design of future clinical trials. In
addition, the results from our clinical trials, as well as the results of trials of similar
therapeutics under development by others, will influence the number, size and duration of planned
and unplanned trials. On an ongoing basis, we evaluate the results of
our research and development
programs. Based on these evaluations, we consider options for each program, including, but not
limited to, terminating the program, internally funding continuing research and development with
the eventual aim of commercializing products, and seeking third-party collaborators or other
parties to fund all or portions of such programs. There can be no assurance that our research and
development programs will be successful.
Our sales and marketing expenses relate to our womens health business and, in
particular, our cord blood banking service offerings. The majority of these costs relate to our
sales force and support personnel, marketing expenses and telecommunications expense related to our
call center. We also incur external costs associated with advertising, direct mail, promotional and
other marketing services. We may, from time to time, implement additional promotions and other
marketing programs that may increase sales and marketing expenses, and augment our internal
marketing efforts with external relationships such as the data license and marketing services
agreement we entered into with Mothers Work in August 2006. For a description of our agreement with
Mothers Work, including the risks related thereto, see Commitments and Contingencies Other
Arrangements.
18
Our general and administrative expenses include costs related to the finance, legal,
human resources, business development, investor relations and corporate governance areas. These
costs consist primarily of expenses related to our staff, as well as external fees paid to our
legal and financial advisors, business consultants, and others. We expect that these costs will
increase in future years as we expand our business activities.
Results of Operations
Three and Nine Months Ended September 30, 2007 and 2006 (table amounts in thousands)
|
|
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|
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|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Three Months Ended |
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|
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|
|
Nine Months Ended |
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|
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|
September 30, |
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|
|
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|
September 30, |
|
|
|
|
|
|
2007 |
|
|
2006 |
|
|
Change |
|
|
2007 |
|
|
2006 |
|
|
Change |
|
Processing revenues |
|
$ |
14,383 |
|
|
$ |
11,714 |
|
|
|
23 |
% |
|
$ |
37,759 |
|
|
$ |
32,146 |
|
|
|
17 |
% |
Storage revenues |
|
|
3,621 |
|
|
|
2,752 |
|
|
|
32 |
% |
|
|
10,337 |
|
|
|
7,619 |
|
|
|
36 |
% |
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|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total processing
and storage
revenues |
|
|
18,004 |
|
|
|
14,466 |
|
|
|
24 |
% |
|
|
48,096 |
|
|
|
39,765 |
|
|
|
21 |
% |
Grant revenues |
|
|
|
|
|
|
201 |
|
|
|
(100 |
)% |
|
|
95 |
|
|
|
521 |
|
|
|
(82 |
)% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total revenues |
|
$ |
18,004 |
|
|
$ |
14,667 |
|
|
|
23 |
% |
|
$ |
48,191 |
|
|
$ |
40,286 |
|
|
|
20 |
% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The increase in processing revenues of $2.7 million, or 23%, from the three months ended
September 30, 2006 to the three months ended September 30, 2007, and the increase in processing
revenues of $5.6 million, or 17%, from the nine months ended September 30, 2006 to the nine months
ended September 30, 2007 were due primarily to an increase in the total number of units of umbilical cord
blood stem cells processed, and to a lesser extent to an increase in the average selling price for
cord blood processing.
The increase in storage revenues of $0.9 million, or 32%, from the three months ended
September 30, 2006 to the three months ended September 30, 2007, and the increase in storage
revenues of $2.7 million, or 36%, from the nine months ended September 30, 2006 to the nine months
ended September 30, 2007 were due primarily to increases in the number of units of umbilical cord
blood stem cells stored and to a lesser extent due to a slight increase in the average selling
price for cord blood storage.
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|
|
Three Months Ended September 30, |
|
|
|
|
|
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
|
|
|
|
2007 |
|
2006 |
|
Change |
|
2007 |
|
2006 |
|
Change |
Cost of processing
and storage
revenues |
|
$ |
2,974 |
|
|
$ |
2,893 |
|
|
|
3 |
% |
|
$ |
8,237 |
|
|
$ |
7,757 |
|
|
|
6 |
% |
The increase in cost of processing and storage revenues of $0.1 million, or 3%, from the three
months ended September 30, 2006 to the three months ended September 30, 2007 and the increase in
cost of processing and storage revenues of $0.4 million, or 6%, from the nine months ended
September 30, 2006 to the nine months ended September 30, 2007 were due primarily to increases in
variable expenses related to the increased number of umbilical cord
blood stem cell units processed and an
increase in the number of umbilical cord blood stem cell units stored.
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|
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|
|
|
Three Months Ended September 30, |
|
|
|
|
|
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
|
|
|
|
2007 |
|
2006 |
|
Change |
|
2007 |
|
2006 |
|
Change |
Research and development |
|
$ |
2,835 |
|
|
$ |
3,570 |
|
|
|
(21 |
%) |
|
$ |
8,824 |
|
|
$ |
10,696 |
|
|
|
(18 |
%) |
19
During the three months ended September 30, 2007, our research and development expenses
primarily related to our ViaCyte product candidate and our cardiac cord blood program, as well as
regulatory, quality, research and other development costs associated with cord blood banking.
During the three months ended September 30, 2006, our research and development expenses also
included site costs and the cost of the cord blood associated with our CB001 clinical trial. The
decrease in research and development expenses of $0.7 million, or 21%, from the three months ended
September 30, 2006 to the three months ended September 30, 2007 was primarily due to the reduction
in clinical expenses associated with CB001, as well as a reduction in other expenses associated
with our decision, made in the first quarter of 2007, not to advance development of CB001. The
decrease in research and development expenses of $1.9 million,
or 18%, from the nine months ended
September 30, 2006 to the nine months ended September 30, 2007 was primarily due to the reduction
in research and development expenses from our decision to not advance CB001 in further clinical
trials, partially offset by costs associated with the manufacturing of ViaCyte media and initiation
of our ViaCyte pivotal clinical trial and costs incurred of $0.2 million in conjunction with the
termination of a supply agreement with a vendor that provided us with cell separation kits used in
our CB001 program. As of September 30, 2007, four clinical sites were actively screening and
enrolling patients for the ViaCyte pivotal clinical trial and we expect to add additional clinical
sites in the near future.
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|
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|
|
|
Three Months Ended |
|
|
|
|
|
Nine Months Ended |
|
|
|
|
September 30, |
|
|
|
|
|
September 30, |
|
|
|
|
2007 |
|
2006 |
|
Change |
|
2007 |
|
2006 |
|
Change |
Sales and marketing |
|
$ |
12,375 |
|
|
$ |
9,901 |
|
|
|
25 |
% |
|
$ |
35,404 |
|
|
$ |
27,818 |
|
|
|
27 |
% |
The increase in sales and marketing expenses of $2.5 million, or 25%, from the three months
ended September 30, 2006 to the three months ended September 30, 2007, and the increase in sales
and marketing expenses of $7.6 million, or 27%, from the nine months ended September 30, 2006 to
the nine months ended September 30, 2007 were primarily related to increased staffing within both
the internal and external sales organization and increased external marketing expenses to
strengthen our market presence.
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|
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|
|
Three Months Ended |
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|
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|
|
Nine Months Ended |
|
|
|
|
September 30, |
|
|
|
|
|
September 30, |
|
|
|
|
2007 |
|
2006 |
|
Change |
|
2007 |
|
2006 |
|
Change |
General and administrative |
|
$ |
4,427 |
|
|
$ |
4,474 |
|
|
|
(1 |
%) |
|
$ |
13,542 |
|
|
$ |
14,124 |
|
|
|
(4 |
%) |
The decrease in general
and administrative expenses of $0.05 million, or 1%, from the three
months ended September 30, 2006 to the three months ended September 30, 2007 was primarily due to
decreased stock-based compensation and employee-related expenses, offset by an increase in bad debt
expense and credit card fees associated with revenue growth as well as legal costs associated with
the PerkinElmer transaction.
The decrease in general and administrative expenses of $0.6 million, or 4%, from the nine
months ended September 30, 2006 to the nine months ended September 30, 2007 was primarily due to
decreased accounting fees and outside service fees associated with compliance with the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, a decrease in stock-based compensation
and a decrease in employee-related expenses.
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|
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|
|
|
Three Months Ended |
|
|
|
|
|
Nine Months Ended |
|
|
|
|
September 30, |
|
|
|
|
|
September 30, |
|
|
|
|
2007 |
|
2006 |
|
Change |
|
2007 |
|
2006 |
|
Change |
Restructuring
|
|
$ |
|
|
|
|
(890 |
) |
|
|
100 |
% |
|
$ |
267 |
|
|
$ |
(1,070 |
) |
|
|
(125 |
%) |
20
We ceased operations in Singapore in the quarter ended June 30, 2007. As a result, we
recorded a restructuring charge of $0.3 million related to employee severance and facility-related
costs in the quarter ended June 30, 2007. No further restructuring charges were recorded during
the three months ended September 30, 2007.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Three Months Ended |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Nine Months Ended |
|
|
|
|
|
|
September 30, |
|
|
|
|
|
|
September 30, |
|
|
|
|
|
|
2007 |
|
|
2006 |
|
|
Change |
|
|
2007 |
|
|
2006 |
|
|
Change |
|
Interest income |
|
$ |
578 |
|
|
$ |
827 |
|
|
|
(30 |
)% |
|
$ |
1,889 |
|
|
$ |
2,354 |
|
|
|
(20 |
%) |
Interest expense |
|
|
(1 |
) |
|
|
(8 |
) |
|
|
88 |
% |
|
|
(2 |
) |
|
|
(50 |
) |
|
|
96 |
% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total interest income, net |
|
$ |
577 |
|
|
$ |
819 |
|
|
|
(30 |
)% |
|
$ |
1,887 |
|
|
$ |
2,304 |
|
|
|
(18 |
%) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Interest income is earned primarily from the investment of our cash in short-term securities
and money market funds. The decrease in interest income of $0.2 million, or 30%, from the three
months ended September 30, 2006 to the three months ended September 30, 2007 primarily relates to a
decrease in investment balances. The decrease in interest income of
$0.5 million, or 20% from the
nine months ended September 30, 2006 to the nine months ended September 30, 2007 primarily relates
to a decrease in investment balances.
The decreases in interest
expense for the three and nine months ended September 30,
2007 compared to the three and nine months ended September 30, 2006 relate to repayments of debt
obligations.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
From inception through September 30, 2007, we have raised $193.1 million from common and
preferred stock issuances, including $53.3 million in net proceeds from our IPO in January 2005. We
used approximately $15.5 million of the net proceeds from the IPO to repay in full related party
notes of $14.0 million, and accrued interest on the notes of $1.5 million. As of September 30, 2007,
we had approximately $43.3 million in cash, cash equivalents and investments.
Table excerpted from our
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (in millions):
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Nine Months Ended |
|
Nine Months Ended |
|
|
|
|
September 30, |
|
September 30, |
|
|
|
|
2007 |
|
2006 |
|
$ Change |
Net cash used in operating activities |
|
$ |
(7.2 |
) |
|
$ |
(6.4 |
) |
|
$ |
(0.8 |
) |
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities |
|
|
3.3 |
|
|
|
(3.0 |
) |
|
|
6.3 |
|
Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities |
|
|
0.5 |
|
|
|
(0.9 |
) |
|
|
1.4 |
|
Cash and cash equivalents, end of period |
|
$ |
14.6 |
|
|
$ |
23.0 |
|
|
$ |
(8.4 |
) |
Operating Activities
Net cash used in operating activities was $7.2 million for the nine months ended September 30,
2007, an increase of $0.8 million from the $6.4 million used in operating activities in the nine
months ended September 30, 2006. For the nine months ended September 30, 2007, the $7.2 million
cash used in
21
operating activities was primarily due to our net loss of $14.0 million and a net
increase in working capital (accounts receivable, prepaid expenses and other current assets,
accounts payable, and accrued expenses) of $2.5 million and, to a lesser extent, a decrease in
deferred rent of $0.2 million. These uses of cash were partially offset by net non-cash expenses of
$2.6 million and a net increase in deferred revenue of $6.9 million. The increase in deferred
revenue of $6.9 million primarily related to sales of long-term pre-paid storage contracts. Net
cash used in operating activities was $6.4 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2006, an
increase of $5.4 million from the $1.0 million used in operating activities in the nine months
ended September 30, 2005. For the nine months ended September 30, 2006, the $6.4 million cash used
by operations was primarily due to our net loss of $16.5 million and a decrease in deferred rent of
$0.9 million. These uses of cash were partially offset by non-cash expenses of $5.0 million, net
increases in deferred revenue of $5.0 million, and a net decrease in working capital (accounts
receivable, prepaid expenses and other current assets, accounts payable, and accrued expenses) of
$1.0 million. The increase in deferred revenue of $5.0 million primarily related to sales of
long-term pre-paid storage contracts.
Investing Activities
Net cash provided by investing activities for the nine months ended September 30, 2007 was
$3.3 million as compared to net cash used in investing
activities of $3.0 million for the nine months ended September 30,
2006. For the nine months ended September 30, 2007, $50.2 million of U.S. Government and high-rated
corporate securities matured and $45.7 million was invested in similar securities. We also invested
approximately $1.2 million in property and equipment for the nine months ended September 30, 2007.
For the nine months ended September 30, 2006, $37.5 million of U.S. Government and high-rated
corporate securities matured and $39.2 million was invested in similar securities. We also invested
$1.4 million in property and equipment for the nine months ended September 30, 2006.
Financing Activities
Net cash provided by financing activities for the nine months ended September 30, 2007
was $0.5 million as compared to net cash used in financing activities of $0.9 million for the nine
months ended September 30, 2006. For the nine months ended
September 30, 2007, the net cash provided by
financing activities was principally related to proceeds from stock
option exercises. Net cash
used in financing activities for the nine months ended
September 30, 2006 was $0.9 million, principally related to
repayments of $1.3 million on our long-term debt, offset by
proceeds received from the refund of a security deposit from a lender
of $0.4 million and proceeds from stock option exercises of
$0.1 million.
We anticipate that our current cash, cash equivalents and investments will be sufficient
to fund our operations and meet our anticipated liquidity needs for at least the next three years
based upon our current plans. However, our forecast for the period of time during which our
financial resources will be adequate to support our operations and meet our anticipated liquidity
needs is a forward-looking statement that involves risks and uncertainties, and actual results
could vary materially. If we are unable to raise additional capital
when required or on acceptable terms, we may have to significantly delay, scale back or discontinue
one or more research and development programs or other aspects of our operations proceeds from stock
option exercises or we may enter into licensing
deals, collaborations or other strategic efforts or take other actions which change our plans and
affect our revenues, expenses and cash requirements.
Off
Balance Sheet Arrangements
Other than outstanding warrants exercisable for up to 1,193,333 shares of our common
stock at September 30, 2007 and the warrant to purchase 100,000 shares of our common stock which we
will issue to Mothers Work, under certain circumstances, on January 1, 2009 in connection with our
data license
22
and marketing services agreement, we have no off balance sheet arrangements, as
defined by Item 303(a)(4) of the SECs Regulation S-K.
Other Arrangements
EMD Serono, Inc.
In
August 2007, we entered into an agreement under which EMD Serono, Inc., an
affiliate of Merck KGaA, will provide certain quantities of two of its products, Gonal-f RFF Pen
(follitropin alfa injection) and Ovidrel Prefilled Syringe (choriogonadotropin alfa injection), for
the treatment of patients participating in the ViaCyte study. EMD Serono also agreed to provide
financial support related to the clinical development of ViaCyte. In addition, the agreement provides EMD Serono with rights to negotiate a collaboration
with us on the commercialization of ViaCyte.
Mothers Work Data and Marketing Services Agreement
In August 2006, we entered into a data license and marketing services agreement with
Mothers Work, Inc., the worlds largest designer and retailer of maternity apparel. Mothers Work
operates several large maternity store retail chains such as Motherhood Maternity, A Pea in the
Pod, Mimi Maternity, and Destination Maternity. Under the terms of our agreement, Mothers Work has
granted us an exclusive license within the field of preserving stem cells from cord blood and other
sources to market directly to those Mothers Work customers who have affirmatively agreed to permit
disclosure of their data and information. Mothers Work has also agreed to provide certain in-store
marketing services related to our cord blood banking service offerings. Under the terms
of our agreement, we will pay Mothers Work $5.0 million per year over the three-year term of the
agreement which began on January 1, 2007 and, unless earlier terminated, ends on December 31, 2009.
Under certain circumstances, we will also be obligated, at the beginning of 2009, to issue Mothers
Work a warrant to purchase 100,000 shares of our common stock. A third party is claiming that it
has rights under an agreement with Mothers Work that supersede Mothers Works commitment to us. The
dispute between Mothers Work and the third party was the subject of an arbitration proceeding. In
February 2007, the arbitrator ruled in favor of Mothers Work and subsequently denied a challenge to
his ruling by the third party. While there is no assurance that the third party will not again
challenge the ruling, we believe that reversal of this ruling is unlikely and that the termination
rights under our agreement with Mothers Work are unlikely to be triggered. As a condition to
commencing the agreement on January 1, 2007, we agreed to indemnify Mothers Work for any damages
that Mothers Work may be assessed in the event that Mothers Work is found to be in breach of its
agreement with the third party as a result of having entered into an agreement with us. We also
agreed to reimburse Mothers Work for certain legal fees if the fees exceed a specified threshold.
Our potential obligation to Mothers Work under the indemnification agreement is unlimited. However,
based on our assessment of the low likelihood that we might have to pay damages or legal fees given
the arbitrators ruling, we concluded that the fair value of our indemnification obligation is not material and have
not recorded a liability as of September 30, 2007.
Miltenyi
In January 2005, we entered into a supply agreement with Miltenyi Biotec GmbH
(Miltenyi). The supply agreement provided for the exclusive supply by Miltenyi to us of cell
separation kits that we used in our CB001 program, which was
terminated in the first quarter of 2007. In
July 2007, as provided for under the terms of the agreement, we terminated the supply agreement.
The effective date of the termination will be
23
in January 2008. The costs incurred in conjunction with our remaining commitment to purchase cell separation kits, which totaled approximately
$0.2 million, were accrued as research and development expenses during the quarter ended June 30,
2007. We have since paid Miltenyi the full amount of the approximate $0.2 million that we had
previously accrued. Separate from these costs, we have received correspondence from Miltenyi
requesting payment of $0.6 million for alleged additional purchase obligations under the supply
agreement. Based upon the terms of the supply agreement, we do not believe that we are obligated to
pay Miltenyi the $0.6 million and that it is unlikely that we will be required to make such
payment. Accordingly, we have not accrued for this $0.6 million claim as of September 30, 2007.
We are a party to various agreements in addition to those previously discussed, including
license, research collaboration, consulting and employment agreements, and expect to enter into
additional agreements in the future. We may require additional funds for conducting clinical trials
and for preclinical research and development activities relating to our product candidates, as well
as for the expansion of our cord blood preservation facility, construction of a cellular therapy
manufacturing facility, acquisitions of technologies or businesses, the establishment of
partnerships and collaborations complementary to our business and the expansion of our sales and
marketing activities.
Legal Proceedings
In
2002, PharmaStem Therapeutics, Inc. filed suit against us and several other
defendants in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, alleging infringement of U.S.
Patents No. 5,004,681 (681) and No. 5,192,553 (553), relating to certain aspects of the
collection, cryopreservation and storage of hematopoietic stem cells and progenitor cells from
umbilical cord blood. In July 2007, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit issued a
decision, described below, confirming our belief that we do not infringe these patents
and that the patents are invalid.
In
2003, a jury ruled against us and other defendants, CBR Systems Inc., CorCell,
Inc., a subsidiary of Cord Blood America Inc., and Cryo-Cell International Inc, who represent a
majority of the family cord blood preservation industry. The jury found that the patents were
valid and enforceable and that the defendants infringed the patents. A judgment was entered against
us for approximately $2.9 million, based on 6.125%
royalties on our revenue from
the processing and storage of umbilical cord blood since April 2000. In 2004, the District Court
judge in the case overturned the jurys verdict and entered
judgment in our favor and
against PharmaStem, stating that PharmaStem had failed to prove infringement of both patents.
Consequently, we have not recorded a liability as of September 30, 2007. PharmaStem
appealed that decision, and we appealed the jurys finding as to validity of the patents.
On July 9, 2007, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal
Circuit ruled that we did not
infringe the two PharmaStem patents at issue and that the two patents are invalid. On July 23,
2007, PharmaStem filed a petition for a re-hearing of the case before the full bench of the Court
of Appeals. In September 2007, the Court of Appeals denied PharmaStems petition.
In
July 2004, PharmaStem filed a second complaint against us. The second complaint
was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, alleging infringement of
U.S. Patents No. 6,461,645 (645) and 6,569,427 (427), which also relate to certain aspects of the
collection, cryopreservation and storage of hematopoietic stem cells and progenitor cells from
umbilical cord blood. On January 7, 2005, PharmaStem filed a Motion for a Preliminary Injunction,
which is currently stayed. At the same time, PharmaStem brought suit against other defendants,
including other family cord blood banks, regarding the 645 and
427 patents. We filed a
motion to consolidate the
24
Massachusetts
case with six other actions against other defendants in a single
proceeding in the District of Delaware. On February 16, 2005, our request was
granted, and the cases were consolidated in the District of Delaware.
We believes that
the issues presented in this case are substantially the same as the issues presented in the
original Delaware case. We also believes that we do not infringe the 645 and 427
patents asserted in this second case and that those patents are invalid for the same reasons that
the Court of Appeals found the 681 and 553 patents to be invalid.
On
October 6, 2005, the Delaware court granted our motion to stay all discovery in
the consolidated cases pending the decision from the Federal Circuit on the appeal of the District
Court of Delawares ruling in the Delaware case and from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
(U.S. PTO) on the patent re-examinations described below.
In June 2007, we informed the
Delaware Court of the status of the re-examinations. On July 10,
2007, we also informed
the Delaware court that the Federal Circuit had ruled in its favor. The Delaware Court has yet to
take any action in response to these notices.
In late 2006, the U.S. PTO issued final decisions in the initial re-examination of the patents
at issue in both cases. The U.S. PTO subsequently issued notice of its intent to allow the
remaining claims of all of the patents. In July 2007, additional re-examination requests
challenging each of the patents were filed with the U.S. PTO. The U.S. PTO has granted all of the
requests for re-examination and is currently in the process of re-examining each patent.
In
either of the pending cases, if we are ultimately found to infringe valid claims of
the PharmaStem patents, we could have a significant damages award
entered against us. If
we are found to infringe at any time during the course of either case, including if the
Supreme Court were to overturn both the non-infringement and invalidity rulings of the Court of
Appeals, we could also face the risk of an injunction, which could
prohibit us
from further engaging in the umbilical cord stem cell business absent a license from PharmaStem.
PharmaStem would be under no legal obligation to grant us a license or to do so on
economically reasonable terms, and PharmStem previously informed us that it would not do
so after October 15, 2004. Although we do not believe that the foregoing outcome is
likely to occur, if we are enjoined and are unable to obtain a license on economically
reasonable terms or at all, and we cannot operate under an equitable doctrine known as
intervening rights, we could be required to stop preserving and storing cord blood and
to cease using cryopreserved umbilical cord blood as a source for
stem cell products. We
may enter into settlement negotiations with PharmaStem regarding the
litigation. We cannot
predict whether any such negotiations would lead to a settlement of these lawsuits or what the
terms or timing of any such settlement might be, if at all.
We have undertaken a review of our various job classifications for legal compliance under
state and federal employment laws. Based on that review, we have identified certain job
classifications that may be subject to possible challenge and for which there is a reasonable
possibility that we could incur a liability, although we also believe that the present classifications can be supported and defended. It is not
possible based on the current available information to reasonably estimate the scope of any
potential liability.
Critical Accounting Estimates
Our condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with
accounting principles generally accepted in the U.S. The preparation of these financial statements
requires us to make estimates and judgments that affect the reported amounts of assets,
liabilities, revenues and expenses. We base our estimates on historical experience and on various
other assumptions that we believe to be reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which
form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are
not readily apparent from other sources. Actual results
25
may differ
from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions. Our
critical accounting policies are as set forth in our 2006 Annual
Report on Form 10-K include:
Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation. We have one stock-based employee compensation
plan. On January 1, 2006, we adopted Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 123R
Share-Based Payment (SFAS 123R) using the modified prospective method, which results in the
provisions of SFAS 123R only being applied to the condensed consolidated financial statements on a
going-forward basis (that is, the prior period results have not been restated).Under the fair value
recognition provisions of SFAS 123R, stock-based compensation expense is measured at the grant date
based on the value of the award and is recognized as expense over the requisite service period.
Stock-based employee compensation expense was $0.6 million and $1.8 million for the three and nine
months ended September 30, 2007, respectively. Previously, we had followed Accounting Principles Board Opinion
No. 25, Accounting for Stock Issued to Employees, and related interpretations, which resulted in
the accounting for employee stock options at their intrinsic value in the condensed consolidated
financial statements.
We are required to make significant estimates under SFAS 123R. Changes in the subjective
input assumptions can materially affect the fair value estimate of stock-based compensation
expense. Our expected stock-price volatility assumption is based on both current implied volatility
and historical volatilities of the underlying stock which is obtained from public data sources. For
stock options granted during the three and nine month periods ended September 30, 2007, we used a
weighted-average expected stock-price volatility of 63.4% and 54.4%, respectively. Higher estimated
volatility increases the fair value of a stock option, and therefore increases the expense to be
recognized per stock option. We also determined the weighted-average option life assumption based
on the exercise behavior that different employee groups exhibited historically, adjusted for
specific factors that may influence future exercise patterns. For stock option grants made during
the three and nine month periods ended September 30, 2007, we used a weighted-average expected
option life assumption of 4.54 years. Longer expected term assumptions increase the fair value of
the stock option, and therefore increase the expense to be recognized per stock option.
We recognized the
full impact of our stock-based employee compensation plan in our
condensed consolidated statements of operations for the three and nine month periods ended September 30,
2007 under SFAS 123R and did not capitalize any such costs on our condensed consolidated balance
sheets.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements
In February 2007, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued Statement of
Financial Accounting Standards No. 159, The Fair Value Option for Financial Assets and Financial
Liabilities Including an amendment of FASB Statement No. 115 (SFAS 159), which permits
entities to choose to measure many financial instruments and certain other items at fair value.
SFAS 159 will be effective for the first fiscal year that begins
after November 15, 2007. We have not yet completed our
evaluation of the impact of adoption of SFAS 159 on our financial condition or results of
operations.
In March 2007, FASB issued Emerging Issues Task Force (Task Force) 07-3 (EITF 07-3)
Accounting for Nonrefundable Advance Payments for Goods or Services to Be Used in Future Research
and Development Activities which permits entities involved in research and development activities
(R&D activities) to make advanced payments for goods or services that will be used in future R&D
activities. The issue is whether nonrefundable advance payments for goods or services that will be
used or rendered for R&D activities should be expensed when the advance payment is made or when the
research and development activity has been performed. EITF 07-3 will be effective for the first
fiscal year that begins after December 15, 2007. We have not yet
completed our evaluation
of the impact and adoption of EITF 07-3 on our financial condition or results of operations.
26
On September 15, 2006, the FASB issued SFAS 157, Fair Value Measurements, which addresses
how companies should measure fair value when they are required to do so for recognition or
disclosure purposes. The standard provides a common definition of fair value and is intended to
make the measurement of fair value more consistent and comparable as well as improving disclosures
about those measures. The standard is effective for financial statements for fiscal years beginning
after November 15, 2007. This standard formalizes the measurement
principles to be utilized in determining fair value for purposes such as derivative valuation and
impairment analysis. We are still evaluating the implications of this standard, but do not
currently expect it to have a significant impact on our financial
condition or results of operations.
ITEM 3. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK
Investment Risk
We own financial instruments that are sensitive to market risks as part of our investment
portfolio. We use this investment portfolio to preserve our capital until it is required to fund
operations, including our research and development activities. Our investment portfolio includes
only marketable securities with active secondary or resale markets to help ensure portfolio
liquidity, and we have implemented guidelines limiting the duration of investments. We invest in
highly-rated commercial paper with maturities of less than two years and money market funds. None
of these market-risk sensitive instruments is held for trading purposes. We do not own derivative
financial instruments in our investment portfolio.
Foreign Exchange Risk
Transactions by our German and Singapore subsidiaries are recorded in Euros and Singapore
dollars, respectively. Exchange gains or losses resulting from the translation of these
subsidiaries financial statements into U.S. dollars are included as a separate component of
stockholders equity. We hold Euro-based currency accounts to mitigate foreign currency transaction
risk. Since the expenses of these subsidiaries are denominated in Euros and Singapore dollars, the
fluctuations of exchange rates may adversely affect our results of operations, financial condition
and cash flows.
Interest Rate Risk
We invest our cash in a variety of financial instruments, principally securities
issued by the U.S. government and its agencies, investment grade corporate and money market
instruments. These
27
investments are denominated in U.S. dollars. These bonds are subject to interest rate risk, and
could decline in value if interest rates fluctuate. Due to the conservative nature of these
instruments, we do not believe that we have a material exposure to interest rate risk.
ITEM 4. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES
Under the supervision and with the participation of our
management, including our principal executive officer and principal financial officer, we have
evaluated the effectiveness of the design and operation of our disclosure controls and procedures
as of September 30, 2007 and, based on their evaluation, our principal executive officer and our
principal financial officer have concluded that these controls and procedures are effective.
Disclosure controls and procedures are our controls and other procedures that are designed to
ensure that information required to be disclosed by us in the reports that we file or submit under
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, is recorded, processed, summarized and reported,
within the time periods specified in the Securities and Exchange Commissions rules and forms.
Disclosure controls and procedures include, without limitation, controls and procedures designed to
ensure that information required to be disclosed by us in the reports that we file under the
Securities Exchange Act is accumulated and communicated to our management, including our principal
executive officer and principal financial officer, as appropriate to allow timely decisions
regarding required disclosure.
There were no changes in our internal controls over financial reporting during the quarter
ended September 30, 2007 that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially
affect, our internal controls over financial reporting.
PART II OTHER INFORMATION
ITEM 1. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS
The section entitled Litigation in Notes to Condensed Consolidated
Financial Statements in Part I of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q is incorporated into this
item by reference.
ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS
This
report contains forward-looking statements, including statements
about our proposed merger with PerkinElmer, Inc., our current
projections as to future financial performance, our expectations as to events and potential results
related to our research and development programs, and our views as to the possible outcome of
pending litigation related to our intellectual property portfolio and other disputes. We have based
these forward-looking statements on
our current expectations about such future events. While we believe these expectations are
reasonable, forward-looking statements are inherently subject to risks and uncertainties, many of
which are beyond
28
our control. Our actual results may differ materially from those suggested by
these forward-looking statements for various reasons, including those discussed in this Risk
Factors section. Given these risks and uncertainties, you are cautioned not to place substantial
weight on forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements included in this report are
made only as of the date of this report. We do not undertake any obligation to update or revise any
of these statements.
We may be subject to a number of risks and uncertainties if the proposed merger with PerkinElmer
fails to close.
Our expectations with respect to the proposed merger transaction with PerkinElmer are subject
to a number of risks and uncertainties that could affect our results. For example, the merger may
not close due to the failure of a sufficient number of shares of our common stock to be tendered in
the tender offer or the failure to satisfy other closing conditions. The merger may involve
unexpected costs. Our business may suffer as a result of uncertainty surrounding the merger.
Failure to complete the merger with PerkinElmer could negatively impact our stock price and
future business and operations. For example,
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if the merger agreement is terminated, we may be required in specific
circumstances, to pay a termination fee of up to $8.5 million to
PerkinElmer, |
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the price of our common stock may decline to the extent that the
current market price reflects an assumption that the merger will be
completed, and |
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we must pay our expenses related to the merger, including substantial
legal and accounting fees, even if the merger is not completed. This
could affect our results of operations for the period during which the
fees are incurred. |
Current and prospective employees may experience uncertainty about their future role with us
and PerkinElmer until PerkinElmers strategies are announced or executed. This may adversely affect
our ability to attract and retain key management, research and development, sales and marketing and
other personnel.
We may not achieve our goal of becoming cash flow positive and may never become profitable.
We have generated operating losses since our inception. As of September 30, 2007, we had
cumulative net losses of approximately $208.5 million. These losses have resulted principally from
the costs of our research and development activities, which have totaled approximately
$124.3 million since our inception. We expect that our research and development expenses will
continue to be significant over the next several years and that the costs related to certain of the
development programs are likely to increase, including increased costs and expenses associated with
our ViaCyte pivotal clinical trial and possible future clinical trials of other product candidates,
such as our preclinical product candidate being studied as a potential treatment for cardiac
disease, if preclinical data supports moving forward. Future research and development expenses may
also include costs associated with product candidates that we might license or acquire, and, if our
programs are successful, costs and expenses associated with submissions for regulatory approvals
and the expansion of clinical and commercial scale manufacturing facilities. The
amount of these increases is difficult to predict and will depend on a number of factors, such as
results of our clinical and
29
preclinical programs, the design of future clinical trials, the results
of our efforts to acquire or license new technologies, and decisions made with respect to
advancement of our clinical and preclinical programs. Furthermore, our sales and marketing expenses
have increased significantly in recent years and may increase in the future, if deemed advisable to
expand the market for our cord blood banking service offerings or to market new products or service
offerings that we may license or acquire. Our ability to become cash flow positive and to achieve
profitability, and the timing of such events, will depend on many factors, including some or all of
the following:
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our ability to increase sales of our cord blood service offerings
particularly in the face of significant competition; |
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continued acceptance in the marketplace for family cord blood banking
and the overall growth of the family cord blood banking category; |
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the impact of any unexpected issues or failures related to the
collection, processing or storage of umbilical cord blood by us or
others in the industry; |
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the impact of any potential adverse outcome in the patent infringement
lawsuits brought against us by PharmaStem, including legal expenses,
and the material impact on our business if PharmaStem were able to
obtain an injunction; |
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the level of our expenses, including as a result of difficulties or
delays related to our research and development programs, and any
unexpected expenses; and |
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the overall net impact on revenues and expenses of new licensing
deals, collaborations or other strategic efforts. |
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We cannot assure you that we will ever become cash flow positive or profitable. Other factors
that may affect our ability to become cash flow positive and profitable are described in more
detail elsewhere in this Risk Factors section.
We may not be able to sustain our current level of revenues or our recent growth rates.
Revenues from sales of cord blood banking were $18.0 million in the first nine months of
2007 and have grown significantly over the past several years, from $7.1 million in 2001, to
$20.1 million, $30.9 million, $36.8 million, $43.8 million and $54.1 million in 2002, 2003, 2004,
2005 and 2006, respectively. We believe that this revenue growth is a result of our increased
marketing efforts and increased awareness by the public generally of the concept of umbilical cord
blood preservation. We may not be able to sustain this growth rate or the current level of cord
blood banking revenues in the future. The principal factors that may adversely affect our revenues
include competition from other private cord blood banks, any decline in the market or market
acceptance for cord blood banking, slower than expected growth in the family cord blood banking
category, the impact of negative recommendations or
policy statements about family banking from physician groups, such as the policy statement
recommending public banking over family banking issued by the American Academy of Pediatricians in
January 2007, the risks associated with litigation, in particular, the pending PharmaStem
litigation, the risk of operational issues, the risks of not being able to maintain relationships
with key third party marketing partners or suppliers, and the risks of reputational damage. These
and other risks that may affect our future revenues are
30
described in more detail elsewhere in this
Risk Factors section. If we are unable to sustain our revenues, we may need to reduce our
research and development activities or raise additional funds earlier than anticipated or on
unfavorable terms, and our stock price may be adversely affected.
If we do not prevail in the PharmaStem litigation, we may be prevented from selling our cord blood
banking service offerings or may have to incur significant expenses.
In 2002,
PharmaStem Therapeutics, Inc. filed suit against us and several other defendants
in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, alleging infringement of U.S. Patents No.
5,004,681 (681) and No. 5,192,553 (553), relating to certain aspects of the collection,
cryopreservation and storage of hematopoietic stem cells and progenitor cells from umbilical cord
blood. In July 2007, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit issued a decision,
described below, confirming our belief that it does not infringe these patents and that
the patents are invalid.
In
2003, a jury ruled against us and other defendants, CBR Systems Inc., CorCell,
Inc., a subsidiary of Cord Blood America Inc., and Cryo-Cell International Inc, who represent a
majority of the family cord blood preservation industry. The jury found that the patents were
valid and enforceable and that the defendants infringed the patents. A judgment was entered against
us for approximately $2.9 million, based on 6.125% royalties on the Companys revenue from
the processing and storage of umbilical cord blood since April 2000. In 2004, the District Court
judge in the case overturned the jurys verdict and entered
judgment in our favor and
against PharmaStem, stating that PharmaStem had failed to prove infringement of both patents.
Consequently, we have not recorded a liability as of September 30, 2007. PharmaStem
appealed that decision, and we appealed the jurys finding as to validity of the patents.
On July 9, 2007, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal
Circuit ruled that we did not
infringe the two PharmaStem patents at issue and that the two patents are invalid. On July 23,
2007, PharmaStem filed a petition for a re-hearing of the case before the full bench of the Court
of Appeals. In September 2007, the Court of Appeals denied PharmaStems petition.
In
July 2004, PharmaStem filed a second complaint against us. The second complaint
was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, alleging infringement of
U.S. Patents No. 6,461,645 (645) and 6,569,427 (427), which also relate to certain aspects of the
collection, cryopreservation and storage of hematopoietic stem cells and progenitor cells from
umbilical cord blood. On January 7, 2005, PharmaStem filed a Motion for a Preliminary Injunction,
which is currently stayed. At the same time, PharmaStem brought suit against other defendants,
including other family cord blood banks, regarding the 645 and
427 patents. We filed a
motion to consolidate the Massachusetts case with six other actions against other defendants in a
single proceeding in the District of Delaware. On February 16,
2005, our request was
granted, and the cases were consolidated in the District of Delaware.
We believe that
the issues presented in this case are substantially the same as the issues presented in the
original Delaware case. We also believe that it does not infringe the 645 and 427
patents asserted in this second case and that those patents are invalid for the same reasons that
the Court of Appeals found the 681 and 553 patents to be invalid.
On
October 6, 2005, the Delaware court granted our motion to stay all discovery in
the consolidated cases pending the decision from the Federal Circuit on the appeal of the District
Court of Delawares ruling in the Delaware case and from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
(U.S. PTO) on the patent re-examinations described below.
In June 2007, we informed the
Delaware Court of the status of the re-examinations. On July 10,
2007, we also informed
the Delaware court that the Federal Circuit had ruled in our favor. The Delaware Court has yet to
take any action in response to these notices.
31
In late 2006, the U.S. PTO issued final decisions in the initial re-examination of the patents
at issue in both cases. The U.S. PTO subsequently issued notice of its intent to allow the
remaining claims of all of the patents. In July 2007, additional re-examination requests
challenging each of the patents were filed with the U.S. PTO. The U.S. PTO has granted all of the
requests for re-examination and is currently in the process of re-examining each patent.
In
either of the pending cases, if we are is ultimately found to infringe valid claims of
the PharmaStem patents, we could have a significant damages award entered against it. If
we are found to infringe at any time during the course of either case, including if the
Supreme Court were to overturn both the non-infringement and invalidity rulings of the Court of
Appeals, we could also face the risk of an injunction, which could
prohibit us
from further engaging in the umbilical cord stem cell business absent a license from PharmaStem.
PharmaStem would be under no legal obligation to grant us a license or to do so on
economically reasonable terms, and PharmStem previously informed us that it would not do
so after October 15, 2004. Although we do not believe that the foregoing outcome is
likely to occur, if we are enjoined and is unable to obtain a license on economically
reasonable terms or at all, and we cannot operate under an equitable doctrine known as
intervening rights, we could be required to stop preserving and storing cord blood and
to cease using cryopreserved umbilical cord blood as a source for
stem cell products. We
may enter into settlement negotiations with PharmaStem regarding the
litigation. We cannot
predict whether any such negotiations would lead to a settlement of these lawsuits or what the
terms or timing of any such settlement might be, if at all.
A third party may again seek to challenge the arbitrators decision related to our agreement with
Mothers Work.
We
have an agreement with Mothers Work related to the marketing of our
cord blood banking service
offerings. The agreement can be terminated early by either company if the other company commits a
material breach of the agreement or under certain circumstances arising from claims by a third
party alleging that the third party has rights that supersede Mothers Works commitment to us. A
third party has claimed that it has rights under an agreement with Mothers Work that supersede
Mothers Works commitment to us. The dispute between Mothers Work and the third party was the
subject of an arbitration proceeding. In February 2007, the arbitrator ruled in favor of Mothers
Work and subsequently denied a challenge to his ruling by the third party. While there is no
assurance that the third party will not again challenge the ruling, we believe that reversal of the
ruling is unlikely. If the third party were to be successful in its efforts to overturn the
arbitrators decision, the termination rights under our agreement with Mothers Work could be
triggered. In addition, as a condition to commencing the agreement on January 1, 2007, we agreed to
indemnify Mothers Work for any damages that Mothers Work may be assessed in the event that Mothers
Work is found to be in breach of its agreement with the third party as a result of having entered
into an agreement with us. We also agreed to reimburse Mothers Work for certain legal fees if the
fees exceed a specified threshold. Our potential obligation to Mothers Work under the
indemnification agreement is unlimited. However, based on our assessment of the low likelihood that
we
might have to pay damages or legal fees given the arbitrators ruling, we concluded the fair value
of our indemnification obligation is not material and have not recorded a liability as of
September 30, 2007. Although we think it is unlikely, termination of our agreement with Mothers
Work would impact our cord blood banking revenues and could have a material adverse effect on our
business and operations. The termination of the Mothers Work agreement could also lead to us having
to indemnify Mothers Work for any damages that it would owe to the third party, which could be
significant and therefore have a material adverse effect on our business and operations.
32
If we are not able to successfully develop and commercialize new products, our future prospects may
be limited.
Drug and device development in general involves a high degree of risk. As we obtain
results and safety information from preclinical or clinical trials of our product candidates,
including ViaCyte and our preclinical program evaluating our proprietary cord blood-derived
multi-potent stem cells as a potential treatment for cardiac disease, we may elect to discontinue
development or delay additional preclinical studies or clinical trials in order to focus our
resources on more promising product candidates. We may also change the indication being pursued for
a particular product candidate or otherwise revise the development plan for that candidate.
Moreover, product candidates in later stages of clinical trials may fail to show the desired safety
and efficacy traits despite having progressed through earlier clinical testing.
The process of obtaining regulatory approval is lengthy, expensive and uncertain, and we
may never gain necessary approvals. Any difficulties that we encounter in developing our product
candidates and in obtaining regulatory approval may have a substantial adverse impact on our
financial condition, results of operations and cause our stock price to decline significantly. If
we are not able to successfully develop our product candidates and obtain regulatory approval, we
will not be able to commercialize such products, and therefore may not be able to generate
sufficient revenues to support our business.
Our cellular therapy product candidates, including the proprietary stem cells that we are
studying in preclinical trials as a potential treatment for cardiac disease, are in the early
stages of development. Very few companies have been successful in their efforts to develop and
commercialize a stem cell product. Stem cell products in general may be susceptible to various
risks, including undesirable and unintended side effects, unintended immune system responses,
inadequate therapeutic efficacy or other characteristics that may prevent or limit their approval
or commercial use.
The industry and the FDA have relatively little experience with developing therapeutics
based on cellular medicine generally. As a result, the pathway to regulatory approval for our stem
cell-based product candidates may be more complex and lengthy than the pathway for approval of a
new drug or biologic. Similarly, to obtain approval to market our stem cell products outside of the
U.S., we will need to submit clinical data concerning our products and receive regulatory approval
from the appropriate governmental agencies. Standards for approval outside the U.S. may differ from
those required by the FDA. We may encounter delays or rejections if changes occur in regulatory
agency policies during the period in which we develop a product candidate or during the period
required for review of any application for regulatory agency approval.
Our cellular therapy product candidates will not be commercially available for at least
several years, if at all. We will need to devote significant additional research and development,
financial resources and personnel to develop commercially viable products and obtain regulatory
approvals.
We may not be able to successfully develop our ViaCyte oocyte cryopreservation product candidate.
We are currently conducting a single, pivotal clinical trial to study the safety and
efficacy of ViaCyte. The goal of the clinical trial is to generate data to submit to the FDA for a
510(k) application. In March 2007, we initiated a pivotal clinical trial of ViaCyte after
satisfying the conditions imposed on us by the FDA in its June 2006 conditional approval of our
Investigational Device Exemption, or IDE, for ViaCyte. In June 2007, after previously disapproving
a supplement to the IDE which was necessary to change our contract manufacturer for the ViaCyte
media, the FDA approved the IDE supplement. The
33
clinical trial sites have been working to enroll
subjects in the trial since the IDE supplement was approved. There is no assurance that we will be
able to complete the clinical trial or that we will be able to show that our ViaCyte
cryopreservation product candidate is safe and effective for its intended use. While methods for
preserving sperm and embryos are well-established and have been utilized for in vitro fertilization
procedures, methods for cryopreserving oocytes have not been widely employed due to difficulties
encountered in freezing this cell. We may not be able to generate the number of live births needed
to show that ViaCyte is effective. We may also encounter unexpected safety, regulatory or
manufacturing issues. Even if the results of the trial are favorable, there is no assurance that
the FDA will agree that we have met the standards for 510(k) clearance. The FDA could at any time
determine that some or all of the components used to cryopreserve the oocytes will require
pre-market approval, or PMA, and additional trials, which would involve additional time and
expense. Even if approved, there is no assurance that ViaCyte will achieve commercial success or be
able to successfully compete with other oocyte cryopreservation and IVF products. In addition, the
FDA could ask for post-approval safety monitoring, which would entail additional expense, and/or
restrict the label for ViaCyte to limited patient populations, which could limit its commercial
potential.
We may not be able to raise additional funds necessary to fund our operations.
As of September 30, 2007, we had approximately $43.3 million in cash, cash equivalents and
short-term investments. In order to develop and bring new products to market, we must commit
substantial resources to costly and time-consuming research and development, preclinical testing
and clinical trials. While we anticipate that our existing cash, cash equivalents and investments
will be sufficient to fund our current operations for the next three years, we may need or want to
raise additional funding sooner, particularly if our business or operations change in a manner that
consumes available resources more rapidly than we anticipate. We expect to attempt to raise
additional funds well in advance of completely depleting our available funds.
Our future capital requirements will depend on many factors, including:
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the costs of increasing or expanding our cord blood banking sales and marketing efforts; |
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the scope and results of our research and development programs; |
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the clinical pathway for each of our product candidates, including the number,
size, scope and cost of clinical trials required to establish safety and
efficacy; |
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the results of litigation, other disputes and any liability that results from
our identification of certain job classifications that may be subject to
possible challenge; |
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the costs associated with expanding our portfolio of product candidates through
licensing, collaborations or acquisitions; |
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the costs of research and development work focused on developing clinical and
commercial scale processes for manufacturing cellular products and, if we
advance our products, the costs of building and operating our manufacturing
facilities, both to support our clinical activities and also in anticipation of
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funds spent in connection with acquisitions of related technologies or
businesses, including contingent payments that may be made in connection with
our acquisition of Kourion Therapeutics; |
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the costs of maintaining, expanding and protecting our intellectual property
portfolio, including litigation costs and liabilities; and |
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our ability to establish and maintain collaborative arrangements and obtain
milestones, royalties and other payments from collaborators. |
We may seek additional funding through collaborative arrangements and public or private
financings. Additional funding may not be available to us on acceptable terms, or at all. If we
obtain additional capital through collaborative arrangements, these arrangements may require us to
relinquish greater rights to our technologies or product candidates than we might otherwise have
done. If we raise additional capital through the sale of equity, or securities convertible into
equity, further dilution to our then existing stockholders will result. If we raise additional
capital through the incurrence of debt, our business may be affected by the amount of leverage we
incur. For instance, such borrowings could subject us to covenants restricting our business
activities, servicing interest would divert funds that would otherwise be available to support
research and development, clinical or commercialization activities, and holders of debt instruments
would have rights and privileges senior to those of our equity investors. If we are unable to
obtain adequate financing on a timely basis, we may be required to delay, reduce the scope of or
eliminate one or more of our research and development programs, any of which could have a material
adverse effect on our business.
We depend on patents and other proprietary rights that may fail to protect our business.
Our success depends, in large part, on our ability to obtain and maintain intellectual
property protection for our product candidates, technologies and trade secrets. We own or have
exclusive licenses to U.S. patents and international patents. We also own or have exclusive
licenses to pending applications in the U.S. and pending applications in foreign countries. Our
pending patent applications may not issue, and we may not receive any additional patents. The
patent position of biotechnology companies is generally highly uncertain, involves complex legal
and factual questions and has been the subject of much litigation. Neither the U.S. PTO nor the
courts have a consistent policy regarding the breadth of claims allowed or the degree of protection
afforded under many biotechnology patents. The claims of our existing U.S. patents and those that
may issue in the future, or those licensed to us, may not offer significant protection of our
technologies. For example, our patent applications covering Unrestricted Somatic Stem Cells, or
USSCs, claim these cells and/or their use in the treatment of many diseases. It is possible,
however, that these cells could be covered by other patents or patent applications which identify,
isolate or use the same cells by other markers, although we are not aware of any. Third parties may
challenge, narrow, invalidate or circumvent any patents we obtain based on our applications.
Interference proceedings brought by the U.S. PTO may be necessary to determine the priority of
inventions with respect to our patent applications or those of our collaborators or licensors.
Litigation or interference proceedings may fail and, even if successful, may result in substantial
costs and distraction to our management.
Competitors may infringe our patents or the patents of our collaborators or licensors.
Although we have not needed to take such action to date, we may be required to file infringement
claims to counter infringement or unauthorized use. This can be expensive, particularly for a
company of our size, and time-consuming. In addition, in an infringement proceeding, a court may
decide that a patent of ours is invalid or unenforceable, or may refuse to stop the other party
from using the technology at issue on the grounds that our patents do not cover its technology. An
adverse determination of any litigation or defense proceedings could put one or more of our patents
at risk of being invalidated or interpreted
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narrowly and could put our patent applications at risk
of not issuing. Furthermore, because of the substantial amount of discovery required in connection
with intellectual property litigation, there is a risk that some of our confidential information
could be compromised by disclosure during this type of litigation. In addition, during the course
of this kind of litigation, there could be public announcements of the results of hearings, motions
or other interim proceedings or developments. If investors perceive these results to be negative,
it could have a substantial adverse effect on the price of our common stock.
Furthermore, our competitors may independently develop similar technologies or duplicate
any technology developed by us in a manner that does not infringe our patents or other intellectual
property. Because of the extensive time required for development, testing and regulatory review of
a potential product, it is possible that, before any of our products can be commercialized, any
related patent may expire or remain in force for only a short period following commercialization,
thereby reducing any advantages of the patent. Without patent protection, those products might have
to compete with identical products.
In an effort to protect our unpatented proprietary technology, processes and know-how as
trade secrets, we require our employees, consultants, collaborators and advisors to execute
confidentiality agreements. These agreements, however, may not provide us with adequate protection
against improper use or disclosure of confidential information. These agreements may be breached,
and we may not have adequate remedies for any such breach. In addition, in some situations, these
agreements may conflict with, or be subject to, the rights of third parties with whom our
employees, consultants, collaborators or advisors have previous employment or consulting
relationships. Others may independently develop substantially equivalent proprietary information
and techniques or otherwise gain access to our trade secrets. We may not be able, alone or with our
collaborators and licensors, to prevent misappropriation of our proprietary rights, particularly in
countries where the laws may not protect such rights as fully as in the U.S.
Third parties may own or control patents or patent applications that are infringed by our
technologies or product candidates.
Our success depends in part on our not infringing other parties patents and proprietary
rights as well as not breaching any licenses relating to our technologies and product candidates.
In the U.S., patent applications filed in recent years are confidential for 18 months, while older
applications are not published until the patent issues. As a result, there may be patent
applications of which we are unaware that will result in issued patents in our field, and avoiding
patent infringement may be difficult. We may inadvertently infringe third party patents or patent
applications. These third parties could bring claims
against us, our collaborators or our licensors that, even if resolved in our favor, could cause us
to incur substantial expenses and, if resolved against us, could additionally cause us to pay
substantial damages.
We may be required to pay substantial damages to a patent holder in an infringement case
in the event of a finding of infringement. Under some circumstances in the U.S., these damages
could be triple the actual damages the patent holder incurred, and we could be ordered to pay the
costs and attorneys fees incurred by the patent holder. If we have supplied infringing products to
third parties for marketing, or licensed third parties to manufacture, use or market infringing
products, we may be obligated to indemnify these third parties for any damages they may be required
to pay to the patent holder and for any losses the third parties may sustain themselves as the
result of lost sales or damages paid to the patent holder. Further, if patent infringement suits
are brought against us, our collaborators or our licensors, we
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or they could be forced to stop or
delay research, development, manufacturing or sales of any infringing product in the country or
countries covered by the patent we infringe, unless we can obtain a license from the patent holder.
Such a license may not be available on acceptable terms, or at all, particularly if the third party
is developing or marketing a product competitive with the infringing product. Even if we, our
collaborators or our licensors were able to obtain a license, the rights may be nonexclusive, which
would give our competitors access to the same intellectual property. In addition, payments under
such licenses would reduce the earnings otherwise attributable to the specific products.
Patent infringement cases often involve substantial legal expenses. For example, we are
involved in two patent infringement lawsuits filed against us by PharmaStem. As of September 30,
2007, we have incurred total legal expenses of approximately $7.5 million related to these cases.
Depending upon the results of any attempt by PharmaStem to appeal the July 2007 decision of the
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in the first lawsuit to the U.S. Supreme Court, and
the extent to which we are required to litigate the second lawsuit brought by PharmaStem and any
related appeals, we estimate that we could incur at least an additional $1.0 million to
$5.0 million in litigation expenses.
Any successful infringement action brought against us may also adversely affect our ability to
market the infringing product in other markets not covered by the infringement action, as well as
our marketing of other products by us based on similar technology and may also delay the regulatory
approval process for future product candidates. Furthermore, we may suffer adverse consequences
from a successful infringement action against us even if the action is subsequently reversed on
appeal, nullified through another action or resolved by settlement with the patent holder. The
damages or other remedies awarded, if any, may be significant. As a result, any infringement action
against us may harm our competitive position, be very costly and require significant time and
attention of our key management and technical personnel.
Our success will depend in part on establishing and maintaining effective strategic partnerships
and collaborations.
A key aspect of our business strategy is to establish strategic relationships in order to
gain access to technology and critical raw materials, to expand or complement our research,
development or commercialization capabilities, or to reduce the cost of developing or
commercializing products on our own. While we are continually in discussions with a number of
companies, universities, research institutions, cord blood banks and others to establish additional
relationships and collaborations, we may not reach definitive agreements with any of them. Even if
we enter into these arrangements, we may not be able to maintain these relationships or establish
new ones in the future on acceptable terms.
Furthermore, these arrangements may require us to grant certain rights to third parties, including
exclusive marketing rights to one or more products, or may have other terms that are burdensome to
us, and may involve the acquisition of our securities. Our partners may decide to develop
alternative technologies either on their own or in collaboration with others or commercialize or
market competitive products in collaboration with others. If any of our partners terminate their
relationship with us or fail to perform their obligations in a timely manner, the development or
commercialization of our technology, potential products or existing products may be substantially
delayed or adversely impacted.
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Our cell preservation activities are subject to regulations that may impose significant costs and
restrictions on us.
Cord blood preservation. The FDA has adopted good tissue practice regulations, or GTPs, that
establish a comprehensive regulatory program for human cellular and tissue-based products. Our cord
blood service offerings are subject to GTPs. We have registered with the FDA as an umbilical cord
blood preservation service and we are subject to FDA inspection. We believe that we comply with
GTPs, though we have not yet been inspected by the FDA. However, we may not be able to maintain
this compliance or comply with future regulatory requirements that may be imposed on us, including
product standards that may be developed. GTPs do not mandate licensing of minimally manipulated
homologous, cryopreserved hematopoietic stem cells for autologous or related use. As a result, the
collected cells, while regulated, do not need to be licensed or cleared by the FDA. The FDA could,
however, in the future require us to file an Investigational New Drug or Biologics License
Applications, or BLAs or could impose other regulatory requirements applicable to the collection and
storage of cord blood. For example, the collection, processing and storage of umbilical cord
blood stem cells intended to be used in a recipient unrelated to the donor is regulated by the FDA
as a biological product. In January 2007, the FDA published a draft guidance document for comment
that would require public cord blood banks to file BLAs. While the draft guidance does not
currently apply to us, the FDA could decide to impose these requirements on us or others in our
business. Compliance with the requirements set forth in the January 2007 guidance or other
requirements that may be imposed by the FDA on our cord blood service offerings in the future will
likely require us to change our processes and might involve the submission of a substantial volume
of data along with a lengthy substantive review. The FDA could require us to cease distribution of
the collection kits and obtain 510(k) clearance or PMA prior to further distribution of the kits,
which would likely have a material adverse effect on our revenues and profitability. In any
event, the costs of process changes and the costs of compliance with any new requirements that may
be imposed in the future could adversely affect our revenues and profitability. Regulation of our
cord blood preservation services in foreign jurisdictions is still evolving.
We provide cord blood banking services in all 50 states. Several states require that cord
blood services be licensed, permitted or registered. We believe that we are licensed, permitted or
registered to operate in all of such states. If other states adopt similar requirements, we would
have to obtain licenses, permits or registrations to continue providing services in those states.
Oocyte cryopreservation. Cryopreserved oocytes are tissues subject to regulation under
FDAs GTP requirements. There are, however, no FDA-approved/cleared cryopreservation products
specifically intended for use with oocytes. The FDA has informed us that it will require a
clinical study to support approval of the technology used in oocyte cryopreservation. We are
currently conducting a single, pivotal clinical trial to study the safety and efficacy of ViaCyte.
In March 2007, we initiated the trial after satisfying the conditions imposed on us by the FDA in
its June 2006 conditional approval of our Investigational Device Exemption, or IDE, for ViaCyte.
In June 2007, after previously disapproving a supplement to the IDE which was necessary to change
our contract manufacturer for the ViaCyte media, the FDA approved the IDE supplement. The clinical
trial sites have been working to enroll subjects in
the trial since the IDE supplement was approved. The goal of the clinical trial is to generate data
to submit to the FDA for a 510(k) application. There is no assurance that we will be able to
complete the clinical trial or that we will be able to show that our ViaCyte cryopreservation
product candidate is safe and effective for its intended use. We may also encounter unexpected
safety, regulatory or manufacturing issues, any of which could delay or cause us to stop the trial.
If we submit a new 510(k) and the FDA does not find the information adequate to support 510(k)
clearance, the FDA could require us to obtain PMA to market ViaCyte. This requirement could
substantially lengthen our planned developmental timeline and increase the costs of developing and
commercializing ViaCyte. We may not receive either 510(k) clearance or PMA for ViaCyte. We have
not investigated the regulations for the cryopreservation of oocytes in foreign jurisdictions. We
may not be able to generate sufficient data to receive approval to market ViaCyte in the U.S. or
any other jurisdictions.
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We have only limited experience manufacturing cell therapy product candidates, and we may not be
able to manufacture our product candidates in quantities sufficient for clinical studies or for
commercial scale.
We currently produce limited quantities of stem cells using our technologies. We have not
built commercial scale manufacturing facilities, and have no experience in manufacturing cellular
products in the volumes that will be required for later stage clinical studies or
commercialization. If we obtain marketing approval for any cell therapy products, we may not be
able to produce sufficient quantities of our products at an acceptable cost. Commercial-scale
production of therapies made from live human cells involves production in small batches and
management of complex logistics. Cellular therapies are inherently more difficult to manufacture at
commercial-scale than chemical pharmaceuticals, which are manufactured using standardized
production technologies and operational methods. We may encounter difficulties in production due
to, among other things, quality control, quality assurance and component
supply. These difficulties could reduce sales of our products, increase our cost or cause
production delays, all of which could damage our reputation and impair our profitability.
We are dependent upon third parties to supply us with certain components of our cell therapy
product candidates, the loss of which may delay development of our product candidates.
In order to produce cells for use in clinical studies and produce stem cell products for
commercial sale, certain biological components used in our production process will need to be
manufactured in compliance with current good manufacturing practices, or cGMP. To meet this
requirement, we will need to maintain supply agreements with third parties who manufacture these
components to cGMP standards. Once we engage these third parties, we may be dependent on them for
supply of cGMP grade components. If we are unable to obtain cGMP grade biological components for
our product candidates, we may not be able to develop or market our stem cell product candidates.
Certain antibodies, growth factors and other reagents are critical components used in our
stem cell production process. We depend on our suppliers to perform their obligations in a timely
manner and in accordance with applicable government regulations. In the event that any of these
suppliers becomes unwilling or unable to continue to supply necessary components for the
manufacture of our stem cell products, we may need to repeat certain preclinical development work
to identify and demonstrate the equivalence of alternative components purchased from other
suppliers. If we are unable to demonstrate the equivalence of alternative components in a timely
manner, or purchase these alternative components on commercially reasonable terms, we may not be
able to advance the development of our preclinical stem cell product candidates.
Our inability to have ViaCyte consistently manufactured to specifications or the loss of our
contract manufacturer may delay development of our ViaCyte product candidate.
We are utilizing Invitrogen Corporation to manufacture, supply and package our ViaCyte
product candidate for our clinical trial. We are dependent on Invitrogen and our relationships with
component and testing service providers to satisfy all regulatory requirements and produce
sufficient amounts of cGMP-quality product on commercially reasonable terms for the trial.
Manufacturing our ViaCyte product candidate is complex. Due to its complexity, Invitrogen may be
unable to consistently manufacture ViaCyte to specifications. Invitrogen has the ability to
terminate its obligation to manufacture clinical supplies of ViaCyte under certain conditions
including if it is unable for reasons outside of its control to consistently meet specifications or
if there is a change in specifications it cannot meet or an uncured material breach by us. If
ViaCyte is successfully developed, we will need to establish similar relationships
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with third party
contract manufacturers for our commercial supply. In the event that we are unable to maintain a
suitable contract manufacturer that is willing to produce the ViaCyte media on commercially
reasonable terms or the contract manufacturer terminates or breaches its relationship with us or we
encounter unexpected technical or manufacturing hurdles or delays, we may not be able to complete
our clinical trial or, if successfully developed, to commercialize our ViaCyte product candidate.
We are dependent on our existing suppliers to successfully commercialize our cord blood service
offerings. The loss of such suppliers may inhibit our ability to commercialize our cord blood
service offerings.
We source a substantial portion of the components of our ViaCord collection kits and
processing and testing services from a concentrated group of third party contractors. The
production of the collection kits
and the processing and testing of cord blood units require successful coordination among ourselves
and multiple third party providers. Our inability to coordinate these efforts or any other problems
with the operations of our third party contractors could increase our costs, cause us to lose
revenue or market share, and damage our reputation. Some of the components of our ViaCord
collection kits, including the Cell Sentinel collection bag used in our ViaCord collection kit, are
produced by single source providers. For other components, we make every effort to qualify new
vendors and to develop contingency plans so that our ViaCord business is not impacted by short-term
issues associated with single source providers. Our business could be materially impacted by
long-term or chronic issues associated with single source providers or other vendors.
If our cord blood processing and storage facility or our clinical manufacturing facilities are
damaged or destroyed, our business, programs and prospects could be negatively affected.
We process and store our customers umbilical cord blood at our facility in Hebron,
Kentucky. If this facility or the equipment in the facility were to be significantly damaged or
destroyed, we could suffer a loss of some or all of the stored cord blood units. In addition, from
time to time, we transport cord blood units from other storage facilities to our facility in
Hebron, Kentucky. If we encounter problems during transportation, some or all of the transported
units could be damaged. Depending on the extent of these losses, such an event could reduce our
ability to provide cord blood stem cells when requested, expose us to significant liability from
cord blood banking customers and affect our ability to continue to provide umbilical cord blood
preservation services.
We expect to manufacture all of our stem cell product candidates in our Cambridge
manufacturing facility for the next several years. If the Cambridge facility or the equipment in it
is significantly damaged or destroyed, we may not be able to quickly or inexpensively replace our
manufacturing capacity.
In the event of a temporary or protracted loss of this facility or equipment, we may be able
to transfer manufacturing to a third party, but the shift would likely be expensive, and the timing
would depend on availability of third party resources and the speed with which we could have a new
facility approved by the FDA.
While we believe that we have insured against potential losses from damage to or
destruction of our facilities, and against potential damage to cord blood units being transported
to our facility, consistent with typical industry practices, if we have underestimated our
insurance needs, we will not have sufficient insurance to cover losses above and beyond the limits
on our policies. Currently, we maintain insurance coverage totaling $22.2 million against damage
to our property and equipment, and an additional $18.8 million to cover incremental expenses and
loss of profits resulting from such damage. These policies require periodic renewal and are subject
to various industry-related terms and conditions. Failure or inability to renew these insurance policies or failure of the terms and conditions of these
policies to apply to potential losses could further expose us to risk of losses.
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Our competitors may have greater resources or capabilities or better technologies than we have, or
may succeed in developing better products or develop products more quickly than we do, and we may
not be successful in competing with them.
The pharmaceutical and biotechnology businesses are highly competitive. We compete with many
organizations that are developing cell therapies for the treatment of a variety of human diseases,
including companies such as Aastrom Biosciences, Inc., Cellerant Therapeutics, Inc., Celgene
Corporation, Cytori Therapeutics, Inc., Gamida-Cell Ltd., Genzyme Corporation, Bioheart, Inc., and
Osiris Therapeutics, Inc. We also face competition in the cell therapy field from academic
institutions and governmental agencies. We are also aware that some larger pharmaceutical and
biopharmaceutical companies have programs in the cell therapy area. Some of these competitors and
future competitors may have similar or better product candidates or technologies, greater financial
and human resources than we have, including more experience in research and development and more
established sales, marketing and distribution capabilities. In addition, public cord blood banks
may, as a result of the Stem Cell Therapeutic and Research Act of 2005, or the Stem Cell
Therapeutic Act, be able to better compete with our potential cell therapy products. An increase in
the number and diversity of publicly-available cord blood units from public banks could diminish
the necessity for cord blood-derived therapeutics.
The umbilical cord blood banking portion of the cell therapies business is also highly
competitive. In private umbilical cord blood banking, we compete with companies such as Cbr
Systems, Inc., Cryo-Cell International, Inc., CorCell, Inc., a subsidiary of Cord Blood America
Inc., and LifeBank USA, a division of Celgene Cellular Therapeutics, a wholly-owned subsidiary of
Celgene Corporation. Any of these companies may choose to invest more in sales, marketing, research
and product development than we have. In cord blood banking, we also compete with public cord blood
banks such as the New York Blood Center (National Cord Blood Program), University of Colorado Cord
Blood Bank, Milan Cord Blood Bank, Düsseldorf Cord Blood Bank, and other public cord blood banks
around the world. Public cord blood banks provide families with the option of donating their cord
blood for public use at no cost. The Stem Cell Therapeutic Act provides financing for a national
system of public cord blood banks in the U.S. to encourage cord blood donations from an ethnically
diverse population.
In addition, many states are evaluating the feasibility of establishing cord blood
repositories for transplantation purposes. An increase in the number and diversity of
publicly-available cord blood units from public banks would increase the probability of finding
suitably matched cells for a family member, which may result in a decrease in the demand for
private cord blood banking. If the science of human leukocyte antigens, or HLA, typing advances,
then unrelated cord blood transplantation may become safer and more efficacious, similarly reducing
the clinical advantage of related cord blood transplantation.
In oocyte cryopreservation, if our ViaCyte product candidate is successfully developed
and approved, we expect to compete with IVF centers and individual companies offering oocyte
cryopreservation, including Extend Fertility. Current and future competitors in this field may also
have greater financial and human resources than we have, and may have similar or better product
candidates or technologies, or product candidates which are brought to the market more quickly than
ours. Specifically, several IVF centers are already performing oocyte cryopreservation on a limited
basis and Extend Fertility is offering related services, which may make it more difficult for
ViaCyte, if successfully developed and approved, to achieve a significant market share.
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We anticipate this competition to increase in the future as new companies enter the stem
cell therapy, cord blood preservation and oocyte cryopreservation markets. In addition, the health
care industry is characterized by rapid technological change. New product introductions or other
technological advancements could make some or all of our product candidates obsolete.
Due to the nature of our cell preservation activities, harm to our reputation could have a
significant negative impact on our financial condition. Damage to or loss of our customers
property held in our custody could potentially result in significant legal liability.
Our reputation among clients and the medical and birthing services community is extremely
important to the commercial success of our cord blood banking service offerings. This is due in
significant part to the nature of the service we provide. For instance, as part of our cord blood
service offerings, we are assuming custodial care of a childs umbilical cord blood stem cells
entrusted to us by the parents for potential future use as a therapeutic for the child or its
siblings. We believe that our reputation enables us to market ourselves as a premium provider of
cord blood preservation among our competitors. While we seek to maintain high standards in all
aspects of our provision of products and services, we cannot guarantee that we will not experience
problems. Like family cord blood banks generally, we face the risk that a customers cord blood
unit could be lost or damaged while in transit from the collection site to our storage facility,
including while the unit is in the possession of third party commercial carriers used to transport
the units. There is also risk of loss or damage to the unit during the preservation or storage
process. Any such problems, particularly if publicized in the media or otherwise, could negatively
impact our reputation, which could adversely affect our business and business prospects.
In addition to reputational damage, we face the risk of legal liability for loss of or damage
to cord blood units. We do not own the cord blood units banked by our cord blood banking customers;
instead, we act as custodian on behalf of the child-donors guardian. Loss or damage to the units
would be loss or damage to the customers property. We cannot be sure to what extent we could be
found liable, in any given scenario, for damages suffered by an owner or donor as a result of harm
or loss of a cord blood unit, and if we are found liable, whether our insurance coverage will be
sufficient to cover such damages.
The manufacture and sale of products may expose us to product liability claims for which we could
have substantial liability.
We face an inherent business risk of exposure to product liability claims if our products
or product candidates are alleged or found to have caused injury. While we believe that our current
liability insurance coverage is adequate for our present clinical and commercial activities, we
will need to increase our insurance coverage if and when we begin commercializing additional
products. We may not be able to obtain insurance with adequate coverage for potential liability
arising from any such potential products on acceptable terms or may be excluded from coverage under
the terms of any insurance policy that we obtain. We may not be able to maintain insurance on
acceptable terms or at all. If we are unable to obtain insurance or any claims against us
substantially exceed our coverage, then our business could be adversely impacted.
Our success is dependent upon recruiting and retaining qualified management and other personnel.
Our success is highly dependent on the retention of the principal members of our scientific,
management and commercial personnel. Marc D. Beer, our President and Chief Executive Officer, is
critical to our ability to execute our overall business strategy. Morey Kraus, our Chief Technology
Officer and co-founder, has significant and unique expertise in stem cell expansion and related
technologies. We
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maintain key man life insurance on the lives of Mr. Beer and Mr. Kraus. Additionally, we have
several other employees with scientific, business or other skills that we consider important to the
successful commercialization of our products and development of our technology. Any of our key
employees could terminate his or her relationship with us at any time and, despite any
non-competition agreement with us, work for one of our competitors. Furthermore, our future growth
will require hiring a significant number of qualified technical, commercial and administrative
personnel. Accordingly, recruiting and retaining such personnel in the future will be critical to
our success.
There is intense competition from other companies, universities and other research
institutions for qualified personnel in the areas of our activities. If we are not able to continue
to attract and retain, on acceptable terms, the qualified personnel necessary for the continued
development of our business, we may not be able to sustain our operations or achieve our business
objectives.
We may face difficulties in managing and maintaining the growth of our business.
We expect to continue expanding our reproductive health business and our research and
development activities. This expansion could put significant strain on our management, operational
and financial resources. To manage future growth, we would need to hire, train and manage
additional employees.
Our reporting obligations as a public company, as well as our need to comply with the
requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, the rules and regulations of the Securities and
Exchange Commission and the NASDAQ Global Market, place significant demands on our finance and
accounting staff, on our financial, accounting and information systems and on our internal
controls. We cannot assure you that our current and planned personnel, systems procedures and
controls will be adequate to support our anticipated growth or that management will be able to
hire, train, retain, motivate and manage required personnel.
Our failure to manage growth effectively could limit our ability to achieve our research
and development and commercialization goals or to satisfy our reporting and other obligations as a
public company.
Our business could be disrupted or harmed and we could be subject to liability if we are unable to
operate our information systems effectively, successfully implement new technologies and protect
the confidentiality of our or our customers data.
The efficient operation of our business is dependent on our information systems,
including our ability to operate them effectively and to successfully implement new technologies,
systems, controls and adequate disaster recovery systems. In addition, we must protect the
confidentiality of our and our customers data, including credit card information. The failure of
our information systems to perform as designed or our failure to implement and operate them
effectively could disrupt our business, harm our reputation and/or subject us to liability, any of
which could impact our financial condition and results of operations.
If we acquire other businesses or technologies the transactions may be dilutive and we may be
unable to integrate them successfully with our business, our financial performance could suffer.
If we are presented with appropriate opportunities, we may acquire other businesses. We
have had limited experience in acquiring and integrating other businesses. Since our incorporation
in 1994, we have acquired three businesses: Viacord, Inc. in 2000, Cerebrotec, Inc. in 2001 and
Kourion Therapeutics
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AG in 2003. The integration process following any future acquisitions may produce unforeseen
operating difficulties and expenditures and may absorb significant management attention that would
otherwise be available for the ongoing development of our business. In any future acquisitions, we
may issue shares of stock dilutive to existing stockholders, incur debt, assume contingent
liabilities, or create additional expenses related to amortizing intangible assets, any of which
might harm our financial results and cause our stock price to decline. Any financing we might need
for future acquisitions may be available to us only on terms that restrict our business or impose
costs that increase our net loss.
The successful commercialization of products may depend on patients and physicians obtaining
reimbursement for products from third party payers.
If we successfully develop and obtain necessary regulatory approvals for any of our
therapeutic product candidates, we intend to sell such products initially in the U.S. and,
potentially, outside the U.S. In the U.S., the market for many pharmaceutical products is affected
by the availability of reimbursement from third party payers such as government health
administration authorities, private health insurers, health maintenance organizations and pharmacy
benefit management companies. Our potential cellular therapy products may be relatively expensive
treatments due to the higher cost of production and more complex logistics of cellular products
compared with standard pharmaceuticals. This, in turn, may make it more difficult for patients and
physicians to obtain adequate reimbursement from third party payers, particularly if we cannot
demonstrate a favorable cost-benefit relationship. Third-party payers may also deny coverage or
offer inadequate levels of reimbursement for our potential products if they determine that the
product has not received appropriate clearances from the FDA or other government regulators or is
experimental, unnecessary or inappropriate. In the countries of the European Union and in some
other countries, the pricing of prescription pharmaceutical products and services and the level of
government reimbursement are subject to governmental control.
Managing and reducing health care costs has been a concern generally of federal and state
governments in the U.S. and of foreign governments. Although we do not believe that any recently
enacted or presently proposed legislation should impact our business, we cannot be sure that we
will not be subject to future regulations that may materially restrict the price we receive for our
products. Cost control initiatives could decrease the price that we receive for any product we may
develop in the future. In addition, third party payers are increasingly challenging the price and
cost-effectiveness of medical products and services, and any of our potential products may
ultimately not be considered cost-effective by these payers. Any of these initiatives or
developments could materially harm our business. If our potential cell therapy products are not
reimbursed by government or third party insurers, the market for those products would be limited.
We cannot be sure that third party payers will reimburse sales of a product or enable us or our
partners to sell the product at prices that will provide a sustainable and profitable revenue
stream.
Although we are aware of a small fraction of cord blood banking customers receiving
reimbursement, we believe our cord blood service offerings, like other private cord blood banking
services, is not generally subject to reimbursement. We do not currently believe that our ViaCyte
product candidate will be subject to reimbursement. In cases of preserving eggs for fertility
preservation for cancer patients, it is unknown at this time if it will be covered.
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We face potential liability related to the privacy of health information we obtain from research
collaborators or from providers who enroll patients and collect cord blood or human oocytes.
Our business relies on the acquisition, analysis, and storage of potentially sensitive
information about individuals health, both in our research activities and in our reproductive
health product and service offerings. These data are protected by numerous federal and state
privacy laws.
Most health care providers, including research collaborators from whom we obtain patient
information, are subject to privacy regulations promulgated under the Health Insurance Portability
and Accountability Act of 1996, or HIPAA. Although we ourselves are not directly regulated by
HIPAA, we could face substantial criminal penalties if we knowingly receive individually
identifiable health information from a health care provider who has not satisfied HIPAAs
disclosure standards. In addition, certain state privacy laws and genetic testing laws may apply
directly to our operations and impose restrictions on our use and dissemination of individuals
health information. Moreover, patients about whom we obtain information, as well as the providers
who share this information with us, may have contractual rights that limit our ability to use and
disclose the information. Claims that we have violated individuals privacy rights or breached our
contractual obligations, even if we are not found liable, could be expensive and time-consuming to
defend and could result in adverse publicity that could harm our business.
Ethical and other concerns surrounding the use of stem cell therapy may negatively affect
regulatory approval or public perception of our products and product candidates, thereby reducing
demand for our products and product candidates.
The use of embryonic stem cells for research and stem cell therapy has been the subject
of debate regarding related ethical, legal and social issues. Although we do not currently use
embryonic stem cells as a source for our research programs, the use of other types of human stem
cells for therapy could give rise to similar ethical, legal and social issues as those associated
with embryonic stem cells. The commercial success of our product candidates will depend in part on
public acceptance of the use of stem cell therapy, in general, for the prevention or treatment of
human diseases. Public attitudes may be influenced by claims that stem cell therapy is unsafe or
unethical, and stem cell therapy may not gain the acceptance of the public or the medical
community. Adverse events in the field of stem cell therapy that may occur in the future also may
result in greater governmental regulation of our product candidates and potential regulatory delays
relating to the testing or approval of our product candidates. In the event that our research
becomes the subject of adverse commentary or publicity, the market price for our common stock could
be significantly harmed.
Our business involves the use of hazardous materials that could expose us to environmental and
other liability.
We have facilities in Massachusetts and Kentucky that are subject to various local, state
and federal laws and regulations relating to safe working conditions, laboratory and manufacturing
practices, the experimental use of animals and the use and disposal of hazardous or potentially
hazardous substances, including chemicals, micro-organisms and various radioactive compounds used
in connection with our research and development activities. In the U.S., these laws include the
Occupational Safety and Health Act, the Toxic Test Substances Control Act and the Resource
Conservation and Recovery Act. Although we believe that our safety procedures for handling and
disposing of these materials comply with the standards prescribed by these regulations, we cannot
assure you that accidental contamination or injury to employees and third parties from these
materials will not occur. We do not have insurance to cover claims arising from our use and
disposal of these hazardous substances other than limited clean-up expense coverage for
environmental contamination due to an otherwise insured peril, such as fire.
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Volatility of Our Stock Price.
The market price for our common stock is highly volatile, and likely will continue to
fluctuate due to a variety of factors, including:
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material public announcements; |
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the data, positive or negative, generated from the development of our product candidates; |
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setbacks or delays in any of our research or development programs; |
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the outcome of material litigation or governmental proceedings; |
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the financial results achieved by our cord blood preservation business; |
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the impact of competition; |
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unusual or unexpectedly high expenses; |
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developments related to patents and other proprietary rights; |
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market trends affecting stock prices in our industry; and |
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economic or other external factors. |
ITEM 2. UNREGISTERED SALES OF EQUITY SECURITIES AND USE OF PROCEEDS
Sales of Unregistered Securities
None.
Use of Proceeds from Registered Securities
We registered shares of our common stock in connection with our initial public offering under
the Securities Act. Our Registration Statement on Form S-1 (Reg. No. 333-114209) in connection with
our initial public offering was declared effective by the SEC on January 19, 2005. The offering
commenced as of January 20, 2005. 8,625,000 shares of our common stock registered were sold in the
offering. The offering did not terminate before any securities were sold. We completed the offering
on January 26, 2005. Credit Suisse and UBS Investment Bank were the managing underwriters. All
8,625,000 shares of our common stock registered in the offering were sold, with an initial public
offering price per share of $7.00. The aggregate purchase price of the offering was $60,375,000, of
a maximum potential registered aggregate offering price of $92,000,000. The net offering proceeds
to us after deducting total related expenses were approximately $53,300,000.
No payments for the above expenses nor other payments of proceeds were made directly or
indirectly to (i) any of our directors, officers or their associates, except as described below,
(ii) any person(s) owning 10% or more of any class of our equity securities or (iii) any of our
affiliates.
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The net proceeds of the initial public offering, after payment of approximately
$15.5 million for all outstanding principal and interest on promissory notes held by funds
affiliated with MPM Asset
Management LLC, the manager of which served on our board of directors until June 9, 2005, are
invested in investment grade securities with the weighted average days to maturity of the portfolio
less than six months and no security with an effective maturity in excess of 12 months. To date,
apart from the payment of promissory notes of $15.5 million and normal investing activities, we
have not used any of the net proceeds from the initial public offering and there has been no
material change in the planned use of proceeds from our initial public offering as described in our
final prospectus filed with the SEC pursuant to Rule 424(b) of the Securities Act.
Issuer Purchase of Equity Securities
None.
ITEM 3. DEFAULTS UPON SENIOR SECURITIES
None.
ITEM 4. SUBMISSION OF MATTERS TO A VOTE OF SECURITY HOLDERS
None.
ITEM 5. OTHER INFORMATION
(a) None.
(b) None.
ITEM 6. EXHIBITS
See the Exhibit Index following the Signatures page below
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SIGNATURES
In accordance with the requirements of the Exchange Act, the registrant caused this report to
be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
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VIACELL, INC. |
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November 8, 2007
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/s/ Marc D. Beer |
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Marc D. Beer |
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Chief Executive Officer |
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(Principal Executive Officer) |
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November 8, 2007
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/s/ John F. Thero |
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John F. Thero |
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Chief Financial Officer |
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(Principal Financial Officer) |
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EXHIBIT INDEX
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No. |
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Item |
10.1(1)
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First Lease Amendment dated as of September 11, 2007 by and
between ViaCell, Inc. and Dugan Financing LLC |
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31.1
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Certification of the Chief Executive Officer pursuant to
Section 302 of the Sarbanes Oxley Act of 2002 |
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31.2
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Certification of the Chief Financial Officer pursuant to
Section 302 of the Sarbanes Oxley Act of 2002 |
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32.1
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Certification of the Chief Executive Officer pursuant to
Section 906 of the Sarbanes Oxley Act of 2002 |
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32.1
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Certification of the Chief Financial Officer pursuant to
Section 906 of the Sarbanes Oxley Act of 2002 |
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(1) |
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Incorporated by reference to the Companys current report on Form 8-K (No. 000-51110)
filed with the SEC on September 17, 2007. |
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