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Filing
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UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
SCHEDULE 14A
Proxy Statement Pursuant to Section 14(a) of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934
(Amendment No. )
Filed by the Registrant ☒ Filed by a Party other than the Registrant ☐
Check the appropriate box:
☐ | Preliminary Proxy Statement |
☐ | Confidential, for Use of the Commission Only (as permitted by Rule 14a-6(e)(2)) |
☒ | Definitive Proxy Statement |
☐ | Definitive Additional Materials |
☐ | Soliciting Material Pursuant to §240.14a-12 |
SAVARA INC.
(Name of Registrant as Specified In Its Charter)
(Name of Person(s) Filing Proxy Statement, if other than the Registrant)
Payment of Filing Fee (Check the appropriate box):
☒ | No fee required. |
☐ | Fee paid previously with preliminary materials. |
☐ | Fee computed on table in exhibit required by Item 25(b) per Exchange Act Rules 14a-6(i)(1) and 0-11. |
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April 26, 2024
Dear Fellow Stockholder,
On behalf of the Board of Directors, it is my pleasure to invite you to attend the Savara Inc. 2024 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, to be held on June 6, 2024 at 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time via live webcast at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/SVRA2024. The attached Notice of Annual Meeting and Proxy Statement contain important information about the meeting and matters for your consideration. Your vote is important, and regardless of whether you plan to attend the meeting, I encourage you to review the material carefully and submit your proxy.
Over the past year, we made strong progress with the pivotal Phase 3 IMPALA-2 trial in autoimmune pulmonary alveolar proteinosis (aPAP) and the molgramostim development program. We over-enrolled IMPALA-2 on-time during the COVID-19 pandemic, introduced aPAP ClearPathTM, a simple, accurate, no-cost, lab-developed autoantibody blood test that provides a definitive aPAP diagnosis, and launched a disease state awareness campaign that educates U.S. pulmonologists about the hallmark signs and symptoms of the disease and need for earlier testing. We also strengthened our management team with key hires in Global Technical Operations, Medical Affairs, Clinical Development, and Quality Assurance. Additionally, Savara was added to the Russell 3000® and Nasdaq Biotechnology Indices. Finally, we completed an $80M equity financing and, under the current operating plan, believe we are sufficiently capitalized into 2026.
We look forward to reporting top line results from the IMPALA-2 trial, which we anticipate at the end of 2Q 2024. The Savara team is working hard to bring molgramostim nebulizer solution, our investigational therapy, to market to address the significant unmet need in aPAP. Our work has always been, and will continue to be, fueled by creating long-term value for our stockholders and our desire to dramatically improve the standard of care for people living with this rare and debilitating lung disease.
Thank you for your continued support.
Sincerely, |
/s/ Matthew Pauls |
Matthew Pauls |
Chair of the Board of Directors & Chief Executive Officer |
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SAVARA INC.
One Summit Square
1717 Langhorne Newtown Rd.
Suite 300
Langhorne, PA 19047
NOTICE OF ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS
To Be Held on June 6, 2024
The 2024 Annual Meeting of Stockholders of Savara Inc. (the Annual Meeting) will be held virtually via live webcast at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/SVRA2024 on June 6, 2024 at 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time. The meeting is being held for the following purposes, as more fully described in the proxy statement accompanying this notice:
1. To elect six directors to hold office until the next annual meeting of stockholders and until their respective successors are elected and qualified or until their earlier resignation or removal;
2. To approve the Savara Inc. 2024 Omnibus Incentive Plan;
3. To approve an amendment to our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation to allow for exculpation of officers as permitted by Delaware law;
4. To ratify the appointment of RSM US LLP as our independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2024;
5. To approve, on an advisory basis, the compensation of our named executives; and
6. To transact such other business as may properly come before the Annual Meeting and any adjournment or postponement thereof.
Only stockholders of record at the close of business on April 8, 2024 will be entitled to notice of, and to vote at, the Annual Meeting and any adjournment or postponement thereof. A list of stockholders entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting will be available for inspection by any stockholder for any purpose relating to the meeting during ordinary business hours at our corporate offices located at One Summit Square, 1717 Langhorne Newtown Rd., Suite 300, Langhorne, PA 19047 for ten days prior to the Annual Meeting, and will also be available for inspection at the Annual Meeting.
Your vote is important. Whether or not you plan to attend the Annual Meeting, and no matter how many shares you own, please vote as promptly as possible. This will help to ensure the presence of a quorum at the Annual Meeting and save us additional proxy solicitation costs.
All stockholders are cordially invited to attend the Annual Meeting.
By Order of the Board of Directors, |
/s/ Matthew Pauls |
Matthew Pauls |
Chair of the Board of Directors & Chief Executive Officer |
Langhorne, PA
April 26, 2024
Important Notice Regarding the Availability of Proxy Materials for the Stockholders Meeting To Be Held on June 6, 2024. This notice of Annual Meeting, the proxy statement for the Annual Meeting and our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 are available at www.proxyvote.com.
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SAVARA INC.
One Summit Square
1717 Langhorne Newtown Rd.
Suite 300
Langhorne, PA 19047
PROXY STATEMENT
2024 ANNUAL MEETING OF STOCKHOLDERS
To Be Held on June 6, 2024
GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT THE MEETING
Savara Inc., a Delaware corporation (Savara, we, us, our, the company, the Company or our company), is making proxy materials, including this proxy statement, available to our stockholders via the internet in connection with the solicitation of proxies by the Savara Board of Directors (the Board of Directors or Board) for use at our 2024 Annual Meeting of Stockholders to be held virtually on June 6, 2024 at 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time via live webcast at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/SVRA2024, and at any adjournment or postponement thereof (the Annual Meeting).
This proxy statement, the attached notice of the Annual Meeting, a proxy card and our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 are collectively referred to as the proxy materials. The proxy materials are first being made available to our stockholders on or about April 26, 2024.
Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials
All stockholders have the ability to access the proxy materials on the website referred to in the attached notice of the Annual Meeting. Pursuant to rules adopted by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC), we have elected to send a Notice of Internet Availability of Proxy Materials (the Notice of Internet Availability) to our stockholders instead of mailing printed copies of the proxy materials, unless you have previously elected to receive printed materials. The Notice of Internet Availability provides instructions on how to access the proxy materials via the internet and how to request a printed set of the proxy materials at no charge. In addition, stockholders can elect to receive future proxy materials electronically by email or in printed form by mail, and any such election will remain in effect until terminated by the stockholder. We encourage all stockholders to take advantage of the availability of the proxy materials on the internet to help reduce the cost and environmental impact of our annual meetings.
Purposes of the Annual Meeting
The Annual Meeting is being held for the following purposes:
1. To elect six directors to hold office until the next annual meeting of stockholders and until their respective successors are elected and qualified or until their earlier resignation or removal;
2. To approve the Savara Inc. 2024 Omnibus Incentive Plan (the 2024 Plan);
3. To approve an amendment to our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation to allow for exculpation of officers as permitted by Delaware law;
4. To ratify the appointment of RSM US LLP (RSM) as our independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2024;
5. To approve, on an advisory basis, the compensation of our named executives; and
6. To transact such other business as may properly come before the Annual Meeting and any adjournment or postponement thereof.
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Record Date; Shares Outstanding and Entitled to Vote
Our Board of Directors has fixed April 8, 2024 as the record date (the record date) for the determination of holders of our common stock entitled to notice of, and to vote at, the Annual Meeting and any adjournment or postponement thereof. At the close of business on the record date, we had 138,176,641 shares of common stock issued and outstanding. Each stockholder of record as of the record date is entitled to one vote at the Annual Meeting for each share of common stock held by such stockholder on the record date. Stockholders do not have cumulative voting rights. We had no other class of capital stock outstanding as of the record date. No other shares are entitled to notice of, or to vote at, the Annual Meeting.
How to Vote Your Shares
If you hold your shares in your own name as the stockholder of record: You may vote your shares by proxy over the internet or by telephone by following the instructions provided in the Notice of Internet Availability, or, if you requested to receive printed proxy materials, you may vote by marking, dating and signing the enclosed proxy card and returning it in the postage-paid envelope provided or you may vote over the internet or by telephone pursuant to the instructions provided in the proxy card. Additionally, you may vote your shares electronically during the Annual Meeting using the control number found on your Notice of Internet Availability or proxy card and following the instructions at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/SVRA2024. Stockholders voting by internet or telephone should understand that, while we and the party providing the service through which you may vote by internet or by telephone do not charge any fees to our stockholders for voting by internet or telephone, there may still be costs, such as usage charges from internet access providers and telephone companies, for which you are responsible.
If your shares are held in the name of a broker or other nominee (typically referred to as shares being held in street name): You will receive instructions from the holder of record that you must follow for your shares to be voted. The availability of telephonic or internet voting will depend on your brokers (or other nominees) voting process. Please check with your broker or other nominee and follow the voting procedure your broker or other nominee provides to vote your shares.
By casting your vote by proxy, you are authorizing the holders of the proxies solicited by this proxy statement to vote your shares in accordance with your instructions.
YOUR VOTE IS VERY IMPORTANT. We encourage you to submit your vote by proxy even if you plan to attend the Annual Meeting.
How to Change Your Vote
If you hold your shares in your own name: You may revoke your proxy and change your vote at any time before your proxy is exercised by:
| Delivering to our corporate secretary a written notice of revocation, dated later than the proxy you wish to revoke, before voting begins at the Annual Meeting; |
| Delivering to our corporate secretary a duly executed proxy bearing a date later than the proxy you wish to revoke, before voting begins at the Annual Meeting; |
| Voting again on a later date via the internet or by telephone before 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on June 5, 2024 (in which case only your latest internet or telephone proxy submitted will be counted); or |
| Attending the Annual Meeting and voting electronically during the Annual Meeting by following the instructions at www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/SVRA2024 (your attendance at the Annual Meeting, in and of itself, will not revoke your proxy). |
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Any written notice of revocation or later dated proxy should be delivered before the close of business on June 5, 2024 to:
Savara Inc.
One Summit Square
1717 Langhorne Newtown Rd.
Suite 300
Langhorne, PA 19047
Attention: Corporate Secretary
If your shares are held in street name: You must follow the instructions provided by the broker or other nominee if you wish to change your vote.
Proxies
If you provide specific voting instructions on your proxy card or when voting via the internet or by telephone, your shares will be voted at the Annual Meeting in accordance with your instructions. If you hold shares in your name and execute a proxy (either by submitting it via the internet or telephone or signing and returning a proxy card) without making individual selections, your shares will be voted in accordance with the recommendations of our Board of Directors, which are:
| For election of each of the nominees to our Board of Directors listed in the proxy materials; |
| For the adoption of the 2024 Plan; |
| For the amendment of our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation to allow for exculpation of officers as permitted by Delaware law; |
| For ratification of the appointment of RSM as our independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2024; and |
| For the approval of the compensation of our named executives. |
At this time, we are unaware of any matters, other than those set forth above, that may properly come before the Annual Meeting. If any other matters properly come before the Annual Meeting or any adjournment or postponement thereof, the holders of proxies solicited by this proxy statement, or their duly constituted substitutes acting at the Annual Meeting and any adjournment or postponement thereof, will be deemed authorized to vote or otherwise act on such matters in accordance with their judgment.
The holders of proxies solicited by this proxy statement, or their duly constituted substitutes acting at the Annual Meeting and any adjournment or postponement thereof, may propose and vote for one or more adjournments or postponements of the Annual Meeting, including adjournments or postponements to permit further solicitations of proxies. Proxies solicited may be voted only at the Annual Meeting and any adjournment or postponement thereof and will not be used for any other meeting of our stockholders.
Broker Non-Votes
A broker non-vote occurs when a nominee (typically a broker or bank) holding shares for a beneficial owner (typically referred to as shares being held in street name) submits a proxy for those shares but indicates on the proxy that it does not have authority to vote those shares on particular proposals because it has not received specific voting instructions from the beneficial owner for those proposals. Under the rules of the New York Stock Exchange, brokers and other nominees have discretion to vote shares held in street name on routine matters but lack such discretion with regard to non-routine matters. The ratification of the appointment of RSM as our independent registered public accounting firm for fiscal year 2024 is considered a routine matter and, as
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such, brokers and other nominees may vote on that proposal in the absence of specific instructions from the beneficial owner. The other proposals described in this proxy statement are considered non-routine matters and brokers and other nominees do not have discretionary authority to vote on such proposals.
Quorum and Required Votes
A majority of the aggregate number of shares of our common stock issued and outstanding and entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting must be present or represented by proxy in order for there to be a quorum at the Annual Meeting and for any action to be taken at the Annual Meeting. If you submit a properly executed proxy via the internet or by telephone or mail, regardless of whether you abstain from voting on one or more matters, your shares will be counted as present at the Annual Meeting for the purpose of determining a quorum. Broker non-votes will also be counted as present for the purpose of determining the presence of a quorum at the Annual Meeting.
Proposal 1 Election of Directors: The affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the shares of our common stock having voting power present or represented by proxy at the Annual Meeting is required for the election of each director nominee. This majority voting standard means that a director nominee will be elected if the number of shares voted For that director nominee exceeds the aggregate number of shares voted Against and that Abstain from voting with respect to that director nominee. As a result, an abstention will have the same effect as a negative vote. Broker non-votes will not be counted toward the vote total and therefore will have no effect on the outcome of this proposal. In accordance with our corporate governance guidelines, each of our incumbent directors tendered his or her resignation in advance of being nominated for election at the Annual Meeting, with the effectiveness of such resignation subject to and contingent upon (a) the directors failure to receive a sufficient number of votes for re-election at the Annual Meeting and (b) our Board of Directors acceptance of the resignation. Accordingly, the continued service on our Board of Directors by any director who is not re-elected because such director does not receive the requisite affirmative votes at the Annual Meeting will be subject to our Board of Directors determination as to whether to accept or reject his or her resignation. Our Board of Directors will take into account and consider the voting results at the Annual Meeting but has sole discretion to determine whether or not to accept the resignation.
Proposal 2 Approval of the 2024 Plan: The affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the shares of our common stock having voting power present or represented by proxy at the Annual Meeting is required to approve the adoption of the 2024 Plan. An abstention will have the same effect as a negative vote. Broker non-votes will not be counted toward the vote total and therefore will have no effect on the outcome of this proposal.
Proposal 3 Amendment of our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation to allow for exculpation of officers as permitted by Delaware law: The affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of our common stock on the record date is required to amend our Certificate of Incorporation to allow for exculpation of officers as permitted by Delaware law. An abstention will have the same effect as a negative vote. Broker non-votes will have the same effect as a negative vote.
Proposal 4 Ratification of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm: The affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the shares of our common stock having voting power present or represented by proxy at the Annual Meeting is required to ratify the appointment of RSM as our independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2024. An abstention will have the same effect as a negative vote. Brokers and other nominees generally will have discretionary authority to vote on this proposal because it is considered a routine matter; therefore, we do not expect any broker non-votes with respect to this proposal.
Proposal 5 Advisory Vote on the Compensation of our Named Executives: The affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the shares of our common stock having voting power present or represented by proxy at the Annual Meeting is required to approve, on an advisory basis, the compensation of our named executives. An
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abstention will have the same effect as a negative vote. Broker non-votes will not be counted toward the vote total and therefore will have no effect on the outcome of this proposal.
Solicitation of Proxies
We are soliciting proxies from our stockholders on behalf of our Board of Directors and will pay for all costs incurred in connection with the solicitation. In addition to solicitation by mail, our directors, officers and employees may solicit proxies from our stockholders in person or by telephone, facsimile, email or other electronic methods without additional compensation other than reimbursement for their actual expenses.
We may retain a proxy solicitation firm to assist us in the solicitation of proxies for the Annual Meeting. We would pay such firm, if any, customary fees, which we do not expect would exceed $20,000 and would reimburse the firm for its reasonable out-of-pocket expenses.
Arrangements also will be made with brokerage firms and other custodians, nominees and fiduciaries for the forwarding of solicitation material to the beneficial owners of stock held of record by such persons, and we will reimburse such custodians, nominees and fiduciaries for their reasonable out-of-pocket expenses in connection therewith.
If You Receive More Than One Proxy Card
If you receive more than one proxy card, it means you hold shares that are registered in more than one account. To ensure that all of your shares are voted, please mark your votes and date, sign and return each proxy card, or vote your proxy via internet or by telephone as instructed on each proxy card.
Householding Information
The SEC has adopted rules that permit brokers, banks and other nominees to satisfy the delivery requirements for proxy statements, annual reports and Notice of Internet Availability, as applicable, with respect to two or more stockholders sharing the same address by delivering a single copy of such document addressed to those stockholders. This process, which is commonly referred to as householding, potentially means extra convenience for stockholders and cost savings for companies.
A number of brokers and other nominees with account holders who are our stockholders may be householding the proxy materials. This means that only one copy of this proxy statement, our annual report and Notice of Internet Availability may have been sent to multiple stockholders in a household. If, at any time, you no longer wish to participate in householding and would prefer to receive a separate proxy statement, annual report and Notice of Internet Availability from the other stockholder(s) sharing your address, please (i) notify your broker or other nominee, (ii) direct your written request to Savara Inc., One Summit Square, 1717 Langhorne Newtown Rd., Suite 300, Langhorne, PA 19047, Attention: Corporate Secretary or (iii) contact us by phone at (512) 614-1848. We undertake to deliver promptly, upon any such oral or written request, a separate copy of the proxy materials to a stockholder at a shared address to which a single copy of these documents was delivered. Stockholders who currently receive multiple copies of the proxy materials at their address and would like to request householding of their communications should notify their broker or other nominee or contact our corporate secretary at the above address or phone number.
If you have any questions about voting your shares, please contact us at (512) 614-1848.
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The following table provides summary information about each current member of our Board of Directors:
Name |
Age | Committee Membership |
Director Since | |||||
Matthew Pauls |
53 | None | April 2017 | |||||
Nevan Elam |
56 | Compensation Committee (Chair) Nominating & Governance Committee |
February 2009 | |||||
Richard J. Hawkins |
75 | Audit Committee | October 2010 | |||||
Joseph S. McCracken |
70 | Compensation Committee Nominating & Governance Committee (Chair) |
October 2013 | |||||
David A. Ramsay |
59 | Audit Committee (Chair) | April 2017 | |||||
Ricky Sun* |
50 | Nominating & Governance Committee | December 2019 | |||||
An van Es-Johansson |
64 | Compensation Committee Audit Committee |
December 2019 |
* | Dr. Sun is not standing for reelection following the completion of his term at the Annual Meeting. |
Board Composition
The following is a snapshot of the Boards current composition and the attributes of its directors:
Board Diversity Matrix (As of April 8, 2024) |
||||||||
Board Size: |
| |||||||
Total Number of Directors |
7 | |||||||
Female | Male | |||||||
Gender: |
| |||||||
Directors |
1 | 6 | ||||||
Demographic Background: |
| |||||||
African American or Black |
0 | 1 | ||||||
Asian |
0 | 1 | ||||||
White |
1 | 4 |
Knowledge, Skills, and Expertise
The Board of Directors is committed to ensuring the Board reflects a diverse range of viewpoints, qualifications, skills, and experience. Below is a list of a few of the areas of knowledge and expertise reflected in the members of the Board that contribute to the Boards effectiveness. Detailed information about each individual director nominees qualifications, skills and experience, as well as biographical information, can be found starting on page 8.
| Chief Executive Officer Leadership Service as a chief executive officer at a publicly traded or privately-held organization. |
| Industry Experience Experience in the pharmaceutical or life sciences industry, including development and commercialization of pharmaceutical products. |
| Medical or Scientific Background Medical degree or advanced degree in a scientific field. |
| Financial and Accounting Experience at a large accounting firm or as chief financial officer, or other professional experience in a financial oversight role. |
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| Public Company Governance Service as a board member of a publicly traded company and familiarity with key corporate governance matters. |
| Global Strategy and Operations Experience guiding the strategic direction and growth of a pharmaceutical or life sciences company on a global scale. |
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NOMINEES FOR ELECTION TO THE BOARD
Our Composite Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation and our Amended and Restated Bylaws (our Bylaws) provide that each director elected or appointed to our Board of Directors shall hold office until the next annual meeting of stockholders following such election or appointment and until the directors successor is elected and qualified, or until the directors earlier resignation or removal. Our Bylaws provide that vacancies on our Board of Directors, including those resulting from an increase in the authorized number of directors, may be filled by a majority of the remaining directors, even if less than a quorum, or by a sole remaining director. Any director appointed as a result of a vacancy holds office until the next annual meeting of stockholders and until a successor is elected and qualified. Pursuant to our Bylaws, the authorized number of directors may be not less than three nor more than nine, with the exact number, currently seven, to be fixed by resolutions adopted from time to time by our Board of Directors. Our current director, Dr. Ricky Sun, was initially identified to serve as member of our Board of Directors by investors affiliated with Bain Capital Life Sciences Investors, LLC (Bain Capital Life Sciences) pursuant to the Bain Capital Life Sciences director designation right under that certain Securities Purchase Agreement dated December 20, 2019 among us and certain accredited and institutional investors. Following Dr. Suns decision not to stand for reelection at the Annual Meeting and the waiver by Bain Capital Life Sciences of its director designation right, our Board adopted resolutions reducing the authorized number of directors from seven to six effective as of the Annual Meeting. Accordingly, proxies cannot be voted for a greater number of individuals than the six nominees named in this proxy statement.
Each of our nominees for election to our Board of Directors is a current director. The paragraphs below provide information about each such director nominee. There are no family relationships among any of our directors, director nominees, and executive officers. Service on our Board of Directors or as an executive officer prior to April 2017 described in this proxy statement refers to service with Savara Inc., the private company with which we completed a reverse merger in April 2017 when we were operating as Mast Therapeutics, Inc. Following the reverse merger, we changed our name to Savara Inc.
Matthew Pauls. Mr. Pauls has served as our Chief Executive Officer since December 2020, the Chair of our Board of Directors since September 2020, and was our Interim Chief Executive Officer from September 2020 to December 2020. Mr. Pauls has served as a member of our Board of Directors since April 2017 and was a member of the board of directors of Mast Therapeutics, Inc. from October 2015 to April 2017. Previously, Mr. Pauls was the founder of Spartan Biopharma Insights, LLC, where he provided strategic advisement to institutional investors, and company management teams on investment thesis assessment, capitalization strategy, mergers and acquisitions, clinical execution, and commercialization from December 2019 to September 2020. Since August 2023, Mr. Pauls has served on the board of directors of Soleno Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: SLNO), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapeutics for rare diseases, as well as the board of directors of the privately held companies Amplo Biotechnology, Inc., a gene therapy company focused on rare neuromuscular disorders, and Pelthos Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company focused on dermatologic infectious diseases. Mr. Pauls served on the board of directors of Zyla Life Sciences (previously Egalet Corporation) (OTCQX: ZCOR), a commercial-stage life sciences company with a portfolio of medicines for pain and inflammation, from January 2019 until its merger with Assertio Therapeutics, Inc. in May 2020. From August 2014 to November 2019, Mr. Pauls served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Strongbridge Biopharma plc (Nasdaq: SBBP) (Strongbridge), a biopharmaceutical company focused on therapies that target rare diseases that Mr. Pauls lead through an initial public offering. He also served as a member of the board of directors of Strongbridge from September 2015 to November 2019. From April 2013 to August 2014, Mr. Pauls was Chief Commercial Officer of Insmed, Inc. (Nasdaq: INSM), a publicly traded global biopharmaceutical company focused on rare diseases. From 2007 to April 2013, Mr. Pauls worked at Shire Pharmaceuticals, a global specialty biopharmaceutical company, most recently as Senior Vice President, Head of Global Commercial Operations from May 2012 to April 2013. Earlier in his career, from 1997 to 2007, Mr. Pauls held senior positions at Bristol-Myers Squibb in Brand Management and Payor Marketing and at Johnson & Johnson in various U.S. and global commercial roles. Mr. Pauls holds B.S. and M.B.A. degrees from Central Michigan University and a J.D. from Michigan State University College of Law. We believe Mr. Pauls experience as our
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Chief Executive Officer, as well as his leadership experience and extensive commercialization, strategic planning and operations experience in the biopharmaceutical industry, particularly with therapies for rare diseases, qualify him to serve as a member of the Board of Directors.
Nevan Elam. Mr. Elam has served as a member of our Board of Directors since February 2009. Since February 2013, Mr. Elam has served as a member of the Board of Directors as well as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Rezolute, Inc. (Nasdaq: RZLT) (Rezolute), a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing therapies for metabolic diseases with serious unmet needs. Prior to his tenure at Rezolute, Mr. Elam held senior executive roles within in the pharmaceutical industry, including Senior Vice President and Head of the Pulmonary Business Unit of Nektar Therapeutics and President and Chief Executive Officer of a European medical device company. Earlier in his career, he was a co-founder and the Chief Financial Officer of E2open, Inc. and a Partner in the corporate practice of the law firm of Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, P.C. In addition, from November 2022 to June 2023, Mr. Elam served on the board of directors of Peak Bio, Inc. (OTCPK: PKBO). Mr. Elam received his J.D. from Harvard Law School and a B.A. from Howard University. We believe Mr. Elams broad experience with pharmaceutical companies, including advising them of their unique legal and regulatory obligations, qualifies him to serve on the Board of Directors.
Richard J. Hawkins. Mr. Hawkins has served as a member of our Board of Directors since October 2010. Mr. Hawkins is currently Chief Executive Officer and Chair of the Board of Directors of Lumos Pharma, Inc. (Nasdaq: LUMO), a clinical stage biotechnology company focused on bringing novel therapies to patients with severe, rare, and genetic diseases, whose medical needs are unmet. In addition, Mr. Hawkins currently serves on the board of directors of several privately held life sciences companies, as well as Plus Therapeutics Inc. (formerly Cytori Therapeutics, Inc.) (Nasdaq: PSTV), and previously served on the board of directors of SciClone Pharmaceuticals, Inc. until its acquisition in October 2017. Prior to his tenure with Lumos Pharma, Inc., which began in September 2010, Mr. Hawkins founded and advised numerous pharmaceutical companies including Sensus, where he served as co-founder and Chair of the Board of Directors until it was sold to Pfizer in 2001. From 1981 to 2000, Mr. Hawkins was founder, President and Chief Executive Officer of Pharmaco where he guided the companys growth to more than 2,000 employees. Pharmaco later merged with PPD of Wilmington, North Carolina to form PPD Pharmaco, one of the largest clinical contract research organizations in the world. Mr. Hawkins received his B.S. in Biology from Ohio University. We believe Mr. Hawkins experience in the pharmaceutical and life sciences industries as well as his broad management experience qualify him to serve on the Board of Directors.
Joseph S. McCracken. Dr. McCracken has served as our Lead Independent Director since December 2019 and a member of our Board of Directors since October 2013. Since September 2013, Dr. McCracken has advised biopharmaceutical companies on the design and implementation of corporate strategy and business development initiatives. Dr. McCracken also serves on the board of directors of Lumos Pharma, Inc. (Nasdaq: LUMO) and Modalis Therapeutics Corporation (TSE: 4883.T), as well as the board of directors of the privately held company Regimmune Inc. Dr. McCracken served on the board of directors of Kindred Biosciences, Inc. until its acquisition in August 2021, and on the board of directors of Alkahest, Inc. until its acquisition by Grifols SA in December of 2020. From July 2011 to September 2013, Dr. McCracken was Vice President and Global Head of Business Development & Licensing for Roche Pharma, a research-focused healthcare company, where he was responsible for Roche Pharmas global in-licensing and out-licensing activities. From October 2009 until July 2011, he was General Manager, Roche Pharma Japan & Asia Regional Head, Roche Partnering. Prior to joining Roche Pharma, Dr. McCracken held the position of Vice President, Business Development at Genentech for more than nine years, and previously held similar positions at Aventis Pharma and Rhone-Poulenc Rorer. Dr. McCracken holds a B.S. in Microbiology, an M.S. in Pharmacology and a D.V.M. from The Ohio State University. We believe Dr. McCrackens extensive experience in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries qualifies him to serve on the Board of Directors.
David A. Ramsay. Mr. Ramsay has served as a member of our Board of Directors since April 2017 and as a member of the Board of Directors of Mast Therapeutics, Inc. from June 2011 to April 2017. Mr. Ramsay serves
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on the board of directors of Exuma Biotech, Inc., a privately held biotechnology company, and served on the board of directors of La Jolla Pharmaceutical Company from September 2019 until its acquisition by Innoviva, Inc. in August 2022. Mr. Ramsay served as Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Bonti, Inc., a private, clinical stage biotechnology company focused on the development and commercialization of neurotoxin products for therapeutic and aesthetic applications, from February 2018 until its acquisition by Allergan plc in October 2018. Mr. Ramsay served as Chief Financial Officer of Halozyme Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: HALO), a biotechnology company developing and commercializing novel oncology therapies, from 2003 to 2009 and from May 2013 until his retirement in July 2015. He also served as Halozymes Vice President, Corporate Development from May 2009 to May 2013. From 2000 to 2003, Mr. Ramsay was Vice President, Chief Financial Officer of Lathian Systems, Inc., a provider of technology-based sales solutions for the life science industry. From 1998 to 2000, he served as Vice President, Treasurer and Director, Corporate Finance of Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc. (formerly ICN Pharmaceuticals, Inc.), a multinational specialty pharmaceutical company. Mr. Ramsay began his career at Deloitte & Touche, where he obtained his CPA license. Mr. Ramsay holds a B.S. in business administration from the University of California, Berkeley and an M.B.A. with a dual major in finance and strategic management from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. We believe Mr. Ramsays significant experience as chief financial officer of life science companies, particularly his experiences at Halozyme during its successful development and its commercialization of its first products, and at a large audit and financial advisory firm, qualify him to serve on the Board of Directors.
An van Es-Johansson. Dr. An van Es-Johansson has served on our Board of Directors since December 2019. Since March 2021, Dr. van Es-Johansson has served as a senior advisor to Sinfonia Pharma, a Swedish pharmaceutical company with a primary focus on neurological diseases. She was previously the Chief Medical Officer and Head of Development for AlzeCure Pharma from September 2018 to March 2021. From May 2005 to September 2018, Dr. van Es-Johansson served in a range of executive roles of increasing responsibility at Sobi, an international rare disease company headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden, including as Vice President and Head of EMENAR Medical Affairs for Specialty Care and Partner Products from March 2013 to January 2018. Prior to her time at Sobi, Dr. van Es-Johansson served in leadership positions at large pharmaceutical and smaller biotechnology companies, including Roche, Eli Lilly, Active Biotech, and BioStratum. From 2004 to 2016 she was a member of the Scientific Advisory Board for Uppsala Bio and currently serves on the board of directors at Plus Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: PSTV), Lumos Pharma, Inc. (Nasdaq: LUMO), and the privately held company Agendia BV. Dr. van Es-Johansson received a M.D. from Erasmus University, Rotterdam, The Netherlands. We believe Dr. van Es-Johanssons medical knowledge and experience in the pharmaceutical industry qualifies her to serve on the Board of Directors.
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Director Independence
Our Board of Directors has determined that each of our directors other than Matthew Pauls is independent as defined under the Nasdaq Stock Market listing standards and rules and regulations of the SEC.
Board Committees
Our Board of Directors currently has an Audit Committee, Compensation Committee and Nominating and Governance Committee.
Audit Committee. The Audit Committee of our Board of Directors was established by our Board of Directors in accordance with Section 3(a)(58)(A) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the Exchange Act) to oversee our corporate accounting and financial reporting processes and audits of our financial statements. For this purpose, the Audit Committee performs several functions, including, among other things:
| selecting, appointing and providing for the compensation of the independent registered public accounting firm to be engaged to prepare and issue an audit report and perform other audit, review or attest services; |
| approving any other permissible non-audit services to be provided by the independent auditor; |
| overseeing the work and evaluating the performance of the independent auditor, and, if so determined by the Audit Committee, terminating and replacing the independent auditor; |
| reviewing and discussing, including with management and the independent auditor, the annual and quarterly financial statements; |
| reviewing any proposed significant changes to accounting principles and practices; |
| reviewing any material changes to the system of internal control over financial reporting; |
| reviewing managements report on effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting and the independent auditors audit of the effectiveness of Savaras internal control over financial reporting, if applicable; |
| establishing a procedure for receipt, retention and treatment of any complaints or concerns received by Savara about accounting, internal accounting controls or auditing matters; |
| reviewing, approving and overseeing any related party transaction that would require disclosure pursuant to Item 404 of Regulation S-K; |
| overseeing the implementation and enforcement of our insider trading policy; |
| reviewing and evaluating any significant financial risk exposures facing Savara and the steps our management has taken to control and monitor such exposures; |
| reviewing with management risks related to data privacy and cybersecurity facing the Company and the steps management has taken to control and monitor such exposures; and |
| reviewing with management (i) the adequacy of controls and security for the Companys information technology systems and (ii) the Companys response plan in the event of a security breach impacting those systems. |
Savaras management has the primary responsibility for our consolidated financial statements and the reporting process including our system of internal accounting and financial controls.
The Audit Committee currently consists of Mr. Ramsay, who serves as its Chair, Dr. van Es-Johansson and Mr. Hawkins. Our Board of Directors reviews the Nasdaq listing standards definition of independence for Audit
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Committee members on an annual basis and has determined that all current members of the Audit Committee are independent as currently defined by listing standards and Rule 10A-3 of the Exchange Act. Our Board of Directors has also determined that Mr. Ramsay qualifies as an audit committee financial expert, as defined in applicable SEC rules.
Compensation Committee. The Compensation Committee of our Board of Directors acts on behalf of our Board of Directors to review, adopt, or recommend for adoption, and oversee Savaras compensation strategy, policies, plans and programs. For this purpose, the Compensation Committee performs several functions, including, among other things:
| reviewing and recommending to our Board of Directors for its determination and approval the amount, form and terms of compensation of our Chief Executive Officer and other officers (as such term is defined under the Nasdaq listing standards); |
| reviewing and making recommendations to our Board of Directors regarding our overall compensation strategy and policies; |
| reviewing and making recommendations regarding Savaras equity and/or cash incentive plans and other benefit plans and, to the extent as may be permitted or required under such plans, the committee has the power and authority to administer the plans, establish guidelines, interpret plan documents, select participants, and approve grants and awards thereunder; |
| granting equity awards to non-officer employees and consultants in accordance with the terms of Savaras equity incentive plan and to establish compensation policies and practices applicable to non-officer employees; |
| evaluating the relationship between executive officer compensation policies and practices and corporate risk management to confirm those policies and practices do not incentivize excessive risk-taking; |
| evaluating and making recommendations to our Board of Directors regarding the compensation of non-employee directors; |
| retaining, obtaining the advice of, engaging, compensating, and terminating compensation consultants, legal counsel and such other advisors as it deems necessary and advisable to assist it in carrying out its responsibilities and functions; and |
| appointing, compensating, and overseeing the work of any of its compensation consultants, legal counsel, and other advisors; and |
| overseeing, administering, and monitoring compliance with a policy with respect to the recovery or clawback of compensation that complies with the requirements of the SEC and Nasdaq listing standards. |
The Compensation Committee may delegate its authority to administer, establish guidelines for, and interpret plans and similar programs, as well as its authority to determine the compensation of Savaras non-officer employees to Savaras officers and other appropriate supervisory personnel. To the extent permitted by applicable law and regulations and subject to certain limitations, the Compensation Committee may delegate to a subcommittee or one or more officers of Savara (or other appropriate supervisory personnel) its authority to grant equity awards to qualified persons who are not officers or members of the Board, in accordance with guidelines approved by the Compensation Committee or the Board of Directors.
The Compensation Committee currently consists of Mr. Elam, who serves as its Chair, Dr. McCracken and Dr. van Es-Johansson. All members of the Compensation Committee are independent as currently defined under the Nasdaq listing standards and Rule 10C-1 of the Exchange Act.
Nominating and Governance Committee. The Nominating and Governance Committee of our Board of Directors is responsible for identifying, reviewing and evaluating candidates to serve as directors of Savara
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(consistent with criteria approved by our Board of Directors), reviewing and evaluating incumbent directors, selecting or recommending to our Board of Directors for selection candidates for election to the Board, making recommendations to our Board of Directors regarding the membership of the committees of the Board, assessing the performance of the Board, and developing a set of corporate governance principles for Savara. The responsibilities of the Nominating and Governance Committee relating to the nomination of directors include, among other things, the following:
| identifying and recommending to our Board of Directors nominees for possible election to the Board of Directors; |
| evaluating and making recommendations to our Board of Directors regarding its size, composition and leadership structure; |
| reviewing and assessing Savaras corporate governance guidelines and recommending any proposed changes thereto to our Board of Directors; and |
| reviewing and making recommendations to our Board of Directors regarding issues of executive officer succession planning and providing oversight with respect to corporate governance matters. |
The Nominating and Governance Committee currently consists of Dr. McCracken, who serves as its Chair, Mr. Elam and Dr. Sun. All members of the Nominating and Governance Committee are independent as currently defined in Nasdaq listing standards.
Our Board of Directors may from time to time establish other committees. Charters for the Audit Committee, the Compensation Committee and the Nominating and Governance Committee, as well as our corporate governance guidelines, are posted on our corporate website at: https://savarapharma.com/investors/corporate-governance/.
Meetings of the Board and its Committees
As required under applicable listing standards and our corporate governance guidelines, our Board of Directors meets on a regular basis to fulfill its responsibilities, including at least once each quarter, and our independent directors meet at least annually in executive session outside the presence of non-independent directors and management. During 2023, our Board of Directors met four times, the Audit Committee met four times, the Compensation Committee met two times and the Nominating and Governance Committee met two times. Each member of our Board of Directors who served on our Board during all or part of 2023 attended 75% or more of the aggregate of (i) the total number of Board meetings held during the period of such members service and (ii) the total number of meetings of committees on which such member served during the period of such members service.
Board Leadership Structure and Role in Risk Oversight
The leadership structure of our Board of Directors combines the positions of Chair of the Board and Chief Executive Officer and includes a Lead Independent Director. Matthew Pauls currently serves as both the Chair of our Board of Directors and as our Chief Executive Officer. Joseph McCracken currently serves as the Lead Independent Director and undertakes the responsibilities specified in our corporate governance guidelines, which include coordinating the activities of the independent directors and acting as principal liaison between the independent directors and the Chair, consulting with the Chair regarding the schedule and agenda of Board meetings, overseeing the retention of consultants who report to the Board or independent directors, and consulting with the Chair regarding the flow of information from management that is necessary for the independent directors to effectively and responsibly perform their duties.
Our corporate governance guidelines do not require our Board of Directors to combine the roles of Chair and Chief Executive Officer, but our Board of Directors believes this leadership structure is the appropriate
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structure for our company at this time. Pursuant to our corporate governance guidelines, our Board of Directors may choose its chair in any manner that it deems to be in the best interests of our company. We believe that combining the roles of Chair of our Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer promotes unification and direction, allowing for increased operational effectiveness and strong, efficient leadership. We believe Mr. Pauls is best positioned to identify strategic priorities, lead critical discussion, and execute our business plans. We believe that the leadership structure of our Board of Directors and its committees provides independent oversight that balances Mr. Pauls combined role, which helps ensure a strong, independent, and active Board of Directors.
Our Board of Directors is responsible for oversight of risks facing our company, while our management is responsible for day-to-day management of risk. Our Board of Directors, as a whole, directly administers its risk oversight function. In addition, the risk oversight function is also administered through the committees of our Board of Directors, which oversee risks inherent in their respective areas of responsibility, report to our Board of Directors regularly and involve the Board as necessary. For example, the Audit Committee oversees our financial exposure and financial reporting related risks, and the Compensation Committee reviews risks related to our compensation programs and practices and both such committees make recommendations to our Board regarding oversight of such risks. Our Board of Directors, as a whole, directly oversees our strategic and business risk, including product development risk and business continuity risk, through regular interactions with our management. We believe our Boards leadership structure supports its role in risk oversight, with our executive officers responsible for assessing and managing risks facing our company on a day-to-day basis and the members of our Board of Directors providing oversight of such risk management.
Director Resignation Policy
Under Delaware law, an incumbent director may remain in office notwithstanding the failure to receive the required vote for re-election until the directors successor is duly elected. To address this holdover rule, our corporate governance guidelines include a director resignation policy whereby our Board of Directors will nominate for re-election only those directors who tender an irrevocable, contingent resignation in writing to the Chair of our Board of Directors. The resignation becomes effective only if (a) the director fails to receive a sufficient number of votes for re-election at a meeting of stockholders at which director elections are held and (b) our Board of Directors accepts the resignation. If a director fails to receive the required vote for re-election, the Nominating and Governance Committee, or such other committee designated by our Board of Directors, which we refer to as the reviewing committee, will act promptly to consider the directors resignation and recommend to the full Board of Directors whether to accept or reject the resignation, or whether other action should be taken. Our Board of Directors expects the director whose resignation is under consideration to abstain from participating in any decision regarding that resignation. In considering whether to accept or reject a directors resignation, each of the reviewing committee and our Board of Directors may consider any factors it deems relevant. Within 90 days after the date of the certification of the election results for the applicable stockholders meeting, our Board of Directors will act on the resignation, taking into account the reviewing committees recommendation, and publicly disclose its decision.
Prohibition on Hedging and Speculative Transactions Involving our Securities
As part of our insider trading policy, our directors and employees (including our executive officers) and designated consultants, advisors and contractors are prohibited from engaging in speculative transactions involving our securities, including short sales, sales against the box or any equivalent transaction involving our securities (or the securities of any of our customers, vendors, suppliers or other business partners). In addition, as part of our insider trading policy, our directors, officers and other employees and consultants, advisors and contractors to our company are prohibited from engaging in hedging or derivative transactions involving our securities, such as cashless collars, forward sales, equity swaps and other similar or related transactions. Further, our insider trading policy states that our directors and employees (including our executive officers) and other persons subject to the policy are not permitted to hypothecate or pledge our securities to secure a loan and that they cannot purchase our securities on margin (that is, borrow funds to purchase securities, including in connection with exercising any stock options).
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Savara is committed to improving the lives of patients with rare respiratory diseases. In support of that commitment, below are a few highlights that align that commitment with our approach to corporate responsibility.
| Ethics & Compliance. We are committed to acting with integrity in every aspect of our business. We have adopted a Code of Conduct and require all employees to complete training on it. Additionally, we have established a toll-free hotline and web-based service to enable anonymous reporting of concerns regarding ethical issues or suspected violations of our policies. In 2023, no reports were submitted. |
| Work Environment. We have adopted a Human Rights and Labor Standards Policy to evidence our commitment to ensuring that each of our employees and the people with whom we interact are treated with fairness, respect, and dignity. |
| Diversity and Inclusion. We value diverse backgrounds and viewpoints and are committed to equal opportunity. We aim to recruit, hire, place, develop, compensate, and advance people based on the needs of our organization and the qualifications, performance, skills, and experience of our people. We expect to continue to enhance our workforce diversity and advance the development of diverse talent. We consistently evaluate the opportunity for diversity for both our employee workforce and our Board of Directors. As part of our diversity and inclusion strategy, upon beginning employment, all employees receive training on workplace diversity and inclusion. |
| Employee Engagement and Professional Development. We strive to create a collaborative work environment and encourage employee engagement, and we believe in investing in our employees. We seek to develop our employee talent within the organization through access to training, continuous learning programs and other development initiatives. |
| Health and Safety. The health and safety of our employees is a top priority, and our goal is to provide a safe and healthy work environment for all personnel. We aim to comply with applicable federal, state, and local laws regarding workplace safety and have adopted a Health and Safety in the Workplace Policy that is applicable to all employees. |
| Employee Wellbeing. We are committed to supporting the wellbeing of our employees. We help employees balance the demands of work and personal life by offering flexible work schedules and the ability to work remotely. Additionally, we offer paid parental leave to employees who have welcomed a new family member through birth, adoption, or foster placement. In recognition of the challenges of returning to work following parental leave, our policy allows employees to work a reduced schedule during their first month back, with no decrease in compensation. |
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Criteria for Board Membership and Process for Identifying and Evaluating Nominees
In recommending candidates for appointment or election to our Board of Directors, the Nominating and Governance Committee considers the appropriate balance of experience, skills and characteristics required of our Board of Directors and seeks to ensure that at least a majority of the directors are independent under Nasdaq listing standards and that the Boards Audit Committee and Compensation Committee will be comprised of directors who meet applicable Nasdaq listing standards and SEC rules regarding qualifications to serve on such committees. Candidates for director are selected on the basis of their depth and breadth of experience, wisdom, integrity, ability to make independent analytical inquiries, understanding of our business environment, willingness to devote adequate time to board duties, the interplay of the candidates experience and skills with those of other directors and the extent to which the candidate would be a desirable addition to our Board and any of its committees. Directors generally will not be nominated for re-election at any annual or special meeting held after their 80th birthday. In addition, our corporate governance guidelines require that directors limit their service on boards of directors of public companies to a total of four (including service on our Board). Other than the foregoing, there are no stated minimum criteria for director nominees, although the Nominating and Governance Committee may also consider such other factors as it may deem are in the best interests of our company and its stockholders.
The Nominating and Governance Committee recognizes the importance of diversity to a well-functioning board. When identifying and selecting director nominees, it takes into account diversity of background, skills, professional experience and perspective within the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. The Nominating and Governance Committee is committed to ensuring that the Board reflects a diverse range of viewpoints. The corporate governance guidelines note the importance of diversity and specify that when assessing candidates for Board membership, the Board shall strive to achieve a diverse balance of experiences, skills, perspectives, and backgrounds among its members, including gender, age, race, ethnicity, and other attributes.
In the case of incumbent directors whose terms of office are set to expire, the Nominating and Governance Committee reviews these directors overall service to the company during their terms, including the number of meetings attended, level of participation, quality of performance and any other relationships and transactions that might impair the directors independence. In the case of new director candidates, the Nominating and Governance Committee also determines whether the nominee is independent for Nasdaq purposes, which determination is based upon applicable Nasdaq listing standards and applicable SEC rules and regulations. The Nominating and Governance Committee then uses its network of contacts to compile a list of potential candidates, but may also engage, if it deems appropriate, a professional search firm. The Nominating and Governance Committee conducts any appropriate and necessary inquiries into the backgrounds and qualifications of possible candidates after considering the function and needs of our Board of Directors. The Nominating and Governance Committee meets to discuss and consider the candidates qualifications and then selects a nominee by majority vote which is then recommended to the full Board of Directors.
Stockholder Recommendations
The Nominating and Governance Committee will consider director candidates recommended by stockholders. The Nominating and Governance Committee does not intend to alter the manner in which it evaluates candidates, including the minimum criteria set forth above, based on whether or not the candidate was recommended by a stockholder. Stockholders who wish to recommend individuals for consideration by the Nominating and Governance Committee to become nominees for election to our Board of Directors may do so by delivering a written recommendation to the Nominating and Governance Committee at the following address: c/o Savara Inc., One Summit Square, 1717 Langhorne Newtown Rd., Suite 300, Langhorne, PA 19047, Attn: Corporate Secretary. Submissions must include the following information: the name, age, business address and residence address of the proposed nominee; a statement of the proposed nominees business experience and
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educational background; the proposed nominees principal occupation or employment; the class and number of shares of our capital stock beneficially owned by the proposed nominee; a detailed description of all relationships, arrangements or understandings between the proposing stockholder and the proposed nominee and any other person or persons (naming such person or persons) pursuant to which such proposed nomination is being made by the stockholder; a detailed description of all relationships, arrangements or understandings between the proposed nominee and any service-provider or supplier to, or competitor of Savara; information regarding each of the criteria for Board membership described above in sufficient detail to allow the Nominating and Governance Committee to evaluate the proposed nominee; and a statement from the proposed nominee that he or she is willing to be considered and willing to serve as a director if nominated and elected. The proposing stockholder must also include the following information with respect to such stockholder: documentation supporting that the proposing stockholder is a stockholder of Savara; the proposing stockholders name and address, as they appear on Savaras books; and the class and number of shares of Savaras capital stock beneficially owned by the proposing stockholder. If a stockholder submits a director recommendation in compliance with the procedure described above, the Nominating and Governance Committee will conduct an initial evaluation of the proposed nominee and, if it determines the proposed nominee may be a qualified candidate, the Nominating and Governance Committee and one or more members of the management team will interview the proposed nominee to determine whether he or she might be suitable to be a director. If the Nominating and Governance Committee determines the proposed nominee would be a valuable addition to our Board of Directors, based on the criteria for Board membership described above and the specific needs of the Board at the time, it will recommend to the Board of Directors such persons nomination. In connection with its evaluation, the Nominating and Governance Committee may request additional information from the proposed nominee and/or the proposing stockholder.
Separately, our Bylaws contain provisions that address the process by which a stockholder may nominate an individual to stand for election to the Board at Savaras annual meeting of stockholders. Such nominations may be made only if the stockholder has given timely written notice to the companys corporate secretary containing the information required by our Bylaws. To be timely, such notice must be received at Savaras principal executive offices not earlier than the 120th day, nor later than the close of business on the 90th day, prior to the first anniversary of the date of the preceding years annual meeting as first specified in the notice of meeting (without regard to any postponements or adjournments of such meeting after such notice was first sent), except that if no annual meeting was held in the previous year or the date of the annual meeting is more than 30 days earlier or later than such anniversary date, such notice must be received no earlier than the 120th day prior to the date of such annual meeting and not later than the close of business on the later of the 90th day prior to the date of such annual meeting or the 10th day following the date on which Savara first publicly announces the date of such meeting.
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Stockholders who wish to communicate with our Board of Directors or an individual director may do so by sending a written communication addressed to the Board of Directors or an individual director to: Savara Inc., One Summit Square, 1717 Langhorne Newtown Rd., Suite 300, Langhorne, PA 19047, Attention: Investor Relations. Submitting stockholders should indicate they are a stockholder of our company. Depending on the subject matter, investor relations will: forward the inquiry to the Chair of our Board of Directors, who may forward the inquiry to a particular director if the inquiry is addressed to a particular director; forward the inquiry to the appropriate personnel within our company (for instance, if it is primarily commercial in nature); attempt to handle the inquiry directly (for instance, if it is a request for information about our company or a stock-related matter); or not forward the inquiry, if it relates to an improper or inappropriate topic or is otherwise irrelevant.
Any stockholder who wishes to communicate with our Board of Directors to report complaints or concerns related to accounting, internal accounting controls or auditing may submit a report telephonically or through a web-based system via the toll-free telephone number or the internet address provided in our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics, which is available on our corporate website at https://savarapharma.com/investors/corporate-governance/.
We encourage but do not require our directors to attend our annual meetings of stockholders. Five of the directors serving on our Board at the time of our 2023 annual meeting of stockholders attended the annual meeting.
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Our current executive officers, their ages and positions held as of April 1, 2024, are as follows:
Name |
Age | Title | ||||
Matthew Pauls |
53 | Chair of the Board of Directors and Chief Executive Officer | ||||
Raymond Pratt |
73 | Chief Medical Officer | ||||
David Lowrance |
56 | Chief Financial & Administrative Officer and Secretary | ||||
Robert Lutz |
55 | Chief Operating Officer | ||||
Anne Erickson |
52 | Chief Business Officer |
Biographical Information
Matthew Pauls. For biographical information regarding Mr. Pauls, see Nominees for Election to the Board above.
Raymond Pratt. Dr. Pratt has served as our Chief Medical Officer since November 2022. Dr. Pratt was previously employed by Rockwell Medical, Inc. (Nasdaq: RMTI) (Rockwell Medical), where he served as Chief Development Officer from November 2019 to March 2022 and Chief Medical Officer from April 2012 to November 2019. Prior to his positions at Rockwell Medical, Dr. Pratt held senior roles at Shire PLC (Shire), including Vice President of R&D, Scientific Leader of Emerging Business and Renal Business Units, Vice President of Global Clinical Medicine and Global Clinical Affairs, and Head of U.S. Clinical Development. Prior to his time at Shire, he was Senior Director of Clinical Research and Development and Head of Central Nervous System and Internal Medicine Clinical Development at Eisai Medical Research for nine years. Since December 2021, Dr. Pratt has served on the board of directors of Xortx Therapeutics Inc. (Nasdaq: XRTX), a biotechnology company primarily focused on therapies for progressive kidney disease. Dr. Pratt is a graduate of the University of Illinois College of Medicine and completed his nephrology fellowship at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center where he practiced nephrology and served as the assistant chief of nephrology services and director of dialysis services from 1983 to 1985. Dr. Pratt was the recipient of a physician scientist training grant at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and the recipient of a James Shannon New Investigator award from the NIH. He served as an assistant professor in the John Hopkins Department of Medicine and Nephrology from 1989 to 1993.
David Lowrance. Mr. Lowrance has served as our Chief Financial & Administrative Officer since December 2022 and Secretary since July 2017, and he served as our Chief Financial Officer from November 2016 to December 2022. From September 2014 to October 2016, Mr. Lowrance served as the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of Edgemont Pharmaceuticals, a fully-integrated specialty pharmaceutical company with multiple marketed products in the CNS space. From April 2011 to September 2014, Mr. Lowrance served as the Chief Financial Officer and Secretary of Acucela Inc. (Acucela), a clinical stage biotechnology company that specializes in ophthalmic therapeutics, where he was responsible for overseeing all aspects of Acucelas day-to-day operations, business development and growth endeavors, investor relations and corporate communications. While at Acucela, Mr. Lowrance helped lead a $162 million international initial public offering, with a listing on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. From March 2003 to April 2011, Mr. Lowrance was Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Cumberland Pharmaceuticals Inc. (Nasdaq: CPIX), a specialty pharmaceutical company focused on commercializing branded prescription products, where he oversaw all aspects of finance and accounting, business and growth strategy and product development. Mr. Lowrance, a CPA, holds a B.B.A. in Accounting from the University of Georgia.
Robert Lutz. Mr. Lutz has served as our Chief Operating Officer since February 2023. From March 2021 to February 2023, he served as the Chief Financial and Business Officer of iBio, Inc. a biotechnology company developing precision antibody immunotherapies using an AI-driven platform. Previously, Mr. Lutz was employed by Strongbridge Biopharma plc (Strongbridge), a biopharmaceutical company focused on therapies that target rare diseases, where he served as Chief Financial Officer from August 2019 to March 2021 and as
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Chief Business Officer from October 2014 to August 2019. Prior to joining Strongbridge, Mr. Lutz worked from December 2004 to May 2014 at Shire Plc, a publicly traded specialty biopharmaceutical company prior to being purchased by Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Ltd., where he most recently served as Vice President and held key leadership positions in the Specialty Pharmaceutical division. Prior to Shire Plc, Mr. Lutz worked in a variety of roles, including Vice President of Finance, for Cinergy Corp., an electric and gas utility company. Mr. Lutz also worked as a Senior Analyst at Alan B. Slifka and Co., a hedge fund, after having started his career at Goldman Sachs Group Inc., where he served as a Financial Analyst in its principal investment area. He holds a B.A. in Economics and Computer Science from Amherst College and an M.B.A. from the Kellogg School of Management.
Anne Erickson. Ms. Erickson has served as our Chief Business Officer since August 2023. Prior to her appointment as Chief Business Officer, Ms. Erickson served in various roles of increasing responsibility with Savara, including as our SVP of Global Business Operations from September 2022 to August 2023, SVP and Chief of Staff from October 2020 to September 2022, VP and Head of Investor Relations & Corporate Communications from May 2019 to October 2022, and Director of Investor Relations & Corporate Communications from October 2018 to May 2019. Prior to joining Savara, she held leadership roles within corporate, consulting, and agency settings at companies such as Mirati Therapeutics, Inc., Halozyme Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: HALO), Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE), and Ogilvy. Ms. Erickson holds a B.A. in English from the University of Minnesota.
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SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT
The following table sets forth information regarding beneficial ownership of our common stock as of April 8, 2024 (the Evaluation Date), or an earlier date for information based on filings with the SEC, by (a) each person known to us to beneficially own more than 5% of the outstanding shares of our common stock, (b) each director and nominee for director, (c) each of the named executive officers (NEOs) listed in the summary compensation table included in this proxy statement, and (d) all of our current directors and executive officers as a group. Percent of beneficial ownership is based on 138,176,641 shares of our common stock outstanding as of the Evaluation Date.
Beneficial ownership is determined in accordance with the rules of the SEC and includes voting or investment power with respect to the securities. Shares of common stock that may be acquired by an individual or group within 60 days of the Evaluation Date, pursuant to the exercise of options or warrants, are deemed to be outstanding for the purpose of computing the percentage ownership of such individual or group but are not deemed to be outstanding for the purpose of computing the percentage ownership of any other person shown in the table.
Except as indicated in footnotes to this table, we believe that the stockholders named in this table have sole voting and investment power with respect to all shares of common stock shown to be beneficially owned by them, based on information provided to us by such stockholders. Unless otherwise indicated, the address for each stockholder listed is: c/o Savara Inc., One Summit Square, 1717 Langhorne Newtown Rd., Suite 300, Langhorne, PA 19047.
Name and Address of Beneficial Owner |
Shares Beneficially Owned |
Percent of Outstanding |
||||||
Principal Stockholders: |
||||||||
Entities affiliated with Bain Capital Life Sciences, L.P. (1) |
14,568,622 | 9.99 | % | |||||
Persons and entities affiliated with New Enterprise Associates (2) |
24,471,264 | 17.71 | % | |||||
Persons and entities affiliated with Farallon Capital Management, LLC (3) |
14,641,630 | 9.99 | % | |||||
Persons and entities affiliated with TCG Crossover (4) |
10,000,000 | 7.24 | % | |||||
Persons and entities affiliated with Prudential Financial (5) |
9,788,303 | 7.08 | % | |||||
Persons and entities affiliated with Jennison Associates LLC (6) |
8,815,358 | 6.38 | % | |||||
Persons and entities affiliated with Adage Capital Partners, L.P. (7) |
7,637,930 | 5.53 | % | |||||
Blackrock, Inc. (8) |
7,261,530 | 5.26 | % | |||||
Directors and NEOs: |
||||||||
Matthew Pauls (9) |
2,271,001 | 1.64 | % | |||||
Nevan Elam (10) |
112,451 | * | ||||||
Richard J. Hawkins (11) |
178,950 | * | ||||||
Joseph S. McCracken (12) |
317,894 | * | ||||||
David A. Ramsay (13) |
2,348,892 | 1.70 | % | |||||
Ricky Sun (14) |
132,000 | * | ||||||
An van Es-Johansson (15) |
132,000 | * | ||||||
Raymond Pratt (16) |
153,125 | * | ||||||
David Lowrance (17) |
861,164 | * | ||||||
Robert Lutz (18) |
111,875 | * | ||||||
Anne Erickson (19) |
467,016 | * | ||||||
All current executive officers and directors as a group (11 persons) (20) |
7,086,368 | 5.13 | % |
* | Represents beneficial ownership of less than 1% of the shares of common stock of Savara. |
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(1) | The information as to beneficial ownership is based on a Schedule 13D/A filed on July 19, 2023 with the SEC on behalf of Bain Capital Life Sciences Fund II, L.P., BCIP Life Sciences Associates, LP, and BCLS II Investco, LP (collectively, the Bain Reporting Persons). The Schedule 13D/A states that, collectively, the Bain Reporting Persons have shared voting and dispositive power over 6,913,208 shares of common stock of Savara and warrants to purchase 26,457,355 shares of common stock of Savara; however, the warrants can only be exercised to the extent such exercise would not cause the Bain Reporting Persons to beneficially own more than 9.99% of the total number of shares of common stock of Savara outstanding immediately after giving effect to the exercise. The address of the Bain Reporting Persons is 200 Clarendon Street, Boston, MA 02116. |
(2) | The information as to beneficial ownership is based on a Schedule 13D/A filed on July 26, 2023 with the SEC on behalf of Growth Equity Opportunities 17, LLC (GEO) and the following associated persons and entities: New Enterprise Associates 17, L.P. (NEA 17), NEA Partners 17, L.P. (NEA Partners 17), NEA 17 GP, LLC (NEA 17 LLC), Forest Baskett (Baskett), Ali Behbahani (Behbahani), Carmen Chang (Chang), Anthony A. Florence, Jr. (Florence), Mohamad H. Makhzoumi (Makhzoumi), Edward T. Mathers (Mathers), Scott D. Sandell (Sandell), Paul Walker (Walker), and Rick Yang (Yang) (collectively, the NEA Reporting Persons). The Schedule 13D/A states that, collectively, the NEA Reporting Persons have shared voting and dispositive power over 24,471,264 shares of common stock of Savara. The address of the principal business office of GEO, NEA 17, NEA Partners 17, NEA 17, LLC and Sandell is New Enterprise Associates, 1954 Greenspring Drive, Suite 600, Timonium, MD 21093. The address of the principal business office of Behbahani and Mathers is New Enterprise Associates, 5425 Wisconsin Avenue, Suite 800, Chevy Chase, MD 20815. The address of the principal business office of Baskett, Chang, Makhzoumi, Walker and Yang is New Enterprise Associates, 2855 Sand Hill Road, Menlo Park, California 94025. The address of the principal business office of Florence is New Enterprise Associates, 104 5th Avenue, 19th Floor, New York, NY 10001. |
(3) | The information as to beneficial ownership is based on a Schedule 13G/A filed on February 1, 2024 with the SEC on behalf of Farallon Capital Partners, L.P. and the following associated persons and entities: Farallon Capital Institutional Partners, L.P., Farallon Capital Institutional Partners II, L.P., Farallon Capital Institutional Partners III, L.P., Four Crossings Institutional Partners V, L.P., Farallon Capital Offshore Investors II, L.P., Farallon Capital (AM) Investors, L.P., Farallon Capital F5 Master I, L.P., Farallon Partners, L.L.C., Farallon Institutional (GP) V, L.L.C., and Farallon F5 (GP), L.L.C., Joshua J. Dapice, Philip D. Dreyfuss, Hannah E. Dunn, Richard B. Fried, Varun N. Gehani, Nicolas Giauque, David T. Kim, Michael G. Linn, Rajiv A. Patel, Thomas G. Roberts, Jr., Edric C. Saito, William Seybold, Daniel S. Short, Andrew J. M. Spokes, John R. Warren and Mark C. Wehrly (collectively, the Farallon Reporting Persons). The 13G/A states that, collectively, the Farallon Reporting Persons have shared voting and dispositive power over 6,255,406 shares of common stock of Savara and warrants to purchase 17,940,021 shares of common stock of Savara; however, the warrants can only be exercised to the extent such exercise would not cause the Farallon Reporting Persons to beneficially own more than 9.99% of the total number of shares of common stock of Savara outstanding immediately after giving effect to the exercise. The address of the Farallon Reporting Persons is c/o Farallon Capital Management, L.L.C., One Maritime Plaza, Suite 2100, San Francisco, California 94111. |
(4) | The information as to beneficial ownership is based on a Schedule 13G filed July 25, 2023 with the SEC on behalf of TCG Crossover GP I, LLC, TCG Crossover Fund I, L.P. and Chen Yu (collectively, the TCG Reporting Persons). The Schedule 13G states that the TCG Reporting Persons have shared voting and dispositive power over 10,000,000 shares of common stock of Savara. The address of each of the TCG Reporting Persons is 705 High St., Palo Alto, CA 94301. |
(5) | The information as to beneficial ownership is based on a Schedule 13G filed February 13, 2024 with the SEC on behalf of Prudential Financial, Inc. (Prudential). The Schedule 13G states that Prudential may be deemed the beneficial owner of the same securities as the following subsidiaries of Prudential: Jennison Associates, LLC (Jennison), PGIM Quantitative Solutions LLC and PRUCO Securities, LLC. 8,815,358 of the shares being reported by Prudential are also being reported by its subsidiary, Jennison (see footnote 6 below). The Schedule 13G states that Prudential has sole voting power over 6,345 shares of common stock, shared voting power over 9,781,958 shares of common stock, sole dispositive power over 6,345 shares of |
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common stock and shared dispositive power over 9,781,958 shares of common stock. The address of the principal business office of Prudential is 751 Broad Street, Newark, New Jersey 07102-3777. |
(6) | The information as to beneficial ownership is based on a Schedule 13G filed February 8, 2024 with the SEC on behalf of Jennison. The Schedule 13G states that Jennison has sole voting and shared dispositive power over 8,815,358 shares of common stock of Savara. Jennison furnishes investment advice to several investment companies, insurance separate accounts and institutional clients (Managed Portfolios). As a result of its role as investment adviser of the Managed Portfolios, Jennison may be deemed to be the beneficial owner of the shares of Savaras common stock held by such Managed Portfolios. Prudential indirectly owns 100% of equity interests of Jennison. As a result, Prudential may be deemed to have the power to exercise or to direct the exercise of such voting and/or dispositive power that Jennison may have with respect to shares of common stock of Savara held by the Managed Portfolios. Jennison does not file jointly with Prudential, as such, shares of common stock of Savara reported on Jennisons Schedule 13G may be included in the shares reported on any Schedule 13G that may be filed by Prudential. Prudential may be deemed the beneficial owner of 8,815,358 shares of common stock of Savara. The address of Jennison is 466 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10017. |
(7) | The information as to beneficial ownership is based on a Schedule 13G/A filed February 7, 2024 with the SEC on behalf of Adage Capital Partners, L.P. and the following associated persons and entities: Adage Capital Partners GP, L.L.C., Adage Capital Management, L.P., Robert Atchinson and Phillip Gross (collectively, the Adage Reporting Persons). The Schedule 13G/A states that the Adage Reporting Persons have shared voting and dispositive power over 7,637,930 shares of common stock of Savara. The address of each of the Adage Reporting Persons is 200 Clarendon Street, 52nd Floor, Boston, Massachusetts 02116. |
(8) | The information as to beneficial ownership is based on a Schedule 13G filed January 31, 2024 with the SEC on behalf of Blackrock, Inc. (Blackrock). The Schedule 13G states that Blackrock has sole voting power over 7,121,108 shares of common stock of Savara and dispositive power over 7,261,530 shares of common stock of Savara. The address of Blackrock is 50 Hudson Yards, New York, NY 10001. |
(9) | Includes 1,762,327 shares of common stock of Savara issuable upon the exercise of options or vesting of RSUs within 60 days of the Evaluation Date. |
(10) | Consists of 112,451 shares of common stock of Savara issuable upon the exercise of options or vesting of RSUs within 60 days of the Evaluation Date. |
(11) | Includes 166,209 shares of common stock of Savara issuable upon the exercise of options or vesting of RSUs within 60 days of the Evaluation Date. |
(12) | Includes 149,557 shares of common stock of Savara issuable upon the exercise of options or vesting of RSUs within 60 days of the Evaluation Date. |
(13) | Includes 147,750 shares of common stock of Savara issuable upon the exercise of options or vesting of RSUs within 60 days of the Evaluation Date. |
(14) | Does not include shares of common stock of Savara held by the Bain Reporting Persons. Ricky Sun is a Managing Director with Bain Capital Life Sciences, LP. Consists of 132,000 shares of common stock of Savara issuable upon the exercise of options or vesting of RSUs within 60 days of the Evaluation Date. |
(15) | Consists of 132,000 shares of common stock of Savara issuable upon the exercise of options or vesting of RSUs within 60 days of the Evaluation Date. |
(16) | Includes 143,125 shares of common stock of Savara issuable upon the exercise of options or vesting of RSUs within 60 days of the Evaluation Date. |
(17) | Includes 778,809 shares of common stock of Savara issuable upon the exercise of options or vesting of RSUs within 60 days of the Evaluation Date. |
(18) | Consists of 111,875 shares of common stock of Savara issuable upon the exercise of options or vesting of RSUs within 60 days of the Evaluation Date. |
(19) | Includes 352,625 shares of common stock of Savara issuable upon the exercise of options or vesting of RSUs within 60 days of the Evaluation Date. |
(20) | Includes 3,097,640 shares of common stock of Savara held of record by our directors and executive officers and 3,988,728 shares of common stock of Savara issuable upon the exercise of options or vesting of RSUs within 60 days of the Evaluation Date. |
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CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS
Our Audit Committees charter (which can be found at https://savarapharma.com/investors/corporate-governance/) requires that the Audit Committee review and approve any proposed related-party transaction that would require disclosure pursuant to Item 404 of Regulation S-K.
Savara had no related party transactions requiring disclosure under applicable SEC rules for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2023.
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EQUITY COMPENSATION PLAN INFORMATION
The table below provides information about our common stock that, as of December 31, 2023, may be issued upon the exercise of options and the vesting of RSUs under the following equity compensation plans (which are all our equity compensation plans; provided, however, that currently new equity awards may only be issued under the 2015 Omnibus Incentive Plan and the 2021 Inducement Plan):
| 2015 Omnibus Incentive Plan (the 2015 Plan) |
| Savara Inc. Stock Option Plan (the 2008 Plan) |
| 2021 Inducement Equity Incentive Plan (the 2021 Inducement Plan) |
Plan Category |
(a) Number of securities to be issued upon exercise of outstanding options, warrants and rights |
(b) Weighted average exercise price of outstanding options, warrants and rights (1) |
(c) Number of securities remaining available for future issuance under equity compensation plans (excluding securities reflected in column (a)) |
|||||||||
Equity Compensation Plans Approved by Stockholders |
10,232,879 | (2) | $ | 2.55 | 1,061,102 | |||||||
Equity Compensation Plans Not Approved by Stockholders |
2,888,438 | (3) | $ | 1.97 | 270,592 | |||||||
Total |
13,121,317 | $ | 2.42 | 1,331,694 |
(1) | The weighted average exercise price does not take into account the shares issuable upon vesting of outstanding RSUs, which have no exercise price. |
(2) | Includes 7,242,443 shares issuable upon the exercise of outstanding options granted under the 2015 Plan, 2,828,250 shares issuable upon the vesting of RSUs granted under the 2015 Plan, and 162,186 shares issuable upon the exercise of outstanding options granted under the 2008 Plan. |
(3) | Includes 2,228,438 shares issuable upon the exercise of options granted under the 2021 Inducement Plan, and 660,000 shares issuable upon the vesting of RSUs granted under the 2021 Inducement Plan. |
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COMPENSATION DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS
Introduction
The following Compensation Discussion and Analysis describes our compensation philosophy and the material elements of compensation in 2023 for our executive officers identified in the Summary Compensation Table below, who are referred to as our NEOs. For the year ended December 31, 2023, our NEOs were:
| Matthew Pauls, Chief Executive Officer |
| Robert Lutz, Chief Operating Officer |
| David Lowrance, Chief Financial & Administrative Officer and Secretary |
Overview
Hiring and retaining well-performing executives is important to our ongoing success. Our executive compensation program is intended to attract and retain qualified executive officers and to align the interests of our executive officers with those of our stockholders by incentivizing and rewarding achievement of business objectives that will enhance Savaras value and by promoting commitment to long-term success. As a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, these objectives are to be accomplished primarily by positioning us to successfully execute our drug product development and regulatory approval efforts and to translate those efforts, over time, into revenues and income from commercialization of, or strategic collaborations with respect to, our product candidates. To that end, our executive compensation packages include a base salary to provide an element of income stability and security that compensates our executive officers for expected day-to-day performance, annual performance-based cash incentives to motivate our executive officers to achieve near-term corporate goals that are set by our Board of Directors and intended to enhance the value of our company, and significant long-term incentives in the form of stock-based compensation to further align the interests of our executive officers with those of our stockholders, reward long-term value-creation, and increase retention. The components of our executive compensation program are also intended to complement each other and offset risk of overemphasis on short-term goals to the detriment of long-term value creation.
Neither our Board of Directors nor the Compensation Committee has adopted any formal or informal policies or guidelines for allocating compensation between cash and non-cash compensation, or among different forms of non-cash compensation. The determination of the Board of Directors or Compensation Committee as to the appropriate use and weight of each component of executive compensation has been historically subjective, based on its view of the relative importance of each component in meeting our overall objectives.
Our Compensation Committee is responsible for designing our executive compensation program each year and recommending it for approval by our Board of Directors. The Compensation Committee considers a number of factors, including the input of our Chief Executive Officer related to the compensation of executives other than himself. Additionally, our Compensation Committee engaged Aon (formerly Radford, Aon), an independent executive compensation consultant, to assist in evaluating our compensation practices, including measuring the competitiveness of our compensation practices against an appropriate peer group. Prior to engaging Aon, our Compensation Committee conducted a specific review of its relationship with Aon and determined that Aons work for the Compensation Committee did not raise any conflicts of interest, consistent with the guidance provided under the Dodd-Frank Act, and by the SEC and Nasdaq rules. Aon reports directly to our Compensation Committee Chair, takes direction from our Compensation Committee, and does not provide Savara with any services other than the services provided at the request of our Compensation Committee. Our Compensation Committee continues to monitor the independence of its compensation consultant on a periodic basis.
The Compensation Committee and Aon reviewed data from the Aon Global Life Sciences Survey as well as the compensation practices of a peer group of comparable companies. The Compensation Committee also considered the companys performance and the performance of each of the executive officers. Based on that
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review, in December 2022, our Compensation Committee recommended, and our Board of Directors approved, compensation packages for our executive officers that included base salary and annual performance-based cash compensation targets for 2023. In December 2023, our Board of Directors, upon the recommendation of our Compensation Committee, (i) evaluated the achievement of the performance-based targets and (ii) approved equity awards to each of our NEOs.
Factors for Determining 2023 Compensation
Performance
One of the primary objectives of our executive compensation program is to motivate our executive officers to achieve strategic goals that our Board of Directors believes will lead to short-term and long-term value creation for our stockholders. As discussed above, given the nature of our business and our life-cycle stage, these goals are largely tied to advancement of our product pipeline through the attainment of clinical and regulatory milestones, securing adequate funding, and managing our cash resources consistent with forecast and strategic plans. Although our Board of Directors establishes pre-approved goals in connection with setting the bonus targets, our Board retains significant discretion to assess performance in a subjective, non-formulaic manner.
Competitive Assessment
Our Board of Directors and Compensation Committee believe that examining data from similarly situated companies in our industry and establishing a peer group and reviewing compensation packages offered and paid to similar positions of that peer group provide useful information in evaluating our executive compensation practices, including the structure and levels of compensation that will allow us to attract, retain and motivate our executive officers and also align their interests with those of our stockholders.
In the third quarter of 2022, in consultation with Aon, our Compensation Committee reviewed the peer group of publicly traded companies in the biotechnology and biopharmaceutical industries used in its compensation assessment from the prior year and refined the peer group to more closely align with our market capitalization at the time of the selection and to replace peer companies that had been acquired. The following peer group was recommended by Aon and approved by the Compensation Committee and our management for consideration when evaluating equity awards granted to executive officers in December 2022, and for other decisions relating to 2023 compensation:
89Bio, Inc. |
aTyr Pharma, Inc.* |
Galecto, Inc.* | ||
Actinium Pharmaceuticals, Inc. |
BioAtla, Inc.* |
MEI Pharma, Inc. | ||
Aerovate Therapeutics, Inc.* |
Checkpoint Therapeutics, Inc.* |
Pliant Therapeutics, Inc.* | ||
AN2 Therapeutics, Inc.* |
Curis, Inc. |
Reata Pharmaceuticals Inc.* | ||
Annexon, Inc.* |
DICE Therapeutics, Inc.* |
Sesen Bio, Inc.* | ||
Arcturus Therapeutics Holdings Inc.* |
Evelo Biosciences, Inc. |
Viridian Therapeutics, Inc.* | ||
Ardelyx, Inc. |
Galectin Therapeutics Inc.* |
* | Added to the peer group in 2022. |
In anticipation of its 2023 annual review of compensation, in the third quarter of 2023, again in consultation with Aon, our Compensation Committee reviewed the above peer group and made certain adjustments to align more closely with our organizational complexity and market capitalization. Specifically, Checkpoint Therapeutics, Inc., Curis, Inc., DICE Therapeutics, Inc., Galectin Therapeutics Inc., Galecto, Inc., MEI Pharma, Inc., Reata Pharmaceuticals Inc., Sesen Bio, Inc. were removed, and Anavex Life Sciences Corp., Edgewise Therapeutics, Inc., Fulcrum Therapeutics, Inc., KalVista Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Keros Therapeutics, Inc., Reneo Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Vera Therapeutics, Inc., and Verona Pharma plc were added. This updated peer group was considered by the Compensation Committee when evaluating the equity awards granted to our executive officers in 2023.
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To effectively recruit, retain and motivate key employees, we believe our executive compensation must be competitive within the peer group in which we compete, while also aligned with the interest of our stockholders. Our Compensation Committee used the compensation data from the peer group as well as available survey data to assist in its evaluation of the compensation of our executive officers and as a factor in its recommendations. However, we do not benchmark executive compensation to the compensation at the peer group.
Executive Compensation Components
Base Salary
The purpose of the base salary component of our executive compensation program is to provide a level of income that allows us to attract and retain executive talent and mitigate pressure to focus on stock price performance to the detriment of other important aspects of our business by providing an element of income stability and security. The base salary represents fixed cash compensation recognizing individual performance, scope of responsibility, leadership skills and experience, and it compensates an executive for performing his or her job responsibilities on a day-to-day basis. The base salaries of our executive officers are initially established through arms-length negotiation at the time of hire. Base salaries are then reviewed at least annually by the Compensation Committee and may be adjusted to realign with market levels after taking into account individual responsibilities, performance and experience. The Compensation Committee also evaluates an executive officers base salary in the context of the executives other compensation components to ensure that the executives compensation package is in line with our overall compensation philosophy and objectives as discussed above.
The 2023 base salary for Mr. Lutz was established at his time of hire. Mr. Lutz entered into an Executive Employment Agreement with us upon his appointment as Chief Operating Officer in February 2023. The agreement with Mr. Lutz was approved by the Compensation Committee and the Board following the review of market data and arms-length negotiation with the executive.
In December 2022, our Compensation Committee assessed the base salary levels of our other NEOs. The Compensation Committee considered the recommendations of Aon and reviewed data from the Aon Global Life Sciences Survey for publicly traded biopharmaceutical companies with headcounts between 15 and 120 employees and between $150 million and $1.5 billion in market value and the compensation practices of the peer group of comparable companies described above. Following its review and consideration of the Aon recommendations and data, as well as individual performance, the Compensation Committee recommended approval of the 2023 base salary of each of our NEOs to the Board of Directors, which the Board of Directors approved. The 2023 base salaries for the NEOs were as follows:
Executive Officer |
Salary | % Increase | ||||||
Matthew Pauls |
$ | 595,000 | 3.4% | |||||
Robert Lutz |
$ | 437,000 | N/A | |||||
David Lowrance |
$ | 437,561 | 5.0% |
Annual Cash Incentives
Although we do not have a written bonus plan, the Board of Directors sets performance targets annually for each of the NEOs, and the NEOs receive bonuses at the end of each year based on achievement against those targets. These bonuses are designed to motivate our executive officers to achieve near-term goals and are intended to reward the attainment of annual corporate and individual goals that we believe will enhance the long-term value of our company.
The 2023 target bonus amount for Mr. Lutz was established in his employment agreement that was negotiated and entered into at his time of hire. In December 2022, the Compensation Committee recommended, and the Board of Directors approved, the target bonus amounts and performance targets for 2023 for the other NEOs. After considering market data and input from Aon and the practices of the peer group, the Compensation
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Committee recommended, and the Board of Directors approved, that the 2023 target bonus amounts would remain the same percent of base salary as 2022 for each of the other NEOs. The approved 2023 target bonus amounts as a percent of salary for each of the NEOs were as follows:
Executive Officer |
Bonus Target (% of base salary) |
|||
Matthew Pauls |
50 | % | ||
Robert Lutz |
40 | % | ||
David Lowrance |
40 | % |
The total bonus opportunity for each executive was based on the achievement of certain performance goals. For the Chief Executive Officer, the Board determined that the achievement of companywide goals established by the Chief Executive Officer and the Board of Directors would represent 100% of the bonus award. For each of Mr. Lutz and Mr. Lowrance, the Board determined that the achievement of the companywide goals would represent 75% of the bonus award and the achievement of individual performance measures would represent 25% of the award. For Mr. Lutz, due to a change in his responsibilities during the year, it was determined the 25% for individual performance measures should instead be based on the recommendation of the Chief Executive Officer based on Mr. Lutzs contributions to Savara during 2023. For Mr. Lowrance, the individual performance measures consisted of objectives related to financial reporting metrics and budgeting, contract negotiations, the corporate offices, human resources activities, and IT and administrative activities and support.
The companywide goals for 2023 were intended to focus the management team on completing trial enrollment and advancing our molgramostim nebulizer solution program. Specifically, the fiscal 2023 corporate performance goals were:
| Complete IMPALA-2 enrollment by end of May (100%), June (95%), July (90%), or August (85%) (50% weighting); |
| Launch aPAP antibody testing in the U.S. by the end of 2023 (15% weighting); |
| Internally approve PPQ protocols for both drug substance and drug product by Q3 2023 (10% weighting); |
| Internally approve comparability protocols for both drug substance and drug product by Q3 2023 (10% weighting); |
| Support GEMA FDA pre-approval inspection (PAI) readiness via completion of first mock PAI in Q4 2023 (10% weighting); and |
| Operate within 5% of the 2023 approved budget (5% weighting). |
In December 2023, the Compensation Committee met to review performance against the 2023 corporate goals and to recommend bonus amounts to our Board of Directors. The Compensation Committee determined that the companywide goals had been fully met and it recommended that an additional amount be paid in recognition of the companys performance during 2023, which resulted in a payout of 120% of the portion of the amount of the bonus award that was based on the achievement of the companywide goals. In addition, it was determined that the individual achievement portion of the bonus for Mr. Lutz should be paid at the 105% level and for Mr. Lowrance at the 115% level.
The following table sets forth the total awards recommended by the Compensation Committee and approved by our Board of Directors in December 2023 for the executives serving at that date:
Executive Officer |
Bonus Award |
|||
Matthew Pauls |
$ | 357,000 | ||
Robert Lutz |
$ | 203,205 | ||
David Lowrance |
$ | 207,841 |
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Long-Term Incentive Awards Stock Options and Restricted Stock Units
We believe that stock-based compensation, such as stock options and restricted stock units (RSUs), serves to further align the interests of our executive officers with those of our stockholders, reward long-term value-creation, and increase retention, and it is therefore a significant element of our executive compensation. We typically grant options and/or RSUs to our employees, including executives, upon the commencement of their employment and make additional grants on an annual basis as part of the annual review of performance and compensation.
Because vesting occurs over multiple years and only if the employee continues to be employed with us at the time of vesting, and because the realized value of the equity awards is directly related to our stock price, our Board of Directors believes these equity awards encourage our employees to remain with our company, promote a long-term perspective on corporate success, directly incentivize the NEOs to build long-term value, and align the interests of our employees, including the NEOs, with our stockholders.
We generally make an initial equity award to our executive officers in connection with the commencement of their employment. In connection with the appointment of Mr. Lutz as Chief Operating Officer in February 2023, our Board of Directors granted Mr. Lutz an option to purchase 350,000 shares of our common stock, which vests quarterly over four years, and an RSU award for 140,000 shares of our common stock, which vests in full upon the two-year anniversary of the commencement of his employment.
In December 2023, our Compensation Committee and our Board of Directors considered equity awards to our employees, including our NEOs, in connection with the annual performance and compensation review process. After considering the performance of the executives and the market data provided by Aon, the Compensation Committee recommended, and the Board of Directors approved, the following equity awards to the NEOs:
Executive Officer |
Number of Options (1) |
Number of RSUs (2) |
||||||
Matthew Pauls |
225,000 | 450,000 | ||||||
Robert Lutz |
40,000 | 160,000 | ||||||
David Lowrance |
40,000 | 160,000 |
(1) | The options have an exercise price of $4.45 per share and vest over a four-year period in equal quarterly installments beginning on the first quarterly anniversary of December 14, 2023. |
(2) | The RSUs vest in full on December 14, 2025. |
Other Elements of Compensation
We maintain broad-based benefits that are provided to all regular, full-time employees (including the NEOs), including health, dental and vision insurance, health savings accounts with company contribution, disability insurance, paid time off, and a 401(k) plan with company match potential. We believe these benefits enable us to offer competitive compensation packages and support employee focus and productivity.
We did not provide any of the NEOs with perquisites in 2023 that exceeded $10,000 in the aggregate for any person.
NEO Employment Agreements
We believe that concerns about potential job loss or the possibility or occurrence of a change-in-control can create uncertainty for our NEOs that may negatively affect their performance. Accordingly, we have entered into employment agreements with each of our executive officers, which provide for severance benefits upon a qualifying termination of employment and the executives compliance with certain post-termination obligations, including delivery of a general release of claims. Those severance benefits are described below under Potential Payments upon Termination or Change in Control.
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Results of Say on Pay Advisory Vote on Executive Compensation
At our 2023 annual meeting of stockholders, approximately 91% of shares that voted or abstained on the say on pay proposal approved, on an advisory basis, the compensation paid to our NEOs as disclosed in our definitive proxy statement for that meeting. By the time of the 2023 annual meeting in June 2023, the Compensation Committee had already recommended, and the Board of Directors had approved, a majority of the components of 2023 compensation for the NEOs; however, the Compensation Committee considered the results of the 2022 advisory vote when making their recommendations. Additionally, the Compensation Committee considered the results of the 2023 advisory vote when recommending the remaining elements of executive compensation for 2023. Our Compensation Committee intends to monitor the results of advisory votes in making future recommendations.
Prohibition on Hedging the Economic Risk of Ownership in Our Securities
For a description of restrictions related to hedging, please see the section entitled Prohibition on Hedging and Speculative Transactions Involving our Securities.
Clawback Policy
In 2023, our Compensation Committee adopted a clawback policy to comply with NASDAQ and SEC rules. Under the policy, if the Company is required to prepare an accounting restatement due to material noncompliance with any financial reporting requirement under the U.S. federal securities laws, the Compensation Committee shall, subject to limited exceptions, seek to recover excess incentive-based compensation from each individual who is a Section 16 officer or was a Section 16 officer during the performance period for such incentive-based compensation. For this purpose, excess incentive-based compensation generally is the amount of incentive-based compensation that is based on a financial performance measure that is in excess of the amount that otherwise would have been received had such incentive-based compensation been determined based on restated amounts in the accounting restatement. The clawback policy applies to incentive-based compensation for which the financial performance metric was attained during the three-year period preceding the date of the accounting restatement.
Compensation Risk Assessment
The Compensation Committee evaluates our executive compensation program on an annual basis to confirm that it does not incentivize excessive risk-taking. Our executive compensation program includes a mix of different types of compensation (base salary, annual performance-based cash bonuses, and long-term equity incentive awards), which provides balance between fixed and performance-based compensation and as to the timing of pay realization. We also believe that our compensation program encourages and rewards prudent business judgment and incentivizes our executive officers to achieve near-term goals but not to the detriment of long-term value creation, which further aligns the interests of the executive officers with those of our stockholders. Based on its latest review, the Compensation Committee concluded that our executive compensation program does not create risks that are reasonably likely to have a material adverse impact on our company.
Conclusion
Attracting, retaining, and motivating key employees is essential to creating stockholder value. We believe offering a competitive compensation program with the appropriate mix of base salary and performance-based compensation, including a substantial equity component, and providing for post-termination compensation in certain circumstances, helps us achieve our business objectives and aligns the interest of our executive officers with those of our stockholders. We believe that our 2023 executive compensation was appropriate in that regard.
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Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation
During 2023, the Compensation Committee consisted of Mr. Elam, Dr. McCracken and Dr. van Es-Johansson. No member of the Compensation Committee has ever been an executive officer or employee of Savara. None of our executive officers currently serve, or served during 2023, on the compensation committee or board of directors of a company that has an executive officer serving as a member of our Board of Directors or Compensation Committee.
COMPENSATION COMMITTEE REPORT
The Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors has reviewed and discussed with management the Compensation Discussion and Analysis contained in this proxy statement and, based on such review and discussions, has recommended to the Board of Directors that the Compensation Discussion and Analysis be included in this proxy statement.
COMPENSATION COMMITTEE
Nevan Elam
Joseph McCracken
An van Es-Johansson
The material in the foregoing Compensation Committee Report is not soliciting material, shall not be deemed filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, and shall not be incorporated by reference in any filing of Savara Inc. under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, whether made before or after the date hereof and irrespective of any general incorporation language in any such filing.
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Summary Compensation Table
The following table sets forth compensation information for the NEOs for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022:
Name and Principal Position |
Year | Salary ($) |
Bonus ($) |
Stock Awards ($) (1) |
Option Awards ($) (1) |
Non-Equity Incentive Plan Compensation ($) (2) |
All Other Compensation ($) |
Total ($) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Matthew Pauls (3) |
2023 | 595,000 | 59,500 | 2,002,500 | 787,223 | 297,500 | 18,000 | (4) | 3,759,723 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Chief Executive Officer |
2022 | 580,000 | | 490,750 | 810,255 | 290,000 | 24,537 | (4) | 2,195,542 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Robert Lutz |
2023 | 387,341 | 143,405 | 1,066,200 | 874,534 | 174,800 | 18,000 | (4) | 2,664,280 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Chief Operating Officer |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
David Lowrance |
2023 | 437,561 | 32,817 | 712,000 | 139,951 | 175,025 | 22,000 | (4) | 1,519,354 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Chief Financial & Administrative Officer & Secretary |
2022 | 416,725 | 8,335 | 151,000 | 289,377 | 166,690 | 22,000 | (4) | 1,054,127 |
(1) | Amounts shown in this column do not reflect compensation actually received by the NEO. The amounts in this column represent the aggregate grant date fair value of stock awards or option awards granted to the NEO in the year indicated, calculated in accordance with the provisions of Financial Accounting Standards Board, or FASB, Accounting Standards Codification, or ASC, Topic 718, Stock Compensation, except that any estimate of forfeitures was disregarded. For a description of the assumptions used to calculate these amounts, see Note 12 to our audited consolidated financial statements included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023. |
(2) | Amounts in this column represent annual cash incentive awards paid to each executive officer under our annual cash incentive program. For further information, see Compensation Discussion and AnalysisExecutive Compensation ComponentsAnnual Cash Incentives. |
(3) | Mr. Pauls did not receive any additional compensation for his service as a director. |
(4) | Includes $18,000 in employer 401(k) plan matching contributions. |
Grants of Plan-Based Awards
The following table sets forth information regarding grants of plan-based awards to the NEOs for the year ended December 31, 2023:
Estimated Future Payouts Under Non-Equity Incentive Plan Awards (1) |
All Other Stock Awards: Number of Shares of Stock or Units (#) |
All Other Option Awards: Number of Securities Underlying Options (#) |
Exercise or Base Price of Option Awards ($/Sh) |
Grant Date Fair Value of Stock and Option Awards ($) (2) |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Name |
Grant Date | Threshold ($) | Target ($) | Maximum ($) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Matthew Pauls |
| | 297,500 | (3) | | | | | | |||||||||||||||||||||||
12/14/2023 | | | | | 225,000 | 4.45 | 787,223 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
12/14/2023 | | | | 450,000 | | | 2,002,500 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Robert Lutz |
| | 174,800 | (3) | | | | | | |||||||||||||||||||||||
2/24/2023 | | | | | 350,000 | 2.53 | 734,583 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
2/24/2023 | | | | 140,000 | | | 354,200 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
12/14/2023 | | | | | 40,000 | 4.45 | 139,951 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
12/14/2023 | | | | 160,000 | | | 712,000 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
David Lowrance |
| | 175,024 | (3) | | | | | | |||||||||||||||||||||||
12/14/2023 | | | | | 40,000 | 4.45 | 289,377 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
12/14/2023 | | | | 160,000 | | | 151,000 |
(1) | The annual incentive plan provides only for a target payment amount, and not a threshold or maximum amount. |
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(2) | Amounts shown in this column do not reflect compensation actually received by the NEO. The amounts in this column represent the aggregate grant date fair value of RSU and option awards granted to the NEO in the year indicated, calculated in accordance with the provisions of FASB ASC Topic 718, Stock Compensation, except that any estimate of forfeitures was disregarded. For a description of the assumptions used to calculate these amounts, see Note 12 to our audited consolidated financial statements included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023. |
(3) | The amounts reported represent the performance-based incentive cash awards each NEO could earn pursuant to our executive bonus plan for the year ended December 31, 2023, as described above under Compensation Discussion and AnalysisExecutive Compensation ComponentsAnnual Cash Incentives above. The actual amounts earned for the year ended December 31, 2023 are set forth in the Non-Equity Incentive Plan Compensation column in the Summary Compensation Table above. |
Outstanding Equity Awards at Fiscal Year-End 2023
The following table sets forth information regarding outstanding equity awards held by the NEOs as of December 31, 2023.
Option Awards | Stock Awards | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Name |
Number of Securities Underlying Unexercised Options (#) Exercisable (1) |
Number of Securities Underlying Unexercised Options (#) Unexercisable (1) |
Option Exercise Price ($/sh) |
Option Expiration Date |
Number of shares or units of stock that have not vested (#) |
Market value of shares or units of stock that have not vested ($) |
||||||||||||||||||
Matthew Pauls |
3,750 | | 5.13 | 5/25/2027 | | | ||||||||||||||||||
12,000 | | 7.33 | 12/13/2028 | | | |||||||||||||||||||
12,000 | | 1.59 | 12/20/2029 | | | |||||||||||||||||||
898,639 | | 1.32 | 9/15/2030 | | | |||||||||||||||||||
375,000 | (2) | 125,000 | (2) | 1.23 | 12/16/2030 | | | |||||||||||||||||
175,000 | (3) | 175,000 | (3) | 1.11 | 12/14/2031 | | | |||||||||||||||||
175,000 | (4) | 525,000 | (4) | 1.51 | 12/13/2032 | 325,000 | (5) | 1,527,500 | ||||||||||||||||
| 225,000 | (6) | 4.45 | 12/14/2033 | 450,000 | (7) | 2,115,000 | |||||||||||||||||
Robert Lutz |
65,625 | 284,375 | (8) | 2.53 | 2/24/2033 | 140,000 | (9) | 658,000 | ||||||||||||||||
| 40,000 | (6) | 4.45 | 12/14/2033 | 160,000 | (7) | 752,000 | |||||||||||||||||
David Lowrance |
80,684 | | 1.51 | 10/25/2026 | | | ||||||||||||||||||
200,000 | | 11.26 | 8/2/2028 | | | |||||||||||||||||||
150,000 | | 1.59 | 12/20/2029 | | | |||||||||||||||||||
195,000 | (2) | 65,000 | (2) | 1.23 | 12/16/2030 | | | |||||||||||||||||
50,000 | (3) | 50,000 | (3) | 1.11 | 12/14/2031 | | | |||||||||||||||||
62,500 | (4) | 187,500 | (4) | 1.51 | 12/13/2032 | 100,000 | (5) | 470,000 | ||||||||||||||||
| 40,000 | (6) | 4.45 | 12/14/2033 | 160,000 | (7) | 752,000 |
(1) | The vesting schedules described for each option in this table are subject to the NEOs continued service to our company and to acceleration in connection with an involuntary termination in connection with a change of control, as described below under Potential Payments upon Termination or Change in ControlExecutive Employment Agreements. |
(2) | This option vests and becomes exercisable in 16 substantially equal installments on each quarterly anniversary of December 16, 2020. |
(3) | This option vests and becomes exercisable in 16 substantially equal installments on each quarterly anniversary of December 14, 2021. |
(4) | This option vests and becomes exercisable in 16 substantially equal installments on each quarterly anniversary of December 13, 2022. |
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(5) | The RSUs vest in full on December 13, 2024. |
(6) | The option vests and becomes exercisable in 16 substantially equal installments on each quarterly anniversary of December 14, 2023. |
(7) | The RSUs vest in full on December 14, 2025. |
(8) | The option vests and becomes exercisable in 16 substantially equal installments on each quarterly anniversary of February 13, 2023. |
(9) | The RSUs vest in full on February 13, 2025. |
Option Exercises and Stock Vested in Fiscal Year 2023
The following table provides, for each of the NEOs, information with respect to the exercise of stock options and, on an aggregate basis, stock awards that vested during 2023:
Option Awards | Stock Awards | |||||||||||||||
Name |
Number of Shares Acquired on Exercise (#) |
Value Realized on Exercise ($) |
Number of shares acquired on vesting |
Value realized on vesting ($)(1) |
||||||||||||
Matthew Pauls |
| | 400,000 | 1,780,000 | ||||||||||||
Robert Lutz |
| | | | ||||||||||||
Dave Lowrance |
| | 125,000 | 556,250 |
(1) | Value realized on vesting of stock awards does not represent proceeds from any sale of any common stock upon its vesting but is determined by multiplying the number of shares vested by the closing price of our common stock on the Nasdaq Global Select Market on the vesting date. |
Pension Benefits
We do not maintain any plan that provides for payments or other benefits at, following, or in connection with retirement, other than a 401(k) plan, which all eligible employees participate in on the same basis.
Nonqualified Deferred Compensation
We do not maintain any defined contribution or other plan that provides for the deferral of compensation on a basis that is not tax-qualified.
Potential Payments upon Termination or Change in Control
NEO Employment Agreements
As discussed above under Compensation Discussion and Analysis, we have entered into executive employment agreements with each of the NEOs. Those executive employment agreements require us to make specified payments and provide specified benefits related to their outstanding stock option awards in the event of a qualifying termination of employment, subject to the officers compliance with the terms and conditions in the agreement.
Mr. Pauls
The executive employment agreement with Mr. Pauls provides that if Mr. Pauls employment is terminated (i) by Savara without cause (as defined in the agreement), (ii) due to resignation by Mr. Pauls for good reason (as defined in the agreement), or (iii) due to his death or disability, and, in the case of (i) and (ii), such termination occurs outside of the period beginning three months prior to, and ending 12 months following, a change of control
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(as defined in the agreements) (the change of control period), then, subject to him timely signing and not revoking a separation agreement and release of claims agreement, Mr. Pauls would be entitled to receive:
| a lump sum payment equal to (i) 18 months of his then-current base salary, plus (ii) 100% of his target bonus, plus (iii) a pro-rated portion of his target bonus based on the number of days he was employed by our company during the relevant performance period; |
| reimbursements for payments the executive makes for continued healthcare coverage pursuant to COBRA until the earlier of (i) the date 18 months from the termination date or (ii) the date upon which he and his eligible dependents become covered under similar plans; and |
| accelerated vesting as to 100% of his equity awards and an extension of the exercise period of the awards until the earlier of (i) the 18-month anniversary of the termination date and (ii) the original expiration date of the applicable award. |
The executive employment agreement also provides that if Mr. Pauls employment is terminated (i) by Savara without cause, or (ii) due to resignation by Mr. Pauls for good reason and such termination occurs during the change of control period, then, subject to him timely signing and not revoking a separation agreement and release of claims agreement, Mr. Pauls would be entitled to receive:
| a lump sum payment equal to (i) 24 months of his then-current base salary plus (ii) 100% of his target bonus, plus (iii) a pro-rated portion of his target bonus based on the number of days he was employed by our company during the relevant performance period; |
| reimbursements for payments the executive makes for continued healthcare coverage pursuant to COBRA until the earlier of (i) the date 24 months from the termination date or (ii) the date upon which he and his eligible dependents become covered under similar plans; and |
| accelerated vesting as to 100% of his equity awards and an extension of the exercise period of the awards until the earlier of (i) the 24-month anniversary of the termination date and (ii) the original expiration date of the applicable award. |
Mr. Lutz and Mr. Lowrance
The executive employment agreement with each of Mr. Lutz and Mr. Lowrance provide that if Mr. Lutzs or Mr. Lowrances employment is terminated (i) by Savara without cause (as defined in the agreement), (ii) due to resignation by Mr. Lutz or Mr. Lowrance for good reason (as defined in the agreement), or (iii) due to death or disability, and, in the case of (i) and (ii), such termination occurs outside of the period beginning three months prior to, and ending 12 months following, a change of control (as defined in the agreements) (the change of control period), then, subject to him timely signing and not revoking a separation agreement and release of claims agreement, each of Mr. Lutz and Mr. Lowrance would be entitled to receive:
| a lump sum payment equal to (i) 12 months of his then-current base salary plus (ii) a pro-rated portion of his target bonus based on the number of days he was employed by our company during the relevant performance period; |
| reimbursements for payments the executive makes for continued healthcare coverage pursuant to COBRA until the earlier of (i) the date 12 months from the termination date or (ii) the date upon which he and/or his eligible dependents becomes covered under similar plans; and |
| accelerated vesting as to the number of shares that would have otherwise vested pursuant to his equity awards had he remained employed by our company for 12 months following his termination date. |
The executive employment agreements also provide that if Mr. Lutz or Mr. Lowrances employment is terminated (i) by Savara without cause, or (ii) due to resignation by Mr. Lutz or Mr. Lowrance for good reason
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and such termination occurs during the change of control period, then, subject to him timely signing and not revoking a separation agreement and release of claims agreement, each of Mr. Lutz and Mr. Lowrance would be entitled to receive:
| a lump sum payment equal to (i) 18 months of his then-current base salary, plus (ii) 100% of his target bonus, plus (iii) a pro-rated portion of his target bonus based on the number of days he was employed by our company during the relevant performance period; |
| a taxable lump sum payment equal to the amount he would pay for continued healthcare coverage pursuant to COBRA for 18 months from the termination date; and |
| accelerated vesting as to 100% of his equity awards. |
Potential Payments Upon a Qualifying Termination of Employment
The following table sets forth quantitative estimates of the benefits that would have accrued to each of Mr. Pauls, Mr. Lutz, and Mr. Lowrance pursuant to their respective employment agreements if there had been a qualifying termination of his employment on December 31, 2023.
Name |
Cash Severance Based on Salary and Bonus ($) (1) |
Cost to Continue Health Insurance ($)(2) |
Value of Accelerated Equity Awards ($)(3) |
Value of Accrued Vacation ($) |
Total ($) | |||||||||||||||
Matthew Pauls |
1,547,000 | 17,442 | 6,435,500 | 44,286 | 8,044,228 | |||||||||||||||
Robert Lutz |
640,205 | 35,388 | 192,375 | 6,087 | 874,055 | |||||||||||||||
David Lowrance |
645,402 | 33,516 | 987,175 | 32,098 | 1,698,191 |
1) | Calculated using the annual base salary in effect as of December 31, 2023. As described above under Potential Payments upon Termination or Change in Control, in the event of a qualifying termination on that date each of the NEOs would have been entitled to a pro-rated portion of his target bonus based on the number of days he was employed by us during the relevant performance period. As of December 31, 2023, the 2023 bonus amounts had been determined but not yet paid and are therefore included; the 2024 performance period had not yet begun. Additionally, Mr. Pauls would have been entitled to an amount equal to 100% of his target bonus. |
2) | Calculated using insurance premiums in effect as of December 31, 2023. |
3) | Calculated using the closing sale price of our common stock on December 29, 2023. |
Potential Payments upon a Qualifying Termination of Employment due to Change in Control
The following table sets forth quantitative estimates of the benefits that would have accrued to each of Mr. Pauls, Dr. Pratt, and Mr. Lowrance pursuant to their respective employment agreements if there had been a change in control of our company and qualifying termination of the NEOs employment on December 31, 2022. The Company does not provide single trigger change in control benefits.
Name |
Cash Severance Based on Salary and Bonus ($)(1) |
Cost to Continue Health Insurance ($)(2) |
Value of Accelerated Equity Awards ($)(3) |
Value of Accrued Vacation ($) |
Total ($) | |||||||||||||||
Matthew Pauls |
1,844,500 | 23,160 | 6,435,500 | 44,286 | 8,347,446 | |||||||||||||||
Robert Lutz |
858,705 | 53,082 | 2,037,094 | 6,087 | 2,954,968 | |||||||||||||||
David Lowrance |
864,183 | 50,274 | 2,235,175 | 32,098 | 3,181,730 |
1) | Calculated using the annual base salary in effect as of December 31, 2023. As described above under Potential Payments upon Termination or Change in Control, in the event of a qualifying termination. For the bonus amounts, as of December 31, 2023, the 2023 bonus amounts had been determined but not yet paid |
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and are therefore included; the 2024 performance period had not yet begun. Additionally, each of the NEOs would have been entitled to an amount equal to 100% of his target bonus. |
2) | Calculated using insurance premiums in effect as of December 31, 2023. |
3) | Calculated using the closing sale price of our common stock on December 29, 2023. |
Pay Ratio Disclosure
As required by Item 402(u) of Regulation S-K, we are providing the following pay ratio information with respect to the year ended December 31, 2023.
The median of the annual total compensation of all employees of our company, except our Chief Executive Officer, for 2023 was $543,949, and the annual total compensation basis for our Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Pauls, for 2023 was $3,759,723. As a result, our Chief Executive Officers 2023 annual total compensation was approximately 6.9 times that of the median annual total compensation of all employees of our company.
We identified the median employee based on the total annual compensation, as determined using the Summary Compensation Table methodology set out in item 402(c)(2)(x) of regulation S-K, of all full-time and part-time employees as of December 31, 2023. In accordance with item 402(u) we identified our median employee as the employee utilized for the year ended December 31, 2021 and the year ended December 31, 2022, since there has been no change in our employee population or employee compensation arrangements that would materially affect our calculation. In making the calculation, we used an annualized compensation amount for employees who were employed less than the full year.
Median Employee ($) | Chief Executive Officer ($) |
|||||||
Salary |
270,957 | 595,000 | ||||||
Bonus |
36,912 | 59,500 | ||||||
Stock Awards |
68,975 | 2,002,500 | ||||||
Option Awards |
108,462 | 787,223 | ||||||
Non-Equity Incentive Plan Compensation |
40,643 | 297,500 | ||||||
All Other Compensation |
18,000 | 18,000 | ||||||
|
|
|
|
|||||
Total Compensation |
543,949 | 3,759,723 | ||||||
|
|
|
|
Pay Versus Performance
As required by Item 402(v) of Regulation S-K, we are providing the following information about the relationship between executive compensation actually paid and the financial performance of our company.
Year |
Summary Compensation Table Total for PEO (1) |
Compensation Actually Paid to PEO (2) |
Average Summary Compensation Table Total for Non-PEO NEOs (3), (4) |
Average Compensation Actually Paid to Non-PEO NEOs (5) |
Value of Initial Fixed $100 Investment Based on: Total Shareholder Return (6) |
Net Loss (in thousands) |
||||||||||||||||||
2023 |
$ | 3,759,723 | $ | 5,656,943 | $ | 2,091,817 | $ | 2,355,922 | $ | 303 | $ | (54,698 | ) | |||||||||||
2022 |
$ | 2,195,542 | $ | 2,506,972 | $ | 876,409 | $ | 656,826 | $ | 125 | $ | (38,150 | ) | |||||||||||
2021 |
$ | 1,640,358 | $ | 1,703,992 | $ | 931,620 | $ | 774,937 | $ | 108 | $ | (43,014 | ) |
(1) | Reflects the total compensation reported for Mr. Pauls, our Chief Executive Officer, for each corresponding year in the Total column of the Summary Compensation Table. |
(2) | Reflects the compensation actually paid to Mr. Pauls, as computed in accordance with Item 402(v) of Regulation S-K. The dollar amounts do not reflect the actual amount of compensation earned by or paid to Mr. Pauls during the applicable year. In accordance with the requirements of Item 402(v) of Regulation S-K, |
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the following adjustments were made to Mr. Pauls total compensation as reported in the Summary Compensation Table to determine the compensation actually paid: |
Year |
Summary Compensation Table Total |
Deductions for Reported Grant Date Fair Value of Equity Awards (A) |
Equity Award Adjustments (B) |
Compensation Actually Paid |
||||||||||||
2023 |
$ | 3,759,723 | $ | (2,789,723 | ) | $ | 4,686,943 | $ | 5,656,943 | |||||||
2022 |
$ | 2,195,542 | $ | (1,301,005 | ) | $ | 1,612,435 | $ | 2,506,972 | |||||||
2021 |
$ | 1,640,358 | $ | (729,545 | ) | $ | 793,179 | $ | 1,703,992 |
(A) | Reflects the sum of the totals of the amounts reported in the Stock Awards and Option Awards columns in the Summary Compensation Table for the applicable year. |
(B) | The equity award adjustments for each applicable year include the addition (or subtraction, as applicable) of the following: (i) the year-end fair value of any equity awards granted in the applicable year that are outstanding and unvested as of the end of the year; (ii) the amount of change as of the end of the applicable year (from the end of the prior fiscal year) in fair value of any awards granted in prior years that are outstanding and unvested as of the end of the applicable year; (iii) for awards that are granted and vest in same applicable year, the fair value as of the vesting date; (iv) for awards granted in prior years that vest in the applicable year, the amount equal to the change as of the vesting date (from the end of the prior fiscal year) in fair value; (v) for awards granted in prior years that are determined to fail to meet the applicable vesting conditions during the applicable year, a deduction for the amount equal to the fair value at the end of the prior fiscal year; and (vi) the dollar value of any dividends or other earnings paid on stock or option awards in the applicable year prior to the vesting date that are not otherwise reflected in the fair value of such award or included in any other component of total compensation for the applicable year. The amounts deducted or added in calculating the equity award adjustments are as follows: |
Year |
Year End Fair Value of Outstanding and Unvested Equity Awards Granted in the Year |
Year over Year Change in Fair Value of Outstanding and Unvested Equity Awards Granted in Prior Years |
Fair Value as of Vesting Date of Equity Awards Granted and Vested in the Year |
Year over Year Change in Fair Value of Equity Awards Granted in Prior Years that Vested in the Year |
Fair Value at the End of the Prior Year of Equity Awards that Failed to Meet Vesting Conditions in the Year |
Value of Dividends or other Earnings Paid on Stock or Option Awards not Otherwise Reflected in Fair Value or Total Compensation) |
Total Equity Award Adjustments |
|||||||||||||||||||||
2023 |
$ | 3,689,446 | $ | 1,100,239 | | $ | (102,741 | ) | | | $ | 4,686,943 | ||||||||||||||||
2022 |
$ | 1,343,676 | $ | 239,841 | | $ | 28,919 | | | $ | 1,612,435 | |||||||||||||||||
2021 |
$ | 776,590 | $ | (26,027 | ) | | $ | 42,616 | | | $ | 793,179 |
(3) | The NEOs included for purposes of calculating the average amounts in each applicable year are: |
2023: Mr. Lutz and Mr. Lowrance
2022: Dr. Pratt and Mr. Lowrance
2021: Dr. Chowdhury and Mr. Lowrance
(4) | Reflects the total compensation reported for the average of the amounts reported for our NEOs as a group (excluding Mr. Pauls) in the Total column of the Summary Compensation Table. |
(5) | Reflects the average amount of compensation actually paid to our NEOs as a group (excluding Mr. Pauls), as computed in accordance with Item 402(v) of Regulation S-K. The dollar amounts do not reflect the actual average amount of compensation earned by or paid to the NEOs as a group (excluding Mr. Pauls) during the applicable year. In accordance with the requirements of Item 402(v) of Regulation S-K, the following adjustments were made to average total compensation for the NEOs as a group (excluding Mr. Pauls) total |
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compensation as reported in the Summary Compensation Table to determine the compensation actually paid, using the same methodology described above in Note 2: |
Year |
Average Reported Summary Compensation Table Total for Non-PEO NEOs |
Deductions for Average Reported Grant Date Fair Value of Equity Awards |
Average Equity Award Adjustments (A) |
Average Compensation Actually Paid to Non-PEO NEOs |
||||||||||||
2023 |
$ | 2,091,817 | $ | (1,396,343 | ) | $ | 1,660,447 | $ | 2,355,922 | |||||||
2022 |
$ | 876,409 | $ | (523,589 | ) | $ | 304,006 | $ | 656,826 | |||||||
2021 |
$ | 931,620 | $ | (220,334 | ) | $ | 63,651 | $ | 774,937 |
(A) | The amounts deducted or added in calculating the total average equity award adjustments are as follows: |
Year |
Average Year End Fair Value of Outstanding and Unvested Equity Awards Granted in the Year |
Year over Year Average Change in Fair Value of Outstanding and Unvested Equity Awards Granted in Prior Years |
Average Fair Value as of Vesting Date of Equity Awards Granted and Vested in the Year |
Year over Year Average Change in Fair Value of Equity Awards Granted in Prior Years that Vested in the Year |
Average Fair Value at the End of the Prior Year of Equity Awards that Failed to Meet Vesting Conditions in the Year |
Average Value of Dividends or other Earnings Paid on Stock or Option Awards not Otherwise Reflected in Fair Value or Total Compensation) |
Total Average Equity Award Adjustments |
|||||||||||||||||||||
2023 |
$ | 1,833,235 | $ | 170,259 | | $ | (343,046 | ) | | | $ | 1,660,447 | ||||||||||||||||
2022 |
$ | 556,797 | $ | 33,719 | | $ | (286,510 | ) | | | $ | 304,006 | ||||||||||||||||
2021 |
$ | 235,168 | $ | 42,852 | | $ | (214,370 | ) | | | $ | 63,651 |
(6) | Total shareholder return is calculated by dividing the sum of the amount of dividends for the measurement period, assuming dividend reinvestment, and the difference between our companys share price at the end and the beginning of the measurement period by our companys share price at the beginning of the measurement period. No dividends were paid on stock or option awards in 2021, 2022 or 2023. |
Analysis of the Information Presented in the Pay versus Performance Table
As described in more detail in the section Compensation Discussion and Analysis, our executive compensation program is intended to align the interests of our executive officers with those of our stockholders, and as a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, that is accomplished by positioning the company to successfully execute our drug product development and regulatory approval efforts and to translate those efforts, over time, into revenues and income from commercialization of, or strategic collaborations with respect to, our product candidates. For that reason, we do not specifically align our performance measures with compensation actually paid (as computed in accordance with Item 402(v) of Regulation S-K) for a particular year, and we have not historically looked to net income (loss) as a performance measure for our executive compensation program.
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The following graphs visually describe the relationship between (1) compensation actually paid to our PEO and the average compensation actually paid to our non-PEO NEOs and cumulative total shareholder return and (2) compensation actually paid to our PEO and the average compensation actually paid to our non-PEO NEOs and net loss.
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The following table shows compensation information for the individuals who served as non-employee directors during the year ended December 31, 2023. Mr. Pauls did not receive any additional compensation for his service as a director.
Director Compensation for Fiscal Year 2023
Name |
Fees Earned or Paid in Cash ($) |
Stock Awards ($) (1) (2) |
Total ($) |
|||||||||
Nevan Elam (3) |
57,500 | 100,125 | 157,625 | |||||||||
Rick Hawkins (4) |
49,000 | 100,125 | 149,125 | |||||||||
Joe McCracken (5) |
55,000 | 100,125 | 155,125 | |||||||||
David A. Ramsay (6) |
58,000 | 100,125 | 158,125 | |||||||||
Ricky Sun (7) |
44,500 | 100,125 | 144,625 | |||||||||
An van Es-Johansson (8) |
55,500 | 100,125 | 155,625 |
1) | Amounts in this column do not reflect compensation actually received by the directors. The amounts in this column represent the aggregate grant date fair value of stock awards granted to the directors in 2023, calculated in accordance with the provisions of FASB ASC Topic 718, Stock Compensation, except that any estimate of forfeitures was disregarded. For a description of the assumptions used to calculate these amounts, see Note 12 to our audited consolidated financial statements included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023. |
2) | As of December 31, 2023, each of our non-employee directors held 22,500 unvested RSUs. |
3) | As of December 31, 2023, Mr. Elam held options to purchase a total of 112,451 shares of our common stock. |
4) | As of December 31, 2023, Mr. Hawkins held options to purchase a total of 166,209 shares of our common stock. |
5) | As of December 31, 2023, Dr. McCracken held options to purchase a total of 149,557 shares of our common stock. |
6) | As of December 31, 2023, Mr. Ramsay held options to purchase a total of 147,750 shares of our common stock. |
7) | As of December 31, 2023, Dr. Sun held options to purchase a total of 132,000 shares of our common stock. |
8) | As of December 31, 2023, Dr. van Es-Johansson held options to purchase a total of 132,000 shares of our common stock. |
Overview of Non-Employee Director Compensation
With the assistance of the Compensation Committee, our Board of Directors periodically reviews and evaluates the director compensation policy and adopts changes designed to allow us to recruit and retain individuals with the requisite experience, skills, and characteristics for membership on our Board of Directors. Under the policy, non-employee directors are compensated through a combination of cash fees and equity awards. In December 2023, following a review of market data provided by Aon, our Compensation Committee recommended that annual equity awards to directors be in the form of RSUs, which the Board of Directors approved. Additionally, we reimburse non-employee directors for travel and other reasonable out-of-pocket expenses related to attendance at meetings of the Board of Directors and its committees. Our current non-employee director compensation policy is further described below.
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Cash Fees
Each non-employee director receives an annual fee of $40,000 in cash for serving on the Board of Directors. In addition, the lead independent director is entitled to an annual cash fee of $30,000, and the chairs and members of the three standing committees of the Board of Directors are entitled to the following annual cash fees:
Board Committee |
Chair Fee*($) | Member Fee ($) | ||||||
Audit Committee |
18,000 | 9,000 | ||||||
Compensation Committee |
13,000 | 6,500 | ||||||
Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee |
8,500 | 4,500 |
* | Any non-employee director who serves as chair of a committee shall not be entitled to a member fee for the same committee. |
Equity Awards
In addition to the cash compensation, on December 14, 2023, each non-employee director received an annual grant of 22,500 RSUs, which vest in full on the one-year anniversary of the grant date. Each RSU award was granted under the 2015 Plan.
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Our management has the primary responsibility for our financial reporting process, accounting principles and internal controls as well as the preparation of our financial statements. Under its charter, the Audit Committee oversees our accounting and financial reporting process and audits of our financial statements on behalf of our Board of Directors. Each of the members of the Audit Committee meets the applicable independence standards and qualification requirements.
The Audit Committee appointed RSM US LLP (RSM), an independent registered public accounting firm, as our independent auditor for fiscal year ended December 31, 2023. As such, RSM was responsible for expressing an opinion on our annual financial statements based on an audit conducted in accordance with the standards established by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (the PCAOB).
In this context and in connection with the audited financial statements contained in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, the Audit Committee:
| reviewed and discussed the audited financial statements as of and for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 with our management; |
| discussed with RSM the matters required to be discussed by the applicable requirements of the PCAOB and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the SEC); |
| reviewed and discussed with RSM any communications between RSMs team and RSMs national office with respect to auditing or accounting issues presented by the external audit engagement; |
| reviewed the written disclosures and the letter from RSM required by applicable requirements of the PCAOB regarding the independent accountants communications with the Audit Committee concerning independence, and has discussed with RSM its independence; and |
| based on the foregoing reviews and discussions, recommended to our Board of Directors that the audited financial statements be included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 filed with the SEC on March 7, 2024. |
AUDIT COMMITTEE
David A. Ramsay, Chair
Richard J. Hawkins
An van Es-Johansson
The preceding Audit Committee Report shall not be deemed soliciting material or filed with the SEC, nor shall any information in this report be incorporated by reference into any past or future filing of Savara Inc. under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, except to the extent Savara Inc. specifically incorporates it by reference into such filing.
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PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES
The Audit Committee has appointed RSM, an independent registered public accounting firm, as our independent auditor for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2024. We are asking our stockholders to ratify this appointment. See Proposal 4 Ratification of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm below.
Fees of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
The Audit Committee of our Board of Directors selected RSM as our independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022.
The following table presents the fees for professional services rendered by RSM for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022.
2023 | 2022 | |||||||
Audit Fees (RSM) (1) |
$ | 387,500 | $ | 320,500 | ||||
Audit-Related Fees |
| | ||||||
Tax Fees (2) |
18,375 | 41,000 | ||||||
All Other Fees |
| | ||||||
|
|
|
|
|||||
Total |
$ | 405,875 | $ | 361,500 |
(1) | Audit Fees were principally for audit work performed on our consolidated financial statements and internal control over financial reporting, but also include fees for professional services provided in connection with the review of financial statements included in our quarterly reports and our registration statements filed with the SEC, and related services normally provided in connection with statutory and regulatory filings and engagements, such as providing comfort and consent letters. |
(2) | Tax Fees were principally related to performance and calculation pursuant to Internal Revenue Code Section 382 Limitation on net operating loss carryforwards and certain built-in losses following ownership change. |
Pre-Approval Policies and Procedures
During 2022 and 2023, the Audit Committee pre-approved all audit and other services performed by RSM.
Pursuant to its charter, the Audit Committee must approve, in advance, all audit, review and attest services and all permissible non-audit services (including any permissible tax or internal control-related services) to be provided by our independent registered public accounting firm. The Audit Committee may pre-approve services as part of its approval of the scope of the engagement of the independent registered public accounting firm or on an individual case-by-case basis. The Audit Committee considers whether the provision of any non-audit service is compatible with maintaining the independence of our auditors. The Audit Committees charter provides that it may adopt policies and procedures for the pre-approval of permissible services, which may include delegation of authority to a designated member or members of the Audit Committee to approve permissible services so long as any such approvals are disclosed to the full Audit Committee.
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PROPOSAL 1 ELECTION OF DIRECTORS
At the Annual Meeting, our stockholders will vote on the election of six directors to serve for one-year terms until the 2025 annual meeting of stockholders and until their successors are elected and qualified, or until their earlier death, retirement, resignation or removal. Our Board of Directors has nominated Matthew Pauls, Nevan Elam, Richard J. Hawkins, Joseph S. McCracken, David A. Ramsay, and An van Es-Johansson for election to our Board of Directors at the Annual Meeting. Dr. Ricky Sun will not stand for reelection following the completion of his term at the Annual Meeting. The director nominees have indicated that they are willing and able to serve as directors. If any of the nominees becomes unable or unwilling to serve, the proxies being solicited by this proxy statement will be voted for the election of any substitute nominee who shall be designated by our Board of Directors to fill the vacancy. The proxies being solicited by this proxy statement will be voted for no more than six nominees at the Annual Meeting.
Assuming a quorum is present at the Annual Meeting, each director nominee who receives an affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the shares of common stock having voting power present or represented by proxy at the Annual Meeting will be elected. Abstentions will have the same effect as negative votes. Broker non-votes will not be counted toward the vote total and therefore will have no effect on the outcome of this proposal. Stockholders do not have cumulative voting rights in the election of directors.
Our Board of Directors unanimously recommends a vote FOR the election of Matthew Pauls, Nevan Elam, Richard J. Hawkins, Joseph S. McCracken, David A. Ramsay, and An van Es-Johansson as directors.
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PROPOSAL 2 APPROVAL OF OUR 2024 OMNIBUS INCENTIVE PLAN
At the Annual Meeting, we are asking our stockholders to approve the adoption of the 2024 Omnibus Incentive Plan (the 2024 Plan). Subject to stockholder approval, the Board of Directors adopted the 2024 Plan on March 21, 2024, upon the recommendation of the Compensation Committee.
Reasons for Voting for this Proposal
Overview
We are requesting approval of the 2024 Plan because the Savara Inc. Amended and Restated 2015 Omnibus Incentive Plan (the 2015 Plan) is set to expire in 2025. If stockholders do not approve the 2024 Plan, it will not be implemented, and the Company will not be able to grant equity or equity-based compensation under a stockholder approved plan after the 2015 Plan expires. The Board is therefore recommending that stockholders approve the 2024 Plan to ensure that the Board and the Compensation Committee will be able to make the types of awards desirable to meet the Companys compensatory needs going forward. Our Board of Directors believes that the effective use of stock-based long-term incentive compensation is essential for our company to maintain a balanced and competitive compensation program and important to our ability to achieve long-term business objectives. We typically grant equity awards to our employees upon the commencement of their employment and make additional grants as part of their ongoing compensation packages. Because vesting occurs over multiple years and only if the employee continues to be employed with us at the time of vesting and because the realized value of the equity awards is directly related to our stock price, we believe these awards help to align the interests of participants with those of our stockholders, reward long-term value-creation, and increase retention.
The 2024 Plan is intended to replace the 2015 Plan. If stockholders approve the 2024 Plan, no further grants will be made under the 2015 Plan on the day immediately following the date the 2024 Plan is approved by the Companys stockholders (i.e., the 2015 Plan will terminate on the Effective Date of the 2024 Plan). See Effective Date below. All outstanding awards under the 2015 Plan will continue in accordance with the 2015 Plan and any award agreement executed in connection with such outstanding awards.
Stockholder approval of the 2024 Plan is also necessary to ensure that the 2024 Plan meets the requirements under section 422 of the Internal Revenue Code for issuing incentive stock options and the Nasdaq approval requirements for equity compensation plans.
Key Considerations and Historical Equity Granting Practices
Shares available for grant under the 2024 Plan would consist of 11,700,000 shares of common stock plus (i) any shares remaining available for grant under the 2015 Plan (987,502 shares as of the record date), and (ii) any shares subject to awards granted under the 2015 Plan that are outstanding as of the Effective Date but that expire, terminate, or are cancelled for any reason without being exercised in full (other than shares withheld as a result of net exercise or settlement or shares used to pay any exercise price or tax withholding obligation) (with shares subject to awards under the 2015 Plan other than stock options or stock appreciation rights added to the share pool under the 2024 Plan as 1.34 shares).
Our Board of Directors currently expects that the shares currently remaining available under the 2015 Plan plus the additional 11,700,000 shares of common stock under the 2024 Plan will likely be sufficient to meet our anticipated equity compensation needs for at least the next three years. In addition to our Companys planned growth and the need to retain and motivate key employees and service providers, our Board of Directors considered the following principal factors when determining the appropriate number of shares:
| Number of Shares Available for Grant under 2015 Plan: As of the record date, 987,502 shares remained reserved and available for issuance under the 2015 Plan. |
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| Number of Awards Outstanding: As of the record date, the following awards were outstanding under the 2015 Plan: options with respect to 7,249,693 shares with a weighted-average exercise price of $2.58 and a weighted average remaining term of 7.52 years, and full value awards with respect to 2,866,687 shares. |
| Burn Rate: Burn rate measures the usage of shares for our stock plans as a percentage of our outstanding shares, which some stockholders view as a useful measure to compare the rates at which peer companies have granted equity. The more equity that a company grants in relation to the total number of its shares of common stock outstanding, the higher that companys burn rate will be. For each of 2021, 2022, and 2023, our burn rate was 2-3%. |
Based on 138,176,641 shares outstanding as of the record date, if all 11,700,000 new shares under the 2024 Plan, all 10,116,380 shares subject to outstanding awards under the 2015 Plan and all 987,502 shares available for future awards under the 2015 Plan are ultimately issued, the shareholder dilution would be 14.17%.The Board believes that this level of potential dilution is reasonable for a company of our size in our industry and gives the Company the ability to retain and motivate key employees and service providers. Expectations regarding future share usage under the 2024 Plan are naturally based on a number of assumptions regarding factors such as future growth in the population of eligible participants, the rate of future compensation increases, the rate at which shares are returned to the 2024 Plan through forfeitures, cancellations and the like, the level at which performance-based awards pay out, and our future stock price performance. While the Compensation Committee believes that the assumptions utilized are reasonable, future share usage will differ from current expectations to the extent that actual events differ from the assumptions utilized.
Summary of the 2024 Plan
The following is a summary of the material terms of the 2024 Plan. This summary does not purport to be a complete description of all provisions of the 2024 Plan and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the complete text of the 2024 Plan, a copy of which is attached as Appendix A to this Proxy Statement. You may also obtain a copy of the 2024 Plan, free of charge, by writing to the Company, Savara Inc., at One Summit Square, 1717 Langhorne Newtown Rd., Suite 300, Langhorne, PA 19047, Attention: Investor Relations.
Corporate Governance Provisions
The 2024 Plan contains several provisions intended to make awards under the 2024 Plan comply with established principles of good corporate governance. These provisions include:
| No Discounted Stock Options. Except for certain substitute awards, stock options may not be granted with an exercise price of less than the fair market value of our common stock on the date the stock option is granted (or in the case of an incentive stock option, the exercise price may not be less than 110% of the fair market value of our common stock on the date the stock option is granted). This restriction may not be changed without stockholder approval. |
| No Stock Option Repricings. Stock options may not be repriced without stockholder approval, whether by lowering the exercise price of an outstanding option or by cancelling an outstanding option and granting cash, a replacement stock option with a lower exercise price, or another award. |
| No Liberal Share Recycling. The 2024 Plan allows shares to be recycled only if an award terminates or expires, or is canceled or forfeited for any reason. |
| Cap on Non-Employee Director Compensation. The total compensation paid to a single non-employee director in any calendar year, including the cash compensation and cash value of all equity awards granted to such non-employee director, cannot exceed $1,000,000. |
| No Evergreen Provision. The 2024 Plan does not contain an automatic provision to replenish the shares of common stock authorized for issuance. |
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| No Dividends on Unvested Awards. Dividends and dividend equivalents that may accrue with respect to awards under the 2024 Plan may not be paid until the underlying award vests. |
| Clawback Policies. Awards made under the 2024 Plan will be subject to the Companys clawback or recoupment policies. |
Administration
The Compensation Committee will administer the 2024 Plan. The Compensation Committee is authorized to grant awards to eligible employees, officers, consultants, advisors, and non-employee directors. All members of the Compensation Committee are non-employee directors within the meaning of Rule 16b-3 under the Exchange Act, and independent directors under applicable NYSE rules. The Compensation Committee has the full authority and discretion to grant and administer awards under the 2024 Plan, including, but not limited to, the authority to: select eligible employees, officers, consultants, advisors, and non-employee directors to whom awards may from time to time be granted; determine the number of shares of common stock to be covered by each award; determine the type and terms and conditions of each award; condition the grant, vesting or payment of any award on the attainment of performance criteria over a performance period, set such goals and certify the attainment of such goals; and construe and interpret the terms and provisions of the 2024 Plan and any award agreements thereunder.
Eligibility
Awards under the 2024 Plan may be made to consultants, officers, advisors, non-employee directors, and eligible employees. As of the record date, there were approximately 39 employees and six non-employee directors eligible to participate in the 2024 Plan.
Award Types, Available Shares, and Award Limits
Stock options (both incentive stock options and non-qualified stock options), stock appreciation rights, restricted stock, restricted stock units, and other awards, including common stock and awards valued in whole or in part by reference to the fair market value of common stock, are available for grant under the 2024 Plan. The maximum number of shares of Company common stock that may be issued in connection with awards made under the 2024 Plan is 11,700,000 shares plus (i) any shares remaining available for grant under the 2015 Plan (987,502 shares as of the record date), and (ii) any shares subject to awards granted under the 2015 Plan that are outstanding as of the Effective Date but that expire, terminate, or are cancelled for any reason without being exercised in full (other than shares withheld as a result of net exercise or settlement or shares used to pay any exercise price or tax withholding obligation). Shares subject to awards granted under the 2015 Plan other than stock options or stock appreciation rights that expire, terminate, or are cancelled will be added to the share pool under the 2024 Plan as 1.34 shares.
Adjustments
The number and kind of shares authorized for grant under the 2024 Plan, the number of shares subject to an award, and the exercise price of awards, shall be adjusted by the Board as it determines, in good faith, to be necessary or advisable to prevent substantial dilution or enlargement of the rights of participants under the 2024 Plan in the event of any change in the number or kind of shares of Company stock outstanding by reason of any stock split, reverse stock split, stock dividend, combination or reclassification of shares, recapitalization, merger, consolidation, spin-off, reorganization, reclassification or change in par value, or other extraordinary or unusual events affecting the outstanding shares of Company common stock.
Non-Transferability of Awards
Except as the Compensation Committee may permit, at the time of grant or thereafter, awards granted under the 2024 Plan are generally not transferable by a participant other than by will or the laws of descent and
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distribution. Shares of our common stock acquired by a permissible transferee will continue to be subject to the terms of the 2024 Plan and the applicable award agreement.
Effect of Certain Transactions; Change in Control
In the event of a change of control, except as otherwise provided in the particular award agreement, where the Company is not the surviving corporation (or survives only as a subsidiary of another corporation), unless the Compensation Committee determines otherwise, all outstanding awards shall be assumed by, or replaced with comparable awards by, the surviving corporation (or a parent or subsidiary of the surviving corporation). Upon a change of control where the surviving corporation (or a parent or subsidiary of the surviving corporation) does not assume or replace the awards with comparable awards, except as otherwise provided in the particular award agreement, (i) all options and stock appreciation rights shall become immediately exercisable with respect to 100% of the shares or rights subject thereto, (ii) the restricted stock and restricted stock units that are subject to time-based vesting shall become fully vested, and (iii) the restricted stock and restricted stock units that are subject to achievement of performance goals and not subject to time-based vesting shall become vested, in such amounts as determined by the Compensation Committee as if the applicable performance goals had been achieved at least at the target level and the corresponding number of shares of restricted stock shall vest. Notwithstanding any provision in the 2024 Plan or an award agreement to the contrary, in the event of a termination without cause that occurs in the twenty-four (24)-month period following a change of control, such terminated participants unvested awards shall become fully vested.
For the purposes of the foregoing, a change of control generally means the occurrence of one of the following events: (i) any person is or becomes the beneficial owner, directly or indirectly, of 50% or more of either the outstanding shares of common stock or the combined voting power of the Companys then outstanding voting securities entitled to vote generally, (ii) during any twelve (12)-month period, individuals who constitute the Board at the beginning of such period cease to constitute at least a majority thereof, unless the election or the nomination was approved by a vote of at least three-quarters of the directors then still in office who were directors at the beginning of the period, or (iii) the Company undergoes a liquidation or dissolution or a sale of all or substantially all of the assets of the Company.
Term
Assuming that the 2024 Plan is approved by the stockholders at the Annual Meeting, awards under the 2024 Plan may not be made after June 7, 2034, but awards granted prior to such date may extend beyond that date.
Amendment and Termination
The Board may at any time amend, in whole or in part, any or all of the provisions of the 2024 Plan, or suspend or terminate it entirely, retroactively or otherwise. Except as required to comply with applicable law, no such amendment may reduce the rights of a participant with respect to awards previously granted without the consent of such participant. In addition, without the approval of our stockholders, no amendment may be made that would: increase the aggregate number of shares of our common stock that may be issued under the 2024 Plan; extend the maximum option term; amend the terms of any outstanding stock option or other stock appreciation award to reduce the exercise price thereof (i.e., reprice); cancel any outstanding in-the-money stock option or other stock appreciation award in exchange for cash, other awards or stock option or other stock appreciation award with a lower exercise price; or require stockholder approval under the rules of any exchange or system on which the Companys securities are listed or traded.
U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations
The following is a summary of the principal U.S. federal income tax consequences to the Company and to participants subject to U.S. taxation with respect to awards granted under the 2024 Plan. This summary is not
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intended to be exhaustive and does not discuss the income tax laws of any city, state or foreign jurisdiction in which a participant may reside. Participants are advised to consult with their own tax advisors with respect to the tax consequences inherent in the ownership and/or exercise of the awards, and the ownership and disposition of any underlying securities.
Non-Qualified Stock Options. A participant who is granted a nonqualified stock option under the 2024 Plan will not recognize any income for federal income tax purposes on the grant of the option. Generally, on the exercise of the option, the participant will recognize taxable ordinary income equal to the excess of the fair market value of the shares on the exercise date over the option price for the shares. Upon disposition of the shares purchased pursuant to the stock option, the participant will recognize long-term or short-term capital gain or loss, as the case may be, equal to the difference between the amount realized on such disposition and the basis for such shares, which basis includes the amount paid for the shares and the amount previously recognized by the participant as ordinary income. If the common stock received upon exercise of an option is restricted stock, the rules regarding restricted stock will apply.
Incentive Stock Options. A participant who is granted an incentive stock option, or ISO, will not recognize any taxable income for federal income tax purposes either on the grant or exercise of the ISO. The aggregate fair market value of common stock (determined at the grant date) with respect to which ISOs can be exercisable for the first time during any calendar year cannot exceed $100,000. Any excess will be treated as a non-qualified stock option. If the participant disposes of the shares purchased pursuant to the ISO more than two years after the date of grant and more than one year after the issuance of the shares to the participant (the required statutory holding period), (a) the participant will recognize long-term capital gain or loss, as the case may be, equal to the difference between the selling price and the option price; and (b) the Company will not be entitled to a deduction with respect to the shares of stock so issued. If the holding period requirements are not met, any gain realized upon disposition will be taxed as ordinary income to the extent of the excess of the lesser of (i) the excess of the fair market value of the shares at the time of exercise over the option price, and (ii) the gain on the sale. Also in that case, the Company will be entitled to a deduction in the year of disposition in an amount equal to the ordinary income recognized by the participant. Any additional gain will be taxed as short-term or long-term capital gain depending upon the holding period for the stock. A sale for less than the option price results in a capital loss. The excess of the fair market value of the shares on the date of exercise over the option price is, however, includable in the option holders income for alternative minimum tax purposes.
Restricted Stock. A participant will not be taxed at the date of grant of an award of restricted stock, but will be taxed at ordinary income rates on the fair market value of any shares of restricted stock as of the date that the restrictions lapse and the shares vest, unless the participant elects under Section 83(b) of the Internal Revenue Code to include in income the fair market value of the restricted stock as of the date of such grant. Any disposition of shares after restrictions lapse will be subject to the regular rules governing long-term and short-term capital gains and losses, with the basis for this purpose equal to the fair market value of the shares at the end of the restricted period (or on the date of the grant of the restricted shares, if the participant has made an election under Section 83(b) of the Internal Revenue Code). To the extent unrestricted dividends are paid during the restricted period under the applicable award agreement, any such dividends will be taxable to the participant at ordinary income tax rates and will be deductible by the company unless the participant has made a Section 83(b) election, in which case the dividends will thereafter be taxable to the participant as dividends and will not be deductible by the Company.
Other Stock-Based Awards. A participant generally will not recognize taxable income upon the grant of another stock-based award. When the conditions and requirements for the grants have been satisfied and the award is settled, any cash received or the fair market value of any common stock received will constitute ordinary income to the participant. If a participant sells any shares of stock acquired pursuant to the grant of another stock-based award, the difference between the amount realized on the sale and the participants tax basis
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with respect to those shares (which, generally, will be equal to the amount of income the participant reported with respect to the payment of the shares of common stock) will be taxed as short-or long-term capital gain or loss, depending on whether the one-year capital gain holding period is met.
Cash Awards. A participant generally will not recognize taxable income upon the grant of a cash award. When the conditions and requirements for the awards have been satisfied and the award is settled, the cash received will constitute ordinary income to the participant.
Company Tax Deduction. To the extent that a participant recognizes ordinary income in the circumstances described above, the Company or affiliate for which the participant performs services will generally be entitled to a corresponding federal income tax deduction, provided that, among other things, the income meets the test of reasonableness, is an ordinary and necessary business expense, is not an excess parachute payment within the meaning of Internal Revenue Code Section 280G.
Effective Date
The 2024 Plan will become effective on the day immediately following its approval by the Companys stockholders (the Effective Date). Assuming that the 2024 Plan is approved by the stockholders at the Annual Meeting, the Effective Date of the 2024 Plan will be June 7, 2024.
New Plan Benefits
Future grants under the 2024 Plan will be made at the discretion of the 2024 Plan administrator and, accordingly, are not yet determinable. In addition, benefits under the 2024 Plan will depend on a number of factors, including the fair market value of our common stock on future dates and the exercise decisions made by participants. Consequently, at this time, it is not possible to determine the future benefits that might be received by participants receiving discretionary grants under the 2024 Plan.
Required Vote and Recommendation of the Board
Assuming a quorum is present at the Annual Meeting, the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the shares of common stock having voting power present or represented by proxy at the Annual Meeting is required to approve this proposal. Abstentions will have the same effect as negative votes. Broker non-votes will not be counted toward the vote total and therefore will have no effect on the outcome of this proposal.
Our Board of Directors unanimously recommends a vote FOR the proposal to approve the adoption of the 2024 Plan.
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OUR AMENDED AND RESTATED CERTIFICATE OF INCORPORATION
TO ALLOW FOR EXCULPATION OF OFFICERS AS PERMITTED BY DELAWARE LAW
Upon the recommendation of the Nominating and Governance Committee, our Board of Directors has unanimously approved an amendment (the Amendment) to our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (our Certificate of Incorporation) to allow for exculpation of officers as permitted by Delaware law, subject to stockholder approval. Our board of directors has declared the proposed Amendment advisable and in the best interests of our company and our stockholders and is submitting it for stockholder approval at the Annual Meeting.
Background
We are incorporated in the State of Delaware and subject to the Delaware General Corporation Law (DGCL). Effective August 1, 2022, Section 102(b)(7) of the DGCL was amended to permit a corporation to include a provision in its certificate of incorporation eliminating or limiting the personal liability of certain officers to the corporation or its stockholders for monetary damages for breach of fiduciary duty. Previously, the DGCL only allowed a corporation to include such a provision in its certificate of incorporation pertaining to the exculpation of its directors. Section 102(b)(7) of the DGCL, as amended, does not permit officer exculpation for claims that involve breaches of the duty of loyalty, acts or omissions not in good faith or that involve intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of law, any transaction in which the officer derived an improper personal benefit, or claims brought by or in the right of the corporation, such as derivative claims. The officer exculpation provisions apply to the following officers of a corporation: the president, chief executive officer, chief operating officer, chief financial officer, chief legal officer, controller, treasurer or chief accounting officer, any other officer that is a named executive officer identified in the corporations SEC filings, and any other individuals who have agreed to be identified as officers of the corporation for purposes of service of process.
Our Certificate of Incorporation currently provides for exculpation of our directors from personal liability to the extent permitted by the DGCL. In light of the amendments to Section 102(b)(7) of the DGCL, our Board is recommending the adoption of the Amendment in order to better align the protections available to our officers under our Certificate of Incorporation and Delaware law with those available to our directors.
Rationale for the Proposed Amendment
Our Board believes it is important to extend the exculpation protection to officers in order to allow the Company to attract and retain qualified individuals to serve as officers. By the nature of their role, officers are frequently required to make decisions on crucial and time-sensitive matters, which can create significant risk of lawsuits seeking to impose substantial personal liability. Defending such lawsuits is a distraction and can cause an officer to expend considerable resources, regardless of merit. Without the protection of exculpation, qualified individuals may be deterred from serving as officers of the Company. Such lawsuits also often result in substantial costs to the Company, either through indemnification or higher insurance premiums. Additionally, the Amendment will avoid the practice among plaintiffs lawyers of bringing certain claims that would be exculpated if brought against directors against individual officers in order to avoid dismissal. Given the limited types of claims for which officers can be exculpated under the DGCL, the Board believes the Amendment strikes the appropriate balance between the stockholders interest in accountability and the Companys interest in attracting and retaining qualified and experienced officers and avoiding the distraction of frivolous litigation.
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Text of the Proposed Amendment
Our Certificate of Incorporation currently provides for the exculpation of directors and does not include a provision allowing for the exculpation of officers. We propose to amend Paragraph (A) of Article VII of our Certificate of Incorporation so that it would state in its entirety as follows:
(A) To the fullest extent permitted by the DGCL, as the same exists or as may hereafter be amended, no director or officer shall be personally liable to the Corporation or its stockholders for monetary damages for breach of fiduciary duty as a director or officer, as applicable.
Other than the amendments to Paragraph (A) of Article VII of our Certificate of Incorporation, the remainder of our Certificate of Incorporation will remain unchanged after the effectiveness of the Amendment.
Effectiveness of the Amendment and Vote Required
If the proposed amendment is adopted, it will become effective upon the filing of a certificate of amendment to our Certificate of Incorporation with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware. The adoption of this Amendment requires the approval of the holders of a majority of our outstanding shares of common stock as of the record date. Abstentions and broker non-votes will have the same effect as votes against the proposal. If this proposal is not approved by our stockholders, our Certificate of Incorporation will continue as currently in effect.
If our stockholders approve this proposal, our Board of Directors currently intends to file an amendment to our Certificate of Incorporation substantially in the form of Appendix B to this Proxy Statement with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware as soon as practicable following stockholder approval.
Our Board of Directors unanimously recommends a vote FOR the amendment of our Certificate of Incorporation to allow for exculpation of officers as permitted by Delaware law.
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INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
At the Annual Meeting, our stockholders will be asked to ratify the appointment of RSM as our independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2024. Stockholder ratification of the appointment of RSM is not required by our Bylaws or otherwise. Our Board of Directors is submitting the appointment of RSM to our stockholders for ratification as a matter of good corporate practice. If our stockholders do not ratify the appointment of RSM, the Audit Committee will reconsider this appointment. Even if the appointment is ratified, the Audit Committee, in its discretion, may appoint a different independent registered public accounting firm at any time during the year if the Audit Committee determines that such a change would be in the best interests of our company and our stockholders.
A representative of RSM is expected to be present at the Annual Meeting, will have an opportunity to make a statement if that representative so desires, and will be available to respond to appropriate questions.
Assuming a quorum is present at the Annual Meeting, the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the shares of our common stock having voting power present or represented by proxy at the Annual Meeting is required to approve this proposal. Abstentions will have the same effect as negative votes. Brokers and other nominees generally will have discretionary authority to vote on this proposal because it is considered a routine matter, and therefore we do not expect broker non-votes with respect to this proposal.
Our Board of Directors unanimously recommends a vote FOR the ratification of the appointment of RSM as our independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2024.
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ON THE COMPENSATION OF OUR NAMED EXECUTIVE OFFICERS
Our goal for our executive compensation program is to attract, motivate and retain qualified executives in a way that establishes an appropriate relationship between executive pay and the creation of stockholder value on a long-term basis. We believe that our executive compensation program accomplishes this goal.
Our executive compensation program and the 2023 compensation of our NEOs are described in this proxy statement in the Compensation Discussion and Analysis, compensation tables and narrative discussion above. We are requesting that our stockholders vote to approve the compensation of our NEOs as disclosed in this proxy statement pursuant to the SECs compensation disclosure rules, which disclosures include the compensation tables and the narrative discussion following the compensation tables. This advisory vote is generally referred to as a say-on-pay vote and is being provided pursuant to Section 14A of the Exchange Act. In accordance with the results of the 2019 stockholder vote on the frequency of holding say-on-pay votes, our Board of Directors has determined that the say-on-pay vote shall be held on an annual basis through the date of the next stockholder vote on the frequency of say-on-pay votes.
Our Board of Directors is asking our stockholders to indicate their support for the compensation of our NEOs as described in this proxy statement by voting FOR the following resolution:
RESOLVED, that the compensation paid to the companys NEOs as disclosed in this proxy statement pursuant to Item 402 of Regulation S-K, including the Compensation Discussion and Analysis, compensation tables and narrative discussion, is hereby APPROVED.
As an advisory vote, this proposal will not be binding upon our Board of Directors or us. However, the views expressed by our stockholders are important to us and, accordingly, our Board of Directors and the Compensation Committee intend to consider the outcome of this vote when evaluating and making future decisions regarding executive compensation arrangements.
Our Board of Directors unanimously recommends a vote FOR the approval of the compensation of our NEOs as disclosed in this proxy statement.
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As of the time of preparation of this proxy statement, neither our Board of Directors nor our management knows of any matter to be presented at the Annual Meeting that is not listed in the Notice of Annual Meeting accompanying this proxy statement and described in this proxy statement. If any other matters should properly come before the Annual Meeting or any adjournment or postponement thereof, however, the holders of proxies solicited by this proxy statement will vote on such matters in accordance with their judgment.
STOCKHOLDER PROPOSALS AND DIRECTOR NOMINATIONS FOR 2025 ANNUAL MEETING
The deadline for submitting a stockholder proposal for inclusion in our proxy materials for the 2025 annual meeting of stockholders (the 2025 Annual Meeting) is December 27, 2024, which is 120 days prior to the anniversary date that we released this proxy statement to our stockholders for the Annual Meeting, unless the date of the 2025 Annual Meeting is changed by more than 30 days from June 6, 2025, which is the first anniversary date of the Annual Meeting, in which case the proposal must be received a reasonable time before the company begins to print and send its proxy materials.
Stockholders who wish to nominate persons for election to our Board of Directors or make a stockholder proposal at the 2025 Annual Meeting without including the proposal in our proxy materials relating to such meeting must notify us in writing at our principal executive offices no earlier than February 6, 2025 which is 120 days prior to the first anniversary of the date of the Annual Meeting, and no later than March 8, 2025, which is 90 days prior to the first anniversary of the date of the Annual Meeting. In the event the Board of Directors increases the number of directors to be elected to the Board of Directors and the public announcement of such increase is not made on or before February 26, 2025, which is 100 days prior to the one-year anniversary of the Annual Meeting, stockholder nominees for the new directorships will be considered timely if provided to our corporate secretary within ten days of the public announcement.
In addition to the notice and information requirements contained in the Bylaws, to comply with the SEC universal proxy rules, stockholders who, in connection the 2025 Annual Meeting, intend to solicit proxies in support of director nominees other than the companys nominees must provide notice to the company that sets forth the information required by the SECs Rule 14a-19 no later than April 7, 2025, unless the date of the 2025 Annual Meeting has changed by more than 30 days from June 6, 2025, which is the one-year anniversary of the Annual Meeting, in which case such notice must be provided by the later of 60 days prior to the 2025 Annual Meeting date or the tenth day following the public announcement of 2025 Annual Meeting date by the company.
Pursuant to Rule 14a-4(c)(1) promulgated under the Exchange Act, the proxies designated by us for the 2025 Annual Meeting will have discretionary authority to vote on any matters for which notice is not timely received as described above. In addition, our Bylaws provide that any matter to be presented at an annual meeting of stockholders must be proper business to be transacted at such meeting or a proper nomination to be decided on at the meeting and must have been properly brought before such meeting pursuant to our Bylaws.
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Our Corporate Secretary must receive notices of stockholder proposals or nominations in writing at our principal executive offices at Savara Inc., One Summit Square, 1717 Langhorne Newtown Rd., Suite 300, Langhorne, PA 19047, Attention: Corporate Secretary, and such notices of stockholder proposals must comply with the applicable requirements as to form and substance established by the SEC, including Rule 14a-8 of the Exchange Act and our Bylaws for such proposals. Stockholders are advised to review our Bylaws, which contain additional advance notice requirements. A copy of our Bylaws is available to stockholders upon written request to our Corporate Secretary and was also filed as Exhibit 3.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on March 30, 2023.
By Order of the Board of Directors, |
/s/ Matthew Pauls |
Matthew Pauls |
Chair of the Board of Directors & Chief Executive Officer |
Langhorne, PA
April 26, 2024
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YOUR VOTE IS IMPORTANT!
You are cordially invited to attend the Annual Meeting. However, to ensure the presence of a quorum and that your shares are represented at the Annual Meeting, as well as to save us additional proxy solicitation costs, we encourage you to submit your proxy or voting instructions as soon as possible. For specific instructions as to how to vote your shares, please refer to the instructions in the Notice of Internet Availability you received in the mail, or, if youve requested and received printed proxy materials, please refer to the instructions in the enclosed proxy card. Even if you have voted by proxy, you may still vote electronically if you attend the Annual Meeting. Please note, however, that if your shares are held of record by a broker or other nominee, you will need to follow the voting procedure your broker or other nominee provides to vote your shares.
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SAVARA INC.
2024 OMNIBUS INCENTIVE PLAN
(as approved by the Board, subject to stockholder approval)
1. PURPOSE OF THE PLAN. The purpose of the 2024 Omnibus Incentive Plan (the Plan) is to provide favorable opportunities for directors, officers, employees, consultants or advisors employed by or providing services to Savara Inc., a Delaware corporation (the Company) or any of its Subsidiaries, to acquire shares of common stock of the Company (Common Stock) or to benefit from the appreciation thereof. Such opportunities should provide an increased incentive for these individuals to contribute to the future success and prosperity of the Company, thus enhancing the value of the Companys Common Stock for the benefit of the stockholders, and increase the ability of the Company to attract and retain individuals of exceptional skill upon whom, in large measure, its sustained progress, growth and profitability depend.
2. | DEFINITIONS. |
(a) Award means any (i) Options, (ii) Stock Appreciation Rights, (iii) Restricted Shares, (iv) Restricted Stock Units, or (v) Other Awards, granted under the Plan, whether granted singly, in combination or in tandem to a Participant.
(b) Award Agreement means the written agreement between the Company and a Participant that sets forth the terms, conditions, performance requirements, limitations and restrictions applicable to an Award.
(c) Board means the Board of Directors of the Company.
(d) Cause means, with respect to a Participants Termination, Cause as defined in any written agreement between Participant and the Company, or if no such agreement exists, unless otherwise set forth in the applicable Award Agreement, termination due to (a) the Participants conviction of, or plea of guilty or nolo contendere to, a felony; (b) perpetration by the Participant of an illegal act, dishonesty or fraud that could have a significant adverse effect on the Company or its assets or reputation; or (c) the Participants willful misconduct with regard to the Company, as determined by the Committee. With respect to a Participant who is a Non-Employee Director, Cause means an act or failure to act that constitutes cause for removal of a director under Delaware law.
(e) Change of Control means the occurrence of any of the following events:
(i) | any person (as that term is used in Sections 13 and 14(d)(2) of the Exchange Act) other than a Permitted Holder (as defined below) is or becomes the beneficial owner (as that term is used in Section 13(d) of the Exchange Act), directly or indirectly, of 50% or more of either the outstanding shares of Common Stock or the combined voting power of the Companys then outstanding voting securities entitled to vote generally, |
(ii) | during any twelve (12)-month period, individuals who constitute the Board at the beginning of such period cease for any reason to constitute at least a majority thereof, unless the election or the nomination for election by the Companys stockholders of each new director was approved by a vote of at least three-quarters of the directors then still in office who were directors at the beginning of the period, or |
(iii) | the Company undergoes a liquidation or dissolution or a sale of all or substantially all of the assets of the Company. |
No merger, consolidation or corporate reorganization in which the owners of the combined voting power of the Companys then outstanding voting securities entitled to vote generally prior to said
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combination, own 50% or more of the resulting entitys outstanding voting securities shall, by itself, be considered a Change of Control. As used herein, Permitted Holder means (A) the Company, (B) any corporation, partnership, trust or other entity controlled by the Company and (C) any employee benefit plan (or related trust) sponsored or maintained by the Company or any such controlled entity.
(f) Code means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. All section references to the Code in this Plan are intended to include any amendments or substitutions thereof or subsequent to the adoption of the Plan.
(g) Common Stock means the Companys common stock, $0.001 par value per share.
(h) Committee means the Compensation Committee of the Board, each of whom shall be an independent director as defined in the listing standards of the exchange on which the Common Stock is principally traded.
(i) Company Group means, collectively, the Company and its Subsidiaries.
(j) Effective Date means the date that the Plan is first approved by the stockholders of the Company.
(k) Eligible Individuals means any of the following individuals: (i) directors, officers and employees of the Company or any of its Subsidiaries, or (ii) consultants or advisors to the Company or any of its Subsidiaries.
(l) Exchange Act means the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. References to any specific section of the Exchange Act shall be deemed to include such regulations and guidance issued thereunder, as well as any successor section, regulations or guidance.
(m) Exercise Price means the exercise price per share of Common Stock specified in an Option or Stock Appreciation Right.
(n) Fair Market Value means, with respect to shares of Common Stock, (i) if the Common Stock is listed on a national securities exchange, the closing sales price of the Common Stock reported on the primary exchange on which the Common Stock is listed and traded on such date, or, if there are no such sales on that date, then on the last preceding date on which such sales were reported; (ii) if the Common Stock is not listed on any national securities exchange but is quoted in an inter-dealer quotation system on a last-sale basis, the average between the closing bid price and ask price reported on such date, or, if there is no such sale on that date, then on the last preceding date on which a sale was reported; or (iii) if the Common Stock is not listed on a national securities exchange or quoted in an inter-dealer quotation system on a last-sale basis, the amount determined by the Committee in good faith to be the fair market value of the Common Stock.
(o) Incentive Stock Option means an Option intended, as expressed in the Award Agreement, to meet the requirements of an incentive stock option as defined in Section 422(b) of the Code and the regulations thereunder.
(p) Non-Employee Director means a member of the Board who is not an employee of any member of the Company Group.
(q) Non-Qualified Stock Option means an Option that is not an Incentive Stock Option.
(r) Option means a right to purchase shares of Common Stock at a stated price. An Option may either be an Incentive Stock Option or a Non-Qualified Stock Option.
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(s) Other Award means an Award designated as an Other Award pursuant to this Plan.
(t) Participant means an Eligible Individual to whom one or more Awards are or have been granted under this Plan and have not been fully settled or cancelled and, following the death of any such person, his successors, heirs, executors and administrators, as the case may be.
(u) Person means any individual, entity or group (within the meaning of Section 13(d)(3) or 14(d)(2) of the Exchange Act).
(v) Plan means this Savara Inc. 2024 Omnibus Incentive Plan, as set forth herein and as it may be amended from time to time.
(w) Prior Plan shall mean the Companys Amended and Restated 2015 Omnibus Incentive Plan. Outstanding awards granted under the Prior Plan continue to be governed under the terms of the Prior Plans and, as of the Effective Date, no Awards may be granted under the Prior Plan.
(x) Qualifying Director means a non-employee director within the meaning of Rule 16b-3 under the Exchange Act.
(y) Restricted Stock means a share of Common Stock that may be subject to certain transferability and other restrictions and to a risk of forfeiture (including by reason of not satisfying certain performance goals).
(z) Restricted Stock Unit means a right to receive a share of Common Stock at a future date, which may be conditioned on the satisfaction of certain requirements (including the satisfaction of certain performance goals).
(aa) Stock Appreciation Right means a right to receive, with respect to each share of Common Stock subject to such Stock Appreciation Right, value in an amount equal to the excess, if any, of (i) the Fair Market Value of a share of Common Stock on the day of exercise or the trading day immediately preceding the date of exercise, as determined by the Committee in its reasonable discretion over (ii) the Exercise Price of such Stock Appreciation Right.
(bb) Sub-Plan means any sub-plan to the Plan that has been adopted by the Board or the Committee for the purpose of permitting or facilitating the offering of Awards to employees of certain designated Subsidiaries organized under the laws of any jurisdiction other than the United States of America or otherwise outside the jurisdiction of the United States of America, with each such Sub-Plan designed to comply with applicable law in such foreign jurisdictions. Although any Sub-Plan may be designated a separate and independent plan from the Plan in order to comply with applicable law, the Plan Share Reserve and the other limits specified in Section 4 of the Plan shall apply in the aggregate to the Plan and any Sub-Plan adopted hereunder.
(cc) Subsidiaries has the meaning given to such term by Section 424 of the Code.
(dd) Termination means the termination of a Participants employment or service, as applicable, with the Company or Subsidiary with which such Participant was principally employed or to which such Participant provided services, for any reason (including death or disability).
3. ADMINISTRATION.
(a) General. The Committee shall administer the Plan. To the extent required to comply with the provisions of Rule 16b-3 promulgated under the Exchange Act (if the Board is not acting as the Committee under the Plan) it is intended that each member of the Committee shall, at the time such member takes any action with
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respect to an Award under the Plan that is intended to qualify for the exemptions provided by Rule 16b-3 promulgated under the Exchange Act be a Qualifying Director. However, the fact that a Committee member shall fail to qualify as a Qualifying Director shall not invalidate any Award granted by the Committee that is otherwise validly granted under the Plan.
(b) Committee Authority. Subject to the provisions of the Plan and applicable law, the Committee shall have the sole and plenary authority, in addition to other express powers and authorizations conferred on the Committee by the Plan, to (i) designate Participants; (ii) determine the type or types of Awards to be granted to a Participant; (iii) determine the number of shares of Common Stock to be covered by, or with respect to which payments, rights, or other matters are to be calculated in connection with, Awards; (iv) determine the terms and conditions of any Award; (v) determine whether, to what extent, and under what circumstances Awards may be settled in, or exercised for, cash, shares of Common Stock, other securities, other Awards or other property, or canceled, forfeited, or suspended and the method or methods by which Awards may be settled, exercised, canceled, forfeited, or suspended; (vi) determine whether, to what extent, and under what circumstances the delivery of cash, shares of Common Stock, other securities, other Awards, or other property and other amounts payable with respect to an Award shall be deferred either automatically or at the election of the Participant or of the Committee; (vii) interpret, administer, reconcile any inconsistency in, correct any defect in and/or supply any omission in the Plan and any instrument or agreement relating to, or Award granted under, the Plan; (viii) establish, amend, suspend, or waive any rules and regulations and appoint such agents as the Committee shall deem appropriate for the proper administration of the Plan; (ix) adopt Sub-Plans; and (x) make any other determination and take any other action that the Committee deems necessary or desirable for the administration of the Plan.
(c) Delegation. Except to the extent prohibited by applicable law, the Committee may allocate all or any portion of its responsibilities and powers to any one or more of its members and may delegate all or any part of its responsibilities and powers to any Person or Persons selected by it. Any such allocation or delegation may be revoked by the Committee at any time. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the Committee may delegate to one or more officers of the Company the authority to act on behalf of the Committee with respect to any matter, right, obligation, or election which is the responsibility of, or which is allocated to, the Committee herein, and which may be so delegated in accordance with applicable law, except with respect to grants of Awards to Persons (i) who are Non-Employee Directors, or (ii) who are subject to Section 16 of the Exchange Act.
(d) Finality of Decisions. Unless otherwise expressly provided in the Plan, all designations, determinations, interpretations, and other decisions under or with respect to the Plan, any Award or any Award Agreement shall be within the sole discretion of the Committee, may be made at any time and shall be final, conclusive and binding upon all Persons, including, without limitation, the Company Group, any Participant, any holder or beneficiary of any Award, and any stockholder of the Company.
(e) Indemnification. No member of the Board or the Committee or any employee or agent of any member of the Company (each such Person, an Indemnifiable Person) shall be liable for any action taken or omitted to be taken or any determination made with respect to the Plan or any Award hereunder (unless constituting fraud or a willful criminal act or omission). Each Indemnifiable Person shall be indemnified and held harmless by the Company against and from any loss, cost, liability, or expense (including attorneys fees) that may be imposed upon or incurred by such Indemnifiable Person in connection with or resulting from any action, suit or proceeding to which such Indemnifiable Person may be a party or in which such Indemnifiable Person may be involved by reason of any action taken or omitted to be taken or determination made with respect to the Plan or any Award hereunder.
(f) Board Authority. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in the Plan, the Board may, in its sole discretion, at any time and from time to time, grant Awards and administer the Plan with respect to such Awards. Any such actions by the Board shall be subject to the applicable rules of the securities exchange or
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inter-dealer quotation system on which the Common Stock is listed or quoted. In any such case, the Board shall have all the authority granted to the Committee under the Plan.
4. AWARDS, IN GENERAL.
(a) Number of Shares. Subject to adjustment provided in Section 10, the aggregate number of shares of Common Stock which may be issued under the Plan and with respect to which Awards may be made is (i) 11,700,000 shares, plus (ii) the number of shares remaining available for issuance under the Prior Plan as of the Effective Date, plus (iii) any shares subject to awards granted under the Prior Plan that are outstanding as of the Effective Date but that expire, terminate, or are cancelled for any reason without being exercised in full (other than shares withheld as a result of net exercise or settlement or shares used to pay any exercise price or tax withholding obligation) (the Plan Share Reserve). The shares may be authorized and unissued or issued and reacquired shares, as the Board from time to time may determine. If any shares subject to an Award are forfeited or an Award expires, such shares shall again be available for Awards under this Plan, in accordance with Section 4(b) below. Shares with respect to which Options or Stock Appreciation Rights are not exercised prior to termination of the Option or Stock Appreciation Right, shares that are subject to Restricted Stock Units which expire without converting to Common Stock, shares of Restricted Stock which are forfeited before the restrictions lapse, and shares subject to Awards that are settled in cash pursuant to their terms (and were not eligible to be settled in shares), shall be available for issuance under the Plan. Notwithstanding the foregoing, neither (i) shares accepted or withheld by the Company in payment of the Exercise Price of any Option, if permitted under the terms of such Option, (ii) any shares withheld from a Participant, or delivered to the Company in satisfaction of required withholding taxes arising from Awards under the Plan, (iii) the difference between the total number of shares with respect to which a Stock Appreciation Right is awarded and the number of shares actually delivered upon exercise of such Stock Appreciation Right, nor (iv) shares reacquired by the Company on the open market or otherwise using cash proceeds from the exercise of Options or options exercised under the Prior Plan, shall be available for reissuance under the Plan.
(b) Any share that again becomes available for grant pursuant to this Section 4 shall be added back as (i) one (1) share if such share was subject to an option or a stock appreciation right granted under the Prior Plan, and (ii) 1.34 shares if such share was subject to an award other than an option or a stock appreciation right granted under the Prior Plan.
(c) Additional Limitations. Subject to Section 10 of the Plan, (i) no more than the number of shares of Common Stock equal to the Plan Share Reserve may be issued in the aggregate pursuant to the exercise of Incentive Stock Options granted under the Plan; and (ii) during a single fiscal year, the number of Awards eligible to be made to each Non-Employee Director, taken together with any cash fees paid to such Non-Employee Director during such fiscal year, shall not exceed a total value of $1,000,000 (calculating the value of any such Awards based on the grant date fair value of such Awards for financial reporting purposes).
(d) Substitute Awards. Awards may, in the sole discretion of the Committee, be granted under the Plan in assumption of, or in substitution for, outstanding awards previously granted by an entity directly or indirectly acquired by the Company or with which a member of the Company Group combines (Substitute Awards). Substitute Awards shall not be counted against the Plan Share Reserve; provided, that Substitute Awards issued in connection with the assumption of, or in substitution for, outstanding options intended to qualify as incentive stock options within the meaning of Section 422 of the Code shall be counted against the aggregate number of shares of Common Stock available for Awards of Incentive Stock Options under the Plan. Subject to applicable stock exchange requirements, available shares under a stockholder-approved plan of an entity directly or indirectly acquired by the Company or with which a member of the Company Group combines (as appropriately adjusted to reflect the acquisition or combination transaction) may be used for Awards under the Plan and shall not reduce the number of shares of Common Stock available for issuance under the Plan.
5. PARTICIPATION. The Committee may, from time to time, in its discretion grant Awards to Participants from among the Eligible Individuals.
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6. GRANTS OF OPTIONS. The Committee is hereby authorized to grant Awards of Options to Eligible Individuals. The terms and conditions of each Option shall be set forth in an Award Agreement between the Company and the Participant on such terms and conditions as may be deemed advisable by the Committee in its discretion, but not inconsistent with the following:
(a) Exercise Price. The Exercise Price shall not be less than 100% of the Fair Market Value of Common Stock on the date such Option is granted.
(b) Payment. The Exercise Price multiplied by the number of shares to be purchased by exercise of the Option shall be paid upon the exercise thereof. Upon exercise of the Option, the aggregate Exercise Price shall be payable in the manner provided by the applicable Award Agreement, which may include, without limitation payment in the form of: (i) cash equal to such aggregate Exercise Price, (ii) shares of Common Stock owned by the Participant having a Fair Market Value at least equal to such aggregate Exercise Price on the day of exercise or the trading day immediately preceding the date of exercise as determined by the Committee in its reasonable discretion, (iii) any cashless exercise mechanism, or (iv) a combination of any of the above methods which total to such aggregate Exercise Price.
(c) Stockholder Rights. A holder of an Option shall have none of the rights of a stockholder until the shares are issued to him or her; provided that if a Participant exercises an Option and the appropriate purchase price is received by the Company in accordance with this Section 6(c) prior to any dividend record date, such Participant shall be entitled to receive the dividends which would be paid on the shares subject to such exercise if such shares were outstanding on such record date. In no event shall dividends be paid with respect to Options prior to their exercise.
(d) Term of Option; Exercise. The Committee may designate the term of an Option in the Award Agreement, provided that the term shall not exceed ten years. During such term, an Option shall be exercisable at such times and under such conditions as shall be permissible under the terms of this Plan and of the Award Agreement.
(e) Limitations Applicable to Incentive Stock Options. It is intended that Incentive Stock Options shall conform to the requirements of Sections 422 and 424 of the Code. To the extent that the aggregate Fair Market Value of the Common Stock, with respect to which Incentive Stock Options granted under this or any other Plan of the Company are exercisable for the first time by a Participant during any calendar year exceeds $100,000, or such other amount as may be permitted under the Code, such excess shall be considered Non-Qualified Stock Options. Notwithstanding anything in the Plan to the contrary, any Incentive Stock Option awarded to any Participant who, at the time of the Award, is the owner, directly or indirectly, of stock possessing more than ten percent (10%) of the total combined voting power of all classes of stock of the Company or any Subsidiary, shall (i) have a term not exceeding five years from the date of grant, and (ii) shall have an Exercise Price per share of not less than 110% of the Fair Market Value of the Common Stock on the date the Incentive Stock Option is granted.
(f) Automatic Exercise at End of Term. An Award Agreement may provide that, if on the last day of the term of an Option the Fair Market Value of one share exceeds the Exercise Price, the Participant has not exercised the Option and the Option has not expired, the Option shall be deemed to have been exercised by the Participant on such day with the payment made by withholding shares otherwise issuable in connection with the exercise of the Option. In such event, the Company shall deliver to the Participant the number of shares for which the Option was deemed exercised, less the number of shares required to be withheld for the payment of the total purchase price and required withholding taxes; provided, however, any fractional share shall be settled in cash.
7. GRANTS OF STOCK APPRECIATION RIGHTS. The Committee is hereby authorized to grant Awards of Stock Appreciation Rights to Eligible Individuals. The terms and conditions of each Stock Appreciation Right shall be set forth in an Award Agreement between the Company and the Participant on such
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terms and conditions as may be deemed advisable by the Committee in its discretion, but not inconsistent with the following:
(a) Exercise Price. The Exercise Price of a Stock Appreciation Right shall be not less than 100% of the Fair Market Value of the Companys Common Stock on the date the Stock Appreciation Right is granted.
(b) Term; Exercise. The Committee may designate the term of a Stock Appreciation Right in the Award Agreement, provided that the term shall not exceed ten years. During such term, a Stock Appreciation Right shall be exercisable at such times and under such conditions as shall be permissible under the terms of this Plan and of the Award Agreement. Upon the exercise of a Stock Appreciation Right, the Participant shall have the right to receive the excess of (i) the Fair Market Value of one share on the date of exercise over (ii) the Exercise Price of the Stock Appreciation Right.
(c) Tandem Awards. Stock Appreciation Rights may be awarded on a stand-alone basis or in tandem with an Option. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Plan, any Stock Appreciation Right awarded in tandem with an Option:
(i) | shall entitle the Participant to exercise all or a portion of the Stock Appreciation Right in lieu of all or a portion of the Option, |
(ii) | shall vest and expire on the same dates as the underlying Option and shall utilize the same Exercise Price as the underlying Option, and |
(iii) | may be exercised only to the extent that the related Option has not been exercised. The exercise of Stock Appreciation Rights granted in tandem with an Option shall result in a pro rata surrender of the related Option to the extent that the Stock Appreciation Rights have been exercised. |
(d) Settlement of Stock Appreciation Right. Stock Appreciation Rights will be settled in fully vested shares of Stock or in cash, as specified in the Award Agreement.
(e) Automatic Exercise at End of Term. An Award Agreement may provide that, if on the last day of the term of a Stock Appreciation Right the Fair Market Value of one share exceeds the Exercise Price, the Participant has not exercised the Stock Appreciation Right and the Stock Appreciation Right has not expired, the Stock Appreciation Right shall be deemed to have been exercised by the Participant on such day. In such event, the Company shall make payment to the Participant in accordance with this Section, reduced by the number of shares (or cash) required for withholding taxes; provided, however, any fractional share shall be settled in cash.
8. RESTRICTED STOCK AND RESTRICTED STOCK UNITS. The Committee is hereby authorized to grant Awards of Restricted Stock and Restricted Stock Units to Eligible Individuals. The terms and conditions of each Award of Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units shall be set forth in an Award Agreement between the Company and the Participant on such terms and conditions as may be deemed advisable by the Committee in its discretion, but not inconsistent with the following:
(a) Restriction Period. The Committee shall determine the events or conditions necessary for the lapse of restrictions applicable to the award of Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units, which may include, among other things, requirements of continuous service for a specified term or the attainment of specific performance standards or goals, which restrictions may differ among Participants. Upon the lapse of the restriction period and the attainment of any other vesting criteria established by the Committee, with respect to any outstanding Restricted Stock Units, the Company shall deliver to the Participant one share of Common Stock (or cash in lieu of delivering shares, as the case may be) for each such outstanding and vested Restricted Stock Unit; provided, however, that the Committee may elect to defer the delivery of Common Stock beyond the expiration of the restricted period only (i) with written permission of the participant, and (ii) if such extension would not cause
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adverse tax consequences under Section 409A of the Code. Award Agreements for Restricted Stock and Restricted Stock Units shall provide for forfeiture of Common Stock covered thereby to the extent the Restricted Stock or Restricted Stock Units do not vest during the restricted period specified in the Award Agreement, except as the Committee may otherwise determine in the Award Agreement.
(b) Stockholder Rights. Except to the extent restricted under the Award Agreement relating to the Restricted Stock, a Participant receiving Restricted Stock shall have all the rights of a stockholder with respect to such Restricted Stock, including the right to receive dividends and vote shares of Restricted Stock upon the expiration of the applicable restriction period. Until Common Stock is issued to the Participant in settlement of Restricted Stock Units, the Participant shall not have any rights of a stockholder with respect to the Restricted Stock Units or the shares issuable thereunder. The Committee may determine in the applicable Award Agreement whether and to what extent the recipient of Restricted Stock Units has the rights of a stockholder of the Company including, but not limited to, whether the Participant receiving the Award has the right to vote the shares or to receive dividends or dividend equivalents upon the expiration of the applicable restriction period. No dividends or dividend equivalents may be paid to a Participant with respect to an Award unless and until the date the Participant vests in such Award, and dividends or dividend equivalents relating to unvested Awards may accrue and be paid to the Participant at the time of vesting of the underlying Award (or such later date of payment of the Award) and shall be forfeited to the extent the underlying Award is forfeited.
9. OTHER AWARDS. The Committee may, in its sole discretion, grant Awards of Common Stock, including fully vested Common Stock, and other Awards that are valued in whole or in part by reference to the Fair Market Value of Common Stock. These Awards shall collectively be referred to herein as Other Awards. Other Awards shall be in such form, and dependent on such conditions, as the Committee shall determine, including, but not limited to, the right to receive fully vested shares. Subject to the other terms of the Plan, Other Awards may be granted to such Eligible Individuals in such amounts and upon such terms, and at any time and from time to time, as shall be determined by the Committee and set forth in an Award Agreement.
10. ADJUSTMENT IN THE EVENT OF CHANGE IN STOCK. Subject to Section 11, if there is any change in the number or kind of shares of Company Stock outstanding (a) by reason of a stock dividend, spinoff, recapitalization, stock split, or combination or exchange of shares; (b) by reason of a merger, reorganization, or consolidation; (c) by reason of a reclassification or change in par value; or (d) by reason of any other extraordinary or unusual event affecting the outstanding Company Stock as a class without the Companys receipt of consideration, or if the value of outstanding shares of Company Stock is substantially reduced as a result of a spinoff or the Companys payment of an extraordinary dividend or distribution, the maximum number of shares of Company Stock available for Awards, the number of shares covered by outstanding Awards, the kind of shares issued under the Plan, and the price per share of such Awards shall be adjusted by the Board to reflect any increase or decrease in the number of, or change in the kind or value of, issued shares of Company Stock to preclude the enlargement or dilution of rights and benefits under such Awards; provided, however, that any fractional shares resulting from such adjustment shall be eliminated. Any adjustments determined by the Board shall be final, binding, and conclusive.
11. EFFECT OF A CHANGE OF CONTROL. Except to the extent reflected in a particular Award Agreement, in the event of a Change of Control:
(a) Assumption of Awards. Upon a Change of Control where the Company is not the surviving corporation (or survives only as a subsidiary of another corporation), unless the Committee determines otherwise, all outstanding Awards shall be assumed by, or replaced with comparable Awards by, the surviving corporation (or a parent or subsidiary of the surviving corporation).
(b) Termination of Awards. Upon a Change of Control where the Company is not the surviving corporation (or survives only as a subsidiary of another corporation), in the event the surviving corporation (or a parent or subsidiary of the surviving corporation) does not assume or replace the Awards with comparable
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Awards, (i) the Company shall provide each Participant with outstanding Awards written notice of such Change of Control, (ii) all Options and Stock Appreciation Rights shall become immediately exercisable with respect to 100% of the shares or rights subject thereto, (iii) the Restricted Stock that is subject to time-based vesting and not subject to achievement of performance goals shall become fully vested and all restrictions shall expire immediately, (iv) the Restricted Stock that is subject to achievement of performance goals and not subject to time-based vesting shall, unless the Award Agreement provides for vesting or earning in a greater amount upon the occurrence of a Change of Control, become vested, free of restrictions, in such amounts as determined by the Committee as if the applicable performance goals for the unexpired performance period had been achieved at least at the target level set forth in the applicable Award Agreement and the corresponding number of shares of Restricted Stock shall vest, (v) the Restricted Stock Units that are subject to time-based vesting and not subject to achievement of performance goals shall become fully vested and the shares of Common Stock subject to such Restricted Stock Units shall be delivered as promptly as practicable, subject to any limitations imposed thereon by Section 409A of the Code, and (vi) the Restricted Stock Units that are subject to achievement of performance goals and not subject to time-based vesting shall, unless the Award Agreement provides for vesting or earning in a greater amount upon the occurrence of a Change of Control, become vested and earned in such amounts as determined by the Committee as if the applicable performance goals for the unexpired performance period had been achieved at least at the target level set forth in the applicable Award Agreement and the corresponding number of shares of Common Stock subject to such Restricted Stock Units shall be delivered as promptly as practicable, subject to any limitations imposed thereon by Section 409A of the Code.
(c) Other Alternatives. Notwithstanding the foregoing, in the event of a Change of Control, the Committee may, in its discretion, cancel any outstanding Options, Stock Appreciation Rights or Restricted Stock Awards and pay to the holders thereof, in cash, the value of such Awards based upon the highest price per share of Common Stock received or to be received by other stockholders of the Company in connection with the Change of Control.
(d) Terminations in Connection with a Change in Control. Notwithstanding any provision in this Plan or an Award Agreement to the contrary, in the event of a Termination without Cause that occurs in the twenty-four (24)-month period following a Change in Control, such terminated Participants unvested Awards shall become fully vested immediately upon such Termination without Cause.
12. RESTRICTIONS ON TRANSFER.
(a) Each Award shall be exercisable only by such Participant to whom such Award was granted during the Participants lifetime, or, if permissible under applicable law, by the Participants legal guardian or representative. No Award may be assigned, alienated, pledged, attached, sold or otherwise transferred or encumbered by a Participant (unless such transfer is specifically required pursuant to a domestic relations order or by applicable law) other than by will or by the laws of descent and distribution and any such purported assignment, alienation, pledge, attachment, sale, transfer or encumbrance shall be void and unenforceable against the Company; provided, that the designation of a beneficiary shall not constitute an assignment, alienation, pledge, attachment, sale, transfer or encumbrance.
(b) Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Committee may, in its sole discretion, permit Awards (other than Incentive Stock Options) to be transferred by a Participant, without consideration, subject to such rules as the Committee may adopt consistent with any applicable Award Agreement to preserve the purposes of the Plan, to (i) any person who is a family member of the Participant, as such term is used in the instructions to Form S-8 under the Securities Act or any successor form of registration statement promulgated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (collectively, the Immediate Family Members); (ii) a trust solely for the benefit of the Participant and the Participants Immediate Family Members; (iii) a partnership or limited liability company whose only partners or stockholders are the Participant and the Participants Immediate Family Members; or (iv) a beneficiary to whom donations are eligible to be treated as charitable contributions for federal income tax purposes (each transferee described in clauses (i), (ii), (iii) and (iv) above is hereinafter referred to as a
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Permitted Transferee); provided, that the Participant gives the Committee advance written notice describing the terms and conditions of the proposed transfer and the Committee notifies the Participant in writing that such a transfer would comply with the requirements of the Plan.
(c) The terms of any Award transferred in accordance with clause (b) above shall apply to the Permitted Transferee and any reference in the Plan, or in any applicable Award Agreement, to a Participant shall be deemed to refer to the Permitted Transferee, except that (i) Permitted Transferees shall not be entitled to transfer any Award, other than by will or the laws of descent and distribution; (ii) Permitted Transferees shall not be entitled to exercise any transferred Option unless there shall be in effect a registration statement on an appropriate form covering the shares of Common Stock to be acquired pursuant to the exercise of such Option if the Committee determines, consistent with any applicable Award Agreement, that such a registration statement is necessary or appropriate; (iii) neither the Committee nor the Company shall be required to provide any notice to a Permitted Transferee, whether or not such notice is or would otherwise have been required to be given to the Participant under the Plan or otherwise; and (iv) the consequences of a Participants Termination under the terms of the Plan and the applicable Award Agreement shall continue to be applied with respect to the Participant, including, without limitation, that an Option shall be exercisable by the Permitted Transferee only to the extent, and for the periods, specified in the Plan and the applicable Award Agreement.
13. AMENDMENT AND DISCONTINUANCE.
(a) The Board may from time to time amend or revise the terms of the Plan, or may discontinue the Plan at any time as permitted by law, provided, however, that such amendment shall not (except as provided in Section 10), without further approval of the stockholders, (i) increase the aggregate number of shares with respect to which awards may be made under the Plan, (ii) change the manner of determining the Exercise Price (other than determining the Fair Market Value of the Common Stock to conform with applicable provisions of the Code or regulations and interpretations thereunder), (iii) extend the term of the Plan or the maximum period during which any Option may be exercised, or (iv) make any other change which, in the absence of stockholder approval, would cause awards granted under the Plan which are then outstanding, or which may be granted in the future.
(b) No amendments, revision or discontinuance of the Plan shall, without the consent of a Participant, in any manner adversely affect his or her rights under any Award theretofore granted under the Plan.
(c) Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, the Company shall not, without stockholder approval, reduce the Exercise Price of any Option or Stock Appreciation Right and shall not exchange any Option or Stock Appreciation Right for a new Award with a lower (or no) Exercise Price or for cash.
14. EFFECTIVE DATE AND DURATION. The Plan was adopted by the Board and became effective on March 21, 2024, and remains subject to approval by stockholders. No Award may be granted under the Plan after March 21, 2034.
15. TAX WITHHOLDING. Notwithstanding any other provision of the Plan, the Company or its Subsidiaries, as appropriate, shall have the right to deduct from all Awards under the Plan cash and/or stock, with a Fair Market Value in the amount of all federal, state or local withholding taxes (up to the maximum permissible statutory tax rate for the applicable tax jurisdiction, to the extent consistent with applicable law) with respect to such Awards. In the case of Awards paid in Common Stock, the Participant or Permitted Transferee may be required to pay to the Company or a Subsidiary thereof, as appropriate, the amount of any such taxes which the Company or Subsidiary is required to withhold, if any, with respect to such stock. Subject in particular cases to the disapproval of the Committee, the Company may accept shares of the Companys Common Stock of equivalent Fair Market Value in payment of such withholding tax obligations if the Participant elects to make payment in such manner.
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16. GOVERNING LAW. The Plan shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the internal laws of the State of Delaware applicable to contracts made and performed wholly within the State of Delaware, without giving effect to the conflict of laws provisions thereof. EACH PARTICIPANT WHO ACCEPTS AN AWARD IRREVOCABLY WAIVES ALL RIGHT TO A TRIAL BY JURY IN ANY SUIT, ACTION, OR OTHER PROCEEDING INSTITUTED BY OR AGAINST SUCH PARTICIPANT IN RESPECT OF THE PARTICIPANTS RIGHTS OR OBLIGATIONS HEREUNDER.
17. GOVERNMENT AND OTHER REGULATIONS.
(a) The obligation of the Company to settle Awards in shares of Common Stock or other consideration shall be subject to all applicable law. Notwithstanding any terms or conditions of any Award to the contrary, the Company shall be under no obligation to offer to sell or to sell, and shall be prohibited from offering to sell or selling, any shares of Common Stock pursuant to an Award unless such shares have been properly registered for sale pursuant to the Securities Act with the Securities and Exchange Commission or unless the Company has received an opinion of counsel (if the Company has requested such an opinion), satisfactory to the Company, that such shares may be offered or sold without such registration pursuant to an available exemption therefrom and the terms and conditions of such exemption have been fully complied with. The Company shall be under no obligation to register for sale under the Securities Act any of the shares of Common Stock to be offered or sold under the Plan. The Committee shall have the authority to provide that all shares of Common Stock or other securities of the Company issued under the Plan shall be subject to such stop-transfer orders and other restrictions as the Committee may deem advisable under the Plan, the applicable Award Agreement and applicable law, and, without limiting the generality of Section 8 of the Plan, the Committee may cause a legend or legends to be put on certificates representing shares of Common Stock or other securities of the Company issued under the Plan to make appropriate reference to such restrictions or may cause such Common Stock or other securities of the Company issued under the Plan in book-entry form to be held subject to the Companys instructions or subject to appropriate stop-transfer orders. Notwithstanding any provision in the Plan to the contrary, the Committee reserves the right to add, at any time, any additional terms or provisions to any Award granted under the Plan that the Committee, in its sole discretion, deems necessary or advisable in order that such Award complies with the legal requirements of any governmental entity to whose jurisdiction the Award is subject.
(b) The Committee may cancel an Award or any portion thereof if it determines, in its sole discretion, that legal or contractual restrictions and/or blockage and/or other market considerations would make the Companys acquisition of shares of Common Stock from the public markets, the Companys issuance of Common Stock to the Participant, the Participants acquisition of Common Stock from the Company and/or the Participants sale of Common Stock to the public markets, illegal, impracticable or inadvisable. If the Committee determines to cancel all or any portion of an Award in accordance with the foregoing, the Company shall, subject to any limitations or reductions as may be necessary to comply with Section 409A of the Code, (i) pay to the Participant an amount equal to the excess of (A) the aggregate Fair Market Value of the shares of Common Stock subject to such Award or portion thereof canceled (determined as of the applicable exercise date, or the date that the shares would have been vested or issued, as applicable); over (B) the aggregate Exercise Price or any amount payable as a condition of issuance of shares of Common Stock (in the case of any other Award). Such amount shall be delivered to the Participant as soon as practicable following the cancellation of such Award or portion thereof, or (ii) in the case of Restricted Stock, Restricted Stock Units or Other Awards, provide the Participant with a cash payment or equity subject to deferred vesting and delivery consistent with the vesting restrictions applicable to such Restricted Stock, Restricted Stock Units or Other Awards, or the underlying shares in respect thereof.
18. NO CLAIM TO AWARDS; NO RIGHTS TO CONTINUED EMPLOYMENT; WAIVER. No employee of the Company or its Subsidiaries, or other Person, shall have any claim or right to be granted an Award under the Plan or, having been selected for the grant of an Award, to be selected for a grant of any other Award. There is no obligation for uniformity of treatment of Participants or holders or beneficiaries of Awards.
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The terms and conditions of Awards and the Committees determinations and interpretations with respect thereto need not be the same with respect to each Participant and may be made selectively among Participants, whether or not such Participants are similarly situated. Neither the Plan nor any action taken hereunder shall be construed as giving any Participant any right to be retained in the employ or service of any member of the Company Group, nor shall it be construed as giving any Participant any rights to continued service on the Board. The applicable member of the Company Group may at any time dismiss a Participant from employment or discontinue any consulting relationship, free from any liability or any claim under the Plan, unless otherwise expressly provided in the Plan or any Award Agreement. By accepting an Award under the Plan, a Participant shall thereby be deemed to have waived any claim to continued exercise or vesting of an Award or to damages or severance entitlement related to non-continuation of the Award beyond the period provided under the Plan or any Award Agreement, except to the extent of any provision to the contrary in any written employment contract or other agreement between any member of the Company Group and the Participant, whether any such agreement is executed before, on or after the date of grant.
19. INTERNATIONAL PARTICIPANTS. With respect to Participants who reside or work outside of the United States of America, the Committee may, in its sole discretion, amend the terms of the Plan and create or amend Sub-Plans or amend outstanding Awards with respect to such Participants in order to permit or facilitate participation in the Plan by such Participants, conform such terms with the requirements of applicable law or to obtain more favorable tax or other treatment for a Participant or the applicable member of the Company Group.
20. TERMINATION. Except as otherwise provided in an Award Agreement, unless determined otherwise by the Committee at any point following such event: (a) neither a temporary absence from employment or service due to illness, vacation or leave of absence (including, without limitation, a call to active duty for military service through a Reserve or National Guard unit) nor a transfer from employment or service with one member of the Company Group to employment or service with another member of the Company Group (or vice-versa) shall be considered a Termination; and (b) if a Participant undergoes a Termination, but such Participant continues to provide services to any member of the Company Group in a non-employee capacity, such change in status shall not be considered a Termination for purposes of the Plan. Further, unless otherwise determined by the Committee, in the event that any member of the Company Group ceases to be a member of the Company Group (by reason of sale, divestiture, spin-off or other similar transaction), unless a Participants employment or service is transferred to another entity that would constitute a member of the Company Group immediately following such transaction, such Participant shall be deemed to have suffered a Termination hereunder as of the date of the consummation of such transaction.
21. SEVERABILITY. If any provision of the Plan or any Award or Award Agreement is or becomes or is deemed to be invalid, illegal, or unenforceable in any jurisdiction or as to any Person or Award, or would disqualify the Plan or any Award under any law deemed applicable by the Committee, such provision shall be construed or deemed amended to conform to the applicable laws, or if it cannot be construed or deemed amended without, in the determination of the Committee, materially altering the intent of the Plan or the Award, such provision shall be construed or deemed stricken as to such jurisdiction, Person or Award and the remainder of the Plan and any such Award shall remain in full force and effect.
22. SUCCESSORS. The obligations of the Company under the Plan shall be binding upon any successor corporation or organization resulting from the merger, consolidation or other reorganization of the Company, or upon any successor corporation or organization succeeding to substantially all of the assets and business of the Company.
23. CLAWBACK/REPAYMENT. All Awards shall be subject to reduction, cancellation, forfeiture or recoupment to the extent necessary to comply with (a) any clawback, forfeiture or other similar policy adopted by the Board or the Committee and as in effect from time to time; and (b) applicable law.
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24. SECTION 409A OF THE CODE.
(a) Notwithstanding any provision of the Plan to the contrary, it is intended that the provisions of the Plan comply with Section 409A of the Code, and all provisions of the Plan shall be construed and interpreted in a manner consistent with the requirements for avoiding taxes or penalties under Section 409A of the Code. Each Participant is solely responsible and liable for the satisfaction of all taxes and penalties that may be imposed on or in respect of such Participant in connection with the Plan (including any taxes and penalties under Section 409A of the Code), and neither the Company nor any member of the Company Group shall have any obligation to indemnify or otherwise hold such Participant (or any beneficiary) harmless from any or all of such taxes or penalties. With respect to any Award that is considered deferred compensation subject to Section 409A of the Code, references in the Plan to termination of employment (and substantially similar phrases) shall mean separation from service within the meaning of Section 409A of the Code. For purposes of Section 409A of the Code, each of the payments that may be made in respect of any Award granted under the Plan is designated as separate payments.
(b) Notwithstanding anything in the Plan to the contrary, if a Participant is a specified employee within the meaning of Section 409A(a)(2)(B)(i) of the Code, no payments in respect of any Awards that are deferred compensation subject to Section 409A of the Code and which would otherwise be payable upon the Participants separation from service (as defined in Section 409A of the Code) shall be made to such Participant prior to the date that is six months after the date of such Participants separation from service or, if earlier, the date of the Participants death. Following any applicable six month delay, all such delayed payments will be paid in a single lump sum on the earliest date permitted under Section 409A of the Code that is also a business day.
(c) Unless otherwise provided by the Committee in an Award Agreement or otherwise, in the event that the timing of payments in respect of any Award (that would otherwise be considered deferred compensation subject to Section 409A of the Code) would be accelerated upon the occurrence of (i) a Change in Control, no such acceleration shall be permitted unless the event giving rise to the Change in Control satisfies the definition of a change in the ownership or effective control of a corporation, or a change in the ownership of a substantial portion of the assets of a corporation pursuant to Section 409A of the Code; or (ii) a disability, no such acceleration shall be permitted unless the disability also satisfies the definition of disability pursuant to Section 409A of the Code.
Approved by the Board of Directors on the 21st day of March, 2024.
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SAVARA INC.
CERTIFICATE OF AMENDMENT
OF THE
AMENDED AND RESTATED CERTIFICATE OF INCORPORATION
Savara Inc., a corporation organized and existing under the laws of the State of Delaware (the Corporation), does hereby certify that:
1. The name of the Corporation is Savara Inc.
2. The original Certificate of Incorporation of the Corporation was filed with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware on December 1, 1995 under the name Victoria Enterprises. The Corporations current Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation was filed with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware under the name Mast Therapeutics, Inc. on April 27, 2017 and amended on June 4, 2018 and June 10, 2021.
3. Pursuant to Section 242 of the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware (the DGCL), this Certificate of Amendment of the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation amends Section (A) of Article VII of the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of the Corporation to read in its entirety as follows:
(A) To the fullest extent permitted by the DGCL, as the same exists or as may hereafter be amended, no director or officer shall be personally liable to the Corporation or its stockholders for monetary damages for breach of fiduciary duty as a director or officer, as applicable.
4. This Certificate of Amendment of the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation has been duly adopted by the board of directors and stockholders of this corporation in accordance with the provisions of Section 242 of the DGCL.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Corporation has caused this Certificate of Amendment to be executed by its duly authorized officer as of the day of June, 2024.
SAVARA INC. |
|
Name: Matthew Pauls |
Title: Chief Executive Officer |
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SAVARA SAVARA INC. ATTN: CORPORATE SECRETARY ONE SUMMIT SQUARE 1717 LANGHORNE NEWTOWN RD., SUITE 300 LANGHORNE, PA 19047 SCAN TO VIEW MATERIALS & VOTE VOTE BY INTERNETwww.proxyvote.com or scan the QR Barcode above Use the Internet to transmit your voting instructions and for electronic delivery of information. Vote by 11:59 P.M. ET on 06/05/2024. Have your proxy card in hand when you access the web site and follow the instructions to obtain your records and to create an electronic voting instruction form. VOTE BY PHONE1-800-690-6903 Use any touch-tone telephone to transmit your voting instructions. Vote by 11:59 P.M. ET on 06/05/2024. Have your proxy card in hand when you call and then follow the instructions. VOTE BY MAIL Mark, sign and date your proxy card and return it in the postage-paid envelope we have provided or return it to Vote Processing, c/o Broadridge, 51 Mercedes Way, Edgewood, NY 11717. TO VOTE, MARK BLOCKS BELOW IN BLUE OR BLACK INK AS FOLLOWS: KEEP THIS PORTION FOR YOUR RECORDS DETACH AND RETURN THIS PORTION ONLY THIS PROXY CARD IS VALID ONLY WHEN SIGNED AND DATED. The Board of Directors recommends you vote FOR the following: 1. To elect six directors to hold office until the next Annual Meeting of Stockholders. Nominees For Against Abstain 1a. Matthew Pauls [ ] [ ] [ ] 1b. Nevan Elam [ ] [ ] [ ] 1c. Richard J. Hawkins [ ] [ ] [ ] 1d. Joseph S. McCracken [ ] [ ] [ ] 1e. David A. Ramsay [ ] [ ] [ ] 1f. An van Es-Johansson [ ] [ ] [ ] The Board of Directors recommends you vote FOR proposals 2, 3, 4 and 5. For Against Abstain 2. To approve the Savara Inc. 2024 Omnibus Incentive Plan. [ ] [ ] [ ] 3. To approve an amendment to our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation to allow for exculpation of officers as permitted by Delaware law. [ ] [ ] [ ] For Against Abstain 4. To ratify the appointment of RSM US LLP as our independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2024. [ ] [ ] [ ] 5. To approve, on an advisory basis, the compensation of our named executives. [ ] [ ] [ ] NOTE: Such other business as may properly come before the meeting or any adjournment thereof. Please sign exactly as your name(s) appear(s) hereon. When signing as attorney, executor, administrator, or other fiduciary, please give full title as such. Joint owners should each sign personally. All holders must sign. If a corporation or partnership, please sign in full corporate or partnership name by authorized officer. Signature [PLEASE SIGN WITHIN BOX] Date Signature (Joint Owners) Date 0000643139_1 R1.0.0.6
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Important Notice Regarding the Availability of Proxy Materials for the Annual Meeting: The Form 10-K and Notice & Proxy Statement are available at www.proxyvote.com SAVARA INC. This proxy is solicited by the Board of Directors for use at the Annual Meeting of Stockholders to be held on June 6, 2024 at 3:00 PM The stockholder(s) hereby appoint(s) Matthew Pauls and David Lowrance, or either of them, as proxies, each with the power to appoint his substitute, and hereby authorize(s) them to represent and to vote, as designated on the reverse side of this ballot, all of the shares of common stock of SAVARA INC. that the stockholder(s) is/are entitled to vote at the Annual Meeting of Stockholders to be held at 3:00 PM, EDT on June 6, 2024, and any adjournment or postponement thereof. This proxy, when properly executed, will be voted in the manner directed herein. If no such direction is made, this proxy will be voted in accordance with the Board of Directors recommendations. Continued and to be signed on reverse side 0000643139_2 R1.0.0.6