Quarterly report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

Organization and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

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Organization and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2018
Accounting Policies [Abstract]  
Organization and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

NOTE 1 — ORGANIZATION AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

Nature of the Business

Molecular Templates, Inc. (the “Company” or “Molecular”) is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company formed in 2001, with a biologic therapeutic platform for the development of novel targeted therapeutics for cancer and other diseases, headquartered in Austin, Texas. The Company’s focus is on the research and development of therapeutic compounds for a variety of cancers. Molecular operates its business as a single segment, as defined by U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“U.S. GAAP”).

On August 1, 2017, the Company, formerly known as Threshold Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: THLD) (“Threshold”), completed its business combination with the entity then known as Molecular Templates, Inc., a private Delaware Corporation (“Private Molecular”), in accordance with the terms of an Agreement and Plan of Merger and Reorganization (the “Merger Agreement”), dated as of March 16, 2017, by and among Threshold, Trojan Merger Sub, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Threshold (“Merger Sub”), and Private Molecular.  Pursuant to the Merger Agreement, Merger Sub merged with and into Private Molecular, with Private Molecular surviving as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Threshold (the “Merger”) and Private Molecular changed its name to “Molecular Templates OpCo, Inc.” Also on August 1, 2017, in connection with, and prior to the completion of the Merger, Threshold effected an 11-for-1 reverse stock split of its common stock (the “Reverse Stock Split”) and changed its name to “Molecular Templates, Inc.” Following the completion of the Merger, the business conducted by Private Molecular became primarily the business conducted by the Company as described in the paragraph above.

Basis of Presentation

These unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements reflect the historical results of Private Molecular prior to the completion of the Merger, and do not include the historical results of the Company prior to the completion of the Merger. All share and per share disclosures have been adjusted to reflect the exchange of shares in the Merger, and the 11-for-1 reverse stock split of the common stock effected on August 1, 2017. Under U.S. GAAP, the Merger is treated as a “reverse merger” under the purchase method of accounting. For accounting purposes, Private Molecular is considered to have acquired Threshold. See Note 3, “Merger with Private Molecular”, for further details on the Merger and the U.S. GAAP accounting treatment.

The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP pursuant to the requirements of the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) for interim financial information and with the instructions to Form 10-Q and Rule 10-01 of Regulation S-X promulgated under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). Accordingly, they do not include all of the information and footnotes required by U.S. GAAP for complete financial statements. The unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared on the same basis as the annual consolidated financial statements. In the opinion of management, all adjustments, consisting only of normal recurring adjustments necessary for the fair presentation of results for the periods presented, have been included. The results of operations of any interim period are not necessarily indicative of the results of operations for the full year or any other interim period.

The preparation of condensed consolidated financial statements requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the recorded amounts reported therein. A change in facts or circumstances surrounding the estimates could result in a change to estimates and impact future operating results.

The unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements and related disclosures have been prepared with the presumption that users of the interim unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have read or have access to the audited consolidated financial statements for the preceding fiscal year. Accordingly, these unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the audited consolidated financial statements and notes thereto for the year ended December 31, 2017 included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 30, 2018.

The unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the Company and its wholly owned subsidiaries, and reflect the elimination of intercompany accounts and transactions.

Significant Accounting Policies

Except as detailed below, there have been no material changes to the Company’s significant accounting policies during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018, as compared to the significant accounting policies disclosed in Note 1, Summary of significant accounting policies, to the consolidated financial statements in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017.

Revenue Recognition

Effective January 1, 2018, the Company adopted the Financial Accounting Standards Board’s (“FASB”) provisions of ASC 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (ASC 606), using the modified retrospective method for all contracts not completed as of the date of adoption. For contracts that were modified before the effective date, the Company reflected the aggregate effect of all modifications when identifying performance obligations and allocating transaction price in accordance with available practical expedients. The reported results for 2018 reflect the application of ASC 606 guidance, while the reported results for 2017 were prepared under the guidance of ASC 605, Revenue Recognition, which is also referred to herein as “Previous Guidance.”

 

Under ASC 606, the Company recognizes revenue when its customer obtains control of promised goods or services, in an amount that reflects the consideration which the Company expects to receive in exchange for those goods or services. To determine revenue recognition for arrangements that are within the scope of ASC 606, the Company performs the following five steps: (i) identification of the promised goods or services in the contract; (ii) determination of whether the promised goods or services are performance obligations including whether they are distinct in the context of the contract; (iii) measurement of the transaction price, including the constraint on variable consideration; (iv) allocation of the transaction price to the performance obligations based on estimated selling prices; and (v) recognition of revenue when (or as) the Company satisfies each performance obligation. A performance obligation is a promise in a contract to transfer a distinct good or service to the customer.

 

The Company identifies the goods or services promised within each collaboration agreement and assesses whether each promised good or service is distinct for the purpose of identifying the performance obligations in the contract. This assessment involves subjective determinations and requires management to make judgments about the individual promised goods or services and whether such are separable from the other aspects of the contractual relationship. Promised goods and services are considered distinct provided that: (i) the customer can benefit from the good or service either on its own or together with other resources that are readily available to the customer and (ii) the entity’s promise to transfer the good or service to the customer is separately identifiable from other promises in the contract. In assessing whether a promised good or service is distinct, the Company considers factors such as the research, manufacturing and commercialization capabilities of the collaboration partner and the availability of the associated expertise in the general marketplace. If a promised good or service is not distinct, an entity is required to combine that promised good or service with other promised goods or services until it identifies a bundle of goods or services that is distinct.

 

The allocation of the transaction price to the performance obligations in proportion to their standalone selling prices is determined at contract inception. If the consideration promised in a contract includes a variable amount, the Company estimates the amount of consideration to which it will be entitled in exchange for transferring the promised goods or services to a customer. The Company determines the amount of variable consideration by using the expected value method or the most likely amount method. The Company includes the unconstrained amount of estimated variable consideration in the transaction price. The amount included in the transaction price is the amount for which it is probable that a significant reversal of cumulative revenue recognized will not occur. At the end of each subsequent reporting period, the Company re-evaluates the estimated variable consideration included in the transaction price and any related constraint, and if necessary, adjusts its estimate of the overall transaction price. Any such adjustments are recorded on a cumulative catch-up basis in the period of adjustment.

 

In determining the transaction price, the Company adjusts consideration for the effects of the time value of money if there is a significant benefit of financing. The Company assessed its collaboration agreements and concluded that no significant financing components were present.

 

If an arrangement contains customer options that allow the customer to acquire additional goods or services, including an exclusive license to the Company’s intellectual property, the goods and services underlying the customer options are evaluated to determine whether they are deemed to represent a material right. In determining whether the customer option has a material right, the Company assesses whether there is an option to acquire additional goods or services at a discount. If the customer option is determined not to represent a material right, the option is not considered to be performance obligations at the outset of the arrangement. If the customer option is determined to represent a material right, the material right is recognized as a separate performance obligation at the outset of the arrangement. The Company allocates the transaction price to material rights based on the relative standalone selling price, which is determined based on the identified discount and the probability that the customer will exercise the option. Amounts allocated to a material right are not recognized as revenue until the option is exercised.

 

The Company recognizes as revenue the amount of the transaction price that is allocated to the respective performance obligation as each performance obligation is satisfied over time, based on the use of an input method. Performance obligations may include research and development services to be performed by the Company on behalf of the collaboration partner. Revenue is recognized on research and development efforts as the services are performed and presented on a gross basis, since the Company is the principal.

 

Under collaboration agreements, the timing of revenue recognition and contract billings may differ, and result in contract assets and contract liabilities. Contract assets represent revenues recognized in excess of amounts billed under collaboration agreements and are transferred to accounts receivable when billed or billing rights become unconditional. Contract liabilities represent billings in excess of revenues recognized under collaboration agreements. 

 

Refer to Note 4,” Research and Development Agreements”, for further details about the impact of the adoption of ASC 606.

Concentration of Credit Risk and Other Risks and Uncertainties

Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to concentrations of risk consist principally of cash and cash equivalents, investments, long term debt and accounts receivable.

The Company’s cash and cash equivalents are with two major financial institutions in the United States.

The Company performs an ongoing credit evaluation of its strategic partners’ financial conditions and generally does not require collateral to secure accounts receivable from its strategic partners. The Company’s exposure to credit risk associated with non-payment will be affected principally by conditions or occurrences within Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Ltd. (“Takeda”). Approximately 28% and 35% of total revenues for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2018, respectively, were derived from Takeda. There was $31.2 million in accounts receivable due from Takeda at September 30, 2018, which was received in October 2018. See also Note 4, “Research and Development Agreements”, regarding the collaboration agreements with Takeda.

Drug candidates developed by the Company may require approvals or clearances from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) or international regulatory agencies prior to commercial sales. There can be no assurance that the Company’s drug candidates will receive any of the required approvals or clearances. If the Company were to be denied approval or clearance or any such approval or clearance were to be delayed, it would have a material adverse impact on the Company.

 

Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements

Effective January 1, 2018, the Company adopted ASC 606, which provides principles for recognizing revenue to depict the transfer of promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the Company expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. The Company adopted ASC 606 on a modified retrospective basis through a cumulative adjustment to equity.  The impact of the adoption of the standard to prior period amounts is discussed below in Note 4, “Research and Development Agreements”.

In February 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-02, “Leases (Topic 842).” ASU 2016-02 requires management to record right-to-use asset and lease liability on the statement of financial position for operating leases. ASU 2016-02 is effective for annual and interim reporting periods beginning on or after December 15, 2018 and the modified retrospective approach is required. The Company is in the process of evaluating the impact the adoption of this standard would have on its consolidated financial statements and disclosures and expects the new standard to significantly increase the reported assets and liabilities on its consolidated balance sheets.

In December 2017, the SEC issued Staff Accounting Bulletin (“SAB”) 118 to address the application of GAAP in situations in which a registrant does not have the necessary information available, prepared, or analyzed (including computations) in reasonable detail to complete the accounting for certain income tax effects of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “Tax Act”), which was signed into law on December 22, 2017. In March 2018, the FASB issued ASU No. 2018-05, “Income Taxes (Topic 740): Amendments to SEC Paragraphs Pursuant to SEC Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 118 (SEC Update)”, which amended ASC 740 to incorporate the requirements of SAB 118. There were no changes in the provisional amounts recorded by the Company at December 31, 2017 related to the Tax Act.  The Company continues to evaluate the impact of the Tax Act.

In June 2018, the FASB issued ASU No. 2018-07, “Stock-based Compensation: Improvements to Nonemployee Share-based Payment Accounting”, which amends the existing accounting standards for share-based payments to nonemployees. This ASU aligns much of the guidance on measuring and classifying nonemployee awards with that of awards to employees. Under the new guidance, the measurement of nonemployee equity awards is fixed on the grant date. This ASU becomes effective in the first quarter of fiscal year 2019 and early adoption is permitted. Entities will apply the ASU by recognizing a cumulative-effect adjustment to retained earnings as of the beginning of the annual period of adoption. We are currently evaluating the impact that ASU 2018-07 will have on our condensed consolidated financial statements.