REPH Recro Pharma Inc

Item 1A. Risk Factors

The following risk factors and other information included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K should be carefully considered. The risks and uncertainties described below are not the only ones we face. Additional risks and uncertainties not presently known to us or that we presently deem less significant may also impair our business operations. Please see page 3 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K for a discussion of some of the forward-looking statements that are qualified by these risk factors. If any of the following risks occur, our business, financial condition, results of operations and future growth prospects could be materially and adversely affected. All references and risks related to the launch, commercialization or sale of any of our product candidates are predicated on such product candidates receiving the requisite marketing and regulatory approval in the United States and applicable foreign jurisdictions.

Risks Related to Our Business and Industry

Our revenues are dependent on a small number of commercial partners, and the loss of any one of these partners, or a decline in their orders, may adversely affect our business.

We are dependent on a small number of commercial partners, with our four largest customers (Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, Inc., or Teva, Novartis Pharma AG, or Novartis, Lannett Company, Inc., or Lannett, and InfectoPharm Arzneimittel und Consilium GmbH, or InfectoPharm) having generated 77% of our revenues for the year ended December 31, 2022, of which Teva generated 34%, Novartis generated 18%, Lannett generated 16%, and InfectoPharm generated 9%. If any one or more of these commercial partners faces increasing or new competition in their market, adjusts pricing, significantly reduces their purchasing volume or experiences financial difficulties such as bankruptcy, our revenues could be adversely affected.

Our profit sharing, royalty, and manufacturing revenues also depend on the ability of our commercial partners to effectively market and sell their products to their customers. A commercial partner may choose to devote its efforts to its other products or reduce or fail to devote the necessary resources to provide effective sales and marketing support for the products we manufacture and supply. Furthermore, the acquisition of or change in strategy by one of our customers could impact projects we are currently working on or planning to work on in the future. Our commercial partners face competition from other pharmaceutical companies for sales of products to end users. Competition from sellers of generic drugs is a major challenge for our commercial partners, and the loss or expiration of intellectual property rights for the products we manufacture can have a significant adverse effect on their sales volume and price. Our commercial partners have also experienced difficulties in recent years as the pharmaceutical industry was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, labor shortages, supply chain shortages, inflationary pressures and geopolitical turmoil. Such pressures could lead a partner to discontinue a product, make pricing changes or change ordering patterns. In addition, as pharmaceutical product pricing faces scrutiny by governments, legislative bodies and enforcement agencies, our commercial partners may lower their prices or adopt cost-savings measures which could be passed on to us or otherwise impact our profit-sharing revenues. Further, any commercial partner may divest the product we manufacture for them in whole or in certain markets, which may involve termination of our contract with such partner or the assignment of such contract to a new partner who may not be as effective at selling or commercializing such product. Pricing changes and any significant reduction, delay or cancellation of orders from our commercial partners could adversely affect our revenues.

Our failure to obtain new customer contracts or renew existing contracts may adversely affect our business.

Our agreements with Teva and Lannett expire on December 31, 2024, our agreement with InfectoPharm expires on April 30, 2025 and our agreement with Novartis expires on December 31, 2025. If any of these commercial partners fail to renew their contract, our revenues could be materially and adversely affected. We continually seek to renew existing customer contracts and secure new contracts, which subjects us to potentially significant pricing pressures. In the event we are unable to replace existing contracts in a timely manner or at all, or are forced to accept terms, including pricing terms, less favorable to us, our business, results of operations and financial condition could be materially and adversely affected.

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Failure to obtain manufacturing components, supplies and related materials from third-party manufacturers, including due to supply chain disruptions and inflationary pressures on materials and labor, could affect our ability to manufacture and deliver our products and sustain our profitability.

We rely on third-party manufacturers to supply many of our manufacturing components, supplies and related materials, which in some instances are supplied from a single source. We also rely on our labor force to sustain our operations. Prolonged disruptions in the supply of any of our key manufacturing components, supplies and related materials, difficulty implementing replacement materials or new sources of supply; or a significant increase in the prices of manufacturing components, supplies and related materials or labor could have a material adverse effect on our operating results, financial condition or cash flows. In particular, manufacturing problems may occur with these suppliers, and if a supplier provides us with manufacturing components, supplies and related materials that are deficient or defective or if a supplier fails to provide us with such materials or supplies in a timely manner, we may have limited ability to find appropriate substitutes or otherwise meet required specifications and deadlines. Moreover, we could experience inventory shortages if we are required to use an alternative supplier on short notice, which also could lead to manufacturing components, supplies and related materials being purchased on less favorable terms than we have with our regular suppliers. If such problems occur, we may not be able to manufacture our products profitably or on time, which could harm our reputation and have a material adverse effect on our business.

For example, while the impact of COVID-19 has lessened in many ways, we are experiencing a higher level of residual supply chain disruptions that we are actively managing to meet our production timelines and that may constrain our ability to capture additional growth opportunities, beyond our established projections, from customers who would otherwise want to increase their safety stock of the products that we produce.

Several of our manufacturers and suppliers conduct business internationally. Travel bans and other restrictions may affect the ability of these companies to conduct commercial activity, which could disrupt our supply chain and negatively impact our operations. If our suppliers are unable to provide the products and manufacturing components necessary to conduct our business, we may experience inventory shortages, and could be required to use an alternative supplier on short notice and enter into agreements on less favorable terms than we have with our regular suppliers. We also rely on third parties for the maintenance of our facilities and equipment.

Unstable market and macroeconomic conditions may have serious adverse consequences on our business, financial condition, and stock price.

Global financial markets have recently and may continue to experience extreme volatility and disruptions, declines in consumer confidence, declines in economic growth, increases in unemployment rates and uncertainty about economic stability as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, political unrest and other factors beyond control. There can be no assurance that further deterioration in credit and financial markets and confidence in economic conditions will not occur. Our general business strategy and ability to raise capital may be adversely affected by any such economic downturn, volatile business environment, or continued unpredictable and unstable market conditions. If the current equity and credit markets deteriorate, it may make any necessary debt or equity financing more difficult, more costly, and more dilutive. Failure to secure any necessary financing in a timely manner and on favorable terms could have a material adverse effect on our growth strategy, financial performance, and stock price. In addition, there is a risk that one or more of our current customers, vendors or other partners may not survive these difficult economic times, which could directly affect our business.

In addition, the stock markets have experienced extreme price and volume fluctuations that have affected and continue to affect the market prices of equity securities of many companies, which has resulted in decreased stock prices for many companies notwithstanding the lack of a fundamental change in their underlying business models or prospects. These fluctuations have often been unrelated or disproportionate to the operating performance of those companies. Further, the impacts of political unrest, including as a result of geopolitical tension, such as between the United States and China or the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, including any additional sanctions, export controls or other restrictive actions that may be imposed by the United States and/or other countries against governmental or other entities in, for example, Russia, also could lead to disruption, instability and volatility in the global markets, which may have an adverse impact on our business or ability to access the capital markets. Broad market and industry factors, including potentially worsening economic conditions and other adverse effects, political, regulatory, and other market conditions, may negatively affect the market price of shares of our common stock, regardless of our actual operating performance.

We continue to anticipate a general slowdown in clinical development activity as a result of clinical failures and/or a lack of adequate funding to go forward. We are making efforts to adapt to these market changes, including a reconfiguration of our business development team to be better positioned in the longer-term by focusing on account management roles and replacing

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lost positions in strategic focus areas. The anticipated slowdown and/or the reconfiguration may cause a reduction in the number of business development opportunities that we will be able to pursue in 2023.

We expect to face continuing inflationary pressures on raw materials, labor and logistics during 2023. If inflation or other factors were to significantly increase our business costs, it may not be feasible to pass price increases on to our customers. Interest rates, the liquidity of the credit markets and the volatility of the capital markets could also affect our interest costs under our LIBOR-based term loan borrowings or our ability to access the capital markets. Any such increases in our costs or inability to access capital could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial conditions.

The COVID-19 pandemic has negatively impacted, and may continue to negatively impact, our business operations and financial results.

Our sales and manufacturing operations for the year ended December 31, 2021 were disrupted as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic due to production slowdowns, stoppages and decreased demand for the products we manufacture, as well as broader economic efforts associated with the pandemic such as inflation, changes in laws and general volatility in the markets. There can be no assurance that our future results will not be impacted by lingering impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic or future global health emergencies as the effects of the disruption are still impacting several industries and future global health emergencies could have similar impacts.

Our customers’ failure to receive or maintain regulatory approval for product candidates or products, or our failure to maintain regulatory approvals for manufacturing, could negatively impact our revenue and profitability.

Our business materially depends upon the regulatory approval of the products we manufacture. As such, if our customers experience a delay in, or failure to receive, approval for any of their product candidates or fail to maintain regulatory approval of products, our revenue and profitability could be adversely affected. Additionally, if the FDA or a comparable foreign regulatory authority does not approve of our facilities for the manufacture of a customer product or if it withdraws such approval in the future, our customers may choose to identify alternative manufacturing facilities and/or relationships, which could significantly impact our ability to expand our capacity and capabilities.

We depend on spending and demand from our customers for our contract manufacturing and development services and any reduction in spending or demand could have a material adverse effect on our business.

The amount that our customers spend on the development and manufacture of their products or product candidates, particularly the amount our customers choose to spend on outsourcing these services to us, substantially impacts our revenue and profitability. The outcomes of our customers’ research, development and marketing also significantly influence the amount that our customers choose to spend on our services and offerings. Our customers determine the amounts that they will spend on our services based upon, among other things, the clinical and market success of their products, available resources, access to capital and their need to develop new products, which, in turn, depend upon a number of other factors, including their competitors’ research, development and product initiatives and the anticipated market for any new products, as well as clinical and reimbursement scenarios for specific products and therapeutic areas. Due to economic developments related to COVID-19 and geopolitical conflicts, such as the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, which continue to have adverse effects on the U.S. and global markets, we anticipate a general slowdown in clinical development activity as a result of clinical failures and/or a lack of adequate funding to go forward, which may cause a reduction in the number of business development opportunities that we will be able to pursue during 2023. Recently, the pharmaceutical industry has experienced pressure with respect to access to capital, which may require some of our customers to limit their spending on research and development as they re-assess budgets. Further, increasing consolidation in the pharmaceutical industry may impact such spending, particularly in the event that any of our customers choose to develop or acquire integrated manufacturing operations. Any reduction in customer spending on development and related services as a result of these and other factors could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

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Our future profitability could decline if we cannot sustain current operating conditions, including maintaining our current facility and equipment utilization and product mix.

Our business is complex and depends upon a number of variables to sustain our profitability, including how well we leverage our fixed manufacturing costs and maintain our product sales mix.

We have incurred significant fixed costs to purchase equipment that supports our current and future customer base across a wide range of dosage forms and production scales. For example, in 2022, we launched a new state of the art, aseptic fill/finish and lyophilization suite in our San Diego facility to further our goal of offering end-to-end solutions to our clients. We depend on our workforce to operate our equipment, and we depend on customers to provide orders that will utilize our equipment. If we are not able to fully utilize our manufacturing capacity due to labor shortages, changes in customer or product mix, or changes in volume, our margins could be adversely affected. Further, there can be no assurance that our future revenue will be sufficient to ensure the economical operation of our facilities, in which case our results of operations could be adversely affected.

Some of our commercial products are significantly more profitable than others and may include profit-sharing, royalty or other forms of associated income. As a result, if we experience more growth in products that are less profitable than others, even if our revenues remain consistent or grow overall, we could become less profitable. Achieving and sustaining our profitability depends upon us experiencing a similar or more favorable mix of revenue, that will depend upon the nature of the different products and services that we offer and/or our customers' request. If we recognize less revenue from our most profitable products as a percentage of total revenue, our future profitability could be materially adversely impacted.

Our manufacturing services are highly complex, and if we are unable to provide quality and timely services to our customers, our business could suffer.

The manufacturing services we offer are highly complex, due in part to strict regulatory requirements. A failure of our quality control systems in our facilities could cause problems to arise in connection with facility operations for a variety of reasons, including equipment malfunction, viral contamination, failure to follow specific manufacturing instructions, protocols and standard operating procedures, problems with raw materials or environmental factors. Such problems could affect production of a single manufacturing run or a series of runs, requiring the destruction of products, or could halt manufacturing operations altogether. In addition, our failure to meet required quality standards may result in our failure to timely deliver products to our customers, which in turn could damage our reputation for quality and service. Any such incident could, among other things, lead to increased costs, lost revenue, reimbursement to customers for lost drug substance, damage to and possibly termination of existing customer relationships, time and expense spent investigating the cause and, depending on the cause, similar losses with respect to other manufacturing runs. With respect to our commercial manufacturing, if problems are not discovered before the product is released to the market, we may be subject to regulatory actions, including product recalls, product seizures, injunctions to halt manufacture and distribution, restrictions on our operations, civil sanctions, including monetary sanctions, and criminal actions. In addition, such issues could subject us to litigation, the cost of which could be significant.

If the products we manufacture for our customers do not gain market acceptance, and if there are adverse changes in the healthcare industry, our business, results of operations and financial condition may suffer.

We depend on, and have no control over, consumer demand for the products we manufacture for our customers. Consumer demand for our customers’ products could be adversely affected by, among other things, delays in regulatory review or approval, the inability of our customers to demonstrate the efficacy and safety of their products, the loss of patent and other intellectual property rights protection, the emergence of competing or alternative products, including generic drugs, the degree to which private and government payment subsidies for a particular product offset the cost to consumers and changes in the marketing strategies for such products. If the products we manufacture for our customers do not gain market acceptance, our revenues and profitability may be adversely affected.

We believe that continued changes to the healthcare industry, including ongoing healthcare reform, adverse changes in government or private funding of healthcare products and services, legislation or regulations governing the privacy of patient information or patient access to care, or the delivery, pricing or reimbursement of pharmaceuticals and healthcare services or mandated benefits, may cause healthcare industry participants to purchase fewer services from us or influence the price that others are willing to pay for our services. Changes in the healthcare industry’s pricing, selling, inventory, distribution or supply policies or practices could also significantly reduce our revenue and profitability.

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Our operating results may fluctuate significantly, which could adversely impact our stock price.

Our operating results may be subject to quarterly and annual fluctuations. Our operating results will be affected by numerous factors, including:

Due to the various factors mentioned above, and others, the results of prior periods should not be relied upon as an indication of our future operating performance. If our operating results fall below the expectations of investors or securities analysts, the price of our common stock could decline substantially. Furthermore, any fluctuations in our operating results may, in turn, cause the price of our stock to fluctuate substantially.

We have a history of losses. If we cannot achieve and maintain profitability and secure additional business, we may have to raise additional capital, which may not be on terms that are acceptable to us.

We have incurred losses of $19.9 million, $11.4 million and $27.5 million for the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020, respectively. As of December 31, 2022, we had an accumulated deficit of $265.6 million. We have financed our operations through the issuance of debt and equity and through operations, and as of December 31, 2022, we had $41.3 million of outstanding indebtedness, $36.9 million of which was with Royal Bank of Canada. Although it is difficult to forecast all of our future liquidity requirements, we believe that our cash and cash equivalents on hand combined with our projected cash receipts from services generated under our customer contracts will be sufficient to fund our operations beyond one year after the date our financial statements included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K are issued. In addition, in the event a customer timely cancels its commitments prior to our initiation of manufacturing services, we may be required to refund some or all of the advance payments made to us under those canceled commitments, which would have a negative impact on our liquidity and future revenue.

In the event we are unable to maintain sufficient business to support our current operations, we may need to raise additional capital in the future. There can be no assurance that equity financing will be available on acceptable terms or at all. Our ability to raise additional capital in the equity markets to fund our future operations is dependent on a number of factors, including, but not limited to, the market demand for our common stock. The market demand or liquidity of our common stock is subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to, our financial results and economic and market conditions. In addition, even if we are able to raise additional capital, it may not be at a price or on terms that are acceptable to us.

We have incurred significant indebtedness, which could adversely affect our business.

As of December 31, 2022, we had outstanding indebtedness of $41.3 million. Our indebtedness could have important consequences to our shareholders. For example, it:

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Any of the above-listed factors could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. Our credit agreement with Royal Bank of Canada also contains certain financial and other covenants, including a minimum liquidity requirement and maximum leverage ratios and includes limitations on, among other things, additional indebtedness, paying dividends in certain circumstances, acquisitions and certain investments. The credit agreement provides for certain mandatory prepayment events, including with respect to the proceeds of asset sales, extraordinary receipts, debt issuances and other specified events, based on the terms of the credit agreement with Royal Bank of Canada. Any failure to comply with the terms, covenants and conditions of the credit agreement may result in an event of default under such agreement, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operation. Additionally, pursuant to a related security agreement between us and Royal Bank of Canada, we granted Royal Bank of Canada a security interest in substantially all of our assets to secure their obligations to Royal Bank of Canada under the credit agreement. The security interest granted over our assets could limit our ability to obtain additional debt financing.

We cannot assure you that our business will generate sufficient cash flow from operations or that future financing will be available to us in amounts sufficient to enable us to make required and timely payments on our indebtedness, or to fund our operations.

Our ability to close the sale of land adjacent to our Gainesville, Georgia manufacturing campus, or the Land Sale, is subject to several customary closing conditions, which may impact our ability to complete the Land Sale on the anticipated timeline or at all.

In September 2022, we signed a sales and purchase agreement related to the Land Sale, pursuant to which we agreed to sell approximately 121 acres of land adjacent to our Gainesville, Georgia manufacturing campus for expected proceeds of $9.1 million. We are obligated to use the proceeds of the Land Sale to repay outstanding balances under our credit agreement with Royal Bank of Canada. We expect to close the Land Sale in the second half of 2023; however, the closing of the Land Sale is subject to customary closing conditions for transactions of this type, including completion of title and environmental due diligence and receipt of certain zoning approvals and permits.

If the closing of the Land Sale does not occur within 12 months of closing under our credit agreement with Royal Bank of Canada, (i) the amortization percentages under the credit agreement will increase by an additional 0.625% for each installment due until such time as such real property is sold and the required payment is made to Royal Bank of Canada and (ii) we will be required to pay a fee equal to 1.00% of the original principal amount of the term loan.

Any delay in the closing of the Land Sale, or failure of the Land Sale to close at all, could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations, cash flows and financing condition, including as a result of the changes under our credit agreement with Royal Bank of Canada as set forth above.

We operate in a highly competitive market and competition may adversely affect our business.

We operate in a market that is highly competitive. Our competition in the contract manufacturing market includes full-service contract manufacturers and large pharmaceutical companies offering third-party manufacturing services to fill their excess capacity. We may also compete with the internal operations of those pharmaceutical companies that choose to source their product offerings internally. In addition, most of our competitors may have substantially greater financial, marketing, technical or other resources than we do. Moreover, additional competition may emerge, particularly in lower-cost jurisdictions such as India and China, which could, among other things, result in a decrease in the fees paid for our services, which may adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.

Our business, financial condition, and results of operations are subject to risks arising from the international scope of our manufacturing and supply relationships.

Some of our customers source raw materials outside the United States. As such, we are subject to risks associated with such international manufacturing relationships, including:

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Additionally, we are subject to periodic reviews and audits by governmental authorities responsible for administering import/export regulations. To the extent that we are unable to successfully defend against an audit or review, we may be required to pay assessments, penalties, and increased duties on products imported into the United States.

Issues with product quality could have a material adverse effect upon our business, subject us to regulatory actions and cause a loss of customer confidence in us or our products.

Our success depends upon the quality of our products. Quality management plays an essential role in meeting customer requirements, preventing defects, improving our customers' product candidates and services and assuring the safety and efficacy of their product candidates. Our future success depends on our ability to maintain and continuously improve our quality management program. A quality or safety issue may result in adverse inspection reports, warning letters, untitled letters, FDA Form 483s, product recalls or seizures, monetary sanctions, injunctions to halt manufacture and distribution of products, civil or criminal sanctions, costly litigation, refusal of a government to grant approvals and licenses, restrictions on operations or withdrawal of existing approvals and licenses. For example, in January 2023, the FDA completed an inspection of our San Diego facility and is expected to issue a Form 483 to us recommending an improvement to our building management system. An inability to address the Form 483 or any other quality or safety issue in an effective and timely manner may also cause negative publicity, a loss of customer confidence in us or our future products, which may result in difficulty in successfully launching product candidates and loss of sales, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

Our development and formulation services projects are typically for a shorter term than our manufacturing projects, and any failure by us to maintain an adequate volume of development and formulation services projects, including due to lower than expected success rates of the products for which we provide services, could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Our pharmaceutical development services business contracts are generally shorter in term than our manufacturing contracts and typically require us to provide development services within a designated scope. Since our development and formulation services focus on products that are still in developmental stages, their viability depends on the ability of such products to reach their respective subsequent development phases. In many cases, such products do not reach subsequent development phases and, as a result, the profitability of the related pharmaceutical development service project may be limited. Even if a customer wishes to proceed with a project, the product we are developing on such customer’s behalf may fail to receive necessary regulatory approval or may have its development hindered by other factors, such as the development of a competing product.

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If we are unable to continue to or timely obtain new projects from existing and new customers, our development and formulation services business could be adversely affected. Furthermore, although our development and formulation services business may act as a pipeline for our manufacturing services business, we cannot predict the conversion rate of our development and formulation services projects to commercial manufacturing services projects, or how successful we will be in winning new projects that lead to a viable product. As such, an increase in the turnover rate of our development and formulation services projects may not benefit our manufacturing services business at a later time.

In addition, our backlog is subject to a number of risks and uncertainties, including risk that a customer timely cancels its commitments, the risk that a customer may experience delays in its program(s) or otherwise, which could result in the postponement or cancellation of anticipated formulation, development and manufacturing services revenue. There is risk that our business development efforts may not materialize as quickly as we have projected, that we may not successfully execute on all customer projects, any of which could have a negative impact on our liquidity, reported backlog and future revenue. Further, the discontinuation of a project as a result of our failure to satisfy a customer’s requirements may also affect our ability to obtain future projects from such customer, as well as from new customers. Any failure by us to maintain a high volume of development and formulation services projects could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

If we fail to meet the stringent requirements of governmental regulation in the manufacture of pharmaceutical products, we could incur substantial costs and a reduction in revenues.

We are required to maintain compliance with cGMP and applicable product tracking and tracing requirements, and our manufacturing facilities are subject to inspections by the FDA and other global regulators to confirm such compliance. Changes of suppliers or modifications of methods of manufacturing may require amending application(s) to the FDA and acceptance of the change by the FDA prior to release of our manufactured products. Because we produce multiple products at our manufacturing facilities, there are increased risks associated with cGMP compliance. We can provide no assurance that we will not encounter future inspections resulting in observations not acceptable by the FDA.

Our inability to demonstrate ongoing cGMP compliance could require us to engage in additional lengthy and expensive remediation efforts, withdraw or recall products and/or interrupt commercial supply of any products. Any delay, interruption or other issue that arises in the manufacture, fill/finish, packaging, or storage of any drug product as a result of a failure of our facilities to pass any regulatory agency inspection or maintain cGMP compliance could significantly impair our relationships with our commercial partners, which would substantially harm our business, prospects, operating results and financial condition. Any ongoing or additional findings of non-compliance could also increase our costs and cause us to lose revenue from manufactured products, which could be seriously detrimental to our business, prospects, operating results and financial condition.

Additionally, our manufacturing activities are subject to the Controlled Substances Act of 1970, or CSA, and the regulations of the DEA. Accordingly, we must adhere to a number of requirements with respect to controlled substances, including registration, recordkeeping and reporting requirements; labeling and packaging requirements; security controls, procurement and manufacturing quotas; and certain restrictions on refills. Failure to maintain compliance with applicable requirements can result in an enforcement action that could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, operating results and cash flows. The DEA may seek civil penalties, refuse to renew necessary registrations or initiate proceedings to revoke those registrations. In certain circumstances, violations could result in criminal proceedings.

Manufacturers of drug products and their facilities are subject to payment of substantial user fees and continual review and periodic inspections by the FDA and other regulatory authorities, including equivalent regulatory authorities in other countries, for compliance with cGMP regulations and adherence to commitments made in the NDA or the application for marketing authorization. If we, or a regulatory authority, discover previously unknown problems with a product, such as adverse events of unanticipated severity or frequency, or problems with a facility where the product is manufactured, a regulatory authority may impose restrictions relative to that product or the manufacturing facility, including requiring recall or withdrawal of the product from the market, suspension of manufacturing, or other FDA action or other action by the equivalent regulatory authorities in other countries.

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If we use hazardous materials in a manner that causes injury or violates applicable law, we may be liable for damages.

Our operations involve the controlled use of hazardous materials and chemicals. We are subject to federal, state and local laws and regulations in the U.S. governing the use, manufacture, storage, handling and disposal of hazardous materials and chemicals. Although we believe that our procedures for using, handling, storing and disposing of these materials comply with legally prescribed standards, we may incur significant additional costs to comply with applicable laws in the future. Even if we comply with applicable laws, we cannot completely eliminate the risk of contamination or injury resulting from hazardous materials or chemicals. As a result of any such contamination or injury, we may incur liability or local, city, state or federal authorities may curtail the use of these materials and interrupt our business operations. In the event of an accident, we could be held liable for damages or penalized with fines, and the liability could exceed our resources. Compliance with applicable environmental laws and regulations is expensive, and current or future environmental regulations may impair our contract manufacturing operations, which could materially harm our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We may not be able to successfully offer new services, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

In order to successfully compete, we will need to offer and develop new services. Without the timely introduction of enhanced or new services, our services and capabilities may become obsolete over time, in which case, our revenues and operating results would suffer. The related development costs may require a substantial investment before we can determine their commercial viability, and we may not have the financial resources to fund such initiatives.

In addition, the success of enhanced or new services will depend on several factors, including but not limited to our ability to:

Even if we were to succeed in creating enhanced or new services, those services may not result in commercially successful offerings or may not produce revenues in excess of the costs of development and capital investment and may be quickly rendered obsolete by changing customer preferences or by technologies or features offered by our competitors. In addition, innovations may not be accepted quickly in the marketplace due to, among other things, entrenched patterns of clinical practice, the need for regulatory authorization and uncertainty over market access or government or third-party reimbursement. If we are not able to offer new services and effectively compete, our business, financial condition, and results of operations could be negatively impacted.

Technological change may cause our offerings to become obsolete over time. A decrease in our customers’ purchases of our offerings could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

The healthcare industry is characterized by rapid technological change. Demand for our services may change in ways that we may not anticipate because of evolving industry standards or as a result of evolving customer needs that are increasingly sophisticated and varied or because of the introduction by competitors of new services and technologies. We may also need to purchase additional equipment, some of which can take several months or more to procure, install and validate, and increase or modify our manufacturing, maintenance, software and computing capabilities to meet changing demand. In addition, we require capital and resources to support the maintenance and improvement of our facilities, including replacing or repairing aging production equipment and updating overall facility master plans. If we are unable to maintain and improve our facilities, we may experience unscheduled equipment downtime and unpredicted machinery failure and become unable to supply our customers with products or services which may affect business continuity. Any such incident or disruption in business continuity could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

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We may be adversely affected by natural disasters or other events that disrupt our business operations, and our business continuity and disaster recovery plans may not adequately protect us from a serious disaster.

Our manufacturing facilities are located in Gainesville, Georgia and San Diego, California, where natural disasters or similar events, like hurricanes, blizzards, tornadoes, fires, floods, earthquakes or explosions or large-scale accidents or power outages, could severely disrupt our operations and have a material adverse effect on our business, prospects, results of operations and financial condition. If a disaster, power outage or other event occurred that prevented us from using all or a significant portion of our Gainesville and/or San Diego facilities, damaged critical infrastructures, such as manufacturing resource planning and enterprise quality systems, or otherwise disrupted operations at that location, it may be difficult or, in certain cases, impossible for us to continue our development, formulation and manufacturing business for a substantial period of time, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

Currently, we maintain insurance coverage against damage to our property and equipment, and to cover business interruption expenses, in an amount we believe is sufficient for our development, formulation and manufacturing operations. However, there can be no assurance that such insurance will continue to be available on acceptable terms or that such insurance will provide adequate protection against actual losses. Even if we maintain adequate insurance coverage, claims could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, liquidity and results of operations and on our ability to obtain suitable, adequate or cost-effective insurance in the future.

We must comply with environmental and health and safety laws and regulations, which can be expensive and restrict how we do business.

We are subject to federal, state and local laws, rules, regulations and policies concerning the environment and the health and safety of our employees. We may be required to incur significant costs to comply with environmental and health and safety regulations in the future. Current or future laws and regulations may impair our research, development or production efforts. Failure to comply with these laws and regulations also may result in substantial fines, penalties or other sanctions, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

In addition, our business involves the use, generation and disposal of hazardous materials, including chemicals, solvents, agents and biohazardous materials. As a result, we are subject to federal, state and local laws, rules, regulations and policies governing the use, generation, manufacture, storage, air emission, effluent discharge, handling and disposal of certain materials, biological specimens and wastes. We cannot completely eliminate the risk of accidental contamination or injury from these materials. We currently contract with third parties to dispose of these substances that we generate, and we rely on these third parties to properly dispose of these substances in compliance with applicable laws and regulations. If these third parties do not properly dispose of these substances in compliance with applicable laws and regulations, we may be subject to legal action by governmental agencies or private parties for improper disposal of these substances. The costs of defending such actions and the potential liability resulting from such actions are often substantial amounts. In the event we are subject to such legal action or we otherwise fail to comply with applicable laws and regulations governing the use, generation and disposal of hazardous materials and chemicals, we could be held liable for any damages that result, and any such liability could exceed our resources. In addition, we may incur costs and expenses due to injuries to our employees, including those resulting from the use of hazardous materials; workers’ compensation insurance may not provide adequate coverage against potential liabilities. If we become subject to any of the foregoing liabilities, our business, financial condition, and results of operations could be materially adversely impacted.

We may be subject to litigation or government investigations for a variety of claims, which could adversely affect our operating results, harm our reputation or otherwise negatively impact our business.

We may be subject to litigation or government investigations. These may include claims, lawsuits, and proceedings involving product liability, labor and employment, wage and hour, commercial and other matters. For example, we were subject to securities class action litigation as discussed in note 7 to our consolidated financial statements beginning on page F-1 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K that was settled in 2022. The outcome of any litigation or government investigation, regardless of its merits, is inherently uncertain. Any lawsuits or government investigations, and the disposition of such lawsuits and government investigations, could be time-consuming and expensive to resolve and divert management attention and resources. Any adverse determination related to litigation or government investigations could adversely affect our operating results, harm our reputation or otherwise negatively impact our business. In addition, depending on the nature and timing of any such dispute, a resolution of a legal matter or government investigation could materially affect our future operating results, our cash flows or both.

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Our future success depends on our ability to retain our key executives as well as to attract, retain and motivate other qualified personnel.

We are highly dependent on the principal members of our executive team and, in particular, the services of J. David Enloe, Jr., our President and Chief Executive Officer, and Ryan Lake, our Chief Financial Officer, the loss of whose services would adversely impact the achievement of our objectives. We have entered into employment agreements with each of our executive officers. Recruiting and retaining qualified employees for our business, including business development, scientific and technical personnel, will also be critical to our success. There is currently a shortage of skilled executives in our industry, which is likely to continue. As a result, competition for skilled personnel is intense and the turnover rate can be high. We may not be able to attract and retain personnel on acceptable terms given the competition among numerous pharmaceutical companies for individuals with similar skill sets. The inability to recruit or loss of the services of any executive or key employee could impede the progress of our business development, manufacturing, quality, growth and diversification objectives.

We may acquire other assets or businesses, or form collaborations or make investments in other companies or technologies, that could have a material adverse effect on our operating results, dilute our shareholders’ ownership, increase our debt or cause us to incur significant expense.

As part of our business strategy, we may pursue acquisitions of assets, including, businesses or strategic alliances and collaborations, to expand our existing technologies and operations. We may not identify or complete these transactions in a timely manner, on a cost‑effective basis, or at all, and we may not realize the anticipated benefits of any such transaction, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations and cash flows. Integration of an acquired company or assets may also disrupt ongoing operations, require the hiring of additional personnel and the implementation of additional internal systems and infrastructure, especially the acquisition of commercial assets, and require management resources that would otherwise focus on developing our existing business.

To finance any acquisitions or collaborations, we may choose to issue debt or shares of our common or preferred stock as consideration. Any such issuance of shares would dilute the ownership of our shareholders. If the price of our common stock is low or volatile, we may not be able to acquire other assets or companies or fund a transaction using our stock as consideration. Alternatively, it may be necessary for us to raise additional funds for acquisitions through public or private financings. Additional funds may not be available on terms that are acceptable to us, or at all.

Our employees, partners, independent contractors, consultants and vendors may engage in misconduct or other improper activities, including noncompliance with regulatory standards and requirements.

We are exposed to the risk that our employees, partners, independent contractors, consultants and vendors may engage in fraudulent or other illegal activity with respect to our business. Misconduct by these employees, partners, independent contractors, consultants and vendors could include intentional, reckless and/or negligent conduct or unauthorized activity that violates: (1) FDA or DEA regulations, including those laws requiring the reporting of true, complete and accurate information to the FDA; (2) manufacturing standards; (3) federal, state and foreign healthcare fraud and abuse laws and regulations; or (4) laws that require the true, complete and accurate reporting of financial information or data. Activities subject to these laws also involve the improper use of information obtained in the course of clinical trials, or illegal misappropriation of drug product, which could result in regulatory sanctions and serious harm to our reputation. Any incidents or any other conduct that leads to an employee receiving an FDA debarment could result in a loss of business from our partners and severe reputational harm. We have adopted a Code of Business Conduct and Ethics, but it is not always possible to identify and deter employee misconduct, and the precautions we take to detect and prevent this activity may not be effective in controlling unknown or unmanaged risks or losses or in protecting us from governmental investigations or other actions or lawsuits stemming from a failure to be in compliance with such laws or regulations. If any such actions are instituted against us, and we are not successful in defending ourselves or asserting our rights, those actions could have a significant impact on our business, including the imposition of civil, criminal and administrative penalties, damages, monetary fines, possible exclusion from participation in Medicare, Medicaid and other federal healthcare programs, contractual damages, reputational harm, diminished profits and future earnings, and curtailment of our operations, any of which could adversely affect our ability to operate our business, operating results and financial condition.

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We have faced and may continue to face potential product liability claims, and, if such claims are successful, we may incur substantial liability.

The use of our products exposes us to the risk of product liability claims as well as potential toxic tort and other types of product liability claims that are inherent in the manufacture of pharmaceutical products. Product liability claims might be brought against us by consumers, health care providers, pharmaceutical companies or others selling or otherwise coming into contact with our products. If we cannot successfully defend against product liability claims, we could incur substantial liability and costs. In addition, regardless of merit or eventual outcome, product liability claims may result in:

Our current product liability insurance coverage may not be sufficient to reimburse us for any expenses or losses we may suffer. Moreover, insurance coverage is becoming increasingly expensive and, in the future, we may not be able to maintain insurance coverage at a reasonable cost or in sufficient amounts to protect us against losses due to liability.

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

As of December 31, 2022, we had federal and state net operating loss carry forwards, or NOLs, of approximately $125.6 million and $135.4 million, respectively. The federal carry forwards for 2008 through 2017 will expire in 2028. Federal net operating losses incurred in 2018 and onward have an indefinite expiration under the 2017 Tax Cut & Jobs Act. The state carry forwards, including those generated in 2022, will expire in 2028 through 2042. A full allowance for the value of the NOLs is provided for in our consolidated financial statements as of December 31, 2022. We cannot guarantee what the ultimate outcome or amount of the benefit we may receive from the NOLs, if any, will be.

The security of our information technology systems may be compromised in the event of system failures, unauthorized access, cyberattacks or a deficiency in our cybersecurity, and confidential information, including non-public personal information that we maintain, could be improperly disclosed.

We rely extensively on information technology and systems including internet sites, data hosting, physical security, and software applications and platforms. Our information technology systems, some of which are managed by third parties, may be susceptible to damage, disruptions or shutdowns due to computer viruses, attacks by computer hackers, failures during the process of upgrading or replacing software, power outages, user errors or catastrophic events. A significant breakdown, invasion, corruption, destruction or interruption of critical information technology systems, by our employees, others with authorized access to our systems or unauthorized persons could negatively impact or interrupt operations. For example, the loss of data from completed or ongoing clinical trials for product candidates could result in delays in regulatory approval efforts and significantly increase our costs to recover or reproduce the data. The use of technology, including cloud-based computing, creates opportunities for the unintentional dissemination or intentional destruction of confidential information stored in our systems or our third-party systems. We could also experience a business interruption, theft of confidential information or reputational damage from malware or other cyberattacks, which may compromise our systems or lead to data leakage, either internally or at our third-party providers.

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As part of our business, we maintain large amounts of confidential information, including non-public personal information on our employees. The maintenance of such information is governed by various rules and regulations in the jurisdictions in which we conduct our business, including by the General Data Privacy Regulation, or GDPR, in the European Union. Breaches in security, either internally or at our third-party providers, could result in the loss or misuse of this information, which could, in turn, result in potential regulatory actions or litigation, including material claims for damages, interruption to our operations, damage to our reputation or otherwise have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and operating results. Our information security policies and systems may not prevent unauthorized use or disclosure of confidential information, including non-public personal information.

Any such business interruption, theft of confidential information or reputational damage from malware or other cyberattacks, or violation of personal information laws, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations.

If we fail to comply with data protection laws and regulations, we could be subject to government enforcement actions (which could include civil or criminal penalties), private litigation and/or adverse publicity, which could negatively affect our operating results and business.

We may be subject to laws and regulations that address privacy and data security of patients who use our customers’ products in the United States and in states in which we conduct our business. In the United States, numerous federal and state laws and regulations, including state data breach notification laws, state health information privacy laws, and federal and state consumer protection laws (e.g., Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act) govern the collection, use, disclosure, and protection of health-related and other personal information. For instance, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA, imposes certain obligations, including mandatory contractual terms, with respect to safeguarding the privacy, security and transmission of individually identifiable health information and imposes notification obligations in the event of a breach of the privacy or security of individually identifiable health information on entities subject to HIPAA and their business associates that perform certain activities that involve the use or disclosure of protected health information on their behalf. Failure to comply with applicable data protection laws and regulations could result in government enforcement actions and create liability for us, which could include civil and/or criminal penalties, as well as private litigation and/or adverse publicity that could negatively affect our operating results and business.

Our U.S. government contracts require compliance with numerous laws that may present additional risk and liability.

We provide services to the National Institutes of Health, a part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. As a result, we must comply with certain laws and regulations relating to the award, administration, and performance of U.S. government contracts. U.S. government contracts typically contain a number of extraordinary provisions that would not typically be found in commercial contracts and which may create a disadvantage and additional risks to us as compared to competitors that do not rely on government contracts. As a U.S. government service provider and subcontractor, we are subject to increased risks of investigation, audit, criminal prosecution, and other legal actions and liabilities to which purely private sector companies are not. The results of any such actions could adversely impact our business and have an adverse effect on our financial performance.

Additionally, a violation of specific laws and regulations could result in the imposition of fines and penalties or the termination of our contracts, as well as suspension or debarment. The suspension or debarment in any particular case may be limited to the facility, contract or subsidiary involved in the violation or could be applied to our entire enterprise in certain severe circumstances. Even a narrow scope suspension or debarment could result in negative publicity that could adversely affect our ability to renew contracts and to secure new contracts, both with the U.S. government and private customers, which could materially and adversely affect our business and results of operations. Fines and penalties could be imposed for failing to follow procurement integrity and bidding rules, employing improper billing practices, receiving or paying kickbacks, or filing false claims, among other potential violations. In addition, we could suffer serious reputational harm and the value of our common stock could be negatively affected if allegations of impropriety related to such contracts are made against us.

Risks Related to Our Intellectual Property

Litigation involving patents, patent applications and other proprietary rights is expensive and time-consuming. If we are involved in such litigation, it could interfere with our business.

Our success depends in part on not infringing patents and proprietary rights of third parties. The pharmaceutical industry is characterized by extensive litigation regarding patents and other intellectual property rights.

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In a patent infringement claim against us, we may assert, as a defense, that we do not infringe the relevant patent claims, that the patent is invalid or both. The strength of our defenses will depend on the patents asserted, the interpretation of these patents and/or our ability to invalidate the asserted patents. However, we could be unsuccessful in advancing non-infringement and/or invalidity arguments in our defense. In the United States, issued patents enjoy a presumption of validity, and the party challenging the validity of a patent claim must present clear and convincing evidence of invalidity, which is a high burden of proof. Conversely, the patent owner need only prove infringement by a preponderance of the evidence, which is a low burden of proof.

If we were found by a court to have infringed a valid patent, we could be prevented from using the patented technology or be required to pay the owner of the patent for the right to license the patented technology. If we decide to pursue a license to one or more of these patents, we may not be able to obtain a license on commercially reasonable terms, if at all, or the license we obtain may require us to pay substantial royalties or grant cross licenses to our patent rights. For example, if the relevant patent is owned by a competitor, that competitor may choose not to license patent rights to us. If we decide to develop alternative technology, we may not be able to do so in a timely or cost-effective manner, if at all.

In addition, because patent applications can take years to issue and are often afforded confidentiality for some period of time, there may currently be pending applications, unknown to us, that later result in issued patents that could cover one or more of our products.

It is possible that we may in the future receive, particularly as a public company, communications from competitors and other companies alleging that we may be infringing their patents, trade secrets or other intellectual property rights, offering licenses to such intellectual property or threatening litigation. In addition to patent infringement claims, third parties may assert copyright, trademark or other proprietary rights against us. We may need to expend considerable resources to counter such claims and may not be able to be successful in our defense. Our business may suffer if a finding of infringement is established.

Competitors can challenge the U.S. patents protecting our commercial partners’ product candidates in connection with filing an ANDA for a generic version or a 505(b)(2) NDA for a modified version of our commercial partners’ product candidates.

Separate and apart from the protection provided under the U.S. patent laws, drug candidates may be subject to the provisions of the Hatch-Waxman Act, which may provide drug candidates with either a three- or five-year period of marketing exclusivity following receipt of FDA approval. The Hatch-Waxman Act prohibits the FDA from accepting the filing of an ANDA application (for a generic product) or a 505(b)(2) NDA (for a modified version of the product) for three years for active drug ingredients previously approved by the FDA or for five years for active drug ingredients not previously approved by the FDA.

There is an exception, however, for newly approved molecules that allows competitors to challenge a patent beginning four years into the five-year exclusivity period by alleging that one or more of the patents listed in the FDA’s list of approved drug products are invalid, unenforceable and/or not infringed and submitting an ANDA for a generic version of the innovator drug or a 505(b)(2) NDA for a modified version of the innovator drug. This patent challenge is commonly known as a Paragraph IV certification. Within the past several years, the generic industry has aggressively pursued approvals of generic versions of innovator drugs at the earliest possible point in time.

If a competitor is able to successfully obtain FDA approval for an ANDA or a 505(b)(2) NDA, the competitor may choose to launch its generic or modified version of the innovator drug. Any launch of a generic or modified version of our commercial partners' products will have a material adverse effect on demand for that product, our revenues and our results of operations.

We may be unable to adequately prevent disclosure of trade secrets and other proprietary information.

We may rely on trade secrets to protect our proprietary know-how and technological advances, especially where we do not believe patent protection is appropriate or obtainable. However, trade secrets are difficult to protect. We rely in part on confidentiality agreements with our employees, consultants, outside scientific collaborators, sponsored researchers and other advisors to protect our trade secrets and other proprietary information. These agreements may not effectively prevent disclosure of confidential information and may not provide an adequate remedy in the event of unauthorized disclosure of confidential information. In addition, others may independently discover our trade secrets and proprietary information. Costly and time-consuming litigation could be necessary to enforce and determine the scope of our proprietary rights. Failure to obtain or maintain trade secret protection could enable competitors to use our proprietary information to develop products that compete with our products or cause additional, material adverse effects on our competitive business position.

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Our ability to manufacture products for our commercial partners may be impaired if any of our manufacturing activities, or the activities of third parties involved in our manufacture and supply chain, are found to infringe patents of others.

Our ability to continue to manufacture products for our commercial partners, to utilize third parties to supply raw materials or other products, or to perform fill/finish services or other steps in our manufacture and supply chain, depends on our and their ability to operate without infringing the patents and other intellectual property rights of others. Other parties may allege that our manufacturing activities, or the activities of third parties involved in our manufacturing and supply chain, infringe patents or other intellectual property rights. A judicial decision in favor of one or more parties making such allegations could preclude the manufacture of the products to which those intellectual property rights apply, which could materially harm our business, operating results and financial condition.

We may not be able to enforce our intellectual property rights throughout the world.

The laws of some foreign countries do not protect intellectual property rights to the same extent as the laws of the United States. Many companies have encountered significant problems in protecting and defending intellectual property rights in certain foreign jurisdictions. The legal systems of some countries, particularly developing countries, do not favor the enforcement of patents and other intellectual property protection, especially those relating to life sciences. This could make it difficult for us to stop the infringement of our patents or the misappropriation of our other intellectual property rights. For example, many foreign countries have compulsory licensing laws under which a patent owner must grant licenses to third parties. In addition, many countries limit the enforceability of patents against third parties, including government agencies or government contractors. In these countries, patents may provide limited or no benefit.

Proceedings to enforce our patent rights in foreign jurisdictions could result in substantial costs and divert our efforts and attention from other aspects of our business. Accordingly, our efforts to protect our intellectual property rights in such countries may be inadequate. In addition, changes in the law and legal decisions by courts in the United States and foreign countries may affect our ability to obtain adequate protection for our technology and the enforcement of intellectual property. If we are unable to adequately enforce our intellectual property rights throughout the world, our business, financial condition, and results of operations could be adversely impacted.

Any trademarks we have obtained or may obtain may be infringed or successfully challenged, resulting in harm to our business.

We expect to rely on trademarks as one means to distinguish any of our products that are approved for marketing from the products of our competitors. Once we select new trademarks and apply to register them, our trademark applications may not be approved. Third parties may oppose or attempt to cancel our trademark applications or trademarks, or otherwise challenge our use of the trademarks. In the event that our trademarks are successfully challenged, we could be forced to rebrand our drugs, which could result in loss of brand recognition and could require us to devote resources to advertising and marketing new brands. Our competitors may infringe our trademarks and we may not have adequate resources to enforce our trademarks.

Risks Relating to Our Securities

The market price and trading volume of our common stock have been and may continue to be volatile, which could result in rapid and substantial losses for our shareholders.

The market price for our common stock has been volatile and may continue to fluctuate or may decline significantly in the future. An active, liquid and orderly market for our common stock may not be achieved and sustained, which could depress the trading price of our common stock or cause it to continue to be highly volatile or subject to wide fluctuations. Some of the factors that could negatively affect our share price or result in fluctuations in the price or trading volume of our common stock include, among other things:

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These broad market and industry factors may decrease the market price of our common stock, regardless of our actual operating performance. In addition, in the past, following periods of volatility in the overall market and decreases in the market price of a company’s securities, securities class action litigation has often been instituted against these companies. Following the decrease in our trading price in May 2018, a securities class action lawsuit was filed against us which settled in 2022. Any other securities class actions that may be brought against us, could result in substantial costs and a diversion of our management’s attention and resources.

We have never paid cash dividends on our common stock and do not intend to do so for the foreseeable future, which may make our stock less attractive.

We have never paid cash dividends on our common stock and we do not anticipate that we will pay any cash dividends on our common stock for the foreseeable future. Additionally, our ability to pay cash dividends is currently prohibited by the terms of our credit facility with Royal Bank of Canada. Accordingly, any return on an investment in our common stock will be realized, if at all, only when shareholders sell their shares. In addition, our failure to pay cash dividends may make our stock less attractive to investors, adversely impacting trading volume and price.

Some provisions of our charter documents and Pennsylvania law may have anti‑takeover effects that could discourage an acquisition of us by others, even if an acquisition would be beneficial to our shareholders, and may prevent attempts by our shareholders to replace or remove our current management.

Provisions in our articles of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws could make it more difficult for a third-party to acquire us or increase the cost of acquiring us, even if doing so would benefit our shareholders, or remove our current management. These include provisions that:

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These provisions may frustrate or prevent any attempts by our shareholders to replace or remove our current management by making it more difficult for shareholders to replace members of our board of directors, who are responsible for appointing the members of our management. Because we are incorporated in Pennsylvania, we are governed by the provisions of the Pennsylvania Business Corporation Law of 1988, which may discourage, delay or prevent someone from acquiring us or merging with us whether or not it is desired by or beneficial to our shareholders. Under Pennsylvania law, a corporation may not, in general, engage in a business combination with any holder of 20% or more of its capital stock unless the holder has held the stock for five years or, among other things, the board of directors has approved the transaction. Any provision of our articles of incorporation or bylaws or Pennsylvania law that has the effect of delaying or deterring a change in control could limit the opportunity for our shareholders to receive a premium for their shares of our common stock, and could also affect the price that some investors are willing to pay for our common stock.

We have a limited number of authorized shares of common stock available for issuance and will need to seek shareholder approval to amend our Second Amended and Restated Articles of Incorporation to effect an increase in the number of authorized shares of our common stock.

Our Second Amended and Restated Articles of Incorporation currently authorizes us to issue up to 95,000,000 shares of common stock. As of December 31, 2022, following our concurrent offerings of common stock and Series A Convertible Preferred Stock, or Series A preferred stock, in December 2022, we had only 10,411,132 authorized but unissued shares of our common stock, of which 9,272,678 are currently reserved for issuance of outstanding options, restricted stock units, and warrants. We currently do not have a sufficient number of authorized and unreserved shares of common stock to permit the conversion of the Series A preferred stock.

The Series A preferred stock is only convertible into common stock upon receipt of shareholder approval of an increase in the number of authorized shares of our common stock. Pursuant to the certificate of designation of preferences, rights and limitations of the Series A preferred stock, or the Certificate of Designations, we have agreed to seek shareholder approval of an amendment to our Second Amended and Restated Articles of Incorporation to effect an increase in the number of authorized shares of common stock in an amount sufficient to permit the conversion in full of the Series A preferred stock. If such shareholder approval is not obtained by June 30, 2023, the then-in-effect conversion rate of the Series A preferred stock shall be increased by 10% and will increase by an additional 10% per year on June 30 of each year for which shareholder approval has not yet been obtained, subject to certain limits. We can offer no assurance that we will be able to obtain such approval by June 2023 or at all.

Furthermore, an increase in the authorized number of shares of common stock and the subsequent issuance of such shares could have the effect of delaying or preventing a change in control of our company without further action by our shareholders. Shares of authorized and unissued common stock could, within the limits imposed by applicable law, be issued in one or more transactions which would make a change in control of our company more difficult, and therefore less likely.

General Risk Factors

Sales of a substantial number of shares of our common stock in the public market could cause our stock price to fall.

Sales of a substantial number of shares of our common stock in the public market or the perception that these sales might occur, could depress the market price of our common stock and could impair our ability to raise capital through the sale of additional equity securities.

If securities or industry analysts do not continue to publish research or reports, or if they publish unfavorable research or reports, about our business, our stock price and trading volume could decline.

The trading market for our common stock depends in part on the research and reports that securities or industry analysts publish about us, our business, our market or our competitors. We currently have limited research coverage by securities and industry analysts. If additional securities or industry analysts do not commence coverage of our company, the trading price for our stock could be negatively impacted. In the event we obtain securities or industry analyst coverage, if one or more of the analysts who covers us downgrades our stock, our stock price would likely decline. If one or more of these analysts ceases to cover us or fails to regularly publish reports on us, interest in our stock could decrease, which could cause our stock price or trading volume to decline.

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Our disclosure controls and procedures may not prevent or detect all errors or acts of fraud.

Our disclosure controls and procedures are designed to reasonably assure that information required to be disclosed by us in reports we file or submit under the Exchange Act is accumulated and communicated to management, recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the rules and forms of the SEC. We believe that any disclosure controls and procedures or internal controls and procedures, no matter how well conceived and operated, can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance that the objectives of the control system are met.

These inherent limitations include the realities that judgments in decision‑making can be faulty, and that breakdowns can occur because of simple error or mistake. Additionally, controls can be circumvented by the individual acts of some persons, by collusion of two or more people or by an unauthorized override of the controls. Accordingly, because of the inherent limitations in our control system, misstatements or insufficient disclosures due to error or fraud may occur and not be detected.

If we fail to maintain proper and effective internal controls, our ability to produce accurate and timely financial statements could be impaired, which could harm our operating results, our ability to operate our business and investors’ views of us.

Ensuring that we have adequate internal financial and accounting controls and procedures in place so that we can produce accurate financial statements on a timely basis is a costly and time-consuming effort that will need to be frequently evaluated. Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires public companies to conduct an annual review and evaluation of their internal controls and attestations of the effectiveness of internal controls by independent auditors (as a smaller reporting company, the latter requirement does not apply to us). Our failure to maintain the effectiveness of our internal controls in accordance with the requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act could have a material adverse effect on our business. We could lose investor confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports, which could have an adverse effect on the price of our common stock.