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ecor:Item ecor:INVESTORS

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

 

FORM 10-Q



(Mark One)


QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934


FOR THE QUARTERLY PERIOD ENDED March 31, 2023



TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

 

FOR THE TRANSITION PERIOD FROM ______________ TO ______________

 

Commission File Number 001-38538

 

electroCore, Inc.

(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)

 

 

Delaware

 

20-3454976

(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)

 

(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)

 

200 Forge Way, Suite 205, Rockaway, NJ 07866

(Address of principal executive offices, including zip code)

 

(973) 290-0097

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

 

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

 

 

 

 

 

 

Title of each class

 

Trading Symbol(s)

 

Name of each exchange on which registered

Common Stock, par value $0.001 per share

 

ECOR

 

The Nasdaq Capital Market

 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes No

 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files).    Yes      No  


Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

 


Large accelerated filer

 

 

Accelerated filer

Non-accelerated filer

 

 

Smaller reporting company

Emerging growth company 

 

 

 

 

 

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act.    

 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).  Yes No

As of April 27, 2023 the registrant had 4,749,221 shares of common stock outstanding.


1



PART I. FINANCIAL INFORMATION

Page Number


Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements 3
Item 1. Financial Statements 

Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets as of March 31, 2023 (unaudited) and December 31, 2022 4

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations for the Three Months Ended March 31, 2023 and 2022 (Unaudited) 5

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Loss for the Three Months Ended March 31, 2023 and 2022 (Unaudited) 6

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Equity for the Three Months Ended March 31, 2023 and 2022 (Unaudited) 7

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the Three Months Ended March 31, 2023 and 2022 (Unaudited) 8

Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (unaudited) 9
Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations 19
Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk 24
Item 4. Controls and Procedures 24

PART II. OTHER INFORMATION
Item 1. Legal Proceedings 25
Item 1A. Risk Factors 25
Item 2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds 25
Item 3. Defaults Upon Senior Securities 25
Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures 25
Item 5. Other Information 25
Item 6. Exhibits 26

Signatures 27


2



REFERENCES TO ELECTROCORE

In this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, unless otherwise stated or the context otherwise requires, references to the “Company,” “electroCore,” “we,” “us” and “our” refer to electroCore, Inc. a Delaware corporation and its subsidiaries.

This Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, or Quarterly Report, contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Our actual results could differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements. The statements contained in this report that are not purely historical are forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Act, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Exchange Act. Forward-looking statements are often identified by the use of words such as, but not limited to, “anticipate,” “believe,” “can,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “project,” “seek,” “should,” “strategy,” “target,” “will,” “would” and similar expressions or variations intended to identify forward-looking statements. These statements are based on the beliefs and assumptions of our management based on information currently available to them. Such forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and other important factors that could cause actual results and the timing of certain events to differ materially from future results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to risks and uncertainties included in our Form 10-Qs, our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, in our other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission or in materials incorporated by reference therein, including the information in the sections entitled Risk Factors and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in such filings. Furthermore, any such forward-looking statements in this Quarterly Report speak only as of the date of this report. Except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of such statements.

The electroCore logo, gammaCore, Truvaga, TAC-STIM, and other trademarks of electroCore, Inc. appearing in this Quarterly Report are the property of electroCore, Inc. All other trademarks, service marks and trade names in this Quarterly Report are the property of their respective owners. We have omitted the ® and ™ designations, as applicable, for the trademarks used in this Quarterly Report.   


3


ELECTROCORE, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

(unaudited)

(in thousands, except share data)


 

 

 

March 31,

 

 

December 31,

 

 

 

2023

 

 

2022

 

Assets

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Current assets:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cash and cash equivalents

 

$

11,908

 

 

$

17,712

 

      Restricted cash

250




250

Accounts receivable, net

 

 

213

 

 

 

401

 

Inventories, net

 

 

2,478

 

 

 

1,982

 

Prepaid expenses and other current assets

 

 

525

 

 

 

828

 

Total current assets

 

 

15,374

 

 

 

21,173

 

Inventories, noncurrent

 

 

1,451

 

 

 

2,194

 

Property and equipment, net

 

 

34

 

 

 

50

 

Operating lease right of use assets, net

 

 

550

 

 

 

565

 

Other assets, net

 

 

891

 

 

 

774

 

Total assets

 

$

18,300

 

 

$

24,756

 

Liabilities and Equity

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Current liabilities:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Accounts payable

 

$

2,001

 

 

$

2,129

 

Accrued expenses and other current liabilities

 

 

3,770

 

 

 

4,842

 

Current portion of operating lease liabilities

 

 

77

 

 

 

74

 

Total current liabilities 

 

 

5,848

 

 

 

7,045

 

Noncurrent liabilities:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Operating lease liabilities, noncurrent

 

 

605

 

 

 

625

 

Total liabilities

 

 

6,453

 

 

 

7,670

 

Commitments and contingencies

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mezzanine Equity:









Preferred Stock, par value $0.001 per share; 10,000,000 shares authorized as of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022; 0 shares issued and outstanding at March 31, 2023 and 71,173 issued and outstanding at December 31, 2022 ($0.001 per share liquidation value)







Stockholders' equity:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Common Stock, par value $0.001 per share; 500,000,000 shares authorized at March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022; 4,745,781 shares issued and outstanding at March 31, 2023 and 4,744,886 shares issued and outstanding at December 31, 2022

 

 

5

 

 

 

5

 

Additional paid-in capital

 

 

164,092

 

 

 

163,520

 

Accumulated deficit

 

 

(152,237

)

 

 

(146,370

)

Accumulated other comprehensive (loss) income

 

 

(13

)

 

 

(69

)

Total equity

 

 

11,847

 

 

 

17,086

 

Total liabilities and equity

 

$

18,300

 

 

$

24,756

 

 

See accompanying notes to unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements.

4


ELECTROCORE, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

(unaudited)

(in thousands, except per share data) 


 


Three months ended March 31,


 


2023

2022

Net sales


$ 2,780

$ 1,899

Cost of goods sold



458


360

Gross profit



2,322


1,539

Operating expenses









Research and development



1,809


934

Selling, general and administrative



6,710


6,186

Total operating expenses



8,519


7,120

    Loss from operations



(6,197 )

(5,581 )

Other (income) expense









Interest and other income



(119 )

(4 )

Other expense






5

Total other (income) expense



(119 )

1
Loss before income taxes

(6,078 )

(5,582 )
Benefit from income taxes (see Note 10)

211


Net loss
$ (5,867 )
$ (5,582 )

Net loss per share of common stock - Basic and Diluted (see Note 9)


$ (1.24 )
$ (1.20 )

Weighted average common shares outstanding - Basic and Diluted (see Note 9)



4,743


4,652

 

See accompanying notes to unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements.


5



ELECTROCORE, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

(unaudited)

(in thousands)


 


Three months ended March 31,


 


2023


2022

Net loss


$ (5,867 )
$ (5,582 )

   Other comprehensive (loss) income:









    Foreign currency translation adjustment 



56

(27 )

    Other comprehensive (loss) income



56

(27 )

Comprehensive loss


$ (5,811 )
$ (5,609 )

 

See accompanying notes to unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements.


6


  

ELECTROCORE, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

(unaudited)

(in thousands)




Mezzanine Equity


Stockholders' Equity






Common

 


Additional

 

 

 


 


Accumulated other

 




 


Preferred Stock


Stock

 

 

paid-in

 

 

Accumulated

 

 

comprehensive

 

 

Total

 

 


Shares


Amount


Shares

 

 

Amount

 

 

capital

 

 

deficit

 

 

income (loss)

 

 

equity

 

Balances as of January 1, 2023

71

$


4,745

$ 5

$ 163,520

$ (146,370 )
$ (69 )
$ 17,086

Net loss


















(5,867 )




(5,867 )

Other comprehensive income 





















56


56

Issuance of stock related to employee compensation plans, net of forfeitures 









1















   Preferred stock redemption

(71 )






















Share based compensation















572








572
Balances as of March 31, 2023



$


4,746

$ 5

$ 164,092

$ (152,237 )
$ (13 )
$ 11,847

































Balances as of January 1, 2022





$

 

4,714



$

5

 

 

$

160,772

 

 

$

(124,208

)

 

$

13

 

$

36,582

 

   Net loss
















(5,582 )




(5,582 )
   Other comprehensive income



















(27 )

(27 )

Issuance of stock related to employee compensation plan, net of forfeitures









1














Share based compensation















777








777
Balances as of March 31, 2022



$


4,715

$ 5

$ 161,549

$ (129,790 )
$ (14 )
$ 31,750


7


ELECTROCORE, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

(unaudited)

(in thousands)

  

 

 

Three months ended

March 31,

 

 

 

2023

 

 

2022

 

Cash flows from operating activities:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Net loss

 

$

(5,867

)

 

$

(5,582

)

Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stock-based compensation

 

 

572

 

 

 

777

 

Depreciation and amortization

 

 

122

 

 

 

106

 

Net noncash lease expense

 

 

15

 

 

13

           Inventory reserve charge

75



Changes in operating assets and liabilities:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Accounts receivable, net

 

 

188

 

 

75

Inventories

 

 

(51

)

 

 

399

Prepaid expenses and other current assets

 

 

303

 

 

252

Accounts payable

 

 

(128

)

 

 

692

Accrued expenses and other current liabilities

 

 

(1,072

)

 

 

(1,497

)

Operating lease liabilities



(17 )

(15 )

Net cash used in operating activities

 

 

(5,860

)

 

 

(4,780

)

Cash flows from investing activities:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Net cash provided by investing activities

 

 

 

 

Cash flows from financing activities:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Net cash provided by financing activities 

 

 

 

 

 

Effect of changes in exchange rates on cash and cash equivalents

 

 

56

 

 

(27

)

Net decrease in cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash

 

 

(5,804

)

 

 

(4,807

)

Cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash – beginning of period

 

 

17,962

 

 

 

34,689

 

Cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash – end of period

 

$

12,158

 

$

29,882

 

Supplemental cash flows disclosures:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

      Proceeds from sale of state net operating losses
$ 211

$

Interest paid

  

$

2

 

 

$

2

 

 

See accompanying notes to unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements. 


8


ELECTROCORE, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

(unaudited)

 

Note 1. The Company

electroCore, Inc. and its subsidiaries (“electroCore” or the “Company”) is a commercial stage bioelectronic medicine and wellness company dedicated to improving health through its non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation (“nVNS”) technology platform. The Company’s focus is the commercialization of medical devices for the management and treatment of certain medical conditions and consumer product offerings utilizing nVNS to promote general wellbeing and human performance in the United States and select overseas markets.

electroCore, headquartered in Rockaway, NJ, has two wholly owned subsidiaries: electroCore UK Ltd and electroCore Germany GmbH. The Company has paused operations in Germany, with sales into the country and the rest of Europe being managed by electroCore UK Ltd.

 

Note 2Summary of Significant Accounting Policies


(a)

Basis of Presentation

The accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements were prepared in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the the United States  (“U.S. GAAP”) and with instructions to Form 10-Q and Article 10 of Regulation S-X under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. In the opinion of management, the Company has made all necessary adjustments, which include normal recurring adjustments necessary for a fair presentation of the Company’s condensed consolidated financial position and results of operations for the interim periods presented. Certain information and disclosures normally included in the annual consolidated financial statements prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP have been condensed or omitted. These interim condensed consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the audited consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes for the year ended December 31, 2022 included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 8, 2023. The results for the three months ended March 31, 2023 are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for a full year, any other interim periods or any future year or period.


At a special stockholders meeting held on February 13, 2023, the Company's stockholders approved an amendment to the Company's certificate of incorporation to effect of a reverse stock split of the Company's common stock at a ratio between 1-for-5 to 1-for-50 in order to achieve a minimum bid price of $1.00 per share for a minimum of 10 consecutive trading days, as required for continued listing of the common stock on the Nasdaq Capital Market pursuant to Nasdaq Listing Rule 5550(a)(2). The board of directors authorized a 1-for-15 ratio for the reverse stock split, which became effective on February 15, 2023. The accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements and notes to condensed consolidated financial statements give retroactive effect to the reverse stock split for all prior periods presented.


(b)

Principles of Consolidation

The accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements include the accounts of electroCore and its wholly owned subsidiaries. All intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. 


(c)

Use of Estimates

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the condensed consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates. Significant items subject to such estimates and assumptions include allowances for doubtful accounts, trade credits, rebates, co-payment assistance and sales returns, valuation of inventory, estimated useful life of licensed products and cloud computing arrangements, stock compensation, incremental borrowing rate and contingencies.   


(d)

Cash, Cash Equivalents and Restricted Cash

The following table provides a reconciliation of cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash to the balance reflected on the Condensed Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows for the three months ended March 31, 2023:

(in thousands)

March 31, 2023

Cash and cash equivalents

$

11,908


Restricted cash

250


Total cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash

$ 12,158


As of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, cash equivalents represented funds held in a money market account.


(e)

Restricted Cash

The Company's restricted cash consists of cash that the Company is contractually obligated to maintain in accordance with the terms of its new corporate credit card arrangement with Citibank,N.A.   


9


 

(f)

Licensed Products

The Company licenses a portion of its devices through its cash pay channels. The cost of these licensed devices is capitalized and included in Other Assets in the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets at March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, and is being recognized as cost of goods sold on the straight-line method over the estimated 12-36 month useful life of the devices. If certain licensed devices are returned and no longer meet quality specifications or the carrying amount of certain licensed devices are no longer deemed to be recoverable, the Company records a charge to cost of goods sold to write down such licensed devices to zero. The net book value of these licensed devices at March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022 was $725,000 and $538,000, respectively. Changes in the value of these licensed devices in Other Assets is captured on the Statement of Cash Flows within Inventories.

 

Note 3Significant Risks and Uncertainties

Going Concern

The Company has experienced significant net losses and cash used in operations, and it expects to continue to incur net losses and cash used in operations for the near future as it works to increase market acceptance of its medical devices and wellness products. The Company has never been profitable and has incurred net losses and cash used in operations in each year since its inception.

The United States Department of Veteran Affairs comprised 64.5% of the Company's revenue during the three months ended March 31, 2023. The Company expects that a majority of our remaining 2023 sales will be made pursuant to its qualifying contract under the Federal Supply Schedule, or FSS, which was secured by the Company in December 2018, as well as open market sales to individual facilities within the government channels. The FSS is scheduled to expire on January 15, 2024. The Company intends to request an extension of the FSS from the United States Department of Veteran Affairs, but there is no assurance the FSS will be renewed, if at all, or renewed at terms favorable to the Company.

The Company’s expected cash requirements for the next 12 months and beyond are largely based on the commercial success of its products. There are significant risks and uncertainties as to its ability to achieve these operating results. Due to the risks and uncertainties, the Company may need to reduce its activities significantly more than its current operating plan and cash flow projections assume in order to fund its operations beyond one year of the date the accompanying financial statements are issued. There can be no assurance that the Company will have sufficient cash flow and liquidity to fund its planned activities, which could force it to significantly reduce or curtail its activities and, ultimately, potentially cease operations.

There is no assurance that the Company will generate sufficient funds through its operating results or financing activities, and accordingly, these conditions raise substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern within one year of the date  the accompanying financial statements are issued. The accompanying financial statements do not include any adjustment that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty.

Concentration of Revenue Risks  

The Company earns a significant amount of its revenue (i) in the United States from the Department of Veterans Affairs and Department of Defense ("VA/DoD") pursuant to its qualifying contract under the FSS and open market sales to individual Department of Veterans Affairs facilities, and (ii) in the United Kingdom from the National Health Service. The VA/DoD and National Health Service comprise those customers of the Company that each account for 10% or more of total net sales during the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022. The following table reflects the respective concentration as a percentage of the Company's net sales: 


 


Three months ended March 31,



 


2023

2022

Revenue channel:








    VA/DoD


64.5 %
66.4 %

    National Health Service


10.1 %
13.0 %


During the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, one and two facilities, respectively, accounted for more than 10% of total VA/DoD net sales. During the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, one facility accounted for more than 10% of net sales from the National Health Service.
Foreign Currency Exchange 

The Company has foreign currency exchange risk related to revenue and operating expenses in currencies other than the local currencies in which it operates. The Company is exposed to currency risk from the potential changes in functional currency values of its assets, liabilities, and cash flows denominated in foreign currencies


10


 

Note 4. Revenue 

Geographical Net Sales

The following table presents net sales disaggregated by geographic market:  


 


Three months ended March 31,

(in thousands)



2023


2022

Product revenue









United States


$ 2,370
$ 1,594
United Kingdom

321


266
Other

43


39
License revenue







Japan

46



Total Net Sales


$ 2,780

$ 1,899

The Company generally invoices the customer and recognizes revenue once its performance obligations are satisfied, at which point payment is unconditional. Agreed upon payment terms with customers are within 30 days of shipment. Accordingly, contracts with customers do not include a significant financing component. 

 

11


Note 5Inventories

As of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, inventories consisted of the following:  


(in thousands)

 

March 31, 2023

 

 

December 31, 2022

 

Raw materials

 

$

871

 

 

$

944

 

Work in process

 

 

2,480

 

 

 

2,879

 

Finished goods

 

 

578

 

 

 

353

 

     Total inventories, net

 

 

3,929

 

 

 

4,176

 

Less: noncurrent inventories 

 

 

1,451

 

 

2,194

     Current inventories

 

$

2,478

 

 

$

1,982

 

The reserve for obsolete inventory was $738,000 and $668,000 as of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively. The Company records charges for obsolete inventory in cost of goods sold. As of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, noncurrent inventory was comprised of approximately $0.5 million and $0.1 million in raw materials and $1.0 million and $2.1 million of work in process, respectively. Inventory classified under the category work in process consists of prefabricated assembled product.


Note 6Leases

For each of the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022 the Company recognized lease expense of $38,000. This expense does not include non-lease components associated with the lease agreements as the Company elected not to include such charges as part of the lease expense. 

Supplemental Balance Sheet Information for Operating Leases: 


(in thousands)


March 31, 2023

 

 

December 31, 2022

 

Operating leases:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Operating lease right of use assets


$

550

 

 

$

565

 

Operating lease liabilities:


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Current portion of operating lease liabilities 

 

 

77

 

 

 

74

 

Noncurrent operating lease liabilities


 

605

 

 

 

625

 

Total operating lease liabilities


$

682

 

 

$

699

 

Weighted average remaining lease term (in years)


 

5.9

 

 

 

6.1

 

Weighted average discount rate


 

13.8

%

 

 

13.8

%

 

 Future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases as of March 31, 2023:


(in thousands) 



Remainder of 2023

 

$

123

 

2024

 

 

168

 

2025

 

 

171

 

2026

 

 

161

 

2027

 

 

157

 

2028 and thereafter

216

Total future minimum lease payments

 

 

996

 

Less: Amounts representing interest

 

 

(314

)

Total

 

$

682

 


12



Note 7Accrued Expenses and Other Current Liabilities

Accrued expenses and other current liabilities as of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022 consisted of the following:


(in thousands)

 

March 31, 2023

 

 

December 31, 2022

 

Accrued professional fees 

 

$

610

 

 

$

524

 

Accrued bonuses and incentive compensation

 

 

880

 

 

 

2,042

 

Accrued litigation legal fees expense

1,001


1,001
Accrued insurance expense




264


Accrued vacation and other employee related expenses

534


534
Accrued severance and other related charges

301



Accrued valued-added tax

162


133
Deferred revenue

17


152

Other

 

 

265

 

 

 

192

 

 


$

3,770

 

 

$

4,842



Finance and Security Agreement

On July 5, 2022, the Company entered into a Commercial Insurance Premium Finance and Security Agreement (the "2022 Agreement"). The 2022 Agreement provides for a single borrowing by the Company of approximately $783,000 with a nine-month term and an annual interest rate of 2.49%. The proceeds from this transaction were used to partially fund the premiums due under certain of the Company's insurance policies. The amounts payable are secured by the Company's rights under such policies. The Company began to pay monthly installments of approximately $87,900 in July 2022. All borrowings were fully repaid as of March 31, 2023. During the three months ended March 31, 2023, the Company recognized $2,035 in interest expense.


Note 8. Shareholders' Equity
Dividend Preferred
On December 2, 2022, the Company's board of directors declared a dividend of one one-thousandth of a share of Series A Preferred Stock, par value $0.001 per share (“Series A Preferred Stock”), for each outstanding share of the Company’s common stock, to stockholders of record on December 19, 2022.
Each share of Series A Preferred Stock entitled the holder thereof to 1,000,000 votes per share, and each fraction of a share of Series A Preferred Stock had a ratable number of votes. Thus, each one-thousandth of a share of Series A Preferred Stock was entitled to 1,000 votes. The outstanding shares of Series A Preferred Stock voted together with the outstanding shares of the Company's common stock as a single class exclusively with respect to the proposal to adopt an amendment to the Company’s Certificate of Incorporation, as amended, to reclassify the outstanding shares of the Company's Common Stock into a smaller number of shares of common stock at a ratio specified in or determined in accordance with the terms of such amendment (the “Reverse Stock Split”).
The Company was not solely in control of the redemption of the shares of Series A Preferred Stock since the holders had the option of deciding whether to vote in respect of the above described Reverse Stock Split, which determined whether a given holder’s shares of Series A Preferred Stock were redeemed in the Initial Redemption or the Subsequent Redemption (as defined below). Since the redemption of the Series A Preferred Stock was not solely in the control of the Company, the shares of Series A Preferred Stock were classified within mezzanine equity in the Company’s Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets. The shares of Series A Preferred Stock were measured at redemption value. The value of the shares of Series A Preferred Stock as of December 31, 2022 was $0.  As noted below, all outstanding shares of Series A Preferred Stock were redeemed as of February 13, 2023. 
Reverse Stock Split
On February 13, 2023, the Company held a special meeting (the “Special Meeting”) of stockholders of the Company. At the Special Meeting, the Company’s shareholders voted to approve an amendment to the Company’s Certificate of Incorporation to effect a reverse stock split of the Company’s common stock at a ratio between 1-for-5 and 1-for-50.
Following the Special Meeting, the board of directors of the Company approved a 1-for-15 Reverse Stock Split. The Reverse Stock Split became effective on February 15, 2023. 

13



Upon the effectiveness of the Reverse Stock Split, every 15 shares of common stock were automatically combined and converted into one share of common stock. Appropriate adjustments were also made to all outstanding derivative securities of the Company, including all outstanding equity awards and warrants. 
No fractional shares were issued in connection with the Reverse Stock Split. Instead, all fractional shares received a cash payment based on the closing sales price on the Nasdaq Capital Market of the Company’s common stock on February 14, 2023.
Redemption and Elimination of Series A Preferred Stock
All shares of Series A Preferred Stock that were not present in person or by proxy as of immediately prior to the opening of the polls at the Special Meeting were automatically redeemed by the Company (the “Initial Redemption”). Any outstanding shares of Series A Preferred Stock that had not been so redeemed were redeemed automatically upon the approval at the Special Meeting of the Reverse Stock Split (the “Subsequent Redemption”). Each share of Series A Preferred Stock redeemed was entitled to receive an amount equal to $0.01 in cash for each 10 whole shares of Series A Preferred Stock owned immediately prior to the Redemption.
On March 6, 2023, the Company filed a certificate of elimination (the “Certificate of Elimination”), with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware with respect to the Series A Preferred Stock. The Certificate of Elimination (i) eliminated the previous designation of 80,000 shares of Series A Preferred Stock from the Company’s Certificate of Incorporation, none of which were outstanding at the time of the filing of the Certificate of Elimination, and (ii) caused such shares of Series A Preferred Stock to resume their status as authorized but unissued and non-designated shares of preferred stock.

 

Note 9.  Net Loss Per Share

Basic net loss per share is computed by dividing net loss by the weighted-average number of shares of common stock outstanding during the period. Diluted loss per share is computed by dividing net loss by the weighted-average number of shares of common stock outstanding adjusted to give effect to potentially dilutive securities. Restricted stock and unit awards, stock options, and warrants have not been included in the diluted loss per share calculation as their inclusion would have had an anti-dilutive effect.   

The potential common stock equivalents that have been excluded from the computation of diluted loss per share consist of the following:  


 

 

Three months ended March 31,


(in thousands)

 

2023

 

 

2022


Outstanding stock options

 

437

 

 

422


Nonvested restricted stock and unit awards 123

 

91


Stock purchase warrants

 

1

 

14




561

527


14


Note 10.  Income Taxes

The Company may be eligible, from time to time, to receive cash from the sale of its net operating losses under New Jersey's Department of the Treasury - Division of Taxation NOL Transfer Program. On January 10, 2023, the Company received a net cash amount of $211,000 from the sale of its New Jersey state net operating losses. 


Note 11.  Stock Based Compensation

The following table presents a summary of activity related to stock options during the three months ended March 31, 2023: 


 

Number of Options

(in thousands)

 

 

Weighted Average Exercise Price

 

 

Weighted Average Remaining Contractual Term (Years)

 

Outstanding, January 1, 2023   

$

440

 

 

$

55.65

 

 

  

7.5

 

Granted

 

3

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

Exercised

 

 

 

 


 

 

 

 

 

Cancelled

 

(6

)

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

Outstanding, March 31, 2023

$

437


 

$

55.74



  

7.2


Exercisable, March 31, 2023

$

284

 

 

$

75.84

 

 

  

6.7

 

The intrinsic value is calculated as the difference between the fair market value at March 31, 2023 and the exercise price per share of the stock options. As of March 31, 2023, all options outstanding had no material intrinsic value. The options granted to employees generally vest over a three or four-year period. 

 

15


The following table presents a summary of activity related to restricted and deferred stock units (“Stock Units”) granted during the three months ended March 31, 2023:  


 

 

Number of Shares

(in thousands)

 

 

Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value

 

Nonvested, January 1, 2023

 

 

127

 

 

$

11.85

 

Granted

 

 

 

 

 


 

Vested

 

 

(4

)

 

 


 

Cancelled

 

 

 

 


 

Nonvested, March 31, 2023

 

 

123

 

 

$

11.81

 

 

In general, Stock Units granted to employees vest over two to four-year periods.

Immediately following the Company’s annual meeting of stockholders, the Company generally grants each non-employee director an equity award that vests over a 12-month period. Upon a non-employee director’s initial appointment or election to the board of directors, the Company grants such non-employee director an equity award subject to vesting as determined by the board of directors. 

The Company recognized stock compensation expense for its equity awards as follows: 


 



Three months ended March 31,

(in thousands) 


2023


2022

Selling, general and administrative


$ 510

$ 705

Research and development



57


66

Cost of goods sold



5


6
Total expense 
$ 572

$ 777

 

Total unrecognized compensation cost related to unvested awards as of March 31, 2023 was $23.2 million and is expected to be recognized over the next one and one-half years.

Valuation Information for Stock-Based Compensation

The fair value of each stock option award during the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022 was estimated on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes model. Expected volatility was based on historical common stock volatility of the Company’s peers. Beginning in December 2022, the Company began incorporating its historical common stock volatility at a weighting of 50% of the total composite volatility rate. During the remainder of 2023, the Company will continue to evaluate the volatility rate used to value stock options. The risk-free interest rate was based on the average U.S. Treasury rate that most closely resembled the expected life of the related award. The expected term of the award was calculated using the simplified method. No dividend was assumed as the Company does not pay regular dividends on its common stock and does not anticipate paying any dividends in the foreseeable future.  

The weighted average assumptions used in the Black-Scholes option pricing model in valuing stock options granted in the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022 are summarized in the table below. 



Three months ended March 31,


2023



2022

Fair value at grant date

$

3.46

 


$ 8.10

Expected volatility

114.0



84.0
 

Risk-free interest rate

3.9



1.6 %

Expected holding period, in years

6.0

 



6.0

Dividend yield

 



%

 

16


Note 12. Commitments and Contingencies

Stockholders Litigation

On July 8, 2019, and August 1, 2019, purported stockholders of the Company served putative class action lawsuits in the Superior Court of New Jersey for Somerset County, captioned Paul Kuehl vs. electroCore, Inc., et al., Docket No. SOM-L 000876-19 and Shirley Stone vs. electroCore, Inc., et al., Docket No. SOM-L 001007-19, respectively. In addition to the Company, the defendants include present and past directors and officers, Evercore Group L.L.C., Cantor Fitzgerald & Co., JMP Securities LLC and BTIG, LLC, the underwriters for its IPO; and two of the Company’s stockholders. On August 15, 2019, the Superior Court entered an order consolidating the Kuehl and Stone actions, which proceeded under Docket No. SOM-L 000876-19.

Each plaintiff was appointed a co-lead plaintiff. The plaintiffs filed a consolidated amended complaint, which sought certification of a class of stockholders who purchased common stock in the IPO or whose purchases are traceable to that offering. The consolidated amended complaint alleged that the defendants violated Sections 11, 12(a)(2) and 15 of the Securities Act with respect to the registration statement and related prospectus for the IPO. The complaint sought unspecified compensatory damages, interest, costs and attorneys’ fees.

On October 31, 2019, the Company and the other defendants filed a motion to dismiss the complaint or in the alternative to stay the action in favor of the pending federal action (discussed below). On February 21, 2020, the court granted the defendants’ motion to dismiss the consolidated amended complaint with prejudice. On March 2, 2020, the court entered an amended order dismissing the consolidated amended complaint with prejudice. On March 27, 2020, the plaintiffs filed a notice of appeal with the N.J. Superior Court – Appellate Division. The appeal was argued on September 27, 2021. On October 8, 2021, the Appellate Division issued an order reversing the decision of the Superior Court. The case has been remanded to the Superior Court for oral argument on the motion to dismiss. On November 11, 2021, the defendants filed a supplemental motion to dismiss based on the forum selection clause in our certificate of incorporation's. On December 10, 2021, the Superior Court heard argument of the original motion to dismiss and the supplemental motion to dismiss based on the federal forum selection clause. On December 14, 2021, the Superior Court granted the supplemental motion to dismiss based on the federal forum selection clause with prejudice and granted the original motion to dismiss without prejudice. On January 27, 2022, the plaintiffs filed a notice of appeal to the Appellate Division. On April 15, 2022, the plaintiffs filed their appeal brief. The brief of defendant-appellees was filed on May 16, 2022. The appeal was fully briefed and oral argument was heard on April 19, 2023.

On September 26, 2019, and October 31, 2019, purported stockholders of the Company served putative class action lawsuits in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey captioned Allyn Turnofsky vs. electroCore, Inc., et al., Case 3:19-cv-18400, and Priewe vs. electroCore, Inc., et al., Case 1:19-cv-19653, respectively. In addition to the Company, the defendants include present and past directors and officers, and Evercore Group L.L.C., Cantor Fitzgerald & Co., JMP Securities LLC and BTIG, LLC, the underwriters for the IPO. The plaintiffs each seek to represent a class of stockholders who (i) purchased the Company’s common stock in the IPO or whose purchases are traceable to the IPO, or (ii) who purchased common stock between the IPO and September 25, 2019. The complaints each alleged that the defendants violated Sections 11 and 15 of the Securities Act and Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Exchange Act, with respect to (i) the registration statement and related prospectus for the IPO, and (ii) certain post-IPO disclosures filed with the SEC. The complaints sought unspecified compensatory damages, interest, costs and attorneys’ fees. The Priewe case was voluntarily dismissed on February 19, 2020.

In the Turnofsky case, on November 25, 2019, several plaintiffs and their counsel moved to be selected as lead plaintiff and lead plaintiff’s counsel. On April 24, 2020, the Court granted the motion of Carole Tibbs and the firm Bragar, Eagel & Squire, P.C. On July 17, 2020, the plaintiffs filed an amended complaint in Turnofsky. In addition to the prior claims, the amended complaint added an additional director defendant and two investors as defendants and adds a claim against the Company and the underwriters for violating Section 12(a)(2) of the Securities Act. On September 15, 2020, the Company and the other defendants filed a motion to dismiss the amended complaint for failure to state a claim. On November 6, 2020, the plaintiffs filed their opposition to the motion to dismiss. The Company and the other defendants filed reply papers in support of the motion on December 7, 2020. Argument of the motion to dismiss occurred on June 18, 2021. On August 13, 2021, the Court dismissed the amended complaint with leave to re-plead. On October 4, 2021, the plaintiffs filed a second amended complaint in the Turnofsky case. The defendants have moved to dismiss. Briefing on the motion was complete on January 7, 2022. On July 5, 2022, the case was reassigned to Judge Zahid N. Quraishi, who has ordered that he will consider the pending motion to dismiss in due course. Argument of the motion has not yet been scheduled.


17


On March 4, 2021, purported stockholder Richard Maltz brought a purported stockholder derivative action in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey. The action is captioned Richard Maltz, derivatively on behalf of electroCore, Inc., vs. Francis R. Amato, et al., Case 3:21-cv-04135. The defendants include present and past directors and officers of the Company. The plaintiff purports to pursue derivative claims on behalf of the Company in connection with the IPO and actions occurring between the IPO and September 25, 2019. The complaint alleges that demand on the board of directors is excused. The complaint purports to allege claims against the defendants for violating Section 14(a) of the Exchange Act, breaching fiduciary duties, unjust enrichment and waste of corporate assets. The complaint also purports to allege claims for contribution in connection with the Turnofsky case described above, pursuant to Section 11(f) of the Securities Act and Sections 10(b) and 21D of the Exchange Act. The complaint seeks unspecified compensatory damages, interest, costs and attorneys’ fees; declaratory relief; and an order requiring changes to corporate governance and internal procedures and a vote on proposed amendments to the Bylaws and Certificate of Incorporation. On March 8, 2021, purported stockholder Erin Yuson brought a purported stockholder derivative action in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey. The action is captioned Erin Yuson, derivatively on behalf of electroCore, Inc., vs. Francis R. Amato, et al., Case 3:21-cv-04481. The defendants include present and past directors and officers of the Company. The plaintiff purports to pursue derivative claims on behalf of the Company in connection with a 2019 proxy statement and actions occurring from the IPO through September 25, 2019. The complaint alleges that demand on the board of directors is excused. The complaint purports to allege claims against the defendants for violating Section 14(a) of the Exchange Act and breaching fiduciary duties. The complaint seeks unspecified compensatory damages, interest, costs and attorneys’ fees; declaratory relief; and an order requiring changes to corporate governance and internal procedures and a vote on proposed amendments to the Bylaws and Certificate of Incorporation.

The plaintiffs in the Maltz and Yuson derivative actions agreed to consolidate and stay those actions. The actions are stayed until and through the resolution of any motion for summary judgment in the Turnofsky federal securities class action. A stipulation to that effect was filed by the plaintiffs on April 14, 2021, and ordered by the court on April 30, 2021. These cases also have been re-assigned to Judge Quraishi.

The Company intends to continue to vigorously defend itself in these matters. However, in light of, among other things, the preliminary stage of these litigation matters, the Company is unable to determine the reasonable probability of loss or a range of potential loss. Accordingly, the Company has not established an accrual for potential losses, if any, that could result from any unfavorable outcome, and there can be no assurance that these litigation matters will not result in substantial defense costs and/or judgments or settlements that could adversely affect the Company’s financial condition.

The Company is subject to various claims, complaints and legal actions in the normal course of business from time to time. The Company is not aware of any further currently pending litigation for which it believes the outcome could have a material adverse effect on its operations or financial position. The Company expenses associated legal fees including those relating to the stockholder litigation described in this Note 12 in the period they are incurred.


Note 13. Severance and other related charges

 

In the first quarter of 2023, the Company entered into separation agreements with two former employees which agreements required an aggregate of payments of $332,000. The charge for these payments is included in Selling, general and administrative expense in the accompanying Condensed Statement of Operations for the three months ended March 31, 2023. As of March 31, 2023, the Company has an outstanding payable of $301,000 in connection with these charges. This outstanding payable is included in Accrued expenses and other current liabilities in the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheet as of March 31, 2023 (see Note 7).


18



Item 2. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS


You should read this section in conjunction with our unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements and related notes included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and our audited consolidated financial statements and related notes thereto and management’s discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations for the year ended December 31, 2022 included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC. As discussed in the section titled “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements,” the following discussion and analysis contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties, as well as assumptions that, if they never materialize or prove incorrect, could cause our results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, those identified below, and those under the caption "Risk Factors" in the aforementioned Annual Report and this Form 10-Q.


Note: Information concerning the shares of our common stock and related share prices in this Item 2 has been adjusted to reflect the 1- for-15 reverse split of our common stock that was made effective on February 15, 2023. (See Note 2 - "Basis of Presentation” to the accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements).


Overview

We are a commercial stage bioelectronic medicine and wellness company dedicated to improving health through our non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation (“nVNS”) technology platform. Our focus is the commercialization of medical devices for the management and treatment of certain medical conditions and the development and commercialization of consumer product offerings utilizing nVNS to promote general wellbeing and human performance in the United States and select overseas markets.

nVNS is a platform bioelectronic technology that modulates neurotransmitters and immune function through its effects on both the peripheral and central nervous systems. Our nVNS treatment is delivered through a proprietary high-frequency burst waveform that safely and comfortably passes through the skin and stimulates therapeutically relevant fibers in the vagus nerve. Various scientific publications suggest that nVNS works through several mechanistic pathways including the modulation of neurotransmitters.

Historically, vagus nerve stimulation or VNS, required an invasive surgical procedure to implant a costly medical device. This limitation has generally limited VNS from being used by anyone other than the most severe patients. Our medical devices and wellness products are self-administered and intended for regular or intermittent use over many years.

Our business is supported by our in-house capabilities spanning research and development, regulatory affairs and compliance, sales and marketing, product testing, assembly, fulfillment, and customer support. We derive revenues from the sale of medical devices and wellness products in the United States and select overseas markets. We have two principal product categories:

          • Handheld, personal use medical devices for the management and treatment of certain medical conditions; and

          • Handheld, personal use consumer product offerings utilizing nVNS technology to promote general wellbeing and human performance.

We believe our nVNS treatment may be used in the future to effectively treat additional medical conditions, promote general wellbeing, or improve human performance.

Our goal is to be a leader in non-invasive neuromodulation by using our proprietary nVNS platform technology to deliver better health. To achieve this, we offer multiple propositions:

          • gammaCore for the treatment of certain medical conditions such as primary headache;

          • Truvaga for the support of general health and wellbeing; and

          • TAC-STIM for human performance as defined by the United States Air Force Research Laboratory.

gammaCore is a prescription medical device currently FDA cleared for a variety of primary headache conditions. gammaCore is available by prescription only and our flagship model, gammaCore Sapphire is a portable, reusable, rechargeable and reloadable personal use option for patients to use at home or on the go. Prescriptions are written by a health care provider and dispensed from a specialty pharmacy, through the patient’s healthcare provider or fulfilled directly to certain patients directly from our facility in Rockaway, NJ. After the initial prescription is filled, access to additional therapy can be refilled for certain of our gammaCore products periodically through the input of a prescription-only authorization.

Truvaga is a personal use consumer electronics wellness product that does not require a prescription and is available direct-to-consumer from electroCore at www.truvaga.com. Truvaga is not intended for medical use. TAC-STIM is a form of nVNS for human performance and has been developed in collaboration with the United States Department of Defense Biotech Optimized for Operational Solutions and Tactics, or "BOOST" program. We are exploring strategies to make this product offering available to other branches of the active-duty military and certain human performance professionals in the United States and abroad.

19


TAC-STIM is available to professional organizations and is the subject of ongoing research at the United States Air Force Research Laboratory. TAC-STIM is not a medical device and is not intended to diagnose, cure, mitigate, prevent, or treat a disease or condition.

Until 2021, we generally focused most of our historical sales efforts in two channels, the United States Department of Veterans Affairs and United States Department of Defense, or VA/DoD, and the United Kingdom utilizing our FDA cleared and CE marked product, gammaCore.

The United States Department of Veteran Affairs comprised 64.5% of our revenue during the three months ended March 31, 2023. We expect that a majority of our 2023 sales will be made pursuant to our qualifying contract under the Federal Supply Schedule or FSS, which was secured by us in December 2018, as well as open market sales to individual facilities within the government channels. The FSS is scheduled to expire on January 15, 2024. We intend to request an extension of the FSS from the United States Department of Veteran Affairs, but there is no assurance the FSS will be renewed, and if at all renewed at terms favorable to us. Our sales function in this channel is comprised of electroCore employees and independent contractors.

Sales under the Med Tech Funding Mandate, or MTFM, program for cluster headache in the UK comprised 9.4% of our revenue during the three months ended March 31, 2023. In 2023, we plan on continued expansion under this program, as well as continue to utilize distribution partners to commercialize our nVNS technology in territories outside the United States and United Kingdom. In 2023, we expect NICE to review the guidance document and any changes in recommendation or pricing may adversely impact our ability to work with NHS England on the MTFM program.

We believe there may be significant opportunities beyond these two areas. Specifically, we believe there is a large commercial opportunity for gammaCore with cash pay, physician dispense, and direct-to-consumer approaches, along with wellness and human performance propositions through Truvaga and TAC-STIM. Therefore, in 2023, we will continue our investments to expand these channels and markets.

We face a variety of challenges and risks that we will need to address and manage as we pursue our strategies, including our ability to develop and retain an effective sales force, achieve market acceptance of gammaCore among physicians, patients, and third-party payers, expand the use of gammaCore to additional therapeutic indications, and to develop our nascent wellness and human performance business.

Because of the numerous risks and uncertainties associated with our commercialization efforts, as well as research and clinical development activities, we are unable to predict the timing or amount of increased expenses, or when, if ever, we will be able to achieve or maintain profitability. Even if we are able to increase sales of our products, we may not become profitable. If we fail to become profitable or are unable to sustain profitability, then we may be unable to continue our operations at planned levels and be forced to reduce or terminate our operations.

Our expected cash requirements for the next 12 months and beyond are based on the commercialization success of our products and our ability to control operating expenses. There are significant risks and uncertainties as to our ability to achieve these operating results. Due to these risks and uncertainties, we may need to reduce our activities significantly more than our current operating plan and cash flow projections assume in order to fund operations for the next 12 months. There can be no assurance that we will have sufficient cash flow and liquidity to fund our planned activities, which could force us to significantly reduce or curtail our activities and, ultimately, potentially cease operations. These conditions raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. See “Liquidity Outlook.”

Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

The significant accounting policies and basis of presentation of our condensed consolidated financial statements are described in Note 2 “Summary of Significant Accounting Policies” of the consolidated financial statements included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC on March 8, 2023 ("2022 Annual Report"), and in Note 2 "Summary of Significant Accounting Policies" of the condensed consolidated financial statements included within this quarterly report on Form 10-Q.

The preparation of our financial statements is in accordance with U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles, or GAAP, which require us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues, expenses and other related disclosures. While we believe our estimates, assumptions and judgments are reasonable, they are based on information presently available. Actual results may differ significantly from these estimates due to changes in judgments, assumptions and conditions as a result of unforeseen events or otherwise, which could have a material impact on our financial position and results of operations.

The critical accounting policies, and the judgements, estimates, and assumptions associated with such policies, that we believe have the greatest potential impact on the condensed consolidated financial statements are disclosed in the section titled Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates in Part II of our 2022 Annual Report.


20


Results of Operations

Comparison of the three months ended March 31, 2023 to the three months ended March 31, 2022

The following table sets forth amounts from our condensed consolidated statements of operations for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022:

 

 

 

For the three months ended

March 31,

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2023

 

 

2022

 

 

Change

 

(in thousands)

 


 

Consolidated statements of operations:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Net sales

 

$

2,780

 

 

$

1,899

 

 

$

881

Cost of goods sold

 

 

458

 

 

 

360

 

 

 

98

Gross profit

 

 

2,322

 

 

 

1,539

 

 

 

783

Operating expenses

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Research and development

 

 

1,809

 

 

 

934

 

 

 

875

Selling, general and administrative

 

 

6,710

 

 

 

6,186

 

 

 

524

Total operating expenses

 

 

8,519

 

 

7,120

 

 

 

1,399

Loss from operations

 

 

(6,197

)

 

 

(5,581

)  

 

 

(616

)

Other (income) expense

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Interest and other income

 

 

(119

)

 

 

(4

)

 

 

(115

)

Other expense 

 

 

 

 

5

 

 

 

(5

)

     Total other (income) expense

 

 

(119

)

 

 

1

 

 

(120

)
Loss before income taxes

(6,078 )

(5,582 )

(496 )
Benefit from income taxes

211



211

Net loss

 

$

(5,867

)

 

$

(5,582

)  

 

$

(285

)

Net Sales

Net sales for the three months ended March 31, 2023 increased 46% as compared to the three months ended March 31, 2022. The increase of $881,000 is due to an increase in net sales across all major channels including the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs, U.S. commercial channel, and sales from outside the U.S. which includes licensing revenue of $46,000. There was no licensing revenue in the comparable prior year period. We expect that the majority of remaining 2023 fiscal year revenue will continue to come from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Additionally, we expect revenues to expand from our cash pay propositions which include direct to physician models for traditional neurology headache specialists, as well as the wide range of medical providers who manage patients' headache conditions including primary care physicians, women's health, pain management, sports medicine, functional and integrative medicine professionals, as well as chiropractors, and PharmDs (Doctors of Pharmacy). In addition, we expect to generate additional revenue from sales of our Truvaga and TAC-STIM products.

Gross Profit

Gross profit increased by $783,000 for the three months ended March 31, 2023 compared to the three months ended March 31, 2022Gross margin was 84% and 81% for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. Our evolving commercial strategy has resulted in the launch of cash payment models under which we license a portion of our devices. The cost of the licensed device is being recognized as cost of goods sold over the estimated useful life of the device. The incremental increase in gross margin associated with the licensing of a portion of our devices was 6.7% and 6.9% in the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. In recent quarters, we have sold an increasing amount of longer duration therapy, resulting in a higher average selling price, as well as selling an increased number of refill kits with a lower cost of goods. In addition, favorable absorption of labor and overhead costs associated with the increased number of units sold contributed to the increase in gross margin. Gross profit and gross margin in the remainder of 2023 will be largely dependent on revenue levels, product mix, and any changes in the estimated useful lives of licensed devices.

Research and Development

Research and development expense for the three months ended March 31, 2023 of $1.8 million increased by $875,000 compared to the prior year period. This increase was primarily due to targeted investments to support the future iterations of our therapy delivery platform, including the use of our intellectual property around the delivery of smart phone-integrated and smart phone-connected non-invasive therapies. In the remainder of 2023, we plan to continue to invest in the next generation of our therapy delivery platform.

21


Selling, General and Administrative

Selling, general and administration expense of $6.7 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023 increased by $524,000 as compared to $6.2 million for the previous year period. This increase was due to severance charges of $332,000, as well as our continuing targeted investments in sales and marketing to support our commercial efforts, offset by decreases in insurance and stock-based compensation expense. In the remainder of 2023, we plan on continuing to make targeted investments in sales and marketing to support our commercial efforts, particularly around sales and marketing efforts for our cash pay propositions which include ecommerce stores, direct to physician models for traditional neurology headache specialists, as well as the wide range of medical providers who manage patients' headache conditions including primary care physicians, women's health, pain management, sports medicine, functional and integrative medicine professionals, as well as chiropractors, and PharmDs (Doctors of Pharmacy). 

Other (Income) Expense

The increase in Other (Income) Expense is primarily due to rising interest rates. 

Benefit From Income Taxes

We may be eligible, from time to time, to receive cash from the sale of our net operating losses under New Jersey's Department of the Treasury - Division of Taxation NOL Transfer Program. On January 10, 2023, we received a net cash amount of approximately $211,000 from the sale of our New Jersey state net operating losses.

Cash Flows

The following table sets forth the significant sources and uses of cash for the periods noted below: 

 


 

For the three months ended March 31,

 

 

 

2023

 

 

2022 

 

(in thousands)

 


 

Net cash (used in) provided by

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Operating activities

 

$

(5,860

)

 

$

(4,780

)

Investing activities

 

$

 

$

Financing activities

 

$

 

 

$

 

Operating Activities

Net cash used in operating activities was $5.9 million and $4.8 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, respectivelyThis increase is primarily due to the increase in our working capital and net loss from operations.

22


Investing Activities

No cash was provided by investing activities during the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022.

Financing Activities

No cash was provided by financing activities during the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022.

Liquidity Outlook

In the remainder of 2023, we expect to continue to incur substantial negative cash flows from operations. We intend to continue to make targeted investments in sales and marketing, as well as the next generation of our therapy delivery platform.

As a result, we will need to seek additional funds in the future or curtail or forgo some or all such activities. If we seek to and are unable to raise funds on favorable terms, or at all, we may not be able to support our commercialization efforts or research and development activities, and the growth of our business may be negatively impacted. As a result, we may be unable to compete effectively.

We expect that a majority of our remaining 2023 sales will be made pursuant to our qualifying contract under the Federal Supply Schedule, or FSS, as well as open market sales to individual facilities within the government channels. The FSS is scheduled to expire on January 15, 2024. We intend to request an extension of the FSS from the United States Department of Veteran Affairs, but there is no assurance the FSS agreement will be renewed, if at all, or at terms favorable to us. In addition, other possible changes including those relating to the payer and competitive landscape, our commercialization strategy, our development activities, and regulatory matters, may occur beyond our control that would cause us to consume our available capital more quickly.

Even if we are not required to curtail our activities sooner, our ability to execute our operating plan beyond the next 12 months from the date these financial statements are issued depends on our ability to increase revenue, control operating expenses and obtain additional funding from the sale of equity and or debt securities, a strategic transaction or otherwise. However, these alternatives may not be available to us on attractive terms, or at all. There is no assurance that we will generate sufficient cash flow and funding through our operating results or the sale of securities or from a strategic transaction or otherwise, raising substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern within one year of the date these financial statements are issued. The accompanying Financial Statements do not include any adjustment that might occur from the outcome of this uncertainty.

On January 18, 2022, we filed a Form S-3 registration statement, or the 2022 Shelf Registration Statement, with the SEC, for the issuance of common stock, preferred stock, warrants, rights, debt securities and units, which we refer to collectively as the Shelf Securities, up to an aggregate amount of $75.0 million. The 2022 Shelf Registration Statement was declared effective on January 25, 2022. The proposed maximum offering price per unit and the proposed maximum aggregate offering price per class of security will be determined from time to time by us in connection with the issuance by us of the securities registered under the 2022 Shelf Registration Statement. Until such time as the aggregate market value of our securities held by non-affiliates equals or exceeds $75.0 million, the aggregate maximum offering price of all securities issued by us in any given 12-calendar month period pursuant to this and any of our other registration statements may not exceed one-third of the aggregate market value of our securities held by non-affiliates.

On February 13, 2023, we held a special meeting (the “Special Meeting”) of our stockholders. At the Special Meeting, our shareholders voted to approve an amendment to our Certificate of Incorporation as amended to effect a Reverse Stock Split of our ordinary shares (the “Reverse Stock Split”) at a ratio of not less than 1-for 5 and not more than 1-for-50, with such ratio and the implementation and timing of the Reverse Stock Split to be determined by our board of directors in its sole discretion. Following the Special Meeting, our board of directors approved a 1-for-15 Reverse Stock Split and our Certificate of Incorporation, as amended was amended accordingly. The Reverse Stock Split became effective on February 15, 2023. The purpose of the Reverse Stock Split was to increase the per share trading price of our common stock on the Nasdaq Capital Market to regain compliance with the Bid Price Rule. On March 6, 2023, we received a letter from Nasdaq confirming that our common stock had regained compliance with the Bid Price Rule, and as a result, our common stock continues to trade on the Nasdaq Capital Market. If in the future we fail to satisfy the continued listing requirements of Nasdaq, such as the corporate governance requirements or the $1 Minimum Bid Price Rule, Nasdaq may take steps to delist our common stock.

The Reverse Stock Split of our common stock had the effect of reducing the number of shares of common stock outstanding. There can be no assurance that the value and liquidity of our common stock will not be adversely affected by the Reverse Stock Split, which in turn could have a material adverse effect on our ability to raise the additional capital that we may require or increase the dilutive impact of any such financing.


23


We develop our products in the United States and sell those products into several countries. As a result, our financial results could be affected by factors such as changes in foreign currency exchange rates or weak economic conditions in foreign markets. Most of our sales in Europe are denominated in British Pound Sterling and our license agreement with Teijin is denominated in Japanese Yen. As our sales in currencies other than the U.S. dollar increase, our exposure to foreign currency fluctuations may increase. In addition, changes in exchange rates also may affect the end-user prices of our products compared to those of our foreign competitors, who may be selling their products based on local currency pricing. These factors may make our products less competitive in some countries.
If the U.S. dollar uniformly increased or decreased in strength by 10% relative to the foreign currencies in which our sales were denominated, our net income would have correspondingly increased or decreased by an immaterial amount for the three months ended March 31, 2023.
Our exposure to market interest rate risk is confined to our cash and cash equivalents and marketable securities. The goals of our investment policy are preservation of capital, fulfillment of liquidity needs and fiduciary control of cash and investments. We also seek to maximize income from our investments without assuming significant risk. To achieve our goals, we may maintain a portfolio of cash equivalents and investments in a variety of securities of high credit quality. The securities in our investment portfolio, if any, are not leveraged, are classified as available for sale and are, due to their very short-term nature, subject to minimal interest rate risk. We currently do not hedge interest rate exposure. Because of the short-term maturities of our cash equivalents, we do not believe that an increase in market rates would have any material negative impact on interest income recognized in our statement of operations. We have no investments denominated in foreign currencies and therefore our investments are not subject to foreign currency exchange risk. We contract with investigational sites, suppliers and other vendors in Europe and internationally. In addition, our license agreement requires payments to us to be denominated in Japanese Yen. We are subject to fluctuations in foreign currency rates in connection with these agreements. We do not hedge our foreign currency exchange rate risk.
All of the potential changes noted above are based on sensitivity analyses performed on our financial position as of March 31, 2023.

Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

We maintain disclosure controls and procedures that are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in our reports under the Exchange Act, is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the rules and forms, and that such information is accumulated and communicated to us, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, as appropriate, to allow timely decision making regarding required disclosure. In designing and evaluating our disclosure controls and procedures, we recognize that any controls and procedures, no matter how well designed and operated, can provide only reasonable assurance of achieving the desired control objectives, as ours are designed to do, and we apply our judgment in evaluating whether the benefits of the controls and procedures that we adopt outweigh their costs.

As required by Rule 13a-15(b) of the Exchange Act, an evaluation as of March 31, 2023 was conducted under the supervision and with the participation of our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, of the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 13a-15(e) under the Exchange Act). Based on this evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures, as of March 31, 2023 were effective for the purposes stated above.

Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting

There was no change in our internal control over financial reporting as such term is defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) under the Exchange Act, that occurred during the three months ended March 31, 2023 that has materially affected or is reasonably likely to materially affect our internal control over financial reporting.


24


PART II OTHER INFORMATION

The information set forth in Note 12. Commitments and Contingencies of the condensed consolidated financial statements included with this quarterly report on Form 10-Q is incorporated here by reference to this Part II Item 1.


Item 1A.


The risks described in "Risk Factors" within our 2022 Annual Report and this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, including the risk factor set forth in this Item 1A below, could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations, and the trading price of our common stock could decline. The Risk Factors section in the 2022 Annual Report, as updated in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-remain current in all material respects. These risk factors do not identify all risks that we face. Our operations could also be affected by factors that are not presently known to us or that we currently consider to be immaterial to our operations. Due to risks and uncertainties, known and unknown, our past financial results may not be a reliable indicator of future performance and historical trends should not be used to anticipate results or trends in future periods. Refer also to the other information set forth in this Form 10-Q, including in the Forward-Looking Statements, MD&A, and Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements sections.


Adverse developments affecting the financial services industry, including events or concerns involving liquidity, defaults, or non-performance by financial institutions or transactional counterparties, could adversely affect our business, financial condition, or results of operations. 


Events involving limited liquidity, defaults, non-performance, or other adverse developments that affect financial institutions, transactional counterparties, or other companies in the financial services industry or the financial services industry generally, or concerns or rumors about any events of these kinds or other similar risks, have in the past and may in the future lead to market-wide liquidity problems. Most recently, on March 10, 2023, Silicon Valley Bank  was closed by the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation, which appointed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation as a receiver. Similarly, on March 12, 2023, Signature Bank and Silvergate Capital Corp. were each swept into receivership. Later in March 2023, Credit Suisse was acquired by UBS following the intervention of Swiss regulatory authorities, and on May 1, 2023, First Republic Bank was closed by the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation. Although we are not a borrower or party to any such instruments with these or any other financial institution currently in receivership, if we were to borrow money in the future and if any of our lenders or counterparties to any such instruments were to be placed into receivership, we may be unable to access such funds.


Although we assess our banking and customer relationships as we believe necessary or appropriate, our access to funding sources and other credit arrangements in amounts adequate to finance or capitalize our current and projected future business operations and product development could be significantly impaired by factors that affect us, the financial services industry or economy in general. These factors could include, among others, events such as liquidity constraints or failures, the ability to perform obligations under various types of financial, credit, or liquidity agreements or arrangements, disruptions or instability in the financial services industry or financial markets, or concerns or negative expectations about the prospects for companies in the financial services industry.


In addition, investor concerns regarding the U.S. or international financial systems could result in less favorable commercial financing terms, including higher interest rates or costs and stricter financial and operating covenants, or limitations on access to credit and liquidity sources, thereby making it more difficult for us to acquire financing on acceptable terms or at all. Any decline in available funding or access to our cash and liquidity resources could, among other risks, adversely impact our ability to meet our operating expenses, financial obligations or fulfill our other obligations, result in breaches of our financial and/or contractual obligations or result in violations of federal or state wage and hour laws if, for example, we were unable to obtain access to deposits used for payroll. Any of these impacts, or any other impacts resulting from the factors described above or other related or similar factors not described above, could have material adverse impacts on our liquidity and our current and/or projected business operations and financial condition and results of operations.


None.
Not applicable.
(a) Not applicable.

(b) Not applicable.

25


 Item 6. EXHIBITS

 

Exhibit

Number

 

Description

3.1***
Certificate of Elimination of the Series A Preferred Stock of the Company, dated March 3, 2023.



3.2***
Certificate of Amendment to the Certificate of Incorporation, filed February 13, 2023.



10.1*

electroCore, Inc. 2018 Omnibus Equity Incentive Plan




31.1*

 

Certification of Principal Executive Officer Pursuant to Rules 13a-14(a) and 15d-14(a) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as Adopted Pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.

 

 

 

31.2*

 

Certification of Principal Financial Officer Pursuant to Rules 13a-14(a) and 15d-14(a) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as Adopted Pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.

 

 

 

32.1**

 

Certification of Principal Executive Officer Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as Adopted Pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.

 

 

 

32.2**

 

Certification of Principal Financial Officer Pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as Adopted Pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.

 

 

 

101.INS

 

Inline XBRL Instance Document - the instance document does not appear in the Interactive Data File because its XBRL tags are embedded within the Inline XBRL document.

 

 

 

101.SCH

 

Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema Document

 

 

 

101.CAL

 

Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase Document

 

 

 

101.DEF

 

Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Definition Linkbase Document

 

 

 

101.LAB

 

Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Label Linkbase Document

 

 

 

101.PRE

 

Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase Document

 

 

 

104

Cover Page Interactive Data File (formatted as Inline XBRL and contained in Exhibit 101)



*

Filed herewith. 

 

**

Furnished herewith.

*** Incorporated by reference to the Company's Current Report on Form 10-K as filed with the Commission on March 8, 2023


26



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

 

 

 

Company Name

 

 

 

 

Date:  May 3, 2023

 

By:

/s/ DANIEL S. GOLDBERGER

 

 

 

Daniel S. Goldberger

 

 

 

Chief Executive Officer

(Principal Executive Officer)

 

 

 

 

Date:  May 3, 2023

 

By:

/s/ BRIAN M. POSNER

 

 

 

Brian M. Posner

 

 

 

Chief Financial Officer

(Principal Financial and Accounting Officer)

 

27

Exhibit 10.1









ELECTROCORE, INC.

2018 OMNIBUS EQUITY INCENTIVE PLAN

(Effective June 21, 2018)1






1. Share numbers in this Plan reflect the 1-for-15 reverse stock split effective February 15, 2023.




 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PAGE

Article 1. Effective Date, Objectives and Duration 1
1.1     Effective Date of the Plan 1
1.2     Objectives of the Plan 1
1.3     Duration of the Plan 1
Article 2. Definitions 1
2.1     “Affiliate” 1
2.2     “Award” 1
2.3     “Award Agreement” 1
2.4     “Board” 2
2.5     “Bonus Shares” 2
2.6     “Cause” 2
2.7     “CEO” 2
2.8     “Change in Control” 2
2.9     “Code” 2
2.10    “Committee” or “Incentive Plan Committee” 2
2.11    “Compensation Committee” 2
2.12    “Common Stock” 2
2.13    “Corporate Transaction” 2
2.14    “Deferred Stock” 2
2.15    “Disability” or “Disabled” 3
2.16    “Dividend Equivalent” 3
2.17    “Effective Date” 3
2.18    “Eligible Person” 3
2.19    “Exchange Act” 3
2.20    “Exercise Price” 3
2.21    “Fair Market Value” 3
2.22    “Grant Date” 4
2.23    “Grantee” 4
2.24    “Incentive Stock Option” 4
2.25    “Including” or “includes” 4
2.26    “Management Committee” 4
2.27    “Non-Employee Director” 4
2.28    “Option” 4
2.29    “Other Stock-Based Award” 4
2.30    “Performance Period” 4
2.31    “Performance Share” and “Performance Unit” 4
2.32    “Period of Restriction” 4
2.33    “Person” 4
2.34    “Restricted Shares” 4
2.35    “Restricted Stock Units” 4
2.36    “Rule 16b-3” 4
2.37    “SEC” 4
2.38    “Section 16 Non-Employee Director” 4

 

- i -


 

2.39    “Section 16 Person” 4
2.40    “Separation from Service” 5
2.41    “Share” 5
2.42    “Stock Appreciation Right” or “SAR” 5
2.43    “Subsidiary Corporation” 5
2.44    “Surviving Company” 5
2.45    “Term” 5
2.46    “Termination of Affiliation” 5
Article 3. Administration 6
3.1     Committee 6
3.2     Powers of Committee 6
3.3     No Repricings 8
Article 4. Shares Subject to the Plan 8
4.1     Number of Shares Available for Grants 8
4.2     Adjustments in Authorized Shares and Awards; Corporate Transaction, Liquidation or Dissolution 9
Article 5. Eligibility and General Conditions of Awards 10
5.1     Eligibility 10
5.2     Award Agreement 10
5.3     General Terms and Termination of Affiliation 10
5.4     Nontransferability of Awards 10
5.5     Cancellation and Rescission of Awards 11
5.6     Stand-Alone, Tandem and Substitute Awards 11
5.7     Compliance with Rule 16b-3 12
5.8     Deferral of Award Payouts 12
Article 6. Stock Options 12
6.1     Grant of Options 12
6.2     Award Agreement 12
6.3     Option Exercise Price 13
6.4     Grant of Incentive Stock Options 13
6.5     Payment of Exercise Price 14
Article 7. Stock Appreciation Rights 14
7.1     Issuance 14
7.2     Award Agreements 14
7.3     SAR Exercise Price 14
7.4     Exercise and Payment 14
Article 8. Restricted Shares 15
8.1     Grant of Restricted Shares 15
8.2     Award Agreement 15
8.3     Consideration for Restricted Shares 15
8.4     Effect of Forfeiture 15
8.5     Escrow; Legends 15
Article 9. Performance Units and Performance Shares 15
9.1     Grant of Performance Units and Performance Shares 15
9.2     Value/Performance Goals 16
9.3     Earning of Performance Units and Performance Shares 16
Article 10. Deferred Stock and Restricted Stock Units 16
10.1    Grant of Deferred Stock and Restricted Stock Units 16
10.2    Vesting and Delivery 16
10.3    Voting and Dividend Equivalent Rights Attributable to Deferred Stock and Restricted Stock Units 17

 

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Article 11. Dividend Equivalents 17
Article 12. Bonus Shares 17
Article 13. Other Stock-Based Awards 17
Article 14. Non-Employee Director Awards 18
Article 15. Amendment, Modification, and Termination 18
15.1    Amendment, Modification, and Termination 18
15.2    Awards Previously Granted 18
Article 16. Compliance with Code Section 409A 18
16.1    Awards Subject to Code Section 409A 18
16.2    Deferral and/or Distribution Elections 18
16.3    Subsequent Elections 19
16.4    Distributions Pursuant to Deferral Elections 19
16.5    Six Month Delay 19
16.6    Death or Disability 19
16.7    No Acceleration of Distributions 19
Article 17. Withholding 20
17.1    Required Withholding 20
17.2    Notification under Code Section 83(b) 20
Article 18. Additional Provisions 21
18.1    Successors 21
18.2    Severability 21
18.3    Requirements of Law 21
18.4    Securities Law Compliance 21
18.5    Forfeiture Events 22
18.6    No Rights as a Stockholder 22
18.7    Nature of Payments 22
18.8    Non-Exclusivity of Plan 22
18.9    Governing Law 22
18.10   Unfunded Status of Awards; Creation of Trusts 22
18.11   Affiliation 22
18.12   Participation 23
18.13   Military Service 23
18.14   Construction 23
18.15   Headings 23
18.16   Obligations 23
18.17   No Right to Continue as Director 23
18.18   Stockholder Approval 23

 

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ELECTROCORE, INC.

2018 OMNIBUS EQUITY INCENTIVE PLAN

 

Article 1.
Effective Date, Objectives and Duration


1.1               Effective Date of the Plan.  The Board of Directors of electroCore, Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”) formed upon the statutory conversion of ElectroCore, LLC from a Delaware limited liability company (the “LLC”) into a Delaware corporation, adopted the 2018 Omnibus Equity Incentive Plan (the “Plan”) effective as of June 21, 2018 (the “Effective Date”).  
1.2               Objectives of the Plan.  The Plan is intended (a) to allow selected employees of and consultants to the Company and its Affiliates to acquire or increase equity ownership in the Company, thereby strengthening their commitment to the success of the Company and stimulating their efforts on behalf of the Company, and to assist the Company and its Affiliates in attracting new employees, officers and consultants and retaining existing employees and consultants, (b) to optimize the profitability and growth of the Company and its Affiliates through incentives which are consistent with the Company’s goals, (d) to provide Grantees with an incentive for excellence in individual performance, (e) to promote teamwork among employees, consultants and Non-Employee Directors, and (f) to attract and retain highly qualified persons to serve as Non-Employee Directors and to promote ownership by such Non-Employee Directors of a greater proprietary interest in the Company, thereby aligning such Non-Employee Directors’ interests more closely with the interests of the Company’s stockholders. 
1.3               Duration of the Plan. The Plan shall commence on the Effective Date and shall remain in effect, subject to the right of the Board to amend or terminate the Plan at any time pursuant to Article 15 hereof, until the earlier of the tenth anniversary of the Effective Date, or the date all Shares subject to the Plan shall have been purchased or acquired and the restrictions on all Restricted Shares granted under the Plan shall have lapsed, according to the Plan’s provisions.
Article 2.
Definitions


Whenever used in the Plan, the following terms shall have the meanings set forth below:

2.1               Affiliate means any corporation or other entity, including but not limited to partnerships, limited liability companies and joint ventures, with respect to which the Company, directly or indirectly, owns as applicable (a) stock possessing more than fifty percent (50%) of the total combined voting power of all classes of stock entitled to vote, or more than fifty percent (50%) of the total value of all shares of all classes of stock of such corporation, or (b) an aggregate of more than fifty percent (50%) of the profits interest or capital interest of a non-corporate entity.
2.2               Award means Options (including non-qualified options and Incentive Stock Options), SARs, Restricted Shares, Performance Units (which may be paid in cash), Performance Shares, Deferred Stock, Restricted Stock Units, Dividend Equivalents, Bonus Shares or Other Stock-Based Awards granted under the Plan.
2.3               Award Agreement means either (a) a written agreement entered into by the Company and a Grantee setting forth the terms and provisions applicable to an Award granted under this Plan, or (b) a written statement issued by the Company to a Grantee describing the terms and provisions of such Award, including any amendment or modification thereof. The Committee may provide for the use of electronic, internet or other non-paper Award Agreements and the use of electronic, internet or other non-paper means for the acceptance thereof and actions thereunder by the Grantee. 
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2.4               Board means the Board of Directors of the Company.
2.5             Bonus Shares means Shares that are awarded to a Grantee with or without cost and without restrictions either in recognition of past performance (whether determined by reference to another employee benefit plan of the Company or otherwise), as an inducement to become an Eligible Person or, with the consent of the Grantee, as payment in lieu of any cash remuneration otherwise payable to the Grantee.
2.6               Cause means, except as otherwise defined in an Award Agreement:

(a)                the commission of any act by a Grantee constituting a felony or crime of moral turpitude (or their equivalent in a non-United States jurisdiction);

(b)                an act of dishonesty, fraud, intentional misrepresentation, or harassment which, as determined in good faith by the Committee, would:  (i) materially adversely affect the business or the reputation of the Company or any of its Affiliates with their respective current or prospective customers, suppliers, lenders and/or other third parties with whom such entity does or might do business; or (ii) expose the Company or any of its Affiliates to a risk of civil or criminal legal damages, liabilities or penalties;

(c)                 any material misconduct in violation of the Company’s or an Affiliate’s written policies; or

(d)                willful and deliberate non-performance of the Grantee’s duties in connection with the business affairs of the Company or its Affiliates;

provided, however, that if the Grantee has a written employment or consulting agreement with the Company or any of its Affiliates or participates in any severance plan established by the Company that includes a definition of “cause,” Cause shall have the meaning set forth in such employment or consulting agreement or severance plan.

2.7               CEO means the Chief Executive Officer of the Company.
2.8               Change in Control shall have the meaning set forth in Section 16.4(e).
2.9               Code means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended from time to time.  References to a particular section of the Code include references to regulations and rulings thereunder and to successor provisions.
2.11           Compensation Committee means the compensation committee of the Board.
2.12           Common Stock means the common stock, $0.001 par value, of the Company.
2.13           Corporate Transaction shall have the meaning set forth in Section 4.2(b).
2.14           Deferred Stock means a right, granted under Article 10, to receive Shares at the end of a specified deferral period.  
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2.15           Disability” or “Disabled means, unless otherwise defined in an Award Agreement, or as otherwise determined under procedures established by the Committee for purposes of the Plan:

(a)                Except as provided in (b) below, a disability within the meaning of Section 22(e)(3) of the Code; and

(b)                In the case of any Award that constitutes deferred compensation within the meaning of Section 409A of the Code, a disability as defined in regulations under Code Section 409A.  For purpose of Code Section 409A, a Grantee will be considered Disabled if:

(i)                        the Grantee is unable to engage in any substantial gainful activity by reason of any medically determinable physical or mental impairment which can be expected to result in death or can be expected to last for a continuous period of not less than twelve (12) months, or

(ii)                      the Grantee is, by reason of any medically determinable physical or mental impairment which can be expected to result in death or can be expected to last for a continuous period of not less than twelve (12) months, receiving income replacement benefits for a period of not less than three (3) months under an accident and health plan covering employees of the Grantee’s employer.

2.16           Dividend Equivalent means a right to receive payments equal to dividends or property, if and when paid or distributed, on a specified number of Shares. 
2.17           Effective Date has the meaning set forth in Section 1.1.
2.18           Eligible Person means any individual who is an employee (including any officer) of, a non-employee consultant to, or a Non-Employee Director of, the Company or any Affiliate; provided, however, that solely with respect to the grant of an Incentive Stock Option, an Eligible Person shall be any employee (including any officer) of the Company or any Subsidiary Corporation.  Notwithstanding the foregoing, an Eligible Person shall also include an individual who is expected to become an employee to, non-employee consultant of or Non-Employee Director of the Company or any Affiliate within a reasonable period of time after the grant of an Award (other than an Incentive Stock Option); provided that any Award granted to any such individual shall be automatically terminated and cancelled without consideration if the individual does not begin performing services for the Company or any Affiliate within twelve (12) months after the Grant Date.  Solely for purposes of Section 5.6(b), current or former employees or non-employee directors of, or consultants to, of an Acquired Entity who receive Substitute Awards in substitution for Acquired Entity Awards shall be considered Eligible Persons under this Plan with respect to such Substitute Awards.
2.19           Exchange Act means the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended from time to time.  References to a particular section of the Exchange Act include references to successor provisions.
2.20           Exercise Price means (a) with respect to an Option, the price at which a Share may be purchased by a Grantee pursuant to such Option or (b) with respect to an SAR, the price established at the time an SAR is granted pursuant to Article 7, which is used to determine the amount, if any, of the payment due to a Grantee upon exercise of the SAR.
2.21           Fair Market Value of a Share means a price that is based on the opening, closing, actual, high, low, or the arithmetic mean of selling prices of a Share reported on an established stock exchange which is the principal exchange upon which the Shares are traded on the applicable date or the preceding trading day.  Unless the Committee determines otherwise, if the Shares are traded over the counter at the time a determination of its Fair Market Value is required to be made hereunder, Fair Market Value shall be deemed to be equal to the arithmetic mean between the reported high and low or closing bid and asked prices of a Share on the applicable date, or if no such trades were made that day then the most recent date on which Shares were publicly traded.  In the event Shares are not publicly traded at the time a determination of their value is required to be made hereunder, the determination of their Fair Market Value shall be made by the Committee in such manner as it deems appropriate provided such manner is consistent with Treasury Regulation Section 1.409A-1(b)(5)(iv)(B). 
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2.22           Grant Date means the date on which an Award is granted or such later date as specified in advance by the Committee.
2.23           Grantee means a person who has been granted an Award.
2.24           Incentive Stock Option means an Option that is intended to meet the requirements of Section 422 of the Code.
2.25           Including” or “includes means “including, without limitation,” or “includes, without limitation,” respectively.
2.26           Management Committee has the meaning set forth in Section 3.1(b).
2.27           Non-Employee Director means a member of the Board who is not an employee of the Company or any Affiliate.
2.28           Option means an option granted under Article 6 of the Plan.
2.29           Other Stock-Based Award means a right, granted under Article 13 hereof, that relates to or is valued by reference to Shares or other Awards relating to Shares.
2.30           Performance Period means, with respect to an Award of Performance Shares or Performance Units, the period of time during which the performance vesting conditions applicable to such Award must be satisfied.
2.31           Performance Share” and “Performance Unit have the respective meanings set forth in Article 9.
2.32           Period of Restriction means the period during which Restricted Shares are subject to forfeiture if the conditions specified in the Award Agreement are not satisfied.
2.33           Person means any individual, sole proprietorship, partnership, joint venture, limited liability company, trust, unincorporated organization, association, corporation, institution, public benefit corporation, entity or government instrumentality, division, agency, body or department.
2.34           Restricted Shares means Shares, granted under Article 8, that are both subject to forfeiture and are nontransferable if the Grantee does not satisfy the conditions specified in the Award Agreement applicable to such Shares.
2.35           Restricted Stock Units are rights, granted under Article 10, to receive Shares if the Grantee satisfies the conditions specified in the Award Agreement applicable to such rights. 
2.36           Rule 16b-3 means Rule 16b-3 promulgated by the SEC under the Exchange Act, as amended from time to time, together with any successor rule. 
2.37           SEC means the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, or any successor thereto.
2.38           Section 16 Non-Employee Director means a member of the Board who satisfies the requirements to qualify as a “non-employee director” under Rule 16b-3.
2.39           Section 16 Person means a person who is subject to potential liability under Section 16(b) of the Exchange Act with respect to transactions involving equity securities of the Company.
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2.40           Separation from Service means, with respect to any Award that constitutes deferred compensation within the meaning of Code Section 409A, a “separation from service” as defined in Treasury Regulation Section 1.409A-1(h).  For this purpose, a “separation from service” is deemed to occur on the date that the Company and the Grantee reasonably anticipate that the level of bona fide services the Grantee would perform for the Company and/or any Affiliates after that date (whether as an employee, Non-Employee Director or consultant or independent contractor) would permanently decrease to a level that, based on the facts and circumstances, would constitute a separation from service; provided that a decrease to a level that is 50% or more of the average level of bona fide services provided over the prior 36 months shall not be a separation from service, and a decrease to a level that is 20% or less of the average level of such bona fide services shall be a separation from service.  The Committee retains the right and discretion to specify, and may specify, whether a separation from service occurs with respect to those individuals who are performing services for the Company or an Affiliate immediately prior to an asset purchase transaction in which the Company or an Affiliate is the seller and who continue to perform services for the buyer (or an affiliate thereof) immediately following such asset purchase transaction; provided, such specification is made in accordance with the requirements of Treasury Regulation Section 1.409A-1(h)(4).
2.41           Share means a share of Common Stock, and such other securities of the Company, as may be substituted or resubstituted for Shares pursuant to Section 4.2 hereof.
2.42           Stock Appreciation Right” or “SAR means an Award granted under Article 7 of the Plan.
2.43           Subsidiary Corporation means a corporation other than the Company in an unbroken chain of corporations beginning with the Company if, at the time of granting the Option, each of the corporations other than the last corporation in the unbroken chain owns stock possessing 50% or more of the total combined voting power of all classes of stock in one of the other corporations in such chain. 
2.44           Surviving Company means (a) the surviving corporation in any merger, consolidation or similar transaction, involving the Company (including the Company if the Company is the surviving corporation), (b) or the direct or indirect parent company of such surviving corporation or (c) the direct or indirect parent company of the Company following a sale of substantially all of the outstanding stock of the Company.
2.45           Term of any Option or SAR means the period beginning on the Grant Date of an Option or SAR and ending on the date such Option or SAR expires, terminates or is cancelled.  No Option or SAR granted under this Plan shall have a Term exceeding 10 years
2.46           Termination of Affiliation occurs on the first day on which an individual is for any reason no longer performing services for the Company or any Affiliate in the capacity of an employee of, a non-employee consultant to, or a Non-Employee Director of, the Company or any Affiliate or with respect to an individual who is an employee of, a non-employee consultant to or a Non-Employee Director of an Affiliate, the first day on which such entity ceases to be an Affiliate of the Company unless such individual continues to perform Services for the Company or another Affiliate without interruption after such entity ceases to be an Affiliate.  Notwithstanding the foregoing, if an Award constitutes deferred compensation within the meaning of Code Section 409A, Termination of Affiliation with respect to such Award shall mean the Grantee’s Separation from Service. 
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Article 3.
Administration


(a)                Subject to Article 14, and to Section 3.2, the Plan shall be administered by a Committee (the “Incentive Plan Committee” or the “Committee”) of directors of the Company appointed by the Board from time to time.  Notwithstanding the foregoing, either the Board or the Compensation Committee may at any time and in one or more instances reserve administrative powers to itself as the Committee or exercise any of the administrative powers of the Committee. The number of members of the Committee may from time to time be increased or decreased as the Board or Compensation Committee deems appropriate.  To the extent the Board or Compensation Committee considers it desirable to comply with Rule 16b-3, the Committee shall consist of two or more directors of the Company, all of whom qualify as Section 16 Non-Employee Directors. 

(b)                The Board or the Compensation Committee may appoint and delegate to another committee (“Management Committee”), or to the CEO, any or all of the authority of the Board or the Committee, as applicable, with respect to Awards to Grantees other than Grantees who are executive officers, Non-Employee Directors, or Section 16 Persons at the time any such delegated authority is exercised.

(c)                 Unless the context requires otherwise, any references herein to “Committee” include references to the Incentive Plan Committee, the Board or the Compensation Committee to the extent Incentive Plan Committee, the Board or the Compensation Committee, as applicable, has assumed or exercises administrative powers itself as the Committee pursuant to subsection (a), and to the Management Committee or the CEO to the extent either has been delegated authority pursuant to subsection (b), as applicable; provided that (i) for purposes of Awards to Non-Employee Directors, “Committee” shall include only the full Board, and (ii) for purposes of Awards intended to comply with Rule 16b-3, the “Committee” shall include only the Incentive Plan Committee or the Compensation Committee.

3.2               Powers of Committee.  Subject to and consistent with the provisions of the Plan (including Article 14), the Committee has full and final authority and sole discretion as follows; provided that any such authority or discretion exercised with respect to a specific Non-Employee Director shall be approved by the affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the Board, even if not a quorum, but excluding the Non-Employee Director with respect to whom such authority or discretion is exercised: 

(a)                to determine when, to whom and in what types and amounts Awards should be granted;

(b)                to grant Awards to Eligible Persons in any number and to determine the terms and conditions applicable to each Award (including the number of Shares or the amount of cash or other property to which an Award will relate, any Exercise Price or purchase price, any limitation or restriction, any schedule for or performance conditions relating to the earning of the Award or the lapse of limitations, forfeiture restrictions, restrictions on exercisability or transferability, any performance goals including those relating to the Company and/or an Affiliate and/or any division thereof and/or an individual, and/or vesting based on the passage of time, based in each case on such considerations as the Committee shall determine);

(c)                 to determine the benefit payable under any Performance Unit, Performance Share, Dividend Equivalent, Other Stock-Based Award or Cash Incentive Award and to determine whether any performance or vesting conditions have been satisfied;

(d)                to determine whether or not specific Awards shall be granted in connection with other specific Awards, and if so, whether they shall be exercisable cumulatively with, or alternatively to, such other specific Awards and all other matters to be determined in connection with an Award;

(e)                to determine the Term of any Option or SAR;

(f)                  to determine the amount, if any, that a Grantee shall pay for Restricted Shares, whether to permit or require the payment of cash dividends thereon to be deferred and the terms related thereto, when Restricted Shares (including Restricted Shares acquired upon the exercise of an Option) shall be forfeited and whether such shares shall be held in escrow;

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(g)                to determine whether, to what extent and under what circumstances an Award may be settled in, or the exercise price of an Award may be paid in, cash, Shares, other Awards or other property, or an Award may be accelerated, vested, canceled, forfeited or surrendered or any terms of the Award may be waived, and to accelerate the exercisability of, and to accelerate or waive any or all of the terms and conditions applicable to, any Award or any group of Awards for any reason and at any time;

(h)                to determine with respect to Awards granted to Eligible Persons whether, to what extent and under what circumstances cash, Shares, other Awards, other property and other amounts payable with respect to an Award will be deferred, either at the election of the Grantee or automatically pursuant to the terms of the Award Agreement;

(i)                 to offer to exchange or buy out any previously granted Award for a payment in cash, Shares or other Award;

(j)                 to construe and interpret the Plan and to make all determinations, including factual determinations, necessary or advisable for the administration of the Plan;

(k)                to make, amend, suspend, waive and rescind rules and regulations relating to the Plan; 

(l)                 to appoint such agents as the Committee may deem necessary or advisable to administer the Plan;

(m)              to determine the terms and conditions of all Award Agreements applicable to Eligible Persons (which need not be identical) and, with the consent of the Grantee, to amend any such Award Agreement at any time, among other things, to permit transfers of such Awards to the extent permitted by the Plan; provided that the consent of the Grantee shall not be required for any amendment (i) which does not adversely affect the rights of the Grantee, or (ii) which is necessary or advisable (as determined by the Committee) to carry out the purpose of the Award as a result of any new applicable law or change in an existing applicable law, or (iii) to the extent the Award Agreement specifically permits amendment without consent;

(n)                to cancel, with the consent of the Grantee, outstanding Awards and to grant new Awards in substitution therefor;

(o)                to impose such additional terms and conditions upon the grant, exercise or retention of Awards as the Committee may, before or concurrently with the grant thereof, deem appropriate, including limiting the percentage of Awards which may from time to time be exercised by a Grantee;

(p)                to make adjustments in the terms and conditions of, and the criteria in, Awards in recognition of unusual or nonrecurring events (including events described in Section 4.2) affecting the Company or an Affiliate or the financial statements of the Company or an Affiliate, or in response to changes in applicable laws, regulations or accounting principles;

(q)                to correct any defect or supply any omission or reconcile any inconsistency, and to construe and interpret the Plan, the rules and regulations, and Award Agreement or any other instrument entered into or relating to an Award under the Plan; and

(r)                 to take any other action with respect to any matters relating to the Plan for which it is responsible and to make all other decisions and determinations as may be required under the terms of the Plan or as the Committee may deem necessary or advisable for the administration of the Plan.

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Any action of the Committee with respect to the Plan shall be final, conclusive and binding on all persons, including the Company, its Affiliates, any Grantee, any person claiming any rights under the Plan from or through any Grantee, and stockholders, except to the extent the Committee may subsequently modify, or take further action not consistent with, its prior action.  If not specified in the Plan, the time at which the Committee must or may make any determination shall be determined by the Committee, and any such determination may thereafter be modified by the Committee.  The express grant of any specific power to the Committee, and the taking of any action by the Committee, shall not be construed as limiting any power or authority of the Committee.  Subject to Section 3.1(b), the Committee may delegate to officers of the Company or any Affiliate the authority, subject to such terms as the Committee shall determine, to perform specified functions under the Plan.

3.3               No Repricings.  Notwithstanding any provision in Section 3.2 to the contrary, the terms of any outstanding Option or SAR may not be amended to reduce the Exercise Price of such Option or SAR or cancel any outstanding Option or SAR in exchange for other Options or SARs with an Exercise Price that is less than the Exercise Price of the cancelled Option or SAR or for any cash payment (or Shares having with a Fair Market Value) in an amount that exceeds the excess of the Fair Market Value of the Shares underlying such cancelled Option or SAR over the aggregate Exercise Price of such Option or SAR or for any other Award, without stockholder approval; provided, however, that the restrictions set forth in this Section 3.3, shall not apply (i) unless the Company has a class of stock that is registered under Section 12 of the Exchange Act or (ii) to any adjustment allowed under to Section 4.2.
Article 4.
Shares Subject to the Plan


4.1               Number of Shares Available for Grants.  Subject to adjustment as provided in Section 4.2 and except as provided in Section 5.6(b), the maximum number of Shares hereby reserved for delivery under the Plan shall be:

(a)                413,334 Shares, plus

(b)                an annual increase to be added as of the first day of the Company’s fiscal year, beginning in 2019 and occurring each year thereafter through 2028, equal to the 4% of the total number of Shares of Common Stock issued and outstanding on a fully-diluted basis as of the end of the Company's immediately preceding fiscal year (or such lesser number of shares, including no shares, determined by the Board in its sole discretion); provided, however, that the aggregate number of additional Shares available for issuance pursuant to this paragraph (b) shall not exceed a total of 3,000,000 Shares.

Up to a maximum of 2,666,667 Shares may be delivered pursuant to the exercise of Incentive Stock Options granted hereunder.

If any Shares subject to an Award granted hereunder (other than a Substitute Award granted pursuant to Section 5.6(b)) are forfeited or such Award otherwise terminates without payment or delivery of such Shares, the Shares subject to such Award, to the extent of any such forfeiture or termination, shall again be available for grant under the Plan.  For avoidance of doubt, however, if any Shares subject to an Award granted hereunder are withheld or applied as payment in connection with the exercise of an Award or the withholding or payment of taxes related thereto (“Returned Shares”), such Returned Shares will be treated as having been delivered for purposes of determining the maximum number of Shares available for grant under the Plan and shall not again be treated as available for grant under the Plan.  Moreover, the number of Shares available for issuance under the Plan may not be increased through the Company’s purchase of Shares on the open market with the proceeds obtained from the exercise of any Options granted hereunder.  Upon settlement of an SAR, the number of Shares underlying the portion of the SAR that is exercised will be treated as having been delivered for purposes of determining the maximum number of Shares available for grant under the Plan and shall not again be treated as available for issuance under the Plan.

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Shares delivered pursuant to the Plan may be, in whole or in part, authorized and unissued Shares, or treasury Shares, including Shares repurchased by the Company for purposes of the Plan.

(a)                Adjustment in Authorized Shares and Awards.  In the event that the Committee determines that any dividend or other distribution (whether in the form of cash, Shares, or other property), recapitalization, forward or reverse stock split, subdivision, consolidation or reduction of capital, reorganization, merger, consolidation, scheme of arrangement, split-up, spin-off or combination involving the Company or repurchase or exchange of Shares or other securities of the Company or other rights to purchase Shares or other securities of the Company, or other similar corporate transaction or event affects the Shares such that any adjustment is determined by the Committee to be appropriate in order to prevent dilution or enlargement of the benefits or potential benefits intended to be made available under the Plan, then the Committee shall, in such manner as it may deem equitable, adjust any or all of (i) the number and type of Shares (or other securities or property) with respect to which Awards may be granted, (ii) the number and type of Shares (or other securities or property) subject to outstanding Awards, (iii) the Exercise Price with respect to any Option or SAR or, if deemed appropriate, make provision for a cash payment to the holder of an outstanding Award, and (iv) the number and kind of Shares of outstanding Restricted Shares, or the Shares underlying any other form of Award.  Notwithstanding the foregoing, no such adjustment shall be authorized with respect to any Options or SARs to the extent that such adjustment would cause the Option or SAR to violate Section 424(a) of the Code or otherwise subject any Grantee to taxation under Section 409A of the Code; and provided further that the number of Shares subject to any Award denominated in Shares shall always be a whole number. 

(b)                Merger, Consolidation or Similar Corporate Transaction.  In the event of a merger or consolidation of the Company with or into another corporation or a sale of substantially all of the stock of the Company (a “Corporate Transaction”), unless an outstanding Award is assumed by the Surviving Company or replaced with an equivalent Award granted by the Surviving Company in substitution for such outstanding Award, the Committee shall cancel any outstanding Awards that are not vested and nonforfeitable as of the consummation of such Corporate Transaction (unless the Committee accelerates the vesting of any such Awards) and with respect to any vested and nonforfeitable Awards, the Committee may either (i) allow all Grantees to exercise such Awards of Options and SARs within a reasonable period prior to the consummation of the Corporate Transaction and cancel any outstanding Options or SARs that remain unexercised upon consummation of the Corporate Transaction, or (ii) cancel any or all of such outstanding Awards in exchange for a payment (in cash, or in securities or other property) in an amount equal to the amount that the Grantee would have received (net of the Exercise Price with respect to any Options or SARs) if such vested Awards were settled or distributed or such vested Options and SARs were exercised immediately prior to the consummation of the Corporate Transaction.  Notwithstanding the foregoing, if an Option or SAR is not assumed by the Surviving Company or replaced with an equivalent Award issued by the Surviving Company and the Exercise Price with respect to any outstanding Option or SAR exceeds the Fair Market Value of the Shares immediately prior to the consummation of the Corporation Transaction, such Awards shall be cancelled without any payment to the Grantee.

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(c)                 Liquidation or Dissolution of the Company.  In the event of the proposed dissolution or liquidation of the Company, each Award will terminate immediately prior to the consummation of such proposed action, unless otherwise provided by the Committee.  Additionally, the Committee may, in the exercise of its sole discretion, cause Awards to be vested and non-forfeitable and cause any conditions on any such Award to lapse, as to all or any part of such Award, including Shares as to which the Award would not otherwise be exercisable or non-forfeitable and allow all Grantees to exercise such Awards of Options and SARs within a reasonable period prior to the consummation of such proposed action.  Any Awards that remain unexercised upon consummation of such proposed action shall be cancelled.

(d)                Deferred Compensation.  Notwithstanding the forgoing provisions of this Section 4.2, if an Award constitutes deferred compensation within the meaning of Code Section 409A, no payment or settlement of such Award shall be made pursuant to Section 4.2(b) or (c), unless the Corporate Transaction or the dissolution or liquidation of the Company, as applicable, constitutes a Change in Control.

Article 5.
Eligibility and General Conditions of Awards


5.1               Eligibility.  The Committee may in its discretion grant Awards to any Eligible Person, whether or not he or she has previously received an Award; provided, however, that all Awards made to Non-Employee Directors shall be determined by the Board in its sole discretion. 
5.2               Award Agreement.  To the extent not set forth in the Plan, the terms and conditions of each Award shall be set forth in an Award Agreement.
5.3               General Terms and Termination of Affiliation.  The Committee may impose on any Award or the exercise or settlement thereof, at the date of grant or, subject to the provisions of Section 15.2, thereafter, such additional terms and conditions not inconsistent with the provisions of the Plan as the Committee shall determine, including terms requiring forfeiture, acceleration or pro-rata acceleration of Awards in the event of a Termination of Affiliation by the Grantee.  Except as may be required under the Delaware General Corporation Law, Awards may be granted for no consideration other than prior and future services.  Except as set forth in an Award Agreement or as otherwise determined by the Committee, (a) all Options and SARs that are not vested and exercisable at the time of a Grantee’s Termination of Affiliation, and any other Awards that remain subject to a risk of forfeiture or which are not otherwise vested at the time of the Grantee’s Termination of Affiliation shall be forfeited to the Company and (b) all outstanding Options and SARs not previously exercised shall expire three months after the Grantee’s Termination of Affiliation.

(a)                Each Award and each right under any Award shall be exercisable only by the Grantee during the Grantee’s lifetime, or, if permissible under applicable law, by the Grantee’s guardian or legal representative or by a transferee receiving such Award pursuant to a qualified domestic relations order (a “QDRO”) as defined in the Code or Title I of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended, or the rules thereunder.

(b)                No Award (prior to the time, if applicable, Shares are delivered in respect of such Award), and no right under any Award, may be assigned, alienated, pledged, attached, sold or otherwise transferred or encumbered by a Grantee otherwise than by will or by the laws of descent and distribution (or in the case of Restricted Shares, to the Company) or pursuant to a QDRO, and any such purported assignment, alienation, pledge, attachment, sale, transfer or encumbrance shall be void and unenforceable against the Company or any Affiliate; provided that the designation of a beneficiary to receive benefits in the event of the Grantee’s death shall not constitute an assignment, alienation, pledge, attachment, sale, transfer or encumbrance.

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(c)                 Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (b) above, to the extent provided in the Award Agreement or as otherwise approved by the Committee, Options (other than Incentive Stock Options) and Restricted Shares, may be transferred, without consideration, to a Permitted Transferee.  For this purpose, a “Permitted Transferee” in respect of any Grantee means any member of the Immediate Family of such Grantee, any trust of which all of the primary beneficiaries are such Grantee or members of his or her Immediate Family, or any partnership (including limited liability companies and similar entities) of which all of the partners or members are such Grantee or members of his or her Immediate Family; and the “Immediate Family” of a Grantee means the Grantee’s spouse, children, stepchildren, grandchildren, parents, stepparents, siblings, grandparents, nieces and nephews.  Such Option may be exercised by such transferee in accordance with the terms of the Award Agreement.  If so determined by the Committee, a Grantee may, in the manner established by the Committee, designate a beneficiary or beneficiaries to exercise the rights of the Grantee, and to receive any distribution with respect to any Award upon the death of the Grantee.  A transferee, beneficiary, guardian, legal representative or other person claiming any rights under the Plan from or through any Grantee shall be subject to and consistent with the provisions of the Plan and any applicable Award Agreement, except to the extent the Plan and Award Agreement otherwise provide with respect to such persons, and to any additional restrictions or limitations deemed necessary or appropriate by the Committee.

(d)                Nothing herein shall be construed as requiring the Committee to honor a QDRO except to the extent required under applicable law.

5.5               Cancellation and Rescission of Awards.  Unless the Award Agreement specifies otherwise, the Committee may cancel, rescind, suspend, withhold, or otherwise limit or restrict any unexercised Award at any time if the Grantee is not in compliance with all applicable provisions of the Award Agreement and the Plan or if the Grantee has a Termination of Affiliation.

(a)                Awards granted under the Plan may, in the discretion of the Committee, be granted either alone or in addition to, in tandem with, or in substitution for, any other Award granted under the Plan unless such tandem or substitution Award would subject the Grantee to tax penalties imposed under Section 409A of the Code.  If an Award is granted in substitution for another Award or any non-Plan award or benefit, the Committee shall require the surrender of such other Award or non-Plan award or benefit in consideration for the grant of the new Award.  Awards granted in addition to or in tandem with other Awards or non-Plan awards or benefits may be granted either at the same time as or at a different time from the grant of such other Awards or non-Plan awards or benefits; provided, however, that if any SAR is granted in tandem with an Incentive Stock Option, such SAR and Incentive Stock Option must have the same Grant Date, Term and the Exercise Price of the SAR may not be less than the Exercise Price of the Incentive Stock Option.

(b)                The Committee may, in its discretion and on such terms and conditions as the Committee considers appropriate in the circumstances, grant Awards under the Plan (“Substitute Awards”) in substitution for stock and stock-based awards (“Acquired Entity Awards”) held by current or former employees or non-employee directors of, or consultants to, another corporation or entity who become Eligible Persons as the result of a merger or consolidation of the employing corporation or other entity (the “Acquired Entity”) with the Company or an Affiliate or the acquisition by the Company or an Affiliate of property or stock of the Acquired Entity immediately prior to such merger, consolidation or acquisition in order to preserve for the Grantee the economic value of all or a portion of such Acquired Entity Award at such price as the Committee determines necessary to achieve preservation of economic value.  The limitations in Section 4.1 on the number of Shares reserved or available for grants shall not apply to Substitute Awards granted under this Section 5.6(b).

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5.7               Compliance with Rule 16b-3.  The provisions of this Section 5.7will not apply unless and until the Company has a class of stock that is registered under Section 12 of the Exchange Act.

(a)                Six-Month Holding Period Advice

.  Unless a Grantee could otherwise dispose of or exercise a derivative security or dispose of Shares delivered under the Plan without incurring liability under Section 16(b) of the Exchange Act, the Committee may advise or require a Grantee to comply with the following in order to avoid incurring liability under Section 16(b) of the Exchange Act:  (i) at least six months must elapse from the date of acquisition of a derivative security under the Plan to the date of disposition of the derivative security (other than upon exercise or conversion) or its underlying equity security, and (ii) Shares granted or awarded under the Plan other than upon exercise or conversion of a derivative security must be held for at least six months from the date of grant of an Award.

(b)                Reformation to Comply with Exchange Act Rules

.  To the extent the Committee determines that a grant or other transaction by a Section 16 Person should comply with applicable provisions of Rule 16b-3 (except for transactions exempted under alternative Exchange Act rules), the Committee shall take such actions as necessary to make such grant or other transaction so comply, and if any provision of this Plan or any Award Agreement relating to a given Award does not comply with the requirements of Rule 16b-3 as then applicable to any such grant or transaction, such provision will be construed or deemed amended, if the Committee so determines, to the extent necessary to conform to the then applicable requirements of Rule 16b-3. 

(c)                 Rule 16b-3 Administration

.  Any function relating to a Section 16 Person shall be performed solely by the Committee or the Board if necessary to ensure compliance with applicable requirements of Rule 16b-3, to the extent the Committee determines that such compliance is desired.  Each member of the Committee or person acting on behalf of the Committee shall be entitled to, in good faith, rely or act upon any report or other information furnished to him by any officer, manager or other employee of the Company or any Affiliate, the Company’s independent certified public accountants or any executive compensation consultant or attorney or other professional retained by the Company to assist in the administration of the Plan. 

5.8               Deferral of Award Payouts.  The Committee may permit a Grantee to defer, or if and to the extent specified in an Award Agreement require the Grantee to defer, receipt of the payment of cash or the delivery of Shares that would otherwise be due by virtue of the lapse or waiver of restrictions with respect to Restricted Stock Units, the satisfaction of any requirements or goals with respect to Performance Units or Performance Shares, the lapse or waiver of the deferral period for Deferred Stock, or the lapse or waiver of restrictions with respect to Other Stock-Based Awards or Cash Incentive Awards.  If the Committee permits such deferrals, the Committee shall establish rules and procedures for making such deferral elections and for the payment of such deferrals, which shall conform in form and substance with applicable regulations promulgated under Section 409A of the Code and Article 16 to ensure that the Grantee is not subjected to tax penalties under Section 409A of the Code with respect to such deferrals.  Except as otherwise provided in an Award Agreement, any payment or any Shares that are subject to such deferral shall be made or delivered to the Grantee as specified in the Award Agreement or pursuant to the Grantee’s deferral election.
Article 6.
Stock Options


6.1               Grant of Options.  Subject to and consistent with the provisions of the Plan, Options may be granted to any Eligible Person in such number, and upon such terms, and at any time and from time to time as shall be determined by the Committee.
6.2               Award Agreement.  Each Option grant shall be evidenced by an Award Agreement that shall specify the Exercise Price, the Term of the Option, the number of Shares to which the Option pertains, the time or times at which such Option shall be exercisable and such other provisions as the Committee shall determine.
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6.3               Option Exercise Price.  The Exercise Price of an Option under this Plan shall be determined in the sole discretion of the Committee but may not be less than 100% of the Fair Market Value of a Share on the Grant Date. 
6.4               Grant of Incentive Stock Options.  At the time of the grant of any Option, the Committee may in its discretion designate that such Option shall be made subject to additional restrictions to permit it to qualify as an Incentive Stock Option.  Any Option designated as an Incentive Stock Option:

(a)                shall be granted only to an employee of the Company or a Subsidiary Corporation;

(b)                shall have an Exercise Price of not less than 100% of the Fair Market Value of a Share on the Grant Date, and, if granted to a person who owns capital stock (including stock treated as owned under Section 424(d) of the Code) possessing more than 10% of the total combined voting power of all classes of capital stock of the Company or any Subsidiary Corporation (a “More Than 10% Owner”), have an Exercise Price not less than 110% of the Fair Market Value of a Share on its Grant Date;

(c)                 shall be for a period of not more than 10 years (five years if the Grantee is a More Than 10% Owner) from its Grant Date, and shall be subject to earlier termination as provided herein or in the applicable Award Agreement;

(d)                shall not have an aggregate Fair Market Value (as of the Grant Date) of the Shares with respect to which Incentive Stock Options (whether granted under the Plan or any other stock option plan of the Grantee’s employer or any parent or Subsidiary Corporation (“Other Plans”)) are exercisable for the first time by such Grantee during any calendar year (“Current Grant”), determined in accordance with the provisions of Section 422 of the Code, which exceeds $100,000 (the “$100,000 Limit”);

(e)                shall, if the aggregate Fair Market Value of the Shares (determined on the Grant Date) with respect to the Current Grant and all Incentive Stock Options previously granted under the Plan and any Other Plans which are exercisable for the first time during a calendar year (“Prior Grants”) would exceed the $100,000 Limit, be, as to the portion in excess of the $100,000 Limit, exercisable as a separate option that is not an Incentive Stock Option at such date or dates as are provided in the Current Grant;

(f)                  shall require the Grantee to notify the Committee of any disposition of any Shares delivered pursuant to the exercise of the Incentive Stock Option under the circumstances described in Section 421(b) of the Code (relating to holding periods and certain disqualifying dispositions) (“Disqualifying Disposition”) within 10 days of such a Disqualifying Disposition;

(g)                shall by its terms not be assignable or transferable other than by will or the laws of descent and distribution and may be exercised, during the Grantee’s lifetime, only by the Grantee; provided, however, that the Grantee may, to the extent provided in the Plan in any manner specified by the Committee, designate in writing a beneficiary to exercise his or her Incentive Stock Option after the Grantee’s death; and

(h)                shall, if such Option nevertheless fails to meet the foregoing requirements, or otherwise fails to meet the requirements of Section 422 of the Code for an Incentive Stock Option, be treated for all purposes of this Plan, except as otherwise provided in subsections (d) and (e) above, as an Option that is not an Incentive Stock Option.

Notwithstanding the foregoing and Section 3.2, the Committee may, without the consent of the Grantee, at any time before the exercise of an Option (whether or not an Incentive Stock Option), take any action necessary to prevent such Option from being treated as an Incentive Stock Option.

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6.5               Payment of Exercise Price.  Except as otherwise provided in an Award Agreement, Options shall be exercised by the delivery of a written notice of exercise to the Company, setting forth the number of Shares with respect to which the Option is to be exercised, accompanied by full payment for the Shares made by any one or more of the following means: 

(a)                cash, personal check or wire transfer;

(b)                with the approval of the Committee, delivery of Common Stock owned by the Grantee prior to exercise, valued at Fair Market Value on the date of exercise;

(c)                 with the approval of the Committee, Shares acquired upon the exercise of such Option, such Shares valued at Fair Market Value on the date of exercise;

(d)                with the approval of the Committee, Restricted Shares held by the Grantee prior to the exercise of the Option, valued at Fair Market Value on the date of exercise; or

(e)                subject to applicable law (including the prohibited loan provisions of Section 402 of the Sarbanes Oxley Act of 2002), through the sale of the Shares acquired on exercise of the Option through a broker-dealer to whom the Grantee has submitted an irrevocable notice of exercise and irrevocable instructions to deliver promptly to the Company the amount of sale proceeds sufficient to pay for such Shares, together with, if requested by the Company, the amount of federal, state, local or foreign withholding taxes payable by Grantee by reason of such exercise.

The Committee may in its discretion specify that, if any Restricted Shares (“Tendered Restricted Shares”) are used to pay the Exercise Price, (x) all the Shares acquired on exercise of the Option shall be subject to the same restrictions as the Tendered Restricted Shares, determined as of the date of exercise of the Option, or (y) a number of Shares acquired on exercise of the Option equal to the number of Tendered Restricted Shares shall be subject to the same restrictions as the Tendered Restricted Shares, determined as of the date of exercise of the Option.

Article 7.
Stock Appreciation Rights


7.1               Issuance.  Subject to and consistent with the provisions of the Plan, the Committee, at any time and from time to time, may grant SARs to any Eligible Person either alone or in addition to other Awards granted under the Plan.  Such SARs may, but need not, be granted in connection with a specific Option granted under Article 6.  The Committee may impose such conditions or restrictions on the exercise of any SAR as it shall deem appropriate.
7.2               Award Agreements.  Each SAR grant shall be evidenced by an Award Agreement in such form as the Committee may approve and shall contain such terms and conditions not inconsistent with other provisions of the Plan as shall be determined from time to time by the Committee.
7.3               SAR Exercise Price.  The Exercise Price of a SAR shall be determined by the Committee in its sole discretion; provided that the Exercise Price shall not be less than 100% of the Fair Market Value of a Share on the date of the grant of the SAR.
7.4               Exercise and Payment.  Upon the exercise of an SAR, a Grantee shall be entitled to receive payment from the Company in an amount determined by multiplying:

(a)                The excess of the Fair Market Value of a Share on the date of exercise over the Exercise Price; by

(b)                The number of Shares with respect to which the SAR is exercised.

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SARs shall be deemed exercised on the date written notice of exercise in a form acceptable to the Committee is received by the Secretary of the Company.  The Company shall make payment in respect of any SAR within five (5) days of the date the SAR is exercised.  Any payment by the Company in respect of a SAR may be made in cash, Shares, other property, or any combination thereof, as the Committee, in its sole discretion, shall determine or, to the extent permitted under the terms of the applicable Award Agreement, at the election of the Grantee.

Restricted Shares


8.1               Grant of Restricted Shares.  Subject to and consistent with the provisions of the Plan, the Committee, at any time and from time to time, may grant Restricted Shares to any Eligible Person in such amounts as the Committee shall determine.
8.2               Award Agreement.  Each grant of Restricted Shares shall be evidenced by an Award Agreement that shall specify the Period(s) of Restriction, the number of Restricted Shares granted, and such other provisions as the Committee shall determine.  The Committee may impose such conditions and/or restrictions on any Restricted Shares granted pursuant to the Plan as it may deem advisable, including restrictions based upon the achievement of specific performance goals, time-based restrictions on vesting following the attainment of the performance goals, and/or restrictions under applicable securities laws; provided that such conditions and/or restrictions may lapse, if so determined by the Committee, in the event of the Grantee’s Termination of Affiliation due to death, Disability, or involuntary termination by the Company or an Affiliate without Cause.
8.3               Consideration for Restricted Shares.  The Committee shall determine the amount, if any, that a Grantee shall pay for Restricted Shares.
8.4               Effect of Forfeiture.  If Restricted Shares are forfeited, and if the Grantee was required to pay for such shares or acquired such Restricted Shares upon the exercise of an Option, the Grantee shall be deemed to have resold such Restricted Shares to the Company at a price equal to the lesser of (x) the amount paid by the Grantee for such Restricted Shares, or (y) the Fair Market Value of a Share on the date of such forfeiture.  The Company shall pay to the Grantee the deemed sale price as soon as is administratively practical.  Such Restricted Shares shall cease to be outstanding and shall no longer confer on the Grantee thereof any rights as a stockholder of the Company, from and after the date of the event causing the forfeiture, whether or not the Grantee accepts the Company’s tender of payment for such Restricted Shares.
8.5               Escrow; Legends.  The Committee may provide that the certificates for any Restricted Shares (x) shall be held (together with a stock power executed in blank by the Grantee) in escrow by the Secretary of the Company until such Restricted Shares become nonforfeitable or are forfeited and/or (y) shall bear an appropriate legend restricting the transfer of such Restricted Shares under the Plan.  If any Restricted Shares become nonforfeitable, the Company shall cause certificates for such shares to be delivered without such legend.
Article 9.
Performance Units and Performance Shares


9.1               Grant of Performance Units and Performance Shares.  Subject to and consistent with the provisions of the Plan, Performance Units or Performance Shares may be granted to any Eligible Person in such amounts and upon such terms, and at any time and from time to time, as shall be determined by the Committee.
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9.2               Value/Performance Goals.  The Committee shall set performance goals in its discretion which, depending on the extent to which they are met, will determine the number or value of Performance Units or Performance Shares that will be paid to the Grantee.

(a)                Performance Unit.  Each Performance Unit shall have an initial value that is established by the Committee at the time of grant. 

(b)                Performance Share.  Each Performance Share shall have an initial value equal to the Fair Market Value of a Share on the date of grant.

9.3               Earning of Performance Units and Performance Shares.  After the applicable Performance Period has ended, the holder of Performance Units or Performance Shares shall be entitled to payment based on the level of achievement of performance goals set by the Committee. 

At the discretion of the Committee, the settlement of Performance Units or Performance Shares may be in cash, Shares of equivalent value, or in some combination thereof, as set forth in the Award Agreement.

If a Grantee is promoted, demoted or transferred to a different business unit of the Company during a Performance Period, then, to the extent the Committee determines that the Award, the performance goals, or the Performance Period are no longer appropriate, the Committee may adjust, change, eliminate or cancel the Award, the performance goals, or the applicable Performance Period, as it deems appropriate in order to make them appropriate and comparable to the initial Award, the performance goals, or the Performance Period.

At the discretion of the Committee, a Grantee may be entitled to receive any dividends or Dividend Equivalents declared with respect to Shares deliverable in connection with vested Performance Shares which have been earned, but not yet delivered to the Grantee. 

Article 10.
Deferred Stock and Restricted Stock Units


10.1           Grant of Deferred Stock and Restricted Stock Units.  Subject to and consistent with the provisions of the Plan, the Committee, at any time and from time to time, may grant Deferred Stock and/or Restricted Stock Units to any Eligible Person, in such amount and upon such terms as the Committee shall determine.  Deferred Stock must conform in form and substance with applicable regulations promulgated under Section 409A of the Code and with Article 16 to ensure that the Grantee is not subjected to tax penalties under Section 409A of the Code with respect to such Deferred Stock.  

(a)                Delivery with Respect to Deferred Stock.  Delivery of Shares subject to a Deferred Stock grant will occur upon expiration of the deferral period or upon the occurrence of one or more of the distribution events described in Section 409A(a)(2) of the Code as specified by the Committee in the Grantee’s Award Agreement for the Award of Deferred Stock.  An Award of Deferred Stock may be subject to such substantial risk of forfeiture conditions as the Committee may impose, which conditions may lapse at such times or upon the achievement of such objectives as the Committee shall determine at the time of grant or thereafter.  Unless otherwise determined by the Committee, to the extent that the Grantee has a Termination of Affiliation while the Deferred Stock remains subject to a substantial risk of forfeiture, such Deferred Shares shall be forfeited, unless the Committee determines that such substantial risk of forfeiture shall lapse in the event of the Grantee’s Termination of Affiliation due to death, Disability, or involuntary termination by the Company or an Affiliate without “cause.”

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(b)                Delivery with Respect to Restricted Stock Units.  Delivery of Shares subject to a grant of Restricted Stock Units shall occur no later than the 15th day of the third month following the end of the taxable year of the Grantee or the fiscal year of the Company in which the Grantee’s rights under such Restricted Stock Units are no longer subject to a substantial risk of forfeiture as defined in final regulations under Section 409A of the Code.  Unless otherwise determined by the Committee, to the extent that the Grantee has a Termination of Affiliation while the Restricted Stock Units remains subject to a substantial risk of forfeiture, such Restricted Stock Units shall be forfeited, unless the Committee determines that such substantial risk of forfeiture shall lapse in the event of the Grantee’s Termination of Affiliation due to death, Disability, or involuntary termination by the Company or an Affiliate without “cause.”

10.3           Voting and Dividend Equivalent Rights Attributable to Deferred Stock and Restricted Stock Units.  A Grantee awarded Deferred Stock or Restricted Stock Units will have no voting rights with respect to such Deferred Stock or Restricted Stock Units prior to the delivery of Shares in settlement of such Deferred Stock and/or Restricted Stock Units.  Unless otherwise determined by the Committee, a Grantee will have the rights to receive Dividend Equivalents in respect of Deferred Stock and/or Restricted Stock Units, which Dividend Equivalents shall be deemed reinvested in additional Shares of Deferred Stock or Restricted Stock Units, as applicable, which shall remain subject to the same forfeiture conditions applicable to the Deferred Stock or Restricted Stock Units to which such Dividend Equivalents relate.  
Article 11.
Dividend Equivalents


The Committee is authorized to grant Awards of Dividend Equivalents alone or in conjunction with other Awards.  The Committee may provide that Dividend Equivalents shall be paid or distributed when accrued or shall be deemed to have been reinvested in additional Shares or additional Awards or otherwise reinvested subject to distribution at the same time and subject to the same conditions as the Award to which it relates; provided, however, that any Dividend Equivalents granted in conjunction with any Award that is subject to forfeiture conditions shall remain subject to the same forfeiture conditions applicable to the Award to which such Dividend Equivalents relate and any payments in respect of any Dividend Equivalents granted in conjunction with any Options or SARs may not be conditioned, directly or indirectly, on the Grantee’s exercise of the Options or SARs or paid at the same time that the Options or SARs are exercised.  The timing of payment or distribution of Dividend Equivalents must comply with the requirements of Section 409A of the Code.

Article 12.
Bonus Shares


Subject to the terms of the Plan, the Committee may grant Bonus Shares to any Eligible Person, in such amount and upon such terms and at any time and from time to time as shall be determined by the Committee.

Article 13.
Other Stock-Based Awards


The Committee is authorized, subject to limitations under applicable law, to grant such other Awards that are denominated or payable in, valued in whole or in part by reference to, or otherwise based on, or related to, Shares, as deemed by the Committee to be consistent with the purposes of the Plan, including Shares awarded which are not subject to any restrictions or conditions, convertible or exchangeable debt securities or other rights convertible or exchangeable into Shares, and Awards valued by reference to the value of securities of or the performance of specified Affiliates.  Subject to and consistent with the provisions of the Plan, the Committee shall determine the terms and conditions of such Awards.  Except as provided by the Committee, Shares delivered pursuant to a purchase right granted under this Article 13 shall be purchased for such consideration, paid for by such methods and in such forms, including cash, Shares, outstanding Awards or other property, as the Committee shall determine.

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Article 14.
Non-Employee Director Awards


Subject to the terms of the Plan, the Board may grant Awards to any Non-Employee Director, in such amount and upon such terms and at any time and from time to time as shall be determined by the full Board in its sole discretion.  Except as otherwise provided in Section 5.6(b), a Non-Employee Director may not be granted Awards with respect to Shares that have a Fair Market Value (determined as of the date of grant) in excess of $500,000 in a single calendar year. 

Article 15.
Amendment, Modification, and Termination


15.1           Amendment, Modification, and Termination.  Subject to Section 15.2, the Board may, at any time and from time to time, alter, amend, suspend, discontinue or terminate the Plan in whole or in part without the approval of the Company’s stockholders, except that (a) any amendment or alteration shall be subject to the approval of the Company’s stockholders if such stockholder approval is required by any federal or state law or regulation or the rules of any stock exchange or automated quotation system on which the Shares may then be listed or quoted, and (b) the Board may otherwise, in its discretion, determine to submit other such amendments or alterations to stockholders for approval.
15.2           Awards Previously Granted.  Except as otherwise specifically permitted in the Plan or an Award Agreement, no termination, amendment, or modification of the Plan shall adversely affect in any material way any Award previously granted under the Plan, without the written consent of the Grantee of such Award.
Article 16.
Compliance with Code Section 409A


16.1           Awards Subject to Code Section 409A.  The provisions of this Article 16 shall apply to any Award or portion thereof that is or becomes deferred compensation subject to Code Section 409A (a “409A Award”), notwithstanding any provision to the contrary contained in the Plan or the Award Agreement applicable to such Award. 
16.2           Deferral and/or Distribution Elections.  Except as otherwise permitted or required by Code Section 409A, the following rules shall apply to any deferral and/or elections as to the form or timing of distributions (each, an “Election”) that may be permitted or required by the Committee with respect to a 409A Award:

 (a)                Any Election must be in writing and specify the amount being deferred, and the time and form of distribution (i.e., lump sum or installments) as permitted by this Plan.  An Election may but need not specify whether payment will be made in cash, Shares or other property.

 (b)                Any Election shall become irrevocable as of the deadline specified by the Committee, which shall not be later than December 31 of the year preceding the year in which services relating to the Award commence; provided, however, that if the Award qualifies as “performance-based compensation” for purposes of Code Section 409A and is based on services performed over a period of at least twelve (12) months, then the deadline may be no later than six (6) months prior to the end of such Performance Period.

 (c)                 Unless otherwise provided by the Committee, an Election shall continue in effect until a written election to revoke or change such Election is received by the Committee, prior to the last day for making an Election for the subsequent year.

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16.3           Subsequent Elections.  Except as otherwise permitted or required by Code Section 409A, any 409A Award which permits a subsequent Election to further defer the distribution or change the form of distribution shall comply with the following requirements:

(a)                No subsequent Election may take effect until at least twelve (12) months after the date on which the subsequent Election is made;

(b)                Each subsequent Election related to a distribution upon separation from service, a specified time, or a Change in Control must result in a delay of the distribution for a period of not less than five (5) years from the date such distribution would otherwise have been made; and

(c)                 No subsequent Election related to a distribution to be made at a specified time or pursuant to a fixed schedule shall be made less than twelve (12) months prior to the date the first scheduled payment would otherwise be made.

16.4           Distributions Pursuant to Deferral Elections.  Except as otherwise permitted or required by Code Section 409A, no distribution in settlement of a 409A Award may commence earlier than:

(a)                Separation from Service;

(b)                The date the Participant becomes Disabled (as defined in Section 2.15(b);

(c)                 The Participant’s death;

(d)                A specified time (or pursuant to a fixed schedule) that is either (i) specified by the Committee upon the grant of the Award and set forth in the Award Agreement or (ii) specified by the Grantee in an Election complying with the requirements of Section 16.2 and/or 16.3, as applicable; or

(e)                A change in ownership of the Company or a substantial portion of its assets within the meaning of Treasury Regulation Section 1.409A-3(i)(5)(v) or (vii) or a change in effective control of the Company within the meaning of Treasury Regulation Section 1.409A-3(i)(5)(vi) (a “Change in Control”).

16.5           Six Month Delay.  Notwithstanding anything herein or in any Award Agreement or Election to the contrary, to the extent that distribution of a 409A Award is triggered by a Grantee’s Separation from Service, if the Grantee is then a “specified employee” (as defined in Treasury Regulation Section 1.409A-1(i)), no distribution may be made before the date which is six (6) months after such Grantee’s Separation from Service, or, if earlier, the date of the Grantee’s death.
16.6           Death or Disability.  Unless the Award Agreement otherwise provides, if a Grantee dies or becomes Disabled before complete distribution of amounts payable upon settlement of a 409A Award, such undistributed amounts, to the extent vested, shall be distributed as provided in the Participants Election.  If the Participant has made no Election with respect to distributions upon death or Disability, all such distributions shall be paid in a lump sum within 90 days following the date of the Participant’s death or Disability.
16.7           No Acceleration of Distributions.  This Plan does not permit the acceleration of the time or schedule of any distribution under a 409A Award, except as provided by Code Section 409A and/or applicable regulations or rulings issued thereunder.
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Article 17.
Withholding


(a)                The Committee in its sole discretion may provide that when taxes are to be withheld in connection with the exercise of an Option or SAR, or upon the lapse of restrictions on Restricted Shares, or upon the transfer of Shares, or upon payment of any other benefit or right under this Plan (the date on which such exercise occurs or such restrictions lapse or such payment of any other benefit or right occurs hereinafter referred to as the “Tax Date”), the Grantee may elect to make payment for the withholding of federal, state and local taxes, including Social Security and Medicare (“FICA”) taxes by one or a combination of the following methods: 

(i)                        payment of an amount in cash equal to the amount to be withheld (including cash obtained through the sale of the Shares acquired on exercise of an Option or SAR, upon the lapse of restrictions on Restricted Shares, or upon the transfer of Shares, through a broker-dealer to whom the Grantee has submitted an irrevocable instructions to deliver promptly to the Company, the amount to be withheld);

(ii)                      delivering part or all of the amount to be withheld in the form of Common Stock valued at its Fair Market Value on the Tax Date;

(iii)                    requesting the Company to withhold from those Shares that would otherwise be received upon exercise of the Option or SAR, upon the lapse of restrictions on Restricted Stock, or upon the transfer of Shares, a number of Shares having a Fair Market Value on the Tax Date equal to the amount to be withheld; or

(iv)                    withholding from any compensation otherwise due to the Grantee.

The Committee in its sole discretion may provide that the maximum amount of tax withholding upon exercise of an Option or SARs, upon the lapse of restrictions on Restricted Shares, or upon the transfer of Shares, to be satisfied by withholding Shares upon exercise of such Option or SAR, upon the lapse of restrictions on Restricted Shares, or upon the transfer of Shares, pursuant to clause (iii) above shall not exceed the minimum amount of taxes, including FICA taxes, required to be withheld under federal, state and local law.  An election by Grantee under this subsection is irrevocable.  Any fractional share amount and any additional withholding not paid by the withholding or surrender of Shares must be paid in cash.  If no timely election is made, the Grantee must deliver cash to satisfy all tax withholding requirements.

(b)                Any Grantee who makes a Disqualifying Disposition (as defined in Section 6.4(f)) or an election under Section 83(b) of the Code shall remit to the Company an amount sufficient to satisfy all resulting tax withholding requirements in the same manner as set forth in subsection (a).

17.2           Notification under Code Section 83(b).  If the Grantee, in connection with the exercise of any Option, or the grant of Restricted Shares, makes the election permitted under Section 83(b) of the Code to include in such Grantee’s gross income in the year of transfer the amounts specified in Section 83(b) of the Code, then such Grantee shall notify the Company of such election within 10 days of filing the notice of the election with the Internal Revenue Service, in addition to any filing and notification required pursuant to regulations issued under Section 83(b) of the Code.  The Committee may, in connection with the grant of an Award or at any time thereafter, prohibit a Grantee from making the election described above.
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Article 18.
Additional Provisions


18.1           Successors.  Subject to Section 4.2(b), all obligations of the Company under the Plan with respect to Awards granted hereunder shall be binding on any successor to the Company, whether the existence of such successor is the result of a direct or indirect purchase, merger, consolidation, or otherwise of all or substantially all of the business and/or assets of the Company.
18.2           Severability.  If any part of the Plan is declared by any court or governmental authority to be unlawful or invalid, such unlawfulness or invalidity shall not invalidate any other part of the Plan.  Any Section or part of a Section so declared to be unlawful or invalid shall, if possible, be construed in a manner which will give effect to the terms of such Section or part of a Section to the fullest extent possible while remaining lawful and valid.
18.3           Requirements of Law.  The granting of Awards and the delivery of Shares under the Plan shall be subject to all applicable laws, rules, and regulations, and to such approvals by any governmental agencies or national securities exchanges as may be required.  Notwithstanding any provision of the Plan or any Award, Grantees shall not be entitled to exercise, or receive benefits under, any Award, and the Company (and any Affiliate) shall not be obligated to deliver any Shares or deliver benefits to a Grantee, if such exercise or delivery would constitute a violation by the Grantee or the Company of any applicable law or regulation.

(a)                If the Committee deems it necessary to comply with any applicable securities law, or the requirements of any stock exchange upon which Shares may be listed, the Committee may impose any restriction on Awards or Shares acquired pursuant to Awards under the Plan as it may deem advisable.  In addition, if requested by the Company and any underwriter engaged by the Company, Shares acquired pursuant to Awards may not be sold or otherwise transferred or disposed of for such period following the effective date of any registration statement of the Company filed under the Securities Act as the Company or such underwriter shall specify reasonably and in good faith, not to exceed 180 days in the case of the Company’s initial public offering or 90 days in the case of any other public offering.  All certificates for Shares delivered under the Plan pursuant to any Award or the exercise thereof shall be subject to such stop transfer orders and other restrictions as the Committee may deem advisable under the rules, regulations and other requirements of the SEC, any stock exchange upon which Shares are then listed, any applicable securities law, and the Committee may cause a legend or legends to be put on any such certificates to make appropriate reference to such restrictions.  If so requested by the Company, the Grantee shall make a written representation to the Company that he or she will not sell or offer to sell any Shares unless a registration statement shall be in effect with respect to such Shares under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and any applicable state securities law or unless he or she shall have furnished to the Company, in form and substance satisfactory to the Company, that such registration is not required.

(b)                If the Committee determines that the exercise or nonforfeitability of, or delivery of benefits pursuant to, any Award would violate any applicable provision of securities laws or the listing requirements of any national securities exchange or national market system on which are listed any of the Company’s equity securities, then the Committee may postpone any such exercise, nonforfeitability or delivery, as applicable, but the Company shall use all reasonable efforts to cause such exercise, nonforfeitability or delivery to comply with all such provisions at the earliest practicable date. 

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18.5           Forfeiture Events. Notwithstanding any provisions herein to the contrary, the Committee shall have the authority to determine (and may so provide in any Award Agreement) that a Grantee’s (including his or her estate’s, beneficiary’s or transferee’s) rights (including the right to exercise any Option or SAR), payments and benefits with respect to any Award shall be subject to reduction, cancellation, forfeiture or recoupment (to the extent permitted by applicable law) in the event of the Participant’s termination for Cause; serious misconduct; violation of the Company’s or an Affiliate’s policies; breach of fiduciary duty; unauthorized disclosure of any trade secret or confidential information of the Company or an Affiliate; breach of applicable noncompetition, nonsolicitation, confidentiality or other restrictive covenants; or other conduct or activity that is in competition with the business of the Company or an Affiliate, or otherwise detrimental to the business, reputation or interests of the Company and/or an Affiliate; or upon the occurrence of certain events specified in the applicable Award Agreement (in any such case, whether or not the Grantee is then an Employee or Non-Employee Director). The determination of whether a Grantee's conduct, activities or circumstances are described in the immediately preceding sentence shall be made by the Committee in its discretion, and pending any such determination, the Committee shall have the authority to suspend the exercise, payment, delivery or settlement of all or any portion of such Grantee’s outstanding Awards pending any investigation of the matter.
18.6           No Rights as a Stockholder.  No Grantee shall have any rights as a stockholder of the Company with respect to the Shares (other than Restricted Shares) which may be deliverable upon exercise or payment of such Award until such Shares have been delivered to him or her.  Restricted Shares, whether held by a Grantee or in escrow by the Secretary of the Company, shall confer on the Grantee all rights of a stockholder of the Company, except as otherwise provided in the Plan or Award Agreement.  At the time of a grant of Restricted Shares, the Committee may require the payment of cash dividends thereon to be deferred and, if the Committee so determines, reinvested in additional Restricted Shares.  Stock dividends and deferred cash dividends issued with respect to Restricted Shares shall be subject to the same restrictions and other terms as apply to the Restricted Shares with respect to which such dividends are issued.  The Committee may in its discretion provide for payment of interest on deferred cash dividends.
18.7           Nature of Payments.  Unless otherwise specified in the Award Agreement, Awards shall be special incentive payments to the Grantee and shall not be taken into account in computing the amount of salary or compensation of the Grantee for purposes of determining any pension, retirement, death or other benefit under (a) any pension, retirement, profit sharing, bonus, insurance or other employee benefit plan of the Company or any Affiliate, except as such plan shall otherwise expressly provide, or (b) any agreement between (i) the Company or any Affiliate and (ii) the Grantee, except as such agreement shall otherwise expressly provide.
18.8           Non-Exclusivity of Plan.  Neither the adoption of the Plan by the Board nor its submission to the stockholders of the Company for approval shall be construed as creating any limitations on the power of the Board to adopt such other compensatory arrangements for employees or Non-Employee Directors as it may deem desirable.
18.9           Governing Law.  The Plan, and all agreements hereunder, shall be construed in accordance with and governed by the laws of the State of Delaware, other than its laws respecting choice or conflicts of law rule or principles that might otherwise refer construction or interpretation of the Plan to the substantive law of another jurisdiction. Unless otherwise provided in the Award Agreement, Participants are deemed to submit to the exclusive jurisdiction and venue of the federal or state courts of the State of Delaware, to resolve any and all issues that may arise out of or relate to the Plan or any related Award Agreement.
18.10        Unfunded Status of Awards; Creation of Trusts.  The Plan is intended to constitute an “unfunded” plan for incentive and deferred compensation.  With respect to any payments not yet made to a Grantee pursuant to an Award, nothing contained in the Plan or any Award Agreement shall give any such Grantee any rights that are greater than those of a general creditor of the Company; provided, however, that the Committee may authorize the creation of trusts or make other arrangements to meet the Company’s obligations under the Plan to deliver cash, Shares or other property pursuant to any Award which trusts or other arrangements shall be consistent with the “unfunded” status of the Plan unless the Committee otherwise determines.
18.11        Affiliation.  Nothing in the Plan or an Award Agreement shall interfere with or limit in any way the right of the Company or any Affiliate to terminate any Grantee’s employment or consulting contract at any time, nor confer upon any Grantee the right to continue in the employ of or as an officer of or as a consultant to or Non-Employee Director of the Company or any Affiliate. 
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18.12        Participation.  No employee or officer shall have the right to be selected to receive an Award under this Plan or, having been so selected, to be selected to receive a future Award.
18.13        Military Service.  Awards shall be administered in accordance with Section 414(u) of the Code and the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act of 1994.
18.14        Construction.  The following rules of construction will apply to the Plan:  (a) the word “or” is disjunctive but not necessarily exclusive, and (b) words in the singular include the plural, words in the plural include the singular, and words in the neuter gender include the masculine and feminine genders and words in the masculine or feminine gender include the other neuter genders.
18.15        Headings.  The headings of articles and sections are included solely for convenience of reference, and if there is any conflict between such headings and the text of this Plan, the text shall control.
18.16        Obligations.  Unless otherwise specified in the Award Agreement, the obligation to deliver, pay or transfer any amount of money or other property pursuant to Awards under this Plan shall be the sole obligation of a Grantee’s employer; provided that the obligation to deliver or transfer any Shares pursuant to Awards under this Plan shall be the sole obligation of the Company.
18.17        No Right to Continue as Director.  Nothing in the Plan or any Award Agreement shall confer upon any Non-Employee Director the right to continue to serve as a director of the Company. 
18.18        Stockholder Approval.  All Incentive Stock Options granted on or after the Effective Date and prior to the date the Company’s stockholders approve the Plan are expressly conditioned upon and subject to approval of the Plan by the Company’s stockholders.   
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EXHIBIT 31.1

CERTIFICATION

I, Daniel S. Goldberger, certify that:

1.

I have reviewed this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q of electroCore, Inc.;

2.

Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this report;

3.

Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;

4.

The registrant’s other certifying officer and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) for the registrant and have:

 

(a)

Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared;

 

(b)

Designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles;

 

(c)

Evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by this report based on such evaluation; and

 

(d)

Disclosed in this report any change in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the registrant’s most recent fiscal quarter (the registrant’s fourth fiscal quarter in the case of an annual report) that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting; and

5.

The registrant’s other certifying officer and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation of internal control over financial reporting, to the registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the registrant’s board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):

 

(a)

All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial information; and

 

(b)

Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

 

Date: May 3, 2023

/s/ Daniel S. Goldberger

 

Daniel S. Goldberger

 

Chief Executive Officer

 

(Principal Executive Officer)


EXHIBIT 31.2

CERTIFICATION

I, Brian M. Posner, certify that:

1.

I have reviewed this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q of electroCore, Inc.;

2.

Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this report;

3.

Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;

4.

The registrant’s other certifying officer and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) for the registrant and have:

 

(a)

Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared;

 

(b)

Designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles;

 

(c)

Evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by this report based on such evaluation; and

 

(d)

Disclosed in this report any change in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the registrant’s most recent fiscal quarter (the registrant’s fourth fiscal quarter in the case of an annual report) that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting; and

5.

The registrant’s other certifying officer and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation of internal control over financial reporting, to the registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the registrant’s board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):

 

(a)

All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial information; and 

 

(b)

Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.

 

Date: May 3, 2023

/s/ BRIAN M. POSNER

 

Brian M. Posner

 

Chief Financial Officer

 

(Principal Financial and Accounting Officer)


EXHIBIT 32.1

 

CERTIFICATION PURSUANT TO

18 U.S.C. SECTION 1350,

AS ADOPTED PURSUANT TO

SECTION 906 OF THE SARBANES-OXLEY ACT OF 2002

 

In connection with the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q of electroCore, Inc, (the “Company”) for the period ended March 31, 2023 as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on the date hereof (the “Report”), the undersigned, Daniel S. Goldberger, as Chief Executive Officer of the Company, hereby certifies, pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, that to the best of my knowledge:

 

1. The Report complies with the requirements of Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934; and

 

2. The information contained in the Report fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of the Company.

 

Date: May 3, 2023

/s/ Daniel S. Goldberger

 

Daniel S. Goldberger

 

Chief Executive Officer

 

(Principal Executive Officer)



EXHIBIT 32.2

 

CERTIFICATION PURSUANT TO

18 U.S.C. SECTION 1350,

AS ADOPTED PURSUANT TO

SECTION 906 OF THE SARBANES-OXLEY ACT OF 2002

 

In connection with the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q of electroCore, Inc. (the “Company”) for the period ended March 31, 2023 as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on the date hereof (the “Report”), the undersigned, Brian M. Posner, Chief Financial Officer of the Company, hereby certifies, pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, that to the best of my knowledge:

 

1. The Report fully complies with the requirements of Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934; and

 

2. The information contained in the Report fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of the Company.

 

Date: May 3, 2023

/s/ BRIAN M. POSNER

 

Brian M. Posner

 

Chief Financial Officer

 

(Principal Financial and Accounting Officer)