Ligand Pharmaceuticals Announces Inducement Grants Under Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4)

Rhea-AI Summary

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (LGND) granted a non-qualified stock option award to an employee for 15,100 shares of common stock under the Inducement Plan. The options have an exercise price of $78.70 per share, a ten-year term, and will vest over four years. This award aims to attract and retain talent within the company.

SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (Nasdaq: LGND) today announced that effective March 1, 2024, Ligand’s Human Capital Management and Compensation Committee approved the grant of a non-qualified stock option award to purchase 15,100 shares of its common stock to one non-executive employee. The grant date for the options was March 1, 2024.

The award was granted under Ligand’s 2022 Employment Inducement Plan, as amended (the “Inducement Plan”) as an employment inducement award pursuant to Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4). The Inducement Plan is used exclusively for the grant of equity awards to individuals who were not previously employees of Ligand, or following a bona fide period of non-employment, as an inducement material to such individuals’ entering into employment with Ligand, pursuant to Nasdaq Listing Rule 5635(c)(4).

The options have an exercise price of $78.70 per share, which is the closing price of Ligand’s common stock on The Nasdaq Global Market on March 1, 2024. The stock options have a term of ten years and will vest over four years, with 12.5% of the shares vesting six months after the grant date and the balance of the shares vesting in 42 equal monthly installments thereafter, subject to the grantee’s continued service on such vesting dates.

About Ligand Pharmaceuticals

Ligand is a biopharmaceutical company enabling scientific advancement through supporting the clinical development of high-value medicines. Ligand does this by providing financing, licensing our technologies or both. Our business model seeks to generate value for stockholders by creating a diversified portfolio of biotech and pharmaceutical product revenue streams that are supported by an efficient and low corporate cost structure. Our goal is to offer investors an opportunity to participate in the promise of the biotech industry in a profitable and diversified manner. Our business model is based on funding programs in mid- to late-stage drug development in return for economic rights and licensing our technology to help partners discover and develop medicines. We partner with other pharmaceutical companies to attempt to leverage what they do best (late-stage development, regulatory management and commercialization) in order to generate our revenue. Our Captisol® platform technology is a chemically modified cyclodextrin with a structure designed to optimize the solubility and stability of drugs. We have established multiple alliances, licenses and other business relationships with the world’s leading pharmaceutical companies including Amgen, Merck, Pfizer, Jazz, Takeda, Gilead Sciences and Baxter International. For more information, please visit www.ligand.com. Follow Ligand on X (f/k/a Twitter) @Ligand_LGND.

We use our investor relations website and X as a means of disclosing material non-public information and for complying with our disclosure obligations under Regulation FD. Investors should monitor our website and our X account, in addition to following our press releases, SEC filings, public conference calls and webcasts.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240304017350/en/

Investors:

Tavo Espinoza

investors@ligand.com

(858) 550-7766

LifeSci Advisors

Bob Yedid

bob@lifesciadvisors.com

(516) 428-8577

Media:

Kellie Walsh

media@ligand.com

(914) 315-6072

Source: Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated

FAQ

What is the grant date for the stock options awarded by Ligand Pharmaceuticals (LGND)?

The grant date for the stock options was March 1, 2024.

Under which plan were the stock options awarded by Ligand Pharmaceuticals (LGND) granted?

The stock options were granted under Ligand's 2022 Employment Inducement Plan.

What is the exercise price per share for the stock options awarded by Ligand Pharmaceuticals (LGND)?

The exercise price is $78.70 per share.

How long is the term of the stock options awarded by Ligand Pharmaceuticals (LGND)?

The options have a term of ten years.

How will the stock options awarded by Ligand Pharmaceuticals (LGND) vest?

The shares will vest over four years, with 12.5% vesting six months after the grant date and the rest in 42 equal monthly installments, subject to continued service.

What is the purpose of the stock option award granted by Ligand Pharmaceuticals (LGND)?

The award aims to induce employment and retain talent within the company.