3,750,000 SHARES ACCELERON PHARMA INC. COMMON STOCK ($0.001 PAR VALUE) UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT January 5, 2016

EX-1.1 2 a16-1036_4ex1d1.htm EX-1.1

Exhibit 1.1

 

Execution Version

 

3,750,000 SHARES

 

ACCELERON PHARMA INC.

 

COMMON STOCK ($0.001 PAR VALUE)

 

UNDERWRITING AGREEMENT

 

January 5, 2016

 



 

January 5, 2016

 

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC

Leerink Partners LLC

UBS Securities LLC

 

c/o

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC

 

1585 Broadway

New York, New York 10036

 

c/o

Leerink Partners LLC
299 Park Avenue, 21st floor
New York, New York 10176

 

c/o

UBS Securities LLC

1285 Avenue of the Americas

New York, New York 10019

 

Ladies and Gentlemen:

 

Acceleron Pharma Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), proposes to issue and sell to the several underwriters named in Schedule II hereto (the “Underwriters”), for whom Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC, Leerink Partners LLC and UBS Securities LLC are acting as managers (collectively, the “Managers”), the number of shares of its common stock, $0.001 par value, set forth in Schedule I hereto (the “Firm Shares”).  The Company also proposes to issue and sell to the several Underwriters not more than the number of additional shares of its common stock, $0.001 par value, set forth in Schedule I hereto (the “Additional Shares”) if and to the extent that you, as Managers of the offering, shall have determined to exercise, on behalf of the Underwriters, the right to purchase such shares of common stock granted to the Underwriters in Section 2 hereof.  The Firm Shares and the Additional Shares are hereinafter collectively referred to as the “Shares.”  The shares of common stock, $0.001 par value, of the Company to be outstanding after giving effect to the sales contemplated hereby are hereinafter referred to as the “Common Stock.”

 

The Company has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) a registration statement, including a prospectus (file number 333-208845), on Form S-3, relating to the securities (the “Shelf Securities”), including the Shares, to be issued from time to time by the Company.  The registration statement as amended to the date of this Agreement, including the information (if any) deemed to be part of the registration statement at the time of effectiveness pursuant to Rule 430A or Rule 430B under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), is hereinafter referred to as the “Registration Statement”, and the related prospectus covering the Shelf Securities dated January 4, 2016 in the form first used to confirm sales of the Shares (or in the form first made available to the Underwriters by the Company to meet requests of purchasers pursuant to Rule 173 under the Securities Act) is hereinafter

 



 

referred to as the “Basic Prospectus.”  The Basic Prospectus, as supplemented by the prospectus supplement specifically relating to the Shares in the form first used to confirm sales of the Shares (or in the form first made available to the Underwriters by the Company to meet requests of purchasers pursuant to Rule 173 under the Securities Act) is hereinafter referred to as the “Prospectus,” and the term “preliminary prospectus” means any preliminary form of the Prospectus.  For purposes of this Agreement, “free writing prospectus” has the meaning set forth in Rule 405 under the Securities Act, “Time of Sale Prospectus” means the documents and pricing information set forth opposite the caption “Time of Sale Prospectus” in Schedule I hereto, and “broadly available road show” means a “bona fide electronic road show” as defined in Rule 433(h)(5) under the Securities Act that has been made available without restriction to any person.  As used herein, the terms “Registration Statement,” “Basic Prospectus,” “preliminary prospectus,” “Time of Sale Prospectus” and “Prospectus” shall include the documents, if any, incorporated by reference therein as of the date hereof.  The terms “supplement,” “amendment,” and “amend” as used herein with respect to the Registration Statement, the Basic Prospectus, the Time of Sale Prospectus, any preliminary prospectus or the Prospectus shall include all documents subsequently filed by the Company with the Commission pursuant to the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), that are deemed to be incorporated by reference therein.

 

1.             Representations and Warranties.  The Company represents and warrants to and agrees with each of the Underwriters that:

 

(a)     The Registration Statement has become effective; no stop order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement is in effect, and no proceedings for such purpose are pending before or, to the Company’s knowledge, threatened by the Commission.  If the Registration Statement is an automatic shelf registration statement as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act, the Company is a well-known seasoned issuer (as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act) eligible to use the Registration Statement as an automatic shelf registration statement and the Company has not received notice that the Commission objects to the use of the Registration Statement as an automatic shelf registration statement.

 

(b)     (i) Each document, if any, filed or to be filed pursuant to the Exchange Act and incorporated by reference in the Time of Sale Prospectus or the Prospectus complied or will comply when so filed in all material respects with the Exchange Act and the applicable rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder, (ii) each part of the Registration Statement, when such part became effective, did not contain, and each such part, as amended or supplemented, if applicable, will not contain, as of the date of such amendment or supplement, any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, (iii) the Registration Statement as of the date hereof does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, (iv) the Registration Statement and the Prospectus comply, and as amended or supplemented, if applicable, will, as of the date of such amendment or supplement, comply in all

 

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material respects with the Securities Act and the applicable rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder, (v) the Time of Sale Prospectus does not, and at the time of each sale of the Shares in connection with the offering when the Prospectus is not yet available to prospective purchasers and at the Closing Date (as defined in Section 4), the Time of Sale Prospectus, as then amended or supplemented by the Company, if applicable, will not, contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading, (vi) each broadly available road show, if any, when considered together with the Time of Sale Prospectus, does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading and (vii) the Prospectus, as of its date,  does not contain and, as amended or supplemented, if applicable, will not contain, as of its date and as of the Closing Date, any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading, except that the representations and warranties set forth in this paragraph do not apply to statements or omissions in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus or the Prospectus based upon information relating to any Underwriter furnished to the Company in writing by such Underwriter through the Managers expressly for use therein.

 

(c)     The Company is not an “ineligible issuer” in connection with the offering pursuant to Rules 164, 405 and 433 under the Securities Act.  Any free writing prospectus that the Company is required to file pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the Securities Act has been, or will be, filed with the Commission in accordance with the requirements of the Securities Act and the applicable rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder.  Each free writing prospectus that the Company has filed, or is required to file, pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the Securities Act or that was prepared by or behalf of or used or referred to by the Company complies or will comply in all material respects with the requirements of the Securities Act and the applicable rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder.  Except for the free writing prospectuses, if any, identified in Schedule I hereto forming part of the Time of Sale Prospectus, and electronic road shows, if any, each furnished to you before first use, the Company has not prepared, used or referred to, and will not, without your prior consent, prepare, use or refer to, any free writing prospectus.

 

(d)     The Company has been duly incorporated and is validly existing as a corporation in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction in which it is chartered or organized with full corporate power and authority to own or lease, as the case may be, and to operate its properties and conduct its business as described in the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, and is duly qualified to do business as a foreign corporation and is in good standing under the laws of each jurisdiction which requires such qualification.

 

(e)     Each subsidiary of the Company has been duly incorporated, is validly existing as a corporation in good standing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its

 

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incorporation, has the corporate power and authority to own its property and to conduct its business as described in the Time of Sale Prospectus and is duly qualified to transact business and is in good standing in each jurisdiction in which the conduct of its business or its ownership or leasing of property requires such qualification, except to the extent that the failure to be so qualified or be in good standing would not have a material adverse effect on the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole; all of the issued shares of capital stock of each subsidiary of the Company have been duly and validly authorized and issued, are fully paid and non-assessable and are owned directly by the Company, free and clear of all liens, encumbrances, equities or claims.

 

(f)      There is no franchise, contract or other document of a character required to be described in the Registration Statement or Time of Sale Prospectus, or to be filed as an exhibit thereto, which is not described or filed as required (and the Prospectus contains in all material respects the same description of the foregoing matters contained in the Time of Sale Prospectus); and the statements in the Prospectus and the Time of Sale Prospectus under the headings “Risk Factors — Risks Related to our Intellectual Property”, “Business — Our Strategic Partnerships”, “Business — Government Regulation”, “Business — Intellectual Property”, “Business — Legal Proceedings”, “Description of Capital Stock”, and “Material United States Federal Income Tax Considerations for non-U.S. Holders,” insofar as such statements summarize legal matters, agreements, documents or proceedings discussed therein, are accurate and fair summaries of such legal matters, agreements, documents or proceedings.

 

(g)     This Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company.

 

(h)     No consent, approval, authorization, filing with or order of any court or governmental agency or body is required in connection with the transactions contemplated herein, except such as have been obtained under the Securities Act and such as may be required under the blue sky laws of any jurisdiction in connection with the purchase and distribution of the Shares by the Underwriters in the manner contemplated herein and in the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus.

 

(i)      The shares of Common Stock outstanding prior to the issuance of the Shares have been duly authorized and are validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable.

 

(j)      The Shares have been duly authorized and, when issued and delivered in accordance with the terms of this Agreement, will be validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable, and the issuance of such Shares will not be subject to any preemptive or similar rights.

 

(k)     Neither the issue and sale of the Shares nor the consummation of any other of the transactions herein contemplated nor the fulfillment of the terms hereof will conflict with, result in a breach or violation of, or imposition of any lien, charge or

 

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encumbrance upon any property or assets of the Company pursuant to, (i) the charter or by-laws of the Company, (ii) the terms of any indenture, contract, lease, mortgage, deed of trust, note agreement, loan agreement or other agreement, obligation, condition, covenant or instrument to which the Company is a party or bound or to which its or their property is subject, or (iii) any statute, law, rule, regulation, judgment, order or decree applicable to the Company of any court, regulatory body, administrative agency, governmental body, arbitrator or other authority having jurisdiction over the Company or any of its or their properties.

 

(l)      Except as has been disclosed in the Prospectus or waived prior to the date hereof, no holders of securities of the Company have rights to the registration of such securities under the Registration Statement.

 

(m)    The Company owns or leases all such properties as are necessary to the conduct of its operations as presently conducted in all material respects.

 

(n)     Ernst & Young LLP, who have certified certain financial statements of the Company and delivered their report with respect to the audited consolidated financial statements incorporated by reference in the Time of Sale Prospectus, are independent public accountants with respect to the Company within the meaning of the Securities Act and the applicable published rules and regulations thereunder.

 

(o)     The consolidated historical financial statements and schedules of the Company included in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus present fairly the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the Company as of the dates and for the periods indicated, comply as to form with the applicable accounting requirements of the Act and have been prepared in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles applied on a consistent basis throughout the periods involved (except as otherwise noted therein).  The selected financial data set forth under the caption “Selected Financial Data” contained in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014 and incorporated by reference into the Registration Statement fairly present, on the basis stated in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, the information included therein.

 

(p)     The Company is not in violation or default of (i) any provision of its charter or bylaws, (ii) the terms of any indenture, contract, lease, mortgage, deed of trust, note agreement, loan agreement or other agreement, obligation, condition, covenant or instrument to which it is a party or bound or to which its property is subject, or (iii) any statute, law, rule, regulation, judgment, order or decree of any court, regulatory body, administrative agency, governmental body, arbitrator or other authority having jurisdiction over the Company or any of its properties, as applicable, except in the case of clauses (ii) and (iii) as would not reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company.

 

(q)     There are no transfer taxes or other similar fees or charges under Federal law or the laws of any state, or any political subdivision thereof, required to be paid in

 

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connection with the execution and delivery of this Agreement or the issuance by the Company or sale by the Company of the Shares.

 

(r)      The Company has filed all tax returns that are required to be filed or has requested extensions thereof (except in any case in which the failure so to file would not have a material adverse effect, whether or not arising from transactions in the ordinary course, except as set forth in or contemplated in the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus (exclusive of any supplement thereto) and has paid all taxes required to be paid by it and any other assessment, fine or penalty levied against it, to the extent that any of the foregoing is due and payable, except for any such assessment, fine or penalty that is currently being contested in good faith or as would not have a material adverse effect on the Company, whether or not arising from transactions in the ordinary course of business, except as set forth in or contemplated in the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus (exclusive of any supplement thereto).

 

(s)      No action, suit or proceeding by or before any court or governmental agency, authority or body or any arbitrator involving the Company or its property is pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened that is likely to have a material adverse effect whether or not arising from transactions in the ordinary course of business, except as set forth in or contemplated in the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus (exclusive of any supplement thereto).

 

(t)      No labor problem or dispute with the employees of the Company exists or, to the knowledge of the Company, is threatened or imminent, and the Company is not aware of any existing or imminent labor disturbance by the employees principal suppliers, contractors or customers, that could have a material adverse effect on the Company, whether or not arising from transactions in the ordinary course of business, except as set forth in or contemplated in the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus (exclusive of any supplement thereto).

 

(u)     The Company is insured by insurers of recognized financial responsibility against such losses and risks and in such amounts as the Company reasonably believes are prudent and customary in the businesses in which they are engaged; all policies of insurance and fidelity or surety bonds insuring the Company or its businesses, assets, employees, officers and directors are in full force and effect; the Company and its subsidiaries are in compliance with the terms of such policies and instruments in all material respects; and there are no claims by the Company under any such policy or instrument as to which any insurance company is denying liability or defending under a reservation of rights clause; the Company has not been refused any insurance coverage sought or applied for; and the Company has no reason to believe that it will not be able to renew its existing insurance coverage as and when such coverage expires or to obtain similar coverage from similar insurers as may be necessary to continue its business at a cost that would not have a material adverse effect on the Company, whether or not arising in the ordinary course of business, except as set forth in or contemplated in the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus (exclusive of any supplement thereto).

 

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(v)     The Company possesses all licenses, certificates, permits and other authorizations issued by all applicable authorities necessary to conduct their respective businesses, and the Company has not received any notice of proceedings relating to the revocation or modification of any such certificate, authorization or permit which, singly or in the aggregate, if the subject of an unfavorable decision, ruling or finding, would have a material adverse effect on the Company, except as set forth in or contemplated in the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus (exclusive of any supplement thereto).

 

(w)    Except as described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, and except as would not, individually or in the aggregate, result in a material adverse effect on the Company: (i) the Company and, to its knowledge, Celgene Corporation (“Celgene”) are and have been in compliance with statutes, laws, ordinances, rules and regulations applicable to the Company and Celgene for the ownership, testing, development, manufacture, packaging, processing, use, labeling, storage, or disposal of any product manufactured by or on behalf of the Company or out-licensed by the Company or subject to any collaboration agreement between the Company and Celgene, including without limitation, the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, 21 U.S.C. § 301, et seq., the Public Health Service Act, 42 U.S.C. § 262, similar laws of other Governmental Entities and the regulations promulgated pursuant to such laws (collectively, “Applicable Laws”); (ii) the Company and, to its knowledge, Celgene, possess all licenses, certificates, approvals, authorizations, permits and supplements or amendments thereto required by any such Applicable Laws and/or for the ownership of its properties or the conduct of its business as described in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus (collectively, “Authorizations”) and such Authorizations are valid and in full force and effect and the Company and, to its knowledge, Celgene are not in violation of any term of any such Authorizations; (iii) neither the Company nor, to its knowledge, Celgene, have received any written notice of adverse finding, warning letter or other written correspondence or notice from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) or any other national, federal, state, county, municipal, local or foreign government, or any political subdivision, court, body, agency or regulatory authority thereof, and any Person exercising executive, legislative, judicial, regulatory, taxing or administrative functions of or pertaining to any of the foregoing (“Governmental Entity”), alleging or asserting noncompliance with any Applicable Laws or Authorizations; (iv) the Company has not received written notice of any ongoing claim, action, suit, proceeding, hearing, enforcement, investigation, arbitration or other action from any Governmental Entity or third party alleging that any product, operation or activity is in violation of any Applicable Laws or Authorizations or has any knowledge that any such Governmental Entity or third party is considering any such claim, litigation, arbitration, action, suit, investigation or proceeding, nor, to the best of the Company’s knowledge, has there been any noncompliance with or violation of any Applicable Laws by the Company or Celgene that could reasonably be expected to require the issuance of any such written notice or result in an investigation, corrective action, or enforcement action by FDA or similar Governmental Entity; (v) the Company and, to its knowledge, Celgene have not received written notice that any Governmental Entity has taken, is taking or intends to

 

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take action to limit, suspend, modify or revoke any Authorizations or has any knowledge that any such Governmental Entity has threatened or is considering such action; and (vi) the Company and, to its knowledge, Celgene have filed, obtained, maintained or submitted all reports, documents, forms, notices, applications, records, claims, submissions and supplements or amendments as required by any Applicable Laws or Authorizations and that all such reports, documents, forms, notices, applications, records, claims, submissions and supplements or amendments were complete, correct and not misleading on the date filed (or were corrected or supplemented by a subsequent submission).  To the Company’s knowledge, neither the Company, nor any of its directors, officers, employees or agents, has made, or caused the making of, any false statements on, or material omissions from, any other records or documentation prepared or maintained to comply with the requirements of the FDA or any other Governmental Entity.  Pursuant to our agreements with Celgene, we have requested and received from Celgene copies that are identified as being true copies of originals of submissions made by Celgene to the FDA pertaining to the sotatercept investigational new drug application (the “IND”) as well as related correspondence between the FDA and Celgene.

 

(x)     The clinical studies and tests conducted by the Company, or to the knowledge of the Company, by Celgene, in accordance with its collaboration with the Company, have been and, if still pending, are being conducted in all material respects pursuant to all Applicable Laws and Authorizations; the descriptions of the results of such clinical studies and tests contained in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus are accurate and complete in all material respects and fairly present the data derived from such clinical studies and tests; except to the extent disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, the Company is not aware of any clinical studies or tests, the results of which the Company believes reasonably call into question the research, nonclinical or clinical study or test results described or referred to in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus when viewed in the context in which such results are described; and the Company has not received any written notices or correspondence from any Governmental Entity requiring the termination, suspension or material modification of any clinical study or test conducted by or on behalf of the Company.

 

(y)     The Company owns, possesses, licenses or otherwise has sufficient rights to use, on reasonable terms, all patents, patent applications, trade and service marks, trade and service mark registrations, trade names, copyrights, licenses, inventions, trade secrets, technology, know-how and other intellectual property (collectively, the “Intellectual Property”) necessary for the conduct of the Company’s business as now conducted or as proposed in the Prospectus to be conducted.  Except as set forth in the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus under the caption “Business — Intellectual Property,” (a) there are no rights of third parties to any material Intellectual Property; (b) there is no material infringement by third parties of any such Intellectual Property; (c) there is no pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened action, suit, proceeding or claim by others challenging the Company’s rights in or to any such Intellectual Property, and the Company is unaware of any facts which would

 

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form a reasonable basis for any such claim; (d) there is no pending or , to the knowledge of the Company, threatened action, suit, proceeding or claim by others challenging the validity or scope of any such Intellectual Property, and the Company is unaware of any facts which would form a reasonable basis for any such claim; (e) there is no pending or , to the knowledge of the Company,  threatened action, suit, proceeding or claim by others that the Company infringes or otherwise violates any patent, trademark, copyright, trade secret or other proprietary rights of others, and the Company is unaware of any act which would form a reasonable basis for any such claim; (f) to the knowledge of the Company, there is no U.S. patent which contains claims that dominate or may dominate any Intellectual Property described in the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus as being owned by or licensed to the Company or that interferes with the issued claims of any such Intellectual Property; and (g) there is no prior art of which the Company is aware that may render any U.S. patent held by the Company invalid or any U.S. patent application held by the Company unpatentable which has not been disclosed to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

 

(z)     The statements contained in the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus under the captions “Risk Factors — Risks Related to Our Intellectual Property” and “Business — Intellectual Property,” insofar as such statements summarize legal matters, agreements, documents, or proceedings discussed therein, are accurate and fair summaries of such legal matters, agreements, documents or proceedings.

 

(aa)   The Company has not taken, directly or indirectly, without giving effect to activities by the underwriters, any action designed to or that would constitute or that might reasonably be expected to cause or result in, under the Exchange Act or otherwise, stabilization or manipulation of the price of any security of the Company to facilitate the sale or resale of the Shares.

 

(bb)   There has not occurred any material adverse change, or any development involving a prospective material adverse change, in the condition, financial or otherwise, or in the earnings, business or operations of the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, from that set forth in the Time of Sale Prospectus.

 

(cc)   Each preliminary prospectus filed as part of the registration statement as originally filed or as part of any amendment thereto, or filed pursuant to Rule 424 under the Securities Act, complied when so filed in all material respects with the Securities Act and the applicable rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder.

 

(dd)   The Company is not and, after giving effect to the offering and sale of the Shares and the application of the proceeds thereof as described in the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, will not be an “investment company” as defined in the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended.

 

(ee)   The Company and its subsidiaries are (i) in compliance with any and all applicable foreign, federal, state and local laws and regulations relating to the protection of human health and safety, the environment or hazardous or toxic

 

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substances or wastes, pollutants or contaminants (“Environmental Laws”), (ii) have received and are in compliance with all permits, licenses or other approvals required of them under applicable Environmental Laws to conduct their respective businesses, and (iii) have not received notice of any actual or potential liability under any environmental law, except where such non-compliance with Environmental Laws, failure to receive required permits, licenses or other approvals, or liability would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on the Company, whether or not arising from transactions in the ordinary course of business, except as set forth in or contemplated in the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus (exclusive of any supplement thereto).  Except as set forth in the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus, the Company has not been named as a “potentially responsible party” under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980, as amended.

 

(ff)    In the ordinary course of its business, the Company periodically reviews the effect of Environmental Laws on the business, operations and properties of the Company, in the course of which it identifies and evaluates associated costs and liabilities (including, without limitation, any capital or operating expenditures required for clean-up, closure of properties or compliance with Environmental Laws, or any permit, license or approval, any related constraints on operating activities and any potential liabilities to third parties).  On the basis of such review, the Company has reasonably concluded that such associated costs and liabilities would not, singly or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on the Company, whether or not arising from transactions in the ordinary course of business, except as set forth in or contemplated in the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus (exclusive of any supplement thereto).

 

(gg)   None of the following events has occurred or exists:  (i) a failure to fulfill the obligations, if any, under the minimum funding standards of Section 302 of the United States Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”), and the regulations and published interpretations thereunder with respect to a Plan that is required to be funded, determined without regard to any waiver of such obligations or extension of any amortization period; (ii) an audit or investigation by the Internal Revenue Service, the U.S. Department of Labor, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation or any other federal or state governmental agency or any foreign regulatory agency with respect to the employment or compensation of employees by any of the Company that would reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company; (iii) any breach of any contractual obligation, or any violation of law or applicable qualification standards, with respect to the employment or compensation of employees by the Company that could have a material adverse effect on the Company.  None of the following events has occurred or is reasonably likely to occur: (i) a material increase in the aggregate amount of contributions required to be made to all Plans in the current fiscal year of the Company a compared to the amount of such contributions made in the most recently completed fiscal year of the Company; (ii) a material increase in the “accumulated post-retirement benefit obligations” (within the meaning of Statement of Financial Accounting Standards 106) of the Company a compared to the amount of such obligations in the most recently completed fiscal year

 

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of the Company; (iii) any event or condition giving rise to a liability under Title IV of ERISA that would reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company; or (iv) the filing of a claim by one or more employees or former employees of the Company related to their employment that would reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the Company.  For purposes of this paragraph, the term “Plan” means a plan (within the meaning of Section 3(3) of ERISA) subject to Title IV of ERISA with respect to which the Company may have any liability.

 

(hh)   (i) None of the Company or its subsidiaries, or any director, officer, or employee thereof, or, to the Company’s knowledge, any agent or representative of the Company or of any of its subsidiaries, has taken or will take any action in furtherance of an offer, payment, promise to pay, or authorization or approval of the payment, giving or receipt of money, property, gifts or anything else of value, directly or indirectly, to any government official (including any officer or employee of a government or government-owned or controlled entity or of a public international organization, or any person acting in an official capacity for or on behalf of any of the foregoing, or any political party or party official or candidate for political office) (“Government Official”) in order to influence official action, or to any person in violation of any applicable anti-corruption laws; (ii) the Company and its subsidiaries have conducted their businesses in compliance with applicable anti-corruption laws and have instituted and maintained and will continue to maintain policies and procedures reasonably designed to promote and achieve compliance with such laws and with the representations and warranties contained herein; and (iii) neither the Company nor its subsidiaries will use, directly or indirectly, the proceeds of the offering in furtherance of an offer, payment, promise to pay, or authorization of the payment or giving of money, or anything else of value, to any person in violation of any applicable anti-corruption laws.

 

(ii)     The operations of the Company and its subsidiaries are and have been conducted at all times in material compliance with all applicable financial recordkeeping and reporting requirements, including those of the Bank Secrecy Act, as amended by Title III of the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001 (USA PATRIOT Act), and the applicable anti-money laundering statutes of jurisdictions where the Company and its subsidiaries conduct business, the rules and regulations thereunder and any related or similar rules, regulations or guidelines, issued, administered or enforced by any governmental agency (collectively, the “Anti-Money Laundering Laws”), and no action, suit or proceeding by or before any court or governmental agency, authority or body or any arbitrator involving the Company or any of its subsidiaries with respect to the Anti-Money Laundering Laws is pending or, to the best knowledge of the Company, threatened.

 

(jj)     (i) None of the Company, any of its subsidiaries, or any director, officer, or employee thereof, or, to the Company’s knowledge, any agent, affiliate or representative of the Company or any of its subsidiaries, is an individual or entity (“Person”) that is, or is owned or controlled by one or more Persons that are:

 

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(A) the subject of any sanctions administered or enforced by the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”), the United Nations Security Council (“UNSC”), the European Union (“EU”), Her Majesty’s Treasury (“HMT”), or other relevant sanctions authority (collectively, “Sanctions”), or

 

(B) located, organized or resident in a country or territory that is the subject of Sanctions (including, without limitation, Crimea, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Sudan and Syria).

 

(ii)  The Company will not, directly or indirectly, use the proceeds of the offering, or lend, contribute or otherwise make available such proceeds to any subsidiary, joint venture partner or other Person:

 

(A)  to fund or facilitate any activities or business of or with any Person or in any country or territory that, at the time of such funding or facilitation, is the subject of Sanctions; or

 

(B)  in any other manner that will result in a violation of Sanctions by any Person (including any Person participating in the offering, whether as underwriter, advisor, investor or otherwise).

 

(iii)  The Company and its subsidiaries have not knowingly engaged in, are not now knowingly engaged in, and will not engage in, any dealings or transactions with any Person, or in any country or territory, that at the time of the dealing or transaction is or was the subject of Sanctions.

 

(kk)   The Company and each of its subsidiaries maintain a system of internal accounting controls sufficient to provide reasonable assurance that (i) transactions are executed in accordance with management’s general or specific authorizations; (ii) transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles and to maintain asset accountability; (iii) access to assets is permitted only in accordance with management’s general or specific authorization; and (iv) the recorded accountability for assets is compared with the existing assets at reasonable intervals and appropriate action is taken with respect to any differences. Except as described in the Time of Sale Prospectus, since the end of the Company’s most recent audited fiscal year, there has been (i) no material weakness in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting (whether or not remediated) and (ii) no change in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the Company’s internal control over financial reporting.

 

(ll)     The Company maintains “disclosure controls and procedures” (as such term is defined in Rule 13a-15(e) under the Exchange Act); such disclosure controls and procedures are effective.

 

(mm)                The interactive data in eXtensible Business Reporting Language included or incorporated by reference in the Registration Statement fairly presents the

 

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information called for in all material respects and has been prepared in accordance with the Commission’s rules and guidelines applicable thereto.

 

Any certificate signed by any officer of the Company and delivered to the Managers or counsel for the Underwriters in connection with the offering of the Shares shall be deemed a representation and warranty by the Company, as to matters covered thereby, to each Underwriter.

 

2.             Agreements to Sell and Purchase.  The Company hereby agrees to sell to the several Underwriters, and each Underwriter, upon the basis of the representations and warranties herein contained, but subject to the conditions hereinafter stated, agrees, severally and not jointly, to purchase from the Company the respective numbers of Firm Shares set forth in Schedule II hereto opposite its name at the purchase price set forth in Schedule I hereto (the “Purchase Price”).

 

On the basis of the representations and warranties contained in this Agreement, and subject to its terms and conditions, the Company agrees to sell to the Underwriters the Additional Shares, and the Underwriters shall have the right to purchase, severally and not jointly, up to the number of Additional Shares set forth in Schedule I hereto at the Purchase Price, provided, however, that the amount paid by the Underwriters for any Additional Shares shall be reduced by an amount per share equal to any dividends declared by the Company and payable on the Firm Shares but not payable on such Additional Shares.  Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC and Leerink Partners LLC may exercise this right on behalf of the Underwriters in whole or from time to time in part by giving written notice not later than 30 days after the date of the Prospectus.  Any exercise notice shall specify the number of Additional Shares to be purchased by the Underwriters and the date on which such shares are to be purchased.  Each purchase date must be at least one business day after the written notice is given and may not be earlier than the closing date for the Firm Shares nor later than ten business days after the date of such notice.  Additional Shares may be purchased as provided in Section 4 hereof solely for the purpose of covering sales of shares in excess of the number of the Firm Shares.  On each day, if any, that Additional Shares are to be purchased (an “Option Closing Date”), each Underwriter agrees, severally and not jointly, to purchase the number of Additional Shares (subject to such adjustments to eliminate fractional shares as you may determine) that bears the same proportion to the total number of Additional Shares to be purchased on such Option Closing Date as the number of Firm Shares set forth in Schedule II hereto opposite the name of such Underwriter bears to the total number of Firm Shares.

 

3.             Public Offering.  The Company is advised by you that the Underwriters propose to make a public offering of their respective portions of the Shares as soon after the Registration Statement and this Agreement have become effective as in your judgment is advisable.  The Company is further advised by you that the Shares are to be offered to the public upon the terms set forth in the Prospectus.

 

4.             Payment and Delivery.  Payment for the Firm Shares shall be made to the Company in Federal or other funds immediately available in New York City on the closing date and time set forth in Schedule I hereto, or at such other time on the same or

 

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such other date, not later than the fifth business day thereafter, as may be designated in writing by you.  The time and date of such payment are hereinafter referred to as the “Closing Date.”

 

Payment for any Additional Shares shall be made to the Company in Federal or other funds immediately available in New York City on the date specified in the corresponding notice described in Section 2 or at such other time on the same or on such other date, in any event not later than the tenth business day thereafter, as may be designated in writing by you.

 

The Firm Shares and the Additional Shares shall be registered in such names and in such denominations as you shall request in writing not later than one full business day prior to the Closing Date or the applicable Option Closing Date, as the case may be, for the respective accounts of the several Underwriters, with any transfer taxes payable in connection with the transfer of the Shares to the Underwriters duly paid, against payment of the Purchase Price therefor.

 

5.             Conditions to the Underwriters’ Obligations.  The several obligations of the Underwriters are subject to the following conditions:

 

(a)           Subsequent to the execution and delivery of this Agreement and prior to the Closing Date:

 

(i)            there shall not have occurred any downgrading, nor shall any notice have been given of any intended or potential downgrading or of any review for a possible change that does not indicate the direction of the possible change, in the rating accorded any of the securities of the Company or any of its subsidiaries by any “nationally recognized statistical rating organization,” as such term is defined in Section 3(a)(62) of the Exchange Act; and

 

(ii)           there shall not have occurred any change or prospective change in the condition, financial or otherwise, or in the earnings, business or operations of the Company and its subsidiaries, taken as a whole, from that set forth in the Time of Sale Prospectus that, in your judgment, is material and adverse and that makes it, in your judgment, impracticable to market the Shares on the terms and in the manner contemplated in the Time of Sale Prospectus.

 

(b)           The Underwriters shall have received on the Closing Date a certificate, dated the Closing Date and signed by an executive officer of the Company, to the effect set forth in Section 5(a)(i) above and to the effect that the representations and warranties of the Company contained in this Agreement are true and correct as of the Closing Date and that the Company has complied with all of the agreements and satisfied all of the conditions on its part to be performed or satisfied hereunder on or before the Closing Date.

 

The officer signing and delivering such certificate may rely upon the best of his or her knowledge as to proceedings threatened.

 

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(c)           The Underwriters shall have received on the Closing Date an opinion and negative assurance letter of Ropes & Gray LLP, outside counsel for the Company, in each case dated the Closing Date and in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Managers.

 

(d)           The Underwriters shall have received on the Closing Date an opinion of Ropes & Gray LLP, intellectual property counsel for the Company, dated the Closing Date and in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Managers.

 

(e)           The Underwriters shall have received on the Closing Date an opinion of Wolf, Greenfield & Sacks, P.C., intellectual property counsel for the Company, dated the Closing Date and in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Managers.

 

The opinions of counsel for the Company described in Section 5(c), Section 5(d) and Section 5(e) above shall be rendered to the Underwriters at the request of the Company and shall so state therein.

 

(f)            The Underwriters shall have received on the Closing Date an opinion of Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, P.C., counsel for the Underwriters, dated the Closing Date and in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Managers.

 

(g)           The Underwriters shall have received, on each of the date hereof and the Closing Date, a letter dated the date hereof or the Closing Date, as the case may be, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Underwriters, from Ernst & Young LLP, independent public accountants, containing statements and information of the type ordinarily included in accountants’ “comfort letters” to underwriters with respect to the financial statements and certain financial information contained in the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus and the Prospectus; provided that the letter delivered on the Closing Date shall use a “cut-off date” not earlier than the date hereof.

 

(h)           The “lock-up” agreements, each substantially in the form of Exhibit A hereto, between you and certain shareholders, officers and directors of the Company relating to sales and certain other dispositions of shares of Common Stock or certain other securities, delivered to you on or before the date hereof, shall be in full force and effect on the Closing Date.

 

(i)            No action shall have been taken and no statute, rule, regulation or order shall have been enacted, adopted or issued by any federal, state or foreign governmental or regulatory authority that would, as of the Closing Date, prevent the issuance or sale of the Shares; and no injunction or order of any federal, state or foreign court of competent jurisdiction shall have been issued that would, as of the Closing, prevent the issuance or sale of the Shares.

 

(j)            The Managers shall have received on and as of the Closing Date satisfactory evidence of the good standing of the Company in its jurisdiction of incorporation, and its good standing as a foreign entity in such other jurisdictions as the Managers may reasonably request, in each case in writing or any standard form of telecommunication from the appropriate governmental authorities of such jurisdictions.

 

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(k)           The Shares to be delivered on the Closing Date shall have been approved for listing on the NASDAQ Global Market.

 

(l)            The several obligations of the Underwriters to purchase Additional Shares hereunder are subject to the delivery to you on the applicable Option Closing Date of the following:

 

(i)            a certificate, dated the Option Closing Date and signed by an executive officer of the Company, confirming that the certificate delivered on the Closing Date pursuant to Section 5(b) hereof remains true and correct as of such Option Closing Date;

 

(ii)           an opinion and negative assurance letter of Ropes & Gray LLP, outside counsel for the Company, dated the Option Closing Date, relating to the Additional Shares to be purchased on such Option Closing Date and otherwise to the same effect as the opinion required by Section 5(c) hereof;

 

(iii)          an opinion of Ropes & Gray LLP, outside intellectual property counsel for the Company, dated the Option Closing Date, relating to the Additional Shares to be purchased on such Option Closing Date and otherwise to the same effect as the opinion required by Section 5(d) hereof;

 

(iv)          an opinion of Wolf, Greenfield & Sacks, P.C., outside intellectual property counsel for the Company, dated the Option Closing Date, relating to the Additional Shares to be purchased on such Option Closing Date and otherwise to the same effect as the opinion required by Section 5(e) hereof;

 

(v)           an opinion of Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, P.C., counsel for the Underwriters, dated the Option Closing Date, relating to the Additional Shares to be purchased on such Option Closing Date and otherwise to the same effect as the opinion required by Section 5(f) hereof;

 

(vi)          a letter dated the Option Closing Date, in form and substance satisfactory to the Underwriters, from Ernst & Young LLP, independent public accountants, substantially in the same form and substance as the letter furnished to the Underwriters pursuant to Section 5(g) hereof; provided that the letter delivered on the Option Closing Date shall use a “cut-off date” not earlier than three business days prior to such Option Closing Date;

 

(vii)         satisfactory evidence of the good standing of the Company in its jurisdiction of incorporation, and its good standing as a foreign entity in such other jurisdictions as the Managers may reasonably request, in each case in writing or any standard form of telecommunication from the appropriate governmental authorities of such jurisdictions; and

 

(viii)        such other documents as you may reasonably request with respect to the good standing of the Company, the due authorization and issuance of the

 

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Additional Shares to be sold on such Option Closing Date and other matters related to the issuance of such Additional Shares.

 

6.             Covenants of the Company.  The Company covenants with each Underwriter as follows:

 

(a)           To furnish to you, without charge, a signed copy of the Registration Statement (including exhibits thereto and documents incorporated by reference therein) and to deliver to each of the Underwriters during the period mentioned in Section 6(e) or 6(f) below, as many copies of the Time of Sale Prospectus, the Prospectus, any documents incorporated by reference therein and any supplements and amendments thereto or to the Registration Statement as you may reasonably request.

 

(b)           Before amending or supplementing the Registration Statement, the Time of Sale Prospectus or the Prospectus, to furnish to you a copy of each such proposed amendment or supplement and not to file any such proposed amendment or supplement to which you reasonably object.

 

(c)           To furnish to you a copy of each proposed free writing prospectus to be prepared by or on behalf of, used by, or referred to by the Company and not to use or refer to any proposed free writing prospectus to which you reasonably object.

 

(d)           Not to take any action that would result in an Underwriter or the Company being required to file with the Commission pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the Securities Act a free writing prospectus prepared by or on behalf of the Underwriter that the Underwriter otherwise would not have been required to file thereunder.

 

(e)           If the Time of Sale Prospectus is being used to solicit offers to buy the Shares at a time when the Prospectus is not yet available to prospective purchasers and any event shall occur or condition exist as a result of which it is necessary to amend or supplement the Time of Sale Prospectus in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances, not misleading, or if any event shall occur or condition exist as a result of which the Time of Sale Prospectus conflicts with the information contained in the Registration Statement then on file, or if, in the opinion of counsel for the Underwriters, it is necessary to amend or supplement the Time of Sale Prospectus to comply with applicable law, forthwith to prepare, file with the Commission and furnish, at its own expense, to the Underwriters and to any dealer upon request, either amendments or supplements to the Time of Sale Prospectus so that the statements in the Time of Sale Prospectus as so amended or supplemented will not, in the light of the circumstances when the Time of Sale Prospectus is delivered to a prospective purchaser, be misleading or so that the Time of Sale Prospectus, as amended or supplemented, will no longer conflict with the Registration Statement, or so that the Time of Sale Prospectus, as amended or supplemented, will comply with applicable law.

 

(f)            If, during such period after the first date of the public offering of the Shares as in the opinion of counsel for the Underwriters the Prospectus (or in lieu thereof the notice referred to in Rule 173(a) of the Securities Act) is required by law to be

 

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delivered in connection with sales by an Underwriter or dealer, any event shall occur or condition exist as a result of which it is necessary to amend or supplement the Prospectus in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances when the Prospectus (or in lieu thereof the notice referred to in Rule 173(a) of the Securities Act) is delivered to a purchaser, not misleading, or if, in the opinion of counsel for the Underwriters, it is necessary to amend or supplement the Prospectus to comply with applicable law, forthwith to prepare, file with the Commission and furnish, at its own expense, to the Underwriters and to the dealers (whose names and addresses you will furnish to the Company) to which Shares may have been sold by you on behalf of the Underwriters and to any other dealers upon request, either amendments or supplements to the Prospectus so that the statements in the Prospectus as so amended or supplemented will not, in the light of the circumstances when the Prospectus (or in lieu thereof the notice referred to in Rule 173(a) of the Securities Act) is delivered to a purchaser, be misleading or so that the Prospectus, as amended or supplemented, will comply with applicable law.

 

(g)           To endeavor to qualify the Shares for offer and sale under the securities or Blue Sky laws of such jurisdictions as you shall reasonably request.

 

(h)           To make generally available to the Company’s security holders and to you as soon as practicable an earning statement covering a period of at least twelve months beginning with the first fiscal quarter of the Company occurring after the date of this Agreement which shall satisfy the provisions of Section 11(a) of the Securities Act and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder.

 

(i)            Whether or not the transactions contemplated in this Agreement are consummated or this Agreement is terminated, to pay or cause to be paid all expenses incident to the performance of its obligations under this Agreement, including: (i) the fees, disbursements and expenses of the Company’s counsel and the Company’s accountants in connection with the registration and delivery of the Shares under the Securities Act and all other fees or expenses in connection with the preparation and filing of the Registration Statement, any preliminary prospectus, the Time of Sale Prospectus, the Prospectus, any free writing prospectus prepared by or on behalf of, used by, or referred to by the Company and amendments and supplements to any of the foregoing, including the filing fees payable to the Commission relating to the Shares (within the time required by Rule 456 (b)(1), if applicable), all printing costs associated therewith, and the mailing and delivering of copies thereof to the Underwriters and dealers, in the quantities hereinabove specified, (ii) all costs and expenses related to the transfer and delivery of the Shares to the Underwriters, including any transfer or other taxes payable thereon, (iii) the reasonable, documented cost of printing or producing any Blue Sky or Legal Investment memorandum in connection with the offer and sale of the Shares under state securities laws and all expenses in connection with the qualification of the Shares for offer and sale under state securities laws as provided in Section 6(g) hereof, including filing fees and the reasonable fees and disbursements of counsel for the Underwriters in connection with such qualification and in connection with the Blue Sky or Legal Investment memorandum, (iv) all filing fees and the reasonable, documented fees and disbursements of counsel to the Underwriters incurred in connection with the review and

 

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qualification of the offering of the Shares by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (provided, that the amount payable by the Company with respect to fees and disbursements of counsel for the Underwriters pursuant to subsections (iii) and (iv) shall not exceed $20,000), (v) all costs and expenses incident to listing the Shares on the NASDAQ Global Market, (vi) the costs and charges of any transfer agent, registrar or depositary, (vii) the costs and expenses of the Company relating to investor presentations on any “road show” undertaken in connection with the marketing of the offering of the Shares, including, without limitation, expenses associated with the preparation or dissemination of any electronic road show, expenses associated with the production of road show slides and graphics, fees and expenses of any consultants engaged in connection with the road show presentations with the prior approval of the Company, travel and lodging expenses of the representatives and officers of the Company and any such consultants, and fifty percent (50%) of the cost of any aircraft chartered in connection with the road show (with the Underwriters agreeing to pay for the other fifty percent (50%)), (viii) the document production charges and expenses associated with printing this Agreement and (ix) all other costs and expenses incident to the performance of the obligations of the Company hereunder for which provision is not otherwise made in this Section.  It is understood, however, that except as provided in this Section, Section 8 entitled “Indemnity and Contribution” and the last paragraph of Section 10 below, the Underwriters will pay all of their costs and expenses, including fees and disbursements of their counsel, stock transfer taxes payable on resale of any of the Shares by them and any advertising expenses connected with any offers they may make.

 

(j)            If the third anniversary of the initial effective date of the Registration Statement occurs before all the Shares have been sold by the Underwriters, prior to the third anniversary to file a new shelf registration statement and to take any other action necessary to permit the public offering of the Shares to continue without interruption; references herein to the Registration Statement shall include the new registration statement declared effective by the Commission;

 

(k)           If requested by the Managers, to prepare a final term sheet relating to the offering of the Shares, containing only information that describes the final terms of the offering in a form consented to by the Managers, and to file such final term sheet within the period required by Rule 433(d)(5)(ii) under the Securities Act following the date the final terms have been established for the offering of the Shares.

 

The Company also covenants with each Underwriter that, without the prior written consent of the Manager identified in Schedule I with the authorization to release this lock-up on behalf of the Underwriters, it will not, during the restricted period set forth in Schedule I hereto (the “Restricted Period”), (1) offer, pledge, sell, contract to sell, sell any option or contract to purchase, purchase any option or contract to sell, grant any option, right or warrant to purchase, lend, or otherwise transfer or dispose of, directly or indirectly, any shares of Common Stock or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Common Stock or (2) enter into any swap or other arrangement that transfers to another, in whole or in part, any of the economic consequences of ownership of the Common Stock, whether any such transaction described in clause (1) or (2) above is to be settled by delivery of Common Stock or such

 

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other securities, in cash or otherwise or (3) file any registration statement with the Commission relating to the offering of any shares of Common Stock or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for Common Stock.  The foregoing sentence shall not apply to (a) the Shares to be sold hereunder, (b) the issuance by the Company of shares of Common Stock upon the exercise of an option or warrant or the conversion of a security outstanding on the date hereof of which the Underwriters have been advised in writing, (c) the grant of new options or other equity awards under employee or non-employee director benefit plans existing as of the date hereof and disclosed in the Time of Sale Prospectus, and the filing of one or more registration statements on Form S-8 relating thereto, or (d) the establishment of a trading plan pursuant to Rule 10b5-1 under the Exchange Act for the transfer of shares of Common Stock, provided that (i) such plan does not provide for the transfer of Common Stock during the Restricted Period and (ii) to the extent a public announcement or filing under the Exchange Act, if any, is required of or voluntarily made by the Company regarding the establishment of such plan, such announcement or filing shall include a statement to the effect that no transfer of Common Stock may be made under such plan during the Restricted Period.

 

7.             Covenants of the Underwriters.  Each Underwriter severally covenants with the Company not to take any action that would result in the Company being required to file with the Commission under Rule 433(d) a free writing prospectus prepared by or on behalf of such Underwriter that otherwise would not be required to be filed by the Company thereunder, but for the action of the Underwriter.

 

8.             Indemnity and Contribution.  (a) The Company agrees to indemnify and hold harmless each Underwriter, each person, if any, who controls any Underwriter within the meaning of either Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act and each affiliate of any Underwriter within the meaning of Rule 405 under the Securities Act from and against any and all losses, claims, damages and liabilities (including, without limitation, any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred in connection with defending or investigating any such action or claim) caused by any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Registration Statement or any amendment thereof, any preliminary prospectus, the Time of Sale Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto, any issuer free writing prospectus as defined in Rule 433(h) under the Securities Act, any Company information that the Company has filed, or is required to file, pursuant to Rule 433(d) under the Securities Act, any “road show” as defined in Rule 433(h) under the Securities Act (a “road show”), or the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto, or caused by any omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, except insofar as such losses, claims, damages or liabilities are caused by any such untrue statement or omission or alleged untrue statement or omission based upon information relating to any Underwriter furnished to the Company in writing by such Underwriter through you expressly for use therein.

 

(b)           Each Underwriter agrees, severally and not jointly, to indemnify and hold harmless the Company, its directors, its officers who sign the Registration Statement and

 

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each person, if any, who controls the Company within the meaning of either Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act to the same extent as the foregoing indemnity from the Company to such Underwriter, but only with reference to information relating to such Underwriter furnished to the Company in writing by such Underwriter through you expressly for use in the Registration Statement, any preliminary prospectus, the Time of Sale Prospectus, any issuer free writing prospectus, road show, or the Prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto.

 

(c)           In case any proceeding (including any governmental investigation) shall be instituted involving any person in respect of which indemnity may be sought pursuant to Section 8(a) or 8(b), such person (the “indemnified party”) shall promptly notify the person against whom such indemnity may be sought (the “indemnifying party”) in writing and the indemnifying party, upon request of the indemnified party, shall retain counsel reasonably satisfactory to the indemnified party to represent the indemnified party and any others the indemnifying party may designate in such proceeding and shall pay the reasonably incurred fees and disbursements of such counsel related to such proceeding.  In any such proceeding, any indemnified party shall have the right to retain its own counsel, but the fees and expenses of such counsel shall be at the expense of such indemnified party unless (i) the indemnifying party and the indemnified party shall have mutually agreed to the retention of such counsel or (ii) the named parties to any such proceeding (including any impleaded parties) include both the indemnifying party and the indemnified party and representation of both parties by the same counsel would be inappropriate due to actual or potential differing interests between them.  It is understood that the indemnifying party shall not, in respect of the legal expenses of any indemnified party in connection with any proceeding or related proceedings in the same jurisdiction, be liable for the fees and expenses of more than one separate firm (in addition to one local counsel) for all such indemnified parties and that all such reasonably incurred fees and expenses shall be reimbursed as they are incurred.  Such firm shall be designated in writing by the Manager authorized to appoint counsel under this Section set forth in Schedule I hereto, in the case of parties indemnified pursuant to Section 8(a), and by the Company, in the case of parties indemnified pursuant to Section 8(b).  The indemnifying party shall not be liable for any settlement of any proceeding effected without its written consent, but if settled with such consent or if there be a final judgment for the plaintiff, the indemnifying party agrees to indemnify the indemnified party from and against any loss or liability by reason of such settlement or judgment.  Notwithstanding the foregoing sentence, if at any time an indemnified party shall have requested an indemnifying party to reimburse the indemnified party for fees and expenses of counsel as contemplated by the second and third sentences of this paragraph, the indemnifying party agrees that it shall be liable for any settlement of any proceeding effected without its written consent if (i) such settlement is entered into more than 30 days after receipt by such indemnifying party of the aforesaid request and (ii) such indemnifying party shall not have reimbursed the indemnified party in accordance with such request prior to the date of such settlement.  No indemnifying party shall, without the prior written consent of the indemnified party, effect any settlement of any pending or threatened proceeding in respect of which any indemnified party is or could have been a party and indemnity could have been sought hereunder by such indemnified party, unless such settlement includes an unconditional release of such indemnified party from all liability on claims that are the

 

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subject matter of such proceeding and does not include a statement as to or an admission of fault, culpability or a failure to act, by or on behalf of any indemnified party.

 

(d)           To the extent the indemnification provided for in Section 8(a) or 8(b) is unavailable to an indemnified party or insufficient in respect of any losses, claims, damages or liabilities referred to therein, then each indemnifying party under such paragraph, in lieu of indemnifying such indemnified party thereunder, shall contribute to the amount paid or payable by such indemnified party as a result of such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (i) in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect the relative benefits received by the Company on the one hand and the Underwriters on the other hand from the offering of the Shares or (ii) if the allocation provided by clause 8(d)(i) above is not permitted by applicable law, in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect not only the relative benefits referred to in clause 8(d)(i) above but also the relative fault of the Company on the one hand and of the Underwriters on the other hand in connection with the statements or omissions that resulted in such losses, claims, damages or liabilities, as well as any other relevant equitable considerations.  The relative benefits received by the Company on the one hand and the Underwriters on the other hand in connection with the offering of the Shares shall be deemed to be in the same respective proportions as the net proceeds from the offering of the Shares (before deducting expenses) received by the Company and the total underwriting discounts and commissions received by the Underwriters bear to the aggregate initial public offering price of the Shares set forth in the Prospectus.  The relative fault of the Company on the one hand and the Underwriters on the other hand shall be determined by reference to, among other things, whether the untrue or alleged untrue statement of a material fact or the omission or alleged omission to state a material fact relates to information supplied by the Company or by the Underwriters and the parties’ relative intent, knowledge, access to information and opportunity to correct or prevent such statement or omission.  The Underwriters’ respective obligations to contribute pursuant to this Section 8 are several in proportion to the respective number of Shares they have purchased hereunder, and not joint.

 

(e)           The Company and the Underwriters agree that it would not be just or equitable if contribution pursuant to this Section 8 were determined by pro rata allocation (even if the Underwriters were treated as one entity for such purpose) or by any other method of allocation that does not take account of the equitable considerations referred to in Section 8(d).  The amount paid or payable by an indemnified party as a result of the losses, claims, damages and liabilities referred to in Section 8(d) shall be deemed to include, subject to the limitations set forth above, any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by such indemnified party in connection with investigating or defending any such action or claim.  Notwithstanding the provisions of this Section 8, no Underwriter shall be required to contribute any amount in excess of the amount by which the total price at which the Shares underwritten by it and distributed to the public were offered to the public exceeds the amount of any damages that such Underwriter has otherwise been required to pay by reason of such untrue or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission.  No person guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation (within the meaning of Section 11(f) of the Securities Act) shall be entitled to contribution from any person who was not guilty of such fraudulent misrepresentation.  The remedies

 

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provided for in this Section 8 are not exclusive and shall not limit any rights or remedies which may otherwise be available to any indemnified party at law or in equity.

 

(f)            The indemnity and contribution provisions contained in this Section 8 and the representations, warranties and other statements of the Company contained in this Agreement shall remain operative and in full force and effect regardless of (i) any termination of this Agreement, (ii) any investigation made by or on behalf of any Underwriter, any person controlling any Underwriter or any affiliate of any Underwriter or by or on behalf of the Company, its officers or directors or any person controlling the Company and (iii) acceptance of and payment for any of the Shares.

 

9.             Termination.  The Underwriters may terminate this Agreement by notice given by you to the Company, if after the execution and delivery of this Agreement and prior to the Closing Date (i) trading generally shall have been suspended or materially limited on, or by, as the case may be, any of the New York Stock Exchange, the NYSE MKT or the NASDAQ Global Market, (ii) trading of any securities of the Company shall have been suspended on any exchange or in any over-the-counter market, (iii) a material disruption in securities settlement, payment or clearance services in the United States or other relevant jurisdiction shall have occurred, (iv) any moratorium on commercial banking activities shall have been declared by Federal or New York State authorities or (v) there shall have occurred any outbreak or escalation of hostilities, or any change in financial markets or any calamity or crisis that, in your judgment, is material and adverse and which, singly or together with any other event specified in this clause (v), makes it, in your judgment, impracticable or inadvisable to proceed with the offer, sale or delivery of the Shares on the terms and in the manner contemplated in the Time of Sale Prospectus or the Prospectus.

 

10.          Effectiveness; Defaulting Underwriters.  This Agreement shall become effective upon the execution and delivery hereof by the parties hereto.

 

If, on the Closing Date or an Option Closing Date, as the case may be, any one or more of the Underwriters shall fail or refuse to purchase Shares that it has or they have agreed to purchase hereunder on such date, and the aggregate number of Shares which such defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters agreed but failed or refused to purchase is not more than one-tenth of the aggregate number of the Shares to be purchased on such date, the other Underwriters shall be obligated severally in the proportions that the number of Firm Shares set forth opposite their respective names in Schedule II bears to the aggregate number of Firm Shares set forth opposite the names of all such non-defaulting Underwriters, or in such other proportions as you may specify, to purchase the Shares which such defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters agreed but failed or refused to purchase on such date; provided that in no event shall the number of Shares that any Underwriter has agreed to purchase pursuant to this Agreement be increased pursuant to this Section 10 by an amount in excess of one-ninth of such number of Shares without the written consent of such Underwriter.  If, on the Closing Date, any Underwriter or Underwriters shall fail or refuse to purchase Firm Shares and the aggregate number of Firm Shares with respect to which such default occurs is more than one-tenth of the aggregate number of Firm Shares to be purchased on such date, and

 

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arrangements satisfactory to you and the Company for the purchase of such Firm Shares are not made within 36 hours after such default, this Agreement shall terminate without liability on the part of any non-defaulting Underwriter or the Company.  In any such case either you or the Company shall have the right to postpone the Closing Date, but in no event for longer than seven days, in order that the required changes, if any, in the Registration Statement, in the Time of Sale Prospectus, in the Prospectus or in any other documents or arrangements may be effected.  If, on an Option Closing Date, any Underwriter or Underwriters shall fail or refuse to purchase Additional Shares and the aggregate number of Additional Shares with respect to which such default occurs is more than one-tenth of the aggregate number of Additional Shares to be purchased on such Option Closing Date, the non-defaulting Underwriters shall have the option to (i) terminate their obligation hereunder to purchase the Additional Shares to be sold on such Option Closing Date or (ii) purchase not less than the number of Additional Shares that such non-defaulting Underwriters would have been obligated to purchase in the absence of such default.  Any action taken under this paragraph shall not relieve any defaulting Underwriter from liability in respect of any default of such Underwriter under this Agreement.

 

If this Agreement shall be terminated by the Underwriters, or any of them, because of any failure or refusal on the part of the Company to comply with the terms or to fulfill any of the conditions of this Agreement, or if for any reason the Company shall be unable to perform its obligations under this Agreement, the Company will reimburse the Underwriters or such Underwriters as have so terminated this Agreement with respect to themselves, severally, for all out-of-pocket expenses (including the fees and disbursements of their counsel) reasonably incurred by such Underwriters in connection with this Agreement or the offering contemplated hereunder.

 

11.          Entire Agreement.  (a) This Agreement, together with any contemporaneous written agreements and any prior written agreements (to the extent not superseded by this Agreement) that relate to the offering of the Shares, represents the entire agreement between the Company and the Underwriters with respect to the preparation of any preliminary prospectus, the Time of Sale Prospectus, the Prospectus, the conduct of the offering, and the purchase and sale of the Shares.

 

(b)           The Company acknowledges that in connection with the offering of the Shares: (i) the Underwriters have acted at arms length, are not agents of, and owe no fiduciary duties to, the Company or any other person, (ii) the Underwriters owe the Company only those duties and obligations set forth in this Agreement and prior written agreements (to the extent not superseded by this Agreement), if any, and (iii) the Underwriters may have interests that differ from those of the Company.  The Company waives to the full extent permitted by applicable law any claims it may have against the Underwriters arising from an alleged breach of fiduciary duty in connection with the offering of the Shares.

 

12.          Counterparts.  This Agreement may be signed in two or more counterparts, each of which shall be an original, with the same effect as if the signatures thereto and hereto were upon the same instrument.

 

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13.          Applicable Law.  This Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the internal laws of the State of New York.

 

14.          Headings.  The headings of the sections of this Agreement have been inserted for convenience of reference only and shall not be deemed a part of this Agreement.

 

15.          Notices.  All communications hereunder shall be in writing and effective only upon receipt and if to the Underwriters shall be delivered, mailed or sent to you at the address set forth in Schedule I hereto; and if to the Company shall be delivered, mailed or sent to the address set forth in Schedule I hereto.

 

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Very truly yours,

 

 

 

ACCELERON PHARMA INC.

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ John Knopf

 

 

Name:

John Knopf

 

 

Title:

Chief Executive Officer and President

 

 

Accepted as of the date hereof

 

MORGAN STANLEY & CO. LLC

 

LEERINK PARTNERS LLC

 

UBS SECURITIES LLC

 

Acting severally on behalf of themselves and the several Underwriters named in Schedule II hereto.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By:

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ David Lederman

 

 

Name: David Lederman

 

 

Title: Vice President

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By:

Leerink Partners LLC

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ John I. Fitzgerald, Esq.

 

 

Name: John I. Fitzgerald, Esq.

 

 

Title: Managing Director

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By:

UBS Securities LLC

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ John Hagens

 

 

Name: John Hagens

 

 

Title: Director

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By:

UBS Securities LLC

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By:

/s/ Darshan Prabhu

 

 

Name: Darshan Prabhu

 

 

Title: Executive Director

 

 



 

SCHEDULE I

 

Managers:

 

 

Manager(s) authorized to release lock-up under Section 6:

 

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC and Leerink Partners LLC

 

 

 

Manager(s) authorized to appoint counsel under Section 8(c):

 

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC and Leerink Partners LLC

 

 

 

Registration Statement File No.:

 

333-208845

 

 

 

Time of Sale Prospectus:

 

1.                                      Prospectus dated January 4, 2015 relating to the Shelf Shares

 

2.                                      The preliminary prospectus supplement dated January 4, 2015 relating to the Shares

 

3.                                      Pricing information

 

a.              Number of Firm Shares: 3,750,000

 

b.              Number of Additional Shares: 562,500

 

c.               Public Offering Price: $40.00 a share

 

 

 

Lock-up Restricted Period:

 

90 days

 

 

 

Title of Shares to be purchased:

 

Common Stock, $0.001 par value

 

 

 

Number of Firm Shares:

 

3,750,000

 

 

 

Number of Additional Shares

 

562,500

 

 

 

Purchase Price:

 

$37.60 a share

 

 

 

Public Offering Price

 

$40.00 a share

 

 

 

Selling Concession:

 

$1.44 a share

 

 

 

Closing Date and Time:

 

January 11, 2016 9:30 a.m.

 

 

 

Closing Location:

 

Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, P.C.

 

I-1



 

 

 

One Financial Center
Boston, MA 02111

 

 

 

Address for Notices to Underwriters:

 

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC
1585 Broadway
New York, New York 10013

Leerink Partners LLC
299 Park Avenue, 21st floor
New York, New York 10176

UBS Securities LLC
1285 Avenue of the Americas
New York, New York 10019

 

 

 

Address for Notices to the Company:

 

Acceleron Pharma Inc.
128 Sidney Street
Cambridge, MA 02139

 

I-2



 

SCHEDULE II

 

Underwriter

 

Number of Firm Shares
To Be Purchased

 

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC

 

1,500,000

 

Leerink Partners LLC

 

1,125,000

 

UBS Securities LLC

 

675,000

 

JMP Securities LLC

 

375,000

 

FBR Capital Markets & Co.

 

75,000

 

 

 

 

 

Total:

 

3,750,000

 

 

II-1



 

EXHIBIT A

 

FORM OF LOCK-UP LETTER

 

Acceleron Pharma Inc.
Public Offering of Common Stock

 

, 2016

 

Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC

1585 Broadway

New York, New York 10013

 

Leerink Partners LLC
299 Park Avenue, 21st floor
New York, New York 10176

 

UBS Securities LLC

1285 Avenue of the Americas

New York, New York 10019

 

Ladies and Gentlemen:

 

This letter is being delivered to you in connection with the proposed Underwriting Agreement (the “Underwriting Agreement”), between Acceleron Pharma Inc., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), and Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC, Leerink Partners LLC and UBS Securities LLC (collectively, the “Representatives”), as representatives of the underwriters named therein (the “Underwriters”), relating to an underwritten public offering of Common Stock, $0.001 par value (the “Common Stock”), of the Company (the “Offering”). Capitalized terms used herein but not defined shall have the respective meanings assigned to them in the Underwriting Agreement.

 

In order to induce you and the other Underwriters to enter into the Underwriting Agreement, the undersigned will not, without the prior written consent of Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC and Leerink Partners LLC, offer, sell, contract to sell, pledge or otherwise dispose of (or enter into any transaction which is designed to, or might reasonably be expected to, result in the disposition (whether by actual disposition or effective economic disposition due to cash settlement or otherwise), by the undersigned or any affiliate of the undersigned or any person in privity with the undersigned or any affiliate of the undersigned), directly or indirectly, including the filing (or participation in the filing) of a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission in respect of, or

 

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establish or increase a put equivalent position or liquidate or decrease a call equivalent position within the meaning of Section 16 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), and the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission promulgated thereunder with respect to, any shares of capital stock of the Company or any securities convertible into, or exercisable or exchangeable for, such capital stock (any such capital stock or securities being referred to herein as “Company Securities”), or publicly announce an intention to effect any such transaction, for a period from the date hereof until 60 days after the date of the Underwriting Agreement (the “Restricted Period”), other than (i) shares of Common Stock disposed of as bona fide gifts or transfers of Company Securities by will or intestacy where (x) each recipient agrees in writing to be bound by the same restrictions in place for the undersigned pursuant to this letter for the duration of the Restricted Period and (y) no filing under Section 13 or Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act reporting a reduction in beneficial ownership of the Common Stock shall be required or shall be voluntarily made by the undersigned during the Restricted Period; (ii) exercise of options to purchase shares or Common Stock or the receipt of shares of Common Stock upon the vesting of restricted stock awards disclosed in the Prospectus (as defined in the Underwriting Agreement) or any related transfer of shares of Common Stock to the Company (x) deemed to occur upon the cashless exercise of such options or (y) for the purpose of paying the exercise price of such options or for paying taxes due as a result of the exercise of such options or as a result of the vesting of such options or any other equity incentive awards granted under a stock incentive plan of the Company existing as of the date hereof and described in the Prospectus, it being understood that (x) all shares of Common Stock received upon such exercise or transfer will remain subject to the restrictions of this agreement during the Restricted Period and (y) that any filing under Section 13 or Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act made during the Restricted Period shall clearly indicate in the footnotes thereto that (A) the filing relates to the circumstances described above and (B) no Company Securities were sold by the undersigned; (iii) transfers of Company Securities to any affiliate (as such term is defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended), limited partners, general partners, limited liability company members or stockholders of the undersigned or, if the undersigned is an entity, to any wholly-owned subsidiary of such entity, provided that in each case (x) the recipient agrees in writing to be bound by the same restrictions in place for the undersigned pursuant to this letter for the duration of the Restricted Period, and (y) no filing under Section 13 or Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act reporting a reduction in beneficial ownership of the Company Securities shall be required or shall be voluntarily made by the undersigned or the transferee during the Restricted Period; (iv) the establishment of a trading plan pursuant to Rule 10b5-1 under the Exchange Act for the transfer of shares of Common Stock, provided that such plan does not provide for the transfer of shares of Common Stock during the restricted period specified in this letter and no filing or other public announcement shall be required or shall be voluntarily made during the Restricted Period; (v) transfers pursuant to a trading plan established prior to the date hereof pursuant to Rule 10b5-1 under the Exchange Act for the transfer of shares of Common Stock by the undersigned, provided, that (x) any filing under Section 13 or Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act made during the Restricted Period shall clearly indicate in the footnotes thereto that the filing relates to the circumstances described above and (y) the undersigned does not otherwise voluntarily effect any public filing or report during the

 

2



 

Restricted Period; (vi)  transfers of Company Securities pursuant to a sale of, or an offer to purchase, 100% of the outstanding shares of Common Stock that is after the date of the Underwriting Agreement and is approved by the Company’s board of directors, whether pursuant to a merger, tender offer or otherwise, to a third party or group of third parties, provided that in the event that such merger, tender offer or other transaction is not completed, the Company Securities shall remain subject to the restrictions set forth herein.

 

The foregoing restrictions shall not apply to transactions relating to shares of Common Stock acquired by the undersigned in open market transactions subsequent to the closing of the Offering, provided that no filing under Section 13 or Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act shall be required or shall be voluntarily made by the undersigned in connection with subsequent sales of Common Stock or other securities acquired in open market purchases.  The undersigned also agrees and consents to the entry of stop transfer instructions with the Company’s transfer agent and registrar against the transfer of the undersigned’s shares of Common Stock except in compliance with the foregoing restrictions.

 

The undersigned understands that the Company and the Representatives are relying upon this agreement in proceeding toward consummation of the Offering.  The undersigned further understands that this agreement is irrevocable and shall be binding upon the undersigned’s heirs, legal representatives, successors and assigns.

 

This agreement shall automatically terminate upon the earliest to occur, if any, of (i) the date that the Company advises the Representatives, in writing, prior to the execution of the Underwriting Agreement, that it has determined not to proceed with the Offering, (ii) the date of termination of the Underwriting Agreement if prior to the closing of the Offering, or (iii) February 29, 2016 if the Offering has not been completed by such date.

 

[Remainder of page intentionally left blank]

 

3



 

 

Yours very truly,

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(Name of Officer, Director or Shareholder - Please Print)

 

 

 

 

 

(Signature)

 

 

 

 

 

(Name of Signatory if Shareholder is an entity - Please Print)

 

 

 

 

 

(Title of Signatory if Shareholder is an entity - Please Print)

 

 

 

Address:

 

4