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Seres Therapeutics (1S90) Risk Analysis

Public companies are required to disclose risks that can affect the business and impact the stock. These disclosures are known as “Risk Factors”. Companies disclose these risks in their yearly (Form 10-K), quarterly earnings (Form 10-Q), or “foreign private issuer” reports (Form 20-F). Risk factors show the challenges a company faces. Investors can consider the worst-case scenarios before making an investment. TipRanks’ Risk Analysis categorizes risks based on proprietary classification algorithms and machine learning. Seres Therapeutics disclosed 67 risk factors in its most recent earnings report. Seres Therapeutics reported the most risks in the “Tech & Innovation” category.

Risk Overview Q1, 2026

Source: the company's latest filing for the period ended Mar 31, 2026, filed May 05, 2026

Risk Distribution
67Risks
Sector Avg.Finance & CorporateTech & InnovationLegal & RegulatoryProductionAbility to SellMacro & Political
Finance & Corporate - Financial and accounting risks. Risks related to the execution of corporate activity and strategy

Risk Change Over Time

Seres Therapeutics disclosed risks per quarterNo. of Risks60657075Q3Q4Q12023Q4Q12024Q2Q3Q4Q12025Q2Q4Q12026Showing: Q1, 2026
Risks removedRisks addedRisks changedSeres Therapeutics Risk Factors
  • Debt & Financing - Risk 1
    We will need additional funding in order to advance development of our product candidates (including to conduct the Phase 2 study of SER-155 in allo-HSCT and to advance our earlier stage programs) and commercialize our product candidates, if approved. If we are unable to raise capital or secure a partnership or other business development transaction, we could be required to implement further cost-reduction measures, reduce or delay our product development programs or any potential future commercialization efforts, or pursue other alternatives which could include seeking relief under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code or winding down our operations.

    Our expenses may increase in connection with our ongoing activities, particularly if we further SER-155 clinical studies, and research, develop and initiate clinical trials of our product candidates. In addition, if we obtain marketing approval for any of our product candidates, we expect to incur costs related to product manufacturing and commercialization, including marketing, sales and distribution, and may not generate meaningful product revenues or collaboration profit in the near future. Furthermore, we have incurred and expect to continue to incur additional costs associated with operating as a public company. Accordingly, we will need to obtain substantial additional funding in connection with our continuing operations. If we are unable to raise capital or secure a partnership when needed or on attractive terms, we could be forced to reduce or delay our product development programs or potential future commercialization efforts, or pursue other alternatives, which could include seeking relief under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code or winding down our operations. We are actively seeking a business development transaction, which may include a partnership, to provide financial support and share in our vision to realize the clinical and commercial value of SER-155. Our strategic discussions are focused on supporting SER-155 clinical advancement to reduce the risk of bloodstream infections, including life-threatening and AMR infections, in medically vulnerable patient populations. We believe that SER-155 and other cultivated live biotherapeutic candidates could be developed in additional patient populations beyond allo-HSCT, including autologous-HSCT patients, cancer patients with neutropenia, CAR-T recipients, individuals with chronic liver disease, solid organ transplant recipients, as well as patients in the intensive care unit and long-term acute care facilities. We are also exploring collaborations to advance the development of our investigational biotherapeutics in inflammatory and immune diseases, including ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease. We have identified conditions and events that raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. Our future capital requirements will depend on many factors, including: - the cost of developing our pipeline product candidates, including SER-603 in IBD and SER-155 in irEC - the cost of conducting clinical trials for SER-155 in allo-HSCT and other targeted indications, and other product candidates in our pipeline;- the total amount of the Milestone Payments we may receive from the Transaction;- the cost of manufacturing our product candidates;- the scope, progress, results and costs of preclinical development, laboratory testing and clinical trials for our product candidates;- the costs, timing and outcome of regulatory review of our product candidates and research activities;- the costs, timing and revenue, if any, of potential future commercialization activities, including manufacturing, marketing, sales and distribution, for any of our product candidates for which we receive marketing approval;- the costs and timing of preparing, filing and prosecuting patent applications, maintaining and enforcing our intellectual property rights and defending any intellectual property-related claims;- the effect of competing technological and market developments; and - the extent to which we acquire or invest in businesses, products and technologies, including entering into licensing or collaboration arrangements for product candidates. Any additional fundraising efforts may divert our management from their day-to-day activities, which may adversely affect our ability to develop and commercialize our product candidates. In addition, we cannot guarantee that future financing will be available in sufficient amounts or on terms acceptable to us, if at all. Additionally, market volatility resulting from current macroeconomic conditions, such as the conflicts involving Ukraine and Russia and Israel and its surrounding regions, trade wars or related uncertainty between the U.S. and other nations, including China, or other governmental action related to tariffs or international trade agreements or policies, and related impacts, or other factors could also adversely impact our ability to access capital as and when needed. Moreover, the terms of any financing may adversely affect the holdings or the rights of our stockholders and the issuance of additional securities, whether equity or debt, by us, or the possibility of such issuance, may cause the market price of our shares to decline. The sale of additional equity or convertible securities would dilute all of our stockholders and may decrease our stock price. The incurrence of indebtedness could result in increased fixed payment obligations and we may be required to agree to certain restrictive covenants, such as limitations on our ability to incur additional debt, limitations on our ability to acquire, sell, or license intellectual property rights and other operating restrictions that could adversely impact our ability to conduct our business. We could also be required to seek funds through arrangements with collaborators or others at an earlier stage than otherwise would be desirable and we may be required to relinquish rights to some of our technologies or product candidates or otherwise agree to terms unfavorable to us, any of which may have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results and prospects. If we are unable to obtain funding on a timely basis, we may be required to significantly curtail, delay, or discontinue one or more of our research or development programs or any product candidates, or be unable to expand our operations or otherwise capitalize on our business opportunities, as desired, which could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. We may pursue strategic partnerships or collaborations or other alternatives with one or more parties. We can provide no assurance that we will be successful in securing any strategic partnership, collaboration, or alternative, or that any such partnership, collaboration or alternative that we secure will achieve its intended benefits or have a positive impact on our financial condition or business.

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Risk Highlights Q1, 2026

Main Risk Category
Tech & Innovation
With 19 Risks
Number of Disclosed Risks
67
No changes from last report
S&P 500 Average: 32
Recent Changes
0Risks added
0Risks removed
1Risks changed
Since Mar 2026
Number of Risk Changed
1
-7
From last report
S&P 500 Average: 1

Risk Word Cloud

if we are unable to protect the confidentiality of our trade secrets and know-how, our business and competitive position may be harmed.confidentiality of our trade secretsour relationships and any collaborators' relationships with customers, physicians and third-party payors are and will be subject to applicable anti-kickback, fraud and abuse and other healthcare laws and regulations, which could expose us or any collaborators to criminal sanctions, civil penalties, exclusion from governmental healthcare programs, contractual damages, reputational harm and diminished profits and future earnings.subject to applicable anti-kickbackfailure to keep up with evolving and conflicting laws, regulations, trends and stakeholder expectations relating to environmental, social and governance, or esg, practices or reporting could adversely impact our reputation, share price and access to and cost of capital or otherwise adversely impact our business.stakeholder expectations relating to environmentalif we are unable to establish effective sales, marketing and distribution capabilities or enter into agreements with third parties with such capabilities, we may not be successful in commercializing any of our product candidates if and when they are approved.unable to establish effective salesour ability to use our net operating loss carryforwards and research and development credits to offset future taxable income or income tax liabilities, respectively, may be subject to certain limitations.our net operating loss carryforwardsif we fail to maintain an effective system of internal control over financial reporting, we may not be able to accurately report our financial results or prevent fraud. as a result, stockholders could lose confidence in our financial and other public reporting, which would harm our business and the trading price of our common stock.effective system of internal controlwe rely, and expect to continue to rely, on third parties to conduct our clinical trials, and those third parties may not perform satisfactorily, including failing to meet deadlines for the completion of such trials.including failing to meet deadlinesour certificate of incorporation designates the court of chancery of the state of delaware, subject to certain exceptions, as the sole and exclusive forum for certain types of actions and proceedings that may be initiated by our stockholders and our bylaws designate the federal district courts of the united states as the exclusive forum for actions arising under the securities act of 1933, as amended, which could limit our stockholders' ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us or our directors, officers or employees.our certificate of incorporation designatesthe price of our common stock may be volatile and fluctuate substantially, which could result in substantial losses for purchasers of our common stock.purchasers of our common stockif we are not able to obtain, or if there are delays in obtaining, required regulatory approvals, we or any collaborators will not be able to commercialize our product candidates or will not be able to do so as soon as anticipated, and our ability to generate revenue will be materially impaired.our ability to generate revenue

Risk Factors Full Breakdown - Total Risks 67

Innovation / R&D8 | 11.9%
  • Innovation / R&D - Risk 1
    Evaluation of our product candidates in investigator-sponsored clinical trials (ISTs) may expose us to additional risks that could impair the development of our product candidates.

    We are currently supporting an IST with Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center to evaluate SER-155 in patients with immune checkpoint related enterocolitis, and may in the future support other ISTs for our product candidates that are designed and managed by independent investigators or institutions. While we believe these clinical trials have the potential to provide supportive data that may further the development of our product candidates, we do not directly control the clinical development process, including, but not limited to, the initiation, enrollment, safety reporting, or conduct of these trials. As a result, ISTs may be subject to significant delays, fail to comply with GCPs or other regulatory requirements, be terminated prematurely by the investigator or applicable IRBs or ethics committees, or produce data that is not useful for, or acceptable to, regulatory authorities for purposes of obtaining regulatory approval. ISTs may also identify safety or tolerability concerns that could adversely affect the development of our product candidates, including through the imposition of clinical holds, or otherwise subject us to liability. Moreover, if the data from any ISTs differ from the data we have observed in our sponsored clinical studies, such differences could potentially require us to conduct additional clinical trials or otherwise delay or prevent regulatory approval from the FDA or other regulatory authorities. Any of these factors could adversely impact our reputation, delay our development timelines, or negatively affect our development and commercialization efforts.

  • Innovation / R&D - Risk 2
    We may seek orphan drug designation for some of our product candidates but may not be able to obtain it.

    We may seek orphan drug designation for some of our future product candidates. Regulatory authorities in some jurisdictions, including the United States and Europe, may designate drugs and biologics for relatively small patient populations as orphan drugs. In the United States, the FDA may designate a drug or biologic as an orphan drug if it is intended to treat a rare disease or condition, which is defined as a disease or condition that affects fewer than 200,000 individuals in the United States, or a patient population greater than 200,000 in the United States where there is no reasonable expectation that the cost of developing the drug will be recovered from sales in the United States. Orphan drug designation must be requested before submitting a BLA. In the United States, orphan drug designation entitles a party to financial incentives such as opportunities for grant funding towards clinical trial costs, tax advantages and application fee waivers. After the FDA grants orphan drug designation, the generic identity of the drug and its potential orphan use are disclosed publicly by the FDA. In addition, if a product with an orphan drug designation subsequently receives the first marketing approval for the disease or condition for which it has such designation, the product is entitled to a period of marketing exclusivity, which precludes the FDA or other regulatory authorities from approving another marketing application for the same drug and same disease or condition during that time period, except in limited circumstances, such as a showing of clinical superiority over the product with orphan exclusivity or where the manufacturer is unable to assure sufficient product quantity for the orphan patient population. The applicable period is seven years in the United States and ten years in the EU. The European exclusivity period can be reduced to six years if, at the end of the fifth year, it is established that a product no longer meets the criteria for orphan designation, if the product is sufficiently profitable so that market exclusivity is no longer justified, or the prevalence of the condition has increased above the orphan designation threshold. Orphan drug exclusivity may be lost if the FDA or other regulatory authorities determine that the request for designation was materially defective or if the manufacturer is unable to assure a sufficient quantity of the drug or biologic to meet the needs of patients with the rare disease or condition. Exclusive marketing rights in the United States may also be unavailable if we or our collaborators seek approval for an indication broader than the orphan designated indication and may be lost if the FDA later determines that the request for designation was materially defective. Even if we obtain orphan drug designation, we may not be the first to obtain marketing approval for any particular orphan indication due to the uncertainties associated with developing pharmaceutical products. Further, even if we obtain orphan drug exclusivity for a product candidate, that exclusivity for a product may not effectively protect the product from competition because different drugs and biologics can be approved for the same disease or condition. Even after an orphan drug or biologic is approved, the FDA or other regulatory authorities can subsequently approve the same drug or biologic for the same disease or condition if the FDA or other regulatory authorities conclude that the later drug is clinically superior in that it is shown to be safer, more effective or makes a major contribution to patient care. Orphan drug designation neither shortens the development time or regulatory review time nor gives the drug any advantage in the regulatory review or approval process.

  • Innovation / R&D - Risk 3
    A Breakthrough Therapy, or other similar designations by the FDA for our product candidates may not lead to a faster development, regulatory review or approval process, and it does not increase the likelihood that our product candidates will receive marketing approval.

    In December 2024, we received Breakthrough Therapy designation for SER-155 for the reduction of BSIs in patients 18 years and older undergoing allo-HSCT. We may seek these or other designations for future product candidates. A Breakthrough Therapy is defined as a drug or biologic that is intended to treat a serious or life-threatening disease or condition, and preliminary clinical evidence indicates that the drug or biologic may demonstrate substantial improvement over existing therapies on one or more clinically significant endpoints, such as substantial treatment effects observed in early clinical development. For drugs or biologics that have been designated as breakthrough therapies, interaction and communication between the FDA and the sponsor can help to identify the most efficient path for clinical development. Drugs designated as breakthrough therapies by the FDA also receive all of the Fast Track program features, including eligibility for rolling review of the associated marketing application. Designation as a Breakthrough Therapy is within the discretion of the FDA. Accordingly, even if we believe one of our product candidates meets the criteria for designation as a Breakthrough Therapy, the FDA may disagree and instead determine not to make such designation. The receipt of a Breakthrough Therapy designation for a product candidate may not result in a faster development process, review or approval compared to conventional FDA procedures and does not assure ultimate approval by the FDA. In addition, not all products designated as breakthrough therapies ultimately will be shown to have the substantial improvement over available therapies suggested by the preliminary clinical evidence at the time of designation. As a result, if a Breakthrough Therapy designation for any future designation we receive is no longer supported by subsequent data, the FDA may rescind the designation.

  • Innovation / R&D - Risk 4
    We are early in our development efforts of our product candidates and may not be successful in our efforts to use our reverse translational platform to build a pipeline of product candidates and develop additional marketable drugs.

    We are using our reverse translational platform to develop live biotherapeutic candidates. We are at an early stage of development of our product candidates and our platform may never lead to approvable or marketable drugs. We are developing product candidates that are designed to reduce infection and treat diseases where the microbiome is implicated. We may have problems applying our technologies to these areas, and our product candidates may not be effective in reducing infection and disease. Our product candidates may not be suitable for clinical development, including as a result of their harmful side effects, limited efficacy or other characteristics that indicate that they are unlikely to be products that will receive marketing approval and, if approved, achieve market acceptance. The success of our product candidates will depend on several factors, including the following: - completion of preclinical studies and clinical trials with positive results;- receipt of marketing approvals from applicable regulatory authorities;- obtaining and maintaining patent and trade secret protection and regulatory exclusivity for our product candidates;- making arrangements with third-party manufacturers for, or establishing our own, commercial manufacturing capabilities;- launching commercial sales of our product candidates, if and when approved, whether alone or in collaboration with others;- entering into new collaborations throughout the development process as appropriate, from preclinical studies through to commercialization;- acceptance of our product candidates, if and when approved, by patients, the medical community and third-party payors;- effectively competing with other therapies;- obtaining and maintaining coverage and adequate reimbursement by third-party payors, including government payors, for our product candidates, if approved;- protecting our rights in our intellectual property portfolio;- operating without infringing or violating the valid and enforceable patents or other intellectual property of third parties;- maintaining a continued acceptable safety profile of our product candidates, if approved, following approval; and - maintaining and growing an organization of scientists and business people who can develop and commercialize our product candidates and technology. If we or our collaborators do not successfully develop and commercialize our product candidates we will not be able to obtain product revenue or collaboration profit in future periods, which likely would result in significant harm to our financial position and adversely affect our stock price.

  • Innovation / R&D - Risk 5
    Our product candidates are based on live biotherapeutics, which is a novel approach to therapeutic intervention.

    Our product candidates are based on live biotherapeutics, a novel class of biological drugs, which are designed to treat disease by modulating the microbiome to restore health by repairing the function of a disrupted microbiome to a non-disease state. To our knowledge, VOWST is the first oral product based on this approach to receive FDA approval. We cannot be certain that our approach will lead to the development of additional approvable or marketable products or that we will be able to manufacture at commercial scale. Finally, the FDA or other regulatory authorities may lack experience in evaluating the safety and efficacy of novel product candidates based on live biotherapeutics, which could result in a longer than expected regulatory review process, increase our expected development costs and delay or prevent any potential future commercialization of our product candidates.

  • Innovation / R&D - Risk 6
    Clinical drug development involves a risky, lengthy and expensive process, with an uncertain outcome. We may incur additional costs or experience delays in completing, or ultimately be unable to complete, the development and potential future commercialization of our product candidates.

    It is difficult to predict when or if any of our product candidates will prove effective and safe in humans or will receive regulatory approval, and the risk of failure through the development process is high. Before obtaining marketing approval from regulatory authorities for the sale of any product candidate, we must complete preclinical development and then conduct extensive clinical trials to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of our product candidates in humans. Clinical testing is expensive, difficult to design and implement, can take many years to complete and is uncertain as to outcome. A failure of one or more clinical trials can occur at any stage of testing, and our clinical trials may not be successful. The outcome of preclinical testing and early clinical trials may not be predictive of the success of later clinical trials, and interim or preliminary results of a clinical trial, that we may from time to time announce, do not necessarily predict final results. A number of companies in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries have suffered significant setbacks in advanced clinical trials due to lack of efficacy or adverse safety profiles, notwithstanding promising results in earlier studies, and we cannot be certain that we will not face similar setbacks. In addition, we cannot be certain as to what type and how many clinical trials the FDA, or other regulatory authorities, will require us to conduct before we may successfully gain approval to market any of our product candidates. Prior to approving a new therapeutic product, the FDA (or other regulatory authorities) generally requires that safety and efficacy, or with respect to biological products such as our live biotherapeutic candidates, safety, purity and potency, be demonstrated in two adequate and well-controlled clinical trials. In some situations, evidence from a Phase 2 trial and a Phase 3 trial or from a single Phase 3 trial can be sufficient for FDA approval, such as in cases where the trial or trials provide highly reliable and statistically strong evidence of an important clinical benefit. We may experience numerous unforeseen events during, or as a result of, clinical trials that could delay or prevent our ability to receive marketing approval or commercialize our product candidates, including: - inability to generate sufficient preclinical, toxicology, or other in vivo or in vitro data to support the initiation or continuation of clinical trials;- regulatory authorities or institutional review boards or ethics committees may not authorize us or our investigators to commence a clinical trial or conduct a clinical trial at a prospective trial site;- failures or delays in reaching agreement on acceptable clinical trial contracts or clinical trial protocols with prospective trial sites;- clinical trials of our product candidates may demonstrate undesirable side effects or produce negative or inconclusive results, and we may decide, or regulators may require us, to conduct additional clinical trials or abandon product development programs;- the number of patients required for clinical trials of our product candidates may be larger than we anticipate, enrollment in these clinical trials may be slower than we anticipate or participants may drop out of these clinical trials at a higher rate than we anticipate;- our third-party contractors may fail to comply with regulatory requirements or meet their contractual obligations to us in a timely manner, or at all;- we may have to suspend or terminate clinical trials of our product candidates for various reasons, including a finding that the participants are being exposed to unacceptable health risks;- regulatory authorities or institutional review boards or ethics committees may require that we or our investigators suspend or terminate clinical research for various reasons, including noncompliance with regulatory requirements or a finding that the participants are being exposed to unacceptable health risks;- the cost of clinical trials of our product candidates may be greater than we anticipate;- the supply or quality of our product candidates or other materials necessary to conduct clinical trials of our product candidates may be insufficient or inadequate;- regulatory authorities may revise the requirements for approving our product candidates, or such requirements may not be as we anticipate; and - regarding trials managed by any current or future collaborators, our collaborators may face any of the above issues, and may conduct clinical trials in ways they view as advantageous to them but potentially suboptimal for us. If we are required to conduct additional clinical trials or other testing of our product candidates beyond those that we currently contemplate, if we are unable to successfully complete clinical trials of our product candidates or other testing, if the results of these trials or tests are not positive or are only modestly positive or if there are safety concerns, we may: - be delayed in obtaining marketing approval for our product candidates;- lose the support of current or any future collaborators, requiring us to bear more of the burden of development of certain compounds;- not obtain marketing approval at all;- obtain marketing approval in some countries and not in others;- obtain approval for indications or patient populations that are not as broad as we intend or desire;- obtain approval with labeling that includes significant use or distribution restrictions or safety warnings;- be subject to additional post-marketing testing requirements;- be subject to increased pricing pressure; or - have the product removed from the market after obtaining marketing approval. Clinical trials must be conducted in accordance with the FDA and other applicable regulatory authorities' legal requirements, regulations and guidelines, and remain subject to oversight by these governmental agencies and ethics committees or IRBs at the medical institutions where such clinical trials are conducted. We could also encounter delays if a clinical trial is suspended or terminated by us, by the IRBs of the institutions in which such trials are being conducted, by a Data Safety Monitoring Board for such trial or by the FDA or comparable foreign regulatory authorities. These authorities may impose such a suspension or termination due to a number of factors, including failure to conduct the clinical trial in accordance with regulatory requirements or applicable clinical trial protocols, adverse findings from inspections of clinical trial sites by the FDA or comparable foreign regulatory authorities, unforeseen safety issues or adverse side effects, failure to demonstrate a benefit from using a product candidate, changes in governmental regulations or administrative actions or lack of adequate funding to continue the clinical trial. In addition, changes in regulatory requirements and policies may occur, and we may need to amend clinical trial protocols to comply with these changes. Amendments may require us to resubmit our clinical trial protocols to regulators, IRBs or ethics committees for reexamination, which may impact the costs, timing or successful completion of a clinical trial. Additional clinical trials or changes in our development plans could cause us to incur significant development costs, delay or prevent the potential future commercialization of our product candidates or otherwise adversely affect our business. In addition, many of the factors that cause, or lead to, the termination suspension of, or a delay in the commencement or completion of, clinical trials may also ultimately lead to the denial of regulatory approval of a product candidate. We do not know whether any of our preclinical studies or clinical trials will begin as planned, will need to be restructured or will be completed on schedule, or at all. Significant preclinical or clinical trial delays also could shorten any periods during which we may have the exclusive right to commercialize our product candidates or allow our competitors to bring products to market before we do, potentially impairing our ability to successfully commercialize our product candidates and harming our business and results of operations. In addition, the FDA's and other regulatory authorities' policies may change and additional government regulations may be enacted with respect to clinical trials. For instance, the regulatory landscape related to clinical trials in the European Union, or EU, recently evolved. The EU Clinical Trials Regulation, or CTR, which was adopted in April 2014 and repeals the EU Clinical Trials Directive, became applicable on January 31, 2022. While the EU Clinical Trials Directive required a separate clinical trial application, or CTA, to be submitted in each member state in which the clinical trial takes place, to both the competent national health authority and an independent ethics committee, the CTR introduces a centralized process and only requires the submission of a single application for multi-center trials. The CTR allows sponsors to make a single submission to both the competent authority and an ethics committee in each member state, leading to a single decision per member state. The assessment procedure of the CTA has been harmonized as well, including a joint assessment by all member states concerned, and a separate assessment by each member state with respect to specific requirements related to its own territory, including ethics rules. Each member state's decision is communicated to the sponsor via the centralized EU portal. Once the CTA is approved, clinical study development may proceed. The CTR transition period ended on January 31, 2025, and all clinical trials (and related applications) are now fully subject to the provisions of the CTR. Compliance with the CTR requirements by us and our third-party service providers, such as contract research organizations, or CROs, may impact our developments plans. The UK regulatory framework in relation to clinical trials is derived from the now-repealed EU Clinical Trials Directive (as implemented into UK law, through the Medicines for Human Use (Clinical Trials) Regulations 2004, as amended). In April 2025, the UK government adopted the Medicines for Human Use (Clinical Trials) Amendment Regulations. The amendment, which will take full effect in April 2026, aims to provide a more flexible regime to make it easier to conduct clinical trials in the UK, increase the transparency of clinical trials conducted in the UK and make clinical trials more patient centered. If we are slow or unable to adapt to changes in existing requirements or the adoption of new requirements or policies governing clinical trials, our business may be impacted.

  • Innovation / R&D - Risk 7
    Delays or difficulties in the enrollment of patients in clinical trials, could result in our receipt of necessary regulatory approvals being delayed or prevented.

    Successful and timely completion of clinical trials will require that we enroll a sufficient number of patient candidates. These trials and other trials we conduct may be subject to delays for a variety of reasons, including as a result of patient enrollment taking longer than anticipated, patient withdrawal or adverse events. These types of developments could cause us to delay the trial or halt further development. Our clinical trials will compete with other clinical trials that are in the same therapeutic areas as our product candidates, and this competition reduces the number and types of patients available to us, as some patients who might have opted to enroll in our trials may instead opt to enroll in a trial being conducted by one of our competitors. Because the number of qualified clinical investigators and clinical trial sites is limited, we expect to conduct some of our clinical trials at the same clinical trial sites that some of our competitors use, which will reduce the number of patients who are available for our clinical trials at such clinical trial sites. In addition, there may be limited patient pools from which to draw for clinical studies. In addition to the rarity of some diseases, the eligibility criteria of our clinical studies will further limit the pool of available study participants as we will require that patients have specific characteristics that we can measure or to assure their disease is either severe enough or not too advanced to include them in a study. Patient enrollment is also affected by other factors including: - the severity of the disease under investigation;- the patient eligibility criteria for the study in question;- the perceived risks and benefits of the product candidate under study;- the availability of other treatments for the disease under investigation;- the existence of competing clinical trials;- the efforts to facilitate timely enrollment in clinical trials;- our payments for conducting clinical trials;- the patient referral practices of physicians;- the burden, or perceived burden, of the clinical study;- the ability to monitor patients adequately during and after treatment; and - the proximity and availability of clinical trial sites for prospective patients. Our inability to enroll a sufficient number of patients for our clinical trials or a delayed rate of enrollment would result in significant delays and could require us to abandon one or more clinical trials altogether.

  • Innovation / R&D - Risk 8
    Interim "top-line" and preliminary data from our clinical trials that we announce or publish from time to time may change as more patient data become available and are subject to audit and verification procedures that could result in material changes in the final data.

    From time to time, we may publicly disclose interim, top-line or preliminary data from our preclinical studies and clinical trials, which is based on a preliminary analysis of then-available data, and the results and related findings and conclusions are subject to change following a more comprehensive review of the data related to the particular study or trial. We also make assumptions, estimations, calculations and conclusions as part of our analyses of data, and we may not have received or had the opportunity to fully and carefully evaluate all data. As a result, the top-line or preliminary results that we report may differ from future results of the same studies, or different conclusions or considerations may qualify such results, once additional data have been received and fully evaluated. Top-line or preliminary data also remain subject to audit and verification procedures that may result in the final data being materially different from the top-line or preliminary data we previously published. As a result, top-line and preliminary data should be viewed with caution until the final data are available. Adverse differences between interim data and final data could significantly harm our business prospects. Further, disclosure of interim data by us or by our competitors could result in volatility in the price of our common stock. Further, others, including regulatory authorities, may not accept or agree with our assumptions, estimates, calculations, conclusions or analyses or may interpret or weigh the importance of data differently, which could impact the value of the particular program, the approvability or commercialization of the particular product candidate or product and our company in general. In addition, the information we choose to publicly disclose regarding a particular study or clinical trial is based on what is typically extensive information, and you or others may not agree with what we determine is material or otherwise appropriate information to include in our disclosure. If the interim, top-line or preliminary data that we report differ from actual results, or if others, including regulatory authorities, disagree with the conclusions reached, our ability to obtain approval for, and commercialize, our product candidates may be harmed, which could harm our business, operating results, prospects or financial condition.

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What are “Risk Factors”?
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How do companies disclose their risk factors?
Publicly traded companies initially disclose their risk factors to the SEC through their S-1 filings as part of the IPO process. Additionally, companies must provide a complete list of risk factors in their Annual Reports (Form 10-K) or (Form 20-F) for “foreign private issuers”. Quarterly Reports also include a section on risk factors (Form 10-Q) where companies are only required to update any changes since the previous report. According to the SEC, risk factors should be reported concisely, logically and in “plain English” so investors can understand them.
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Use the Risk Factors tab to get data about the risk factors of any company in which you are considering investing. You can easily see the most significant risks a company is facing. Additionally, you can find out which risk factors a company has added, removed or adjusted since its previous disclosure. You can also see how a company’s risk factors compare to others in its sector. Without reading company reports or participating in conference calls, you would most likely not have access to this sort of information, which is usually not included in press releases or other public announcements. A simplified analysis of risk factors is unique to TipRanks.
What are all the risk factor categories?
TipRanks has identified 6 major categories of risk factors and a number of subcategories for each. You can see how these categories are broken down in the list below. 1. Financial & Corporate Accounting & Financial Operations - risks related to accounting loss, value of intangible assets, financial statements, value of intangible assets, financial reporting, estimates, guidance, company profitability, dividends, fluctuating results. Share Price & Shareholder Rights – risks related to things that impact share prices and the rights of shareholders, including analyst ratings, major shareholder activity, trade volatility, liquidity of shares, anti-takeover provisions, international listing, dual listing. Debt & Financing – risks related to debt, funding, financing and interest rates, financial investments. Corporate Activity and Growth – risks related to restructuring, M&As, joint ventures, execution of corporate strategy, strategic alliances. 2. Legal & Regulatory Litigation and Legal Liabilities – risks related to litigation/ lawsuits against the company. Regulation – risks related to compliance, GDPR, and new legislation. Environmental / Social – risks related to environmental regulation and to data privacy. Taxation & Government Incentives – risks related to taxation and changes in government incentives. 3. Production Costs – risks related to costs of production including commodity prices, future contracts, inventory. Supply Chain – risks related to the company’s suppliers. Manufacturing – risks related to the company’s manufacturing process including product quality and product recalls. Human Capital – risks related to recruitment, training and retention of key employees, employee relationships & unions labor disputes, pension, and post retirement benefits, medical, health and welfare benefits, employee misconduct, employee litigation. 4. Technology & Innovation Innovation / R&D – risks related to innovation and new product development. Technology – risks related to the company’s reliance on technology. Cyber Security – risks related to securing the company’s digital assets and from cyber attacks. Trade Secrets & Patents – risks related to the company’s ability to protect its intellectual property and to infringement claims against the company as well as piracy and unlicensed copying. 5. Ability to Sell Demand – risks related to the demand of the company’s goods and services including seasonality, reliance on key customers. Competition – risks related to the company’s competition including substitutes. Sales & Marketing – risks related to sales, marketing, and distribution channels, pricing, and market penetration. Brand & Reputation – risks related to the company’s brand and reputation. 6. Macro & Political Economy & Political Environment – risks related to changes in economic and political conditions. Natural and Human Disruptions – risks related to catastrophes, floods, storms, terror, earthquakes, coronavirus pandemic/COVID-19. International Operations – risks related to the global nature of the company. Capital Markets – risks related to exchange rates and trade, cryptocurrency.