Item 1. Financial Statements
Item 1. Financial Statements
ORUKA THERAPEUTICS, INC.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(UNAUDITED)
(In thousands, except share and per share data)
June 30,
December 31,
2025
2024
Assets
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents
$ 65,396
$ 61,575
Marketable securities, current
263,010
314,073
Prepaid expenses and other current assets
3,606
1,221
Total current assets
332,012
376,869
Marketable securities, long-term
23,053
18,069
Property and equipment, net
174
162
Operating lease right-of-use assets
2,076
876
Other non-current assets
103
43
Total assets
$ 357,418
$ 396,019
Liabilities, Convertible Preferred Stock and Stockholders’ Equity
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable
$ 4,664
$ 3,462
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities
3,578
3,346
Operating lease liability, current
660
213
Related party common stock warrant liability
3,089
—
Related party accounts payable and other current liabilities
119
6,022
Total current liabilities
12,110
13,043
Operating lease liability, non-current
1,666
755
Total liabilities
13,776
13,798
Commitments and contingencies (Note 11)
Stockholders’ equity:
Series B non-voting convertible preferred stock, $ 0.001 par value; 251,504 shares authorized as of June 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024; 137,138 shares issued and outstanding as of June 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024
2,931
2,931
Common stock, $ 0.001 par value; 545,000,000 shares authorized as of
June 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024; 37,450,745 and 37,440,510 shares issued and outstanding as of June 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024,
respectively
37
37
Additional paid-in capital
469,998
463,018
Accumulated other comprehensive loss
( 27 )
( 41 )
Accumulated deficit
( 129,297 )
( 83,724 )
Total stockholders’ equity
343,642
382,221
Total liabilities, convertible preferred stock and stockholders’ equity
$ 357,418
$ 396,019
The accompanying notes are an integral part of
these condensed consolidated financial statements.
1
ORUKA THERAPEUTICS, INC.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE LOSS
(UNAUDITED)
(In thousands, except share and per share data)
Three Months Ended
June 30,
2025
Three Months Ended
June 30,
2024
Six Months Ended
June 30,
2025
Period from
February 6,
2024
(Inception) to
June 30,
2024
Operating expenses:
Research and development (1)
$ 24,087
$ 18,673
$ 44,012
$ 23,866
General and administrative (2)
4,342
2,820
9,503
4,490
Total operating expenses
28,429
21,493
53,515
28,356
Loss from operations
( 28,429 )
( 21,493 )
( 53,515 )
( 28,356 )
Other income (expense):
Interest income
3,857
—
7,949
—
Interest expense (3)
—
( 750 )
—
( 964 )
Other expense, net
( 2 )
—
( 7 )
—
Total other income (expense), net
3,855
( 750 )
7,942
( 964 )
Net loss
( 24,574 )
( 22,243 )
( 45,573 )
( 29,320 )
Net change in unrealized gains (losses) on marketable securities
( 21 )
—
14
—
Comprehensive loss
$ ( 24,595 )
$ ( 22,243 )
$ ( 45,559 )
$ ( 29,320 )
Net loss per share attributable to common stockholders, basic and diluted
$ ( 0.46 )
$ ( 6.96 )
$ ( 0.85 )
$ ( 9.17 )
Net loss per share attributable to Series B non-voting convertible preferred stockholders, basic and diluted
$ ( 38.26 )
$ —
$ ( 71.23 )
$ —
Weighted-average shares used in computing net loss per share attributable to common stockholders, basic and diluted
42,095,951
3,197,975
41,888,906
3,197,975
Weighted-average shares used in computing net loss per share attributable to Series B non-voting convertible preferred stockholders, basic and diluted
137,138
—
137,138
—
(1) Includes related party amounts of $ 4,281 and $ 15,379 for the three months ended June 30, 2025 and June 30, 2024, respectively, and $ 6,403 and $ 20,430 for the six months ended June 30, 2025 and the period from February 6, 2024 (inception) to June 30, 2024, respectively
(2) Includes related party amounts of $ 12 and $ 420 for the three months ended June 30, 2025 and June 30, 2024, respectively, and $ 122 and $ 1,268 for the six months ended June 30, 2025 and the period from February 6, 2024 (inception) to June 30, 2024, respectively
(3) Includes related party amounts of nil and $ 750 for the three months ended June 30, 2025 and June 30, 2024, respectively, and nil and $ 964 for the six months ended June 30, 2025 and the period from February 6, 2024 (inception) to June 30, 2024, respectively
The accompanying notes are an integral part of
these condensed consolidated financial statements.
2
ORUKA THERAPEUTICS, INC.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CONVERTIBLE PREFERRED STOCK AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY (DEFICIT)
(UNAUDITED)
(In thousands, except share data)
Series
B
Non-Voting
Convertible
Preferred Stock
Common
Stock
Additional
Paid-In
Accumulated
Other
Comprehensive
Accumulated
Total
Stockholders’
Shares
Amount
Shares
Amount
Capital
Gain
(Loss)
Deficit
Equity
Balances as of December
31, 2024
137,138
$ 2,931
37,440,510
$ 37
$ 463,018
$ ( 41 )
$ ( 83,724 )
$ 382,221
Stock-based compensation expense
—
—
—
—
3,468
—
—
3,468
Net change in unrealized gains
(losses) on marketable securities
—
—
—
—
—
35
—
35
Net loss
—
—
—
—
—
—
( 20,999 )
( 20,999 )
Balances as of March 31, 2025
137,138
$ 2,931
37,440,510
$ 37
$ 466,486
$ ( 6 )
$ ( 104,723 )
$ 364,725
Issuance of common stock under
employee stock purchase plan
—
—
10,235
—
109
—
—
109
Stock-based compensation expense
—
—
—
—
3,403
—
—
3,403
Net change in unrealized gains
(losses) on marketable securities
—
—
—
—
—
( 21 )
—
( 21 )
Net loss
—
—
—
—
—
—
( 24,574 )
( 24,574 )
Balances
as of June 30, 2025
137,138
$ 2,931
37,450,745
$ 37
$ 469,998
$ ( 27 )
$ ( 129,297 )
$ 343,642
Series
A
Convertible Preferred Stock
Series
B Non-Voting
Convertible Preferred Stock
Common
Stock
Additional Paid-In
Accumulated Other Comprehensive
Accumulated
Total
Stockholders’
Shares
Amount
Shares
Amount
Shares
Amount
Capital
Gain
(Loss)
Deficit
Deficit
Balances
as of February 6, 2024 (Inception)
—
$ —
—
$ —
3,197,975
$ 3
$ ( 2 )
$ —
$ —
$ 1
Issuance
of common stock
—
—
—
—
2,207,553
2
( 2 )
—
—
—
Issuance of Series A convertible preferred stock, net of issuance costs of $ 69
20,000,000
2,931
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
Stock-based
compensation expense
—
—
—
—
—
—
17
—
—
17
Net loss
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
( 7,077 )
( 7,077 )
Balances
as of March 31, 2024
20,000,000
$ 2,931
—
$ —
5,405,528
$ 5
$ 13
$ —
$ ( 7,077 )
$ ( 7,059 )
Stock-based
compensation expense
—
—
—
—
—
—
321
—
—
321
Net loss
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
—
( 22,243 )
( 22,243 )
Balances
as of June 30, 2024
20,000,000
$ 2,931
—
$ —
5,405,528
$ 5
$ 334
$ —
$ ( 29,320 )
$ ( 28,981 )
The accompanying notes are an integral part of
these condensed consolidated financial statements.
3
ORUKA THERAPEUTICS, INC.
CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(UNAUDITED)
(In thousands)
Six Months Ended
June 30,
2025
Period from
February 6,
2024
(Inception) to
June 30,
2024
Cash flows from operating activities:
Net loss
$ ( 45,573 )
$ ( 29,320 )
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities:
Stock-based compensation expense
9,960
768
Net accretion of premiums and discounts on marketable securities
( 3,300 )
—
Non-cash interest expense
—
3
Non-cash lease expense
187
4
Depreciation expense
35
—
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
Subscription receivable
—
1
Prepaid expenses and other current assets
( 765 )
( 1,721 )
Other non-current assets
( 60 )
( 43 )
Accounts payable
1,202
2,022
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities
232
683
Operating lease liability
( 29 )
4
Related party accounts payable and other current liabilities
( 5,903 )
15,437
Accrued interest payable, related party
—
961
Net cash used in operating activities
( 44,014 )
( 11,201 )
Cash flows from investing activities:
Purchases of property and equipment
( 47 )
—
Purchases of marketable securities
( 152,289 )
—
Proceeds from maturities of marketable securities
200,062
—
Net cash provided by investing activities
47,726
—
Cash flows from financing activities:
Proceeds from issuance of Pre-Merger Oruka Series A Preferred Stock, net of issuance costs paid
—
2,931
Proceeds from issuance of notes payable to related party, net of issuance costs paid
—
24,980
Payment of deferred offering costs
—
( 1,589 )
Proceeds from issuance of common stock
109
—
Net cash provided by financing activities
109
26,322
Net increase in cash and cash equivalents
3,821
15,121
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of period
61,575
—
Cash and cash equivalents at end of period
$ 65,396
$ 15,121
Supplemental disclosures of non-cash operating and financing activities:
Operating lease liability arising from obtaining operating right-of-use asset
$ 1,387
$ 982
Deferred offering costs in accrued expenses and other current liabilities
$ —
$ 726
The accompanying notes are an integral part of
these condensed consolidated financial statements.
4
ORUKA THERAPEUTICS, INC.
NOTES TO UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
1. Nature
of the Business and Basis of Presentation
Background and Basis of Presentation
Oruka Therapeutics, Inc.,
together with its subsidiaries (collectively, the “Company”), formerly known as ARCA biopharma, Inc. (“ARCA”),
is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company that is the result of the reverse recapitalization discussed below. Prior to the reverse
recapitalization, the private company Oruka Therapeutics, Inc. (“Pre-Merger Oruka”) was established and incorporated under
the laws of the state of Delaware on February 6, 2024 (referred to in the Notes as the inception of the Company). The Company is
headquartered in Menlo Park, California. The Company is led by the Pre-Merger Oruka management team and is focused on developing biologics
for psoriasis and other inflammatory and immunology indications.
The condensed consolidated
financial statements and accompanying notes are prepared in accordance with United States (“U.S.”) generally accepted accounting
principles (“GAAP”) for interim financial reporting and the rules and regulations of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
(the “SEC”) and therefore do not include all information and disclosures normally included in the annual consolidated financial
statements. The accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements reflect the operations of the Company and its wholly-owned subsidiaries.
Intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.
Certain information and footnote
disclosures normally included in the financial statements prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP have been condensed or omitted pursuant
to such rules and regulations. Accordingly, these condensed consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the audited
financial statements and the related notes thereto for the period ended December 31, 2024 included in the Company’s Annual Report
on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024 filed with the SEC on March 6, 2025 (the “Annual Report”). The information
as of December 31, 2024, included in the condensed consolidated balance sheets was derived from the Company’s audited financial
statements. These unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared on the same basis as the Company’s
annual consolidated financial statements, and in the opinion of the Company’s management, reflect all adjustments, which include
only normal recurring adjustments necessary for a fair statement of the Company’s condensed consolidated financial statements.
The results for the three
and six months ended June 30, 2025 are not necessarily indicative of results that may be expected for the year ending December 31, 2025
or for any other interim period or for any other future year.
Reverse Recapitalization, Pre-Closing Financing, and Reverse
Stock Split
On August 29, 2024 (the “Closing”),
the Company completed the acquisition (the “Merger”) of Pre-Merger Oruka pursuant to an Agreement and Plan of Merger and Reorganization,
dated as of April 3, 2024 (the “Merger Agreement”). Following the transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement, on August
29, 2024, the Company changed its name from “ARCA biopharma, Inc.” to “Oruka Therapeutics, Inc.” and the Company
effected a 1-for-12 reverse stock split (the “Reverse Stock Split”) of the common stock, par value $ 0.001 per share, of the
Company (“Company Common Stock”), which became effective on September 3, 2024. All references to common stock, options to
purchase common stock, outstanding common stock warrants, common stock share data, per share data, and related information contained in
the condensed consolidated financial statements have been retrospectively adjusted to reflect the effect of the Reverse Stock Split for
all periods presented, unless otherwise specifically indicated or the context otherwise requires.
Immediately prior to the
execution and delivery of the Merger Agreement, certain new and existing investors of Pre-Merger Oruka entered into a subscription agreement
with Pre-Merger Oruka (that was subsequently amended and restated in July 2024, the “Subscription Agreement”), pursuant to
which, and on the terms and subject to the conditions of which, immediately prior to the Closing, those investors purchased shares of
common stock of Pre-Merger Oruka (“Pre-Merger Oruka Common Stock”) and Pre-Merger Oruka pre-funded warrants for gross proceeds
of approximately $ 275.0 million (which includes $ 25.0 million of proceeds previously received from the issuance of the Convertible Note
(as defined in Note 6) and accrued interest on such note which converted to shares of Pre-Merger Oruka Common Stock) (the “Pre-Closing
Financing”). The Company incurred transaction costs of $ 20.5 million which were recorded as a reduction to additional paid-in capital
in the condensed consolidated financial statements.
5
In connection with the Closing,
the shares of Pre-Merger Oruka Common Stock were converted into shares of Company Common Stock and pre-funded warrants of Company Common
Stock in accordance with the Exchange Ratio (as defined below and determined by the terms of the Merger Agreement). Moreover, as
part of the Closing, (i) then-issued and outstanding shares of Pre-Merger Oruka Common Stock (including outstanding and unvested Pre-Merger
Oruka restricted stock and shares of Pre-Merger Oruka Common Stock issued in connection with the Subscription Agreement) were converted
into the right to receive a number of shares of Company Common Stock, equal to the exchange ratio of 6.8569 shares of Company Common Stock
(the “Exchange Ratio”), which were subject to the same vesting provisions as those immediately prior to the Merger; (ii) each
share of Pre-Merger Oruka Series A convertible preferred stock, par value $ 0.0001 (“Pre-Merger Oruka Series A Preferred Stock”)
was converted into the right to receive a number of shares of ARCA Series B non-voting convertible preferred stock, par value $ 0.001 per
share (“Company Series B Preferred Stock”), which are convertible into shares of Company Common Stock at a conversion ratio
of approximately 83.3332:1 after the Reverse Stock Split, (iii) each outstanding option to purchase Pre-Merger Oruka Common Stock was
converted into an option to purchase shares of Company Common Stock, and (iv) each outstanding warrant to purchase shares of Pre-Merger
Oruka Common Stock was converted into a warrant to purchase shares of Company Common Stock.
The Merger was accounted
for as a reverse recapitalization in accordance with U.S. GAAP. Under this method of accounting, Pre-Merger Oruka was deemed to be the
accounting acquirer for financial reporting purposes. This determination was primarily based on the fact that, immediately following the
Merger: (i) Pre-Merger Oruka stockholders owned a substantial majority of the voting rights in the combined company; (ii) Pre-Merger Oruka’s
largest stockholders retained the largest interest in the combined company; (iii) Pre-Merger Oruka designated a majority of the initial
members of the board of directors of the combined company; and (iv) Pre-Merger Oruka’s executive management team became the management
team of the combined company. Accordingly, for accounting purposes: (a) the Merger was treated as the equivalent of Pre-Merger Oruka issuing
stock to acquire the net assets of ARCA, and (b) the reported historical operating results of the combined company prior to the Merger
are those of Pre-Merger Oruka. As part of the reverse recapitalization, the Company acquired a cash balance of $ 4.94 million from ARCA.
PIPE Financing
On September 11, 2024, the
Company entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement for a private placement (the “PIPE Financing”) with certain institutional
and accredited investors. The closing of the PIPE Financing occurred on September 13, 2024.
Pursuant to the Securities
Purchase Agreement, the investors purchased an aggregate of 5,600,000 shares of Company Common Stock at a purchase price of $ 23.00 per
share, an aggregate of 2,439 shares of the Company’s Series A non-voting convertible preferred stock, par value $ 0.001 per share
(“Company Series A Preferred Stock”), at a purchase price of $ 23,000.00 per share (each share of Company Series A Preferred
Stock was convertible into 1,000 shares of Company Common Stock), and pre-funded warrants to purchase an aggregate of 680,000 shares of
Company Common Stock at a purchase price of $ 22.999 per pre-funded warrant, for aggregate net proceeds of approximately $ 188.7 million
(net of issuance costs of $ 11.9 million). In November 2024, the 2,439 shares of the Company Series A Preferred Stock were converted
to 2,439,000 shares of Company Common Stock.
Liquidity and Going Concern
Since its inception, the
Company has devoted substantially all of its resources to advancing the development of its portfolio of programs, organizing and staffing
the Company, business planning, raising capital, and providing general and administrative support for these operations. Current and future
programs will require significant research and development efforts, including preclinical and clinical trials, and regulatory approvals
to commercialization. Until such time as the Company can generate significant revenue from product sales, if ever, the Company expects
it will need additional financing to fund its operating activities.
The Company has not generated
any revenue from product sales or other sources and has incurred significant operating losses and negative cash flows from operations
since inception. For the three and six months ended June 30, 2025, the Company incurred net losses of $ 24.6 million and $ 45.6 million,
respectively, and used net cash of $ 44.0 million for its operating activities during the first six months of 2025.
As of June 30, 2025, the
Company had cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities of $ 351.5 million. The Company’s management expects that the existing
cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities will be sufficient to fund the Company’s operating plans for at least twelve months
from the date these condensed consolidated financial statements were issued. The Company expects that its research and development and
general and administrative costs will continue to increase significantly, including in connection with conducting pre-clinical activities
and clinical trials and manufacturing for its existing product candidates and any future product candidates to support commercialization
and providing general and administrative support for its operations, including the costs associated with operating as a public company.
The Company’s ability to access capital when needed is not assured and, if capital is not available to the Company when, and in
the amounts needed, the Company may be required to significantly curtail, delay, or discontinue one or more of its research or development
programs or the commercialization of any product candidate, or be unable to expand its operations or otherwise capitalize on the Company’s
business opportunities, as desired, which could materially harm the Company’s business, financial condition and results of operations.
6
2. Summary of Significant Accounting
Policies
The Company’s significant
accounting policies are detailed in the Notes titled “1. Nature of the Business and Basis of Presentation” and “2. Summary
of Significant Accounting Policies” of the Company’s Annual Report. The Company uses the same accounting policies in preparing
its quarterly and annual financial statements. There have been no material changes to significant accounting policies during the six months
ended June 30, 2025.
Use of Estimates
The preparation of the Company’s
condensed consolidated financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates, assumptions, and
judgments that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and the disclosure of contingent liabilities at the date of the condensed
consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of income and expenses during the reporting periods. Significant estimates
and assumptions reflected within these condensed consolidated financial statements include but are not limited to research and development
expenses and related prepaid or accrued costs and the valuation of stock-based compensation awards and related expenses. The Company bases
its estimates on known trends and other market-specific or other relevant factors that it believes to be reasonable under the circumstances.
On an ongoing basis, management evaluates its estimates, as there are changes in circumstances, facts, and experience. Actual results
could differ materially from those estimates or assumptions.
Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements
In December 2023, the
Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) 2023-09, Income
Taxes (Topic 740): Improvements to Income Tax Disclosures . This ASU expands disclosures in an entity’s income tax rate
reconciliation table and disclosures regarding taxes paid both in the U.S. and foreign jurisdictions. This update is effective beginning
with the Company’s 2025 fiscal year annual reporting period. The Company is currently evaluating the impact of the adoption of this
ASU on its condensed consolidated financial statements.
In November 2024, the FASB
issued ASU 2024-03, Income Statement—Reporting Comprehensive Income—Expense Disaggregation Disclosures (Subtopic 220-40):
Disaggregation of Income Statement Expenses . This ASU requires more detailed disclosures, on an annual and interim basis, about specified
categories of expenses (including employee compensation, depreciation, and amortization) included in certain expense captions presented
on the face of the income statement. This ASU is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2026, and interim periods within
fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2027. Early adoption is permitted. This ASU may be applied either prospectively or retrospectively.
The Company is currently evaluating the impact of the adoption of this ASU on its condensed consolidated financial statements.
7
3. Fair Value Measurements
The following tables present
the Company’s fair value hierarchy for financial assets measured as of June 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024 (in thousands):
June 30, 2025
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Total
Cash equivalents
Money market funds
$ 20,931
$ —
$ —
$ 20,931
U.S. treasury securities
—
6,952
—
6,952
Commercial papers
—
35,405
—
35,405
Total cash equivalents
20,931
42,357
—
63,288
Marketable securities
Marketable securities, current
U.S. treasury securities
—
203,806
—
203,806
U.S. government agency securities
—
14,183
—
14,183
Commercial papers
—
5,391
—
5,391
Corporate debt securities
—
39,630
—
39,630
Total marketable securities, current
—
263,010
—
263,010
Marketable securities, long-term
U.S. treasury securities
—
18,608
—
18,608
U.S. government agency securities
—
4,445
—
4,445
Total marketable securities, long-term
—
23,053
—
23,053
Total cash equivalents and marketable securities
$ 20,931
$ 328,420
$ —
$ 349,351
There were no transfers in
or out of Level 3 during the three and six months ended June 30, 2025.
December 31, 2024
Level 1
Level 2
Level 3
Total
Cash equivalents
Money market funds
$ 6,350
$ —
$ —
$ 6,350
U.S. treasury securities
—
19,660
—
19,660
U.S. government agency securities
—
3,988
—
3,988
Commercial papers
—
22,177
—
22,177
Total cash equivalents
6,350
45,825
—
52,175
Marketable securities
Marketable securities, current
U.S. treasury securities
—
190,792
—
190,792
U.S. government agency securities
—
12,966
—
12,966
Commercial papers
—
34,811
—
34,811
Corporate debt securities
—
75,504
—
75,504
Total marketable securities, current
—
314,073
—
314,073
Marketable securities, long-term
U.S. treasury securities
—
13,607
—
13,607
U.S. government agency securities
—
4,462
—
4,462
Total marketable securities, long-term
—
18,069
—
18,069
Total cash equivalents and marketable securities
$ 6,350
$ 377,967
$ —
$ 384,317
8
4. Cash Equivalents and Marketable Securities
The following tables summarize
the cash equivalents and marketable securities, which are classified as available-for-sale as of June 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024 (in
thousands):
June 30, 2025
Amortized Cost
Gross Unrealized Gains
Gross Unrealized Losses
Fair Value
Cash equivalents
Money market funds
$ 20,931
$ —
$ —
$ 20,931
U.S. treasury securities
6,951
1
—
6,952
Commercial papers
35,412
—
( 7 )
35,405
Total cash equivalents
63,294
1
( 7 )
63,288
Marketable securities
Marketable securities, current
U.S. treasury securities
203,839
14
( 47 )
203,806
U.S. government agency securities
14,188
—
( 5 )
14,183
Commercial papers
5,394
—
( 3 )
5,391
Corporate debt securities
39,630
9
( 9 )
39,630
Total marketable securities, current
263,051
23
( 64 )
263,010
Marketable securities, long-term
U.S. treasury securities
18,589
19
—
18,608
U.S. government agency securities
4,444
2
( 1 )
4,445
Total marketable securities, long-term
23,033
21
( 1 )
23,053
Total cash equivalents and marketable securities
$ 349,378
$ 45
$ ( 72 )
$ 349,351
December 31, 2024
Amortized Cost
Gross Unrealized Gains
Gross Unrealized Losses
Fair Value
Cash equivalents
Money market funds
$ 6,350
$ —
$ —
$ 6,350
U.S. treasury securities
19,656
4
—
19,660
U.S. government agency securities
3,988
—
—
3,988
Commercial papers
22,180
—
( 3 )
22,177
Total cash equivalents
52,174
4
( 3 )
52,175
Marketable securities
Marketable securities, current
U.S. treasury securities
190,748
55
( 11 )
190,792
U.S. government agency securities
12,967
1
( 2 )
12,966
Commercial papers
34,808
3
—
34,811
Corporate debt securities
75,537
7
( 40 )
75,504
Total marketable securities, current
314,060
66
( 53 )
314,073
Marketable securities, long-term
U.S. treasury securities
13,639
—
( 32 )
13,607
U.S. government agency securities
4,485
—
( 23 )
4,462
Total marketable securities, long-term
18,124
—
( 55 )
18,069
Total cash equivalents and marketable securities
$ 384,358
$ 70
$ ( 111 )
$ 384,317
9
The following table summarizes
the available-for-sale securities in an unrealized loss position, aggregated by major security type and length of time in a continuous
unrealized loss position, for which an allowance for credit losses was not recorded as of June 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024 (in thousands):
June 30, 2025
Less than 12 months
12 months or longer
Total
Fair Value
Unrealized Losses
Fair Value
Unrealized Losses
Fair Value
Unrealized Losses
Cash equivalents
Commercial papers
$ 35,405
$ ( 7 )
$ —
$ —
$ 35,405
$ ( 7 )
Marketable securities
Marketable securities, current
U.S. treasury securities
148,432
( 47 )
—
—
148,432
( 47 )
U.S. government agency securities
14,183
( 5 )
—
—
14,183
( 5 )
Commercial papers
5,391
( 3 )
—
—
5,391
( 3 )
Corporate debt securities
26,193
( 9 )
—
—
26,193
( 9 )
Marketable securities, long-term
U.S. treasury securities
1,038
( 1 )
—
—
1,038
( 1 )
Total
$ 230,642
$ ( 72 )
$ —
$ —
$ 230,642
$ ( 72 )
December 31, 2024
Less than 12 months
12 months or longer
Total
Fair Value
Unrealized Losses
Fair Value
Unrealized Losses
Fair Value
Unrealized Losses
Cash equivalents
Commercial papers
$ 18,199
$ ( 3 )
$ —
$ —
$ 18,199
$ ( 3 )
Marketable securities
Marketable securities, current
U.S. treasury securities
49,904
( 11 )
—
—
49,904
( 11 )
U.S. government agency securities
4,713
( 2 )
—
—
4,713
( 2 )
Corporate debt securities
39,468
( 40 )
—
—
39,468
( 40 )
Marketable securities, long-term
U.S. treasury securities
13,607
( 32 )
—
—
13,607
( 32 )
U.S. government agency securities
4,462
( 23 )
—
—
4,462
( 23 )
Total
$ 130,353
$ ( 111 )
$ —
$ —
$ 130,353
$ ( 111 )
The Company evaluated its
securities for credit losses and considered the decline in market value to be primarily attributable to current economic and market conditions
and not to a credit loss or other factors. Additionally, the Company does not intend to sell the securities in an unrealized loss position
and it is not more likely than not that the Company will be required to sell the securities before recovery of the unamortized cost basis,
which may be at maturity. There were no material realized gains or realized losses on marketable securities for the periods presented.
Given the Company’s intent and ability to hold such securities until recovery, and the lack of significant change in credit risk
of these investments, the Company does not consider these marketable securities to be impaired as of June 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024.
As of June 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024, the Company did not record an allowance for credit losses.
The following table summarizes
the contractual maturities of the Company’s marketable securities at estimated fair value (in thousands):
June 30,
2025
December 31,
2024
Due in one year or less
$ 263,010
$ 314,073
Due in 1-2 years
23,053
18,069
Total
$ 286,063
$ 332,142
10
5. Accrued Expenses and Other Current Liabilities
The following table summarizes accrued expenses
and other current liabilities (in thousands):
June 30,
2025
December 31,
2024
Accrued research and development
$ 1,756
$ 1,084
Accrued employee compensation and benefits
1,684
2,041
Accrued professional and consulting
138
221
Total
$ 3,578
$ 3,346
6. Note Payable with Related Party
In March 2024, Pre-Merger
Oruka entered into a Series A Preferred Stock and Convertible Note Purchase Agreement (the “Purchase Agreement”) with Fairmount
Healthcare Fund II, L.P. (“Fairmount”), whereby Pre-Merger Oruka issued a convertible note (the “Convertible Note”),
with an initial principal amount of $ 25.0 million that, at the time of issuance, could be converted into Pre-Merger Oruka Series A
Preferred Stock (or a series of preferred shares that is identical in respect to the shares of preferred shares issued in its next
equity financing) or shares of Pre-Merger Oruka Common Stock in exchange for aggregate proceeds of $ 25.0 million. The Convertible
Note accrued interest at a rate of 12.0 % per annum. Immediately prior to the completion of the Merger (see Note 1), the Convertible Note
was converted into shares of Pre-Merger Oruka Common Stock based on the aggregate principal amount of $ 25.0 million, plus unpaid accrued
interest of $ 1.5 million divided by the conversion price which was determined based upon the Company’s fully-diluted capitalization
immediately prior to the Merger. At the effective time of the Merger, the Pre-Merger Oruka Common Stock issued upon the conversion of
the Convertible Note (including accrued interest) automatically converted into 2,722,207 shares of Company Common Stock.
The Company assessed all
terms and features of the Convertible Note in order to identify any potential embedded features that would require bifurcation. As part
of this analysis, the Company assessed the economic characteristics and risks of the embedded features. The Company determined that the
share settled redemption feature was clearly and closely related to the debt host and did not require separate accounting. The Company
determined that the conversion options of the Convertible Note were not clearly and closely associated with a debt host. However, these
features did not meet the definition of a derivative under ASC 815, Derivatives and Hedging, and as a result, did not require separate
accounting as a derivative liability.
The Company paid debt issuance
costs of less than $ 0.1 million in relation to the Convertible Note. The debt issuance costs were reflected as a reduction of the
carrying value of Convertible Note on the consolidated balance sheet and were being amortized as interest expense over the term of the
Convertible Note using the effective interest method. For the three months ended June 30, 2024 and the period from February 6, 2024 (inception)
to June 30, 2024, the Company recognized interest expenses related to the Convertible Note of $ 0.8 million and $ 1.0 million, respectively,
which included non-cash interest expense related to the amortization of debt issuance of less than $ 0.1 million, for each of the three
months ended June 30, 2024 and the period from February 6, 2024 (inception) to June 30, 2024. As of December 31, 2024 and June 30, 2025,
the Convertible Note was not outstanding.
7. Convertible
Preferred Stock and Stockholders’ Equity
Pre-Funded
Warrants
In August 2024, pursuant
to the Subscription Agreement and immediately prior to the Closing, certain new and current investors purchased pre-funded warrants,
which, at the effective time of the Merger, were exercisable for 5,522,207 shares of Company Common Stock at a purchase price of approximately
$ 9.70 per warrant and after the Closing, are now exercisable for 5,522,207 shares of the Company Common Stock at an exercise price of
$ 0.01 per share.
In September 2024, in connection
with the PIPE Financing, the Company issued and sold 680,000 pre-funded warrants, at a purchase price of $ 22.999 per warrant, exercisable
for 680,000 shares of Company Common Stock at an exercise price of $ 0.001 per share.
The pre-funded warrants were
recorded as a component of stockholders’ equity within additional paid-in-capital and have no expiration date. Collectively, 6,202,207
pre-funded warrants were outstanding as of June 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024.
11
Employee Warrants
The Subscription Agreement
provided for, among other things, the issuance of warrants to certain of Pre-Merger Oruka’s employees and directors immediately
prior to the Closing. During the period from February 6, 2024 (inception) to December 31, 2024, 3,054,358 employee warrants were issued
at an exercise price of $ 7.80 per warrant. These warrants vest over a period of four years . The Company recognizes compensation cost related
to warrants on a straight-line basis over the requisite service period, which is the period in which the related services are received.
3,054,358 warrants were outstanding as of June 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024.
Convertible Preferred Stock
In March 2024, Pre-Merger
Oruka issued and sold an aggregate of 20,000,000 shares of Pre-Merger Oruka Series A Preferred Stock to Fairmount, at a purchase price of approximately $ 0.15 per share, for aggregate gross proceeds of $ 3.0 million. Pre-Merger Oruka incurred less
than $ 0.1 million of issuance costs in connection with this transaction. Upon the issuance of the Pre-Merger Oruka Series A
Preferred Stock, the Company assessed the embedded conversion and liquidation features of the securities as described below and determined
that such features did not require the Company to separately account for these features.
In August 2024, upon Closing,
the Pre-Merger Oruka Series A Preferred Stock converted to 137,138 shares of Company Series B Preferred Stock.
In September 2024, in connection
with the PIPE Financing, the Company issued and sold an aggregate of 2,439 shares of the Company Series A Preferred Stock at a purchase
price of $ 23,000.00 per share. In November 2024, the 2,439 shares of the Company Series A Preferred Stock were converted to 2,439,000
shares of Company Common Stock. As of June 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024, there were no outstanding shares of Company Series A Preferred
Stock.
As of June 30, 2025, Company Series B Preferred
Stock consisted of the following (in thousands, except share data):
June 30, 2025
Preferred
Stock
Authorized
Preferred
Stock Issued
and
Outstanding
Carrying
Value
Common
Stock Issuable
Upon
Conversion
Company Series B Preferred Stock
251,504
137,138
$ 2,931
11,428,149
Pursuant to the Certificate
of Designation of Preferences, Rights and Limitations of the Series B Non-Voting Convertible Preferred Stock (the “Series B Certificate
of Designation”) filed in connection with the Merger, holders of Company Series B Preferred Stock are entitled to receive dividends
on shares of Company Series B Preferred Stock equal to, on an as-if-converted-to-Company Common Stock basis, and in the same form as,
dividends actually paid on shares of Company Common Stock. Except as provided in the Series B Certificate of Designation or as otherwise
required by law, the Company Series B Preferred Stock does not have voting rights. The Company Series B Preferred Stock shall rank on
parity with the Company Common Stock as to the distribution of assets upon any liquidation, dissolution, or winding-up of the Company.
Each share of Company Series B Preferred Stock is convertible at the option of the holder, at any time, and without the payment of additional
consideration by the holder. As of June 30, 2025, each outstanding share of Company Series B Preferred Stock was convertible into common
stock at a ratio of approximately 83.3332:1 .
Paruka Warrant
On December 31, 2024, the
Company settled its 2024 obligations under the Paruka Warrant Obligation (defined below) by issuing Paruka Holding LLC (“Paruka”)
a warrant to purchase 596,930 shares of Company Common Stock at an exercise price of $ 19.39 per share. The warrant has a term of 10 years,
is fully vested, and is exercisable in part or full at any time during the term of the warrant. As of June 30, 2025, the warrant issued
to settle the 2024 Paruka Warrant Obligation was outstanding and unexercised. See Note 8 for additional information on the Paruka Warrant
Obligation.
12
Common Stock
As of June 30, 2025, the
Certificate of Incorporation provided for 545,000,000 authorized shares of Company Common Stock. As of June 30, 2025, 37,450,745 shares
of Company Common Stock were issued and outstanding, including 2,207,553 shares of restricted common stock awards (“RSAs”)
issued and outstanding.
As of June 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024, the
Company had common stock reserved for future issuance as follows:
June 30,
2025
December 31,
2024
Shares issuable on conversion of Company Series B Preferred Stock
11,428,149
11,428,149
Shares issuable upon exercise of pre-funded warrants
6,202,207
6,202,207
Shares issuable upon exercise of warrant under the Paruka Warrant Obligation
596,930
596,930
Outstanding and issued stock options
3,668,560
1,567,760
Outstanding and issued employee warrants
3,054,358
3,054,358
Shares available for grant under 2024 Stock Incentive Plan
4,899,067
4,246,324
Shares available for grant under 2024 Employee Stock Purchase Plan
1,001,003
460,529
Total shares of common stock reserved
30,850,274
27,556,257
8. Stock-Based
Compensation
2024 Equity Incentive Plan
The 2024 Equity Incentive
Plan (“2024 Plan”) was adopted by the board of directors of Pre-Merger Oruka on February 6, 2024. The 2024 Plan provided
for Pre-Merger Oruka to grant stock options, restricted stock awards, restricted stock units, and other stock-based awards to employees,
officers, directors, consultants, and advisors. Equity incentive stock options granted under the 2024 Plan generally vest over four years,
subject to the participant’s continued service, and expire after ten years, although two non-employee stock options were granted
with vesting terms less than four years. As of June 30, 2025, 1,179,193 shares were subject to options outstanding under the 2024
Plan and will become available under the 2024 Stock Incentive Plan (defined below) to the extent the options are forfeited or lapse unexercised.
2024 Stock Incentive Plan
On August 22, 2024, the 2024
Stock Incentive Plan (“2024 Stock Plan”) was approved by the Company’s stockholders and on August 29, 2024, the board
of directors of the Company (the “Board”) ratified the 2024 Stock Plan. The 2024 Stock Plan allows for the grant of stock
options, stock appreciation rights, restricted stock awards, restricted stock units, other stockholder-based awards and incentive bonuses.
An additional 2,753,543 shares became available for issuance under the 2024 Stock Plan on January 1, 2025 as a result of the annual increase
pursuant to the evergreen provision.
As of June 30, 2025, 7,388,434
shares were reserved for issuance under the 2024 Stock Plan, of which 4,899,067 shares were available for future grant and 2,489,367 shares
were subject to outstanding options.
2024 Employee Stock Purchase Plan
The 2024 Employee Stock Purchase
Plan (the “ESPP”) became effective in August 2024. Eligible employees may purchase shares of Company Common Stock under the
ESPP at 85 % of the lower of the fair market value of the Company Common Stock as of the first or the last day of each offering period.
Employees are limited to contributing 15 % of the employee’s eligible compensation and may not purchase more than $ 25,000 of
stock during any calendar year. The ESPP will terminate ten years from the first purchase date under the plan, unless terminated
earlier by the Board. An additional 550,709 shares became available for issuance under the ESPP on January 1, 2025 as a result of the
annual increase pursuant to the evergreen provision.
The Company issued 10,235
shares during the three and six months ended June 30, 2025 out of the ESPP, and as of June 30, 2025, there were 1,001,003 shares of Company
Common Stock available in the pool for future issuances.
For each of the three and
six months ended June 30, 2025, stock-based compensation expense related to the ESPP was less than $ 0.1 million.
13
Stock Option Valuation
The following table summarizes
the weighted-average assumptions used in calculating the fair value of the awards for the three and six months ended June 30, 2025 and
for the three months ended June 30, 2024 and the period from February 6, 2024 (inception) to June 30, 2024:
Three
Months Ended
June 30,
2025 Three
Months Ended
June 30,
2024 Six Months Ended
June 30,
2025 Period from February 6, 2024 (Inception) to June 30,
2024
Expected term (in years) 5.9 6.0 6.0 6.0
Expected volatility 93.4 % 100.6 % 95.5 % 101.4 %
Risk-free interest rate 4.1 % 4.5 % 4.4 % 4.4 %
Expected dividend yield —
—
—
—
Stock Options
The following table summarizes
the stock option activities under the 2024 Plan and the 2024 Stock Plan for the six months ended June 30, 2025:
Number of
Stock
Options
Outstanding Weighted
Average
Exercise
Price
Per Share Weighted
Average
Remaining
Contractual
Term
(in Years) Aggregate
Intrinsic
Value
(in Thousands)
Balance as of December 31, 2024 1,567,760 $ 11.39 9.4 $ 15,470
Granted 2,100,800 $ 11.97
Exercised —
$ —
Canceled/forfeited —
$ —
Balance as of June 30, 2025 3,668,560 $ 11.72 9.3 $ 6,634
Vested and expected to vest, June 30, 2025 3,668,560 $ 11.72 9.3 $ 6,634
Exercisable, June 30, 2025 470,276 $ 8.04 9.0 $ 1,661
The weighted average grant-date
fair value per share of stock options granted during the six months ended June 30, 2025 was $ 9.44 per share. Aggregate intrinsic value
represents the difference between the estimated fair value of the underlying Company Common Stock and the exercise price of outstanding,
in-the-money employee stock options.
Restricted Stock Awards
In February 2024 and March 2024,
the Company issued 2,207,553 shares of RSAs to certain employees, directors, and consultants at a price of $ 0.0001 per share, the then
par value of Pre-Merger Oruka Common Stock. Such RSAs have service-based vesting conditions only and vest over a four-year period, during
which time all unvested shares are subject to forfeiture in the event the holder’s service with the Company voluntarily or involuntarily
terminates. 137,972 and 714,543 RSAs vested during the three and six months ended June 30, 2025, respectively. As of June 30, 2025, 1,493,010
of RSAs remain unvested. For each of the three and six months ended June 30, 2025, the three months ended June 30, 2024, and from February
6, 2024 (inception) to June 30, 2024, stock-based compensation expense related to RSAs was less than $ 0.1 million.
The following table summarizes
the RSA activity for the six months ended June 30, 2025:
Number of RSAs
Weighted Average
Grant Date
Fair Value
Unvested balance as of December 31, 2024
2,207,553
$ —
Granted
—
$ —
Vested
( 714,543 )
$ —
Unvested balance as of June 30, 2025
1,493,010
$ —
14
Option Agreements and Paruka Warrant Obligation
As part of the Option Agreements,
(defined in Note 10 below) on December 31, 2024 the Company granted, and on December 31, 2025, will grant, Paruka a warrant
to purchase a number of shares equal to 1.00 % of outstanding shares as of the date of the grant on a fully-diluted basis, with an exercise
price equal to the fair market value of the underlying shares on the grant date (the “Paruka Warrant Obligation”).
The grant dates for the issuance
of warrants were expected to be December 31, 2024 and December 31, 2025 as all terms of the award, including number of shares
and exercise price, will be known by all parties. The Company determined that the 2024 and 2025 grants are two separate grants, as there
would be no obligation for the 2025 grant had the Company exercised or terminated all of the options under the Option Agreements prior
to December 31, 2024. The service inception period for the grant precedes the grant date, with the full award being vested as of the grant
date with no post-grant date service requirement. Accordingly, the warrant expected to be granted to Paruka was accounted for as a liability
on the balance sheet on the service inception date and, after the initial recognition, the liability is adjusted to fair value at the
end of each reporting period, with changes in fair value recorded in the condensed consolidated statement of operations and comprehensive
loss as stock-based compensation expense under research and development expenses. For the period from February 6, 2024 (inception) to
June 30, 2024, $ 0.4 million was recognized as stock-based compensation expenses related to the December 31, 2024 Paruka Warrant Obligation.
On issuance of the warrant to Paruka on December 31, 2024, the fair value of the warrant issued on December 31, 2024 of $ 10.4 million
was reclassified from liability to equity on the condensed consolidated balance sheet as of December 31, 2024.
As of June 30, 2025, the
estimated fair value of the warrant to be granted on December 31, 2025 was $ 6.2 million. For the three and six months ended June 30, 2025
$ 1.7 million and $ 3.1 million, respectively, was recognized as stock-based compensation expense related to the December 31, 2025 Paruka
Warrant Obligation. As of June 30, 2025, there was $ 3.1 million in unamortized expense related to the December 31, 2025 Paruka Warrant
Obligation.
Employee Warrants
As stated above, in July
2024, the Subscription Agreement was amended and restated, among other things, for employee warrants to be issued to certain Pre-Merger
Oruka employees and directors prior to the Closing. During the period from February 6, 2024 (inception) to December 31, 2024, the Company
issued 3,054,358 warrants at an exercise price of $ 7.80 per warrant, which are accounted as equity in the condensed consolidated financial
statements. The employee warrants were subject to performance and service based vesting requirements and upon completion of the Merger
the performance-based requirements had been achieved. During the three and six months ended June 30, 2025, no employee warrants were granted.
The following table summarizes
the employee warrant activity during the six months ended June 30, 2025:
Number of
Employee
Warrants
Outstanding Weighted
Average
Exercise
Price
Per Share Weighted
Average
Remaining
Contractual
Term
(in Years) Aggregate
Intrinsic
Value
(in Thousands)
Balance as of December 31, 2024 3,054,358 $ 7.80 9.5 $ 35,400
Granted —
$ —
Exercised —
$ —
Canceled/forfeited —
$ —
Balance as of June 30, 2025 3,054,358 $ 7.80 9.0 $ 10,415
Vested and expected to vest, June 30, 2025 3,054,358 $ 7.80 9.0 $ 10,415
Exercisable, June 30, 2025 797,307 $ 7.80 9.0 $ 2,719
15
Stock-Based Compensation Expense
The following table summarizes
the classification of the Company’s stock-based compensation expense in the condensed consolidated statements of operations and
comprehensive loss (in thousands):
Three
Months Ended
June 30,
2025
Three
Months Ended
June 30,
2024
Six Months Ended
June
30,
2025
Period from
February 6,
2024
(Inception) to
June 30,
2024
Research and development
$ 3,368
$ 468
$ 6,371
$ 538
General and administrative
1,709
215
3,589
230
Total
$ 5,077
$ 683
$ 9,960
$ 768
As of June 30, 2025, total
unrecognized compensation cost related to the unvested stock options was $ 28.5 million, which is expected to be recognized over a weighted
average period of approximately 3.2 years.
As of June 30, 2025, total
unrecognized compensation cost related to the unvested RSAs was less than $ 0.1 million, which is expected to be recognized over a weighted
average period of 2.6 years.
As of June 30, 2025, the
unrecognized compensation cost related to the employee warrants was $ 13.5 million, which is expected to be recognized over a weighted
average period of 2.8 years.
The following table summarizes
the award types of the Company’s stock-based compensation expense in the condensed consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive
loss (in thousands):
Three
Months Ended
June 30,
2025
Three
Months Ended
June 30,
2024
Six Months Ended
June 30,
2025
Period from
February 6,
2024
(Inception) to
June 30,
2024
Paruka Warrant Obligation
$ 1,674
$ 362
$ 3,089
$ 430
Employee warrants
1,238
—
2,789
—
Stock options
2,130
321
4,019
338
Employee stock purchase plan
35
—
63
—
Total
$ 5,077
$ 683
$ 9,960
$ 768
9. Segment
Disclosures
The Company operates and
manages its business activities on a consolidated basis and operates in one reportable segment.
The Company operates as a
single reportable and operating segment. Its Chief Executive Officer, serving as the Chief Operating Decision Maker (“CODM”),
oversees operations on an aggregated basis to allocate resources effectively. In assessing the Company’s financial performance,
the CODM regularly reviews total operating expenses and consolidated net loss.
The measure of segment assets
is reported on the balance sheet as total consolidated assets. The Company’s long-lived assets consist primarily of property and
equipment, net. As of June 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024 all long-lived assets were in the U.S.
16
The following table summarizes
the segment loss from operations, including significant segment expenses (in thousands):
Three
Months Ended
June 30,
2025
Three
Months Ended
June 30,
2024
Six Months Ended
June 30,
2025
Period from
February 6,
2024
(Inception) to
June 30,
2024
Research and development personnel-related (excluding stock-based compensation)
$ 3,301
$ 876
$ 5,764
$ 1,070
General and administrative personnel-related (excluding stock-based compensation)
1,717
1,159
3,411
1,925
Research and development stock-based compensation
3,368
468
6,371
538
General and administrative stock-based compensation
1,709
215
3,589
230
External research and development
16,416
17,113
30,026
22,018
Other research and development
1,002
216
1,851
240
General and administrative, excluding personnel-related and stock-based compensation
916
1,446
2,503
2,335
Total operating expenses
28,429
21,493
53,515
28,356
Loss from operations
$ ( 28,429 )
$ ( 21,493 )
$ ( 53,515 )
$ ( 28,356 )
10. Option Agreements and License Agreements
Option Agreements – Paragon Therapeutics
In March 2024, the Company
entered into two antibody discovery and option agreements (the “Option Agreements”) with Paragon Therapeutics, Inc. (“Paragon”)
and Paruka. Under the terms of each agreement, Paragon identifies, evaluates, and develops antibodies directed against certain mutually
agreed therapeutic targets of interest to the Company. From time to time, the Company can choose to add additional targets to the collaboration
upon agreement with Paragon and Paruka. Under the Option Agreements, the Company has the exclusive option to, on a research program-by-research
program basis, be granted an exclusive, worldwide license to all of Paragon’s rights, titles, and interest in and to the intellectual
property resulting from the applicable research program to develop, manufacture, and commercialize the antibodies and products directed
to the selected target(s). The Company has initiated certain research programs with Paragon that generally focus on discovering, generating,
identifying and/or characterizing antibodies directed to a particular target (each, a “Research Program”), including for IL-23
and IL-17A/F for ORKA-001 and ORKA-002, respectively. The exclusive option with respect to each Research Program is exercisable at the
Company’s sole discretion at such time as specified in the Option Agreements (the “Option Period”). There is no payment
due upon exercise of an Option pursuant to the Option Agreements. For each of these agreements, once the Company enters into the corresponding
license agreement, it will be required to make non-refundable milestone payments to Paragon of up to $ 12.0 million under each respective
agreement upon the achievement of certain clinical development milestones, up to $ 10.0 million under each respective agreement upon the
achievement of certain regulatory milestones, as well as a low single-digit percentage royalty for antibody products beginning on
the first commercial sale in each program.
The Company may terminate
any Option Agreement or any Research Program at any time for any or no reason upon 30 days’ prior written notice to Paragon,
provided that it must pay certain unpaid fees due to Paragon upon such termination, as well as any non-cancellable obligations reasonably
incurred by Paragon in connection with its activities under any terminated Research Program. Paragon may terminate any Option Agreement
or Research Program immediately upon written notice to the Company if, as a result of any action or failure to act by the Company or its
affiliates, such Research Program or all material activities under the applicable Research Plan are suspended, discontinued or otherwise
delayed for a certain consecutive number of months. Each party has the right to terminate the Option Agreements or any Research Program
upon material breach that remains uncured or the other party’s bankruptcy.
License Agreements – Paragon Therapeutics
In September 2024, the Company
exercised its exclusive option to acquire certain rights to ORKA-001, and in December 2024, it entered into a corresponding license agreement
with Paragon (the “ORKA-001 License Agreement”), pursuant to which Paragon granted the Company a royalty-bearing, world-wide,
exclusive license to develop, manufacture, commercialize, or otherwise exploit certain antibodies and products targeting IL-23 in all
fields other than the field of inflammatory bowel disease (“ORKA-001 Field”). In December 2024, the Company exercised its
exclusive option to acquire certain rights to ORKA-002, and in February 2025, it entered into the corresponding license agreement with
Paragon (the “ORKA-002 License Agreement” and together with the ORKA-001 License Agreement, the “License Agreements”),
pursuant to which Paragon granted the Company a royalty-bearing, world-wide, exclusive license to develop, manufacture, commercialize,
or otherwise exploit certain antibodies and products targeting IL-17A/F in all fields (“ORKA-002 Field” and together with
the ORKA-001 Field, the “Fields”). Pursuant to each of the two License Agreements, Paragon has agreed not to conduct any new
campaigns that generate anti-IL-23 monospecific antibodies or anti-IL-17A/F monospecific antibodies in the respective agreed-upon fields.
17
The License Agreements provide
the Company with exclusive licenses in the Fields to Paragon’s patent applications covering the related antibodies, their method
of use and their method of manufacture and Paragon has agreed not to conduct any new campaigns that generate anti-IL-23 monospecific antibodies
or anti-IL-17A/F monospecific antibodies for the ORKA-001 Field or the ORKA-002 Field, respectively, for at least five years. Each of
the License Agreements may be terminated on 60 days’ notice to Paragon, on material breach without cure, and on a party’s
insolvency or bankruptcy to the extent permitted by law.
Pursuant to the terms of
each of the License Agreements, the Company is obligated to pay Paragon non-refundable milestone payments of up to $ 12.0 million under
each respective agreement upon the achievement of certain clinical development milestones and up to $ 10.0 million under each respective
agreement upon the achievement of certain regulatory milestones. In addition, the Company is obligated to pay Paragon a low single-digit
percentage royalty for antibody products for each of ORKA-001 and ORKA-002. For each of the License Agreements, the royalty term ends
on the later of (i) the last-to-expire licensed patent or our patent directed to the manufacture, use or sale of a licensed antibody
in the country at issue or (ii) 12 years from the date of first sale of a Company product. There is also a royalty step-down if there
is no Paragon patent in effect during the royalty term for each program. Each of the License Agreements may be terminated on 60 days’
notice to Paragon, on material breach without cure, and on a party’s insolvency or bankruptcy to the extent permitted by law. As
of June 30, 2025, the Company has incurred and expensed milestone payments of $ 4.0 million for each of the License Agreements. Subsequent
to the quarter end, the Company dosed the first patient in a Phase 2a clinical trial for ORKA-001. In the third quarter of 2025, the
Company accrued for the additional milestone payment of $ 3.0 million under the ORKA-001 License Agreement, as it became probable that
the milestone would be achieved.
Additionally, as part of
the Option Agreements, on December 31, 2024 the Company granted and on December 31, 2025, will grant Paruka a warrant to purchase
a number of shares equal to 1.00 % of outstanding shares as of the date of the grant on a fully-diluted basis, with an exercise price equal
to the fair market value of the underlying shares on the grant date.
Pursuant to the Option Agreements,
on a research program-by-research program basis following the finalization of the research plan for each respective research program,
the Company is required to pay certain initiation fees, development costs and milestone payments to Paragon. For the ORKA-001 program,
the Company recognized research and development expenses related to the following milestones during the period from February 6, 2024 (inception)
to December 31, 2024: a one-time, nonrefundable research initiation fee of $ 0.8 million; $ 1.5 million related to exercising its option
and achievement of development candidate; and $ 2.5 million related to completing the first dosing of a human subject in a Phase 1 trial.
The Company was responsible for 50 % of the development costs incurred through the completion of the IL-23 selection process, which was
completed in June 2024.
For the ORKA-002 program,
the Company recognized research and development expenses related to the following milestones during the period from February 6, 2024 (inception)
to December 31, 2024: a one-time, nonrefundable research initiation fee of $ 0.8 million and $ 1.5 million related to exercising its option
and achievement of development candidate. The Company was responsible for the development costs incurred through the completion of the
IL-23 selection process, which was completed in December 2024.
Pursuant to the Option Agreements, during the three and six months
ended June 30, 2025, the Company’s share of research and development expenses for ORKA-001 program for the periods were nil . For
the three months ended June 30, 2024, and the period from February 6, 2024 (inception) to June 30, 2024, the Company’s share of
research and development expenses, including research initiation fee, incurred for ORKA-001 program for the periods were $ 12.4 million
and $ 13.2 million, respectively. These costs were recorded as research and development expenses. As of June 30, 2025 and December 31,
2024, nil and $ 12.4 million, respectively, related to ORKA-001 were included in related party accounts payable and other current liabilities.
Pursuant to the Option
Agreements, during the three and six months ended June 30, 2025, the Company’s share of research and development expenses for
ORKA-002 program was nil and $ 0.1 million, respectively. For the three months ended June 30, 2024, and the period from February 6,
2024 (inception) to June 30, 2024, the Company’s share of research and development expense, including research initiation fee,
incurred for ORKA-002 program for the periods were $ 2.7 million and $ 6.9 million, respectively. The Company recognized a milestone
payment of $ 2.5 million related to completing the first dosing of a human subject in a Phase 1
trial milestone during the three and six months ended June 30, 2025. These costs were recorded as research and development expenses.
As of June 30, 2025 and December 31, 2024, nil and $ 2.7 million, respectively, related to ORKA-002 were included in related party
accounts payable and other current liabilities.
For the three and six months
ended June 30, 2025, the Company recognized $ 4.2 million and $ 5.7 million, respectively, of expenses in connection with services provided
by Paragon and Paruka under the Option Agreements. For the three months ended June 30, 2024, and the period from February 6, 2024
(inception) to June 30, 2024, the Company recognized $ 15.4 million and $ 20.4 million, respectively.
18
The Company expenses the
service fees as the associated costs are incurred when the underlying services are rendered. Such amounts are classified within research
and development expenses in the accompanying condensed consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive loss.
The Company concluded that
the rights obtained under the Option Agreements represent an asset acquisition whereby the underlying assets comprise in-process research
and development assets with no alternative future use. The Option Agreements did not qualify as a business combination because substantially
all of the fair value of the assets acquired was concentrated in the exclusive license options, which represent a group of similar identifiable
assets. The research initiation fee represents a one-time cost on a research program-by-research program basis for accessing research
services or resources with benefits that are expected to be consumed in the near term, therefore the amounts paid are expensed as part
of research and development costs immediately. Amounts paid as reimbursements of ongoing development cost, monthly development cost fee
and additional development expenses incurred by Paragon due to work completed for selected targets prior to the effective date of the
Option Agreements that is associated with services being rendered under the related Research Programs are recognized as research and development
expense when incurred.
11. Commitments and Contingencies
Leases
In April 2024, the Company
entered into an operating lease agreement for the Company’s headquarters in Menlo Park, California, which commenced on June 15,
2024 with an initial term of 39.5 months. In February 2025, the Company entered into an operating lease agreement in Waltham, Massachusetts,
which commenced on April 1, 2025 with an initial term of 54 months. The Company leases office spaces under noncancelable operating lease
agreements. Lease liabilities are based on the net present value of the remaining lease payments over the remaining lease terms. In determining
the present value of lease payments, the Company used its incremental borrowing rate when measuring operating lease liabilities as discount
rates were not implicit or readily determinable.
As of June 30, 2025, the
operating lease arrangement for the Company’s headquarters in Menlo Park, California had a remaining lease term of 27 months and
a discount rate of 17.95 %. As of June 30, 2025, the operating lease arrangement for the Company’s lease in Waltham, Massachusetts
had a remaining lease term of 51 months and a discount rate of 9.95 %. For the three and six months ended June 30, 2025, the Company recorded
operating and variable lease expenses of $ 0.3 million and $ 0.4 million, respectively, in general and administrative expenses in its condensed
consolidated statement of operations and comprehensive loss. For the three months ended June 30, 2024 and the period from February 6,
2024 (inception) to June 30, 2024, the Company recorded operating and variable lease expenses of less than $ 0.1 million.
The following table presents
the Company’s supplemental cash flow information related to leases (in thousands):
Six Months
Ended
June 30,
2025
Cash paid for amounts included in the measurement of lease liabilities
$ 147
The following table summarizes a maturity analysis
of the Company’s operating lease liabilities showing the aggregate lease payments as of June 30, 2025 (in thousands):
Year ending December 31,
Amount
2025 (remainder of the year)
$ 527
2026
822
2027
768
2028
397
2029
304
Total undiscounted lease payments
2,818
Less: imputed interest
( 492 )
Total discounted lease payments
2,326
Less: current portion of lease liability
( 660 )
Non-current portion of lease liability
$ 1,666
Cell Line License Agreement
In March 2024, the Company
entered into the Cell Line License Agreement (the “Cell Line License Agreement”) with WuXi Biologics Ireland Limited (“WuXi
Biologics”). Under the Cell Line License Agreement, the Company received a non-exclusive, worldwide, sublicensable license to certain
of WuXi Biologics’ know-how, cell line, biological materials (the “WuXi Biologics Licensed Technology”) and media and
feeds to make, have made, use, sell and import certain therapeutic products produced through the use of the cell line licensed by WuXi
Biologics under the Cell Line License Agreement (the “WuXi Biologics Licensed Products”). Specifically, the WuXi Biologics
Licensed Technology is used in certain manufacturing activities in support of the ORKA-001 and ORKA-002 programs.
19
In consideration for the
license, the Company agreed to pay WuXi Biologics a non-refundable license fee of $ 150,000 , which was recognized as a research and development
expense during the period from February 6, 2024 (inception) to December 31, 2024. Additionally, to the extent that the Company manufactures
its commercial supplies of bulk drug product with a manufacturer other than WuXi Biologics or its affiliates, the Company is required
to make royalty payments to WuXi Biologics at a rate of less than one percent of net sales of WuXi Biologics Licensed Products manufactured
by the third-party manufacturer. Pursuant to an amendment to the Cell Line License Agreement effective in November 2024, a provision was
added that permits the royalties owed under the agreement to be bought out on a product-by-product basis for a lump-sum payment.
The Cell Line License Agreement
will continue indefinitely unless terminated (i) by the Company upon six months’ prior written notice and its payment of all undisputed
amounts due to WuXi Biologics through the effective date of termination, (ii) by WuXi Biologics for a material breach by the Company that
remains uncured for 60 days after written notice, (iii) by WuXi Biologics if the Company fails to make a payment and such failure continues
for 30 days after receiving notice of such failure, or (iv) by either party upon the other party’s bankruptcy.
Legal Proceedings
The Company is not currently
party to any material legal proceedings. At each reporting date, the Company evaluates whether or not a potential loss amount or a potential
range of loss is probable and reasonably estimable under the provisions of FASB ASC Topic 450, Contingencies (“ASC 450”).
The Company expenses as incurred the costs related to its legal proceedings.
12. Net Loss per Share
The following table summarizes the basic and diluted
net loss per share attributable to stockholders (in thousands, except share and per share data):
Three Months Ended June 30, 2025
Three Months Ended June 30, 2024
Loss Allocation
Weighted
Average
Shares
Outstanding
Loss Per
Share,
Basic and
Diluted
Loss
Allocation
Weighted
Average
Shares
Outstanding
Loss Per
Share,
Basic and
Diluted
Common Stock
$ ( 19,327 )
42,095,951
$ ( 0.46 )
$ ( 22,243 )
3,197,975
$ ( 6.96 )
Company Series B Preferred Stock (1)
( 5,247 )
137,138
$ ( 38.26 )
—
—
$ —
Net loss
$ ( 24,574 )
$ ( 22,243 )
(1) The weighted-average number of shares of as-converted Company
Series B Preferred Stock used in the loss allocation was 11,428,129 for the three months ended June 30, 2025.
Six Months Ended June 30, 2025
Period from
February 6, 2024 (Inception) to
June 30, 2024
Loss Allocation
Weighted
Average
Shares
Outstanding
Loss Per
Share,
Basic and
Diluted
Loss
Allocation
Weighted
Average
Shares
Outstanding
Loss Per
Share,
Basic and
Diluted
Common Stock
$ ( 35,805 )
41,888,906
$ ( 0.85 )
$ ( 29,320 )
3,197,975
$ ( 9.17 )
Company Series B Preferred Stock (1)
( 9,768 )
137,138
$ ( 71.23 )
—
—
$ —
Net loss
$ ( 45,573 )
$ ( 29,320 )
(1) The weighted-average number of shares of as-converted Company Series B Preferred Stock used in the loss allocation was 11,428,129 for the six months ended June 30, 2025.
20
For the computation of basic
net loss per share attributable to stockholders, the amount of weighted-average shares outstanding excludes all shares of unvested restricted
common stock as such shares are not considered outstanding for accounting purposes until vested. The amount of weighted-average shares
outstanding includes the pre-funded warrants as the exercise price is negligible and these warrants are fully vested and exercisable.
The potential shares of common
stock that were excluded from the computation of diluted net loss per share attributable to stockholders for the periods presented because
including them would have had an anti-dilutive effect were as follows:
Three
Months Ended
June 30,
2025
Three
Months Ended
June 30,
2024
Six Months Ended
June 30,
2025
Period from
February 6, 2024
(Inception) to June 30,
2024
Outstanding convertible preferred stock (as converted to common stock)
—
11,428,149
—
11,428,149
Outstanding employee warrants to purchase common stock
3,054,358
—
3,054,358
—
Outstanding unvested restricted stock awards
1,493,010
2,207,553
1,493,010
2,207,553
Outstanding and issued common stock options
3,668,560
1,179,193
3,668,560
1,179,193
Outstanding and issued warrant to Paruka
596,930
—
596,930
—
Total
8,812,858
14,814,895
8,812,858
14,814,895
13. Related
Party Transactions
Paragon and Paruka each beneficially
own less than 5% of the Company’s capital stock through their respective holdings of Company Common Stock.
Fairmount beneficially
owns more than 5% of the Company’s capital stock, currently has one representative appointed to the Board, and beneficially owns
more than 5% of Paragon. Fairmount appointed Paragon’s board of directors and has the contractual right to approve the
appointment of any executive officers of Paragon.
The following is a summary
of related party accounts payable and other current liabilities (in thousands):
June 30,
2025
December 31,
2024
Paragon reimbursable Option Agreements’ fees
$ —
$ 1,482
Paragon milestone payments for License Agreement
—
4,000
Paragon reimbursable other research expenses
107
515
Paragon reimbursable patent expenses
12
25
Total
$ 119
$ 6,022
14. Income
Taxes
On July 4, 2025, the One
Big Beautiful Bill Act (the “Act”) was signed into law. The Act makes permanent key elements of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, including
100 % bonus depreciation, domestic research cost expensing, and the business interest expense limitation. The Company is currently evaluating
the impact of the Act.
21
Text extracted from the filing as submitted to EDGAR. Formatting, tables and exhibits are simplified for reading; the original document is authoritative for anything you rely on.