Fair Value Measurements

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2021

5. Fair Value Measurements

As of September 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020, the Company’s financial instruments consisted of cash, cash equivalents, available-for-sale marketable securities, prepaid expenses, restricted cash, accounts payable and accrued liabilities. The fair values of cash, cash equivalents, prepaid expenses, restricted cash, accounts payable and accrued liabilities approximate their carrying values due to the short-term nature of these financial instruments. Available-for-sale marketable securities are reported at their fair values, based upon pricing of securities with the same or similar investment characteristics as provided by third-party pricing services, as described below.

The valuation techniques used by the Company are based on observable and unobservable inputs. Observable inputs reflect readily obtainable data from independent sources, while unobservable inputs reflect the Company’s assumptions about the inputs that market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability and are developed based on the best information available in the circumstances.

The Company classifies its investments in a fair value hierarchy that is intended to increase consistency and comparability in fair value measurements and related disclosures. The fair value hierarchy is divided into three levels based on the source of inputs as follows:

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Level 1 – Observable inputs – quoted prices in active markets for identical assets and liabilities.

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Level 2 – Observable inputs other than the quoted prices in active markets for identical assets and liabilities – such as quoted prices for similar instruments, quoted prices for identical or similar instruments in inactive markets, or other inputs that are observable or can be corroborated by observable market data.

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Level 3 – Unobservable inputs – includes amounts derived from valuation models where one or more significant inputs are unobservable and require the Company to develop relevant assumptions.

Valuation Techniques - Level 2 Inputs

The Company estimates the fair values of its financial instruments categorized as level 2 in the fair value hierarchy, including U.S. Treasury securities, U.S. government agency obligations, corporate bonds, commercial paper and municipal bonds, by taking into consideration valuations obtained from third-party pricing services. The pricing services use industry standard valuation models, including both income- and market-based approaches, for which all significant inputs are observable, either directly or indirectly, to estimate fair value. These inputs include reported trades of and broker/dealer quotes on the same or similar securities, benchmark yields, issuer credit spreads, benchmark securities, and other observable inputs. The Company obtains a single price for each financial instrument and does not adjust the prices obtained from the pricing service.

The Company validates the prices provided by its third-party pricing services by reviewing their pricing methods, obtaining market values from other pricing sources and comparing them to the share prices presented by the third-party pricing services. After completing its validation procedures, the Company did not adjust or override any fair value measurements provided by its third-party pricing services as of September 30, 2021 or December 31, 2020.

The following tables summarize the Company’s financial assets measured at fair value on a recurring basis as of September 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020.

Fair value measurement as of September 30, 2021:


			Quoted prices in		Significant other		Significant
Financial assets			active markets for		observable		unobservable
			identical assets		inputs		inputs
Type of Instrument	Total		(Level 1)		(Level 2)		(Level 3)
Cash and cash equivalents:
Money market funds and checking accounts	$	22,991	$	22,991	$	—	$	—
Available-for-sale marketable securities:
U.S. Treasury securities		10,070		—		10,070		—
U.S. government agency obligations		17,044		—		17,044		—
Corporate bonds		46,914		—		46,914		—
Commercial paper		78,454		—		78,454		—
Municipal bonds		17,942		—		17,942		—
Restricted cash:
Commercial money market account		408		408		—		—
Total financial assets	$	193,823	$	23,399	$	170,424	$	—

Fair value measurement as of December 31, 2020:


			Quoted prices in		Significant other		Significant
Financial assets			active markets for		observable		unobservable
			identical assets		inputs		inputs
Type of Instrument	Total		(Level 1)		(Level 2)		(Level 3)
Cash and cash equivalents:
Money market funds and checking accounts	$	31,683	$	31,683	$	—	$	—
Available-for-sale marketable securities:
U.S. Treasury securities		20,750		—		20,750		—
U.S. government agency obligations		22,128		—		22,128		—
Corporate bonds		49,118		—		49,118		—
Commercial paper		116,127		—		116,127		—
Municipal bonds		11,684		—		11,684		—
Restricted cash:
Commercial money market account		408		408		—		—
Total financial assets	$	251,898	$	32,091	$	219,807	$	—

There were no purchases, sales or maturities of Level 3 financial assets and no unrealized gains or losses related to Level 3 available-for-sale marketable securities during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively. There were no transfers of financial assets into or out of Level 3 classification during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the fair value of financial instruments (as defined), including financial assets and financial liabilities (collectively, as defined), and the measurements of those instruments as well as disclosures related to the fair value of non-financial assets and liabilities. Such disclosures about the financial instruments, assets, and liabilities would include: (1) the fair value of the required items together with their carrying amounts (as appropriate); (2) for items for which it is not practicable to estimate fair value, disclosure would include: (a) information pertinent to estimating fair value (including, carrying amount, effective interest rate, and maturity, and (b) the reasons why it is not practicable to estimate fair value; (3) significant concentrations of credit risk including: (a) information about the activity, region, or economic characteristics identifying a concentration, (b) the maximum amount of loss the entity is exposed to based on the gross fair value of the related item, (c) policy for requiring collateral or other security and information as to accessing such collateral or security, and (d) the nature and brief description of such collateral or security; (4) quantitative information about market risks and how such risks are managed; (5) for items measured on both a recurring and nonrecurring basis information regarding the inputs used to develop the fair value measurement; and (6) for items presented in the financial statement for which fair value measurement is elected: (a) information necessary to understand the reasons for the election, (b) discussion of the effect of fair value changes on earnings, (c) a description of [similar groups] items for which the election is made and the relation thereof to the balance sheet, the aggregate carrying value of items included in the balance sheet that are not eligible for the election; (7) all other required (as defined) and desired information.

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