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Stock Compensation
 3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2022
Share-based Payment Arrangement [Abstract]  
Stock Compensation Stock Compensation
Employee Stock Purchase Plan
In April 2020, the board of directors approved the Esperion Therapeutics, Inc. 2020 Employee Stock Purchase Plan (the "ESPP") which was approved by the Company's shareholders on May 28, 2020. The ESPP allows eligible employees to authorize payroll deductions of up to 10% of their base salary or wages up to $25,000 annually to be applied toward the purchase of shares of the Company's common stock on the last trading day of the offering period. Participating employees will purchase shares of the Company's common stock at a discount of up to 15% on the lesser of the closing price of the Company's common stock on the NASDAQ Global Select Market (i) on the first trading day of the offering period or (ii) the last day of any offering period. Offering periods under the ESPP will generally be in six months increments, commencing on September 1 and March 1 of each calendar year with the administrator having the right to establish different offering periods. In the three months ended March 31, 2022 and March 31, 2021, the Company recognized approximately $0.1 million and $0.3 million of stock compensation expense related to the ESPP, respectively. As of March 31, 2022, there have been 256,999 shares issued and 568,001 shares reserved for future issuance under the ESPP.
Stock Options
The following table summarizes the activity relating to the Company’s options to purchase common stock for the three months ended March 31, 2022:
Number of OptionsWeighted-Average Exercise Price Per ShareWeighted-Average Remaining Contractual Term (Years)Aggregate Intrinsic Value
(in thousands)
Outstanding at December 31, 20213,214,537 $38.38 4.18$— 
Granted1,042,450 $4.64 
Forfeited or expired(155,728)$47.81 
Exercised— $— 
Outstanding at March 31, 20224,101,259 $29.44 5.62$99 
Vested and expected to vest at March 31, 20224,101,259 $29.44 5.62$99 
Exercisable at March 31, 20222,491,684 $39.84 3.09$— 
Stock-based compensation related to stock options was $1.5 million for the three months ended March 31, 2022, including $0.1 million that were capitalized into inventory, and $3.7 million for the three months ended March 31, 2021, including $0.3 million that were capitalized into inventory. As of March 31, 2022, there was $13.7 million of unrecognized stock-based compensation expense related to unvested options, which will be recognized over a weighted-average period of 2.8 years.
Performance-Based Stock Options ("PBSOs")
In 2021, the Company granted PBSOs from the 2013 Plan that vest upon various performance-based milestones as set forth in the individual grant agreements, such as achievement of predetermined clinical or regulatory outcomes. The actual number of units (if any) received under these awards will depend on continued employment and actual performance over the performance period. Each quarter, the Company updates their assessment of the probability that the performance milestone will be achieved. The Company amortizes the fair value of the PBSOs based on the expected performance period to achieve the performance milestone. The Company expects the performance criteria to be met.
The following table summarizes the activity relating to the Company’s PBSOs for the three months ended March 31, 2022:
Number of OptionsWeighted-Average Exercise Price Per ShareWeighted-Average Remaining Contractual Term (Years)Aggregate Intrinsic Value
(in thousands)
Outstanding at December 31, 2021122,700 $8.94 9.83$— 
Granted— $— $— 
Forfeited or expired— $— $— 
Exercised— $— $— 
Outstanding at March 31, 2022122,700 $8.94 9.59$— 
Vested and expected to vest at March 31, 2022122,700 8.949.59$— 
Exercisable at March 31, 2022— $— 0$— 

Stock-based compensation related to PBSOs was $0.1 million for the three months ended March 31, 2022. As of March 31, 2022, there was approximately $0.6 million of unrecognized stock-based compensation expense related to unvested PBSOs, which will be recognized over a weighted-average period of approximately 1.7 years.
Restricted Stock Units (or RSUs)
The following table summarizes the activity relating to the Company’s RSUs for the three months ended March 31, 2022:
Number of
RSUs		Weighted-Average
Fair Value Per
Share
Outstanding and unvested December 31, 2021698,704 $28.09 
Granted1,386,629 $4.51 
Forfeited(51,330)$20.36 
Vested(55,286)$36.94 
Outstanding and unvested March 31, 20221,978,717 $11.51 
Stock-based compensation related to RSUs was approximately $1.9 million for the three months ended March 31, 2022, including $0.1 million that was capitalized into inventory, and approximately $1.8 million for the three months ended March 31, 2021, including $0.1 million that was capitalized into inventory. As of March 31, 2022, there was $19.9 million of unrecognized stock-based compensation expense related to unvested RSUs, which will be recognized over a weighted-average period of 3.1 years.
Performance-based Restricted Stock Units ("PBRSUs")
In 2021, the Company granted PBRSUs from the 2013 Plan that vest upon various performance-based milestones as set forth in the individual grant agreements, such as achievement of predetermined milestones based on the Company's U.S. net product sales or clinical or regulatory outcomes. The actual number of units (if any) received under these awards will depend on continued employment and actual performance over the performance period. Each quarter, the Company updates their assessment of the probability that the performance milestone will be achieved. The Company amortizes the fair value of the PBRSUs based on the expected performance period to achieve the performance milestone. The fair value of the PBRSUs is based on the quoted market price of the Company's common stock on the date of grant. The Company expects the performance criteria to be met.
The following table summarizes the activity relating to the Company's PBRSUs for the three months ended March 31, 2022:
Number of
PBRSUs		Weighted-average fair value per share
Outstanding December 31, 2021639,950 $9.90 
Granted— $— 
Forfeited(37,200)$8.94 
Outstanding and unvested March 31, 2022602,750 $9.96 
Stock-based compensation related to the PBRSUs was approximately $0.8 million for the three months ended March 31, 2022, including $0.1 million that was capitalized into inventory. As of March 31, 2022, there was approximately $4.4 million of unrecognized stock-based compensation expense related to unvested PBRSUs, which will be recognized over a weighted-average period of approximately 2.1 years.