Investments

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2019

The following table reflects the accounting method, carrying value and underlying equity in net assets of our unconsolidated investments as of December 31, 2019:



(in thousands)
Investment type	Investment Carrying Value		Underlying Equity in Net Assets
Equity method investments	$	826	$	9,931
Variable interest entity, equity method	894		—
Equity securities	18,870
Equity securities with no readily determinable fair value	36
Warrants and options	120
Total carrying value of investments	$	20,746

Equity method investments

Our equity method investments consist of investments in Pharmsynthez (ownership 9%), Cocrystal Pharma, Inc. (“COCP”) (7%), Non-Invasive Monitoring Systems, Inc. (“NIMS”) (1%), Neovasc Inc. (“Neovasc”)(4%), InCellDx, Inc. (“InCellDx”) (29%), BioCardia, Inc. (“BioCardia”) (3%), and Xenetic Biosciences, Inc. (“Xenetic”) (3%). The total assets, liabilities, and net losses of our equity method investees as of and for the year ended December 31, 2019 were $191.5 million, $58.4 million, and $62.9 million, respectively. We have determined that we or our related parties can significantly influence the operations of our equity method investees through our board representation and/or voting power. Accordingly, we account for our investment in these entities under the equity method and record our proportionate share of their respective losses in Loss from investments in investees in our Consolidated Statement of Operations. Included in Loss from investments in investees for the year ended December 31, 2018 is a charge of $2.9 million to write our investment in InCellDx, Inc. down to its fair value as of December 31, 2018. The aggregate value of our equity method investments based on the quoted market price of their respective shares of common stock and the number of shares held by us as of December 31, 2019 was $6.0 million.

Equity securities

Our equity securities consist of investments in Phio Pharmaceuticals (“Phio”) (ownership 0.1%), VBI Vaccines Inc. (“VBI”) (4%), ChromaDex Corporation (0.1%), MabVax Therapeutics Holdings, Inc. (“MabVax”) (1%), and Eloxx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (“Eloxx”)(3%). We have determined that our ownership, along with that of our related parties, does not provide us with significant influence over the operations of these investments. Accordingly, we account for our investment in these entities as equity securities, and we record changes in the fair value of these investments in Other income (expense) each reporting period when they have readily determinable fair value. Equity securities without a readily determinable fair value are adjusted to fair value when an observable price change can be identified. Net gains and losses on our equity securities for the year ended December 31, 2019 are as follows:



(in thousands)
Equity Securities	For the year ended December 31, 2019
Net gains and losses recognized during the period on equity securities	$	(7,443	)
Less: Net gains and losses realized during the period on equity securities	—
Unrealized net gains recognized during the period on equity securities still held at the reporting date	$	(7,443	)

Sales of investments

Gains (losses) included in earnings from sales of our investments are recorded in Other income (expense), net in our Consolidated Statement of Operations. We did not have significant sales activity during the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018. Gains (losses) from sale of our investments for the year ended December 31, 2017 was $1.5 million. The cost of securities sold is based on the specific identification method.

Warrants and options

In addition to our equity method investments and equity securities, we hold options to purchase 47 thousand additional shares of BioCardia, 31 thousand of which were vested as of December 31, 2019, and 33 thousand, 0.7 million, 40 thousand and 22 thousand of warrants to purchase additional shares of COCP, InCellDx, Inc., Xenetic and Phio, respectively. We recorded the changes in the fair value of the options and warrants in Fair value changes of derivative instruments, net in our Consolidated Statement of Operations. We also recorded the fair value of the options and warrants in Investments, net in our Consolidated Balance Sheet. See further discussion of the Company’s options and warrants in Note 18 and Note 19.

Investments in variable interest entities

We have determined that we hold variable interests in Zebra Biologics, Inc. (“Zebra”). We made this determination as a result of our assessment that Zebra does not have sufficient resources to carry out its principal activities without additional financial support.

We own 1,260,000 shares of Zebra Series A-2 Preferred Stock and 900,000 shares of Zebra restricted common stock (ownership 29% at December 31, 2019). Zebra is a privately held biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of biosuperior antibody therapeutics and complex drugs. Dr. Richard Lerner, M.D., a member of our Board of Directors, is a founder of Zebra and, along with Dr. Frost, serves as a member of Zebra’s Board of Directors.

In order to determine the primary beneficiary of Zebra, we evaluated our investment and our related parties’ investment, as well as our investment combined with the related parties’ investment to identify if we had the power to direct the activities that most significantly impact the economic performance of Zebra. Based on the capital structure, governing documents and overall business operations of Zebra, we determined that, while a VIE, we do not have the power to direct the activities that most significantly impact Zebra’s economic performance and have no obligation to fund expected losses. We did determine, however, that we can significantly influence the success of Zebra through our board representation and voting power. Therefore, we have the ability to exercise significant influence over Zebra’s operations and account for our investment in Zebra under the equity method.

Other

We recorded $8.8 million of expense in Selling, general and administrative expenses in our Consolidated Statement of Operations for the year ended December 31, 2017 to write certain Other current assets from our investees down to their estimated fair value.