Sarepta Therapeutics, Inc. (SRPT) Earnings Call Transcript & Summary

Hello, and welcome to the Annual Meeting of Stockholders of Sarepta Therapeutics Inc. Please note that today's meeting is being recorded. [Operator Instructions] It is now my pleasure to turn today's meeting over to Dr. M. Kathleen Behrens. Dr. Behrens, the floor is yours.

Thank you, Chris. Welcome to the 2021 Annual Meeting of Stockholders for Sarepta Therapeutics. It is now 9:00 a.m., and the meeting will please come to order. My name is Dr. M. Kathleen Behrens, and as chairwoman of the Board of Directors of Sarepta, I will be presiding over this meeting. Doug Ingram, President and Chief Executive Officer of Sarepta, will also preside over portions of the meeting. Ryan Brown Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary, will record the proceedings. We would now like to take a moment to acknowledge the contributions of Dr. John C. Martin, former Sarepta Board member and renowned biotech leader, who passed away unexpectedly on March 30 of this year. Dr. Martin was an extraordinary person and adviser to Sarepta. Those who had the privilege of knowing him were bettered by his colleagueship and the lives of millions of patients across the globe were extended and improved through the therapies that he championed. His vision, wisdom and insight had a lasting impact, and we were fortunate to know and work with him, and to consider him part of the Sarepta community. A fierce advocate for patients and science, he dedicated his life to improving the lives of others. John joined Sarepta's Board in January of 2020, also serving and sharing his expertise as a member of the Board's Research and Development Committee. Dr. Martin brought decades of experience, including from his instrumental role in building one of the world's foremost biotechnology companies, Gilead Sciences. During his 20-year tenure as Chief Executive Officer of Gilead, he oversaw the growth of the company and development of its scientific portfolio into 24 marketed products, including treatments for HIV/AIDS and a cure for hepatitis C. Prior to Gilead, Dr. Martin held several leadership positions at Bristol Myers Squibb and Syntex Corporation. In addition to Sarepta, he served on the Board of Directors of the Scripps Research Institute and Kronos Bio. John's involvement within the industry extended to public health. He served on the Center for Disease Control, Health Resources and Services Administration Advisory Committee on HIV and STD prevention and treatment, and was a member of the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS. In 2008, Dr. Martin was inducted into the National Academy of Engineering, and in 2019, he received the National Academy of Sciences Award for chemistry in service to society. Dr. Martin's legacy of leadership and his fierce commitment to advancing scientific discovery and innovation to benefit the lives of patients is second to none across the biopharmaceutical ecosystem. In the passing of Dr. John Martin, we have lost a giant, but its impact on the world endorse. We are grateful for his service to Sarepta and his family remains in our thoughts as they mourn his passing. Now I will turn to the order of business at today's meeting, which will follow the agenda that is attached in the documents section of the webcast. [Operator Instructions] We will conduct the business portion of our meeting, first, and answer questions at the end of the meeting. Though we may not be able to answer every question, we will do our best to provide a response to as many as possible. Joining me today are the following current members of the Sarepta Board of Directors. Doug Ingram, who will be speaking later; as well as Richard Barry; Dr. Mary Ann Gray; and Dr. Hans Wigzell; Dr. Claude Nicaise cannot be with us today due to a family emergency. I would now like to call your attention to the individuals who have agreed to stand for election as Class II directors to the Board of Directors at this meeting. Richard J. Barry, Dr. Claude Nicaise and myself, Dr. M. Kathleen Behrens, are standing for election to the Board of Directors. Also present today are the company's member of its Executive Committee, Doug Ingram, President and Chief Executive Officer; Ian Estepan, Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer; Diane Berry, Senior Vice President, Global Health Policy, Government and Patient Affairs; Bill Ciambrone, Executive Vice President, Technical Operations; Dallan Murray, Senior Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer; Ryan Brown, Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary; Alison Nasisi, Interim Head of Human Resources; Gilmore O'Neill, Executive Vice President, R&D and Chief Medical Officer; and Louise Rodino-Klapac, Executive Vice President, Chief Scientific Officer. In addition, Brian McCurrie and Stacy Farees of KPMG, the company's independent registered public accountants, have joined us today. This morning, our program will proceed as follows. First, I will conduct the official business of the 2021 annual meeting as presented in the company's proxy statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. This year is the following, are the 3 proposals for stockholders to vote on. First, the election of Class II directors; second, the advisory vote on named Executive Officer compensation; and third, the ratification of KPMG as the company's independent registered public accounting firm for fiscal 2021. The company has not received notice from any of its stockholders as required under its bylaws or any other matters to be considered at today's meeting, and therefore, no other proposals may be properly introduced by stockholders. After we complete the official business of the meeting, Mr. Ingram will address those attending today and open up the meeting with stockholders to a general question-and-answer session on the company's business. We have a quorum present, which allows us to proceed to the official business of this meeting. We also have an affidavit from Computershare, the company's Inspector of Elections, certifying that the notice of internet availability of proxy materials was mailed and deposited with United States Post Office commencing on April 20, 2021, to each shareholder of record as of April 9, 2021. Additional proxy materials, which included a proxy statement, proxy card, annual report and other material necessary to vote at this meeting were mailed to shareholders, who've requested to receive printed copies of the proxy materials. The Board of Directors has appointed Computershare to serve as Inspector of Elections. Jeffrey Seiders of Computershare will determine, first, the number of shares outstanding, second, the shares represented at the meeting, and third, the validity of the proxies and ballots. Mr. Seiders will also tabulate the votes for this annual meeting. I will now turn to the official business of this meeting. The first matter to be voted upon today is Proposal 1, the Election of Class II Directors. Nominations are now in order for Class II Directors on the Board of Sarepta for the 2-year term, expiring at the 2023 Annual General Meeting of Stockholders and until their successors are duly elected and qualified. The current Board of Directors favors the election of the following individuals: Richard J. Barry, Dr. Claude Nicaise, Dr. M. Kathleen Behrens. Do we have a nomination?

I hereby nominate for election as Directors of the company to serve a term expiring on the date of the 2023 Annual General Meeting of Stockholders and until his or her successor is duly elected and qualified. Richard J. Barry, Dr. Claude Nicaise and Dr. M. Kathleen Behrens, who were named as Director nominees in the company's proxy statement for this Annual Meeting. May I have a second?

I second the motion.

A motion to nominate the individuals listed in the proxy statement and announced at this meeting as directors of Sarepta for the 2-year term, expiring at the 2023 Annual General Meeting of Stockholders has been made and seconded. The second matter to be voted upon is Proposal 2. The advisory vote on 2020 named Executive Officer compensation. May I have a motion?

I hereby move to approve the advisory vote on 2020 named Executive Officer compensation. May I have a second?

I second the motion.

A motion to approve the advisory vote on the 2020 named Executive Officer compensation has been made and seconded. The third matter to be voted upon at this meeting is Proposal 3, the ratification of the selection of KPMG as the independent registered public accounting firm for the company for 2021. May I have a motion?

I move that the selection of KPMG as the independent registered public accounting firm for the company for 2021 be ratified and approved. May I have a second?

I second the motion.

A motion has been made and seconded to ratify and approve the selection of KPMG as the independent registered public accounting firm for the company for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021. We will now proceed to vote on the motions for proposals 1 through 3 in the company's proxy statement, which are the proposals related to the election of Class II Directors, the advisory vote on named Executive Officer compensation and the ratification of the company's auditors for fiscal year 2021. Stockholders who sent in proxies or voted via telephone or internet, and do not wish to change their vote, do not need to take any further action. If you previously returned a proxy card and do not wish to change your vote, you do not need to vote again at this meeting. If you wish to vote at this meeting and have not yet done so, you may do so now by clicking on the cast-your-vote button on the web portal and following the instructions there. I'm now going to give us a minute or 2 for people to take time to vote. [Voting]

We will now close the voting polls with respect to the 3 proposals in the proxy statement. Since the voting polls are now closed, I now move that the official business portion of this meeting be concluded. May I have a second?

I second the motion.