CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Sept. 07, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Voyager Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: VYGR), a biotechnology company dedicated to breaking through barriers in gene therapy and neurology, has entered into employment agreements with three newly-hired employees that, among other things, provide for the grant to such employees of non-qualified stock options and restricted stock units as inducements material to such employees’ entering into employment with Voyager. The inducement awards were approved by the Compensation Committee of Voyager’s Board of Directors in accordance with Nasdaq Stock Market Listing Rule 5635(c)(4). The option awards to two of these employees became effective on September 5, 2023, and the option award to the third employee became effective on September 6, 2023. The restricted stock unit award to each employee is scheduled to become effective on October 1, 2023.

The stock option award to two employees provides for the purchase of an aggregate of 90,000 shares of Voyager’s common stock, and the restricted stock unit award to such employees will represent 45,000 shares of Voyager’s common stock. The stock option award to the third employee provides for the purchase of an aggregate of 44,000 shares of Voyager’s common stock, and the restricted stock unit award to such employee will represent 22,000 shares of Voyager’s common stock. Each stock option has a ten-year term. The stock option awards to the two employees have an exercise price of $9.26 per share, which is equal to the closing price of Voyager's common stock on September 5, 2023, the effective date of grant. The stock option to the third employee has an exercise price of $9.39 per share, which is equal to the closing price of Voyager's common stock on September 6, 2023, the effective date of grant. Each stock option vests over four years, with 25% of the shares underlying the stock option vesting on the first anniversary of the effective date of grant and 75% of the shares underlying the stock option vesting in 36 equal monthly installments following the first anniversary of the effective date of grant. Each restricted stock unit award vests annually in equal installments over three years, beginning on the first anniversary of the effective date of grant. Vesting of each employee’s equity awards is subject to such employee’s continued employment with Voyager. Each equity award is also subject to the terms and conditions of an award agreement.

About Voyager Therapeutics 

Voyager Therapeutics (Nasdaq: VYGR) is a biotechnology company dedicated to breaking through barriers in gene therapy and neurology. The potential of both disciplines has been constrained by delivery challenges; Voyager is leveraging cutting-edge expertise in capsid discovery and deep neuropharmacology capabilities to address these constraints. Voyager’s TRACER™ AAV capsid discovery platform has generated novel capsids with high target delivery and blood-brain barrier penetration at low doses, potentially addressing the narrow therapeutic window associated with conventional gene therapy delivery vectors. This platform is fueling alliances with Pfizer Inc., Novartis Pharma AG, Neurocrine Biosciences, Inc., and Sangamo Therapeutics, Inc., as well as multiple programs in Voyager’s own pipeline. Voyager’s pipeline includes wholly owned and collaborative preclinical programs in Alzheimer’s disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Parkinson’s disease, and other diseases of the central nervous system, with a focus on validated targets and biomarkers to enable a path to rapid potential proof-of-biology. For more information, visit www.voyagertherapeutics.com.

Voyager Therapeutics^® is a registered trademark, and TRACER™ is a trademark, of Voyager Therapeutics, Inc.

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Peg Rusconi
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