License, Collaboration and Service Agreements

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2025

Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]

License, Collaboration and Service Agreements

11.

License, Collaboration and Service Agreements

The Company has certain obligations under license agreements with third parties that include annual maintenance fees and payments that are contingent upon achieving various development, regulatory and commercial milestones. Pursuant to these license agreements, the Company is required to make milestone payments if certain development, regulatory and commercial milestones are achieved, and may have certain additional research funding obligations. Also, pursuant to the terms of each of these license agreements, when and if commercial sales of a product commence, the Company will pay royalties to its licensors on net sales of the respective products.

Tebipenem HBr Agreements

GSK License Agreement

On November 7, 2022, the Company closed the transactions contemplated by the GSK License Agreement, which was entered into on September 21, 2022. Pursuant to the terms of the GSK License Agreement, the Company granted GSK an exclusive royalty-bearing license, with the right to grant sublicenses, under the Company’s intellectual property and regulatory documents and a sublicense under certain intellectual property of Meiji Seika Pharma Co. Ltd. (“Meiji”) and Meiji’s regulatory documents to develop, manufacture and commercialize tebipenem pivoxil and tebipenem HBr and products that contain tebipenem pivoxil and tebipenem HBr (the “GSK Licensed Products”) in all territories, except certain Asian countries previously licensed to Meiji (Japan, Bangladesh, Brunei, Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam (the “Meiji Territory”)) (the “GSK Territory”). If the Company’s license with Meiji is terminated, or if Meiji forfeits or loses its rights to develop, manufacture and commercialize tebipenem HBr and products that contain tebipenem HBr in any countries in the Meiji Territory, then GSK will have an exclusive first right to negotiate with the Company to add any such countries to the GSK Territory.

Under the terms of the GSK License Agreement, in November 2022, the Company received an upfront payment of $66.0 million for GSK to secure rights to tebipenem pivoxil and tebipenem HBr.

In July 2023, the Company received written agreement from the FDA, under a special protocol assessment (“SPA”), on the design and size of PIVOT-PO, a pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial of tebipenem HBr in patients with cUTI, including acute pyelonephritis. Under the terms of the GSK License Agreement, the Company received a $30.0 million development milestone payment during the third quarter of 2023.

In December 2023, the Company commenced enrollment in PIVOT-PO with its first patient, first visit. Under the terms of the GSK License Agreement, the Company is entitled to receive a $95.0 million development milestone that is payable in four equal semiannual installments. The Company received the first installment payment of $23.8 million for such development milestone in the first quarter of 2024, the second installment payment of $23.8 million in the third quarter of 2024, the third installment payment in the first quarter of 2025 and the Company received the final development milestone payment of $23.8 million in the third quarter of 2025.

In May 2025, the Company announced that the PIVOT-PO Phase 3 trial met its primary endpoint and was stopped early for efficacy after a review of data from a pre-specified interim analysis of data from 1,690 patients enrolled in the trial. GSK plans to submit the data from the trial as part of an FDA filing during the fourth quarter of 2025.

Remaining potential payments under the GSK License Agreement, which include milestones and royalties based on future regulatory events, commercial launch, and achievement of pre-specified sales thresholds, are as follows (in millions):


Contingent Event	Milestone Payment
Tebipenem NDA Submission by GSK	$	25.0
Total potential commercial milestones based on first commercial sales	$	101.0	*
First commercial sale of a product in the United States		—		$	51.0
Second anniversary of first commercial sale of a product in the United States		—		$	25.0
First commercial sale of a product in two European countries		—		$	25.0
Total potential sales milestone payments	$	225.0
Net annual sales greater than $200.0		—		$	25.0
Net annual sales greater than $300.0		—		$	25.0
Net annual sales greater than $400.0		—		$	25.0
Net annual sales greater than $500.0		—		$	50.0
Net annual sales greater than $750.0		—		$	50.0
Net annual sales greater than $1,000.0		—		$	50.0

*Under the terms of the GSK License Agreement, the maximum potential milestone amount was revised from $150.0 million after PIVOT-PO was stopped early for efficacy following completion of a pre-specified interim analysis of data from 1,690 patients enrolled in the trial, thereby reducing the overall cost of the trial to the Company; the maximum potential milestone payment of $150.0 million was contingent upon the trial continuing to full enrollment, with 2,637 patients enrolled in the trial.

In addition to the milestones described above, GSK is obligated to pay royalties to the Company on annual net sales of GSK Licensed Products in the GSK Territory. Such royalties are 1% for annual sales up to $750.0 million each year and range from high single-digit percentages on annual net sales above $750.0 million each year to low double-digit percentages on annual net sales above $1,000.0 million each year.

Amendments to the GSK License Agreement

In July 2023, the Company entered into Amendment 1 to the GSK License Agreement, which updated the timeframe for technology transfer in the GSK License Agreement.

In December 2023, the Company entered into Amendment 2 to the GSK License Agreement, which added a country to the locations for PIVOT-PO trial enrollment. Under the terms of Amendment 2, the Company may receive up to an additional $4.3 million in milestone payments based on activities in such country. The Company received the first milestone payment under Amendment 2 of $1.2 million in August 2024 and received the second milestone payment of $1.3 million in October 2024. The third milestone was achieved in December 2024 and the milestone payment of $0.7 million was received in February 2025. Given the PIVOT-PO trial evaluating tebipenem HBr has been stopped early for efficacy, the fourth milestone of $1.1 million will not be achieved.

In March 2024, the Company entered into Amendment 3 to the GSK License Agreement, which assigns its rights to Product Trademarks (as defined in Amendment 3 to the GSK License Agreement) to GSK.

In October 2024, the Company entered into Amendment 4 to the GSK License Agreement, under which the Company is expected to receive an additional $0.8 million upon completion of activities related to an additional Phase 1 clinical study. The Company received $0.4 million of the milestone payment in January 2025 and anticipates receipt of the remaining milestone payment in the fourth quarter of 2025.

Royalties are subject to reduction in the event of third-party licenses, entry of a generic product or expiration of patent and regulatory exclusivity prior to the tenth anniversary of the first commercial sale of a GSK Licensed Product in a particular country.

The Company is responsible for the execution and costs of the follow-up Phase 3 clinical trial of tebipenem HBr. GSK will be responsible for the execution and costs of any additional further development, including additional Phase 3 regulatory filing and commercialization activities for tebipenem HBr in the GSK Territory. The Company is also responsible for providing and paying for the clinical supply of tebipenem HBr while GSK will be responsible for the costs of the commercial supply of tebipenem HBr. A joint development committee has been established between GSK and the Company to coordinate and review development activities for tebipenem HBr in the United States.

Unless earlier terminated due to certain material breaches of the GSK License Agreement or by GSK for convenience, or otherwise, the GSK License Agreement will expire on a jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction and GSK Licensed Product-by-GSK Licensed Product basis on the latest to occur of (i) loss of patent exclusivity, (ii) loss of regulatory exclusivity or (iii) ten years following the date of the first commercial sale of such licensed product in such country (the “GSK Royalty Term”). During the GSK Royalty Term, the Company has agreed not to develop, manufacture or commercialize any oral carbapenem for any indication or any oral antibiotic for cUTI; this restriction does not apply to any third party which acquires control of the Company after the date of the GSK License Agreement if certain conditions are met.

The Company has the right to terminate the GSK License Agreement upon a material breach by, or bankruptcy of, GSK. GSK has the right to terminate the GSK License Agreement at any time upon a specified number of days’ notice or upon a material breach by, or bankruptcy of, the Company. In addition, in the event that GSK has the right to terminate the GSK License Agreement due to a material breach by the Company, GSK may elect not to terminate the GSK License Agreement and in lieu thereof may assume the responsibility and expense of development of tebipenem HBr in the United States, in which event GSK’s obligation to make further development payments to the Company (including unpaid installments of any earned milestone payments) would cease, and/or to reduce all subsequent commercial and sales milestone payments and royalty payments otherwise due by GSK to the Company under the GSK License Agreement by 50%. In the case of a Change of Control (as defined in the GSK License Agreement) of the Company, GSK similarly may, in lieu of terminating the GSK License Agreement, assume responsibility and expense of development of tebipenem HBr in the United States and no development milestones would be payable to the Company, as described above.

The GSK License Agreement contains representations and warranties, other covenants, indemnification provisions and other terms and conditions customary for transactions of the type contemplated by the GSK License Agreement. In support of certain of its rights to indemnification, GSK also has certain rights to suspend payments otherwise owed to the Company, as well as the right to offset payments otherwise owed to the Company against certain indemnifiable claims.

Accounting Analysis and Revenue Recognition

The Company determined that GSK is a customer and that the GSK License Agreement is within the scope of Topic 606 as licensing intellectual property and performing ongoing research and development services are ordinary activities that are ongoing and central to the Company’s operations. Accordingly, in determining the appropriate amount of revenue to be recognized, the Company performed the following steps: (i) identified the promised goods or services in the contract; (ii) determined whether the promised

goods or services are performance obligations including whether they are distinct in the context of the contract; (iii) measured the transaction price, including the constraint on variable consideration; (iv) allocated the transaction price to the identified performance obligations in proportion to their SSP; and (v) recognized revenue when each performance obligation was deemed to be satisfied.

Based on that evaluation, the Company identified two performance obligations, related to the license and to research and development services.

The Company developed the estimated SSP for the license using a discounted cash flow model. In developing this estimate, the Company applied significant judgment in the determination of the significant assumptions relating to forecasted future cash flows, the discount rate, and the probability of success. The SSP for the research and development services was estimated based on the Company’s estimate of costs to be incurred to fulfill its obligations associated with the performance of the research and development services, plus a reasonable margin.

At contract inception, the total transaction price was $64.7 million, which included the initial payment of $66.0 million in the fourth quarter of 2022 and the discount of $1.3 million related to the stock purchase agreement (“GSK SPA”) with Glaxo Group Limited, an affiliate of GSK. At contract inception, $45.7 million of the initial $64.7 million was allocated to the license transfer performance obligation, which was fully satisfied and recognized as revenue upon delivery of the license. The remaining $19.0 million was allocated to the research and development services obligation and is being recognized over time as services are delivered, which was originally estimated to be over a three-year period.

The Company recognized revenue for the license performance obligation at a point in time, that is upon transfer of the license to GSK. Control of the license was transferred on September 21, 2022 (the “GSK Effective Date”) and GSK could begin to use and benefit from the license at the GSK Effective Date.

The $30.0 million milestone payment received by the Company under the GSK License Agreement, was accounted for as variable consideration under Topic 606 and was added to the transaction price in the third quarter of 2023. Of this $30.0 million milestone, $21.2 million was recognized upon achievement of the milestone and the remaining $8.8 million was allocated to the research and development services performance obligation and will be recognized over time as the services are delivered, on a cumulative catch-up basis.

The Company is entitled to receive the $95.0 million milestone payment in four equal semiannual installments under the GSK License Agreement. This milestone payment was accounted for as variable consideration under Topic 606 and was added to the transaction price in the fourth quarter of 2023. The Company determined that a significant financing component of $2.5 million exists related to extended payments terms granted to GSK. The Company presents the effects of the financing component separately from collaboration revenue – related party as a component of interest income in its consolidated statement of operations. Of the $95.0 million milestone payment, $64.7 million was recognized upon achievement of the milestone in the fourth quarter of 2023, and the remaining amount after the $2.5 million significant financing component was allocated to the research and development services performance obligation and will be recognized over time as the services are delivered.

The milestone installment payments are classified as collaboration receivable – related party on the Company’s consolidated balance sheet as of September 30, 2025. The Company received the first milestone installment payment of $23.8 million in the first quarter of 2024, the second milestone payment of $23.8 million in the third quarter of 2024, and the third milestone payment of $23.8 million in the first quarter of 2025. The Company received the final development milestone payment of $23.8 million in the third quarter of 2025.

The potential future development milestone payments from the GSK License Agreement will be accounted for as variable consideration under Topic 606. Given the uncertain nature of these payments, the Company determined they were fully constrained as of September 30, 2025 and not included in the transaction price. The Company can also earn sales-based royalties.

Pursuant to Amendment 2 to the GSK License Agreement, the Company allocated $3.2 million of the total potential additional milestone payments of $4.3 million to the research and development services obligation, as those development milestones were considered probable of achievement. These potential milestones were accounted for as variable consideration under Topic 606 and were added to the transaction price in the fourth quarter of 2023 and will be recognized over time as services are delivered. Due to the pivotal Phase 3 PIVOT-PO trial evaluating tebipenem HBr meeting its primary endpoint and stopping early for efficacy, the remaining $1.1 million milestone will not be achieved.

Pursuant to Amendment 4 to the GSK License Agreement, the Company allocated $0.8 million of the total potential additional milestone payments to the research and development services obligation, as those development milestones were considered probable of achievement. These potential milestones were accounted for as variable consideration under Topic 606 and were added to the transaction price in the fourth quarter of 2024 and will be recognized over time as services are delivered.

In relation to the May 2025 announcement that the pivotal Phase 3 PIVOT-PO trial evaluating tebipenem HBr met its primary endpoint and has stopped early for efficacy, the Company updated the estimated costs to complete its performance obligations under the GSK License Agreement and updated the timeline for completion of performance obligations resulting in the recognition of additional revenue as a cumulative catch-up in the second quarter of 2025. In total and inclusive of the above, the Company recognized $3.0 million and $7.8 million during the three months ended September 30, 2025 and 2024, respectively, and $19.9 million and $17.7 million during the nine months ended September 30, 2025 and 2024, respectively, related to the performance obligations, which were recorded as collaboration revenue – related party on its consolidated statement of operations.

The remaining transaction price balance of approximately $2.4 million from the GSK License Agreement allocated to the research and development services performance obligation has been recorded as deferred revenue - related party in the condensed consolidated balance sheets. As of September 30, 2025, the research and development services related to the performance obligations are expected to be recognized as costs are incurred over the remaining project development timeframe.

Meiji License Agreement

In June 2017, the Company entered into agreements with Meiji, whereby Meiji granted to the Company a license under certain patents, know-how and regulatory documentation to research, develop, manufacture and sell products containing the carbapenem chemical compound having the generic name, tebipenem pivoxil in the licensed territory. In exchange for the license, the Company paid Meiji an upfront, one-time, nonrefundable, non-creditable fee of $0.6 million, which was recognized as research and development expense. In October 2017, the Company paid a $1.0 million milestone payment to Meiji upon the enrollment of the first patient in the Company’s Phase 1 clinical trial of tebipenem HBr. The payment was recorded as research and development expense in the statement of operations and comprehensive loss for the year ended December 31, 2017. The Company paid Meiji approximately $1.6 million during the fourth quarter of 2018 related to fixed assets which will be used in manufacturing related activities at Meiji. This equipment has been capitalized as property and equipment in the consolidated balance sheets as of December 31, 2024. In October 2021, the Company paid a $1.0 million milestone payment to Meiji upon submission of an NDA to the FDA for tebipenem HBr. The Company was obligated to pay Meiji a low double-digit percentage of any sublicense fees received by the Company up to a maximum amount of $7.5 million, which the Company fully paid by the fourth quarter of 2023. The Company recorded these amounts as research and development expenses in the Company’s consolidated statement of operations.

The Company is obligated to make future milestone payments of $1.0 million upon receipt of NDA approval from the FDA for tebipenem HBr, and to pay royalties, on a product-by-product and country-by-country basis, of 1% of net sales of products licensed under the agreement.

The agreement continues in effect until the expiration of all payment obligations thereunder (including royalty payments and licensee revenue) on a product-by-product and country-by-country basis, unless earlier terminated by the parties. Pursuant to the terms of the agreement, in addition to each party’s right to terminate the agreement upon the other party’s material breach (if not cured within a specified period after receipt of notice) or insolvency, the Company also has unilateral termination rights (i) in the event that the Company abandons the development and commercialization of tebipenem HBr for efficacy, safety, legal or business reasons, and (ii) under certain circumstances arising out of the head license with a global pharmaceutical company.

SPR720 Agreements

Vertex Assignment and License Agreement

In May 2016, the Company entered into an agreement with Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (“Vertex”) whereby Vertex granted the Company certain know-how and a sublicense to research, develop, manufacture and sell products for a proprietary compound, as well as a transfer of materials. In exchange for the know-how, sublicense and materials, the Company paid Vertex an upfront, one-time, nonrefundable, non-creditable fee of $0.5 million, which was recognized as research and development expense. As part of the agreement, the Company is obligated to make future milestone payments of up to $80.2 million upon the achievement of specified clinical, regulatory and commercial milestones and to pay Vertex tiered royalties, on a product-by-product and country-by-country basis, of a mid-single-digit to low double-digit percentage based on net sales of products licensed under the agreement. During the three and nine months ended September 30, 2025 and 2024, the Company did not record any research and development expense under this agreement, and the next milestone under this agreement is not accrued because it is not probable.

The agreement continues in effect until the expiration of all payment obligations thereunder, with royalty payment obligations continuing on a product-by-product and country-by-country basis until the later of ten years after the first commercial sale of such product in such country or the date of expiration in such country of the last to expire applicable patent. Further, Vertex has the right to terminate the agreement if provided with notification from the Company of intent to cease all development or if no material development or commercialization efforts occur for one year. In November 2025, the Company announced that it ceased development of SPR720, a product candidate for first-line treatment of NTM-PD.

SPR206 Agreements

Cantab License Agreement

In June 2016, the Company entered into a stock purchase agreement (the “Cantab Agreement”) with Pro Bono Bio PLC, a corporation organized under the laws of England, and its affiliates, including PBB Distributions Limited (“PBB”), Cantab Anti-Infectives Ltd. and New Pharma License Holdings Limited. Under the Cantab Agreement, the Company is obligated to make future milestone payments of up to $5.8 million upon the achievement of specified clinical and regulatory milestones and a payment of £5.0 million ($6.7 million as of September 30, 2025) upon the achievement of a specified commercial milestone. In addition, the Company agreed to pay to PBB royalties, on a product-by-product and country-by-country basis, of a low single-digit percentage based on net sales of products licensed under the agreement. During both the three and nine months ended September 30, 2025 and 2024, the Company did not record any research and development expense related to the achievement of regulatory milestones for SPR206, as no milestones were met or are probable of being met as of the balance sheet date.

The Cantab Agreement continues indefinitely, with royalty payment obligations thereunder continuing on a product-by-product and country-by-country basis until the later of ten years after the first commercial sale of such product in such country or the expiration in such country of the last to expire valid claim of any of the applicable patents. In March 2025, the Company notified the parties of the Cantab agreement of its decision to cease development of SPR206.

Everest Medicines License Agreement

On January 4, 2019, the Company, through its wholly owned subsidiary New Pharma License Holdings Limited (“NPLH”), entered into a license agreement (the “Original Everest License Agreement”), with Everest Medicines II Limited (“Everest”). Under the terms of the Original Everest License Agreement, the Company granted Everest an exclusive license to develop, manufacture and commercialize SPR206 or products that contain SPR206 (the “Everest Licensed Products”), in Greater China (which includes People’s Republic of China, including Hainan Island, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China, and the Macau Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China), Taiwan, the Republic of Korea (South Korea), the Republic of Singapore, Malaysian Federation, Kingdom of Thailand, the Republic of Indonesia, Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Republic of the Philippines (the “Everest Territory”). The Company retained development, manufacturing and commercialization rights with respect to SPR206 and Everest Licensed Products in the rest of the world and also retained the right to develop or manufacture SPR206 and Everest Licensed Products in the Everest Territory for use outside the Territory. In addition to the license grant with respect to SPR206, the Company, through its wholly owned subsidiary, Spero Potentiator, Inc., a Delaware corporation, granted Everest a 12-month exclusive option to negotiate with it for an exclusive license to develop, manufacture and commercialize SPR741 in the Everest Territory.

Under the terms of the Original Everest License Agreement, the Company received an upfront payment of $3.0 million that was recognized in the first quarter of 2019, comprised of a $2.0 million payment to license SPR206 and $1.0 million for the exclusive option to negotiate a license to develop SPR741. The Company also received a milestone payment of $2.0 million in the fourth quarter of 2020 upon completion and delivery of the results of a clinical study.

On January 15, 2021, the Company entered into an amended and restated license agreement (“the Amended Everest License Agreement”) with Everest and Spero Potentiator, Inc., which amended and restated in its entirety the Original Everest License Agreement. The Amended Everest License Agreement modified the dates and values of certain milestone events related to development and commercialization of SPR206 to allow Everest to make more significant investments in the development of SPR206 beyond what was contemplated at the time of the Original Everest License Agreement. The Original Everest License Agreement provided that the Company could receive up to $59.5 million upon achievement of certain milestones. The Amended Everest License Agreement provides that the Company may receive up to $38.0 million upon achievement of certain milestones, of which $2.0 million has been received to date. In addition, under the Amended Everest License Agreement, the Company assigned patents in the Everest Territory to Everest, rather than licensing such patents to Everest, and the option related to SPR741 and the related provisions have been removed. Under the terms of the Amended Everest License Agreement, the Company is also entitled to receive high single-digit to low double-digit royalties on net sales, if any, of Everest Licensed Products in the Everest Territory following regulatory approval of SPR206. Everest has the right to sublicense to affiliates and third parties in the Everest Territory.

Everest is responsible for all costs related to developing, obtaining regulatory approval of and commercializing SPR206 and Everest Licensed Products in the Everest Territory, and is obligated to use commercially reasonable efforts to develop, manufacture and commercialize Everest Licensed Products, including to achieve certain specified diligence milestones within agreed-upon periods. A joint development committee has been established between the Company and Everest to coordinate and review the development, manufacturing and commercialization plans with respect to Everest Licensed Products in the Everest Territory.

Unless earlier terminated due to certain material breaches of the contract, or otherwise, the Amended Everest License Agreement will expire on a jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction and Everest Licensed Product-by-Everest-Licensed Product basis upon the latest to occur of expiration of the last valid claim under a licensed patent in such jurisdiction, the expiration of regulatory exclusivity in such jurisdiction or ten years after the first commercial sale of such Everest Licensed Product in such jurisdiction. The Amended Everest License Agreement may be terminated in its entirety by Everest upon 90 or 180 days’ prior written notice, depending on the stage of development of the initial Everest Licensed Product.

As of the date of the filing of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, all performance obligations under the contract by the Company were fully satisfied.

As of September 30, 2025, remaining future milestone payments of $34.0 million from Everest are fully constrained, and will be recognized when and if achievement of those milestones becomes probable.

The Company did not recognize revenue under this agreement during both the three and nine months ended September 30, 2025 and 2024. The Company notified Everest of its decision to cease development of SPR206 in March 2025.

Pfizer License and Share Purchase Agreements

On June 30, 2021, the Company and Pfizer Inc. (“Pfizer”) entered into the Pfizer License Agreement and the Pfizer Purchase Agreement. Under the terms of the Pfizer License Agreement, the Company granted Pfizer an exclusive royalty-bearing license to develop, manufacture and commercialize SPR206 or products that contain SPR206 (the “Pfizer Licensed Products”) globally with some territorial exceptions (the “Pfizer Territory”). The Pfizer Territory excludes the United States and the Everest Territory.

In connection with the Pfizer Purchase Agreement, Pfizer purchased 2,362,348 shares of the Company’s common stock at a price of $16.93 per share for a total investment of $40.0 million. The Company received no other upfront payments but is eligible to receive up to $80.0 million in development and sales milestones, and may also receive high single-digit to low double-digit royalties on net sales of SPR206 in the Pfizer Territory. Achievement of these payments cannot be guaranteed. The Company and Pfizer agree that upon Pfizer’s request, the parties will negotiate in good faith regarding procuring a clinical or commercial supply of the compound.

Under the Pfizer Purchase Agreement, the fair market value of the 2,362,348 shares of the Company’s common stock issued to Pfizer was determined to be $27.5 million, which was valued using an option pricing valuation model as the shares are subject to certain holding period restrictions. The Company accounted for the associated premium of $12.5 million as a freestanding equity-linked instrument under ASC Topic 815. The premium was allocated as consideration for the Pfizer License Agreement and evaluated under Topic 606. The premium was determined not to be constrained and was included in the calculation of the total transaction price related to the Pfizer License Agreement as of June 30, 2021.

The Company is responsible for all costs related to developing and obtaining regulatory approval of SPR206 and Pfizer Licensed Products in the Pfizer Territory, with a focus on the European market, and is obligated to use commercially reasonable efforts, including to achieve certain specified diligence milestones within agreed-upon periods. A joint development committee was established between the Company and Pfizer to coordinate and review the development, manufacturing and commercialization plans with respect to Pfizer Licensed Products in the Pfizer Territory. Pfizer is responsible for commercializing SPR206 and the Pfizer Licensed Products in the Pfizer Territory.

Unless earlier terminated due to certain material breaches of the contract or at Pfizer’s convenience, or otherwise, the Pfizer License Agreement will expire on a jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction and licensed product-by-licensed product basis after ten years from the effective date. The Pfizer License Agreement will automatically renew for an additional ten-year term unless terminated. The Company notified Pfizer of its decision to cease development of SPR206 in March 2025.

Accounting Analysis and Revenue Recognition

The Company determined that Pfizer is a customer and that the Pfizer License Agreement is within the scope of Topic 606 as licensing intellectual property and performing ongoing research and development services are ordinary activities that are ongoing and central to the Company’s operations. Accordingly, in determining the appropriate amount of revenue to be recognized, the Company performed the following steps: (i) identified the promised goods or services in the contract; (ii) determined whether the promised goods or services are performance obligations including whether they are distinct in the context of the contract; (iii) measured the transaction price, including the constraint on variable consideration; (iv) allocated the transaction price to the identified performance obligations in proportion to their SSP; and (v) recognized revenue when each performance obligation was deemed to be satisfied.

Based on that evaluation, the Company identified two performance obligations, license and know-how transfer and research and development services related to upcoming milestones. The Company determined that the supply agreement is a customer option and not a material right, as the pricing to Pfizer is not at a significant discount. Furthermore, Pfizer has the right to use third parties to manufacture the compound, or to manufacture the compound itself.

At contract inception, $1.4 million of the then transaction price of $12.5 million was allocated to the license and know-how transfer performance obligations, which was fully satisfied and recognized as revenue upon delivery of the license. The additional $11.1 million was allocated to the research and development services obligation and is being recognized over time as services are delivered.

In the third quarter of 2022, upon the completion of a milestone related to regulatory engagement for SPR206, Pfizer communicated its approval that the milestone was achieved, and the Company received $5.0 million under the Pfizer License Agreement, which the Company accounted for as variable consideration under Topic 606 and was added to the transaction price in the third quarter of 2022. Of this $5.0 million milestone, $0.9 million was recognized during the third quarter of 2022 and the remaining $4.1 million was allocated to the research and development services performance obligation and is recognized over time as the services are delivered.

The potential license maintenance fees and development milestone payments from the Pfizer License Agreement will be accounted for as variable consideration under Topic 606. Given the uncertain nature of these payments, the Company determined they were fully constrained as of September 30, 2025 and not included in the transaction price. The Company can also earn sales-based royalties.

The Company recognizes revenue for the license performance obligation at a point in time, that is upon transfer of the license to Pfizer. Control of the license was transferred on the Effective Date and Pfizer could begin to use and benefit from the license at the Effective Date.

In total, and inclusive of the above, the Company did not recognize any revenue from the contract during the three months ended September 30, 2025, and recognized $0.1 million of revenue from the contract during the three months ended September 30, 2024. The Company recognized less than $0.1 million and $0.3 million of revenue from the contract during the nine months ended September 30, 2025 and 2024, respectively.

The remaining transaction price balance of approximately $12.6 million from the Pfizer Purchase Agreement allocated to the research and development services performance obligation has been recorded as deferred revenue in the condensed consolidated balance sheets. In March 2025, following a reprioritization of its programs, the Company announced that it ceased development of SPR206.

Spero Therapeutics, Inc. 10-Q