CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Aug. 08, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Voyager Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: VYGR), a biotechnology company dedicated to breaking through barriers in gene therapy and neurology, has entered into an employment agreement with Beth Shafer, Ph.D., M.A., M.Phil. that, among other things, provides for the grant to Dr. Shafer of a non-qualified stock option and restricted stock units as an inducement material to Dr. Shafer’s entering into employment with Voyager as Voyager’s Chief Business Officer. 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 award became effective on August 7, 2023, and the restricted stock unit award is scheduled to become effective on October 1, 2023.

The stock option award provides for the purchase of an aggregate of 122,000 shares of Voyager’s common stock, and the restricted stock unit award will represent 61,000 shares of Voyager’s common stock. The stock option has a ten-year term and an exercise price of $8.68 per share, which is equal to the closing price of Voyager's common stock on August 7, 2023, the effective date of grant. The 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. The 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 the equity awards is subject to Dr. Shafer’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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