20191231 10K Ex 410


		
			Exhibit 4.10
		

		
			DESCRIPTION OF THE REGISTRANT’S SECURITIES 
		

		
			REGISTERED PURSUANT TO SECTION 12 OF 
		

		
			THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
		

		
			Introduction
		

		
			Vermillion, Inc. (the “Company,” “we,” “us” or “our”) has one security registered pursuant to Section 12 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, which is our common stock. Our common stock is listed on The Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol “VRML.”
		

		
			The following summary does not purport to be complete and is qualified by reference to certain provisions of the Delaware General Corporation Law, as amended (the “DGCL”), our Fourth Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, dated January 22, 2010, as amended effective June 19, 2014 (our “Certificate of Incorporation”), and our Fifth Amended and Restated Bylaws, effective June 19, 2014  (our “Bylaws”), each of which has been filed as an exhibit to the Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission to which this exhibit is attached and is hereby incorporated by reference.
		

		
			Authorized Capital Stock 
		

		
			Our authorized capital stock consists of 150,000,000 shares of common stock, par value $0.001 per share, and 5,000,000 shares of preferred stock, par value $0.001 per share. 
		

		
			Preferred Stock
		

		
			Our board of directors is authorized, subject to any limitations prescribed by law, without stockholder approval, to issue from time to time up to an aggregate of 5,000,000 shares of preferred stock, in one or more series, each of such series to have such rights and preferences, including voting rights, dividend rights, conversion rights, redemption terms and liquidation preferences as shall be determined by our board of directors. Any issuance of shares of preferred stock could adversely affect the voting power or rights of holders of common stock, and the likelihood that the holders of preferred stock will receive dividend payments and payments upon liquidation could have the effect of delaying, deferring or preventing a change in control. 
		

		
			Common Stock 
		

		
			Voting Rights 
		

		
			Each holder of common stock is entitled to one vote for each share on all matters to be voted upon by the stockholders, and there are no cumulative voting rights. In all matters other than the election of directors, stockholder approval requires the affirmative vote of the majority of the holders of our common stock entitled to vote on the subject matter unless the matter is one upon which, by express provision of law, our Certificate of Incorporation or our Bylaws, a different vote is required.  Directors are elected by a plurality of the votes of the shares present in person or represented by proxy and entitled to vote on the election of directors.
		

		
			Dividend Rights 
		

		
			Subject to preferences to which holders of preferred stock may be entitled and the rights of certain of our stockholders set forth in the Stockholders Agreement (as defined below), holders of common stock are entitled to receive ratably such dividends, if any, as may be declared from time to time by our board of directors out of funds legally available therefor. We have never paid or declared any dividend on our common stock, and we do not anticipate paying cash dividends on our common stock in the foreseeable future. We intend to retain all available funds and any future earnings to fund the development and expansion of our business. 
		

		

		

		 

 

		No Preemptive or Similar Rights 
		

		
			Holders of our common stock do not have preemptive rights, and our common stock is not convertible or redeemable. As described under “Stockholders Agreement,” certain holders of our common stock have the right to purchase shares in connection with most equity offerings made by the Company. 
		

		
			Right to Receive Liquidation Distributions 
		

		
			In the event of our liquidation, dissolution or winding up, holders of common stock would be entitled to share in our assets remaining after the payment of liabilities and the satisfaction of any liquidation preference granted the holders of any outstanding shares of any senior class of securities. The rights, preferences and privileges of the holders of common stock are subject to, and may be adversely affected by, the rights of the holders of shares of any series of preferred stock which we may designate in the future. 
		

		
			Stockholders Agreement 
		

		
			In connection with a private placement in May 2013, we entered into a stockholders agreement with the purchasers named therein (the “Stockholders Agreement”). Pursuant to and subject to the terms of the Stockholders Agreement, certain of the investors received rights to participate in any future equity offerings on the same price and terms as other investors, and rights to exercise “piggyback” registration rights for any registration statements that we file prior to May 13, 2018 on our own account or for the account of others with respect to shares of our common stock. 
		

		
			In addition, the Stockholders Agreement prohibits the Company from taking material actions without the consent of at least one of the two primary investors. These material actions include: 
		

		
			 
		

			
					
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						making any acquisition with value greater than $2 million; 

				
	
					
						 

					
					
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						entering into, or amending the terms of agreements with Quest Diagnostics, provided that such investors’ consent shall not be unreasonably withheld, conditioned or delayed following good faith consultation with the Company;

				
	
					
						 

					
					
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						submitting any resolution at a meeting of stockholders or in any other manner changing or authorizing a change in the size of our board of directors; 

				
	
					
						 

					
					
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						offering, selling or issuing any securities senior to our common stock or any securities that are convertible into or exchangeable or exercisable for securities ranking senior to our common stock; 

				
	
					
						 

					
					
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						amending our Certificate of Incorporation or our Bylaws in any manner that affects the rights, privileges or economics of our common stock or the warrants purchased in the May 2013 private placement; 

				
	
					
						 

					
					
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						taking any action that would result in a change in control of Vermillion or an insolvency event; 

				
	
					
						 

					
					
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						paying or declaring dividends on any securities of the Company or distributing any assets of the Company other than in the ordinary course of business or repurchasing any outstanding securities of the Company; or 

				
	
					
						 

					
					
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						adopting or amending any stockholder rights plan. 

				



		
			In addition, the two primary investors (Jack W. Schuler, on the one hand, and Oracle Partners, LP and Oracle Ten Fund Master, LP, on the other hand) each received the right to designate a person to serve on our board of directors. These rights terminate for each investor when that investor ceases to beneficially own less than 50% of the shares and warrants (taking into account shares issued upon exercise of the warrants), in the aggregate, that such investor purchased at the closing of our May 2013 private placement. 
		

		

		

		 

 

		Section 203 of the Delaware Corporation Law
		

		
			We are subject to Section 203 of the DGCL, which prevents an “interested stockholder” (defined in Section 203 of the DGCL, generally, as a person owning 15% or more of a corporation’s outstanding voting stock), from engaging in a “business combination” (as defined in Section 203 of the DGCL) with a publicly-held Delaware corporation for three years following the date such person became an interested stockholder, unless: 
		

		
			 
		

			
					
						 

					
					
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						before such person became an interested stockholder, the board of directors of the corporation approved the transaction in which the interested stockholder became an interested stockholder or approved the business combination; 

				
	
					
						 

					
					
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						upon consummation of the transaction that resulted in the interested stockholders becoming an interested stockholder, the interested stockholder owns at least 85% of the voting stock of the corporation outstanding at the time the transaction commenced (excluding stock held by directors who are also officers of the corporation and by employee stock plans that do not provide employees with the rights to determine confidentially whether shares held subject to the plan will be tendered in a tender or exchange offer); or 

				
	
					
						 

					
					
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						following the transaction in which such person became an interested stockholder, the business combination is approved by the board of directors of the corporation and authorized at a meeting of stockholders by the affirmative vote of the holders of two-thirds of the outstanding voting stock of the corporation not owned by the interested stockholder. 

				



		
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			The provisions of Section 203 of the DGCL could make a takeover of the Company difficult. 
		

		
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			Effect of Certain Provisions of Our Certificate of Incorporation and Bylaws
		

		
			Certain provisions of our Certificate of Incorporation and Bylaws may also have the effect of making it more difficult for a third party to acquire, or of discouraging a third party from attempting to acquire, control of us. Such provisions could limit the price that certain investors might be willing to pay in the future for our securities. Our Certificate of Incorporation eliminates the right of stockholders to call special meetings of stockholders or to act by written consent without a meeting, and our Bylaws require advance notice for stockholder proposals and director nominations, which may preclude stockholders from bringing matters before an annual meeting of stockholders or from making nominations for directors at an annual meeting of stockholders. Our Certificate of Incorporation authorizes undesignated preferred stock, which makes it possible for our board of directors to issue preferred stock with voting or other rights or preferences that could impede the success of any attempt to change control of us.
		

		
			These and other provisions may have the effect of deferring hostile takeovers or delaying changes in control or management of us. The amendment of any of the provisions of our Certificate of Incorporation described in the immediately preceding paragraph would require approval by our board of directors and the affirmative vote of at least 66 2/3% of our then outstanding voting securities, and the amendment of any of the provisions of our Bylaws described in the immediately preceding paragraph would require approval by our board of directors or the affirmative vote of at least 66 2/3% of our then outstanding voting securities.