Robert Ticktin
About Robert Ticktin
Robert Ticktin, age 63, is PMV Pharmaceuticals’ General Counsel and Chief Operating Officer, promoted in December 2024 after serving as General Counsel since August 2020; he previously held senior legal roles at Tesaro (Associate General Counsel, Corporate), Epirus Biopharmaceuticals (General Counsel), and Amgen (2004–2014) and holds a B.A. in Economics and Computer Science from The Ohio State University and a J.D. from Fordham University School of Law . He also serves as Corporate Secretary and Head of Operations per company proxy notices , and his responsibilities expanded in January 2024 to include Human Resources, IT and Facilities . PMVP remains a development-stage biotech with no product revenue and ongoing net losses; Q3 2025 net loss was $21.1 million and cash/marketable securities totaled $129.3 million, with runway guided to end of Q1 2027 . Company pay-versus-performance disclosure shows TSR value of a $100 investment at $6.54 (2024), $13.42 (2023), and $37.66 (2022), underscoring share-price volatility during his executive tenure .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tesaro, Inc. (acquired by GSK in Dec 2018) | Associate General Counsel, Corporate | Apr 2017 – Jun 2020 | Senior corporate legal leadership at a commercial oncology company; supported transition through acquisition . |
| Epirus Biopharmaceuticals | General Counsel | Apr 2014 – Aug 2016 | Led legal function at biosimilar developer during operating and financing phases . |
| Amgen | Legal roles of increasing responsibility | 2004 – 2014 | Progressively senior legal work at a global biopharma (blue chip), building deep industry legal expertise . |
| PMV Pharmaceuticals | General Counsel | Aug 2020 – Dec 2024 | Established and led PMVP’s legal function through IPO and pipeline maturation . |
| PMV Pharmaceuticals | General Counsel & Chief Operating Officer | Dec 2024 – Present | Expanded remit overseeing HR, IT, Facilities; Corporate Secretary responsibilities . |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| None disclosed in public company filings | — | — | No public company board roles or external directorships disclosed in proxy . |
Fixed Compensation
- Ticktin’s base salary, target bonus, and cash incentive details are not disclosed in the 2025 DEF 14A because he was not a Named Executive Officer (NEO) for fiscal 2024; NEOs were CEO (Mack), CFO (Carulli), and CDO (Jalota) .
Performance Compensation
- Company 2024 bonus program paid non-equity incentives based on development, pipeline, and corporate goals; the proxy discloses this structure for NEOs but does not provide Ticktin-specific metrics or payouts .
| Metric | Weighting | Target | Actual | Payout | Vesting |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Development milestones | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Paid to eligible NEOs under plan | Cash (annual), details not disclosed for Ticktin . |
| Pipeline progress | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Paid to eligible NEOs under plan | Cash (annual), details not disclosed for Ticktin . |
| Corporate goals | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Paid to eligible NEOs under plan | Cash (annual), details not disclosed for Ticktin . |
Equity Ownership & Alignment
- Beneficial ownership table lists directors and NEOs, plus aggregate for all current officers/directors; Ticktin is not individually itemized, so his direct/indirect holdings are not disclosed separately .
- Hedging and pledging are prohibited for executive officers and directors; short sales, publicly-traded options, and hedging instruments are barred, and pledging/margin accounts are not allowed—supporting alignment by limiting downside hedges or leverage risk .
- Equity plan and vesting context (company-wide):
- One-time option exchange (Aug 13, 2024): employees tendered 2,786,691 options; new options issued at $1.48 with 3- or 4-year vesting (equal annual installments), 10-year term; incremental comp expense $1.37 million recognized over service period .
- Outstanding options increased to 12,211,331 at Sept 30, 2025; exercisable options were 5,099,320 with $44k aggregate intrinsic value, indicating limited near-term in-the-money supply at quarter-end pricing .
- RSU programs: 374,899 RSUs granted in Sept 2022 (2-year graded) and 952,665 RSUs in Jan 2024 to VP+ employees; all fully vested and settled by Sept 30, 2025; no unrecognized RSU comp remained—reducing future RSU-driven selling pressure .
| Options & RSUs (Company-Level) | Dec 31, 2024 | Sept 30, 2025 | |---|---|---|---| | Options outstanding (shares) | 8,653,913 | 12,211,331 | | Weighted-average exercise price | $2.87 | $2.41 | | Exercisable options (shares) | — | 5,099,320 | | Aggregate intrinsic value (000s) | $162 | $417 | | Unvested RSUs (shares) | 907,665 at 12/31/2024 | 0 at 9/30/2025 | | Unrecognized RSU comp | — | $0 |
Employment Terms
- Role and tenure: General Counsel since Aug 2020; promoted to General Counsel & COO in Dec 2024; Corporate Secretary and Head of Operations; remit expanded Jan 2024 to include HR, IT, Facilities .
- Change-in-control and severance (plan-level mechanics, applicable to award participants):
- 2020 Equity Incentive Plan: if awards are not assumed/substituted in a change-in-control, all options/RSUs fully vest; performance awards deemed achieved at 100%; administrator sets post-CIC exercise window .
- 2013 Equity Incentive Plan: full vesting and lapse of restrictions upon qualifying CIC-related termination or non-assumption; performance goals deemed met at 100% with administrator-set exercise window .
- Company policy prohibits hedging/pledging and governs grant timing practices; identified grants on Jan 18, 2024 coincided with a restructuring 8-K, with market reaction documented; no formal “grant timing” policy tied to MNPI .
Performance & Track Record
| Company Performance Indicator | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| TSR – $100 initial value (year-end) | $37.66 | $13.42 | $6.54 |
- Q3 2025 corporate update shows Phase 2 PYNNACLE data (rezatapopt) with 34% ORR across 103 evaluable patients and plan to submit NDA in Q1 2027 for platinum-resistant/refractory ovarian cancer; cash/marketable securities were $129.3 million, runway guided to end of Q1 2027 .
- PMVP remains non-revenue with net losses; Q3 2025 net loss was $21.1 million; R&D rose to $18.2 million; G&A declined to $4.3 million vs prior year .
- Ticktin’s operational remit suggests direct influence on governance, HR/IT/facilities execution, and corporate secretary functions (board processes and disclosures) .
Board Governance
- Corporate Secretary signature on proxy notices indicates Ticktin’s role in board process administration; compensation committee (Heyman, Stelzer, Baum) oversees exec comp policies and met five times in fiscal 2024; independent consultant usage authorized by charter .
Compensation Structure Analysis
- Option exchange (Aug 2024) replaced underwater options with new grants at $1.48 and extended vesting—this modification can be viewed as repricing risk, often a shareholder-unfriendly signal if misused; PMVP disclosed incremental fair value impacts and vest schedules in proxy and 10-Q .
- Director equity policy revised April 2025 to align with equity strategy and market competitiveness; all director awards accelerate on change-in-control .
Related Party Transactions & Risk Indicators
- Related party transaction policy requires audit committee approval and arm’s-length terms for transactions >$120k .
- Delinquent Section 16 reporting: Company disclosed late Form 4 filings for certain NEOs due to administrative error; no indication of delinquency for Ticktin in 2024 reporting .
- Hedging/pledging prohibited (reduces alignment risk); company conducted workforce restructuring in Jan 2024 with disclosed trading policy context and grant disclosures .
Investment Implications
- Alignment: Hedging/pledging prohibitions and CIC acceleration mechanics support alignment but also create potential event-driven vesting overhang; Ticktin’s dual GC/COO role concentrates legal/operational control, which is valuable in late-stage development but increases key-person execution risk .
- Selling pressure: Company-level option exchange and increased outstanding options, plus fully vested RSUs by Sept 2025, imply periodic vesting-related supply; exercisable options were 5.1 million at Sept 30, 2025 with modest intrinsic value, limiting immediate economic selling but creating future overhang if share price appreciates .
- Retention: Extended vesting schedules on exchanged options and broad-based VP+ RSU vesting likely improved medium-term retention; lack of Ticktin-specific cash/equity disclosures limits precision in pay-for-performance assessment .
- Risk flags: Option exchange (repricing/modification), ongoing net losses and clinical execution timelines to 2027, and the need to maintain cash runway; governance processes are formalized (Corporate Secretary role), and Section 16 compliance appears sound for Ticktin .