Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS) Given Average Rating of "Hold" by Analysts

Key Points

• Analyst consensus: Apellis has an average "Hold" rating from 23 analysts (2 sell, 17 hold, 4 buy) with a 12‑month average price target of about $34.11, and several recent downgrades and price‑target cuts from major firms.
• Recent results: Apellis reported Q results with $0.47 EPS (beating estimates) and $199.9M revenue (down 5.9% YoY), though analysts still forecast a -1.7 EPS for the current year.
• Insider activity and ownership: Insiders sold 115,537 shares (~$2.49M) over the last quarter; insiders own 6.5% of the stock while institutional investors hold about 96.29%.

Shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS - Get Free Report) have received an average recommendation of "Hold" from the twenty-three brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, seventeen have issued a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $34.1053.

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Roth Mkm cut shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. William Blair cut shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $41.00 price target (down from $44.00) on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. HC Wainwright cut shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $48.00 to $41.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NASDAQ:APLS opened at $40.65 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $5.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 312.72 and a beta of -0.19. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $23.70 and its 200 day simple moving average is $23.42. Apellis Pharmaceuticals has a twelve month low of $16.10 and a twelve month high of $40.77. The company has a quick ratio of 2.70, a current ratio of 3.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.39) by $0.86. Apellis Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 2.23% and a return on equity of 8.20%. The firm had revenue of $199.91 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $199.28 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.29) EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Apellis Pharmaceuticals will post -1.7 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apellis Pharmaceuticals news, insider Nur Nicholson sold 7,725 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.77, for a total transaction of $168,173.25. Following the transaction, the insider owned 71,118 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,548,238.86. This represents a 9.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel David O. Watson sold 7,832 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.77, for a total transaction of $170,502.64. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 88,531 shares in the company, valued at $1,927,319.87. This represents a 8.13% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 115,537 shares of company stock worth $2,486,082 over the last quarter. 6.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Apellis Pharmaceuticals

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Wedmont Private Capital lifted its position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 11,883 shares of the company's stock worth $315,000 after purchasing an additional 468 shares during the last quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 96,125 shares of the company's stock worth $2,415,000 after purchasing an additional 530 shares during the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank lifted its position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 6.9% during the third quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 8,674 shares of the company's stock worth $196,000 after purchasing an additional 563 shares during the last quarter. Xponance LLC lifted its position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. Xponance LLC now owns 18,164 shares of the company's stock worth $456,000 after purchasing an additional 681 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 64.1% during the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,194 shares of the company's stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 857 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.29% of the company's stock.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc, traded as NASDAQ:APLS, is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel therapies targeting the complement cascade for the treatment of rare and debilitating diseases. The company's research and development efforts center on modulating complement proteins to address a range of ophthalmologic, hematologic and renal conditions. Apellis leverages its proprietary compstatin technology platform to design targeted inhibitors intended to improve patient outcomes and quality of life.

The company's lead marketed product, Syfovre (pegcetacoplan), is an intravitreal complement C3 inhibitor approved for geographic atrophy secondary to age-related macular degeneration, with ongoing investigations in other retinal disorders.

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