Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) Announces Earnings Results

Key Points

• Apellis Pharmaceuticals reported earnings of ($0.33) per share for the quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of ($0.44), but its revenue of $171.39 million fell short of the forecast of $187.91 million.
• The company's negative net margin stands at 30.24% and return on equity is at 108.68%, indicating significant ongoing financial challenges.
• Equities analysts have a mixed outlook, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a price target averaging $37.78, while notable recent upgrades include Citigroup raising their price target to $46.00.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS - Get Free Report) announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The company reported ($0.33) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.44) by $0.11, Zacks reports. Apellis Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 30.24% and a negative return on equity of 108.68%. The firm had revenue of $171.39 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $187.91 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.30) earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 10.6% on a year-over-year basis.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:APLS opened at $22.95 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.76, a current ratio of 4.08 and a quick ratio of 3.62. Apellis Pharmaceuticals has a 1-year low of $16.10 and a 1-year high of $41.94. The company has a market capitalization of $2.88 billion, a P/E ratio of -12.61 and a beta of 0.77. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $18.76 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $21.84.

Insider Activity at Apellis Pharmaceuticals

In other news, General Counsel David O. Watson sold 5,000 shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.55, for a total transaction of $97,750.00. Following the sale, the general counsel owned 128,730 shares in the company, valued at $2,516,671.50. This trade represents a 3.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Cedric Francois sold 137,465 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.19, for a total transaction of $2,775,418.35. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 343,433 shares in the company, valued at $6,933,912.27. This represents a 28.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 169,090 shares of company stock worth $3,403,832 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 6.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Apellis Pharmaceuticals

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 26.6% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 307,709 shares of the company's stock worth $6,730,000 after acquiring an additional 64,742 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 1,146.2% in the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 23,976 shares of the company's stock worth $522,000 after purchasing an additional 22,052 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 207.4% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 29,559 shares of the company's stock worth $667,000 after purchasing an additional 19,944 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 118.4% during the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 21,883 shares of the company's stock valued at $479,000 after buying an additional 11,862 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC lifted its holdings in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 4.6% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 222,634 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,869,000 after purchasing an additional 9,747 shares in the last quarter. 96.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $41.00 to $46.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price objective on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Raymond James Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $52.00 to $50.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Apellis Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $37.78.

About Apellis Pharmaceuticals

Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the discovery, development, and commercialization of therapeutic compounds through the inhibition of the complement system for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. It offers EMPAVELI for the treatment of paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria, C3 glomerulopathy and immune complex membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis, and hematopoietic stem cell transplantation-associated thrombotic microangiopathy; and SYFOVRE for treating geographic atrophy secondary to age-related macular degeneration and geographic atrophy (GA).

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