Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) Hits New 1-Year High - What's Next?

Key Points

• Apellis hit a new 52-week high of $40.95 (last $40.94) on heavy volume, yet despite several price-target adjustments near $41 the stock's consensus rating remains Hold with an average target of $34.89.
• The company beat quarterly EPS expectations ($0.47 vs. -$0.39) with $199.9M in revenue, but revenue fell 5.9% YoY, analysts still project a fiscal-year EPS of -1.23, and the shares trade at a lofty P/E (~315) despite strong liquidity (current ratio 3.14).

Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS - Get Free Report)'s share price reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $40.95 and last traded at $40.94, with a volume of 1013276 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $40.94.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on APLS. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $41.00 price objective (down from $44.00) on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $20.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $41.00 price target (up from $37.00) on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. Needham & Company LLC lowered Apellis Pharmaceuticals from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, HC Wainwright lowered Apellis Pharmaceuticals from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $48.00 to $41.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 1st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $34.89.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.0%

The company has a current ratio of 3.14, a quick ratio of 2.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. The business's fifty day moving average price is $27.71 and its 200 day moving average price is $24.78. The company has a market capitalization of $5.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 314.99 and a beta of -0.19.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 24th. The company reported $0.47 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.39) by $0.86. The firm had revenue of $199.91 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $199.28 million. Apellis Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 2.23% and a return on equity of 8.20%. The company's revenue was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.29) EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -1.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Apellis Pharmaceuticals

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 206.8% during the third quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,037 shares of the company's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 1,373 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP grew its holdings in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 64.1% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,194 shares of the company's stock valued at $50,000 after acquiring an additional 857 shares in the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. grew its stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 141.2% in the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 2,682 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,570 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $64,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 338.5% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,429 shares of the company's stock valued at $94,000 after purchasing an additional 4,191 shares during the period. 96.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Apellis Pharmaceuticals

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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