Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) Trading Down 3.4% - Here's Why

Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS - Get Free Report)'s stock price was down 3.4% on Monday . The company traded as low as $18.01 and last traded at $18.18. Approximately 71,644 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 97% from the average daily volume of 2,333,610 shares. The stock had previously closed at $18.83.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on APLS shares. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $44.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $21.00 to $18.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Bank of America cut shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $41.00 to $23.00 in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $55.00 to $47.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $40.05.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $2.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -9.92 and a beta of 0.68. The company's 50-day moving average is $18.21 and its 200-day moving average is $24.81. The company has a quick ratio of 3.62, a current ratio of 4.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.76.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported ($0.74) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.36) by ($0.38). Apellis Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 99.19% and a negative net margin of 28.83%. The firm had revenue of $149.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $197.61 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted ($0.54) earnings per share. Apellis Pharmaceuticals's revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -1.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apellis Pharmaceuticals news, General Counsel David O. Watson sold 5,000 shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $18.77, for a total transaction of $93,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 133,730 shares in the company, valued at $2,510,112.10. This trade represents a 3.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 6.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apellis Pharmaceuticals

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 9.4% during the fourth quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 21,649 shares of the company's stock valued at $691,000 after acquiring an additional 1,864 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 882,801 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,170,000 after acquiring an additional 22,507 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 11.4% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 212,887 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,793,000 after acquiring an additional 21,822 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 140.8% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 33,594 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,072,000 after acquiring an additional 19,641 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 44.1% during the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 491,107 shares of the company's stock valued at $15,671,000 after acquiring an additional 150,384 shares during the last quarter. 96.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

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).