Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $APLS Shares Sold by Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC

Key Points

• Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC cut its stake in Apellis by 61.1% in Q4, selling 47,333 shares and retaining 30,175 shares valued at about $722,000.
• Insider and institutional activity: insiders sold 115,537 shares worth ~$2.49M in the last quarter (including Caroline Baumal and Pascal Deschatelets), while insiders own 6.50% and institutional investors hold 96.29% of the stock.
• Results and analyst view: Apellis reported a Q EPS of $0.47 (vs. -$0.39 est.) and $199.9M revenue (down 5.9% YoY); the consensus rating is "Hold" with an average target of $34.11, while the stock trades near its 52‑week high (~$40.7) and a PE of ~313.

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lowered its stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS - Free Report) by 61.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 30,175 shares of the company's stock after selling 47,333 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC's holdings in Apellis Pharmaceuticals were worth $722,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Simplify Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at about $2,419,000. EFG Asset Management North America Corp. grew its stake in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 48.0% in the third quarter. EFG Asset Management North America Corp. now owns 155,399 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,517,000 after buying an additional 50,375 shares in the last quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,135,000. HighVista Strategies LLC grew its stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 68.2% during the 3rd quarter. HighVista Strategies LLC now owns 145,729 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,298,000 after purchasing an additional 59,066 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Readystate Asset Management LP acquired a new stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $5,476,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.29% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Apellis Pharmaceuticals news, insider Caroline Baumal sold 2,797 shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.77, for a total transaction of $60,890.69. Following the sale, the insider owned 86,527 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,883,692.79. The trade was a 3.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Pascal Deschatelets sold 5,928 shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.77, for a total value of $129,052.56. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 1,151,382 shares in the company, valued at $25,065,586.14. The trade was a 0.51% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 115,537 shares of company stock worth $2,486,082. 6.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on APLS. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a "neutral" rating and set a $41.00 price objective (up from $37.00) on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $29.00 to $26.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered Apellis Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Finally, Wedbush lowered their price objective on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $20.00 to $18.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $34.11.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.0%

NASDAQ:APLS opened at $40.69 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.70, a current ratio of 3.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. The business's 50 day moving average is $23.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $23.30. Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 52 week low of $16.10 and a 52 week high of $40.77. The company has a market cap of $5.20 billion, a PE ratio of 313.02 and a beta of -0.19.

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

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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