ING Groep NV Invests $4.03 Million in Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS)

Key Points

• ING Groep NV acquired a new position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals, purchasing 184,200 shares valued at approximately $4.03 million.
• Institutional investors own about 96.29% of Apellis Pharmaceuticals, indicating significant institutional interest in the company.
• Apellis reported quarterly earnings with a loss of ($0.33) EPS, exceeding analysts' estimates but showing a 10.6% year-over-year revenue decline.

ING Groep NV bought a new stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 184,200 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,028,000. ING Groep NV owned 0.15% of Apellis Pharmaceuticals at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 3,938.7% in the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,252 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 1,221 shares during the last quarter. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $83,000. Covestor Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 1,819.2% in the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 3,992 shares of the company's stock worth $127,000 after purchasing an additional 3,784 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 89.0% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 6,107 shares of the company's stock worth $195,000 after purchasing an additional 2,876 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nomura Holdings Inc. bought a new position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $223,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.29% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Apellis Pharmaceuticals

In related news, CEO Cedric Francois sold 137,465 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.19, for a total value of $2,775,418.35. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 343,433 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,933,912.27. This represents a 28.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, General Counsel David O. Watson sold 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.55, for a total transaction of $97,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel owned 128,730 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,516,671.50. This trade represents a 3.74% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 169,090 shares of company stock worth $3,403,832. 6.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals stock traded up $0.04 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $24.37. The company had a trading volume of 1,342,545 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,896,003. The stock has a market cap of $3.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -13.39 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a quick ratio of 3.16, a current ratio of 3.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.90. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $19.47 and a 200 day simple moving average of $21.58. Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $16.10 and a 12-month high of $41.94.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported ($0.33) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.44) by $0.11. Apellis Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 30.24% and a negative return on equity of 116.09%. The company had revenue of $171.39 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $187.91 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.30) EPS. Apellis Pharmaceuticals's quarterly revenue was down 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -1.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Needham & Company LLC lowered their price objective on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $40.00 to $29.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $41.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Apellis Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $34.12.

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).