Morgan Stanley Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) Stock

Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS - Free Report) had its target price raised by Morgan Stanley from $25.00 to $26.00 in a research report report published on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the stock.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $30.00 to $20.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $26.00 to $29.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, June 2nd. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $55.00 to $47.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Raymond James Financial lowered Apellis Pharmaceuticals from a "strong-buy" rating to an "outperform" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $75.00 to $52.00 in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price target on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $21.00 to $18.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $39.79.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:APLS traded up $0.17 on Wednesday, hitting $17.99. The company had a trading volume of 891,120 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,347,184. The company has a current ratio of 4.08, a quick ratio of 3.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.76. The company has a market cap of $2.26 billion, a PE ratio of -10.05 and a beta of 0.67. Apellis Pharmaceuticals has a 52-week low of $16.10 and a 52-week high of $42.47. The business has a 50 day moving average of $18.15 and a 200 day moving average of $23.59.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Apellis Pharmaceuticals

In related news, General Counsel David O. Watson sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $18.77, for a total transaction of $93,850.00. Following the sale, the general counsel directly owned 133,730 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,510,112.10. This trade represents a 3.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 6.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Apellis Pharmaceuticals

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 26.6% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 307,709 shares of the company's stock valued at $6,730,000 after purchasing an additional 64,742 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 125,401 shares of the company's stock worth $2,743,000 after buying an additional 2,250 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings 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 buying an additional 22,052 shares in the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth boosted its position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 118.4% in 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 during the last quarter. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd grew its stake in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 431.9% during the first quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 52,338 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,145,000 after acquiring an additional 42,499 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.29% of the company's stock.

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).