Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) Trading 8.8% Higher – What’s Next?

Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS)’s stock price rose 8.8% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $30.24 and last traded at $30.20. Approximately 824,808 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 56% from the average daily volume of 1,895,991 shares. The stock had previously closed at $27.75.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently commented on APLS shares. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $31.00 target price for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $71.00 to $36.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $64.00 to $57.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 13th. HC Wainwright lowered their price target on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $83.00 to $57.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $80.00 price objective on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $49.94.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.91, a current ratio of 4.36 and a quick ratio of 3.73. The firm has a market cap of $3.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -15.16 and a beta of 0.87. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $28.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $35.66.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The company reported ($0.46) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.32) by ($0.14). Apellis Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 103.11% and a negative net margin of 34.97%. The firm had revenue of $196.83 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $200.00 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($1.17) EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 78.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -1.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director A. Sinclair Dunlop sold 37,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.23, for a total transaction of $1,340,510.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 100,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,623,000. This trade represents a 27.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 6.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Apellis Pharmaceuticals

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Braidwell LP increased its holdings in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 410.8% in the third quarter. Braidwell LP now owns 3,125,183 shares of the company’s stock valued at $90,130,000 after purchasing an additional 2,513,383 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 191.9% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,144,415 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,845,000 after buying an additional 1,409,707 shares during the last quarter. Iron Triangle Partners LP acquired a new position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter valued at $32,329,000. Fiera Capital Corp raised its position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 47.7% during the 2nd quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 1,401,190 shares of the company’s stock worth $53,750,000 after buying an additional 452,753 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sphera Funds Management LTD. acquired a new stake in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth $6,226,000. 96.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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).