Simplify Asset Management Inc. Buys New Stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $APLS

Simplify Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 106,888 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,419,000. Simplify Asset Management Inc. owned 0.08% of Apellis Pharmaceuticals as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Corton Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth approximately $364,000. Woodline Partners LP grew its position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 15.5% during the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 218,850 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,786,000 after acquiring an additional 29,373 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 43.5% during the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 100,666 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,838,000 after purchasing an additional 30,507 shares in the last quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at $1,135,000. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group raised its position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 91.9% in the 2nd quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 485,615 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,406,000 after purchasing an additional 232,506 shares during the last quarter. 96.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

APLS stock opened at $25.17 on Tuesday. Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a twelve month low of $16.10 and a twelve month high of $35.57. The company has a quick ratio of 3.10, a current ratio of 3.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. The company has a market cap of $3.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 81.20 and a beta of 0.37. The business’s fifty day moving average is $23.09 and its 200-day moving average is $22.90.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.64. Apellis Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 18.94% and a net margin of 4.43%.The business had revenue of $458.58 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $364.58 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.46) earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 133.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -1.7 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Timothy Eugene Sullivan sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.03, for a total value of $280,300.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 110,936 shares in the company, valued at $3,109,536.08. This trade represents a 8.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director A. Sinclair Dunlop sold 31,092 shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.72, for a total transaction of $737,502.24. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 3,837 shares in the company, valued at $91,013.64. The trade was a 89.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 56,092 shares of company stock valued at $1,366,652 in the last ninety days. 6.80% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on APLS shares. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $55.00 to $48.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, December 19th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Apellis Pharmaceuticals from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $26.00 to $18.00 in a report on Friday, September 26th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $33.94.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Profile

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.