Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) CEO Cedric Francois Sells 8,182 Shares

Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS) CEO Cedric Francois sold 8,182 shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $19.79, for a total transaction of $161,921.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 313,237 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,198,960.23. This represents a 2.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Cedric Francois also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, January 13th, Cedric Francois sold 10,186 shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.19, for a total transaction of $226,027.34.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 2.3%

NASDAQ:APLS opened at $20.95 on Thursday. Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $16.10 and a 12 month high of $31.17. The company has a current ratio of 3.54, a quick ratio of 3.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 67.58 and a beta of 0.31. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $22.95 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $23.50.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, November 6th. They set a “peer perform” rating for the company. Bank of America upgraded shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $28.00 price target for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $55.00 to $48.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 19th. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $50.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $33.53.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Apellis Pharmaceuticals this week:

• Positive Sentiment: BofA upgraded APLS from Neutral to Buy, citing a stronger-than-expected launch trajectory for its newly approved kidney-disease therapy and assigning a $28 price target, which signals meaningful upside from current levels. Apellis upgraded at BofA on launch trajectory for kidney disease therapy
• Positive Sentiment: An analyst piece highlights early uptake of Empaveli (Apellis’s newly approved rare-kidney-disease treatment) and argues current Apellis valuation understates Empaveli’s revenue potential — a narrative that supports a re-rating if commercial momentum continues. Apellis Valuation Ignores Empaveli Potential, Says Analyst
• Neutral Sentiment: Wells Fargo trimmed its price target from $29 to $26 but maintained an Overweight rating — a mixed signal that lowers upside expectations but keeps institutional support. Wells Fargo lowers price target on Apellis
• Neutral Sentiment: RBC Capital reiterated a Hold on APLS, which is a neutral institutional stance and may limit upside from investors seeking stronger analyst conviction. RBC Capital Sticks to Its Hold Rating for Apellis Pharmaceuticals (APLS)
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple senior insiders (including CEO Cedric Francois, CFO Timothy Sullivan, General Counsel David Watson and other officers) sold shares on Jan. 20 — a cluster of Form 4 filings that can weigh on sentiment even if transactions are routine diversification. See CEO filing here for details. CEO Cedric Francois Form 4

Institutional Trading of Apellis Pharmaceuticals

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 7.9% during the fourth quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 51,933 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,305,000 after purchasing an additional 3,804 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 35.9% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 567,046 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,244,000 after buying an additional 149,654 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co. bought a new position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $476,000. Wedmont Private Capital boosted its stake in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 11,883 shares of the company’s stock worth $315,000 after buying an additional 468 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP boosted its stake in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 64.1% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,194 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 857 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.29% of the company’s stock.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Company 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.