Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) Hits New 12-Month Low – What’s Next?

Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $22.99 and last traded at $23.24, with a volume of 57192 shares. The stock had previously closed at $24.27.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

APLS has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wedbush lowered their target price on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $57.00 target price on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $36.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $45.53.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $2.78 billion, a PE ratio of -10.94 and a beta of 0.92. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $27.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $29.46. The company has a current ratio of 4.36, a quick ratio of 3.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.91.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 28th. The company reported ($0.29) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.37) by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $212.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $197.92 million. Apellis Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 103.11% and a negative net margin of 34.97%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 45.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.73) EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -1.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apellis Pharmaceuticals news, insider Caroline Baumal sold 2,816 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.81, for a total value of $95,208.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 55,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,878,483.60. This represents a 4.82 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel David O. Watson sold 5,569 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.10, for a total transaction of $139,781.90. Following the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 138,730 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,482,123. This represents a 3.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 66,054 shares of company stock worth $1,952,719. Corporate insiders own 6.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 140.8% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 33,594 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,072,000 after buying an additional 19,641 shares during the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank boosted its holdings in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 3,791.4% during the fourth quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 997,053 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,816,000 after purchasing an additional 971,431 shares in the last quarter. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $83,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 11.4% during the fourth quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 212,887 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,793,000 after acquiring an additional 21,822 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Woodline Partners LP boosted its stake in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 189,477 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,046,000 after purchasing an additional 913 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.29% of the company’s stock.

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).