Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $49.94.

A number of analysts recently commented on APLS shares. Needham & Company LLC lowered their target price on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $85.00 to $60.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Wedbush lifted their price objective on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $38.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 9th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $25.00 target price on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Mizuho dropped their price target on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $39.00 to $38.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $71.00 to $36.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of APLS stock opened at $31.91 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 4.36, a quick ratio of 3.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.91. The company has a market cap of $3.97 billion, a PE ratio of -15.72 and a beta of 0.87. Apellis Pharmaceuticals has a 12-month low of $24.34 and a 12-month high of $73.80. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $28.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $35.56.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The company reported ($0.46) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.32) by ($0.14). Apellis Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 34.97% and a negative return on equity of 103.11%. The business had revenue of $196.83 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $200.00 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted ($1.17) earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 78.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Apellis Pharmaceuticals will post -1.71 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 shares were sold at an average price of $36.23, for a total value of $1,340,510.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 100,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,623,000. This trade represents a 27.01 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 6.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Apellis Pharmaceuticals

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in APLS. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth approximately $390,000. Old West Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth $2,953,000. Toronto Dominion Bank raised its position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 4.2% in the third quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 25,622 shares of the company’s stock valued at $739,000 after buying an additional 1,022 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 1.3% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,810,526 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,229,000 after buying an additional 22,609 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its stake in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 18.0% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 255,897 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,381,000 after buying an additional 39,019 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).