Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) Reaches New 52-Week Low – Time to Sell?

Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS) reached a new 52-week low during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $23.77 and last traded at $23.72, with a volume of 397600 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $24.26.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $3.05 billion, a PE ratio of -11.96 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $27.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $29.74. 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 issued its earnings results on Friday, February 28th. The company reported ($0.29) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.37) by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $212.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 revenue for the quarter was up 45.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.73) earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -1.7 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Apellis Pharmaceuticals

In related news, insider Caroline Baumal sold 2,816 shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.81, for a total value of $95,208.96. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 55,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,878,483.60. This trade represents a 4.82 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Timothy Eugene Sullivan sold 2,170 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.70, for a total transaction of $62,279.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 88,100 shares in the company, valued at $2,528,470. This represents a 2.40 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 66,054 shares of company stock valued at $1,952,719. Corporate insiders own 6.80% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Apellis Pharmaceuticals

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 2,707.1% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 786 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 758 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC acquired a new position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter worth $27,000. Signaturefd LLC raised its holdings in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 357.2% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,175 shares of the company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 918 shares in the last quarter. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. acquired a new stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals during the fourth quarter valued at $83,000. Finally, US Bancorp DE grew its stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 70.0% in the fourth quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 3,223 shares of the company’s stock valued at $103,000 after purchasing an additional 1,327 shares in the last quarter. 96.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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).