Apellis Pharmaceuticals’ (APLS) Market Perform Rating Reaffirmed at Raymond James Financial

Raymond James Financial reiterated their market perform rating on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. HC Wainwright reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $41.00 target price (down from $48.00) on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday. 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, January 21st. Needham & Company LLC downgraded Apellis Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their price objective on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $35.00 to $31.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Finally, Mizuho increased their target price on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Apellis Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $33.00.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.4%

APLS opened at $40.39 on Wednesday. Apellis Pharmaceuticals has a fifty-two week low of $16.10 and a fifty-two week high of $40.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 3.14 and a quick ratio of 2.70. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $21.50 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $22.71. The company has a market capitalization of $5.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 310.72 and a beta of 0.26.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 24th. The company reported $0.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.39) by $0.86. The company had revenue of $199.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $199.28 million. Apellis Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 2.23% and a return on equity of 8.20%. The business’s revenue was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($0.29) EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Apellis Pharmaceuticals will post -1.7 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apellis Pharmaceuticals

In related news, CAO James George Chopas sold 2,064 shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.77, for a total transaction of $44,933.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 49,805 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,084,254.85. This trade represents a 3.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Pascal Deschatelets sold 5,928 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.77, for a total transaction of $129,052.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 1,151,382 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,065,586.14. This trade represents a 0.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 115,537 shares of company stock worth $2,486,082 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 6.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 206.8% during the 3rd quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 2,037 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,000 after acquiring an additional 1,373 shares during the last quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its holdings in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 141.2% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 2,682 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 1,570 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP raised its position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 64.1% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 857 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at $64,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 338.5% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,429 shares of the company’s stock worth $94,000 after purchasing an additional 4,191 shares in the last quarter. 96.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More Apellis Pharmaceuticals News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Biogen agreed to buy Apellis for about $5.6B at $41.00/share in cash plus a CVR (up to $4 per share contingent on SYFOVRE sales). The deal creates an immediate cash floor near the offer price and is the primary catalyst for the stock move. Biogen to buy Apellis for $5.6B (Reuters)
• Positive Sentiment: APLS experienced an outsized intraday rally and volume surge following the deal announcement, signaling strong market recognition of the takeover premium and active position adjustments by investors. APLS stock moves 135.4% higher (Zacks)
• Positive Sentiment: Several firms updated price targets quickly to the $41 offer level (Barclays raised its PT dramatically from $24 to $41; JPMorgan and others moved or reaffirmed targets at $41), reducing near‑term upside beyond the bid and signaling analyst alignment with the transaction terms. Analyst reaction roundup (Benzinga)
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary and analysis pieces describe the strategic rationale for Biogen—adding C3/C5 complement therapies and accelerating nephrology/immunology growth—but these are background drivers rather than immediate share-movement triggers now that a cash offer is on the table. Biogen rationale and portfolio fit (Zacks)
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst ratings mostly remain “neutral/market perform/equal weight” despite PT convergence at the offer price; that suggests limited analyst-driven upside beyond the bid absent a higher competing bid or improved CVR prospects. Investment story shifting with deals and analyst revisions (Yahoo Finance)
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple shareholder law firms have launched investigations and alerts challenging the adequacy of the deal price and sale process—introducing litigation and deal‑approval risk that could delay or alter the transaction terms. These actions create execution uncertainty for investors relying on a clean, timely close. Shareholder investigation (PR Newswire)
• Negative Sentiment: A few broker changes (Needham downgrade; previous Cantor Fitzgerald PT cut) and remaining uncertainty over the CVR payout make upside beyond $41 speculative—returns above the offer depend on competing bids, litigation outcomes, or better-than-expected SYFOVRE sales that trigger CVR payments. Cantor Fitzgerald PT cut (InsiderMonkey)

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.