Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) Given Neutral Rating at Citigroup

Citigroup reaffirmed their neutral rating on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) in a report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. Citigroup currently has a $41.00 price objective on the stock, down from their prior price objective of $44.00.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on APLS. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, December 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “sell” rating and set a $19.00 price target on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, January 12th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Barclays initiated coverage on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $24.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price objective on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 25th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Apellis Pharmaceuticals currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $33.00.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ APLS opened at $40.39 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $21.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $22.71. The firm has a market cap of $5.16 billion, a PE ratio of 310.72 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a current ratio of 3.14, a quick ratio of 2.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. Apellis Pharmaceuticals has a 1-year low of $16.10 and a 1-year high of $40.45.

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

Insider Activity at Apellis Pharmaceuticals

In other news, CEO Cedric Francois sold 27,192 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.77, for a total value of $591,969.84. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 286,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,227,199.65. This represents a 8.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Pascal Deschatelets sold 5,928 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 directly owned 1,151,382 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $25,065,586.14. This represents a 0.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 115,537 shares of company stock worth $2,486,082. Insiders own 6.50% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. RTW Investments LP bought a new stake in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter valued at about $192,589,000. Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 11,373.8% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,704,837 shares of the company’s stock worth $46,821,000 after purchasing an additional 2,681,263 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals during the second quarter worth approximately $40,977,000. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 46.6% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 5,976,414 shares of the company’s stock worth $103,452,000 after buying an additional 1,898,995 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Polar Capital Holdings Plc raised its stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 96.0% in the third quarter. Polar Capital Holdings Plc now owns 2,650,230 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,975,000 after buying an additional 1,298,055 shares during the period. 96.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals News Roundup

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.