Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) Hits New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $40.43 and last traded at $40.41, with a volume of 18150486 shares. The stock had previously closed at $17.09.

Key Headlines Impacting Apellis Pharmaceuticals

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)

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on APLS shares. Needham & Company LLC downgraded shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Wedbush lowered their target price on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $20.00 to $18.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their price target on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $35.00 to $31.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Finally, Bank of America upgraded 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. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $33.00.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.4%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 2.70 and a current ratio of 3.14. The stock has a market cap of $5.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 310.72 and a beta of 0.26. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $21.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $22.71.

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

Insider Activity

In other Apellis Pharmaceuticals news, General Counsel David O. Watson sold 7,832 shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.77, for a total value of $170,502.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 88,531 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,927,319.87. The trade was a 8.13% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Nur Nicholson sold 7,725 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.77, for a total value of $168,173.25. Following the sale, the insider owned 71,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,548,238.86. The trade was a 9.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 115,537 shares of company stock worth $2,486,082. 6.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Apellis Pharmaceuticals

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of APLS. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 35.9% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 567,046 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,244,000 after buying an additional 149,654 shares in the last quarter. Simplify Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $2,419,000. EFG Asset Management North America Corp. lifted its holdings in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 48.0% during the 3rd quarter. EFG Asset Management North America Corp. now owns 155,399 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,517,000 after acquiring an additional 50,375 shares during the period. Highland Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,135,000. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group boosted its position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 91.9% during the 2nd quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 485,615 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,406,000 after acquiring an additional 232,506 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.29% of the company’s stock.

About Apellis Pharmaceuticals

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.