Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) Cut to “Hold” at Cantor Fitzgerald

Cantor Fitzgerald lowered shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) from an overweight rating to a hold rating in a report published on Tuesday, Marketbeat reports.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on APLS. Needham & Company LLC downgraded Apellis Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “sell” rating and set a $19.00 target price on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, January 12th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $55.00 to $48.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Royal Bank Of Canada cut their price target on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 28th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Apellis Pharmaceuticals has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $34.11.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of NASDAQ APLS opened at $40.41 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.17 billion, a PE ratio of 310.87 and a beta of -0.19. The company has a quick ratio of 2.70, a current ratio of 3.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $21.87 and a 200-day moving average of $22.83. Apellis Pharmaceuticals has a 52-week low of $16.10 and a 52-week high of $40.48.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Pascal Deschatelets sold 5,928 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.77, for a total transaction of $129,052.56. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 1,151,382 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,065,586.14. This trade represents a 0.51% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Caroline Baumal sold 2,797 shares of the business’s 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 $60,890.69. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 86,527 shares in the company, valued at $1,883,692.79. This trade represents a 3.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 115,537 shares of company stock valued at $2,486,082. 6.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Apellis Pharmaceuticals

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of APLS. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 23.5% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 225,976 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,677,000 after purchasing an additional 42,960 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp boosted its stake in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 25.4% in the fourth quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 96,211 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,424,000 after purchasing an additional 19,500 shares during the period. NewEdge Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at $366,000. Virtus Investment Advisers LLC grew its holdings in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 17.4% during the 4th quarter. Virtus Investment Advisers LLC now owns 27,086 shares of the company’s stock valued at $680,000 after purchasing an additional 4,013 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Twinbeech Capital LP increased its stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 47.3% during the 4th quarter. Twinbeech Capital LP now owns 13,152 shares of the company’s stock worth $330,000 after buying an additional 4,225 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.29% of the company’s stock.

More Apellis Pharmaceuticals News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Biogen agreed to acquire Apellis for about $5.6B, bringing immediate valuation certainty (cash consideration of $41.00/share plus contingent value rights tied to SYFOVRE sales). Biogen to Acquire Apellis (Zacks)
• Positive Sentiment: Market reaction: APLS shares jumped dramatically on the deal announcement as traders priced in the buyout premium and CVR upside. APLS stock soars 140% (MSN)
• Neutral Sentiment: Several banks raised price targets to roughly $41 (Mizuho, Barclays, JPMorgan), but many gave neutral/equal-weight ratings — implying limited upside above the deal price and signaling more conservative near-term expectations. Analyst target updates (Benzinga)
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry commentary and comparisons highlight Apellis’ assets (SYFOVRE and immunology pipeline) as strategic for acquirers — useful context for longer‑term value but not an immediate catalyst beyond the acquisition. Comparing Apellis with competitors (Benzinga)
• Negative Sentiment: Major sell‑side shops have rapidly cut ratings (several downgrades from strong-buy/buy to hold/neutral), reflecting concerns about near-term growth post-sale, which could dampen secondary trading sentiment ahead of deal close. JP Morgan Downgrades Apellis (MSN)
• Negative Sentiment: Two law firms have launched shareholder investigations into the proposed sale (pricing and process), adding legal/closing‑risk uncertainty that could affect timing or terms. Shareholder investigation (PR Newswire)

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.