Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) Cut to Hold at Citigroup

Citigroup lowered shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Tuesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

APLS has been the subject of several other research reports. Robert W. Baird downgraded shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $29.00 to $26.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $55.00 to $48.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 28th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have given a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $34.11.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $40.41 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $21.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $22.83. 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 company has a market capitalization of $5.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 310.87 and a beta of -0.19. Apellis Pharmaceuticals has a 1-year low of $16.10 and a 1-year high of $40.48.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Cedric Francois sold 27,192 shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.77, for a total transaction of $591,969.84. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 286,045 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,227,199.65. The trade was a 8.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CAO James George Chopas sold 2,064 shares of the business’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 $44,933.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 49,805 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,084,254.85. This trade represents a 3.98% 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 valued at $2,486,082. 6.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Apellis Pharmaceuticals

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. SG Americas Securities LLC grew its stake in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 35.9% in the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 567,046 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,244,000 after purchasing an additional 149,654 shares during the last quarter. Simplify Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter valued at approximately $2,419,000. EFG Asset Management North America Corp. boosted its holdings in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 48.0% during the third quarter. EFG Asset Management North America Corp. now owns 155,399 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,517,000 after buying an additional 50,375 shares in the last quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth approximately $1,135,000. Finally, Schroder Investment Management Group grew its position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 91.9% in the second quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 485,615 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,406,000 after buying an additional 232,506 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 96.29% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Apellis Pharmaceuticals

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)

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.