Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) Sees Strong Trading Volume

Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS) shares saw unusually-high trading volume on Tuesday . Approximately 3,599,040 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 140% from the previous session’s volume of 1,496,669 shares.The stock last traded at $43.94 and had previously closed at $47.84.

Analyst Ratings Changes

APLS has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Raymond James raised their price target on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $67.00 to $106.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 11th. UBS Group raised their price target on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $87.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $65.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 9th. Wedbush dropped their price target on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $67.00 to $57.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $77.40.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 3.1 %

The business has a fifty day moving average of $56.53 and a 200 day moving average of $57.45. The company has a quick ratio of 2.50, a current ratio of 3.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The company reported ($0.73) EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.73). The business had revenue of $146.38 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $143.34 million. Apellis Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 178.60% and a negative net margin of 133.34%. The firm’s revenue was up 545.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted ($1.50) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -1.34 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Apellis Pharmaceuticals

In related news, CEO Cedric Francois sold 250,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.11, for a total value of $16,027,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 313,662 shares in the company, valued at $20,108,870.82. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CEO Cedric Francois sold 250,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.11, for a total value of $16,027,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 313,662 shares in the company, valued at $20,108,870.82. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Adam J. Townsend sold 1,148 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.77, for a total value of $77,799.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 92,453 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,265,539.81. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 376,427 shares of company stock worth $23,169,639. 7.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 69.0% in the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 649 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 265 shares during the period. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC acquired a new position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter valued at about $29,000. Covestor Ltd grew its stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 564.2% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 797 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 677 shares during the period. Stephens Consulting LLC acquired a new position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 29.3% during the third quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,028 shares of the company’s stock worth $115,000 after buying an additional 687 shares during the period. 96.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc, a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company, focuses on the discovery, development, and commercialization of therapeutic compounds through the inhibition of the complement system for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. It offers EMPAVELI for the treatment of paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria, C3 glomerulopathy and immune complex membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis, and hematopoietic stem cell transplantation-associated thrombotic microangiopathy; and SYFOVRE for treating geographic atrophy secondary to age-related macular degeneration and geographic atrophy (GA).