Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) Cut to “Hold” at Needham & Company LLC

Needham & Company LLC downgraded shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report released on Tuesday morning, MarketBeat.com reports.

APLS has been the topic of several other research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their price target on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $22.00 to $21.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $29.00 to $26.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Bank of America raised shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $28.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald cut their price target on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $35.00 to $31.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, sixteen have given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Apellis Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $34.11.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:APLS opened at $40.41 on Tuesday. 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 12 month low of $16.10 and a 12 month high of $40.48. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $21.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $22.83. The company has a market cap of $5.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 310.87 and a beta of -0.19.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. The company had revenue of $199.91 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $199.28 million. Apellis Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 8.20% and a net margin of 2.23%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.29) earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Apellis Pharmaceuticals will post -1.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Apellis Pharmaceuticals news, CEO Cedric Francois sold 27,192 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 in the company, valued at $6,227,199.65. This trade represents a 8.68% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Nur Nicholson sold 7,725 shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals 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 directly owned 71,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,548,238.86. This trade represents a 9.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 115,537 shares of company stock valued at $2,486,082 over the last 90 days. 6.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Apellis Pharmaceuticals

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 6.9% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 10,674,865 shares of the company’s stock worth $268,153,000 after acquiring an additional 687,471 shares in the last quarter. Deep Track Capital LP raised its holdings in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 14.3% in the 3rd quarter. Deep Track Capital LP now owns 8,000,382 shares of the company’s stock valued at $181,049,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000,382 shares in the last quarter. RTW Investments LP purchased a new stake in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in the 4th quarter worth approximately $192,589,000. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 46.6% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 5,976,414 shares of the company’s stock worth $103,452,000 after purchasing an additional 1,898,995 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 14.3% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,613,446 shares of the company’s stock valued at $115,890,000 after purchasing an additional 575,802 shares in the last quarter. 96.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals News Roundup

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.