Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS) Sees Significant Increase in Short Interest

Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in February. As of February 28th, there was short interest totalling 20,820,000 shares, a growth of 20.1% from the February 13th total of 17,340,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,990,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 10.5 days. Currently, 18.0% of the company’s stock are sold short.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

APLS opened at $24.41 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $3.06 billion, a P/E ratio of -12.02 and a beta of 0.92. Apellis Pharmaceuticals has a 52-week low of $23.77 and a 52-week high of $59.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.91, a quick ratio of 3.73 and a current ratio of 4.36. The business’s fifty day moving average is $27.94 and its 200-day moving average is $30.31.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 28th. The company reported ($0.29) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.37) by $0.08. The company had revenue of $212.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $197.92 million. Apellis Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 103.11% and a negative net margin of 34.97%. Apellis Pharmaceuticals’s quarterly revenue was up 45.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.73) EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Apellis Pharmaceuticals will post -1.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on APLS. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $26.00 to $25.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price objective on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $36.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $31.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Wedbush dropped their price objective on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Apellis Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $45.53.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apellis Pharmaceuticals

In other Apellis Pharmaceuticals news, CEO Cedric Francois sold 6,247 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.70, for a total value of $179,288.90. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 307,415 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,822,810.50. The trade was a 1.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, General Counsel David O. Watson sold 5,569 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.10, for a total value of $139,781.90. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now owns 138,730 shares in the company, valued at $3,482,123. The trade was a 3.86 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 66,117 shares of company stock worth $1,954,803. Corporate insiders own 6.80% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Apellis Pharmaceuticals

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 140.8% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 33,594 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,072,000 after buying an additional 19,641 shares during the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank lifted its position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 3,791.4% during the 4th quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 997,053 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,816,000 after buying an additional 971,431 shares during the last quarter. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new stake in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth $83,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 11.4% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 212,887 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,793,000 after buying an additional 21,822 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Woodline Partners LP lifted its position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 189,477 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,046,000 after buying an additional 913 shares during the last quarter. 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).