Cantor Fitzgerald Cuts Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) Price Target to $35.00

Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) had its price objective trimmed by Cantor Fitzgerald from $39.00 to $35.00 in a research report report published on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on APLS. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $52.00 to $45.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Mizuho decreased their target price on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $24.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $55.00 to $48.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 19th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $33.65.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of APLS opened at $20.53 on Tuesday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $22.88 and its 200 day moving average price is $23.39. The company has a current ratio of 3.54, a quick ratio of 3.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 66.23 and a beta of 0.31. Apellis Pharmaceuticals has a 1-year low of $16.10 and a 1-year high of $31.17.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.64. The company had revenue of $458.58 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $364.58 million. Apellis Pharmaceuticals had a net margin of 4.43% and a return on equity of 18.94%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 133.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.46) earnings per share. Analysts expect that Apellis Pharmaceuticals will post -1.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Apellis Pharmaceuticals

In related news, insider Nur Nicholson sold 2,618 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $22.19, for a total value of $58,093.42. Following the transaction, the insider owned 81,046 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,798,410.74. This represents a 3.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, General Counsel David O. Watson sold 5,780 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.19, for a total transaction of $128,258.20. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 98,838 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,193,215.22. The trade was a 5.52% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 47,370 shares of company stock valued at $1,110,390. Corporate insiders own 6.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Apellis Pharmaceuticals

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Marshall Wace LLP raised its holdings in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 11,373.8% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,704,837 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,821,000 after buying an additional 2,681,263 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter valued at about $40,977,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake 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 valued at $103,452,000 after acquiring an additional 1,898,995 shares in the last quarter. Polar Capital Holdings Plc lifted its holdings in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 96.0% in the 3rd quarter. Polar Capital Holdings Plc now owns 2,650,230 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,975,000 after purchasing an additional 1,298,055 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi boosted its position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 386.7% during the second quarter. Amundi now owns 1,604,105 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,585,000 after purchasing an additional 1,274,523 shares during the period. 96.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting Apellis Pharmaceuticals

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

• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo reiterates a Buy on Apellis, highlighting confidence in the company’s longer‑term commercial execution and pipeline potential. Wells Fargo Buy Note
• Positive Sentiment: Analyses note rising SYFOVRE demand and a planned prefilled‑syringe rollout that could improve uptake and margins if execution stays on track — a potential catalyst for future revenue growth. SYFOVRE Demand & Prefilled Syringe
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage highlighting Apellis’ stronger 2025 revenue update and its nephrology expansion frames a constructive valuation story for investors focusing beyond the near‑term sales swing. Valuation After Revenue Update
• Neutral Sentiment: Some analysts remain conflicted on Apellis and peer healthcare names, reflecting divergent views on commercial trajectory and valuation — expect continued mixed analyst commentary. Analysts Conflicted
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks reports APLS fell ~23% over the week after Apellis disclosed preliminary Q4 U.S. net product revenue of $190M and commentary pointing to weaker SYFOVRE sales and mixed Empaveli uptake — the primary near‑term catalyst for the selloff. Zacks Coverage on Revenue/Weak Sales
• Negative Sentiment: Major research houses (Cantor Fitzgerald, Needham) issued more pessimistic forecasts / lowered expectations, intensifying downside pressure from the revenue/sales miss. Cantor Fitzgerald Note Needham Note
• Negative Sentiment: Significant insider selling by senior executives (CEO, CFO, GC and other officers sold shares on Jan 13) has emerged, which can be interpreted negatively by the market despite filings indicating they retain large residual stakes. Example SEC Form 4 (CEO Sale)
• Negative Sentiment: Unusual options activity showed a >500% spike in put purchases (6,398 puts), signaling elevated short‑term bearish bets and hedging demand that can amplify volatility. Source: options flow report

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.