Wedbush Cuts Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) Price Target to $18.00

Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) had its price target cut by Wedbush from $20.00 to $18.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the stock.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on the stock. Bank of America upgraded shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $28.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, December 29th. HC Wainwright lifted their target price on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $45.00 to $48.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price target on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $24.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Apellis Pharmaceuticals has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $32.61.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ APLS opened at $20.96 on Wednesday. Apellis Pharmaceuticals has a fifty-two week low of $16.10 and a fifty-two week high of $30.48. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $23.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $23.79. The company has a quick ratio of 3.10, a current ratio of 3.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. The stock has a market cap of $2.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 161.24 and a beta of 0.26.

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

Insider Transactions at Apellis Pharmaceuticals

In other Apellis Pharmaceuticals news, General Counsel David O. Watson sold 7,832 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.77, for a total value of $170,502.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 88,531 shares in the company, valued at $1,927,319.87. This trade represents a 8.13% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Pascal Deschatelets sold 5,928 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.77, for a total transaction of $129,052.56. Following the sale, the insider owned 1,151,382 shares in the company, valued at $25,065,586.14. This represents a 0.51% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 120,537 shares of company stock worth $2,608,532 in the last three months. Insiders own 6.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Apellis Pharmaceuticals

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 207.4% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 29,559 shares of the company’s stock valued at $667,000 after purchasing an additional 19,944 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 26.6% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 307,709 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,730,000 after buying an additional 64,742 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 4.6% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 222,634 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,869,000 after buying an additional 9,747 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth lifted its stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 118.4% in the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 21,883 shares of the company’s stock worth $479,000 after acquiring an additional 11,862 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 1,146.2% during the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 23,976 shares of the company’s stock worth $522,000 after acquiring an additional 22,052 shares during the period. 96.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Apellis Pharmaceuticals

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

• Positive Sentiment: HC Wainwright retains a “Buy” rating and a $48 price target, signaling continued analyst conviction in Apellis’ longer‑term upside. HC Wainwright Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) Stock
• Positive Sentiment: HC Wainwright published a long‑range forecast that includes a return to positive EPS by FY2030 (EPS ~$1.97), which underpins the firm’s $48 target and suggests expected recovery beyond the near term. HC Wainwright Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Apellis’ latest quarter delivered an EPS beat ($0.47 vs. expectations) but revenue was down ~6% year‑over‑year — a mixed fundamental print that reduces downside surprise risk but highlights demand pressure.
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short‑interest data in recent filings appears anomalous (zero / NaN entries) and is not a reliable signal of investor positioning at this time.
• Negative Sentiment: HC Wainwright sharply lowered near‑term and multi‑year EPS forecasts (e.g., FY2026 cut to ~($2.19) from ($1.69); FY2027, FY2028 and several quarterly estimates were also reduced), increasing near‑term earnings uncertainty and pressuring the stock. HC Wainwright Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Citigroup trimmed its price target to $44, signaling reduced upside in the nearer term and contributing to downward pressure. Citigroup Lowers Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) Price Target to $44.00
• Negative Sentiment: Wedbush and Royal Bank of Canada also lowered expectations, adding to the analyst‑driven sell pressure. Wedbush Has Lowered Expectations for Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) Stock Price Royal Bank Of Canada Has Lowered Expectations for Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) Stock Price

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.