Siren L.L.C. Sells 237,862 Shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. $APLS

Siren L.L.C. decreased its position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS) by 8.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,578,396 shares of the company’s stock after selling 237,862 shares during the period. Apellis Pharmaceuticals makes up about 3.3% of Siren L.L.C.’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Siren L.L.C. owned about 2.05% of Apellis Pharmaceuticals worth $56,390,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in APLS. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter worth about $1,564,000. First Trust Advisors LP increased its holdings in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 48.2% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 25,645 shares of the company’s stock worth $818,000 after buying an additional 8,344 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 40.0% in the 4th quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 123,151 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,930,000 after buying an additional 35,185 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC purchased a new position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter worth approximately $268,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 20.8% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 547,276 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,464,000 after acquiring an additional 94,174 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.29% of the company’s stock.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals stock opened at $28.05 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $21.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $21.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.90, a quick ratio of 3.16 and a current ratio of 3.77. Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $16.10 and a fifty-two week high of $41.94. The company has a market cap of $3.54 billion, a P/E ratio of -15.41 and a beta of 0.78.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported ($0.33) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.44) by $0.11. Apellis Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 116.09% and a negative net margin of 30.24%.The firm had revenue of $171.39 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $187.91 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.30) EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 10.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -1.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on APLS. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Scotiabank decreased their target price on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $28.00 to $20.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Wall Street Zen raised Apellis Pharmaceuticals from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Mizuho reduced their price objective on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $30.00 to $20.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC decreased their price objective on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $40.00 to $29.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $34.12.

Insider Activity at Apellis Pharmaceuticals

In related news, General Counsel David O. Watson sold 5,000 shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Monday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.80, for a total value of $139,000.00. Following the sale, the general counsel owned 123,730 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,439,694. This trade represents a 3.88% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Cedric Francois sold 19,725 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $20.21, for a total transaction of $398,642.25. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 331,605 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,701,737.05. The trade was a 5.61% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 174,090 shares of company stock worth $3,542,832. 6.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Apellis Pharmaceuticals

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).