Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. Increases Position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS)

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS) by 135.6% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 29,740 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 17,115 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Apellis Pharmaceuticals were worth $949,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wolverine Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter valued at about $27,000. True Wealth Design LLC bought a new stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $56,000. KBC Group NV boosted its stake in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 34.8% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,632 shares of the company’s stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 679 shares during the period. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 21.6% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 4,404 shares of the company’s stock valued at $130,000 after buying an additional 781 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.29% of the company’s stock.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:APLS opened at $29.93 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 4.36, a quick ratio of 3.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.91. The company has a market capitalization of $3.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -14.74 and a beta of 0.94. Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 12 month low of $24.34 and a 12 month high of $71.90. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $31.88 and its 200 day moving average is $33.35.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 5th. The company reported ($0.46) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.32) by ($0.14). Apellis Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 103.11% and a negative net margin of 34.97%. The business had revenue of $196.83 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $200.00 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted ($1.17) earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 78.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. will post -1.73 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

APLS has been the subject of a number of research reports. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and set a $57.00 target price on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Apellis Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $36.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Citigroup reduced their target price on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $63.00 to $51.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Oppenheimer cut their price target on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $65.00 to $40.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, William Blair assumed coverage on Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating on the stock. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.65.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Caroline Baumal sold 2,816 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.81, for a total value of $95,208.96. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 55,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,878,483.60. This represents a 4.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Timothy Eugene Sullivan sold 2,170 shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction on Monday, January 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.70, for a total value of $62,279.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 88,100 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,528,470. This trade represents a 2.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 17,308 shares of company stock worth $511,406 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 6.80% of the company’s stock.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals 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).