Cinctive Capital Management LP Takes Position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS)

Cinctive Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor bought 86,991 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,776,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Trexquant Investment LP bought a new position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals during the 4th quarter valued at about $6,478,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,838,952 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,699,000 after buying an additional 28,426 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its holdings in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 266,361.5% during the fourth quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,385,600 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,214,000 after buying an additional 1,385,080 shares in the last quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA grew its position in Apellis Pharmaceuticals by 16.7% in the fourth quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 347,854 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,100,000 after buying an additional 49,901 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at $34,662,000. 96.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on APLS. HC Wainwright reissued a “buy” rating and set a $57.00 price objective on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $36.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $50.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $30.00 to $31.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Wedbush dropped their target price on shares of Apellis Pharmaceuticals from $30.00 to $29.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $45.59.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Price Performance

NASDAQ APLS opened at $23.00 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $26.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $29.21. Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. has a 12-month low of $21.70 and a 12-month high of $58.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.89 billion, a PE ratio of -11.33 and a beta of 0.92. The company has a quick ratio of 3.73, a current ratio of 4.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.91.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:APLS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 28th. The company reported ($0.29) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.37) by $0.08. Apellis Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 34.97% and a negative return on equity of 103.11%. The firm had revenue of $212.50 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $197.92 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.73) earnings per share. Apellis Pharmaceuticals’s revenue for the quarter was up 45.2% 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.

Insider Buying and Selling at Apellis Pharmaceuticals

In related news, insider Caroline Baumal sold 2,816 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.81, for a total value of $95,208.96. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 55,560 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,878,483.60. This trade represents a 4.82 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, General Counsel David O. Watson sold 5,569 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.10, for a total transaction of $139,781.90. Following the transaction, the general counsel now directly owns 138,730 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,482,123. This represents a 3.86 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 66,054 shares of company stock worth $1,952,719 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 6.80% of the company’s stock.

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).