A big quarterly earnings miss was the news driving down the value of Apellis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: APLS) stock in the middle of the trading week. Investors didn’t take this development well, and they collectively pushed down Apellis by almost 6%, on a day when the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) closed in the black with a 0.4% gain.
Lower revenue and deeper net loss
In its first quarter, Apellis booked revenue of $166.8 million, the bulk of which comprised slightly under $150 million in U.S. product sales. That total represented a decline of 3% year over year. Of the company’s drugs, Syfovre was the top seller, bringing in revenue of over $130 million, while Empaveli was the runner-up with nearly $20 million.
Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Continue »
Image source: Getty Images.
With higher costs during the quarter, Apellis’s net loss deepened. It came in at over $92 million ($0.74 per share) under generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) standards, against the $86 million in the same period last year.
The company was also negatively affected by outside factors. In its earnings release, it quoted CEO Cedric Francois as explaining that “revenue was impacted by funding shortages at third-party co-pay assistance programs and a larger-than-expected drawdown of total channel inventory, including physician offices.”
Regardless, Apellis missed on both the top and bottom lines. Analysts were collectively modeling slightly under $198 million for total revenue, and a net loss of only $0.34 per share.
Possible new approval coming in the summer
It was certainly a quarter to forget for Apellis, but I don’t feel investors should give up hope on the stock.
It continues to develop both Syfovre and Empaveli for new indications, saying in the earnings release that the latter is making good progress toward eventual Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for kidney disorders C3 glomerulopathy (C3G) and complex-mediated Membranoproliferative Glomerulonephritis (IC-MPGN). Apellis added that a decision from the regulator is expected in July.
Should you invest $1,000 in Apellis Pharmaceuticals right now?
Before you buy stock in Apellis Pharmaceuticals, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Apellis Pharmaceuticals wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004… if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $613,546!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005… if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $695,897!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 893% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 162% for the S&P 500. Don’t miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor.
See the 10 stocks »
*Stock Advisor returns as of May 5, 2025
Eric Volkman has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
