Apellis Pharmaceuticals Insiders Sell US$3.1m Of Stock, Possibly Signalling Caution

Quite a few Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS) insiders sold their shares over the past year, which may be a cause for concern. When analyzing insider transactions, it is usually more valuable to know whether insiders are buying versus knowing if they are selling, as the latter sends an ambiguous message. However, shareholders should take a deeper look if several insiders are selling stock over a specific time period.

While we would never suggest that investors should base their decisions solely on what the directors of a company have been doing, we do think it is perfectly logical to keep tabs on what insiders are doing.

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The Last 12 Months Of Insider Transactions At Apellis Pharmaceuticals

The Co-Founder, Cedric Francois, made the biggest insider sale in the last 12 months. That single transaction was for US$412k worth of shares at a price of US$30.43 each. We generally don't like to see insider selling, but the lower the sale price, the more it concerns us. It's of some comfort that this sale was conducted at a price well above the current share price, which is US$16.93. So it is hard to draw any strong conclusion from it.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals insiders didn't buy any shares over the last year. You can see the insider transactions (by companies and individuals) over the last year depicted in the chart below. If you want to know exactly who sold, for how much, and when, simply click on the graph below!

Check out our latest analysis for Apellis Pharmaceuticals

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Insiders At Apellis Pharmaceuticals Have Sold Stock Recently

Over the last three months, we've seen significant insider selling at Apellis Pharmaceuticals. In total, insiders sold US$144k worth of shares in that time, and we didn't record any purchases whatsoever. In light of this it's hard to argue that all the insiders think that the shares are a bargain.

Insider Ownership Of Apellis Pharmaceuticals

Many investors like to check how much of a company is owned by insiders. We usually like to see fairly high levels of insider ownership. Apellis Pharmaceuticals insiders own about US$74m worth of shares. That equates to 3.4% of the company. This level of insider ownership is good but just short of being particularly stand-out. It certainly does suggest a reasonable degree of alignment.

So What Do The Apellis Pharmaceuticals Insider Transactions Indicate?

Insiders sold stock recently, but they haven't been buying. And even if we look at the last year, we didn't see any purchases. While insiders do own shares, they don't own a heap, and they have been selling. We're in no rush to buy! Therefore, you should definitely take a look at this FREE report showing analyst forecasts for Apellis Pharmaceuticals.

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For the purposes of this article, insiders are those individuals who report their transactions to the relevant regulatory body. We currently account for open market transactions and private dispositions of direct interests only, but not derivative transactions or indirect interests.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.