BofA Upgrades Apellis (APLS) to Buy Citing Rapid Empaveli Adoption and Underappreciated Kidney Disease Market Potential

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS) is one of the best high short interest stocks with biggest upside potential. On January 21, Bank of America analyst Tazeen Ahmad upgraded Apellis to Buy from Neutral with an unchanged price target of $28. BofA maintains that the market is currently undervaluing Empaveli’s commercial prospects in treating rare kidney diseases, citing a robust launch trajectory that has already secured 267 new patient start forms since its late July approval. This initial 5% penetration of the 5,000-patient US market has encouraged analysts to forecast continued upside for financial estimates as the drug expands into new indications.

A day before that, Wells Fargo reduced its price target for Apellis Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS) to $26 from $29 while maintaining an Overweight rating, primarily due to a slower-than-anticipated commercial ramp for Empaveli in C3G and IC-MPGN indications.

Consequently, the firm has cut its 2026–2030 revenue estimates by 20% to 50% to reflect a more gradual adoption curve. However, the estimates for Syfovre remain largely unchanged as the market awaits further proof of its performance in the permanent functional shift launch.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ:APLS) is a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company that discovers, develops, and commercializes novel therapeutic compounds to treat diseases with high unmet needs.

While we acknowledge the potential of APLS as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If you’re looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock.

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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.