Apellis Q4 Loss Wider Than Expected, Revenues Decline Y/Y

Apellis Pharmaceuticals APLS reported fourth-quarter 2025 loss of 47 cents per share, wider than the Zacks Consensus Estimate of a loss of 39 cents. The company had incurred a loss of 29 cents in the year-ago quarter.

Total revenues in the fourth quarter were $199.9 million, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $194 million. In the year-ago quarter, the company had reported revenues of $212.5 million. The 6% year-over-year decline in revenues was due to lower Syfovre (pegcetacoplan injection) revenues during the reported quarter.

More on APLS' Q4 Results

Revenues in the fourth quarter included product sales of the marketed drugs — Empaveli (pegcetacoplan) and Syfovre — and licensing and other revenues under the collaboration agreement with Sobi.

Syfovre was approved for treating geographic atrophy (GA) secondary to age-related macular degeneration by the FDA in 2023. The drug recorded sales of $155.2 million in the reported quarter, down 8% year over year. Syfovre's sales marginally beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $154.2 million.

Apellis delivered more than 89,000 commercial vials and nearly 13,000 samples of Syfovre to doctors in the reported quarter. Per APLS, Syfovre is the market leader in GA, enjoying approximately 60% share of the overall market. On the fourth-quarter earnings call, management said that the year-over-year decline in Syfovre revenues was largely due to elevated use of free goods, but the underlying demand remains strong with total injections growing approximately 17% year over year.

In the past six months, shares of Apellis have plunged 20.8% against the industry’s 22.2% growth.

Empaveli is approved in the United States for the treatment of paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria. The drug is also approved in Europe under the brand name Aspaveli for the same indication. Apellis and partner Sobi have secured a label expansion for Empaveli in 2025 as the first FDA-approved treatment for C3 glomerulopathy and primary immune complex glomerulonephritis (C3G and IC-MPGN) in patients aged 12 years and older.

Empaveli recorded sales of $35.1 million, up 50% from the year-ago quarter’s figure on the back of a strong early launch in C3G and IC-MPGN. Empaveli sales beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $28.5 million. As of Dec. 31, 2025, Apellis received 267 cumulative patient start forms, reflecting over 5% penetration of the U.S. patient population after its first full quarter post-launch. It also secured strong payer coverage, with 95% of published policies covering the product in line with its label or with minimal restrictions.

Licensing and other revenues came in at $9.6 million, down significantly year over year.

Research and development expenses decreased 3% from the prior-year quarter’s level to $74.2 million. This was due to lower program-specific external costs and lower compensation and related personnel costs.

Selling, general and administrative expenses totaled $147.1 million, up 21% year over year, due to higher professional and consulting fees, personnel costs and general and administrative expenses and other expenses, which were partially offset by a decrease in general commercial activities.

As of Dec. 31, 2025, Apellis had cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities worth $466.2 million compared with $479.2 million as of Sept. 30, 2025. APLS continues to expect its cash balance, combined with cash anticipated from sales of marketed products, to be enough to fund its operations to profitability.

APLS’ Full-Year 2025 Results

In 2025, Apellis recorded total revenues of $1.0 billion, representing 28% year-over-year growth, and beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $998.3 million. Please note that this figure includes the one-time $275 million upfront payment from the Sobi royalty repurchase agreement.

The company reported an earnings per share of 20 cents in 2025, in contrast to a loss of $1.60 per share incurred in 2024. The reported figure, however, missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 24 cents.

Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise

Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. Quote

APLS' Recent Pipeline Update

Sobi recently secured the label expansion for Aspaveli in the EU for C3G and primary IC-MPGN, triggering a $25 million milestone payment to Apellis based on the July 2025 royalty purchase agreement.

In the earnings release, Apellis stated that it has initiated two pivotal phase III studies of Empaveli in focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) and delayed graft function (DGF). Both FSGS and DGF are rare kidney diseases in which the complement pathway plays a significant role, and there are no approved therapies.

The company’s mid-stage multi-dose study of siRNA candidate APL-3007 in combination with Syfovre is currently ongoing, aimed at comprehensively blocking complement activity in the retina and choroid. Top-line data is expected in 2027.

APLS’ Zacks Rank and Stocks to Consider

Apellis currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Some better-ranked stocks in the biotech sector are Harmony Biosciences HRMY, Immunocore IMCR and Castle Biosciences CSTL, each sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Over the past 60 days, estimates for Harmony Biosciences’ 2026 earnings per share have risen from $3.72 to $4.00. HRMY shares have lost 24.1% over the past six months.

Harmony Biosciences’ earnings beat estimates in two of the trailing four quarters, missing the mark on the other two occasions, with the average surprise being 7.20%.

Over the past 60 days, estimates for Immunocore’s 2026 loss per share have narrowed from 97 cents to 90 cents. IMCR shares have risen 3.3% over the past six months.

Immunocore’s earnings beat estimates in three of the trailing four quarters and missed in the remaining one, with the average earnings surprise being 53.96%.

Over the past 60 days, estimates for Castle Biosciences’ 2026 loss per share have narrowed from $1.06 to 96 cents. CSTL shares have surged 40.5% over the past six months.

Castle Biosciences’ earnings beat estimates in three of the trailing four quarters and missed in the remaining one, with the average surprise being 66.11%.

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This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

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