Biotech Stocks Plunge 8% Ahead of JPM Healthcare Conference: Focus on Revenue Guidance

Apellis Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NASDAQ: APLS) closed at $21.33 on the Nasdaq on the 13th (local time), down 8.02% from the previous day. In a single session, the company lost roughly $200 million in market capitalization—about KRW 290 billion. Trading volume surged past 2.94 million shares as investors delivered mixed reactions to the newly announced 2025 guidance and growth strategy.

In a press release on the 12th, Apellis set its preliminary 2025 U.S. product revenue at $689 million, emphasizing its commercial execution and strategic priorities. It reported a 17% year-over-year increase in demand for injections of its flagship ophthalmology treatment, SYFOVRE, and noted a growing U.S. patient base for its rare kidney disease therapy, EMPAVELI. The company also announced that it will provide further details on its mid- to long-term growth strategy and plans to expand its kidney disease pipeline at the 44th Annual J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference.

Apellis is a global biopharmaceutical company developing and marketing therapies that target complement protein C3. Leading a novel class of complement-targeted drugs introduced after a 15-year gap, it secured the first approved treatment options for geographic atrophy—a major cause of blindness—and two severe rare kidney disorders: C3 glomerulopathy (C3G) and primary immune complex-mediated membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis (IC-MPGN). The company’s strategy is to grow sales in ophthalmology and nephrology markets, primarily in the U.S. and Europe, while broadening its C3-targeted therapy portfolio through additional kidney disease indication trials and formulation expansions.

According to its most recent 10-K and 10-Q filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Apellis continues to incur net losses due to substantial R&D investments. However, rising revenues from SYFOVRE and EMPAVELI have significantly bolstered its cash reserves, reducing reliance on external financing. At the J.P. Morgan conference, management highlighted that “SYFOVRE serves as a stable cash-generating asset that underpins our long-term growth strategy,” asserting that current cash and forecasted revenues will carry operations through to profitability. Market views remain split, with some investors believing the company’s growth outlook is already priced in, while others see potential for further rerating as new indications—particularly in kidney disease—come online.