Francois Cedric 4

4 · Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. · Filed Feb 5, 2026

AI-generated summary of this filing

Updated Feb 5, 2026

Apellis (APLS) CEO Francois Cedric Exercises Options for 8,840 Shares

What Happened

Francois Cedric, CEO of Apellis Pharmaceuticals (APLS), exercised stock options on Feb. 3, 2026 to acquire 8,840 shares at a strike price of $3.76 per share, for a cash outlay of $33,238. The Form 4 also reports an equal number of 8,840 shares as a $0.00 disposition (both transactions coded M for option exercise/conversion).
This filing indicates an option exercise (a purchase of stock via conversion of an option). The filing does not show an open-market sale for proceeds; the $0.00 disposition likely reflects a non‑sale transfer or treatment of shares but the form does not specify the reason.

Key Details

Transaction date: 2026-02-03; Form 4 filed: 2026-02-05 (appears timely).
Acquired: 8,840 shares at $3.76/share = $33,238 (code M: option exercise/conversion).
Reported disposition: 8,840 shares at $0.00 (code M: derivative/option conversion) — no cash proceeds shown.
Shares owned after transaction: Not specified in the filing.
Footnotes: multiple trusts are named (The Cedric Francois Irrevocable Trusts of 2023 and others; reporting person disclaims beneficial ownership except to extent of pecuniary interest) and the option was granted Feb 8, 2016 and fully vested (F1–F5).
No 10b5-1 plan or explicit tax-withholding sale is indicated in the filing.

Context

Exercising options converts the option into shares by paying the strike price; this transaction shows Cedric paid the strike ($3.76) to acquire shares.
The matching $0.00 disposition is not an open‑market sale and may reflect transfer, holding by trustees, or other administrative treatment — the Form 4 does not state the specific reason.
Purchases/exercises can be interpreted by investors as a form of insider buying, but filings alone don’t reveal motivation.

Form 4

Period: 2026-02-03

DirectorChief Executive Officer

Transactions

Exercise/Conversion
Common Stock
2026-02-03$3.76/sh+8,840$33,238→ 490,837 total
Exercise/Conversion
Stock Option (Right to Buy)
[F5]
2026-02-03−8,840→ 0 total
Exercise: $3.76Exp: 2026-02-06→ Common Stock (8,840 underlying)

Holdings

Footnotes (5)

[F1]The securities are held by The Cedric Francois Irrevocable Trust of 2023 - 2. William V. A. Zorn is the trustee of The Cedric Francois Irrevocable Trust of 2023 - 2. The reporting person disclaims beneficial ownership over the shares held by The Cedric Francois Irrevocable Trust of 2023 - 2 except to the extent of his pecuniary interest therein.
[F2]The securities are held by The Cedric Francois Irrevocable Trust of 2023. William V. A. Zorn is the trustee of The Cedric Francois Irrevocable Trust of 2023. The reporting person disclaims beneficial ownership over the shares held by The Cedric Francois Irrevocable Trust of 2023 except to the extent of his pecuniary interest therein.
[F3]The securities are held by The Francois Grossi Trust, for which Juliana Grossi, the spouse of the reporting person, serves as trustee. The reporting person disclaims beneficial ownership over the shares held by the Francois Grossi Trust except to the extent of his pecuniary interest therein.
[F4]The securities are held by The Francois-DuBois Educational Trust, for which the Fiduciary Trust Company of New England serves as trustee. The reporting person disclaims beneficial ownership over the shares held by The Francois-DuBois Educational Trust except to the extent of his pecuniary interest therein.
[F5]This option was granted on February 8, 2016 and fully vested.

Signature

/s/ David Watson, attorney-in-fact for Cedric Francois|2026-02-05

1 file