Morgan Stanley Has Lowered Expectations for Apollo Global Management (NYSE:APO) Stock Price

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley lowered its price target on Apollo Global Management from $150 to $149 but maintained its “overweight” rating; the new target implies 22.49% upside from the cited share price.
• Analyst views remain broadly positive: MarketBeat reports a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $148.05, with 14 Buy ratings and six Hold ratings.
• Apollo’s latest reported quarter fell short of estimates, with EPS of $2.11 versus a $2.16 consensus and revenue of $5.57 billion versus $5.65 billion expected.

Apollo Global Management (NYSE:APO - Get Free Report) had its target price reduced by Morgan Stanley from $150.00 to $149.00 in a note issued to investors on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "overweight" rating on the financial services provider's stock. Morgan Stanley's price target would indicate a potential upside of 22.49% from the company's current price.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on APO. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Apollo Global Management from $138.00 to $127.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Weiss Ratings raised Apollo Global Management from a "hold (c-)" rating to a "hold (c)" rating in a report on Friday, August 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Apollo Global Management from $150.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Apollo Global Management in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. They set an "equal weight" rating and a $127.00 price objective for the company. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Apollo Global Management in a report on Wednesday. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $148.05.

Apollo Global Management Stock Performance

Shares of APO traded up $8.10 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $121.65. The stock had a trading volume of 3,348,759 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,223,134. The company has a current ratio of 1.70, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.34. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $121.66 and a 200-day simple moving average of $123.30. The firm has a market cap of $71.84 billion, a PE ratio of 44.66, a P/E/G ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.51. Apollo Global Management has a one year low of $99.56 and a one year high of $153.29.

Apollo Global Management (NYSE:APO - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.16 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $5.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.65 billion. Apollo Global Management had a net margin of 5.22% and a return on equity of 14.01%. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.92 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Apollo Global Management will post 7.96 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Apollo Global Management

In related news, CFO Martin Kelly sold 3,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.84, for a total value of $422,520.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 396,533 shares in the company, valued at approximately $55,847,707.72. This represents a 0.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 8.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in APO. Continuum Advisory LLC purchased a new position in Apollo Global Management during the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in Apollo Global Management during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Avion Wealth lifted its holdings in Apollo Global Management by 159.2% in the 3rd quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 267 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 164 shares during the period. Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Apollo Global Management in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Apollo Global Management in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.06% of the company's stock.

More Apollo Global Management News

Here are the key news stories impacting Apollo Global Management this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Fee-related earnings reached $802 million in Q3, while origination volume hit a record $114 billion. Apollo also reported $1.07 trillion in assets, reflecting demand for alternative investments. Article: Apollo Global: 3 Key Takeaways for Long-Term Investors
• Positive Sentiment: Apollo is expanding private-credit origination with a new European lending platform, supporting its goal of significantly growing credit assets. Article: Apollo Taps European Private Credit Markets With New Lending Platform
• Neutral Sentiment: The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.5625 per share, equivalent to $2.25 annually. Apollo also plans a $350 million software overhaul for its private-credit trading operations, an investment that could support efficiency but entails costs. Article: Apollo to Spend $350 Million on Software Overhaul
• Negative Sentiment: Q3 adjusted earnings per share fell short of analyst expectations, and Apollo posted a $1.06 billion net loss attributable to common shareholders, versus a profit a year earlier, due to investment-related losses. The earnings miss and rising expenses are the clearest near-term negatives for the stock. Article: Apollo Global Swings to a Loss on Investment-Related Losses
• Negative Sentiment: Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered its price target from $135 to $130 and maintained a “market perform” rating. The reduced target signals more limited analyst conviction, although it still implies upside from the cited share price. Analyst ratings

About Apollo Global Management

Apollo Global Management, Inc NYSE: APO is a global alternative asset manager that provides investment solutions to institutions, companies and individual investors. The firm manages strategies across private equity, credit, real assets, infrastructure, secondaries and other alternative investments.

Apollo invests across a range of industries and geographies, supporting companies through buyouts, growth investments, structured financing and other forms of private capital. Its credit business provides lending and fixed-income solutions, while its real assets and infrastructure strategies focus on areas such as energy, transportation, communications and other essential services.

The company was founded in 1990 by Leon Black, Josh Harris and Marc Rowan.

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