AppFolio (NASDAQ:APPF) Upgraded to Market Perform at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Key Points

• AppFolio has been upgraded by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from an "underperform" rating to a "market perform" rating, with a target price set at $267.00, indicating a potential upside of 3.01% from its previous close.
• Currently, AppFolio holds a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" among analysts, with a price target of $266.00 and multiple recent upgrades from different research firms.
• In insider trading news, notable transactions include a sale of 4,682 shares by insider Elizabeth Erin Barat and a purchase of 4,000 shares by Director Robert Donald Casey III, indicating varied insider confidence in the stock's future.

AppFolio (NASDAQ:APPF - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from an "underperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a note issued to investors on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm presently has a $267.00 price objective on the software maker's stock, up from their previous price objective of $205.00. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods' target price points to a potential downside of 16.34% from the company's current price.

Several other research analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on AppFolio from $208.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. DA Davidson raised AppFolio to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, AppFolio currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $303.00.

AppFolio Stock Performance

AppFolio stock traded up $51.77 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $319.15. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,105,219 shares, compared to its average volume of 245,217. AppFolio has a fifty-two week low of $189.01 and a fifty-two week high of $320.36. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $235.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $226.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $11.50 billion, a PE ratio of 57.61 and a beta of 0.95.

AppFolio (NASDAQ:APPF - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The software maker reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.11. AppFolio had a return on equity of 26.19% and a net margin of 23.54%. The company had revenue of $235.58 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $230.10 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.12 earnings per share. AppFolio's quarterly revenue was up 19.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that AppFolio will post 3.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other AppFolio news, CFO Timothy Mathias Eaton sold 1,057 shares of AppFolio stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $221.13, for a total value of $233,734.41. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 7,176 shares in the company, valued at $1,586,828.88. The trade was a 12.84% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Elizabeth Erin Barat sold 4,682 shares of AppFolio stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $227.79, for a total value of $1,066,512.78. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 17,926 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,083,363.54. This trade represents a 20.71% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have bought 18,500 shares of company stock worth $4,024,220 and have sold 14,639 shares worth $3,433,222. Corporate insiders own 4.68% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of AppFolio

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Colonial Trust Co SC purchased a new stake in shares of AppFolio during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its holdings in AppFolio by 53.0% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 179 shares of the software maker's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in AppFolio by 4,975.0% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 203 shares of the software maker's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 199 shares during the period. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd boosted its holdings in AppFolio by 10,300.0% in the 4th quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd now owns 208 shares of the software maker's stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 206 shares during the period. Finally, Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in shares of AppFolio in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.19% of the company's stock.

About AppFolio

AppFolio, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides cloud business management solutions for the real estate industry in the United States. The company provides a cloud-based platform that enables users to automate and optimize common workflows; tools that assist with leasing, maintenance, and accounting; and other technology and services offered by third parties.