AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP) Shares Gap Up After Strong Earnings

Shares of AppLovin Co. (NASDAQ:APP - Get Free Report) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The stock had previously closed at $303.46, but opened at $344.00. AppLovin shares last traded at $355.34, with a volume of 5,414,070 shares.

The company reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.22. AppLovin had a return on equity of 188.55% and a net margin of 33.54%. The company had revenue of $1.48 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.38 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.67 earnings per share. AppLovin's quarterly revenue was up 40.3% compared to the same quarter last year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on APP. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of AppLovin from $386.00 to $405.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday. HSBC set a $436.00 price objective on AppLovin and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on AppLovin from $350.00 to $420.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday. Piper Sandler raised their price target on AppLovin from $425.00 to $455.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, FBN Securities initiated coverage on AppLovin in a research report on Friday, March 28th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $385.00 price objective on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, seventeen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $433.85.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other AppLovin news, Director Herald Y. Chen sold 200,000 shares of AppLovin stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $324.65, for a total transaction of $64,930,000.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 621,209 shares in the company, valued at $201,675,501.85. The trade was a 24.35 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CTO Vasily Shikin sold 17,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.65, for a total transaction of $4,228,875.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer now directly owns 88,389 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,359,201.85. This represents a 16.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 306,900 shares of company stock worth $106,401,841 in the last 90 days. 14.69% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AppLovin

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in AppLovin in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of AppLovin in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Atala Financial Inc acquired a new position in shares of AppLovin in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of AppLovin in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Riverview Trust Co grew its position in shares of AppLovin by 1,640.0% during the 4th quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 87 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. 41.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AppLovin Trading Down 3.2 %

The company has a quick ratio of 2.41, a current ratio of 2.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.70. The firm's 50 day moving average is $275.55 and its two-hundred day moving average is $311.59. The stock has a market cap of $111.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 72.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 2.39.

About AppLovin

AppLovin Corporation engages in building a software-based platform for advertisers to enhance the marketing and monetization of their content in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Software Platform and Apps. The company's software solutions include AppDiscovery, a marketing software solution, which matches advertiser demand with publisher supply through auctions; MAX, an in-app bidding software that optimizes the value of a publisher's advertising inventory by running a real-time competitive auction; Adjust, a measurement and analytics marketing platform that provides marketers with the visibility, insights, and tools needed to grow their apps from early stage to maturity; and Wurl, a connected TV platform, which distributes streaming video for content companies and provides advertising and publishing solutions through its AdPool, ContentDiscovery, and Global FAST Pass products.