AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP) Trading Up 3.8% Following Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• AppLovin's shares rose 3.8% after Scotiabank upgraded its price target from $430.00 to $450.00 with a sector outperform rating.
• Several firms, including BTIG and Wells Fargo, have issued varying buy ratings with price targets ranging from $405.00 to $480.00, reflecting strong analyst support.
• Insider transactions revealed that Director Herald Y. Chen significantly reduced his stake, selling over 400,000 shares in recent trades, prompting scrutiny over insider sentiment.

Shares of AppLovin Corporation (NASDAQ:APP - Get Free Report) were up 3.8% during mid-day trading on Friday after Scotiabank raised their price target on the stock from $430.00 to $450.00. Scotiabank currently has a sector outperform rating on the stock. AppLovin traded as high as $463.79 and last traded at $454.03. Approximately 3,861,948 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 46% from the average daily volume of 7,189,654 shares. The stock had previously closed at $437.34.

A number of other research firms have also recently issued reports on APP. BTIG Research boosted their target price on AppLovin from $480.00 to $483.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. HSBC set a $436.00 target price on AppLovin and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of AppLovin from $405.00 to $480.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of AppLovin from $335.00 to $435.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on shares of AppLovin from $450.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $472.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Herald Y. Chen sold 171,420 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $373.77, for a total value of $64,071,653.40. Following the transaction, the director owned 221,209 shares in the company, valued at approximately $82,681,287.93. This represents a 43.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Herald Y. Chen sold 400,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $374.61, for a total value of $149,844,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 221,209 shares in the company, valued at approximately $82,867,103.49. This trade represents a 64.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,212,968 shares of company stock worth $455,062,980. Company insiders own 13.66% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AppLovin

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of APP. Hilltop National Bank bought a new stake in AppLovin during the second quarter worth $26,000. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA bought a new position in AppLovin in the second quarter valued at about $26,000. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of AppLovin during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Atala Financial Inc bought a new stake in shares of AppLovin during the first quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. acquired a new position in shares of AppLovin in the second quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 41.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AppLovin Trading Up 3.9%

The business's fifty day moving average is $365.28 and its 200-day moving average is $339.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.10, a quick ratio of 1.68 and a current ratio of 1.68. The firm has a market cap of $153.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 64.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 2.43.

AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $2.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.05 by $0.21. AppLovin had a net margin of 45.72% and a return on equity of 274.45%. The firm had revenue of $1.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.89 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 77.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that AppLovin Corporation will post 6.87 EPS for the current year.

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.

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