AppLovin Corporation $APP Shares Acquired by Franklin Resources Inc.

Key Points

• Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in AppLovin by 24.9% to 2,442,450 shares (about 0.72% of the company), valued at roughly $1.755 billion per its latest SEC filing.
• AppLovin reported strong quarterly results—EPS $3.24 vs. $2.89 expected and revenue of $1.66 billion (up 66%)—and analysts remain broadly positive with an average target of $654.50 (21 Buys, 4 Holds).
• Despite the results and partnership/industry tailwinds, the stock was trading down 7.7%, and observers have flagged competitive risk after Jim Cramer warned large platforms like Google could pressure AppLovin’s margins.

Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in AppLovin Corporation (NASDAQ:APP - Free Report) by 24.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,442,450 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 487,492 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. owned approximately 0.72% of AppLovin worth $1,754,996,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of AppLovin during the 4th quarter valued at $294,000. Bison Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of AppLovin in the 4th quarter worth $239,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AppLovin by 58.0% in the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,692 shares of the company's stock valued at $448,000 after buying an additional 621 shares during the period. Wedbush Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of AppLovin by 188.6% in the second quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 2,797 shares of the company's stock valued at $979,000 after buying an additional 1,828 shares during the period. Finally, AE Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in AppLovin during the second quarter valued at about $1,656,000. 41.85% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

APP has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $700.00 target price on shares of AppLovin in a report on Thursday, February 12th. UBS Group set a $740.00 price target on shares of AppLovin in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating and set a $650.00 price objective (down from $800.00) on shares of AppLovin in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Wedbush lifted their price objective on shares of AppLovin from $465.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of AppLovin from $820.00 to $710.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Twenty-one equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $654.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Victoria Valenzuela sold 7,609 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $657.13, for a total value of $5,000,102.17. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 277,110 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $182,097,294.30. This trade represents a 2.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 13.66% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting AppLovin

Here are the key news stories impacting AppLovin this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Partnership with Stagwell to put Axon into Stagwell’s media offerings — expands Axon’s reach across mobile and connected TV, introduces AI-driven campaign optimization to Stagwell clients and could drive incremental ad revenue and CTV scale. AppLovin Stagwell Alliance Tests Axon’s AI Across Mobile And CTV
• Positive Sentiment: Kantar/Axon study shows mobile gaming is now a mainstream consumer channel with measurable purchase impact — supports AppLovin’s pitch to advertisers and the longer-term monetization potential of Axon. Mobile Gaming Now a Mainstream Consumer Channel (Kantar)
• Positive Sentiment: Adjust report: gaming app sessions rose in 2025 and retention-focused strategies are accelerating — an industry tailwind that should support demand for AppLovin’s ad and measurement products. Adjust: Gaming App Sessions Rose In 2025
• Positive Sentiment: Market recognition/momentum: coverage highlighting AppLovin as a top-performing S&P 500 name and a trending stock can sustain investor interest and multiple support. Is AppLovin The Best Performing S&P 500 Stock?
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks feature and other retail/investor attention pieces note APP as a trending/idea stock — useful for sentiment but not a direct fundamental change. Zacks: Why APP is Trending
• Neutral Sentiment: Inclusion in a Zacks “Investment Ideas” roundup increases visibility but is not a direct catalyst. Zacks Investment Ideas Feature
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest reports flagged a “significant increase” but the published figures show 0 shares/NaN changes — likely a reporting/data error; do not treat as confirmed rising short activity without clearer data.
• Negative Sentiment: Jim Cramer flagged that AppLovin’s strong margins could attract competitive pressure from Google — raises the risk of margin compression or intensified competition in ad tech if large platforms respond. Jim Cramer Warns APP Investors

AppLovin Trading Down 7.7%

NASDAQ APP opened at $477.39 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $161.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 48.96, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 2.51. AppLovin Corporation has a twelve month low of $200.50 and a twelve month high of $745.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65, a quick ratio of 3.32 and a current ratio of 3.32. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $506.24 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $574.92.

AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $3.24 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.89 by $0.35. AppLovin had a net margin of 57.42% and a return on equity of 245.64%. The business had revenue of $1.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.61 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.73 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 66.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that AppLovin Corporation will post 6.87 EPS for the current year.

About AppLovin

AppLovin Corporation is a Palo Alto–based mobile technology company that provides software and services to help app developers grow and monetize their businesses. The company operates a data-driven advertising and marketing platform that connects app publishers and advertisers, delivering tools for user acquisition, monetization, analytics and creative optimization. AppLovin's technology is integrated into a broad set of mobile applications through software development kits (SDKs) and ad products designed to maximize revenue and engagement for developers.

Key components of AppLovin's offering include an ad mediation and exchange platform that enables publishers to manage and monetize inventory across multiple demand sources, and a user-acquisition platform that helps advertisers target and scale campaigns.

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