AppLovin Corporation $APP Shares Sold by Rakuten Securities Inc.

Key Points

• Rakuten Securities reduced its stake in AppLovin by 38.6% in Q4, selling 4,064 shares and now holding 6,476 shares worth about $4.36 million, making AppLovin its 14th-largest holding.
• Insiders have been significant net sellers: CEO Arash Foroughi sold 50,000 shares (~$23.3M) and CTO Vasily Shikin sold 62,804 shares (~$30.5M), with insiders disposing of 365,244 shares worth roughly $169.6M in the past three months.
• Analysts show a consensus "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of $673.25, though targets vary and the stock recently traded below its 200-day moving average (opened at $454.17 vs. 200‑day MA $541.62).

Rakuten Securities Inc. lessened its stake in shares of AppLovin Corporation (NASDAQ:APP - Free Report) by 38.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,476 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,064 shares during the quarter. AppLovin comprises about 1.4% of Rakuten Securities Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. Rakuten Securities Inc.'s holdings in AppLovin were worth $4,364,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Field & Main Bank raised its stake in AppLovin by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. Field & Main Bank now owns 1,431 shares of the company's stock worth $964,000 after acquiring an additional 99 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Enterprises LLC boosted its stake in AppLovin by 19.1% in the fourth quarter. Diversified Enterprises LLC now owns 1,679 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,131,000 after acquiring an additional 269 shares in the last quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of AppLovin by 24.0% during the fourth quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 2,535 shares of the company's stock worth $1,708,000 after purchasing an additional 491 shares during the last quarter. Quent Long Short Global Small Cap Fund LP purchased a new position in shares of AppLovin during the fourth quarter worth about $338,000. Finally, Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AppLovin during the fourth quarter worth about $714,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.85% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. BTIG Research dropped their price target on AppLovin from $771.00 to $640.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Weiss Ratings downgraded AppLovin from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 10th. UBS Group set a $740.00 price objective on shares of AppLovin in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Wedbush lifted their target price on shares of AppLovin from $465.00 to $640.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Argus began coverage on shares of AppLovin in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. They set a "buy" rating and a $520.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, AppLovin currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $673.25.

AppLovin Trading Down 6.1%

Shares of APP opened at $454.17 on Friday. The firm's 50-day moving average is $432.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $541.62. AppLovin Corporation has a twelve month low of $246.00 and a twelve month high of $745.61. The company has a current ratio of 3.32, a quick ratio of 3.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $153.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.58, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 2.50.

AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $3.24 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.89 by $0.35. AppLovin had a return on equity of 245.64% and a net margin of 57.42%.The firm had revenue of $1.66 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.61 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.73 EPS. AppLovin's quarterly revenue was up 66.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that AppLovin Corporation will post 15.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at AppLovin

In other news, CEO Arash Adam Foroughi sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $466.04, for a total value of $23,302,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,480,414 shares in the company, valued at $1,155,972,140.56. This represents a 1.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 62,804 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $486.43, for a total transaction of $30,549,749.72. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 3,255,273 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,583,462,445.39. This trade represents a 1.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 365,244 shares of company stock worth $169,584,607. 13.66% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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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