Granite Investment Partners LLC Makes New Investment in AppFolio, Inc. $APPF

Key Points

• Granite Investment Partners opened a new position in AppFolio during the first quarter, buying 48,774 shares worth about $7.7 million. The firm now owns roughly 0.14% of the company.
• AppFolio reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.61 versus the $1.47 consensus and revenue of $262.21 million, up 20.7% year over year.
• Shares were down 1.6% in Thursday trading, while analysts remained mostly positive overall with a Moderate Buy consensus and a price target around $252.29.

Granite Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AppFolio, Inc. (NASDAQ:APPF - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 48,774 shares of the software maker's stock, valued at approximately $7,698,000. Granite Investment Partners LLC owned approximately 0.14% of AppFolio as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in AppFolio by 101.8% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 111 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in shares of AppFolio by 48.8% during the 3rd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 192 shares of the software maker's stock valued at $53,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new position in shares of AppFolio during the 3rd quarter valued at about $55,000. Employees Retirement System of Texas acquired a new position in shares of AppFolio in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $58,000. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in shares of AppFolio in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $69,000. 85.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AppFolio Trading Down 1.6%

NASDAQ APPF opened at $176.48 on Thursday. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $162.07 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $178.68. The company has a market cap of $6.24 billion, a PE ratio of 42.02 and a beta of 0.79. AppFolio, Inc. has a 1 year low of $142.56 and a 1 year high of $326.04.

AppFolio (NASDAQ:APPF - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The software maker reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.14. AppFolio had a net margin of 15.27% and a return on equity of 32.35%. The company had revenue of $262.21 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $258.13 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.21 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 20.7% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that AppFolio, Inc. will post 5.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other AppFolio news, insider Elizabeth Erin Barat sold 1,978 shares of AppFolio stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.12, for a total transaction of $312,761.36. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 21,545 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,406,695.40. The trade was a 8.41% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, General Counsel Evan Pickering sold 660 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.25, for a total value of $102,465.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel owned 6,555 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,017,663.75. The trade was a 9.15% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 8,957 shares of company stock worth $1,399,501. Company insiders own 1.57% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on APPF shares. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on shares of AppFolio from $245.00 to $210.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 24th. Benchmark lifted their price target on shares of AppFolio from $222.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of AppFolio from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 4th. Weiss Ratings cut AppFolio from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a report on Thursday, June 11th. Finally, UBS Group set a $210.00 price objective on AppFolio in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $252.29.

AppFolio Profile

AppFolio, Inc is a Santa Barbara–based provider of cloud-based software solutions for the property management and legal industries. Founded in 2006 by former software executives, the company went public on the NASDAQ under the symbol APPF in 2015. Its original offering, AppFolio Property Manager, automates accounting, marketing, leasing, and maintenance functions for residential, commercial, student housing, and community association managers.

In 2019, AppFolio expanded its portfolio with the acquisition of MyCase, a web-based legal practice management platform for small to mid-size law firms.

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