Vanguard Group Inc. Has $16.93 Billion Stake in AppLovin Corporation $APP

Key Points

• Vanguard increased its stake in AppLovin to 25,120,575 shares (about $16.93 billion), representing roughly 7.43% of the company after a 0.7% raise in Q4.
• Company insiders have been net sellers recently — the CTO and CEO each sold large blocks and insiders disposed of 365,244 shares worth about $169.6 million over the last three months, though insiders still own 13.66% of the stock.
• AppLovin beat quarterly estimates (EPS $3.24 vs. $2.89; revenue $1.66B, up 66% YoY), and analysts hold a consensus "Moderate Buy" rating with a $673.25 target, while the stock trades with a PE of 45.98 and a market cap of $151.2B.

Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of AppLovin Corporation (NASDAQ:APP - Free Report) by 0.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 25,120,575 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 166,117 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned approximately 7.43% of AppLovin worth $16,926,746,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in APP. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in AppLovin during the fourth quarter worth $294,000. Bison Wealth LLC bought a new stake in AppLovin during the fourth quarter worth $239,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its position in AppLovin by 58.0% during the first quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 1,692 shares of the company's stock worth $448,000 after acquiring an additional 621 shares in the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its position in AppLovin by 5.7% during the second quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 14,523 shares of the company's stock worth $5,084,000 after acquiring an additional 782 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina raised its position in AppLovin by 7.2% during the second quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 139,189 shares of the company's stock worth $48,727,000 after acquiring an additional 9,380 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.85% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research lowered shares of AppLovin from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Evercore reissued a "buy" rating on shares of AppLovin in a research report on Friday, January 30th. UBS Group set a $740.00 price objective on shares of AppLovin in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of AppLovin from $820.00 to $710.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of AppLovin from $860.00 to $700.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. One research 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $673.25.

AppLovin Trading Down 1.3%

APP stock opened at $448.29 on Friday. 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 company's 50-day simple moving average is $433.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is $540.02. AppLovin Corporation has a 52 week low of $246.00 and a 52 week high of $745.61. The company has a market capitalization of $151.20 billion, a PE ratio of 45.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 2.50.

AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $3.24 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.61 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.73 earnings per share. AppLovin's revenue was up 66.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that AppLovin Corporation will post 15.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at AppLovin

In related news, CTO Vasily Shikin sold 62,804 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $486.43, for a total value of $30,549,749.72. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 3,255,273 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,583,462,445.39. This represents a 1.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Arash Adam Foroughi sold 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $466.04, for a total transaction of $23,302,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 2,480,414 shares in the company, valued at $1,155,972,140.56. This trade represents a 1.98% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 365,244 shares of company stock worth $169,584,607. Corporate insiders own 13.66% of the company's stock.

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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