UBS Group Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP) Stock

Key Points

• UBS Group has raised its price target for AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP) stock from $540 to $810, indicating a potential upside of 23.10% from the company's previous close.
• Recent analysts' ratings have shifted positively, with multiple firms issuing "buy" recommendations and raising their price targets significantly, contributing to a consensus average price target of $540.76.
• AppLovin's recent earnings report showed a earnings per share of $2.26, surpassing expectations, and a substantial revenue increase of 77.1% compared to the previous year, though actual revenue fell short of consensus estimates.

AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP - Get Free Report) had its price objective increased by UBS Group from $540.00 to $810.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has a "buy" rating on the stock. UBS Group's target price points to a potential upside of 23.10% from the company's previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on APP. BTIG Research increased their target price on AppLovin from $547.00 to $664.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, September 15th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of AppLovin in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on AppLovin from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Scotiabank restated an "outperform" rating on shares of AppLovin in a research report on Thursday, August 28th. Finally, Benchmark increased their target price on AppLovin from $525.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, September 15th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $540.76.

AppLovin Stock Performance

APP traded up $18.07 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $657.98. The stock had a trading volume of 1,096,734 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,417,568. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $474.49 and its 200 day simple moving average is $373.64. AppLovin has a 1 year low of $126.53 and a 1 year high of $670.19. The stock has a market cap of $222.56 billion, a PE ratio of 93.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 2.44. The company has a quick ratio of 2.74, a current ratio of 2.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.01.

AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $2.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.05 by $0.21. AppLovin had a return on equity of 252.67% and a net margin of 45.72%.The company had revenue of $1.26 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.37 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.89 EPS. AppLovin's quarterly revenue was up 77.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that AppLovin will post 6.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Arash Adam Foroughi sold 90,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $421.04, for a total value of $37,893,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,620,054 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,103,147,536.16. This represents a 3.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Victoria Valenzuela sold 35,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $502.23, for a total value of $17,578,050.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 269,955 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $135,579,499.65. This represents a 11.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,156,788 shares of company stock worth $514,863,333. 13.66% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AppLovin

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in AppLovin by 5.1% in the first quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,663 shares of the company's stock worth $445,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in AppLovin by 62.7% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 172,378 shares of the company's stock worth $45,675,000 after acquiring an additional 66,453 shares during the period. Yousif Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of AppLovin by 3.5% during the 1st quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 3,544 shares of the company's stock worth $939,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the period. Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its stake in AppLovin by 30.6% in the second quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 20,890 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,313,000 after acquiring an additional 4,890 shares during the period. Finally, IFM Investors Pty Ltd raised its stake in shares of AppLovin by 15.6% in the second quarter. IFM Investors Pty Ltd now owns 45,209 shares of the company's stock valued at $15,827,000 after acquiring an additional 6,104 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 41.85% of the company's stock.

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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