Van ECK Associates Corp Trims Holdings in AppLovin Co. (NASDAQ:APP)

Van ECK Associates Corp trimmed its position in AppLovin Co. (NASDAQ:APP) by 51.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 202,129 shares of the company’s stock after selling 210,302 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp owned about 0.06% of AppLovin worth $65,455,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. WCM Investment Management LLC raised its position in AppLovin by 10.5% during the third quarter. WCM Investment Management LLC now owns 10,820,409 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,382,307,000 after acquiring an additional 1,029,009 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in AppLovin by 622.8% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,893,237 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,030,462,000 after acquiring an additional 6,801,138 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in AppLovin by 8.6% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 5,388,023 shares of the company’s stock valued at $703,406,000 after acquiring an additional 428,419 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in AppLovin by 12.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,946,135 shares of the company’s stock valued at $514,418,000 after acquiring an additional 449,241 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fred Alger Management LLC raised its position in AppLovin by 1.3% during the third quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 3,539,467 shares of the company’s stock valued at $462,077,000 after acquiring an additional 46,854 shares in the last quarter. 41.85% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CTO Vasily Shikin sold 593,588 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $319.37, for a total transaction of $189,574,199.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer now directly owns 3,919,024 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,251,618,694.88. This trade represents a 13.15 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Craig Scott Billings sold 18,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $318.94, for a total transaction of $5,740,920.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 2,987 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $952,673.78. The trade was a 85.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 828,991 shares of company stock worth $267,640,144. Insiders own 14.69% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. BTIG Research lifted their price target on AppLovin from $202.00 to $291.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on AppLovin from $325.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of AppLovin from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of AppLovin from $335.00 to $460.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Daiwa America upgraded shares of AppLovin from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $422.18.

AppLovin Stock Performance

Shares of AppLovin stock opened at $471.67 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $349.15 and its 200 day moving average price is $226.34. The company has a market cap of $158.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 142.93, a PEG ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 2.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.70, a quick ratio of 2.41 and a current ratio of 2.41. AppLovin Co. has a one year low of $45.59 and a one year high of $525.15.

AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $1.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.61. AppLovin had a return on equity of 122.24% and a net margin of 26.85%. On average, research analysts predict that AppLovin Co. will post 4.09 EPS for the current year.

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.