AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP) Stock Price Down 4.2% After Analyst Downgrade

AppLovin Co. (NASDAQ:APP)’s share price fell 4.2% on Wednesday after Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on the stock from $538.00 to $386.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the stock. AppLovin traded as low as $221.71 and last traded at $225.36. 2,748,504 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 51% from the average session volume of 5,653,042 shares. The stock had previously closed at $235.28.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on APP. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of AppLovin from $375.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of AppLovin in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Benchmark raised their price target on AppLovin from $375.00 to $525.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Citigroup upped their price objective on AppLovin from $460.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on AppLovin from $325.00 to $475.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, fifteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $427.47.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Arash Adam Foroughi sold 44,400 shares of AppLovin stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $410.89, for a total value of $18,243,516.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2,869,492 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,179,045,567.88. This trade represents a 1.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CTO Vasily Shikin sold 17,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.65, for a total value of $4,228,875.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer now owns 88,389 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,359,201.85. This trade represents a 16.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 306,900 shares of company stock worth $106,401,841. 14.69% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AppLovin

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Benjamin Edwards Inc. acquired a new stake in AppLovin in the 3rd quarter valued at $364,000. IHT Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AppLovin in the third quarter valued at about $316,000. Quantinno Capital Management LP lifted its position in AppLovin by 146.6% during the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 6,412 shares of the company’s stock worth $837,000 after acquiring an additional 3,812 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its holdings in AppLovin by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 117,501 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,340,000 after acquiring an additional 6,188 shares during the period. Finally, EP Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in AppLovin by 18.3% in the third quarter. EP Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 13,413 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,751,000 after acquiring an additional 2,071 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.85% of the company’s stock.

AppLovin Price Performance

The business’s 50 day moving average price is $335.54 and its 200-day moving average price is $290.72. The company has a quick ratio of 2.41, a current ratio of 2.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.70. The company has a market cap of $76.87 billion, a PE ratio of 49.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 2.39.

AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $1.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.61. AppLovin had a net margin of 33.54% and a return on equity of 188.55%. As a group, analysts forecast that AppLovin Co. will post 6.87 earnings per share 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.