AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP) Shares Down 8.4% Following Analyst Downgrade

AppLovin Co. (NASDAQ:APP) was down 8.4% during trading on Friday after UBS Group lowered their price target on the stock from $630.00 to $450.00. UBS Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. AppLovin traded as low as $239.00 and last traded at $241.75. Approximately 3,886,718 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 32% from the average daily volume of 5,720,114 shares. The stock had previously closed at $263.83.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of AppLovin from $220.00 to $335.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on AppLovin from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of AppLovin in a report on Monday, March 17th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $560.00 price target on shares of AppLovin in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on AppLovin from $538.00 to $386.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, sixteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AppLovin presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $424.84.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Arash Adam Foroughi sold 44,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 $1,179,045,567.88. This trade represents a 1.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Herald Y. Chen sold 200,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $324.65, for a total value of $64,930,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 621,209 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $201,675,501.85. The trade was a 24.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 306,900 shares of company stock worth $106,401,841 over the last 90 days. 14.69% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AppLovin

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Quantinno Capital Management LP grew its stake in AppLovin by 146.6% during the 3rd quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 6,412 shares of the company’s stock valued at $837,000 after acquiring an additional 3,812 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its holdings in shares of AppLovin by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,003 shares of the company’s stock worth $131,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC grew its position in shares of AppLovin by 92.5% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 318,992 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,643,000 after purchasing an additional 153,248 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp increased its holdings in shares of AppLovin by 54.0% in the third quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 36,799 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,805,000 after purchasing an additional 12,901 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vestcor Inc lifted its position in AppLovin by 32.9% during the third quarter. Vestcor Inc now owns 3,925 shares of the company’s stock worth $512,000 after buying an additional 972 shares in the last quarter. 41.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AppLovin Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.70, a current ratio of 2.41 and a quick ratio of 2.41. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $327.20 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $293.41. The company has a market cap of $84.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 2.39.

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