AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP) Shares Gap Down – Time to Sell?

Shares of AppLovin Co. (NASDAQ:APP) gapped down prior to trading on Monday . The stock had previously closed at $272.38, but opened at $255.93. AppLovin shares last traded at $256.21, with a volume of 2,239,437 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Loop Capital reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of AppLovin in a research report on Friday. FBN Securities started coverage on shares of AppLovin in a research note on Friday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $385.00 target price for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on shares of AppLovin from $220.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of AppLovin in a research report on Monday, March 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on AppLovin from $325.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, fifteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, AppLovin currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $435.47.

AppLovin Trading Down 3.9 %

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $351.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $284.38. The firm has a market cap of $88.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.70, a P/E/G ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 2.33. The company has a quick ratio of 2.41, a current ratio of 2.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.70.

AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $1.73 earnings per share 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%. As a group, research analysts predict that AppLovin Co. will post 6.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at AppLovin

In other AppLovin news, CTO Vasily Shikin sold 17,500 shares of AppLovin stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.65, for a total transaction of $4,228,875.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer now directly owns 88,389 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,359,201.85. The trade was a 16.53 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Herald Y. Chen sold 200,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 621,209 shares in the company, valued at $201,675,501.85. The trade was a 24.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 306,900 shares of company stock worth $106,401,841. Insiders own 14.69% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AppLovin

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in AppLovin by 38.2% during the 4th quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 105 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC boosted its position in AppLovin by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 1,822 shares of the company’s stock valued at $590,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC grew its stake in AppLovin by 6.7% in the fourth quarter. Quadrant Capital Group LLC now owns 526 shares of the company’s stock valued at $170,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP raised its holdings in AppLovin by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 3,776 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,223,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of AppLovin by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 5,236 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,696,000 after buying an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.