AppLovin Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NASDAQ:APP)

AppLovin Co. (NASDAQ:APP) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Friday. Investors bought 56,988 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 13% compared to the average volume of 50,296 call options.

AppLovin Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ APP traded up $3.21 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $323.70. 5,524,124 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,404,089. The company has a market cap of $108.63 billion, a PE ratio of 71.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 2.30. AppLovin has a twelve month low of $57.40 and a twelve month high of $525.15. 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 firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $368.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $251.23.

AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP) last posted its 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 net margin of 33.54% and a return on equity of 188.55%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that AppLovin will post 6.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on APP shares. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of AppLovin from $440.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. BTIG Research raised their price objective on AppLovin from $202.00 to $291.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Loop Capital upped their target price on AppLovin from $450.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $560.00 price target (up previously from $480.00) on shares of AppLovin in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of AppLovin from $400.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, AppLovin presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $452.29.

Insider Activity at AppLovin

In other news, CEO Arash Adam Foroughi sold 45,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $422.21, for a total value of $18,999,450.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2,914,492 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,230,527,667.32. The trade was a 1.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Victoria Valenzuela sold 17,925 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $354.15, for a total transaction of $6,348,138.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 405,676 shares in the company, valued at $143,670,155.40. This trade represents a 4.23 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 224,872 shares of company stock worth $82,158,554. Insiders own 14.69% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of AppLovin

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Park Square Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in AppLovin during the 4th quarter worth about $112,000. Menard Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of AppLovin by 29.2% during the fourth quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 2,482 shares of the company’s stock worth $804,000 after acquiring an additional 561 shares during the last quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new position in shares of AppLovin in the fourth quarter worth approximately $69,003,000. Brucke Financial Inc. bought a new stake in AppLovin in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $263,000. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in AppLovin during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $470,000. Institutional investors own 41.85% of the company’s stock.

AppLovin Company Profile

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.