AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP) Trading Down 1.5% on Analyst Downgrade

Shares of AppLovin Corporation (NASDAQ:APP) fell 1.5% on Tuesday after Benchmark lowered their price target on the stock from $500.00 to $440.00. Benchmark currently has a buy rating on the stock. AppLovin traded as low as $307.05 and last traded at $307.26. 5,120,676 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 11% from the average daily volume of 5,777,310 shares. The stock had previously closed at $311.98.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on APP. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of AppLovin from $710.00 to $650.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 7th. KeyCorp set a $775.00 price objective on AppLovin in a report on Wednesday, June 10th. Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on AppLovin in a research report on Monday, June 29th. They set a “strong-buy” rating and a $640.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “equal weight” rating and set a $357.00 target price (down from $575.00) on shares of AppLovin in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler downgraded shares of AppLovin from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the company from $665.00 to $385.00 in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $557.83.

Insider Activity

In other AppLovin news, Director Eduardo Vivas sold 163,910 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $504.06, for a total transaction of $82,620,474.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 6,785,087 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,420,090,953.22. This trade represents a 2.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CTO Vasily Shikin sold 62,804 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $484.42, for a total value of $30,423,513.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 3,189,739 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,545,173,366.38. This trade represents a 1.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 393,000 shares of company stock worth $197,297,363. 12.81% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Key Stories Impacting AppLovin

Here are the key news stories impacting AppLovin this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Benchmark Co. maintained a “buy” rating but lowered its price target from $500 to $440, implying substantial upside from recent levels. Benchmark lowers AppLovin price target while maintaining buy rating
• Positive Sentiment: AppLovin’s AXON advertising engine and strong cash-flow profile remain central to the bullish thesis. The stock has still delivered roughly sevenfold returns over three years, despite its recent pullback. AppLovin stock looks cheap on earnings while broader checks stay mixed
• Positive Sentiment: Greenhaven Road Capital highlighted AppLovin’s cash-flow multiple in its second-quarter investor letter, potentially supporting the view that the valuation has become more attractive after the decline. AppLovin offers attractive cash flow multiple
• Positive Sentiment: Brokerage sentiment remains favorable overall, with AppLovin receiving a consensus “Moderate Buy” recommendation. AppLovin given consensus moderate buy recommendation
• Neutral Sentiment: A review of second-quarter advertising-software results places AppLovin among peers facing varied operating trends, making sector-wide comparisons important for investors. Q2 rundown of AppLovin versus advertising software stocks
• Negative Sentiment: Weakness across demand-side advertising technology, including declines at The Trade Desk, is weighing on sentiment toward the broader ad-tech group and AppLovin. Demand-side ad tech weakness pressures AppLovin
• Negative Sentiment: AppLovin’s decline reflects concerns about what is driving the selloff, including recent revenue shortfalls and questions about whether growth expectations for AXON can be sustained. What is behind AppLovin’s decline

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of AppLovin by 160.0% in the fourth quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. now owns 39 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 24 shares during the last quarter. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in AppLovin in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in AppLovin in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Osbon Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of AppLovin during the 4th quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Dogwood Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of AppLovin by 84.4% during the fourth quarter. Dogwood Wealth Management LLC now owns 59 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.85% of the company’s stock.

AppLovin Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $102.82 billion, a PE ratio of 23.62, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 2.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 4.30 and a quick ratio of 4.30. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $442.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $453.87.

AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported $3.76 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $3.76. The firm had revenue of $1.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.94 billion. AppLovin had a return on equity of 193.10% and a net margin of 64.58%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 52.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.39 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that AppLovin Corporation will post 15.57 earnings per share for the current year.

AppLovin Company Profile

AppLovin Corporation is a Palo Alto–based mobile technology company that provides software and services to help app developers grow and monetize their businesses. The company operates a data-driven advertising and marketing platform that connects app publishers and advertisers, delivering tools for user acquisition, monetization, analytics and creative optimization. AppLovin’s technology is integrated into a broad set of mobile applications through software development kits (SDKs) and ad products designed to maximize revenue and engagement for developers.

Key components of AppLovin’s offering include an ad mediation and exchange platform that enables publishers to manage and monetize inventory across multiple demand sources, and a user-acquisition platform that helps advertisers target and scale campaigns.