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

AppLovin Co. (NASDAQ:APP - Get Free Report)'s stock price was down 4.2% during trading on Wednesday 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 $221.71 and last traded at $225.36. Approximately 2,748,504 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 51% from the average daily volume of 5,653,042 shares. The stock had previously closed at $235.28.

A number of other brokerages have also issued reports on APP. Bank of America boosted their target price on AppLovin from $375.00 to $580.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on AppLovin from $220.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, January 27th. FBN Securities initiated coverage on AppLovin in a research report on Friday, March 28th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $385.00 target price for the company. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of AppLovin from $575.00 to $425.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Oppenheimer reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $560.00 target price on shares of AppLovin in a research note on Thursday, March 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, sixteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, AppLovin has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $424.84.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Herald Y. Chen sold 200,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $324.65, for a total value of $64,930,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 621,209 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $201,675,501.85. This represents a 24.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CTO Vasily Shikin sold 17,500 shares of AppLovin stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.65, for a total transaction 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 quarter, insiders have sold 306,900 shares of company stock valued at $106,401,841. 14.69% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AppLovin

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in AppLovin during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of AppLovin in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Riverview Trust Co raised its stake in shares of AppLovin by 1,640.0% during the 4th quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 87 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Tucker Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of AppLovin in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Hemington Wealth Management grew its stake in AppLovin by 78.4% in the 4th quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 91 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. 41.85% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AppLovin Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $84.97 billion, a PE ratio of 55.06, a P/E/G ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 2.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.70, a quick ratio of 2.41 and a current ratio of 2.41. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $327.20 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $293.41.

AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $1.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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, sell-side analysts predict that AppLovin Co. will post 6.87 EPS 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.