AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP) Trading 5.2% Higher - Time to Buy?

AppLovin Co. (NASDAQ:APP - Get Free Report)'s stock price traded up 5.2% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $339.39 and last traded at $335.19. 1,774,696 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 61% from the average session volume of 4,609,092 shares. The stock had previously closed at $318.74.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

APP has been the topic of several analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of AppLovin from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price target for the company from $103.00 to $150.00 in a report on Monday, October 14th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on AppLovin from $250.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. Benchmark reissued a "sell" rating and set a $66.00 price target on shares of AppLovin in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Citigroup upped their price objective on AppLovin from $335.00 to $460.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Daiwa America upgraded AppLovin from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $310.71.

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 fifty day simple moving average of $264.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $152.99. The company has a market capitalization of $114.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 103.33, a P/E/G ratio of 4.17 and a beta of 2.28.

AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The company reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.92 by $0.33. AppLovin had a net margin of 26.85% and a return on equity of 122.24%. The company had revenue of $1.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.13 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.30 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 38.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that AppLovin Co. will post 4.06 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Victoria Valenzuela sold 17,925 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $354.15, for a total value of $6,348,138.75. Following 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Craig Scott Billings sold 18,000 shares of AppLovin stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $318.94, for a total value of $5,740,920.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 2,987 shares in the company, valued at $952,673.78. This represents a 85.77 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 872,896 shares of company stock worth $279,773,021. Company insiders own 14.69% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of APP. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of AppLovin during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. DT Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in AppLovin during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in AppLovin in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of AppLovin in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of AppLovin during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. 41.85% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.