AppLovin Co. (NASDAQ:APP) Shares Sold by Vanguard Group Inc.

Vanguard Group Inc. lowered its holdings in AppLovin Co. (NASDAQ:APP) by 28.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 16,617,139 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,642,661 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc.’s holdings in AppLovin were worth $5,381,128,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in APP. Pathstone Holdings LLC grew its holdings in shares of AppLovin by 5.5% in the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 19,866 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,594,000 after purchasing an additional 1,042 shares in the last quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc acquired a new position in AppLovin during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $294,000. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG acquired a new position in AppLovin during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $714,000. Commerce Bank grew its holdings in AppLovin by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. Commerce Bank now owns 8,782 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,146,000 after acquiring an additional 221 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in AppLovin by 89.7% during the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 681 shares of the company’s stock worth $89,000 after acquiring an additional 322 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.85% of the company’s stock.

AppLovin Stock Up 2.4 %

APP stock opened at $314.03 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $106.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 69.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 2.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.70, a current ratio of 2.41 and a quick ratio of 2.41. AppLovin Co. has a 12 month low of $60.67 and a 12 month high of $525.15. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $353.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $276.60.

AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $1.73 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.61. AppLovin had a net margin of 33.54% and a return on equity of 188.55%. Sell-side analysts expect that AppLovin Co. will post 6.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Arash Adam Foroughi sold 45,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $422.21, for a total transaction of $18,999,450.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2,914,492 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,230,527,667.32. This represents a 1.52 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Herald Y. Chen sold 200,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $324.65, for a total transaction of $64,930,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 621,209 shares in the company, valued at approximately $201,675,501.85. This trade represents a 24.35 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 306,900 shares of company stock worth $106,401,841. 14.69% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on APP. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of AppLovin from $325.00 to $475.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of AppLovin in a report on Monday, March 17th. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of AppLovin from $375.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Arete Research set a $200.00 price objective on shares of AppLovin in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of AppLovin from $440.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $438.28.

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.