Morgan Stanley Raises AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP) Price Target to $70.00

AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP) had its price objective increased by Morgan Stanley from $55.00 to $70.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley’s price objective points to a potential downside of 3.26% from the stock’s current price.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on APP. TheStreet upgraded shares of AppLovin from a “d+” rating to a “c-” rating in a research note on Friday, March 8th. HSBC started coverage on shares of AppLovin in a research note on Monday, December 18th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $53.20 price objective on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of AppLovin from $59.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. BTIG Research boosted their target price on shares of AppLovin from $65.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Finally, Wedbush boosted their target price on shares of AppLovin from $67.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $59.31.

AppLovin Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of APP stock traded up $0.93 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $72.36. 1,553,755 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,140,655. AppLovin has a 1-year low of $15.41 and a 1-year high of $79.55. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $63.41 and a 200 day moving average price of $48.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 1.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.75 billion, a PE ratio of 72.46, a PEG ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.90.

AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The company reported $0.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $953.26 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $928.66 million. AppLovin had a net margin of 10.84% and a return on equity of 24.69%. The firm’s revenue was up 35.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.21) earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that AppLovin will post 2.47 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Matthew Stumpf sold 2,775 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.30, for a total value of $175,657.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 362,264 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,931,311.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, CFO Matthew Stumpf sold 2,775 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.30, for a total value of $175,657.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 362,264 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,931,311.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Victoria Valenzuela sold 2,890 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.76, for a total transaction of $166,926.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 546,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,569,305.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 61,215 shares of company stock worth $4,416,815. 12.43% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On AppLovin

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. DeDora Capital Inc. increased its position in shares of AppLovin by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. DeDora Capital Inc. now owns 9,596 shares of the company’s stock worth $664,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of AppLovin by 39.4% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 68,563 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,746,000 after purchasing an additional 19,381 shares in the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. bought a new stake in AppLovin during the 1st quarter worth about $146,000. Atlas Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in AppLovin during the 1st quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Annex Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in AppLovin during the 1st quarter worth about $11,645,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.85% of the company’s stock.

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.