Evan Pickering Sells 141 Shares of AppFolio (NASDAQ:APPF) Stock

AppFolio, Inc. (NASDAQ:APPF) General Counsel Evan Pickering sold 141 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $202.01, for a total value of $28,483.41. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 5,489 shares in the company, valued at $1,108,832.89. This represents a 2.50% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Evan Pickering also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Wednesday, August 12th, Evan Pickering sold 322 shares of AppFolio stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.06, for a total value of $64,419.32.
• On Wednesday, August 5th, Evan Pickering sold 661 shares of AppFolio stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $200.49, for a total value of $132,523.89.
• On Friday, June 12th, Evan Pickering sold 660 shares of AppFolio stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.25, for a total transaction of $102,465.00.

AppFolio Stock Up 3.7%

NASDAQ:APPF opened at $203.97 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $172.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $170.49. The stock has a market cap of $7.22 billion, a PE ratio of 46.57 and a beta of 0.78. AppFolio, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $142.56 and a fifty-two week high of $288.73.

AppFolio (NASDAQ:APPF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 23rd. The software maker reported $1.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.69 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $281.12 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $277.35 million. AppFolio had a net margin of 15.13% and a return on equity of 32.42%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 19.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.38 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that AppFolio, Inc. will post 5.16 earnings per share for the current year.

AppFolio News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting AppFolio this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AppFolio’s latest quarter exceeded expectations: earnings reached $1.71 per share versus the $1.69 consensus estimate, while revenue of $281.12 million surpassed forecasts of $277.35 million. Revenue grew 19.3% year over year, and analysts expect full-year earnings of approximately $5.16 per share. AppFolio quarterly results
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst coverage remains constructive. AppFolio carries a consensus “Buy” rating and an average price target of $243.50, with Guggenheim initiating coverage at “Buy” and Benchmark raising its target to $226. AppFolio analyst ratings
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional ownership provides additional support: 85.19% of shares are held by institutions and hedge funds, while Vanguard, Principal Financial, T. Rowe Price and William Blair recently increased their positions. AppFolio institutional ownership
• Neutral Sentiment: Major shareholder Maurice J. Duca sold 17,900 shares for approximately $3.57 million across August 10–11. The transactions were executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, making them a less clear indicator of current confidence in AppFolio’s outlook. SEC filing for Maurice Duca
• Neutral Sentiment: General Counsel Evan Pickering sold 463 shares, while insider Don Rigler sold 150 shares. These sales were also made through pre-arranged plans, primarily to cover tax withholding on vested equity awards. SEC filings for AppFolio insider sales
• Negative Sentiment: Despite its growth, APPF trades at a relatively demanding valuation, with a price-to-earnings ratio near 45. Repeated insider selling could create a short-term overhang, while Piper Sandler’s lower $210 target and Wall Street Zen’s downgrade to “Hold” highlight downside risks if growth or execution weakens.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On AppFolio

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AppFolio by 101.8% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 111 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. grew its position in shares of AppFolio by 827.8% in the first quarter. Optiver Holding B.V. now owns 167 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in shares of AppFolio by 48.8% during the 3rd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 192 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new position in shares of AppFolio during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $55,000. Finally, Employees Retirement System of Texas acquired a new position in shares of AppFolio during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $58,000. 85.19% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of AppFolio from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Zacks Research upgraded AppFolio from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Wall Street Zen downgraded AppFolio from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, July 26th. Guggenheim started coverage on AppFolio in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $232.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Benchmark boosted their target price on AppFolio from $222.00 to $226.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 24th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $243.50.

About AppFolio

AppFolio, Inc is a Santa Barbara–based provider of cloud-based software solutions for the property management and legal industries. Founded in 2006 by former software executives, the company went public on the NASDAQ under the symbol APPF in 2015. Its original offering, AppFolio Property Manager, automates accounting, marketing, leasing, and maintenance functions for residential, commercial, student housing, and community association managers.

In 2019, AppFolio expanded its portfolio with the acquisition of MyCase, a web-based legal practice management platform for small to mid-size law firms.