AppLovin Corporation (NASDAQ:APP) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of AppLovin Corporation (NASDAQ:APP) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-five research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, twenty have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $706.4545.

Several research analysts have commented on APP shares. Citigroup cut their target price on AppLovin from $850.00 to $820.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on AppLovin from $630.00 to $720.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of AppLovin in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on shares of AppLovin in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $835.00 target price for the company. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on shares of AppLovin from $700.00 to $750.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 6th.

AppLovin Stock Performance

AppLovin stock opened at $542.36 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $635.31 and a 200-day moving average of $564.95. The company has a market capitalization of $183.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 65.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 2.50. AppLovin has a 1 year low of $200.50 and a 1 year high of $745.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.38, a current ratio of 3.25 and a quick ratio of 3.25.

AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The company reported $2.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.34 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $1.41 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.34 billion. AppLovin had a net margin of 51.27% and a return on equity of 258.49%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 68.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.29 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that AppLovin will post 6.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Key Stories Impacting AppLovin

Here are the key news stories impacting AppLovin this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Needham upgraded APP to Buy and set a $700 price target, citing an ecommerce growth inflection that could drive further revenue upside. Needham upgrade
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst coverage and consensus price targets remain well above recent levels (MarketBeat notes analyst targets implying substantial upside), which provides support amid the sell‑off. MarketBeat analyst outlook
• Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage from Zacks highlighted a session where APP outperformed the market, reflecting pockets of buyer interest despite headlines. Zacks note
• Neutral Sentiment: Public short‑interest posts for late January show anomalous “0 shares / NaN” entries and 0.0 days‑to‑cover — data appears erroneous and isn’t meaningful for current positioning. (Market liquidity remains high.)
• Neutral Sentiment: General coverage pieces (e.g., Yahoo’s Wall Street roundups) are debating bullish vs. bearish catalysts, which may amplify intraday volatility but don’t add new forensic evidence. Yahoo roundup
• Negative Sentiment: CapitalWatch’s short report accuses AppLovin of facilitating money‑laundering via shareholder‑linked entities; the report triggered a sharp sell‑off and is the primary driver of today’s downside. CapitalWatch report
• Negative Sentiment: AppLovin has publicly demanded CapitalWatch retract the report and called the allegations conspiratorial, but the controversy has attracted class‑action attention (Pomerantz investigation), increasing legal and reputational risk. CNBC coverage of company response Pomerantz investor alert
• Negative Sentiment: Public skeptics including media commentary and Jim Cramer emphasize APP’s high valuation (one of the market’s richer P/E multiples), which could deter momentum investors and deepen sell‑pressure while headline risk persists. Jim Cramer comments

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Victoria Valenzuela sold 7,609 shares of AppLovin stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $657.13, for a total transaction of $5,000,102.17. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 277,110 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $182,097,294.30. This trade represents a 2.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Dawson Alyssa Harvey sold 150 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $693.32, for a total transaction of $103,998.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 2,829 shares in the company, valued at $1,961,402.28. This trade represents a 5.04% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 340,336 shares of company stock valued at $200,062,623. 13.66% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of AppLovin

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Field & Main Bank raised its stake in AppLovin by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. Field & Main Bank now owns 1,431 shares of the company’s stock worth $964,000 after buying an additional 99 shares during the period. Diversified Enterprises LLC grew its stake in AppLovin by 19.1% in the fourth quarter. Diversified Enterprises LLC now owns 1,679 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,131,000 after acquiring an additional 269 shares during the period. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of AppLovin by 24.0% during the fourth quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 2,535 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,708,000 after acquiring an additional 491 shares in the last quarter. Quent Long Short Global Small Cap Fund LP acquired a new position in shares of AppLovin during the fourth quarter worth approximately $338,000. Finally, Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of AppLovin in the 4th quarter worth $714,000. 41.85% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

AppLovin Company Profile

AppLovin Corporation is a Palo Alto–based mobile technology company that provides software and services to help app developers grow and monetize their businesses. The company operates a data-driven advertising and marketing platform that connects app publishers and advertisers, delivering tools for user acquisition, monetization, analytics and creative optimization. AppLovin’s technology is integrated into a broad set of mobile applications through software development kits (SDKs) and ad products designed to maximize revenue and engagement for developers.

Key components of AppLovin’s offering include an ad mediation and exchange platform that enables publishers to manage and monetize inventory across multiple demand sources, and a user-acquisition platform that helps advertisers target and scale campaigns.