GQG Partners LLC Has $2.73 Billion Stock Holdings in AppLovin Co. (NASDAQ:APP)

GQG Partners LLC lessened its position in AppLovin Co. (NASDAQ:APP) by 12.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 8,438,557 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,165,779 shares during the period. AppLovin makes up 4.1% of GQG Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 7th largest position. GQG Partners LLC owned about 2.51% of AppLovin worth $2,732,658,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in AppLovin in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Riverview Trust Co boosted its stake in shares of AppLovin by 1,640.0% during the 4th quarter. Riverview Trust Co now owns 87 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. Hemington Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of AppLovin by 78.4% in the 4th quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 91 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its position in shares of AppLovin by 172.2% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 98 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the period. Finally, Smithfield Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of AppLovin in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 41.85% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CTO Vasily Shikin sold 17,500 shares of AppLovin stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.65, for a total transaction of $4,228,875.00. Following the sale, the chief technology officer now directly owns 88,389 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,359,201.85. This trade represents a 16.53 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Herald Y. Chen sold 200,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $324.65, for a total value of $64,930,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 621,209 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $201,675,501.85. This trade represents a 24.35 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 306,900 shares of company stock valued at $106,401,841. 14.69% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

AppLovin Stock Up 8.2 %

APP stock opened at $339.72 on Tuesday. 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 company has a 50-day moving average of $354.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $278.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $115.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 74.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 2.33. AppLovin Co. has a 52-week low of $60.67 and a 52-week high of $525.15.

AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $1.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.61. AppLovin had a return on equity of 188.55% and a net margin of 33.54%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that AppLovin Co. will post 6.87 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $560.00 price target (up previously from $480.00) on shares of AppLovin in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of AppLovin in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Benchmark lifted their target price on AppLovin from $375.00 to $525.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of AppLovin from $460.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of AppLovin from $220.00 to $335.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, AppLovin has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $438.28.

AppLovin 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.