AppLovin (NASDAQ:APP) Shares Down 2.6% – Should You Sell?

AppLovin Corporation (NASDAQ:APP) shares fell 2.6% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $605.15 and last traded at $616.53. 3,022,678 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 24% from the average session volume of 3,999,515 shares. The stock had previously closed at $632.92.

AppLovin News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting AppLovin this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Benchmark reiterated a Buy on APP with a $775 price target (Mike Hickey, Jan. 6); the coverage note (which cites continued confidence in AppLovin’s growth) reinforces upward analyst momentum and likely contributed to buying interest. Benchmark Reiterates Buy InsiderMonkey Coverage
• Positive Sentiment: High-profile media endorsement — Jim Cramer said he “can’t name a single competitor to AppLovin,” a bullish narrative that can attract momentum buyers and retail interest. Cramer Says No Competitor
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks published a piece comparing Skillsoft (SKIL) and AppLovin (APP) for value-oriented investors — useful context on sector valuation but it’s comparative rather than company-specific news that would immediately move APP. Zacks SKIL vs APP
• Neutral Sentiment: 247WallSt published a forward-looking price forecast noting AppLovin’s stock recovery after last year’s decline and citing better-than-expected quarterly results — supportive narrative but inherently speculative. 247WallSt Forecast
• Neutral Sentiment: Bristlemoon Global Fund published its Q4 2025 report (institutional activity/context). These fund reports can signal shifting ownership but the entry provided doesn’t note a clear, direct trade action for APP. Bristlemoon Q4 Report
• Neutral Sentiment: A general “3 growth stocks” roundup appeared on The Motley Fool; it offers sector context but is not APP-specific in the provided entry and is unlikely to be a primary driver of APP’s move. Fool Growth Stocks

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on APP shares. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of AppLovin from $850.00 to $820.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. Oppenheimer set a $740.00 price target on shares of AppLovin in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on AppLovin from $800.00 to $860.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and set a $771.00 price target on shares of AppLovin in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded AppLovin from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have given a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $696.60.

AppLovin Trading Up 5.1%

The company has a current ratio of 3.25, a quick ratio of 3.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.38. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $639.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $542.56. The firm has a market cap of $218.90 billion, a PE ratio of 78.61, a PEG ratio of 2.04 and a beta of 2.50.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Eduardo Vivas sold 150,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $650.91, for a total value of $97,636,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 7,133,292 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,643,131,095.72. This represents a 2.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Arash Adam Foroughi sold 30,888 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $520.29, for a total transaction of $16,070,717.52. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 2,553,161 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,328,384,136.69. This trade represents a 1.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 340,336 shares of company stock worth $200,062,623. 13.66% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Overbrook Management Corp purchased a new position in shares of AppLovin in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $10,179,000. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in AppLovin by 114.7% in the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 77,158 shares of the company’s stock worth $51,991,000 after purchasing an additional 41,215 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in AppLovin by 15.3% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 6,725 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,531,000 after buying an additional 891 shares during the period. Fulton Bank N.A. lifted its position in AppLovin by 8.3% during the fourth quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 8,717 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,874,000 after buying an additional 671 shares during the period. Finally, Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of AppLovin during the 4th quarter valued at $273,000. Institutional investors own 41.85% of the company’s stock.

About AppLovin

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.