AppFolio (NASDAQ:APPF) Coverage Initiated at Benchmark

Research analysts at Benchmark started coverage on shares of AppFolio (NASDAQ:APPF) in a note issued to investors on Thursday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm set a “buy” rating and a $222.00 price target on the software maker’s stock. Benchmark’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 42.60% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on APPF. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of AppFolio from $330.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 30th. Piper Sandler decreased their target price on shares of AppFolio from $350.00 to $245.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings downgraded AppFolio from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Friday, January 16th. KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of AppFolio in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of AppFolio from $311.00 to $290.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, AppFolio presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $263.86.

AppFolio Price Performance

NASDAQ APPF opened at $155.68 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.60 billion, a PE ratio of 40.12 and a beta of 0.75. AppFolio has a 12 month low of $154.16 and a 12 month high of $326.04. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $183.37 and its 200 day simple moving average is $222.32.

AppFolio (NASDAQ:APPF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The software maker reported $1.39 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.22 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $248.19 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $246.56 million. AppFolio had a net margin of 14.82% and a return on equity of 29.79%. AppFolio’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.92 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that AppFolio will post 3.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at AppFolio

In related news, CEO William Shane Trigg sold 6,963 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.73, for a total transaction of $1,181,829.99. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 52,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,982,111.60. This trade represents a 11.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 4.68% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Royal Bank of Canada boosted its position in AppFolio by 22.6% during the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 45,452 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $9,993,000 after purchasing an additional 8,367 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in AppFolio by 23.5% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 384 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $84,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares during the period. Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of AppFolio by 237.7% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 18,055 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $3,970,000 after buying an additional 12,709 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its position in shares of AppFolio by 164.8% in the first quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 654 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $144,000 after acquiring an additional 407 shares during the period. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of AppFolio by 322.5% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 66,777 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $14,684,000 after acquiring an additional 50,970 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 85.19% of the company’s stock.

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.