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Shares of Applovin ripped more than 30% higher Thursday after the company reported a fourth-quarter earnings beat, causing many analysts to lift their price targets.
The ad tech company said on its earnings call it was divesting its apps business, as the company aims to move into other verticals for their AI-powered AXON advertising software like fintech, insurance and automotive.
Analysts at Wolfe praised the sale of the apps segment, saying the company’s financials “gets cleaner at a time when its growth outlook gets better” while raising their price target to $550 from $490.
“We believe the sales of its game development/publishing will make it easier for investors to justify APP’s expanding valuation multiple,” wrote Oppenheimer analysts after bringing their own target up to $560 from $380.
Applovin reported earnings per share of $1.73 on $1.37 billion in revenue for the final quarter, outperforming analysts’ expectations polled by LSEG, who expected earnings of $1.24 per share on $1.26 billion in revenue.
Net income in the quarter more than tripled to $599.2 million, or $1.73 per share, from $172.3 million, or 51 cents per share, a year earlier, the company said in a statement. Revenue jumped 43% from $953.3 million a year earlier, fueled by improvements and expansions to new categories for its AXON models.
Applovin was the most successful tech stock in the U.S. last year, soaring over 700% and outperforming even the biggest names in the AI space. It expects first-quarter revenue of between $1.36 billion and 1.39 billion, exceeding the $1.32 billion average analyst estimate, according to LSEG.
More than $1 billion of that will come from its advertising segment, as the company said it is “still in the early stages” of bolstering its AI models further.
— Additional reporting by CNBC’s Michael Bloom.
