AppFolio, Inc. (NASDAQ:APPF) Short Interest Up 17.3% in March

AppFolio, Inc. (NASDAQ:APPF) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 756,100 shares, a growth of 17.3% from the March 15th total of 644,500 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 323,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.3 days.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on APPF. BTIG Research began coverage on AppFolio in a report on Friday, January 19th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $215.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com downgraded AppFolio from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, December 21st. KeyCorp upped their price target on AppFolio from $254.00 to $264.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $241.00 price target on shares of AppFolio in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on AppFolio from $228.00 to $237.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $239.40.

Insider Activity at AppFolio

In related news, Director Olivia Nottebohm sold 989 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.75, for a total value of $239,090.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $461,500.75. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Director Timothy K. Bliss sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $227.24, for a total value of $2,272,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 51,070 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,605,146.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Olivia Nottebohm sold 989 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $241.75, for a total value of $239,090.75. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 1,909 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $461,500.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 15,489 shares of company stock valued at $3,531,011 over the last three months. 9.15% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of AppFolio by 56.4% in the first quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 9,835 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $1,113,000 after buying an additional 3,545 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers increased its position in shares of AppFolio by 2.8% in the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 19,928 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $2,256,000 after buying an additional 535 shares in the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL increased its position in shares of AppFolio by 2.3% in the first quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 72,954 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $8,259,000 after buying an additional 1,664 shares in the last quarter. Ergoteles LLC purchased a new position in shares of AppFolio in the first quarter valued at $228,000. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. purchased a new position in shares of AppFolio in the first quarter valued at $39,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 62.34% of the company’s stock.

AppFolio Trading Down 2.6 %

Shares of AppFolio stock traded down $5.73 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $215.70. 176,183 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 312,175. The business has a 50-day moving average of $232.43 and a 200-day moving average of $203.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7,192.40 and a beta of 0.80. AppFolio has a 1 year low of $123.36 and a 1 year high of $253.42.

AppFolio (NASDAQ:APPF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The software maker reported $0.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.29. The firm had revenue of $171.83 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $162.80 million. AppFolio had a negative return on equity of 8.58% and a net margin of 0.44%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that AppFolio will post 2.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About AppFolio

AppFolio, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, provides cloud business management solutions for the real estate industry in the United States. The company provides a cloud-based platform that enables users to automate and optimize common workflows; tools that assist with leasing, maintenance, and accounting; and other technology and services offered by third parties.