AppFolio, Inc. (NASDAQ:APPF) Short Interest Up 80.4% in January

AppFolio, Inc. (NASDAQ:APPF) saw a large increase in short interest in the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 707,900 shares, an increase of 80.4% from the January 15th total of 392,300 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 229,200 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.1 days.

AppFolio Stock Performance

Shares of APPF traded up $1.36 on Friday, hitting $216.23. 41,247 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 284,182. The company has a market capitalization of $7.86 billion, a PE ratio of 38.96 and a beta of 0.88. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $247.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $233.57. AppFolio has a one year low of $189.01 and a one year high of $274.56.

AppFolio (NASDAQ:APPF) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The software maker reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.92 by ($0.34). AppFolio had a return on equity of 26.21% and a net margin of 25.69%. On average, equities analysts expect that AppFolio will post 3.96 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at AppFolio

In related news, major shareholder Maurice J. Duca sold 1,059 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $229.10, for a total transaction of $242,616.90. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 9,388 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,150,790.80. The trade was a 10.14 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Matthew S. Mazza sold 700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.50, for a total transaction of $178,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 27,566 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,043,113. The trade was a 2.48 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 15,090 shares of company stock worth $3,739,804. 5.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of AppFolio

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in AppFolio by 8.8% in the 4th quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 185,132 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $45,676,000 after acquiring an additional 14,975 shares during the last quarter. Pinebridge Investments L.P. boosted its position in AppFolio by 42.7% in the 4th quarter. Pinebridge Investments L.P. now owns 8,072 shares of the software maker’s stock valued at $1,992,000 after buying an additional 2,415 shares during the period. Dark Forest Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in AppFolio in the 4th quarter valued at about $549,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC purchased a new stake in shares of AppFolio in the 4th quarter worth approximately $557,000. Finally, State of Tennessee Department of Treasury lifted its position in shares of AppFolio by 78.5% in the 4th quarter. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury now owns 8,923 shares of the software maker’s stock worth $2,201,000 after purchasing an additional 3,923 shares during the period. 85.19% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on APPF. KeyCorp lowered shares of AppFolio from an “overweight” rating to a “sector weight” rating and set a $253.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Friday, January 10th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $265.00 price objective on shares of AppFolio in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and set a $295.00 price objective on shares of AppFolio in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of AppFolio in a research note on Friday, January 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $276.29.

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.