New York, January 14, 2026, 11:14 EST — Regular session underway.
- AppLovin shares tumbled nearly 10% in late-morning trading, falling faster than the Nasdaq.
- Evercore ISI kicked off coverage with an Outperform rating and set a target of $835; Morgan Stanley raised its price target to $800.
- Feb. 11 earnings are the next big catalyst investors are watching closely.
AppLovin Corp shares dropped over 10% Wednesday, hitting a new intraday low despite opening higher than Tuesday’s close. The stock slipped 10.1% to $601.05, down from $668.63 at the previous session’s end.
This matters since AppLovin’s shares have turned into a volatile gauge of risk appetite in ad-tech and software, even though earnings are still weeks off. On a tape like this, minor changes in valuation chatter can trigger sharp price swings.
Analysts remain upbeat. On Wednesday, Evercore ISI initiated coverage with an Outperform rating and set a price target at $835. Morgan Stanley, meanwhile, raised its target to $800 from $750 just a day earlier. In a note on the internet sector, Morgan Stanley warned that 2026 might resemble 2025, with smaller, less-established ad platforms likely to trade at lower multiples. 1
Evercore’s Robert Coolbrith labeled AppLovin “the dominant ad tech platform for mobile gaming,” highlighting its growing e-commerce performance channel. He added that this shift represents “a material TAM expander,” meaning the company’s potential revenue universe is expanding. 2
Evercore projected that combined mobile gaming and e-commerce ad spending could drive revenue and EBITDA growth north of 30% annually from 2025 to 2028. The firm noted the stock currently trades at about 36 times its fiscal 2026 EV/EBITDA multiple. It set a price target of $835, based on 35 times its 2027 EBITDA forecast. 3
Wall Street’s key indexes edged lower, weighed down by big-bank earnings and new U.S. economic data. The Nasdaq fell roughly 0.7% in early moves. 4
Other high-beta stocks like Shopify and Unity Software also fell, piling on the selling pressure in app-economy and ad-tech sectors. 5
AppLovin announced it will release its fourth-quarter and full-year 2025 earnings after the market closes on Feb. 11. CEO Adam Foroughi and CFO Matthew Stumpf will host a webcast to discuss the results. 6
Based in Palo Alto, California, the company offers marketing and advertising tools aimed at app developers and advertisers, such as AppDiscovery, MAX, and Adjust. It also operates the connected-TV platform Wurl. 7
Traders also keep circling back to an old concern whenever the market dips. Bloomberg News reported in October that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission was investigating AppLovin’s data-collection methods. Reuters noted then that the SEC hadn’t accused the company of any misconduct, and it remained unclear how far the inquiry had advanced. 8
Next on the calendar is Feb. 11. Investors want to hear if there’s any change in the message on ad demand, the speed of the e-commerce expansion, and how management plans to position 2026 after a stock that’s lost its margin for error.
