Short Interest in Apollo Global Management, Inc. (NYSE:APO) Grows By 5.9%

Apollo Global Management, Inc. (NYSE:APO) was the target of a large increase in short interest during the month of July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totalling 20,250,000 shares, an increase of 5.9% from the July 15th total of 19,120,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,790,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 7.3 days.

Insider Transactions at Apollo Global Management

In other news, Director Pauline Richards acquired 2,351 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $104.92 per share, for a total transaction of $246,666.92. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 85,854 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,007,801.68. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 8.50% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Apollo Global Management

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Apollo Global Management by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 41,038,114 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,824,342,000 after buying an additional 750,781 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its holdings in shares of Apollo Global Management by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 10,775,413 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,004,161,000 after acquiring an additional 218,566 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Apollo Global Management during the 4th quarter worth about $586,016,000. Putnam Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Apollo Global Management by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Putnam Investments LLC now owns 5,939,220 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $553,476,000 after acquiring an additional 164,400 shares during the period. Finally, Capital Research Global Investors raised its stake in Apollo Global Management by 40.3% during the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 4,738,565 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $532,852,000 after purchasing an additional 1,360,525 shares during the period. 77.06% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

APO has been the topic of several recent research reports. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Apollo Global Management from $146.00 to $147.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, July 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Apollo Global Management from $134.00 to $141.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Apollo Global Management from $128.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Apollo Global Management from $122.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on shares of Apollo Global Management from $129.00 to $124.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Apollo Global Management has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $124.62.

Apollo Global Management Stock Performance

APO traded up $0.63 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $111.00. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,950,123 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,536,742. Apollo Global Management has a fifty-two week low of $77.11 and a fifty-two week high of $126.45. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $116.33 and a 200 day simple moving average of $113.11. The company has a current ratio of 1.60, a quick ratio of 1.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $63.07 billion, a PE ratio of 12.29, a PEG ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.59.

Apollo Global Management (NYSE:APO) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.64 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.67 by ($0.03). Apollo Global Management had a return on equity of 17.97% and a net margin of 21.90%. The company had revenue of $6.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $873.18 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.54 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Apollo Global Management will post 7.09 EPS for the current year.

Apollo Global Management Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.4625 per share. This represents a $1.85 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 16th. Apollo Global Management’s payout ratio is currently 20.49%.

Apollo Global Management Company Profile

Apollo Global Management, Inc is a private equity firm specializing in investments in credit, private equity and real estate markets. The firm's private equity investments include traditional buyouts, recapitalization, distressed buyouts and debt investments in real estate, corporate partner buyouts, distressed asset, corporate carve-outs, middle market, growth capital, turnaround, bridge, corporate restructuring, special situation, acquisition, and industry consolidation transactions.