AppLovin management check
APP · Communication Services · Advertising · CEO Adam Foroughi
Filings as of
5 good · 2 to watch · 0 flagged, across the seven questions below.
- Good
Have owners done well?
Beat its chosen peers$100 invested at the start of fiscal 2021 grew to $1033, against $234 for the peer group the company picked itself.
- Watch
Does pay follow performance?
Pay only loosely tracked returnsOver 5 years, the CEO's pay actually paid (equity valued at the share price) had a correlation of -0.04 with shareholder return. 1 means pay moved in step; below 0, the opposite way.
- Good
What does the CEO cost owners?
0.4% of net income$13.0m of reported pay in fiscal 2025, against $3.3bn of net income.
- Watch
Do they own the stock?
CEO stake ≈ 55 years of payThe CEO holds 2,324,954 shares, directly or through trusts (unvested awards not counted): about 55 years of pay. 6 insiders sold $197.3m in the last six months and none bought. 105 of 211 sales ran on pre-arranged 10b5-1 plans.
- Good
Are owners being diluted?
Share count shrinkingDiluted shares changed -2.9% a year over the last three fiscal years. Stock-based pay was 3.8% of revenue in the latest year.
- Good
Is leadership stable?
4 leadership filings in 3 yearsCEO in the pay table: Adam Foroughi. 4 filings under 8-K item 5.02 (officers or directors leaving or joining, or new pay arrangements) in the last 3 years.
- Good
Are the books clean?
No red flags on fileNo restatements, auditor changes or late filings since 2021.
Against the S&P 500
Each check's score (0–100) and how it compares: the share of ranked S&P 500 companies it matches or beats, and the median in Communication Services.
| Check | Score | At or above | Sector median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner returns | 100 | 27 | |
| Pay for performance | 48 | 76 | |
| CEO cost | 84 | 72 | |
| Skin in the game | 80 | 75 | |
| Dilution | 86 | 65 | |
| Stable leadership | 100 | 93 | |
| Clean books | 100 | 100 |
Closest peers
Others in Advertising, by management score. AppLovin is 2nd of 18 in its sector.
Pay versus performance
From the proxy statement filed April 21, 2026. "Actually paid" values stock awards at the share price, so it rises and falls with the stock.
| Fiscal year | CEO | CEO pay | Actually paid | Other executives (avg) | $100 became | Peers | Net income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Adam Foroughi | $13.0m | $21.7m | $13.1m | $1033 | $234 | $3.3bn |
| 2024 | — | $11.2m | $386.0m | $4.9m | $497 | $189 | $1.6bn |
| 2023 | — | $83.4m | $286.9m | $22.8m | $61 | $138 | $357.0m |
| 2022 | — | $104k | $104k | $412k | $16 | $88 | −$193.0m |
| 2021 | — | $104k | $104k | $14.4m | $145 | $122 | $35.0m |
Insiders and the CEO's stake
Arash Adam Foroughi (CEO) held 2,324,954 shares directly after their latest Form 4 on Aug 20, 2026, roughly $717.9m at that filing's price.
6 insiders sold $197.3m in the last six months and none bought. 105 of 211 sales ran on pre-arranged 10b5-1 plans.
- SoldEduardo VivasDirector · 10b5-1 plan$82.6mJun 16, 2026
- SoldArash Adam ForoughiCEO$51.1mJun 12, 2026
- SoldVasily ShikinChief Technology Officer · 10b5-1 plan$43.5mMay 22, 2026
- SoldVictoria ValenzuelaCALO & Corp. Secretary$11.3mJun 4, 2026
Leadership and governance on file
- Apr 7, 2026Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Apr 9, 2025Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Feb 12, 2025Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Nov 8, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Sep 6, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Mar 13, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Nov 9, 2022Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Aug 10, 2022Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Nov 10, 2021Leadership change8-K 5.02
Latest shareholder vote results: Jun 5, 2026, including the say-on-pay vote.
Where the money went
Over 2021–2025: $4.7bn returned to owners in buybacks and dividends, 91% of net income, and $1.3bn of pay in stock.
| Fiscal year | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $2.8bn | $2.8bn | $1.8bn | $3.2bn | $5.5bn |
| Net income | $35.0m | −$193.0m | $357.0m | $1.6bn | $3.3bn |
| Stock-based pay | $133.2m | $191.6m | $363.1m | $369.4m | $210.4m |
| Buybacks | $0 | $338.9m | $1.2bn | $981.3m | $2.2bn |
| Dividends | — | — | — | — | — |
| Diluted shares | 343m | 372m | 363m | 348m | 342m |
Educational only, not investment advice. Figures are as filed with the SEC: pay from the proxy's pay-versus-performance table, capital allocation from 10-K XBRL data, insider trades from Form 4s over the last six months, events from the last 5 years of filings. The peer group is the one the company chose. See the method.