APP vs MGNI Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
APP (AppLovin) and MGNI (Magnite) are both digital advertising technology companies but on different sides of the ad ecosystem — AppLovin operates AXON (an AI-powered mobile advertiser platform) and gaming apps generating very high software margins, while Magnite is a supply-side platform for publishers to sell programmatic inventory, focused on the high-growth connected TV advertising market. AppLovin has been the superior performer driven by AXON's AI-driven growth; Magnite is a CTV infrastructure play on streaming advertising expansion.
APP vs MGNI is AI-powered mobile ad targeting performance (AppLovin's AXON machine learning engine delivering superior ROAS for mobile advertisers) versus independent CTV supply-side platform scale (Magnite's publisher technology for programmatic streaming TV advertising as viewers shift from linear to streaming) — ad technology on the buy-side versus sell-side of the growing digital video advertising market.
APP holds the edge across 4 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. MGNI has delivered stronger 1-year price return (+5.32% vs -50.43%), though APP has the better forward P/E setup (15.44x vs 19.30x for MGNI). APP leads on both revenue growth (52.80%) and operating margin (77.68%), suggesting a stronger fundamental setup on both dimensions. Analyst consensus implies meaningfully more upside for APP (+56.93%) than for MGNI (+9.86%).
Human Wall Street analysts' price targets, typically implying a ~12-month view — a separate signal from this site's own AI Prediction Signal further down the page, which is a 5-/30-day machine-learning forecast based on price history alone.
- Want exposure to AppLovin's AXON AI advertising engine that has demonstrated superior mobile app user acquisition performance, driving high-margin software revenue with strong advertiser demand
- Value AppLovin's vertical integration owning both the advertising platform and a publisher gaming network as creating data advantages that improve AXON's machine learning model performance
- Accept mobile advertising market cyclicality and mobile privacy regulation risk for exposure to one of the highest-growth and highest-margin software platforms in digital advertising
- Want independent supply-side platform exposure to the connected TV advertising growth market — Magnite as the largest independent CTV SSP benefits as streaming advertising replaces linear TV ad spending
- Value Magnite's publisher neutrality as an independent SSP without conflicts of interest from large media company ownership, making it the preferred programmatic technology for premium publishers
- Believe connected TV advertising growth from platforms like Peacock, Paramount+, Disney+, and Netflix adding ad-supported tiers will drive significant programmatic CTV inventory that flows through Magnite's platform
| Metric | APP | MGNI |
|---|---|---|
| AI scorei | 62.2 | 40.4 |
| AI ranki | #147 | #1146 |
| Latest closei | $308.06 | $25.15 |
| 1M returni | -0.88% | +5.45% |
| 6M returni | -30.36% | +103.15% |
| 1Y returni | -50.43% | +5.32% |
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | APP | MGNI |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $4.74K (-52.6%) started 2025-09-19 | $10.53K (+5.3%) started 2025-09-18 |
| 5Y ago | $43.8K (+338.0%) started 2021-09-20 | $8.96K (-10.4%) started 2021-09-20 |
| 10Y ago | $47.25K (+372.5%) started 2021-04-15 | $30.08K (+200.8%) started 2016-09-19 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | APP | MGNI |
|---|---|---|
| Market capi | $108.83B | $3.57B |
| Trailing P/Ei | 24.88 | 22.62 |
| Forward P/Ei | 15.44 | 19.30 |
| Price/Salesi | N/A | N/A |
| EV/Revenuei | 15.94 | 4.54 |
| Analyst targeti | $508.39 | $27.33 |
| Target upsidei | +56.93% | +9.86% |
| Metric | APP | MGNI |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growthi | 52.80% | 11.20% |
| Earnings growthi | 57.00% | 65.30% |
| EPS growthi | +57.00% | +65.30% |
| FCF margini | +46.56% | +21.59% |
| Operating margini | 77.68% | 16.19% |
| Profit margini | 64.58% | 22.49% |
| ROIC proxyi | 203.69% | 19.58% |
| Return on equityi | 203.69% | 19.58% |
| Dividend yieldi | N/A | N/A |
| Payout ratioi | 0.00% | 0.00% |
| Dividend growth streaki | N/A | N/A |
| Betai | 2.49 | 2.27 |
| Debt/equityi | 111.13 | 44.54 |
| Current ratioi | 4.30 | 1.02 |
| Quick ratioi | 4.17 | 1.01 |
Over the past year, APP and MGNI have moved weakly in the same direction (correlation of 0.25), based on daily returns.
Lower drawdown and smaller single-period drops generally indicate a smoother ride, though they do not guarantee lower future risk.
| Period | Metric | APP | MGNI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growthi | -52.58% | +5.32% |
| CAGRi | -52.69% | +5.32% | |
| Volatilityi | 73.31% | 58.78% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | -0.71 | 0.31 | |
| Sortino ratioi | -0.90 | 0.45 | |
| Max drawdowni | 59.30% | 56.79% | |
| Current drawdowni | 58.01% | 2.97% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 30.85% | 35.40% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 35.01% | 38.65% | |
| Max daily dropi | 19.68% | 18.21% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 34.08% | 24.90% | |
| 5Y | Growthi | +337.96% | -10.40% |
| CAGRi | +34.41% | -2.18% | |
| Volatilityi | 78.10% | 74.95% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.70 | 0.27 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 1.10 | 0.43 | |
| Max drawdowni | 91.90% | 82.13% | |
| Current drawdowni | 58.01% | 22.23% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 44.85% | 57.29% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 52.72% | 59.48% | |
| Max daily dropi | 20.12% | 35.09% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 34.08% | 45.84% | |
| 10Y | Growthi | +372.48% | +200.84% |
| CAGRi | +33.12% | +11.65% | |
| Volatilityi | 77.03% | 76.33% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.69 | 0.46 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 1.08 | 0.72 | |
| Max drawdowni | 91.90% | 90.65% | |
| Current drawdowni | 58.01% | 59.30% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 42.59% | 58.94% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 50.87% | 64.30% | |
| Max daily dropi | 20.12% | 40.00% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 34.08% | 46.91% |
| Category | APP | MGNI |
|---|---|---|
| Company | AppLovin Corporation | Magnite, Inc. |
| Sector | Communication Services | Communication Services |
| Industry | Advertising Agencies | Advertising Agencies |
| Core business | AppLovin is a mobile technology company operating AXON, its AI-powered advertising engine that matches mobile app advertisers with relevant audiences at scale, and a portfolio of mobile games (through its MAX mediation platform and gaming studios). AppLovin's AXON system uses machine learning to optimize ad performance for mobile app user acquisition, generating high returns for advertisers across its publisher network. | Magnite is an independent supply-side platform (SSP) for digital advertising — technology that helps publishers (websites, streaming TV channels, apps) sell their advertising inventory programmatically to advertisers. Magnite is particularly strong in connected TV (CTV) and streaming advertising, having become the leading independent CTV SSP through the acquisitions of Rubicon Project, Telaria, SpotX, and SpringServe. |
| Investor focus | Investors track AppLovin's Software Platform revenue (AXON advertising engine with very high margins), gaming portfolio monetization, AXON's expanding use cases beyond gaming into e-commerce and other app categories, and the dramatic revenue and margin acceleration that AXON drove beginning in 2023 as the AI model improved. | Investors track Magnite's CTV/streaming advertising revenue growth, take rate (percentage of ad spend flowing through Magnite that it retains as revenue), programmatic video and display revenue, independence value (versus SSPs owned by large media companies), and path to profitability as CTV advertising scales. |
- AXON AI engine performance — AppLovin's machine learning-based ad targeting system has demonstrated superior return on ad spend (ROAS) for mobile app advertisers, driving rapid advertiser adoption and pricing power
- Vertical integration advantage — AppLovin owns both the advertising platform (AXON) and a large gaming publisher network (its own games), creating data flywheel advantages from seeing both buyer and seller advertising data
- Software Platform margin profile — the AXON software platform generates very high EBITDA margins, transforming AppLovin from a lower-margin gaming company into a high-margin software business
- CTV advertising market leadership — Magnite is the largest independent SSP in connected TV advertising, positioned to benefit as streaming TV advertising grows as viewers shift from linear TV to streaming services
- Independence value — Magnite's independence from large media companies (unlike Google's SSP, Amazon's SSP, or Comcast's FreeWheel) gives publishers neutral technology they can use without concern about conflicts of interest
- Programmatic video expertise across CTV, online video, and display provides publishers with unified auction management across all their programmatic inventory
- Mobile advertising market cyclicality — AppLovin's advertising revenue is subject to digital advertising spending cycles, which compressed industry-wide in 2022 before recovering
- Privacy regulation impact — Apple's App Tracking Transparency (ATT) and potential further privacy restrictions on mobile targeting continue to evolve, creating uncertainty for mobile ad targeting methodologies
- Gaming portfolio complexity — AppLovin's own gaming studios (Wordscapes, Wild Life, etc.) require ongoing investment and content quality management in an intensely competitive casual gaming market
- CTV advertising growth is strong but take rates face pressure — as programmatic CTV matures, advertiser and publisher expectations for lower fees can compress Magnite's margins
- Google's dominance in programmatic advertising creates a challenging competitive environment — Google's SSP (Google Ad Manager) has market share advantages from integration with Google's buy-side DSP (DV360) that independent SSPs struggle to match
- Magnite has completed multiple acquisitions (Rubicon, Telaria, SpotX, SpringServe) requiring integration work; achieving the expected synergies while managing integration complexity is ongoing
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