Korea Investment CORP Acquires 823,900 Shares of Snap Inc. $SNAP

Key Points

• Korea Investment CORP increased its stake in Snap by 573.6% in Q3, buying 823,900 shares to hold 967,544 shares (about 0.06% of the company) valued at roughly $7.46 million.
• Insider selling accelerated: Ajit Mohan sold 119,339 shares and CFO Derek Andersen sold 63,041 shares on Feb 17 (both at $4.70), and insiders have sold 2,526,487 shares worth $13.44 million over the past 90 days while owning 22.68% of the company.
• Snap missed EPS estimates (reported $0.03 vs. $0.15 expected) despite 10.2% year-over-year revenue growth; the stock trades near its 1-year low (~$4.66), has a market cap of about $7.86 billion, and carries an analyst consensus of "Hold" with a $8.17 price target.

Korea Investment CORP lifted its holdings in shares of Snap Inc. (NYSE:SNAP - Free Report) by 573.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 967,544 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 823,900 shares during the quarter. Korea Investment CORP owned about 0.06% of Snap worth $7,460,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC grew its position in Snap by 8.3% in the second quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 18,913 shares of the company's stock worth $164,000 after acquiring an additional 1,451 shares in the last quarter. Xponance Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Snap by 3.0% in the third quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 60,838 shares of the company's stock worth $469,000 after purchasing an additional 1,786 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers grew its holdings in Snap by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 210,393 shares of the company's stock worth $1,622,000 after acquiring an additional 1,789 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System increased its holdings in Snap by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 318,093 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,452,000 after purchasing an additional 1,945 shares during the period. Finally, North Star Investment Management Corp. increased its stake in shares of Snap by 13.3% during the third quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. now owns 17,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $131,000 after buying an additional 2,000 shares during the period. 47.52% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Snap

In other Snap news, insider Ajit Mohan sold 119,339 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.70, for a total value of $560,893.30. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 5,158,477 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $24,244,841.90. The trade was a 2.26% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Derek Andersen sold 63,041 shares of Snap stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $4.70, for a total value of $296,292.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 3,892,617 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,295,299.90. This represents a 1.59% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 2,526,487 shares of company stock valued at $13,435,587 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 22.68% of the company's stock.

Snap Stock Down 4.2%

NYSE:SNAP opened at $4.66 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 3.56 and a quick ratio of 3.56. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $6.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $7.28. The company has a market capitalization of $7.86 billion, a PE ratio of -17.24 and a beta of 0.83. Snap Inc. has a 1-year low of $4.64 and a 1-year high of $10.41.

Snap (NYSE:SNAP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.15 by ($0.12). The business had revenue of $1.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.70 billion. Snap had a negative net margin of 7.76% and a negative return on equity of 20.72%. The company's revenue was up 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.01 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Snap Inc. will post -0.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on SNAP. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a "market perform" rating and issued a $8.00 target price on shares of Snap in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Evercore reiterated a "mixed" rating on shares of Snap in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Snap in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their price objective on shares of Snap from $9.00 to $7.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Snap from $10.00 to $8.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, twenty have given a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $8.17.

Snap Company Profile

Snap Inc is a camera and social media company best known for developing and operating Snapchat, a multimedia messaging application that allows users to send photos, videos and messages that disappear after being viewed. In addition to its core messaging service, Snap offers a suite of augmented reality (AR) tools, including custom Lenses and Filters, that enable users and third-party developers to create interactive and immersive experiences. The company also provides advertising solutions that allow brands to engage audiences through Snap Ads, Sponsored Lenses and Discover content on the platform.

Founded in 2011 by Evan Spiegel and Bobby Murphy, Snap has continually focused on innovation in camera technology and AR.

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