Snap Inc. $SNAP Shares Bought by SG Americas Securities LLC

Key Points

• SG Americas Securities LLC increased its Snap stake by 44.7% in the first quarter, buying 1.4 million additional shares and ending with 4.54 million shares worth about $20.9 million.
• Institutional interest remains substantial, with hedge funds and other investors holding 47.52% of Snap’s stock, even as some firms added positions and others initiated new stakes.
• Insiders sold shares over the past three months, including CFO Douglas Hott and CTO Robert C. Murphy, while analysts currently rate Snap a consensus Hold with an average price target of $7.79.

SG Americas Securities LLC grew its position in Snap Inc. (NYSE:SNAP - Free Report) by 44.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,535,783 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 1,401,178 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC owned 0.27% of Snap worth $20,865,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in SNAP. Empowered Funds LLC increased its holdings in Snap by 13.3% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 40,393 shares of the company's stock valued at $352,000 after acquiring an additional 4,754 shares in the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Snap in the second quarter valued at approximately $136,000. Investment Management Corp of Ontario grew its position in shares of Snap by 104.0% in the second quarter. Investment Management Corp of Ontario now owns 61,513 shares of the company's stock valued at $535,000 after purchasing an additional 31,357 shares during the last quarter. Nebula Research & Development LLC purchased a new position in shares of Snap during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $1,675,000. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company raised its position in shares of Snap by 52.0% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 89,337 shares of the company's stock worth $776,000 after purchasing an additional 30,561 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.52% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SNAP has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Citigroup reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Snap in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Snap from $4.50 to $5.25 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Canaccord Genuity Group cut their price target on Snap from $7.00 to $6.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Barclays upgraded Snap from an "overweight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Snap in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $7.79.

Insider Activity

In other Snap news, CFO Douglas Hott sold 124,209 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.60, for a total value of $695,570.40. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 2,571,149 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,398,434.40. This trade represents a 4.61% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CTO Robert C. Murphy sold 2,000,000 shares of Snap stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.44, for a total value of $10,880,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer owned 47,012,324 shares of the company's stock, valued at $255,747,042.56. This trade represents a 4.08% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 2,907,554 shares of company stock valued at $16,093,619 in the last three months. Company insiders own 22.68% of the company's stock.

Snap Stock Up 1.8%

SNAP stock opened at $4.54 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $5.61 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $5.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 3.53 and a current ratio of 3.53. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.67 billion, a P/E ratio of -18.92 and a beta of 1.03. Snap Inc. has a one year low of $3.81 and a one year high of $10.41.

Snap (NYSE:SNAP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported ($0.05) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.09 by ($0.14). Snap had a negative return on equity of 18.92% and a negative net margin of 6.72%.The business had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.53 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.08) EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Snap Inc. will post -0.06 EPS for the current year.

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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