Investors Buy High Volume of Snap Call Options (NYSE:SNAP)

Key Points

• Snap call-option activity surged: Investors bought 113,267 call options, 54% above the typical volume of 73,397, signaling elevated interest in the stock.
• Snap shares fell 1.2% to $5.65 despite quarterly revenue of $1.60 billion, up 18.9% year over year, and an adjusted loss of $0.10 per share that beat analyst expectations.
• Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target of $7.65, while company insiders sold more than 2.4 million shares worth approximately $13.4 million in the last quarter.

Snap Inc. (NYSE:SNAP - Get Free Report) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Thursday. Stock investors bought 113,267 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 54% compared to the typical volume of 73,397 call options.

Snap Trading Down 1.2%

SNAP traded down $0.07 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $5.65. The company's stock had a trading volume of 49,380,101 shares, compared to its average volume of 46,793,102. Snap has a fifty-two week low of $3.81 and a fifty-two week high of $9.28. The stock has a market cap of $9.56 billion, a PE ratio of -31.41 and a beta of 1.05. The business's 50-day moving average is $5.16 and its 200-day moving average is $5.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 2.94 and a quick ratio of 2.94.

Snap (NYSE:SNAP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The company reported ($0.10) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.12) by $0.02. Snap had a negative return on equity of 14.61% and a negative net margin of 4.90%.The company had revenue of $1.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.54 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.16) earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 18.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Snap will post -0.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on SNAP shares. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Snap from $5.00 to $6.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $6.50 price target on shares of Snap in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Piper Sandler restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Snap in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Benchmark reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Snap in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, UBS Group set a $6.00 price target on Snap in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, twenty-four have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $7.65.

Insider Transactions at Snap

In related news, CAO Rebecca Morrow sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.35, for a total value of $107,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 578,105 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,092,861.75. This represents a 3.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Douglas Hott sold 131,884 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.20, for a total value of $685,796.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 2,324,563 shares in the company, valued at $12,087,727.60. The trade was a 5.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold 2,439,129 shares of company stock worth $13,387,372 in the last quarter. 22.68% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Snap

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Saba Capital Management L.P. raised its stake in shares of Snap by 232.5% in the 1st quarter. Saba Capital Management L.P. now owns 4,727,808 shares of the company's stock valued at $21,748,000 after acquiring an additional 3,306,024 shares during the period. Empyrean Capital Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Snap during the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,300,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in Snap by 1,191.8% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 3,903,141 shares of the company's stock valued at $17,330,000 after purchasing an additional 3,601,002 shares during the last quarter. Leonteq Securities AG purchased a new stake in Snap in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,620,000. Finally, Eurizon Capital SGR S.p.A. purchased a new stake in Snap in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,629,000. 47.52% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Snap Company Profile

Snap Inc is a technology and social media company best known for Snapchat, a visual messaging and social networking application. Snapchat enables users to communicate through photos, videos, text messages and augmented reality experiences, including Lenses and filters. The platform also offers Stories, Spotlight for short-form video, Snap Map and other tools for discovering and sharing content.

Snap generates most of its business through digital advertising, including advertising displayed across Snapchat's content and communication features.

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