Snap (NYSE:SNAP) Stock Price Down 6.6% - Here's Why

Key Points

• Snap shares fell 6.6% to $5.53, with trading volume down 72% from its average, amid continued investor caution.
• Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with an average price target of $7.65; recent targets range from $5.00 to $8.00.
• Snap beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, reporting $1.60 billion in revenue—up 18.9% year over year—but remained unprofitable, while insiders sold roughly 2.77 million shares worth $15.3 million in the last quarter.

Shares of Snap Inc. (NYSE:SNAP - Get Free Report) dropped 6.6% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $5.42 and last traded at $5.53. 13,421,344 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 72% from the average daily volume of 47,647,398 shares. The stock had previously closed at $5.92.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on SNAP. Benchmark reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Snap in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a "market perform" rating and set a $5.00 price objective on shares of Snap in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Stifel Nicolaus set a $7.50 price objective on shares of Snap in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Snap from $6.50 to $6.75 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on Snap from $10.00 to $8.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $7.65.

Snap Trading Down 8.3%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a quick ratio of 2.94 and a current ratio of 2.94. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $4.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $5.13. The stock has a market cap of $9.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -30.25 and a beta of 1.03.

Snap (NYSE:SNAP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 3rd. The company reported ($0.10) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.12) by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.54 billion. Snap had a negative net margin of 4.90% and a negative return on equity of 14.61%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 18.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.16) EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Snap Inc. will post -0.05 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Snap news, CTO Robert C. Murphy sold 2,000,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.55, for a total transaction of $11,100,000.00. Following the sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 41,809,791 shares of the company's stock, valued at $232,044,340.05. The trade was a 4.57% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CAO Rebecca Morrow sold 17,336 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.20, for a total transaction of $90,147.20. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 598,105 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,110,146. This represents a 2.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold 2,770,698 shares of company stock valued at $15,345,605 in the last quarter.

Institutional Trading of Snap

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Allworth Financial LP grew its stake in Snap by 92.3% in the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 3,293 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,581 shares in the last quarter. Arax Advisory Partners raised its stake in shares of Snap by 220.0% during the 4th quarter. Arax Advisory Partners now owns 3,309 shares of the company's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 2,275 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Snap by 561.4% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,618 shares of the company's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 3,071 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its holdings in shares of Snap by 6,678.0% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 6,778 shares of the company's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 6,678 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NFSG Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Snap by 52.7% in the 1st quarter. NFSG Corp now owns 8,400 shares of the company's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 2,900 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 47.52% of the company's stock.

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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