Insider Selling: Snap (NYSE:SNAP) General Counsel Sells 136,504 Shares

Snap Inc. (NYSE:SNAP) General Counsel Zachary Briers sold 136,504 shares of Snap stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.20, for a total value of $709,820.80. Following the sale, the general counsel directly owned 2,424,331 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,606,521.20. This trade represents a 5.33% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Snap Trading Up 2.5%

SNAP traded up $0.13 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $5.24. 29,931,596 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 41,258,152. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $4.85 and a two-hundred day moving average of $5.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.75, a current ratio of 2.94 and a quick ratio of 2.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -29.11 and a beta of 1.03. Snap Inc. has a 52 week low of $3.81 and a 52 week high of $9.28.

Snap (NYSE:SNAP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 3rd. The company reported ($0.10) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.12) by $0.02. The business had revenue of $1.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.54 billion. Snap had a negative return on equity of 14.61% and a negative net margin of 4.90%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 18.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.16) EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Snap Inc. will post -0.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on SNAP. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Snap from $5.00 to $6.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Susquehanna restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Snap in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Evercore set a $8.00 target price on Snap in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Snap from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 8th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $7.50 price target on Snap in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $7.65.

Institutional Trading of Snap

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of SNAP. Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in Snap by 92.3% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 3,293 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 1,581 shares during the period. Arax Advisory Partners boosted its stake in shares of Snap by 220.0% in the fourth quarter. Arax Advisory Partners now owns 3,309 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 2,275 shares during the period. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Snap by 561.4% in 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 during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its holdings in shares of Snap by 6,678.0% during the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 6,778 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 6,678 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NFSG Corp grew its stake in shares of Snap by 52.7% in the 1st quarter. NFSG Corp now owns 8,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 2,900 shares in the last quarter. 47.52% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.