Snap (NYSE:SNAP) Sees Unusually-High Trading Volume Following Earnings Beat

Shares of Snap Inc. (NYSE:SNAP) saw unusually-strong trading volume on Friday following a better than expected earnings announcement. Approximately 40,670,093 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 34% from the previous session’s volume of 30,265,061 shares.The stock last traded at $14.00 and had previously closed at $11.40.

The company reported ($0.14) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.24) by $0.10. Snap had a negative net margin of 26.99% and a negative return on equity of 45.02%. The company had revenue of $1.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.12 billion.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Snap from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on shares of Snap from $13.50 to $16.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Snap from $14.00 to $13.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Snap from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Truist Financial increased their target price on shares of Snap from $12.00 to $16.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $14.67.

Insider Activity at Snap

In related news, CAO Rebecca Morrow sold 9,386 shares of Snap stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.14, for a total transaction of $104,560.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 495,526 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,520,159.64. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Snap news, CEO Evan Spiegel sold 150,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.11, for a total transaction of $1,666,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 3,627,844 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $40,305,346.84. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Rebecca Morrow sold 9,386 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.14, for a total value of $104,560.04. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 495,526 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,520,159.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 470,482 shares of company stock worth $5,284,091 over the last three months. 22.68% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. NBC Securities Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Snap by 2,580.4% during the 4th quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 1,501 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,445 shares in the last quarter. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in Snap by 161.6% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,765 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 1,708 shares in the last quarter. ICA Group Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Snap during the fourth quarter valued at about $51,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Snap in the fourth quarter valued at about $73,000. Finally, Westpac Banking Corp grew its position in shares of Snap by 108.7% in the fourth quarter. Westpac Banking Corp now owns 4,812 shares of the company’s stock valued at $81,000 after purchasing an additional 2,506 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 47.52% of the company’s stock.

Snap Trading Up 27.6 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $24.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -17.96 and a beta of 1.13. The business has a 50-day moving average of $11.26 and a two-hundred day moving average of $12.84. The company has a quick ratio of 4.39, a current ratio of 4.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55.

Snap Company Profile

Snap Inc operates as a technology company in North America, Europe, and internationally. The company offers Snapchat, a visual messaging application with various tabs, such as camera, visual messaging, snap map, stories, and spotlight that enable people to communicate visually through short videos and images.