Snap Inc. (NYSE:SNAP) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

Snap Inc. (NYSE:SNAP) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the twenty-nine research firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty have issued a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $8.1667.

SNAP has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Loop Capital set a $8.00 price objective on Snap in a report on Monday, February 23rd. Piper Sandler reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Snap in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Arete Research set a $7.30 target price on shares of Snap and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Snap from $9.50 to $6.50 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Sunday, February 22nd. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Snap in a report on Monday, February 23rd.

Insider Activity

In other Snap news, CTO Robert C. Murphy sold 1,000,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.36, for a total transaction of $5,360,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 49,313,775 shares in the company, valued at approximately $264,321,834. This represents a 1.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Ajit Mohan sold 27,743 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $4.59, for a total transaction of $127,340.37. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 5,130,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,550,069.06. This trade represents a 0.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 2,570,641 shares of company stock valued at $13,436,343 in the last quarter. Insiders own 22.68% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Snap

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in Snap by 92.3% during the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 3,293 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,581 shares during the last quarter. Oak Harvest Investment Services acquired a new stake in Snap in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Arax Advisory Partners grew its holdings in Snap by 220.0% in the fourth quarter. Arax Advisory Partners now owns 3,309 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 2,275 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Snap in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Snap by 561.4% in the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,618 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 3,071 shares in the last quarter. 47.52% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Snap Price Performance

Shares of SNAP opened at $4.00 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 3.56, a quick ratio of 3.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $5.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $7.10. Snap has a twelve month low of $3.90 and a twelve month high of $10.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.75 billion, a PE ratio of -14.80 and a beta of 0.83.

Snap (NYSE:SNAP) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by ($0.12). The business had revenue of $1.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.70 billion. Snap had a negative return on equity of 20.72% and a negative net margin of 7.76%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.01 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Snap will post -0.3 earnings per share for the current year.

About Snap

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.