Zachary Briers Sells 129,493 Shares of Snap (NYSE:SNAP) Stock

Snap Inc. (NYSE:SNAP) General Counsel Zachary Briers sold 129,493 shares of Snap stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.60, for a total transaction of $725,160.80. Following the sale, the general counsel directly owned 2,644,538 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,809,412.80. This represents a 4.67% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Snap Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of NYSE SNAP opened at $5.69 on Friday. Snap Inc. has a 52-week low of $3.81 and a 52-week high of $10.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -23.70 and a beta of 1.05. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $5.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $6.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.67, a quick ratio of 3.53 and a current ratio of 3.53.

Snap (NYSE:SNAP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported ($0.05) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.09 by ($0.14). Snap had a negative return on equity of 18.92% and a negative net margin of 6.72%.The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.53 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.08) earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Snap Inc. will post -0.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of SNAP. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Snap by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 101,251,557 shares of the company’s stock worth $817,100,000 after purchasing an additional 641,271 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Snap by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 88,452,006 shares of the company’s stock valued at $713,808,000 after purchasing an additional 1,179,543 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Snap by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 37,780,205 shares of the company’s stock valued at $291,285,000 after purchasing an additional 95,989 shares during the last quarter. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Snap in the 3rd quarter worth $176,697,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Snap by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 13,525,119 shares of the company’s stock worth $108,711,000 after purchasing an additional 469,795 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 47.52% of the company’s stock.

Snap News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Snap this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Snap added Luke Wood, former Beats president and Apple executive, to its board of directors. Investors may view this as a credibility boost for leadership and a sign Snap is leaning on experienced consumer-tech talent to support its strategy. Luke Wood Joins Snap Inc. Board of Directors
• Neutral Sentiment: CFO Douglas Hott, General Counsel Zachary M. Briers, and CAO Rebecca Morrow all disclosed share sales, but each filing said the transactions were to cover tax withholding tied to vesting equity awards. That makes the sales more routine than a clear sign of waning confidence, though the timing may still attract attention. SEC filing for CFO Douglas Hott
• Neutral Sentiment: The insider selling was broad-based and included multiple transactions over May 18-19, which can create near-term caution even if the sales were pre-planned or tax-related. SEC filing for Zachary M. Briers
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple executive sales in a short period can weigh on Snap Inc. (NYSE: SNAP) sentiment, especially after a recent earnings report that missed profit expectations. Traders may worry that management sees limited near-term upside, even though the company said the sales were for tax reasons. SEC filing for Rebecca Morrow

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on SNAP. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $6.40 price objective on shares of Snap in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Evercore reissued a “mixed” rating on shares of Snap in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Wall Street Zen lowered Snap from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, May 17th. Barclays raised Snap from an “overweight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Snap from $7.00 to $6.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, twenty-two have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $7.91.

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.