Snap (NYSE:SNAP) Shares Gap Up - Should You Buy?

Snap Inc. (NYSE:SNAP - Get Free Report) gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $9.98, but opened at $10.21. Snap shares last traded at $10.38, with a volume of 5,731,133 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on SNAP shares. B. Riley started coverage on Snap in a research report on Friday, September 20th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $11.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Snap from $17.00 to $16.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $14.00 price target on shares of Snap in a report on Wednesday, September 18th. Truist Financial reduced their target price on Snap from $16.00 to $13.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Snap from $16.00 to $13.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twenty-three have assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $13.89.

Snap Stock Performance

The company's fifty day moving average is $9.87 and its 200 day moving average is $12.71. The company has a market capitalization of $16.83 billion, a P/E ratio of -14.24 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a current ratio of 3.98, a quick ratio of 3.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.74.

Snap (NYSE:SNAP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The company reported ($0.13) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.15) by $0.02. Snap had a negative return on equity of 42.84% and a negative net margin of 23.49%. The firm had revenue of $1.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.25 billion. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Snap Inc. will post -0.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, General Counsel Michael J. O'sullivan sold 18,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.28, for a total value of $239,040.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 463,908 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,160,698.24. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, General Counsel Michael J. O'sullivan sold 18,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $13.28, for a total transaction of $239,040.00. Following the sale, the general counsel now owns 463,908 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,160,698.24. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Derek Andersen sold 97,608 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $9.29, for a total value of $906,778.32. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 2,287,970 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,255,241.30. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,510,352 shares of company stock valued at $13,446,353 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 22.68% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Snap

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Marshall Wace LLP raised its holdings in Snap by 587.3% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 14,667,597 shares of the company's stock worth $243,629,000 after acquiring an additional 12,533,653 shares during the last quarter. TB Alternative Assets Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Snap by 105.6% during the third quarter. TB Alternative Assets Ltd. now owns 7,981,847 shares of the company's stock valued at $85,406,000 after buying an additional 4,098,847 shares during the last quarter. Discovery Capital Management LLC CT bought a new stake in Snap in the 2nd quarter worth about $22,591,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in Snap by 74.0% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 2,824,354 shares of the company's stock worth $46,913,000 after buying an additional 1,201,565 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Curated Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in Snap by 200.0% during the 2nd quarter. Curated Wealth Partners LLC now owns 536,541 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,912,000 after acquiring an additional 1,073,082 shares during the period. 47.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Snap

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.