Snap (NYSE:SNAP) Upgraded to “Buy” at B. Riley Securities

Snap (NYSE:SNAP) was upgraded by stock analysts at B. Riley Securities from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a $10.00 price objective on the stock. B. Riley Securities’ target price would indicate a potential upside of 90.66% from the stock’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. BNP Paribas Exane initiated coverage on shares of Snap in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. They set a “strong sell” rating on the stock. Guggenheim restated a “neutral” rating and set a $6.50 target price on shares of Snap in a research report on Thursday. Rosenblatt Securities lowered their target price on shares of Snap from $9.50 to $6.40 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Citizens Jmp reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Snap in a research note on Thursday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on Snap from $9.50 to $8.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twenty-three have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Snap presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $8.66.

Snap Price Performance

SNAP stock traded up $0.13 on Thursday, reaching $5.25. The company had a trading volume of 80,070,193 shares, compared to its average volume of 55,028,191. The company’s fifty day moving average is $7.63 and its 200 day moving average is $7.87. The company has a market cap of $9.02 billion, a P/E ratio of -19.43 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 3.67 and a current ratio of 3.67. Snap has a 1 year low of $5.10 and a 1 year high of $11.26.

Snap (NYSE:SNAP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.03 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.15 by ($0.12). Snap had a negative return on equity of 20.91% and a negative net margin of 7.76%.The company had revenue of $1.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.70 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.01 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that Snap will post -0.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Snap

In other Snap news, CAO Rebecca Morrow sold 12,699 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.34, for a total transaction of $105,909.66. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 466,603 shares in the company, valued at $3,891,469.02. The trade was a 2.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel Michael J. O’sullivan sold 70,882 shares of Snap stock in a transaction on Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $8.34, for a total transaction of $591,155.88. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 1,854,982 shares in the company, valued at $15,470,549.88. The trade was a 3.68% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 393,341 shares of company stock valued at $3,169,210. 22.68% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Snap

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Allworth Financial LP boosted its stake in shares of Snap by 92.3% in the third quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 3,293 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 1,581 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new position in Snap in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of Snap during the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new stake in shares of Snap during the third quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Snap by 37.5% during the fourth quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 5,500 shares of the company’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 1,500 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 47.52% of the company’s stock.

Snap News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Snap this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 report showed revenue growth (+~10% y/y) and a meaningful recovery in profitability (net income up sharply), which helped sentiment after the print. Management emphasized margin improvement and revenue diversification. Snap Q4 results press release
• Positive Sentiment: Large retail/trader activity in call options indicates speculative bullish positioning that can lift intraday prices. Call options activity
• Positive Sentiment: Selective analyst upgrades (e.g., B. Riley and Bank of America raised to Buy) provided some offset to downgrades and supported buying interest. Barron’s: B. Riley upgrade
• Neutral Sentiment: Snap filed its Form 10‑K (standard disclosure) — useful for long‑term due diligence but not a directional catalyst by itself. 10-K filing
• Neutral Sentiment: Management highlighted AI integration across the ad platform as a strategic lever for better ad performance — a positive structural initiative but one whose revenue impact will be gradual. AI across ad platform
• Negative Sentiment: A flurry of price‑target cuts and cautious ratings from major firms (Wells Fargo, Cantor Fitzgerald, Mizuho, Susquehanna, JPMorgan, Evercore, TD Cowen, Rosenblatt, etc.) has weighed on sentiment and capped near‑term upside; analyst consensus remains skewed toward Reduce/Hold. Wells Fargo price target cut
• Negative Sentiment: First‑quarter revenue guidance came in below some street estimates, and management excluded material revenue from a planned Perplexity integration until rollout clarity, which increases near‑term uncertainty. CNBC: guidance and Perplexity note
• Negative Sentiment: Daily active users fell in Q4 (marketing trimmed to focus on profitable growth), and some outlets flagged loss of key support levels — a user‑growth headwind that can pressure ad revenue multiple expansion. Invezz: user growth fading

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.