Dec 21, 2018

Snap stock hits all-time low ahead of the holidays

SnapChat logo is seen on an Android mobile device with a decline loses graph in the background. Photo: Miguel Candela/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images.

Snap Inc.'s stock fell below $5 per share Thursday, and hit its all time low of $4.85 Friday. The company went public last year at $17 per share and has gradually lost momentum since.

Why it matters: Despite dodging a bad press cycle that other data-driven ad companies faced, Snap has still failed to win over investors that are skeptical of the company's plan to grow its user base and business.

The details: On Thursday, Cheddar reported that employees have been told they won’t receive cash bonuses for the second consecutive year. According to Cheddar's Alex Heath, who broke the story, it's because Snap didn't meet internal goals for 2018.

"CEO Evan Spiegel had originally said the goal was to reach break-even in Q4. Snap lost $325 million against $298 million in revenue last quarter and hasn't reported for Q4 yet."

The big picture: Snapchat has had a hard year trying to recover from a poorly received redesign in Q1 and a failure to grow its user base throughout the year.

  • In its last quarterly earnings report, Snap reported 186 million daily active users, down 1% from the previous quarter when it had $88 million, also down from 191 million in 2018 Q1. It predicts a decline in for Q4.
  • The company has also lost many high-level staffers, including its communications lead, its content lead, its head of engineering, its head of business and its head of marketing.

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