

Shares in Snap Inc. rose nearly 6% up in after-hours trading today, on top of an almost 4% rise in regular trading, after the company impressed investors with earnings and revenue beats in its fourth quarter and a higher-than-expected outlook.
For the quarter that ended on Dec. 31, Snap reported adjusted earnings per share of 16 cents, up from eight cents a year in the same quarter of the prior year, on revenue of $1.56 billion, 14% year-over-year. Analysts had expected adjusted earnings of 14 cents per share on revenue of $1.55 billion.
Notably, on an unadjusted basis, Snap reported earnings per share of one cent, up from a loss of 15 cents per share in the fourth quarter of 2023 and ahead of a loss of four cents per share expected by analysts. Though Snap has been profitable previously on an adjusted basis, net profitability has been fairly rare for the company.
Snap’s impressive figures were driven by strong user growth, with daily active users coming in at 453 million in the quarter, up 39 million, or 9%, year-over-year and ahead of the 451.1 million expected by analysts. Average revenue per user came in at $3.44, in line with expectations.
The growing number of users also attracted new advertisers. Snap saw the number of small and medium-sized businesses contributing to total active advertisers, more than doubling year-over-year in the fourth quarter. Sponsored Snaps and Promoted Places, both advertising options, saw a 30% increase in reach on average in the U.S. through the quarter.
Other revenue, the majority from the company’s Snapchat+ subscription program, grew 131% year-over-year and ended the year with a revenue run rate “well over” $500 million. Put more simply, more Snapchat users are signing up for the paid version of the platform and subscription revenue streams are always appealing, since they’re a reliable source of ongoing revenue.
For its full fiscal year 2024, Snap reported adjusted earnings per share of 29 cents, up from nine cents per share in 2023, on revenue of $5.361 billion, up 16% year-over-year. On a net basis, Snap saw a loss of 42 cents per share, down from a loss of 82 cents per share the year prior.
“In 2024, we made significant progress on our core priorities of growing our community and improving depth of engagement, driving top-line revenue growth and diversifying our revenue sources, while building toward our long-term vision for augmented reality,” Chief Executive Evan Spiegel said in the company’s earnings release.
For its fiscal 2025 first quarter, Snap expects to see revenue of $1.325 billion to $1.36 billion. Analysts had been expecting $1.33 billion.
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