Snap 2Q results beat estimates but user base declines

Snapchat's daily user base declined in its latest quarter for the first time. Still, its parent, Snap Inc., reported a smaller loss than Wall Street had been expecting.

Separately, billionaire Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal said in a news release and on Twitter that he has acquired a 2.3 percent stake in the company for $250 million. Snap declined to comment.

Snap, known for its disappearing photo and video messaging app, said Tuesday that its daily user base declined 2 percent to 188 million 191 million in the first quarter. It's the first time the company has seen its user base decline, based on reported numbers.

The Venice, California-based company said it had a loss of 27 cents per share in the quarter that ended June 30. Losses, adjusted for stock option expense and amortization costs, came to 14 cents per share, topping Wall Street expectations. The average estimate of 11 analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for a loss of 17 cents per share.

The company posted revenue of $262.3 million in the period, also topping Street forecasts. Ten analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $247.2 million.

For the current quarter ending in October, Snap said it expects revenue in the range of $265 million to $290 million.

After initially rising sharply, Snap's stock traded lower in after-hours trading and was down about 1 percent at $13.01.

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Elements of this story were generated by Automated Insights using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on SNAP at https://www.zacks.com/ap/SNAP