Snap shares jump as leaked 2024 user target exceed Wall St expectations

(Reuters) - Snap shares jumped 11% on Monday after a media report said the social media company is expected to have more than 475 million daily active users (DAUs) in 2024, above Wall Street expectations.

The user number reported by the Verge on Friday, citing an internal memo from CEO Evan Speigel to employees, exceeded Visible Alpha estimate of 447 million.

The higher-than-expected DAUs come as a relief for the Snapchat parent that has been struggling with tough competition and a weak advertising market.

Snap also expects advertising revenue to grow more than 20% in 2024 as part of its "stretch goals", the report said, putting it above Wall Street estimates of 14% growth.

The company declined to comment on the report.

Bernstein analyst Mark Schilsky told Reuters that expectations from the stock are "incredibly low", but he added, "even I have to admit that the stock would likely be materially higher if they hit this goal."

Snap was the first ad-reliant social media firm to flag a demand downturn last year as brands cut budgets amid red-hot inflation and high interest rates.

Macroeconomic woes coupled with rising competition from social media platforms like Tiktok, saw Snap lose 80% of its valuation last year.

Snap has managed to almost achieve only one of the nine targets - growing the amount of time its daily users spend watching content by at least 10%, the report said.

(Reporting by Chavi Mehta in Bengaluru; Editing by Tasim Zahid)