Snap shares rise on fourth-quarter earnings that beat on sales

Core Insights - Snap Inc. reported fourth-quarter earnings that exceeded sales expectations, leading to a 5% increase in share price during after-hours trading. The company also announced a $500 million stock repurchase program [1] Financial Performance - Fourth-quarter sales increased by 10% year-over-year, with net income rising to $45.2 million, a nearly 400% increase from $9.1 million reported a year ago [2] - Adjusted EBITDA for the fourth quarter was $358 million, surpassing the $300 million projected by StreetAccount [2] - The company anticipates first-quarter adjusted EBITDA to be between $170 million and $190 million, with the midpoint exceeding StreetAccount's estimate of $178 million [3] User Metrics - Global daily active users (DAU) decreased by 3 million quarter-over-quarter, attributed to reduced marketing spending aimed at more profitable growth [3] - North American DAU was reported at 94 million, below the expected 97 million [4] - Global DAU stood at 474 million, slightly below the expected 478 million [7] Revenue Generation - First-quarter revenue guidance is projected to be between $1.50 billion and $1.53 billion, which is below analyst expectations of $1.55 billion [1] - The global average revenue per user (ARPU) was reported at $3.62, exceeding the expected $3.56 [7] Strategic Initiatives - The company plans to enhance its subscription-related offerings, such as Snapchat+ and Memories Storage Plans, with subscribers growing 71% year-over-year to 24 million in the fourth quarter [5] - Snap has established a wholly owned subsidiary, Specs Inc., to develop and market augmented reality glasses [6]