Snap is losing its CFO after less than a year, and the stock is plummeting (SNAP)

Evan Spiegel

Tim Stone, the CFO of Snapchat parent company Snap Inc., is quitting.
Stone, who came to Snap from Amazon, only took the job in May 2018. He is walking away from most of a $20 million pay package.
Snap has said that Stone will be sticking with the company through at least its quarterly earnings call on February 5th.
The company's stock has cratered around 8.5% on the news.
Snap says that it's Q4 2018 financial results are likely to be "slightly favourable to the top end of our previously reported quarterly guidance ranges."

Tim Stone, the CFO of Snapchat parent company Snap, is quitting.

On Tuesday, the exec notified the beleaguered messaging app company of his intention to quit "to pursue other opportunities," Snap said in a SEC filing, becoming the latest in a growing line of Snap execs to part ways with the company. Snap's stock price is down around 8.5% in after-hours trading following the news.

Snapchat has struggled in recent years as Facebook-owned Instagram has aggressively cloned its features, siphoning off users and stifling the app's growth.

Stone, a former Amazon executive, had joined Snap less than a year ago, in May 2018, following a disastrous quarter for the company He replaced the company's first CFO, Andrew Vollero. It's not clear exactly why Stone is leaving now, though Snap says it is "not related to any disagreement with us on any matter relating to our accounting, strategy, management, operations, policies, regulatory matters, or practices."

Stone was brought on with a $20 million pay package, scheduled to vest over four years — most of which he's now forfeiting. $1 million in "sign-on" grants vested six months after he came on board, meaning the money is his, but he's leaving well before the rest of the $19 million vested.

His exit is the latest of a growing line of Snap execs to jump ship from the company in recent months.

On Monday, Business Insider reported that the company's HR head Jason Halbert was leaving. Head of global strategic partnerships Elizabeth Herbst-Brady left earlier in January. Chief Strategy Ifficer Imran Khan bailed in September 2018. Other high-profile departures include communications VP Mary Ritti, product head Tom Conrad, and sales head Jeff Lucas.

Later on Tuesday, Cheddar's Alex Heath reported that Kristin Southey, the company's VP of investor relations, also quietly left in November 2018.

Here's what Snap said in its SEC filing:

"On January 15, 2019, Tim Stone, our Chief Financial Officer and principal financial officer, notified us of his intention to resign to pursue other opportunities. Mr. Stone has confirmed that this transition is not related to any disagreement with us on any matter relating to our accounting, strategy, management, operations, policies, regulatory matters, or practices (financial or otherwise). Mr. Stone’s last day has not been determined. Mr. Stone will continue to serve as Chief Financial Officer to assist in the search for a replacement and an effective transition of his duties, including through our scheduled full year 2018 financial results announcement."

Reached for comment, Snap spokesperson Russ Caditz-Peck sent Business Insider the following statement, which was sent from CEO Evan Spiegel to the whole company:

Hi Team,

I wanted to let you know that Tim Stone, our CFO, has decided to leave Snap.

Tim has made a big impact in his short time on our team and we are very grateful for all of his hard work. I know we have all benefitted from his customer focus and the way he has encouraged all of us to operate as owners.

Tim will remain at Snap to help with the transition, including through our Q4 and full year earnings call on February 5th.

Tim’s transition is not related to any disagreement with us on any matter relating to our accounting, strategy, management, operations, policies, regulatory matters, or practices (financial or otherwise).

Please join me in wishing Tim all the best in his future endeavors!

Also in the SEC filing, Snap said that it expects to report financial results for Q4 2018 are "slightly favorable to the top end of our previously reportedly quarterly guidance ranges."

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