Twitter Posts Flat U.S. Monthly Active User Growth, Despite Election Focus

Twitter Inc. continued to drop 11% in premarket trade Thursday after the company issued a weak outlook and revealed relatively flat fourth-quarter growth in the U.S. Twitter touted its live-video streaming services, saying live-streaming of the inauguration had 8.6 million unique viewers, the biggest election numbers for the platform, followed by 7.5 million on election night and 4.2 million for the final presidential debate. Still, Twitter posted flat sequential growth in U.S. monthly active users, with 67 million for the third and fourth quarter. Twitter saw a slight boost in international MAUs which were at 252 million for the quarter, up from 250 million in the previous quarter. Overall, Twitter reported 319 monthly active users, a 0.6% increase from the previous quarter. Analysts had said that the election should give Twitter a boost in users, given President Donald Trump's proclivity for tweeting. International growth also drove Twitter's revenue growth, with U.S. decreasing 5% year-over-year and international revenue increasing 12% year-over-year. Shares of Twitter have fallen 2% in the past three months, while the S&P 500 has gained of 6%.