GoPro's shares recently took a sharp 19 percent dive, as the company's financial results showed losses in the last quarter of 2015.
In spite of having profits of $122.3 million, the company reported income losses of $34.5 million for the period. Additional bad news comes from GoPro's estimation about the current quarter, which the company thinks will bring less revenue than expected.
Insiders from the industry point out that GoPro has been losing ground to devices manufactured by Chinese rivals, which usually have significantly lower prices.
According to the earnings statement, the CFO position of GoPro will be occupied by Brian McGee, who will take the place of Jack Lazar. The change in management is scheduled to happen in March. Also, the company says that it will discontinue production of some of its action cameras, particularly the entry-level Hero line.
The company will focus its future efforts on the following devices: the Hero4 Silver, the Hero4 Session and the Hero4 Black. If you're wondering which one of the three cams will fit your needs best, take a look at the comparison guide.
GoPro received a bludgeoning hit at the end of 2015. In December last year, the company halved the prices of its Hero4 cameras, causing its overall financial revenue to drop. The decision followed the weak demand for the latest GoPro action camera, which the company blamed on the high price of the device.
By the time GoPro set the price point at $200 in December, vendors had their wares filled with GoPro cameras at an initial $400 per piece. This caused margins in the fourth quarter to suffer.
GoPro's recent stock market nosedive occurred just minutes after the Q4 figures went public. The shares dropped 19 percent but quickly gained back value, remaining at minus 8.5 percent at the time of writing.
"In 2015, we recorded 16 percent year-over-year revenue growth and the fourth quarter represented the second highest revenue quarter in the company's history," Nicholas Woodman, CEO and founder of GoPro says.
Woodman admits that one place where the GoPro is lackluster is the software, which needs to be improved.
"Investors aren't going to be looking for any profits. Most investors need to see more performance," says Charlie Anderson, an analyst at Dougherty & Co, as cited by Bloomberg.
Robert Stone, an analyst at Cowen & Co., affirms that GoPro reached a plateau and needs to find a way to "get people excited again" in order to continue its growth.
