Twitter Shares Drop 21% as User Growth Fell Short of Expectations

Twitter shares are down 21% after the quarterly business results were announced on Friday.

The social media group shares fell by more than 21% during trading on Friday, after the user growth fell short of expectations in the third quarter.

The stock's drop came after the number of daily active users failed to meet expectations, as it recorded 187 million people during the third quarter, compared with analysts' estimates of 195 million users.

The profits of the U.S. company also declined to $28.6 million during Q3, compared to $36.5 million, year-on-year.

While revenues increased by 14% year-on-year to record $936 million during the third quarter, with advertising revenues increasing by about 15%.

By the end of trading, Twitter share price was down 20.74% to $41.57.

Twitter also warned of further delays to the introduction of a long-awaited new advertising system, which also forced its shares to drop.

Meantime, the return of sports and other events, drove sales up 14% to $936 million, compared with analysts’ expectations for $778 million.