Snap slides back to its IPO price

Getty/Michael Kovac

Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel speaks onstage during 'Disrupting Information and Communication' at the Vanity Fair New Establishment Summit at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts on October 8, 2014 in San Francisco, California.

• Snap is back at $17 a share as sellers remain in control for a fifth day.
• Shares have been hit by a negative reaction to the Snapchat redesign.

Snap is back below ita initial public offering price of $17 as sellers remain in control for a fifth straight session.

The stock has slumped more than 16% over the five-day slide as a plethora of negative news surrounding the Snapchat redesign have swirled around Wall Street.

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Shares began sliding last week following news CEO Evan Spiegel sold shares for the first time since the company went public, and after Citigroup downgraded the name because of the mounting negative reviews for the redesign.

"While the recent redesign of [Snap's] flagship app could produce positive long-term benefits, [there is a] significant jump in negative app reviews since the redesign was pushed out a few weeks, which could result in a decline in users and user engagement, and could negatively impact financial results," analysts Mark May and Hao Yan wrote.

Two days later, Kylie Jenner tweeted she doesn't use the app anymore, sending shares down more than 7%. "Sooo does anyone else not open Snapchat anymore?" she asked her Twitter followers. "Or is it just me... ugh this is so sad." She followed up with another tweet: "Still love you tho snap ... my first love."

Snap shares debuted a year ago, opening at $17 apiece and traded as high as $27.09 just two days later. They fell as low as $11.28 in August amid questions surrounding its user base and a slew of Wall Street downgrades.

More recently, however, strong fourth-quarter results sent shares up nearly 50% and above their IPO price for the first time since July.

Snap is up 14.32% this year.

Markets Insider