GoPro shares slump after early IPO lockup break

(Reuters) - Shares of GoPro Inc (GPRO.O) closed down nearly 7 percent on Thursday, wiping out about $800 million in market value, after the wearable camera maker said a portion of its Class A shares would be exempt from a lock-up restriction, effective tomorrow.

GoPro, whose stock has quadrupled since its June 24 IPO price of $24, said about 5.8 million Class A shares have been exempt from a lock-up period that ends in December as its Chief Executive Nicholas Woodman and wife Jill have transferred them to their charitable organization.

The company said in its statement on Wednesday that more information on the Jill + Nicholas Woodman Foundation will be released later.

GoPro, the first U.S. consumer-electronics company to go public since Skullcandy Inc (SKUL.O) in 2011, sold 17.8 million class A shares in its IPO, excluding over-allotment options.

The shares have been on a tear, gaining as much as 81 percent in September to close at a record high of $96.45 on Sept. 30.

About 41 percent of GoPro's public float was in short position as of Sept. 15, according to Thomson Reuters data.

Citron Research said on Tuesday that it had taken short positions in GoPro, citing recent increases in price targets were based on share movement and not on fundamentals.

GoPro's stock had a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 91.22, much higher than the sector median of 18.08, according to Thomson Reuters data.

Jim Cramer, host of CNBC's "Mad Money" show and co-founder of financial news website TheStreet.com, said on Wednesday that investors should not put more money into GoPro, as sales of its new "HERO4" camera would not impress.

GoPro's shares fell as much as 14 percent earlier on Thursday.

(Reporting By Sai Sachin R in Bangalore; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)