Keep An Eye On Acacia Communications

Shares of Twilio Inc (NYSE: TWLO) were trading higher by around 3 percent Friday morning after the company reported its third-quarter results.

The company said that it lost $0.04 per share in its third quarter on revenue of $71.5 million. Wall Street analysts were expecting the company to lose $0.08 per share on revenue of $66.8 million.

In addition to a top- and bottom-line beat, the company guided its fourth quarter and full-year expectations above Wall Street's expectations.

Keep An Eye On Acacia

One of Twilio's closest peers and competitors is Acacia Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: ACIA).

In fact, both companies saw their stocks trade on a public exchange for the first time this year. After a strong start for both names, shares have fallen out of favor.

Acacia's stock did gain more than 2.5 percent on Friday as investors are likely assuming that Twilio's better-than-expected outlook will also flow through to Acacia.

The financial term for this is a "sympathy play," in which good or bad news for one company is perceived to be equally as good or bad for its competitors.

Of particular note, Goldman Sachs' Heather Bellini isn't fully convinced on Twilio's outlook following its report. The analyst modestly slashed her price target on Twilio's stock to $38 from a previous $39.