Facebook (FB) closed at $336.95 in the latest trading session, marking a -1.23% move from the prior day. This change was narrower than the S&P 500’s 1.59% loss on the day.
Prior to today’s trading, shares of the social media company had gained 3.49% over the past month. This has outpaced the Computer and Technology sector’s gain of 2.79% and the S&P 500’s gain of 2.53% in that time.
Wall Street will be looking for positivity from FB as it approaches its next earnings report date. This is expected to be July 28, 2021. The company is expected to report EPS of $3.04, up 68.89% from the prior-year quarter. Meanwhile, our latest consensus estimate is calling for revenue of $27.89 billion, up 49.25% from the prior-year quarter.
Looking at the full year, our Zacks Consensus Estimates suggest analysts are expecting earnings of $13.19 per share and revenue of $116.16 billion. These totals would mark changes of +30.72% and +35.13%, respectively, from last year.
Investors should also note any recent changes to analyst estimates for FB. Recent revisions tend to reflect the latest near-term business trends. With this in mind, we can consider positive estimate revisions a sign of optimism about the company’s business outlook.
Based on our research, we believe these estimate revisions are directly related to near-team stock moves. We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon. Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear, actionable rating model.
The Zacks Rank system ranges from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell). It has a remarkable, outside-audited track record of success, with #1 stocks delivering an average annual return of +25% since 1988. Within the past 30 days, our consensus EPS projection has moved 0.07% higher. FB is currently sporting a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
Digging into valuation, FB currently has a Forward P/E ratio of 25.86. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 31.34, so we one might conclude that FB is trading at a discount comparatively.
Investors should also note that FB has a PEG ratio of 1.28 right now. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company’s expected earnings growth rate. The Internet – Services was holding an average PEG ratio of 2.95 at yesterday’s closing price.
The Internet – Services industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. This group has a Zacks Industry Rank of 204, putting it in the bottom 20% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Be sure to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and many more, on Zacks.com.
5 Stocks Set to Double
Each was hand-picked by a Zacks expert as the #1 favorite stock to gain +100% or more in 2021. Each comes from a different sector and has unique qualities and catalysts that could fuel exceptional growth. Most of the stocks in this report are flying under Wall Street radar, which provides a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor.
Today, See These 5 Potential Home Runs >>
Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days.
Click to get this free report