In the latest trading session, Meta Platforms (FB) closed at $328.07, marking a -1.12% move from the previous day. This change lagged the S&P 500’s 0.14% loss on the day. Meanwhile, the Dow lost 0.45%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, lost 0.02%.
Heading into today, shares of the social media company had gained 0.62% over the past month, outpacing the Computer and Technology sector’s loss of 5.82% and the S&P 500’s loss of 0.13% in that time.
Investors will be hoping for strength from Meta Platforms as it approaches its next earnings release, which is expected to be February 2, 2022. In that report, analysts expect Meta Platforms to post earnings of $3.78 per share. This would mark a year-over-year decline of 2.58%. Meanwhile, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for revenue is projecting net sales of $33 billion, up 17.56% from the year-ago period.
Investors might also notice recent changes to analyst estimates for Meta Platforms. These recent revisions tend to reflect the evolving nature of short-term business trends. As such, positive estimate revisions reflect analyst optimism about the company’s business and profitability.
Our research shows that these estimate changes are directly correlated with near-term stock prices. Investors can capitalize on this by using the Zacks Rank. This model considers these estimate changes and provides a simple, actionable rating system.
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 remained stagnant. Meta Platforms currently has a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).
Valuation is also important, so investors should note that Meta Platforms has a Forward P/E ratio of 23.92 right now. This valuation marks a discount compared to its industry’s average Forward P/E of 56.59.
Investors should also note that FB has a PEG ratio of 1.18 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. Internet – Software stocks are, on average, holding a PEG ratio of 3.05 based on yesterday’s closing prices.
The Internet – Software industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 172, which puts it in the bottom 33% of all 250+ industries.
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our individual 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.
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