Next stop for Facebook shares? $200 or more, say analysts – MarketWatch
Facebook Inc. shares have busted out a roughly 44% gain so far this year but analysts are saying another 20% rise may lie ahead, after the tech companys earnings pushed past Wall Street forecasts.
Shares of the social network giant FB, +4.56% were up more than 5% in premarket trading Thursday. They had initially fallen in after-hours trading on Wednesday on the release of those results before reversing. If Facebook hold on to those gains in regular trading, it could become the second tech giant to hit a market cap of $500 billion in two days.
Check out: Facebooks earnings, as they happened
Analysts quickly got to work lifting price targets Thursday. KeyBanc Capital Markets hauled its own target up to $200 from $155, lauding the positive and early impact of video for Facebook.
That $200 price target from KeyBancs analysts, who maintain an overweight rating on the tech darling, would imply a 20% increase from Wednesdays close of $165.61. And that price was just short of an record.
We believe Facebooks transition to video-centricity is helping drive incremental demand that can sustain pricing growth for the foreseeable future, said analyst Andy Hargreaves and the team at KeyBanc.
Further, we see significant opportunities to drive upside to estimates through long-form video and monetization of Facebooks billion-user messaging platforms, they said in a note to clients.
See: Facebook, Snap are sitting on a $16 billion opportunity
The highest price target for Facebook shares is $215, set by both Deutsche Bank and Raymond James, according to FactSet.
Facebook reported second-quarter revenue of $9.32 billion and earnings of $1.32 a share, both higher compared with a year ago. The social network also said it has now reached 2 billion monthly active users. Last quarter, the social networking company surprised its followers with a change in how it reports earnings, which had the effect of making its numbers clearer.
KeyBancs analysts said accelerated ad pricing which grew 24% on average year-over-year helped drive those upbeat results for the quarter. Facebooks advertising revenue was a focus for analysts, after the company slowed additions of ads to its core Newsfeed service.
Read: Facebook keeps warning about growth, but growth doesnt stop
Analysts at SIG Susquehanna also lifted their Facebook target to $200, from the previous $190, and maintained their positive rating on the stock. Shyam Patil and the team cited an impressive 2Q outperformance and lower expense outlook for driving the companys key metrics higher.
Despite the 44% year-to-date gain for Facebook, shares are still only trading at around 14 times earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. That metric is growing around 50%, which would suggest significantly more runway ahead for the stock, said Patil and the team.
The analysts said the core Newsfeed and video parts of the business will drive growth for Facebook in the short to medium term, with the Messenger platform and augmented reality/virtual reality tools picking up the baton in the longer run.
Analysts from J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. went a step higher with their price target, boosting it to $210 a share from $182, saying Facebook continues to show a rare and impressive combination of scale, growth and profitability.
A team of analysts led by Doug Anmuth said the fact that Facebook continues to generate strong cash flow even while aggressively investing was impressive. Facebook continues to be our favorite large-cap name and even with a strong year-to-date gain, he said. Valuation remains attractive, the report added as it reiterated an overweight rating.
Calling Facebook the cash flow king, Morgan Stanleys team led by Brian Nowak lifted their price target on Facebook to $190 from $175, saying ad rev growth and incremental margins highlight how early it is in the platforms monetization and potential earnings power. The bank remains overweight on the social media networker.
See original here:
Next stop for Facebook shares? $200 or more, say analysts - MarketWatch
- How a social network is bringing people together in increasingly divisive times - PBS - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- Republicans have become more likely since 2024 to trust information from news outlets, social media - Pew Research Center - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- 10 reasons why banning social media for New Zealanders under 16 is a bad idea and will affect adults too - The Conversation - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- UNC Social Media - The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- If social media can flip fitness tips into an eating disorder, California law needs to intervene - CalMatters - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- Social networking sites use and life satisfaction: a moderated mediation model of e-health literacy, fatigue, uncertainty, and stress - BMC Psychology - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- Social network brings people together in divisive times - THIRTEEN - New York Public Media - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- 1965 WVU Football Throwback Uniform Unveiled Monday on Social Media - West Virginia University Athletics - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- Trump Says U.S. Will Impose More Sanctions on Russia if It Does Not Agree to an Extended Truce - The New York Times - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- I Signed Up for 15 Dating AppsThese Were the Best Ones - glamour.com - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- Sales End Tonight! This Is Your Last Chance To Secure A Copy Of One Billion Users, The Social Media Card Game - Techdirt. - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- The Clock Is Ticking! Get Your Copy Of Our Social Media Card Game Before Its Too Late - Techdirt. - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- New FTC Filing Shows Meta Knew It Was Losing the Social Media Race from TikTok - TECHi - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- New court filing shows that Meta execs agreed that Facebook was losing to TikTok - TechCrunch - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- Social media in 2025 is nothing like it was in 2015 - The Canadian Jewish News - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- Veris Health Network's 'Report This Ad' Reaches the Invisible Frontline of Social Media - Little Black Book | LBBOnline - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- Meta blocks major Muslim Instagram page in India amid rising conflict - The Guardian - May 10th, 2025 [May 10th, 2025]
- Which social network is best for small accounts? The best algorithms for growing without paying - Revista Merca2.0 - May 3rd, 2025 [May 3rd, 2025]
- US Enforces Tougher Visa Checks With Mandatory Disclosure Of Social Media Accounts From The Last Five Years - Travel And Tour World - May 3rd, 2025 [May 3rd, 2025]
- How hard is it to balance police work with social medias influence? - School News Network - May 3rd, 2025 [May 3rd, 2025]
- Polis veto on social media bill stands after lawmakers failed to override - KDVR - May 3rd, 2025 [May 3rd, 2025]
- FTC v. Meta live: updates from the battle for Instagram and WhatsApp - The Verge - May 3rd, 2025 [May 3rd, 2025]
- Heineken Turns Anti-Social - Media, That Is 04/29/2025 - MediaPost - May 2nd, 2025 [May 2nd, 2025]
- Heineken taps Joe Jonas to ditch social media and pour into real connections - Marketing-Interactive - May 2nd, 2025 [May 2nd, 2025]
- Europeans are leaving the social network Mask X en masse - Mezha.Media - May 2nd, 2025 [May 2nd, 2025]
- Elon Musks X social network lost 10% of its users from Europe in six months. Reasons - - May 2nd, 2025 [May 2nd, 2025]
- Heineken campaign imagines an influencer crisis in a world without social media followers - Campaign Brief - May 2nd, 2025 [May 2nd, 2025]
- Joe Jonas and Dude With Sign Team Up to Celebrate Life Off Social Media - That Eric Alper - May 2nd, 2025 [May 2nd, 2025]
- Joe Jonas and Heineken bring in a social media apocalypse in new ad - afaqs! - May 2nd, 2025 [May 2nd, 2025]
- Divisive forces spreading hate on social media must be identified, dealt with firmly: Mehbooba Mufti - asianewsnetwork.net - May 2nd, 2025 [May 2nd, 2025]
- Socontra: social network for AI agent-to-agent interaction set to automate online shopping - Eagle-Tribune - May 2nd, 2025 [May 2nd, 2025]
- Survey: More than four in 10 teens say social media harms their sleep - The Star - May 2nd, 2025 [May 2nd, 2025]
- Mark Zuckerberg Says Social Media Is Over - The New Yorker - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are 'grateful' that Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet are too young for social media - Business Insider - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- Morgan Stanley believed Google would rival Facebook if the search giant could beat Mark Zuckerberg to scooping up WhatsApp - Fortune - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- Australian leaders vow to stand firm on social media age limits as election nears - Reuters - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- My Company Competed Against Facebook. Here's What Happened | Opinion - Newsweek - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- Layboard Launches Innovative Social Network for Job Searching and Career Growth - Reuters - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- Abrego Garcia family flees to safe house after Trump DHS posts home address on social media - The Real News Network - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- Opinion: Morning routines are a myth and serve as social media gimmicks - lsureveille.com - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- Gen Zs Underground Social Network Just Went National And Its Blowing Up - Forbes - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- Fans React to Jameson Williams Not Following Lions on Social Media - Sports Illustrated - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- OpenAI may be creating a new social media platform with AI-generated images - Tech Edition - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- B3 partner with Reach Labs to launch user acquisition platform and GameChain - VentureBeat - April 25th, 2025 [April 25th, 2025]
- OpenAIs Reportedly Exploring Its Own AI-Based Social Network - Social Media Today - April 16th, 2025 [April 16th, 2025]
- OpenAI launches its Social Network: the new frontier of the data war - The Cryptonomist - April 16th, 2025 [April 16th, 2025]
- OpenAI is reportedly developing its own X-like social media platform - TechCrunch - April 16th, 2025 [April 16th, 2025]
- What Meta stands to lose if the FTC wins - Quartz - April 16th, 2025 [April 16th, 2025]
- Instagram and Facebook are hardly social media apps anymore. Here's the proof. - Business Insider - April 16th, 2025 [April 16th, 2025]
- FTC Antitrust Case Against Meta Heads to Trial This Week - Social Media Today - April 16th, 2025 [April 16th, 2025]
- OpenAI might be building its own social network, and we really hope they don't - TechRadar - April 16th, 2025 [April 16th, 2025]
- OpenAI Takes On Elon Musk By Creating Its Own Social Network! - Cointribune - April 16th, 2025 [April 16th, 2025]
- OpenAI is building its own social network to rival Elon Musk's X - Crypto Briefing - April 16th, 2025 [April 16th, 2025]
- OpenAI reportedly creating its own social network to take on X - Tom's Guide - April 16th, 2025 [April 16th, 2025]
- Behind the landmark trial that could reshape Metas future with Instagram - Los Angeles Times - April 16th, 2025 [April 16th, 2025]
- OpenAI is quietly working on a social network similar to Twitter, powered by ChatGPT - TechSpot - April 16th, 2025 [April 16th, 2025]
- OpenAI Reportedly Developing Social Media Platform Amid Ongoing Feud Between Musk, Altman - BW Businessworld - April 16th, 2025 [April 16th, 2025]
- OpenAI braced to challenge Elon Musks X with new social network - The Times - April 16th, 2025 [April 16th, 2025]
- Meta faces antitrust claims at trial over Instagram and WhatsApp ownership - The Guardian - April 16th, 2025 [April 16th, 2025]
- Like Musk, but with ChatGPT: OpenAI is working on its own social network similar to X - ITC.ua - April 16th, 2025 [April 16th, 2025]
- OpenAI may be turning ChatGPT into a social media platform - Android Authority - April 16th, 2025 [April 16th, 2025]
- Creative ChatGPT They are planning their own social network and it will be quite unique! LSA Magazine - Letem svtem Applem - April 16th, 2025 [April 16th, 2025]
- OpenAI is working on X-like social media network, the Verge reports - MarketScreener - April 16th, 2025 [April 16th, 2025]
- Will Meta be forced to sell Instagram and WhatsApp in FTC trial? - Bizcommunity - April 16th, 2025 [April 16th, 2025]
- Body talk on social networking sites and appearance anxiety among college students: the mediating role of self-objectification and moderating role of... - April 10th, 2025 [April 10th, 2025]
- I Tried Seven39, the Social Network That's Only Open Three Hours a Day - Lifehacker - April 10th, 2025 [April 10th, 2025]
- Mapping ISKPs Strength: Social Network Analysis of Tech-Driven Jihad - Global Network on Extremism and Technology - April 10th, 2025 [April 10th, 2025]
- ION and HyperGPT Unite to Power AI-Driven Web3 Social Networks - CoinTrust - April 10th, 2025 [April 10th, 2025]
- College Student Shares Why She Deleted All Socials and What Life Is Like Without It - The Flagler College Gargoyle - April 10th, 2025 [April 10th, 2025]
- CRD is shutting down its X account, saying platform 'rife with misinformation' - Times Colonist - April 10th, 2025 [April 10th, 2025]
- Social Network: Is the mental health of teenagers in danger? - evidencenetwork.ca - April 10th, 2025 [April 10th, 2025]
- Leo, Daily Horoscope Today, April 10, 2025: Business owners will find success through social networking - Times of India - April 10th, 2025 [April 10th, 2025]
- Daily time spent on social networking by internet users - the-star.co.ke - April 10th, 2025 [April 10th, 2025]
- Young people and the pressure to be perfect like on social media - baohaiduong.vn - April 10th, 2025 [April 10th, 2025]
- CSC urged to recall memo on social media use of gov't personnel - GMA Network - April 10th, 2025 [April 10th, 2025]
- Woman charged for hit-and-run death allegedly posted about victim on social media after the crash - KBTX News 3 - April 8th, 2025 [April 8th, 2025]
- LinkedIn reveals best places to work - 9Now - April 8th, 2025 [April 8th, 2025]
- Chamber showcase fills Union Station with real-life social networking for small biz owners - Startland News - April 5th, 2025 [April 5th, 2025]
- Beyond Bluesky: These are the apps building social experiences on the AT Protocol - TechCrunch - April 5th, 2025 [April 5th, 2025]
- Modeling the amplification of epidemic spread by individuals exposed to misinformation on social media - Nature - April 5th, 2025 [April 5th, 2025]