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Time to Buy Meta Platforms Stock with Q1 Earnings Approaching?
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Off to a stellar start in 2023, Meta Platforms (META - Free Report) ) first-quarter earnings are much anticipated with the social media titan set to report on Wednesday, April 26.
Investors are certainly wondering if there is more upside for Meta stock this year and if now is a good time to buy as earnings approach.
Let’s take a look at what’s going on with Meta stock before its quarterly results.
Performance & Valuation
After a tumultuous 2022 for most tech stocks, Meta has rebounded sharply this year. Year to date, Meta stock has soared +77% to vastly outperform social media competitor Snap’s (SNAP - Free Report) ) +14%, the S&P 500’s +8%, and the Nasdaq’s +15%.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
More intriguing, despite the massive rally Meta stock still trades attractively relative to its past from a price-to-earnings perspective.
Trading around $210 a share, Meta stock trades at 20.7X forward earnings which is nicely below its industry average of 41.2X and Snap’s 55.7X. Furthermore, Meta stock is roughly on par with the S&P 500’s 19.2X and trades 80% below its decade-long high of 105.1X while offering a 31% discount to the median of 30.2X.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Zacks ESP
The Zacks Expected Surprise Prediction indicates Meta could significantly top its first-quarter earnings expectations with the Zacks Consensus Estimate having Q1 EPS at $1.96 and the Most Accurate Estimate at $2.21 per share.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
EPS Revisions
Offering further support for Meta stock is that annual EPS estimate revisions have continued to trend higher.
Inflationary concerns caused earnings estimates to largely decline for most stocks over the last year but as shown in the module below Meta’s fiscal 2023 earnings outlook has started to stabilize and is rising toward where EPS estimates were a year ago.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
This correlates to Meta’s strong performance this year and when looking at the consensus estimate trend below, FY23 EPS estimates have now climbed 36% in the last 90 days to $10.28 per share. Even better, fiscal 2024 earnings estimates have jumped 34% over the last quarter at $12.76 per share.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Takeaway
Meta stock sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) ahead of its first-quarter results as earnings estimate revisions have continued to rise for both FY23 and FY24 with the company’s P/E valuation starting to stand out as well. This is a great sign that Meta could offer positive guidance during its Q1 report and top earnings expectations as indicated in the Zacks expected surprise prediction.
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Time to Buy Meta Platforms Stock with Q1 Earnings Approaching?
Off to a stellar start in 2023, Meta Platforms (META - Free Report) ) first-quarter earnings are much anticipated with the social media titan set to report on Wednesday, April 26.
Investors are certainly wondering if there is more upside for Meta stock this year and if now is a good time to buy as earnings approach.
Let’s take a look at what’s going on with Meta stock before its quarterly results.
Performance & Valuation
After a tumultuous 2022 for most tech stocks, Meta has rebounded sharply this year. Year to date, Meta stock has soared +77% to vastly outperform social media competitor Snap’s (SNAP - Free Report) ) +14%, the S&P 500’s +8%, and the Nasdaq’s +15%.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
More intriguing, despite the massive rally Meta stock still trades attractively relative to its past from a price-to-earnings perspective.
Trading around $210 a share, Meta stock trades at 20.7X forward earnings which is nicely below its industry average of 41.2X and Snap’s 55.7X. Furthermore, Meta stock is roughly on par with the S&P 500’s 19.2X and trades 80% below its decade-long high of 105.1X while offering a 31% discount to the median of 30.2X.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Zacks ESP
The Zacks Expected Surprise Prediction indicates Meta could significantly top its first-quarter earnings expectations with the Zacks Consensus Estimate having Q1 EPS at $1.96 and the Most Accurate Estimate at $2.21 per share.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
EPS Revisions
Offering further support for Meta stock is that annual EPS estimate revisions have continued to trend higher.
Inflationary concerns caused earnings estimates to largely decline for most stocks over the last year but as shown in the module below Meta’s fiscal 2023 earnings outlook has started to stabilize and is rising toward where EPS estimates were a year ago.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
This correlates to Meta’s strong performance this year and when looking at the consensus estimate trend below, FY23 EPS estimates have now climbed 36% in the last 90 days to $10.28 per share. Even better, fiscal 2024 earnings estimates have jumped 34% over the last quarter at $12.76 per share.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Takeaway
Meta stock sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) ahead of its first-quarter results as earnings estimate revisions have continued to rise for both FY23 and FY24 with the company’s P/E valuation starting to stand out as well. This is a great sign that Meta could offer positive guidance during its Q1 report and top earnings expectations as indicated in the Zacks expected surprise prediction.