Meta Platforms (META) Stock Moves -1.12%: What You Should Know

In the latest close session, Meta Platforms (META) was down 1.12% at $615.68. The stock outperformed the S&P 500, which registered a daily loss of 1.36%. At the same time, the Dow lost 1.64%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq lost 1.46%.

The social media company's shares have seen a decrease of 2.6% over the last month, not keeping up with the Computer and Technology sector's loss of 0.24% and the S&P 500's loss of 1.76%.

Market participants will be closely following the financial results of Meta Platforms in its upcoming release. On that day, Meta Platforms is projected to report earnings of $6.67 per share, which would represent year-over-year growth of 3.73%. Alongside, our most recent consensus estimate is anticipating revenue of $55.34 billion, indicating a 30.78% upward movement from the same quarter last year.

For the entire fiscal year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates are projecting earnings of $29.75 per share and a revenue of $249.25 billion, representing changes of +26.65% and +24.02%, respectively, from the prior year.

Additionally, investors should keep an eye on any recent revisions to analyst forecasts 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 business and profitability.

Empirical research indicates that these revisions in estimates have a direct correlation with impending stock price performance. To utilize this, we have created the Zacks Rank, a proprietary model that integrates these estimate changes and provides a functional rating system.

The Zacks Rank system, stretching from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has a noteworthy track record of outperforming, validated by third-party audits, with stocks rated #1 producing an average annual return of +25% since the year 1988. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has moved 0.01% lower. At present, Meta Platforms boasts a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold).

Looking at its valuation, Meta Platforms is holding a Forward P/E ratio of 20.93. This expresses a premium compared to the average Forward P/E of 19.46 of its industry.

Also, we should mention that META has a PEG ratio of 0.96. This metric is used similarly to the famous P/E ratio, but the PEG ratio also takes into account the stock's expected earnings growth rate. As of the close of trade yesterday, the Internet - Software industry held an average PEG ratio of 1.1.

The Internet - Software industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. With its current Zacks Industry Rank of 142, this industry ranks in the bottom 43% of all industries, numbering over 250.

The strength of our individual industry groups is measured by the Zacks Industry Rank, which is calculated based on the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within these groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.

Ensure to harness Zacks.com to stay updated with all these stock-shifting metrics, among others, in the next trading sessions.

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Meta Platforms, Inc. (META): Free Stock Analysis Report

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