On Thursday, Citi adjusted its outlook on Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ: NASDAQ:META) shares, reducing the price target to $550 from $590, while keeping a Buy rating. The revision followed Meta's financial performance in the first quarter, where the company reported quarterly results that slightly exceeded Wall Street's expectations in terms of revenue and operating income, as well as earnings per share.
The social media giant posted a GAAP EPS of $4.71, surpassing the consensus estimate of $4.32. However, the company's guidance for second-quarter revenue was approximately 1% below the midpoint of consensus estimates. Additionally, Meta announced an increase in its 2024 expense guide by about $1 billion at the midpoint and raised its capital expenditure plans for the same year.
Meta's total revenue reached $36.5 billion, marking a 27% year-over-year growth when excluding foreign exchange impacts. This increase was primarily driven by a 26% rise in advertising revenue compared to the previous year, excluding foreign exchange factors. The company experienced a 20% year-over-year increase in ad impressions and a 6% hike in ad pricing.
The financial community is keenly interested in Meta's next moves, particularly regarding user engagement trends, the company's strategy surrounding its Llama 3 initiative, early usage of Meta AI, adoption rates of new advertising tools, and insights into rising infrastructure costs. These factors are expected to be key discussion points in the company's earnings call and are likely to influence investor sentiment and the stock's performance moving forward.
InvestingPro Insights
As we delve deeper into Meta Platforms Inc.'s financials, a couple of InvestingPro Tips highlight the company's current fiscal health and future prospects. Notably, Meta holds more cash than debt on its balance sheet, which is a strong indicator of financial stability. Additionally, 11 analysts have revised their earnings upwards for the upcoming period, reflecting a positive outlook on the company's profitability.
Looking at the real-time data from InvestingPro, Meta's market capitalization stands at a robust $1.25 trillion. The company boasts a P/E ratio of 32.46, which adjusts to a slightly lower 29.8 for the last twelve months as of Q4 2023, suggesting a potential undervaluation relative to near-term earnings growth. Moreover, with a PEG ratio of 0.44 for the same period, the stock may be attractive to investors looking for growth at a reasonable price. Lastly, Meta's impressive gross profit margin of 80.72% underscores its ability to maintain profitability despite various market conditions.
For readers looking to make a more informed decision, there are additional InvestingPro Tips available at https://www.investing.com/pro/META. And for those considering a subscription, use coupon code PRONEWS24 to get an additional 10% off a yearly or biyearly Pro and Pro+ subscription. Currently, there are 16 more InvestingPro Tips that could provide further insights into Meta's financial performance and stock potential.
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