Facebook (FB) Dips More Than Broader Markets: What You Should Know

Facebook (FB) closed the most recent trading day at $183.28, moving -0.49% from the previous trading session. This change lagged the S&P 500's daily loss of 0.14%. Meanwhile, the Dow lost 0.11%, and the Nasdaq, a tech-heavy index, lost 0.1%.

Heading into today, shares of the social media company had lost 1.75% over the past month, lagging the Computer and Technology sector's loss of 0.36% and the S&P 500's loss of 0.91% in that time.

Investors will be hoping for strength from FB as it approaches its next earnings release, which is expected to be October 30, 2019. In that report, analysts expect FB to post earnings of $1.91 per share. This would mark year-over-year growth of 8.52%. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $17.32 billion, up 26.19% from the year-ago period.

FB's full-year Zacks Consensus Estimates are calling for earnings of $6.39 per share and revenue of $70.29 billion. These results would represent year-over-year changes of -15.59% and +25.89%, respectively.

Any recent changes to analyst estimates for FB should also be noted by investors. These revisions typically reflect the latest short-term business trends, which can change frequently. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the company's business outlook.

Research indicates that these estimate revisions are directly correlated with near-term share price momentum. We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon. Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear, actionable rating model.

Ranging from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), the Zacks Rank system has a proven, outside-audited track record of outperformance, with #1 stocks returning an average of +25% annually since 1988. The Zacks Consensus EPS estimate remained stagnant within the past month. FB is currently a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Looking at its valuation, FB is holding a Forward P/E ratio of 28.8. This valuation marks a premium compared to its industry's average Forward P/E of 27.33.

It is also worth noting that FB currently has a PEG ratio of 1.34. 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 - Services stocks are, on average, holding a PEG ratio of 2.25 based on yesterday's closing prices.

The Internet - Services industry is part of the Computer and Technology sector. This industry currently has a Zacks Industry Rank of 149, which puts it in the bottom 42% of all 250+ industries.

The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our 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.

To follow FB in the coming trading sessions, be sure to utilize Zacks.com.

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