The Zacks Analyst Blog Highlights: Facebook, Chipotle, Qualcomm, Paypal and Ford Motor

For Immediate Release

Chicago, IL – April 26, 2018 – Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include Facebook FB, Chipotle CMG, Qualcomm QCOM, Paypal PYPL and Ford Motor Company F.

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Here are highlights from Wednesday’s Analyst Blog:

Smorgasbord of Q1 Earnings: FB, CMG, QCOM & More

Facebook, which has spent most of 2018 under a dark cloud regarding concerns about exposing its extensive amount of users to data mining, false news items, etc., still managed to blow the doors off Q1 earnings and revenue estimates: $1.69 per share outperformed the $1.36 in the Zacks consensus, whereas revenues of $11.97 billion surpassed expectations of $11.95 billion. These results speak to 63% year-over-year earnings growth, and +49% on the top line.

In both Monthly Active Users (MAU) and Daily Active Users (DAU) metrics, both rose 13% to 2.2 billion and 1.45 billion, respectively. Average revenue per user rose in the quarter 20 cents higher than predicted to $5.53 per, and mobile ad revenues now account for a whopping 91% of Facebook's total advertising revenue. Shares were trading up 4.8% in Wednesday's after market. For more on FB's earnings, click here.

Another stock climbing in yesterday's late trading session is Chipotle, up 10%, which posted a big earnings beat on in-line quarterly sales: $2.13 per share versus $1.54 expected, and $1.15 billion on the top line. Comps rose 2.2%, higher than the anticipated 1.3%, and operating margins grew to 19.5%. CEO Brian Niccol said he expects "accelerated progress" at Chipotle to continue. Good enough for late-traders, apparently. For more on CMG's earnings, click here. 

Zacks Rank #3 (Hold)-rated Qualcomm put up 80 cents per share in its fiscal Q2 earnings report after the closing bell, topping the Zacks consensus by a full dime, on $5.3 billion in revenues that outpaced the $5.2 billion expected. Guidance for Q3 have been updated but still hover around current analyst estimates. The company also discussed its agreement to purchase NXP, but recall Qualcomm was itself the target of a buyout by Broadcom earlier. For more on QCOM's earnings, click here.

Paypal has also outperformed estimates in its Q1 report after Wednesday's close, posting 57 cents per share on $3.69 billion in revenues, surpassing the 54 cents per share and $3.58 billion, respectively. This amounts to a 24% year-over-year gain on the top line, while guidance was tempered a bit for Q2 earnings: $1.79-1.86. Full-year revenues, however, look good, with guidance of $15.2-15.4 billion putting the Zacks consensus of $15.25 billion on the lower end of the range. For more on PYPL's earnings, click here.

Ford Motor Company also reported yesterday afternoon, with 43 cents per share beating estimates by 2 cents and $39 billion in revenues coming in roughly $2 billion stronger than expected. North America was its biggest regional performer at $1.9 billion in the quarter, though raw material costs -- especially aluminum -- are much higher than previously. But shares are up 2.7% in after-market trading on the solid headline number.

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About Zacks Equity Research

Zacks Equity Research provides the best of quantitative and qualitative analysis to help investors know what stocks to buy and which to sell for the long-term.

Continuous coverage is provided for a universe of 1,150 publicly traded stocks. Our analysts are organized by industry which gives them keen insights to developments that affect company profits and stock performance. Recommendations and target prices are six-month time horizons.

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Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.

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Facebook, Inc. (FB) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
PayPal Holdings, Inc. (PYPL) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
QUALCOMM Incorporated (QCOM) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
Ford Motor Company (F) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
Chipotle Mexican Grill, Inc. (CMG) : Free Stock Analysis Report
 
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