META

Meta Platforms Spending Heavily on Capex

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Image Source: TradingView By Brian Nelson, CFA Meta Platforms (META) recently reported mixed second quarter results with revenue beating expectations but GAAP earnings per share coming up a bit short of the consensus forecast. Revenue grew 28%, to $60.8 billion, but income from operations fell 8% in the period. Net income dropped 14%, while diluted earnings per share fell 13%, to $6.18. Consensus pegged estimates of $60.29 billion for sales and $7.22 in GAAP earnings per share. CEO Mark Zuckerberg had the following to say in the press release: AI is accelerating our core business today, powering our next generation of products, and opening the door to entirely new enterprise opportunities. The results are already showing, and I’m optimistic about … Read more

Meta Platforms Climbs on Expected Advertising Revenue Strength

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Image Source: TradingView By Brian Nelson, CFA On January 28, Meta Platforms (META) reported fourth quarter results that showed a beat on both the top and bottom lines. Revenue increased 24% year-over-year in the quarter (up 23% on a constant currency basis), to $59.9 billion, beating consensus expectations for growth of about 21%, while income from operations advanced 6% year-over-year. Its operating margin contracted roughly 7 percentage points in the period, though net income and diluted earnings per share increased 9% and 11%, respectively. Diluted earnings per share was $8.88, up from $8.02 in the year ago period. Family daily active people (DAP) was 3.58 billion on average for December 2025, an increase of 7% year-over-year. Ad impressions increased 18% … Read more

Meta Platforms Issues Third Quarter Revenue Guidance Well Above Consensus

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Image: Meta’s free cash flow remains robust despite higher capital spending. By Brian Nelson, CFA On July 30, Meta Platforms (META) reported blockbuster second quarter results with revenue and GAAP earnings per share exceeding the consensus forecast. Revenue grew 22% on a year-over-year basis, to $47.5 billion (consensus was $44.8 billion) while costs and expenses rose at a more modest 12% rate in the quarter, driving a 38% increase in income from operations. Meta’s operating margin rose roughly 5 percentage points, to 43%. Net income increased 36% in the quarter, while diluted earnings per share rose 38%, to $7.14 (consensus was $5.90). Meta’s family daily active people (DAP) on average for June 2025 increased 6%. Ad impressions delivered across its … Read more

3 Undervalued Stocks to Consider Buying Now

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Dear readers:   With the markets retracing most of their recent drawdown, we’re taking a victory lap as we didn’t panic, nor should have you. We highlighted our wait-and-see approach amidst the worst of the pullback, and we expect the Magnificent 7 (large cap growth and big cap tech) to continue to propel the markets higher, as they have done.   We’ve been busy rolling valuation models as we finetune our assumptions for a great number of companies under coverage. While doing so, we came across three undervalued stocks that are also included in the simulated newsletter portfolios. We think they’re prime for highlight.   The three stocks are UnitedHealth Group (UNH), Nvidia (NVDA) and Alphabet (GOOG). We spend a lot of time on discounted cash-flow valuation, … Read more

Magnificent 7 Earnings Reports Not Bad Thus Far

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By Brian Nelson, CFA   Shortly after Trump’s Liberation Day, where the President unveiled lofty tariffs on numerous countries, we released our wait-and-see outlook for the equity markets, which thus far has proven to be the right move, with the markets largely recovering from the depths reached in April. The S&P 500 (SPY), for example, is down just 3.3% year-to-date, excluding dividends.   A lot has happened since Liberation Day, including easing of tariffs to a 10% baseline for most, if not all, countries, with the key exception of China, where tariffs remain extremely elevated and prohibitive. Many countries are now reportedly negotiating trade agreements with the White House, and we expect China to be added to that list soon, even if … Read more

Meta Platforms Posts Excellent First Quarter Results

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Image: Meta’s free cash flow remains robust. By Brian Nelson, CFA On April 30, Meta Platforms (META) reported excellent first quarter results with revenue and GAAP earnings per share coming in ahead of consensus estimates. Revenue increased 16% in the quarter, while income from operations advanced 27%. Meta’s operating margin expanded 3 percentage points in the quarter, to 41%, beating estimates. Net income leapt 35%, while diluted earnings per share increased 37% from last year’s quarter. CEO Mark Zuckerberg had the following to say about the quarter: We’ve had a strong start to an important year, our community continues to grow and our business is performing very well. We’re making good progress on AI glasses and Meta AI, which now … Read more

Trump Tariffs Higher than Expected; What We’re Doing

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By Brian Nelson, CFA The Trump tariff increases came in larger than what we were expecting, and it remains to be seen how they will flow through the global economy, as we monitor potential retaliatory tariffs from other countries. As it relates to the equity markets, we’re taking a wait and see approach at the moment as we monitor new policy changes related to trade, immigration, fiscal (tax), and regulations. In short, we’re not overreacting to the sell off as we won’t have a great handle on the tariff impact to companies for a few quarters when they report results post-tariff increases. That said, we’re expecting continued market volatility, with meaningful risk to the downside, before trade uncertainty alleviates in … Read more

Meta Platforms’ Earnings Surge in Fourth Quarter

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Image Source: Meta Platforms By Brian Nelson, CFA On January 29, Meta Platforms (META) reported better than expected fourth quarter results with revenue and GAAP earnings per share outpacing the consensus forecasts. Revenue increased 21% in the quarter on a year-over-year basis, and the company was able to leverage the higher sales into a 43% increase in income from operations. Its fourth-quarter operating margin expanded 7 percentage points, to 48%. Net income increased 49%, to $20.8 billion, while diluted earnings per share advanced 50%, to $8.02. Its family daily active people (DAP) was 3.35 billion on average for December 2024, an increase of 5% on a year-over-year basis. Ad impressions across its Family of Apps increased 6% in the fourth … Read more

Keeping the Horse Before the Cart: Valuentum’s Economic Castle Rating

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Image Source: Ian By Brian Nelson, CFA “In business, I look for economic castles protected by unbreachable moats.” – Warren Buffett In the world of investing, no other saying may be more widespread. The teachings of Berkshire Hathaway’s (BRK.A, BRK.B) Warren Buffett have become a favorite among individual investors, having been adopted by money-management firms and sell-side firms alike in order to better connect with their clients and readers who have been ‘under siege’ by the topic in recent years. The phrase ‘economic moat’ – or sustainable competitive advantage – has simply become ubiquitous in the investment world and perhaps has lost much of its significance and meaning along the way. Most management teams across the globe are now eager … Read more

Alert: Changes to the Newsletter Portfolios

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Image Source: Mike Cohen cc by 2.0. Summary Best Ideas Newsletter portfolio Pepsi (PEP): 4%-6% à 0% McDonald’s (MCD): 4%-6% à 0% Amazon (AMZN): 0% à 4%-6% Nvidia (NVDA): 0% à 4%-6% Dividend Growth Newsletter portfolio Honeywell (HON): 3%-4% à 0% McDonald’s (MCD): 3%-4% à 0% Meta Platforms (META): 0% à 3%-4% Booking Holdings (BKNG): 0% à 3%-4% By Brian Nelson, CFA 2024 proved to be a great year for stock investors. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (DIA) has advanced nearly 15% year-to-date on a price-only basis, while the SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) is up a whopping 25%+ on a price-only basis. The Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) is up even more at a 27% advance in … Read more