We recently published a list of Analyst Says These 10 AI Stocks Have More Upside Potential. Since Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ:META) ranks 3rd on the list, it deserves a deeper look.
King Lip, BakerAvenue Wealth Management’s chief strategist, recently talked to CNBC about the latest decline in tech stocks and market rotation. Lip said that he’s still bullish on tech stocks and a single event does not show a trend. However, the cause of decline in tech stocks last week was the lower-than-expected CPI data which caused investors to do some “profit taking” and invest in names that can benefit “more” from lower interest rates, according to the analyst. Lip noted that small-cap stocks, real estate stocks, among others, gained ground on the back of this trend.
However, Lip has high expectations from the upcoming earnings reports from tech companies. He also said that July has been one of the strongest months for tech stocks. Lip, however, said that major tech companies cannot go on to post record gains and their returns are expected to “fall in line with historical returns.”
Lip thinks the economy is entering a “Goldilocks scenario” where growth is steady but not “hot enough” to cause inflation. He reiterated his view that he expects strong earnings growth this year and in 2025, which could be a tailwind for stocks.
Asked what would cause earnings growth of tech companies, Lip said a lot of that comes down to efficient management and strong cash piles these companies have. He also said “slightly” lower interest rates could also be a tailwind for the economy.
Since Lip is bullish on tech stocks and believes major AI companies still have upside potential, we decided to take a look at the top names in his portfolio. These are the top holdings of King Lip, according to CNBC. With each stock we have mentioned the number of hedge fund investors. Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).
Photo by Alexander Shatov on Unsplash
Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:META)
Number of Hedge Fund Investors: 246
King Lip’s portfolio also features Meta Platforms.
The social media giant is using AI for optimizing ad targeting and recommendation systems to boost engagement and ads revenue. In the first quarter, Meta Platforms Inc’s (NASDAQ:META) revenue jumped 27% to $36.5 billion. A whopping 97% of this revenue came courtesy of ads. In 2024, Meta Platforms Inc’s (NASDAQ:META) ads revenue is expected to rise by 17%. Reels, which is posting solid numbers and engagement lately, saw a 20% ad load in the first quarter, compared with 16.2% in the same quarter last year. Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:META) recently posted speculator Q1 results but the stock slipped after the company revealed that Meta Platforms Inc’s (NASDAQ:META) CapEx will come in the range of $35 billion to $40 billion, higher than the previous forecast of $30 billion to $37 billion. However, long-term analysts believe since most of this spending will go into AI projects, it’ll bode well for the stock down the road.
Based on its 2025 EPS estimate of $23.11 set by Wall Street, Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ:META) is trading at a forward P/E of 21, which makes the stock attractively valued given Meta’s earnings are expected to grow 14.50% next year and by 30% over the next five years on a per-annum basis.
Alger Focus Equity Fund stated the following regarding Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) in its Q1 2024 investor letter:
“Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) operates the world’s largest social network, with over 3 billion monthly active users across its platform. The company generates revenue predominantly from advertising. which accounts for over 95% of its total revenue, evenly split between North America and international markets. During the quarter, shares contributed to performance following the release of strong fiscal fourth quarter operating results, with revenues and earnings surpassing analyst estimates. The better-than- expected revenues were attributed to strong advertiser demand and Al-driven ad improvements. Moreover, the company materially raised its fiscal first quarter sales and earnings guidance above analysts’ estimates, buoyed by continued strong advertiser demand trends and enhancements to Reels. Advantage+. Click-to-message, and Shop Ads. Further, management noted that ongoing investment in Al is enhancing user engagement and advertiser returns through improved targeting and measurement. Separately, Meta authorized a new share repurchase plan representing approximately 5% of its market capitalization and announced the initiation of its first dividend, implying an approximate 0.4% yield.”
Overall, Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ:META) ranks 3rd on Insider Monkey’s list titled Analyst Says These 10 AI Stocks Have More Upside Potential. While we acknowledge the potential of Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ:META), our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than META but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
READ NEXT: Analyst Sees a New $25 Billion “Opportunity” for NVIDIA and Jim Cramer is Recommending These Stocks.
Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.