Few people are unfamiliar with the social media platform Facebook by now. Facebook has almost half of the world’s user population active every month, making it one of the globe’s most influential mediums. The existence of this social media platform has certainly not been without controversies, but the Facebook share value seems to continue to grow despite these incidents; in 2020, it still enjoyed significant growth, partly thanks to the coronavirus crisis.
The article covers the following subjects:
Are you interested in buying Facebook shares? Is it a good investment? This article takes a closer look at the Facebook equities, the historical figures, exciting news about the company, expert opinions, and what we can expect from the FB stock forecast in 2021 and beyond!
A Little Facebook History
Facebook Inc. was founded on February 4, 2004, by Mark Zuckerberg, Dustin Moskovitz, Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, and Chris Hughes. Since its inception, Facebook has become one of the most influential players on the internet. Facebook.com is the 3rd largest website in the world, according to website comparator Alexa. Only Google and YouTube are considered slightly more important.
The headquarters of Facebook Inc. is located in Palo Alto, California. Mark Zuckerberg and more than 25,000 of his employees coordinate all activities that Facebook Inc. currently holds. And there are plenty of activities because Facebook now also owns Instagram, WhatsApp, and Oculus VR.
Facebook’s 2018 Q1 results were published on March 17, 2018. Founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg commented on the numbers, “We’ve had a great start to the year.” Sales in the 1st quarter of 2018 were $12.4 billion. A year earlier, sales in the first quarter were still $9.5 billion. Another striking aspect of the publication was the increase in the number of active monthly users. This number increased by 15% to 2.13 billion. The number of daily users rose 16% to 1.40 billion. Big numbers if you think about it! The current world population is around 7.8 billion.
The table below shows Facebook’s revenue, net profit, price/earnings ratio, and earnings per share. In 2017, Facebook managed to achieve sales of approximately $ 40 billion. Revenue has grown considerably every year, and this has also had a very positive impact on this social media giant’s net profit. If the net profit is compared to the turnover, we can expect Facebook to run high margins. As a shareholder, you can, in any case, be sure of a good return.
|
2015 |
2016 |
2017 |
2018 |
2019 |
2020 |
Revenue |
17.928 bn |
27.638 bn |
40.653 bn |
55.242 bn |
70.140 bn |
86.565 bn |
Net Profit |
3.669 bn |
10.188 bn |
15.920 bn |
21.514 bn |
26.384bn |
32.496 bn |
Price/earnings ratio |
81.1 |
33 |
32.7 |
25.4 |
20.9 |
17.2 |
Earnings per share ($) |
1.29 |
3.49 |
5.39 |
7.24 |
8.81 |
10.7 |
The price has risen sharply since November 2012. In the years 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017, the share’s closing price was higher than the starting price. A great achievement! In November 2012, it was still possible to purchase Facebook shares for about $20. The price is now many times higher! On May 18, 2012, Facebook went public. Analysts were initially very pessimistic about the company’s ability to generate profits. The dot-com bubble was still fresh in our minds, and analysts also seemed to be right. In the first months after the IPO, the FB share price fell below the launch price. Over time, it slowly became apparent that Facebook could achieve good turnover and profit figures.
The volatility is large enough to take full advantage of these shares as a day trader. There are, therefore, good opportunities to make a lot of money with Facebook shares in the short term. The FB forecast is positive. In the long-run, it is certainly interesting to look at these stocks. Mark Zuckerberg still has many plans.
Facebook Stock Price Today
Facebook was also affected by the coronaVIRUS crisis and experienced a sharp drop in share value due to the 2020 stock market crash. The crash, which is also referred to as the Coronavirus Crash and the Coronavirus Correction, was a major and sudden global stock market crash that began on February 20, 2020, and ended on April 7. Meanwhile, the Facebook share price has still managed only to recover.
While the Facebook share was worth only $146.01 at its lowest point on March 16, 2020, later that year, there was a record high in Facebook share value of $303.91 on August 26, 2020. On Nasdaq, a Facebook Inc. Stock is traded at a current price of $306.04.
Despite the many controversies over the years and loss of trust due to privacy scandals, the Facebook share forecast seems to be getting stronger. However, the price seems to be falling again, partly thanks to the upcoming lawsuit.
This lawsuit’s outcome may play a large part in Facebook’s stock value for the foreseeable future. Therefore, it is best to keep a close eye on the news about this lawsuit and the surrounding developments as an interested investor.
FB stock forecast: What do Experts Think?
All in all, it shouldn’t be surprising that Facebook equities are doing very well at the moment. Social media is an essential outlet for many people during the lockdown, and Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp offer an opportunity to connect with friends and family.
As a result, the Facebook stock value has risen exponentially, and the price is comfortable, despite the market crash last year. However, the price seems to be slowing down slightly following the significant lawsuit that the FTC is filing against Facebook, intending to dissolve the illegal monopoly that Facebook has, according to the regulator. But what do the experts say? This recent data was published on January 29, 2021.
Jefferies & Co.
Jefferies & Co., the American multinational independent investment bank and financial services company, raised the FB price target to $350.00 from $320.00. The purchase advice of Wednesday, October 21, 2020, is repeated. Their previous advice resulted in a return of 4.11%.
Morgan Stanley
Multinational investment bank and financial services company Morgan Stanley raises Facebook’s price target to $345.00 from $340.00. The purchase advice of Wednesday, January 6, 2021, is repeated. Their previous advice has resulted in a return of 1.19%.
Keybank
Keybank, the primary subsidiary of KeyCorp, is raising FB price target to $360.00 from $345.00. The purchase advice of Wednesday, January 20, 2021, is repeated. Their previous advice has resulted in a return of 8.27%.
JMP Securities
Full-service investment banking and asset management firm JMP Securities raises FB price target to $355.00 from $305.00. The purchase advice of Monday, August 3, 2020, is repeated. Their previous advice has resulted in a return of 16.05%.
Therefore, the above-mentioned expert decisions can be seen as an opportunity to invest in Facebook shares and profit as possible in the future. Of course, you should keep an eye on the news surrounding this lawsuit because a split from WhatsApp and Instagram will significantly impact the Facebook share forecast and, therefore, value.
So do your research before you start buying Facebook shares. It may therefore be an attractive investment for the observant investor who closely follows the news about Facebook.
Facebook Stock Technical Analysis
We’ll start our Facebook stock technical analysis with the determination of global trends and key levels.
One-month time frame will be the most convenient to us as it shows the most significant price movements. Facebook stock’s price has constantly been rising in the past years. The blue trend line marks a stable bullish trend that began in 2013.
Analyzing the trade volumes on the one-month time frame, we see a volume splash in March 2020, marked with a blue mark. The bearish bar located right opposite the mark formed a local low at 137, confirming support near the trend line. So, if a negative forecast is realized, that level can be used as a correction target.
After a retracement, the FB stock price started growing even faster on big trade volumes and broke the historic high of 214 USD. A local range was thus formed, marked with thin green lines. The price continues moving within that range. Also, pay attention to a long consolidation in the range of 244 – 304 USD.
FB stock forecast for next three months
It’s time to do FB technical analysis on the weekly time frame. The price history analysis shows that the current values are strong resistance levels for buyers. The stock price has already passed a psychological level of 300 USD. A projected future price will depend on whether the stock can consolidate at that level. Looking at decreasing trade volumes, I can say investors aren’t enthusiastic about buying FB shares at such a high price.
Since the state of the economy in the world is quite pessimistic, speaking about FB shares’ upbeat prospects isn’t easy, but there aren’t any indications of a future collapse either.
The stock’s price will most likely continue growing to 330 – 350 USD in the nearest three months and then correct locally to the limits of the trading range of 244 – 304 USD.
What will be the price of FB shares in 2021?
To make a realistic forecast for each month of 2021, let’s do price movement analysis using monthly candlestick projections. I calculated their limits based on Bollinger Bands width.
As I said earlier, Facebook shares are expected to grow for some time in the coming months. The price prediction chart will come close to the level of 330 – 350 USD. Based on the sellers’ strength, the price may be expected to pull back to 304 USD.
Further actions will depend on whether or not that level will be broken. A likelier scenario is that the level will be broken, and the price will move to the trading range of 244 – 304.
The FB stock projected value will be held within that range for the most part of 2021, the worst drawdown going to 220 USD. The chart above shows the price’s expected moves in 2021, and the table below features the expected FB trading range for each month.
Month |
FB Price |
|
Minimum |
Maximum |
|
May 2021 |
291 |
345 |
June 2021 |
318 |
356 |
July 2021 |
297 |
350 |
August 2021 |
266 |
326 |
September 2021 |
244 |
296 |
October 2021 |
217 |
276 |
November 2021 |
221 |
266 |
December 2021 |
227 |
261 |
FB Technical analysis is presented by Mikhail Hypov.
Facebook Stock Forecast 2022 – 2023
Facebook stock price predictions for January 2022
The share forecast for the beginning of January is 286 dollars. The maximum value is 289, while the minimum is 257. Averaged Facebook stock forecast price for this month is 276. In the end, the price is forecasted to be 273, which means a change for January of -4.55%.
Facebook stock predictions for December 2022
The forecast for the beginning of December is 309 dollars. The maximum value is 321, while the minimum 285. Averaged Facebook forecast for this month is 305. In the end, the price is forecasted to be 303 USD, which means a change for December of -1.94%.
Facebook stock predictions for January 2023
The share forecast for the beginning of January is 303 dollars. The maximum value is 337, while the minimum is 299 US dollars. Averaged Facebook stock price predictions for this month are 314. In the end, the price is forecasted to be 318 dollars, which means a change for January of 4.95%.
Below is a detailed chart:
Year |
Mo |
Min |
Max |
Close |
Total% |
2022 |
Jan |
257 |
289 |
273 |
0.00% |
2022 |
Feb |
253 |
285 |
269 |
-1.47% |
2022 |
Mar |
258 |
290 |
274 |
0.37% |
2022 |
Apr |
268 |
302 |
285 |
4.40% |
2022 |
May |
281 |
317 |
299 |
9.52% |
2022 |
Jun |
267 |
301 |
284 |
4.03% |
2022 |
Jul |
267 |
301 |
284 |
4.03% |
2022 |
Aug |
280 |
316 |
298 |
9.16% |
2022 |
Sep |
266 |
300 |
283 |
3.66% |
2022 |
Oct |
279 |
315 |
297 |
8.79% |
2022 |
Nov |
290 |
328 |
309 |
13.19% |
2022 |
Dec |
285 |
321 |
303 |
10.99% |
2023 |
Jan |
299 |
337 |
318 |
16.48% |
Source: Longforecast.com
Long Term Facebook Stock Price Forecast 2025-2030
Facebook’s enormous social commerce opportunity is one of the main reasons to buy and hold FB stock for the long term. The only problem? Facebook’s frantic attempts to tap into its extensive social commerce opportunity to-date – such as Marketplace – haven’t worked. Sure, there have been minor successes. But they haven’t come too close to cracking the social commerce code.
That all changed on May 19, 2020, when Facebook announced Shops. Shops – available through both Facebook Shops and Instagram Shops – is Facebook’s best effort yet to tap into the social commerce market.
By the looks of it, it’s a winning effort. FB Shops offers the seamless shopping experience that both sellers and buyers are looking for. It covers everything from discovery to check-out and should be hugely popular among small-to-medium-sized merchants and Facebook users.
In other words, it’s the first noteworthy step in Facebook creating a vast online retail marketplace. By the end of the decade, we expect that this retail Marketplace could generate $70 billion in revenue – about as much revenue as the digital ad business creates today.
What are the investment implications if you buy FB stock? Social commerce could push the Facebook stock forecast to nearly $1,000 by the end of the decade. Please always keep in mind that such long-term forecasts are very approximate and are given exclusively for informational purposes.
Facebook Stock Price: Historical Data
Either way, we can’t make any reliable and realistic predictions, sometimes even short-term, without looking at historical data (price history). Below you can see how the FB stock price changed over the years of the company’s existence:
Factors that May Affect the Facebook Stock Price
Of course, Facebook is very often in the news and unfortunately often not in a positive way. For example, the platform is used for spreading conspiracy theories and selling user data. Below, we’ve included many noteworthy news items from the recent past. Such events may undoubtedly affect the Facebook stock price.
“Russian influence” in the 2016 US election
The 2016 US election caused a lot of controversy in itself, but when it became known that there would be Russian influence, these claims were extensively investigated.
For example, it was revealed that Facebook was selling ads to Russian authorities to influence the 2016 election in Trump’s favor. The company found more than $80,000 in advertising investments from pages and organizations that violated the platform’s rules.
The result of this for trading FB shares was, of course, self-evident: the value of the asset fell very sharply in 2018 when it became known that Facebook played a role in the Russian influence, following this great controversy.
The FTC sued Facebook
In December 2020, it was announced that the US regulator FTC (Federal Trade Commission) would sue Facebook for an illegal monopoly, which prevents users from protecting their privacy and data well enough.
Prosecutors demand that Facebook Inc., WhatsApp, and Instagram are divesting so that the company does not have all the data from these three platforms. Also, the FTC wants Facebook to request permission from now on before making acquisitions. If this lawsuit is successful, it will, of course, have significant consequences for Facebook’s share. However, the expectations are that this will only result in a large fine for the social media giant.
Conclusion. Are Facebook Stocks a Good Investment?
Facebook equities are, of course, always in the eye of many investors. The current Facebook share price seems to be going very well initially, but Facebook shares seem to be struggling in the last few weeks.
This most likely has to do with the announced lawsuit and the threat to separate WhatsApp and Instagram from Facebook. Still, vigilant investors who are confident that the case will not cause any significant impact can benefit. Facebook’s share seems to be declining again due to the negative publicity, making this a good entry point.
Year |
Month |
Min |
Max |
Close |
Total% |
2021 |
Jan |
243 |
287 |
258.33 |
-5.37% |
2021 |
Feb |
243 |
273 |
258 |
-5.49% |
2021 |
Mar |
231 |
261 |
246 |
-9.89% |
2021 |
Apr |
243 |
273 |
258 |
-5.49% |
2021 |
May |
240 |
270 |
255 |
-6.59% |
2021 |
Jun |
227 |
257 |
242 |
-11.36% |
2021 |
Jul |
239 |
269 |
254 |
-6.96% |
2021 |
Aug |
251 |
283 |
267 |
-2.20% |
2021 |
Sep |
257 |
289 |
273 |
0.00% |
2021 |
Oct |
270 |
304 |
287 |
5.13% |
2021 |
Nov |
283 |
319 |
301 |
10.26% |
2021 |
Dec |
269 |
303 |
286 |
4.76% |
Current facebook stock prices:
Note that Facebook is a company that is often scrutinized due to its turbulent past. If the company takes more privacy or propaganda missteps in the future, it could significantly cost the company, which already happened in 2018.
In contrast, the Facebook price prediction has significantly benefited from the frequent lockdowns due to the corona crisis, which led to a sharp increase in Facebook users compared to the previous year.
Also, home shopping businesses are growing exponentially, and e-commerce is increasingly important. Facebook as a platform can benefit enormously from this, thanks to the many possibilities to advertise on the platform against payment.
However, the advice on the Facebook stock future price should always be taken with a grain of salt. Note that our share of Facebook advice is just speculation about what may happen in the future. Remember, even the famous JP Morgan has made investment mistakes. So always do extensive research yourself before you start investing in assets. This will be much easier to accomplish by making a free demo account on LiteForex. If you think that trading or investing in FB shares is a good idea, LiteForex is a great platform to educate yourself on the subject and make rational decisions.
FB Stock Predictions FAQs
Disclaimer: This article’s contents are not intended as financial advice and should not be treated as such. LiteForex and its authors do not take any responsibility for your profits or losses after reading our articles. The info contained herein is based on data that was gathered from various sources. Always do your own independent research to make informed decisions regarding investments.
Price chart of FB in real time mode
The content of this article reflects the author’s opinion and does not necessarily reflect the official position of LiteForex. The material published on this page is provided for informational purposes only and should not be considered as the provision of investment advice for the purposes of Directive 2004/39/EC.