Here's what every major analyst predicts for Facebook's earnings after the bell

Published Wed, Jan 29 202012:18 PM EST

(This story is for CNBC PRO subscribers only.) Wall Street analysts think Facebook investors are in for another big quarter when the company reports its fourth-quarter earnings report on Wednesday after the bell. Despite a litany of ongoing issues, most notably the regulatory threats, there's lots to like about the social media giant according to analysts. The company has a wide-ranging platform with features like Stories, Messenger, and WhatsApp that analysts say should accelerate growth . The stock also continues to surge and is up over 47% over the last year. Analysts will also be listening closely for commentary on political headwinds, ad revenue growth , and updates on Facebook's blockchain digital currency Libra. Here's what analysts are saying about Facebook earnings: "Facebook continues to execute on its core business model almost flawlessly," Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter said. "We expect Facebook to continue its rapid growth overseas and to increase monetization of under-penetrated Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger," he said. The firm also thinks the regulatory worries are overdone and sees an upward trajectory ahead. "Notwithstanding heightened regulatory scrutiny, we expect Facebook to grow its revenues and profits for many years." The sentiment was similar at KeyBanc which also predicted a robust quarter led by strength in advertising. "We expect Facebook to report solid top-line growth with potential for upside to our and consensus revenue estimates," analyst Andy Hargreaves said. "We believe the company continues to drive solid growth in total ad volume with like-for-like pricing trends that remain positive," the firm said. Facebook also continues to impress analysts with new and diverse products like Stories, its live video feature, which in turn should lead to more ads. "Looking forward, we believe Facebook remains very well positioned to benefit from the growing volume of commerce that is initiated and conducted on its platforms," they said. Not even an abbreviated holiday season is likely to stop the company's momentum, according to Stifel. ""Despite a shorter-than-usual holiday shopping season in 4Q:19, third-party ad agency checks suggest holiday ad spend remained healthy and Facebook likely saw another quarter of robust advertising growth as retailers adjusted their strategies to cope with the calendar change," analyst John Egbert said. The firm noted that shares appear undervalued and advised clients that now is the time buy. "At current levels, FB shares appear extremely inexpensive relative to growth, particularly in comparison to peers, and earnings growth should be sufficient to drive FB shares to healthy near- and long-term returns." Morgan Stanley- Overweight rating "We remain bullish FB as 1) The runway for online ad growth is long/expanding 2) Instagram Stories/Core FB can drive 23%+ '20 ad rev growth and we see ~$5bn of emerging ad products for '21 and beyond and 3) We see positive revisions ahead with FB trading at 11X EBITDA for ~20% growth." Barclays- Overweight rating "We would add to FB positions ahead of 4Q results and remain upbeat on the story in 2020. Upside catalysts from here include: 1) steady upward estimate revisions, in contrast to other mega-caps, 2) a decent possibility of margin stabilization in 2020, 3) Commerce starting to take form in 2020, and 4) possibly WhatsApp monetization at some point. Concerns over regulatory and engagement continue to weigh down FB's multiple near the 3-year trough which we view as attractive." Evercore ISI- Outperform rating "For all intents and purposes, FB 4Q financial results are likely to prove a fairly straight forward exercise. Our checks with marketers indicate healthy ad demand and pricing, suggesting less slowdown in revenue growth than articulated in Street models, and our analysis of data underscores stable growth in users across both Facebook Blue and Instagram. That said, our recent meetings with investors suggest that the buy side is reasonably ahead of sell side consensus. Susquehanna rating- Positive rating "Overall, we continue to like the Facebook secular ad share gain story, as we see the company as one of the key beneficiaries of the offline-to-online digital ad shift. We see FB as a reliable 20%+ top-line grower with potentially faster bottom-line growth over the next several years. Our 4Q checks were generally solid, with most suggesting budget growth ahead of expectations." Wells Fargo- Overweight rating "While we believe that FB was likely impacted by the shortened holiday sales season, we believe revenue deceleration will likely be more moderate than feared, as we believe targeting headwinds will be moderated by an unaggressive rollout (in our view) of FB's OFA (Off-Facebook Activity) consumer privacy tools. However, with FB stock up 15% since the 3Q print , we believe expectations for 4Q may be somewhat elevated." Stifel- Buy rating "Despite a shorter-than-usual holiday shopping season in 4Q:19, third-party ad agency checks suggest holiday ad spend remained healthy and Facebook likely saw another quarter of robust advertising growth as retailers adjusted their strategies to cope with the calendar change. We expect user growth / engagement to remain healthy in 4Q after a surprise rebound in 3Q, and think Facebook may report new growth milestones within its family of apps during the next few quarters. A more optimistic outlook for revenue growth in FY 2020 combined with strong expected audience growth, meaningful operating leverage and an attractive valuation by nearly any measure keep us bullish on the stock." JPMorgan- Overweight rating "We believe Facebook's virtual ownership of the social graph, strong competitive moat, and focus on the user experience position it to become an enduring blue-chip company built for the long term. Facebook is in rarefied air across the combination of scale, growth, and profitability, as the company's massive reach and engagement continue to drive network effects, and its targeting abilities provide significant value to advertisers." Baird- Outperform rating "In general, our Q4 checks suggest decent trends for e-commerce and online advertising, although there was clear deceleration in growth through December, which we assume limited the level of upside vs. consensus expectations. ... Level of distraction or impact from macro/regulatory issues; investments in platform safety/data privacy; ramping Messenger/WhatsApp monetization; Instagram Shopping rollout; Groups and Marketplace focus; mix of advertising between feed and stories; Libra?" KeyBanc- Overweight rating "We expect Facebook to report solid top-line growth with potential for upside to our and consensus revenue estimates. We believe the Company continues to drive solid growth in total ad volume with like-for-like pricing trends that remain positive. We believe demand for Stories ads continues to grow, and is being aided by an increasing use of Facebook's publisher automation system, which helps Facebook balance demand across the platform and increase returns for advertisers. Looking forward, we believe Facebook remains very well positioned to benefit from the growing volume of commerce that is initiated and conducted on its platforms." Wedbush- Outperform rating "We expect Facebook to continue its rapid growth overseas and to increase monetization of under-penetrated Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger. ..Facebook continues to execute on its core business model almost flawlessly. ... Facebook arguably has a monopoly over the social media landscape, but has no opportunity to charge users for its service; instead, the company delivers advertising to its users, and its total revenues make up only a small portion of global advertising. ... Notwithstanding heightened regulatory scrutiny, we expect Facebook to grow its revenues and profits for many years." Guggenheim- Buy rating "We see significant further appreciation potential for Facebook shares in 2020 given 1) its steady, industry-leading position in mobile social media and advertising, 2) near-term (Stories, messaging, and video) and longer-term (e-commerce, payments, and Oculus gaming platform) incremental monetization opportunities, 3) increasingly transparent approach towards regulatory/privacy issues, and 4) significant financial resources." RBC- Outperform rating "Based on intra-quarter data points, and our model sensitivity work, we view Street December quarter estimates as reasonable, with modestly greater likelihood of upside vs. downside variance. We would expect FB to maintain its qualitative guidance for Revenue growth to decelerate in 2020 as well as its 2020 Total Expense outlook for $54-$59B and CapEx guidance of $17-19B." SunTrust- Buy rating "Intra-quarter conversations with marketers support our bullish stance and estimates, which while solid reflect Q/Q deceleration due to a shortened holiday season. That said advertiser demand remains strong on both core Facebook and Instagram, benefiting from the platform's scale, targeting capabilities and favorable return on investment." Credit Suisse- Outperform rating "We maintain our Outperform rating on the following thesis points: 1) potential for better-than-expected ad revenue growth given ongoing product innovation around all of its currently-monetized properties 2) Street models are too conservative and underestimate the long-term monetization potential of other billion-user properties like Messenger and WhatsApp, 3) optionality for faster-than-expected FCF growth as Facebook begins to find greater efficiency in content screening and security." Monness Crespi Hardt- Buy rating "Despite the challenging regulatory environment, growing antitrust scrutiny, ad targeting headwinds and transition to stories, Facebook turned in a strong performance in 2019 and we believe the stock remains attractive. ... we still view 2020 as another year of transition given the company's continued investments in safety, security and privacy, while the monetization of Stories is still work-in-progress, albeit showing improvement, and ad targeting will remain a headwind." Deutsche Bank- Buy rating "We are bullish on Facebook shares for 2020, recently making it our top mega cap idea and adding it to The DB Fresh Money List, 1Q 2020, replacing last quarter's pick. We think the resurgence in core Facebook app performance flagged last quarter is set to continue into 2020 and can help drive top line and multiple expansion as investors gain comfort in the durability of the core Blue app. In 4Q, we see upside to advertising revenue based on conversations in the industry, with notable strength in Core Facebook." BMO- Market perform rating "As we enter the company's new fiscal year, we are constructive that ad spend on Facebook and Instagram will likely continue to rise meaningfully. Impressions and ad load should trend higher and we believe users are increasingly converging their intent for inspiration and commerce on social platforms. This likely gives way to higher conversion rates and subsequently, ad dollars. Despite this, we remain cautious on potential continued deceleration due to "headwinds to targeting" particularly those due to "platform changes."

Facebook Chairman and CEO Mark Zuckerberg testifies at a House Financial Services Committee hearing in Washington, October 23, 2019.

Erin Scott | Reuters

(This story is for CNBC PRO subscribers only.)

Wall Street analysts think Facebook investors are in for another big quarter when the company reports its fourth-quarter earnings report on Wednesday after the bell.

Despite a litany of ongoing issues, most notably the regulatory threats, there's lots to like about the social media giant according to analysts. The company has a wide-ranging platform with features like Stories, Messenger, and WhatsApp that analysts say should accelerate growth.

The stock also continues to surge and is up over 47% over the last year.

Analysts will also be listening closely for commentary on political headwinds, ad revenue growth, and updates on Facebook's blockchain digital currency Libra.

Here's what analysts are saying about Facebook earnings: