When Facebook reports its first-quarter results after the bell today, all eyes will be on its mobile numbers. As more users shift to mobile devices, the big question is how quickly the social network is ramping up its mobile profits.
Wall Street analysts are looking for a bigger percentage of Facebook's revenue to come from mobile—to at least 25 percent from 23 percent last quarter. Of course, the number and percentage of people checking Facebook on their mobile devices daily and monthly will also be key. Investors want to see if the introduction of mobile ads is a turnoff.
With expectations of higher mobile revenue, analysts are looking for total advertising revenue growth better than the 43 percent the company would have seen in the first quarter if not for year-over-year changes in foreign exchange rates.
Analysts are projecting revenue up 36 percent to $1.439 billion, on earnings per share of 13 cents, according to Thompson One Analytics. Facebook has said it expects operating costs to increase by roughly 50 percent this year, so with shares up over 7 percent in the last five trading days alone, expectations have been building.