Facebook is expected to report first-quarter earnings and revenue in extended trading on Wednesday, and investors will be watching for clues on how the social network plans to monetize its key Stories feature.
Wall Street anticipates that the company will report earnings of $1.63 per share ー down from $1.69 a year ago ー and revenue of $14.9 billion, according to analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters.
Facebook ($FB) shares have rebounded close to 50 percent since December lows. The stock had weakened throughout 2018 following a series of data breaches and privacy scandals. Its recovery suggests investors may be feeling confident Facebook can weather future regulatory or privacy challenges that come its way.
That doesn't, of course, discount any more potential revelations regarding Facebook's privacy mismanagement. Facebook disclosed on Apr. 19 ー the same day that Special Counsel Robert Mueller's report on Russia and the White House dropped ー that login info for millions of Instagram users had been stored in a readable format on Facebook's internal servers, Common Dreams reported.
Facebook's fourth-quarter results reinforced investor optimism. The company reported stronger than anticipated earnings and revenue, despite ongoing controversy over the company's handling of privacy and its users' data. The company's earnings jumped 68 percent since the previous year and revenue climbed by about 61 percent, CNBC reported. Facebook also saw daily active users grow in its core Facebook product, even the U.S., where active users had previously plateaued.
The company also announced last quarter it would stop breaking out active users for its core Facebook platform, instead wrapping them into metrics from its other properties. That move would likely hide stagnation for Facebook, but also could hamper bigger growth numbers from products like Instagram.
Lastly, Facebook has been laser-focused on its Stories features and messaging apps. CEO Mark Zuckerberg said Facebook will shift focus toward encrypted and private messaging, despite the company's rather checkered history with privacy. Facebook execs could share clarification on its plans to monetize Stories and unify messaging on a call with investors after the social media giant reports earnings.
While people have been spending more time on their phones throughout the pandemic, a new report shows they were also spending more money as well. A review from Sensor Tower on the global app ecosystem this year found that the app economy will see record consumer spending in 2021, up nearly 20% from 2020. Sensor Tower director of sales and financial institutions Anthony Bartolacci joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to break down the report.
The future of gambling in Florida recently suffered a major setback after a federal appeals court rejected a request from the state and the Seminole Tribe to allow online sports betting in the state. Now, the tribe has been forced to stop taking bets on its Hard Rock sportsbook app. ESPN gaming writer David Purdum joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss what this could mean for the future of sports betting in Florida.
Lance Ippolito, Head Trader at the Future Of Wealth, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell where he discusses the factors that have contributed to the recent slide of major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ether.
Web3 software startup Thirdweb has raised $5 million in a funding round, coming from a group of high-profile investors, including Gary Vaynerchuk and Mark Cuban. Thirdweb says it is paving the way for the revolution surrounding the new iteration of the internet known as web3, by offering users free tools to build their own web3 projects. Thirdweb's co-founders Steven Bartlett and Furqan Rydhan join Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
Decentralized talent network Braintrust recently closed an atypical equity deal that involved investors buying $100 million in Braintrust tokens, the company's cryptocurrency. Braintrust's talent network is built on blockchain technology, which the company says allows it to be owned and built by users, instead of a centrally-controlled corporation. Braintrust users can also earn tokens for their contributions to the network and its growth. Braintrust co-founder Adam Jackson joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
Blue Origin launched its third manned mission over the weekend with 'Good Morning America' host Michael Strahan and Laura Shepard Churchley, daughter of astronaut Alan Shepard on board, alongside several Blue Origin investors.
This comes after the spaceflight firm launched two successful missions to the edge of space earlier this year. How will these missions set up Blue Origin for success as it competes with SpaceX and other companies for space tourism domination and more? Joey Roulette, space reporter at The New York Times, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
Editorial and stock photo provider Getty Images is gearing up to make its public debut via a SPAC merger with CC Neuberger Principal Holdings II bringing it to a $4.8 billion valuation. CEO Craig Peters joined Cheddar to break down the decision to go public and noted that the merger will help to pay down debt. "That's going to really enable a lot of additional free cash flow and financial flexibility into the business," he noted. "That's just going to allow us to just invest more aggressively into the business to accelerate what is already accelerating growth." Peters also discussed the legacy image platform's place going forward in the expanding world of digital assets like NFTs and the metaverse.
Headspace Health has just launched the 'Headspace for Teens' social impact initiative, which will offer free access to the Headspace app for all teens ages 13 - 18 in America. Alice Nathoo, head of social impact at Headspace joins Cheddar News to talk about the program.
Cuy Sheffield, head of crypto at Visa, joined Cheddar's "Closing Bell" to talk about Visa's commitment and the partnerships the company has established to make crypto a conventional form of currency. He noted that banks are becoming more receptive to digital currency as their customers move portions of money to crypto platforms and also explained steps Visa is taking to make them more climate conscious.
