McQuaid Group: Social media titan, Facebook has delighted investors with a first quarter earnings report that beat Wall Street analysts’ estimate by a considerable margin. The company’s stock jumped by as much as 10% in after-hours trading following the report and sees Facebook continue its consistent track record of consistently beating consensus expectations.

The Menlo Park, California-based company posted first quarter earnings of 77 cents a share on $5.38 billion in revenue against expectations of 62 cents a share on revenues of $5.26 billion.

Monthly active users or MAUs came in at a staggering 1.65 billion compared with Wall Street expectations for 1.63 billion while year-over-year quarterly revenue growth came in at an incredible 52% compared with already-lofty expectations for 48%.

“There’s no question, Facebook continues to dominate social media and clearly they continue to build on their fabulous mobile advertising revenue stream,” said McQuaid Group’s senior technology sector analyst alluding to the 82% of total advertising revenue mobile accounts for.

More than 3 million businesses actively use Facebook’s ad products while more than 200,000 use Instagram, the photo sharing service. The company recently announced that all telephone and instant messaging communication on its WhatsApp platform would offer end-to-end encryption to further enhance security, much to the chagrin of the US government which recently ended legal proceedings against Apple aimed at forcing the company to help unlock an iPhone belonging to San Bernardino gunman, Syed Farook.

Facebook’s results energized the technology sector after poor shows earlier in the week from tech giant Apple and micro-blogging service, Twitter, both of which saw their shares fall sharply.

About McQuaid Group:
With our expertise, we offer constructive and discerning insights into international equities, fixed income securities, commodities and "special" investments to a diverse roster of prosperous clientele and institutions while, at the same time, delivering an unequalled level of valuable professional services.
We are fast-becoming the "go-to" choice for both individual and institutional clients, as we are respected for our thorough and prudent advice when potential clients are looking for the services of a professional investment management firm. Our commitment to distinction is mainly driven by our attention to detail, research and "no-stone-unturned" approach to due diligence.