Evercore Stays Bullish on Meta Platforms Stock, Expects ‘Very Modest Beat & Bracket Q1’

Social media platform Meta Platforms (META) is scheduled to announce its Q1 2026 earnings on April 29. META stock has risen only 2% so far this year as investors are concerned about the company’s hefty capital expenditure to support its AI ambitions. That said, most Wall Street analysts remain bullish on the company’s long-term prospects. Ahead of Q1 earnings, Evercore analyst Mark Mahaney reiterated a Buy rating on META stock with a price target of $900.

Mahaney expects the company to deliver a “very modest beat & bracket Q1.” The analyst also commented on Meta’s recently announced layoffs.

Meanwhile, Wall Street expects Meta Platforms to report EPS (earnings per share) of $6.69 for Q1 2026, reflecting 4% year-over-year growth. Revenue is projected to increase 31.3% to $55.56 billion.

Evercore’s Expectations from META’s Q1 Earnings

Mahaney thinks that the Street’s Q1 revenue estimate for Meta Platforms is “reasonable,” due to several reasons, including:

• Evercore’s March channel checks were very constructive, with no signs of a broad-based pullback in ad spend. However, there were signs of ROAS (return on ad spend) softening in the final days of Q1 2026.
• A late-quarter boost from tax refunds that likely shifted ad budgets into late February and March, adding about 1 to 2 percentage points to underlying digital ad growth.
• Ongoing AI-driven tailwinds, including Meta Business AI and app-install optimization, seem to be driving efficiency and advertiser adoption.
• Advertisers continue to favor Meta, given its scale, deep ad inventory, and “perceived” durability of its return on investment (ROI).

Meanwhile, Mahaney also views the Street’s Q1 operating profit estimate of $19.2 billion as reasonable.

Views on Meta’s Recent Layoffs

Regarding Meta’s decision to lay off about 10% of its workforce, Mahaney thinks that the company is prioritizing long-term investments over day-to-day operating expenses. He noted that the industry is just starting to realize the growth prospects of agentic AI and the additional investments required to support this opportunity.

Mahaney believes that Meta’s financial priority remains driving operating income growth. The analyst expects the company’s efforts to reduce operating expenses to generate about $3 billion in annualized savings.

As Mahaney expects these savings to be directed toward Meta’s investments, he doesn’t project any major change to his expectation of a 2% growth in 2026 operating income (compared to the Street’s estimate of 4% growth).

Is META a Good Stock to Buy?

Overall, Wall Street has a Strong Buy consensus rating on Meta Platforms stock based on 40 Buys and six Holds. The average META stock price target of $855.60 indicates about 27% upside potential.