Facebook (FB) PT Raised to $107 at Mizuho Securities

Mizuho Securities analyst Neil Doshi reiterated a Buy rating and lifted his price target on Facebook (NASDAQ: FB) to $107.00 (from $104.00) following a solid Q2 beat.

Doshi commented, "Facebook reported a solid 2Q beat, although the stock traded off as we believe investor expectations were higher than the Street’s. Overall, the company delivered a solid quarter with revenue, operating income and EPS all coming in ahead of expectations. Management pointed to Video advertising as a key contributor to revenue growth during the quarter. Facebook still has one of the strongest revenue CAGRs of any large-cap Internet company (40%+) and one of the best margin profiles of any large-cap ‘Net company. We'd be buyers on any weakness, as Facebook remains our top pick."

Key Positives. 1) U.S./Canada ad revenue accelerated – to 55% YoY vs. 53% YoY on strong Mobile and News Feed ads, as well as contribution from video ads; 2) Good ad metrics – Price per Ad growth was 220% YoY vs. 285% in 1Q. Ad impressions declined 55% YoY, less worse than the 62% decline in 1Q, and this should improve in 3Q as FB anniversaries changes made to right-rail ads; 3) Solid margins – GM of 85% was the highest we’ve seen in years, and non-GAAP OM of 55.1% beat expectations; 4) Lowers expense outlook – mgmt lowered 2015 non-GAAP expense growth outlook from 50%-60% to 50%-55%; and 5) Growing user base - FB added ~50m MAUs in 2Q to 1.49b – that’s ~1/6th of Twitter’s total user base added in just one quarter.

The firm increasing 2015 EBITDA estimate by 1% to $10.3b, and 2016 EBITDA estimate by 3% to $13.8

For an analyst ratings summary and ratings history on Facebook click here. For more ratings news on Facebook click here.

Shares of Facebook closed at $96.99 yesterday.

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