'Guess we're not dead yet': Elon Musk just posted a laughing emoji after X surpassed Instagram, Facebook in driving traffic through Google — by a wide margin. Is it time to sell META?
Tesla CEO Elon Musk acquired Twitter for $44 billion in 2022. Since then, he has implemented some major changes to the social media platform, including rebranding it as X, retiring the iconic bird logo and reducing its workforce by approximately 80%.
The transformation of X has met with mixed reactions, and some observers have been predicting the platform's decline, especially after Facebook and Instagram’s parent company, Meta Platforms (META), introduced a rival app named “Threads.”
Don’t miss
Commercial real estate has outperformed the S&P 500 over 25 years. Here's how to diversify your portfolio without the headache of being a landlord
Worried about the economy? Here are the best shock-proof assets for your portfolio. (They’re all outside of the stock market.)
'A natural way to diversify': Janet Yellen now says Americans should expect a decline in the USD as the world's reserve currency — 3 ways you can prepare
A Google search for “Twitter is dying” yields numerous articles from high-profile outlets like TechCrunch, Vox, and Bloomberg, all featuring this viewpoint prominently.
But a recent post on X highlighted that the platform was leading in traffic generation via Google’s top 100 organic search results. The post reads, “X Traffic Update! X surpasses Instagram and Facebook by a significant margin in driving traffic through Google.”
This update caught Musk’s attention, who shared the post with his commentary, “Guess we’re not dead yet,” accompanied by the tears-of-joy emoji.
Musk’s post garnered significant engagement: 39 million views and 336,000 likes were accumulated within 24 hours.
It also sparked a discussion in the replies. A notably popular reply, which received more than 4,200 likes, reads, “Meta is censorship. X is free speech. This is not difficult.”
Time to bail on Meta?
While X may be performing better than some people had anticipated, investors might not want to ignore Meta — as the company remains a behemoth in the social media industry.
Meta's third-quarter earnings report, for the period ending Sept. 30, 2023, shows Facebook had reached 3.05 billion monthly active users, a 3% increase from the previous year.
Read more: Rich young Americans have lost confidence in the stock market — and are betting on these 3 assets instead. Get in now for strong long-term tailwinds
The broader reach of Meta's family of services — including Facebook, Instagram, Messenger and WhatsApp, among others — amassed a whopping 3.96 billion monthly active users as of the end of Q3, marking 7% growth year over year. This figure represents approximately half of the global population.
Meta has also seen improvements in user monetization. In Q3, Facebook's average revenue per user (ARPU) rose to $11.23, up from $9.41 in the same quarter the previous year.
The company's total revenue in Q3 grew by 23% year over year, reaching $34.15 billion. Net income came in at $11.58 billion, or $4.39 per share.
Meta’s stock has also shown remarkable growth, soaring 170% year to date. JPMorgan analyst Doug Anmuth sees further upside on the horizon. The analyst has an "Overweight" rating on Meta and a price target of $400 — roughly 18% above the current levels.
What to read next
Super-rich Americans are snatching up prime real estate abroad as US housing slumps — but here's a sharp way to invest without having to move overseas
Here's how much the typical baby boomer has saved for retirement — how do you stack up right now?
Jeff Bezos and Oprah Winfrey invest in this asset to keep their wealth safe — you may want to do the same in 2024
This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.