Share This Article

Facebook LinkedIn
Twitter Reddit
Print Email
Pinterest Gmail
Yahoo
Money Morning
×
Login Archives Your Team About Us FAQ
[mmpazkzone name="azk58712-mobile-nav" network="9794" site="307044" id="222451" type="5"]
  • Subscribe
Enter stock ticker or keyword
×
[mmpazkzone name="azk58712-mobile-sticky" network="9794" site="307044" id="222451" type="5"]
Join 100,000+ Like-Minded Investors Today
Twitter
Tags: Facebook
Stocks: NEW

The Facebook Stock Price Just Received a New $3 Billion Catalyst

By Jack Delaney, Sr. Cannabis Editor, Money Morning • January 18, 2016

View Comments

Start the conversation

Leave a Reply Click here to cancel reply.

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Facebook is ready to monetize its messenger service WhatsApp. And that will add billions of dollars in additional revenue to the company's bottom line and continue to boost the Facebook stock price.

facebook stock priceIn a blog post today (Monday), WhatsApp announced it will no longer charge a $0.99 service fee after its first year of free service.

Business Insider projects that the messaging service could earn $3 billion annually in revenue by 2020.

Facebook Inc. (Nasdaq: FB) purchased WhatsApp for $19 billion in 2014. But CEO Mark Zuckerberg didn't initially offer a time frame for when WhatsApp would generate revenue.

In a Q2 2015 earnings call, Zuckerberg stated that he wanted WhatsApp to follow Facebook's path to monetization. He didn't want to overload the site with ads before users adopted and were comfortable with the platform.

Zuckerberg has grown WhatsApp from 450 million users to over 900 million, and today's WhatsApp news is an indication that monetization is close.

In the blog post, WhatsApp stated the cancelation of the service fee does not mean that ads will be immediately placed within the platform.

But WhatsApp did say it's going to work more closely with businesses in 2016, and that could drive revenue to Facebook and make the Facebook stock price climb.

"Starting this year, we will test tools that allow you to use WhatsApp to communicate with businesses and organizations that you want to hear from," the blog post stated. "That could mean communicating with your bank about whether a recent transaction was fraudulent, or with an airline about a delayed flight."

The Facebook stock price has provided gains of 149% for investors who bought in at the $38 IPO price in 2012, and WhatsApp's revenue will continue to drive the stock higher.

But that's not the only catalyst for the FB stock price in 2016...

Virtual Reality Will Drive the Facebook Stock Price Higher

On Jan. 6, Facebook began accepting pre-orders for its virtual reality headset, Oculus Rift. And the company's move into the virtual reality market will be another major revenue generator.

[mmpazkzone name="in-story" network="9794" site="307044" id="137008" type="4"]

By 2018, research firm CCS Insight projects that the augmented and virtual reality device market will be worth $4 billion.

Pre-orders cost $599 and will include a headset with a built-in headphone and microphone, a sensor, and an Xbox One controller. The Rift will be shipped to 20 countries starting on March 28 and will be available in select locations starting in April.

Virtual reality (VR) companies are mainly associated with video games, but VR can serve a much more significant role...

As far back as 2006, scientists were using VR to help amputees who were suffering from "phantom limb syndrome." Individuals with missing limbs can still experience pain where their limbs were amputated.

But according to CNET, a small study at the University of Manchester found that virtual reality helped four out of the five participants decrease their pain levels.

And Zuckerberg identified additional possibilities for VR in a Facebook post released after the purchase of Oculus.

"After games, we're going to make Oculus a platform for many other experiences," Zuckerberg stated. "Imagine enjoying a courtside seat at a game, studying in a classroom of students and teachers all over the world, or consulting with a doctor face-to-face - just by putting on goggles in your home."

Facebook has moved beyond just being a social media site. It has completely changed and will continue to change how we interact with the world around us.

But since the Facebook stock price is down in 2016, many investors are asking, "When is the best time to buy Facebook stock?"

For our Money Morning readers, Technical Trading Specialist D.R. Barton answered that exact question in the video below.

Jack Delaney is an associate editor for Money Morning. You can follow him on Twitter and follow Money Morning on Facebook.

ABOUT MONEY MORNING

Money Morning gives you access to a team of market experts with more than 250 years of combined investing experience – for free. Our experts – who have appeared on FOXBusiness, CNBC, NPR, and BloombergTV – deliver daily investing tips and stock picks, provide analysis with actions to take, and answer your biggest market questions. Our goal is to help our millions of e-newsletter subscribers and Moneymorning.com visitors become smarter, more confident investors.

QUICK LINKS
About Us How Money Morning Works FAQs Contact Us Search Article Archive Your Team Text Messaging Terms of Use
TOPICS
AI Investing Best Stocks to Buy Stock Forecasts Stocks to Sell Now Technology Stocks Best REITs to Buy Now IPO Stocks Penny Stocks Dividend Stocks Cryptocurrencies How to Trade Options Best Trades to Make Now Options Trading Strategies Weekly Trade Recommendations Income Investing Guide Retirement Articles Special Investing Reports Meet Our Experts
PREMIUM SERVICES
Money Map Press Home Fast Fortune Club Microcurrency Trader Rocket Wealth Initiative Quantum Data Profits Darknet Alpha Accelerators Brutus Alerts Resource Traders Alliance Rob Roy Trader Long-Term Equity Profits

© 2023 Money Morning All Rights Reserved. Protected by copyright of the United States and international treaties. Any reproduction, copying, or redistribution (electronic or otherwise, including the world wide web), of content from this webpage, in whole or in part, is strictly prohibited without the express written permission of Money Morning.

Address: 1125 N Charles St. | Baltimore, MD, 21201 | USA | Phone: 888.384.8339 | Disclaimer | Sitemap | Privacy Policy | Whitelist Us | Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information