Bob Peck of SunTrust Robinson Humphrey commented in a note that Facebook remains in "prime position" to benefit from the ongoing secular shift to digital, mobile, and video. Peck offered seven key positives from the third quarter print: 1) ad revenue growth accelerated to 57 percent year over year (ex-fx) and rose 12 percent from last quarter, 2) monthly active user (MAU) growth increased to 15 percent while total daily active users (DAU) crossed above the one billion mark, 3) operating margins declined 330 basis points to 53.5 percent with costs up 51 percent – but incremental margins improved from the second and first quarters, 4) operating expense guidance growth was revised to 50 percent from a prior range of 50 to 55 percent, 5) US and Canada ad average revenue per user (ARPU) rose 49 percent year over year while global ad ARPU rose 38 percent (ex-fx), 6) video views topped eight billion per day across 500 million average viewers, and 7) Facebook now counts over 2.5 million advertisers on the platform. Peck also noted that while Facebook's core News Feed revenues remain "strong," investors may be focusing more on other revenue sources that have just been rolled out or set to be introduced including Instagram monetization, continued video adoption, new targeting and analytics, the "Buy Button," and new ad units. In addition, Facebook has three additional scaled platforms (WhatsApp, Messenger, Search) that remain un-monetized and could be future drivers of growth. Shares remain Buy rated with an unchanged $125 price target.

Evan Wilson of Pacific Crest commented in a note that Facebook posted "good" results with revenue, operating income, user growth, and price per ad coming in ahead of his expectations. Wilson noted that Facebook benefited from by a better-than-expected growth in price per ad, instead of ad load, even with the addition of Instagram adds. The analyst added that Instagram will be a "big part" of the increasing ad load story in the future and that it appears that Instagram pricing is higher than Facebook's core platform. However, Wilson cautioned investors that while Facebook's "solid results continue," valuation and expectations concerns prevent him from recommending owning the stock. He added that other names offer investors a "better opportunity", especially when factoring in the "incredibly high expectations" the company needs to live up to. Shares remain Sector Weight with no assigned price target.

Ben Schachter of Macquarie Capital commented in a note that Facebook demonstrated "remarkable execution" in yet another "very strong" quarter. Schachter highlighted Facebooks' engagement metrics which once again hit new highs. As such, the core business remains in "great shape" with several long term opportunities including messaging, video, search, virtual reality, internet connectivity, ad networks, and more. In fact, the analyst stated that many of these business "have the potential to be as large or larger" than Facebook's current advertising business. Schachter did however highlight a few key concerns: 1) no 2016 operating expense guidance until the fourth quarter print, 2) Oculus Rift shipments may prove to be smaller than expected (although this may also be a positive given Oculus' negative margin impact,) and 3) uncertainty around timing, scale, and investment for the long-term business. Bottom line, Facebook's CEO Mark Zuckerberg and other key executives have built a "remarkable track record" and "we expect more and more investors to stick with this team for the long term." Shares remain Outperform rated with a price target raised to $120 from a previous $106.

Stephen Ju of Credit Suisse commented in a note that yet again the highlight from Facebook's print was its mobile advertising business. However, this time it was driven by Instagram's contribution, ramp of dynamic product ads (DPA) and continued strength in its existing app install and core mobile newsfeed ads. Ju expanded and said that Instagram is now beginning to contribute "more meaningfully" to the company's P&L. In addition, the contribution from the non-core Facebook app merely confirms the analyst's prior thesis of a "stacked product release slate" that will fuel growth. Shares remain Outperform rated with a price target raised to $135 from a previous $115.