Meta, Google and emerging tech stocks are shaping the online future News ad

The way business is done has changed, and the share of transactions, marketing and sales taking place in the new digital economy is growing. Gone are the days of door-to-door sales, except when it comes to selling cleaning services or solar panels, which have a number of limitations in terms of efficiency and scalability. Today’s business environment is geared towards and focused on online sales because that is where the focus is.

The license to market and sell a product has been granted to virtually anyone with a relative level of knowledge in a particular field or topic, and monetization efforts have become easier and more accessible than ever before. That’s why more and more businesses will be forced to switch to online operations, from backend operations to advertising and sales funnels.

That’s why it’s important to keep in mind the tech stocks that currently dominate the market and the ones that will quickly catch up in future portfolios. Promotions such as Meta Platforms Inc. NASDAQ: META, Alphabet Inc. NASDAQ: GOOGLEand even Reddit Inc. New York Stock Exchange: RDDT or Spotify Technology NYSE:SPOT We will see a larger share of online businesses in the coming years as they also see an accelerating ad-to-market cycle.

The dominance of leading social networks continues to grow

According to recent data from Statista, the social media market leader as of April 2024 should come as no surprise. In terms of monthly active users (MAU), Facebook led the way with 3 billion, followed by YouTube with 2.5 billion and Instagram with 2 billion.

This is where most of today’s business is conducted; Facebook serves as its own marketplace, equipped with payment systems, marketing tools, and the ability to run advertising campaigns and other strategies. When it comes to YouTube, this trend continues in the sense that businesses and individuals can commission production teams to create high-quality videos and then drive audiences to their own websites or other traffic sources, turning views into sales.

Instagram is essentially interchangeable with YouTube. The only major difference is that Instagram caters to shorter content where companies can make their “elevator pitches.”

This is where Meta and Google dominate the market, and Wall Street knows all about it.

As of October 2024, Pivotal Research analysts have decided to maintain a Buy recommendation on Google shares and also set a target price for the company of $225.

To prove those views correct, the stock would have to rise 21.5% from where it trades today, which is not the usual expectation for a $2.2 trillion giant.

The same applies to Meta Platforms shares, as analysts at UBS Group also maintained a Buy rating on the stock with a $719 price target for October 2024.

This view, which has since been unchanged by UBS, suggests upside potential of up to 16% from today’s share price, which is already up 86.1% for the year.

Now, a new development could help these companies gain even more market share: the Chinese platform TikTok, which has up to 1.5 billion MAUs. The United States government is returning to a potential ban on the platform, saying it is giving China access to private data and intelligence among the public.

Given the nature of TikTok’s content, it’s safe to assume that these 1.5 billion MAUs could find their way into the next best thing – “Shorts” on YouTube and “Reels” on Instagram, increasing both Google and Meta’s revenue and reach.

These are safe ways to play in the social media space, but other high-profit areas of the market arise from trading with a little more volatility.

High Growth Potential: Double-digit growth potential for new social media platforms

The rise in active users on Reddit and Spotify, coupled with emerging monetization opportunities, has prompted Wall Street analysts to issue updates and raise the valuations of these platforms.

Even after a massive 138.1% gain over the past 12 months, Spotify shares are poised for another double-digit rally in the coming quarters.

At least that’s the expectation from Canaccord Genuity Group, which reiterated its December 2024 Buy rating along with a $560 share price target.

This new momentum would require growth of up to 19% from Spotify’s share price today, a view that is likely to continue its upward trend as the company delivers more quarterly user growth and monetization opportunities.

As for Reddit, institutional investors in FMC LLC decided to increase their positions by 302.8% as of November 2024, bringing their net assets to a high of $801.4 million today, or 6.9% ownership in the company. One reason for the purchase could be the growth potential that Wells Fargo analysts expect.

As of December 2024, their latest opinion was an Outperform rating on the stock; this time they called for a $206 share price target. This positioning and view of the company suggests a net gain of 27.5% for the stock from today’s levels, even after an impressive 161.2% gain over the past 12 months.

Before you consider Spotify’s technology, you should hear this.

MarketBeat tracks Wall Street’s top-rated and best-performing analysts daily and the stocks they recommend to their clients. MarketBeat identified five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now, before the broader market takes hold… and Spotify Technology wasn’t on the list.

While Spotify Technology currently has a Moderate Buy rating among analysts, the top-rated analysts think these five stocks are Strong Buys.

View five stocks here

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