Meta Beats Sales Forecast Estimates; Announces First Dividend

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-02-01/meta-beats-sales-forecast-estimates-announces-first-dividend

15 7 2 years ago

I might be poorly observing the status quo on these kinds of announcements, but why does it seem like they always happen right as the stock market closes (to me)?

So many tech stocks I follow will have good or bad news at the very end of the day, where the stock price is obviously going to impacted in a specific direction, but I can't act on it because the market is closed. The large price fluctuations happen in after hours trading and, by the time the market opens (to me) the next day, the price is already way up or way down.

How does that work? As a normal person without a ton of money, is there a way I can trade stocks after market close so I can capitalize on obvious situations like this one?

Edit: It's after market close they make the announcements [1].

Meta Platforms, Inc. Class A Common Stock is expected* to report earnings on 02/01/2024 after market close.

1. https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/stocks/meta/earnings

dossentia• 2 years ago

So trade the stock before the market closes?

room500• 2 years ago

The usual answer is that it gives time for the market to digest what was released before making knee-jerk trades on it.

Most brokerages (even Robinhood) allow you to trade after-hours. But the volume is lower so it can be more volatile.

GenerWork• 2 years ago

...but I can't act on it because the market is closed...is there a way I can trade stocks after market close so I can capitalize on obvious situations like this one?

You kind of hit the nail on the head as to why it's done after markets close. By doing it after it closes, no one party theoretically has the ability to make more money than another party.

quickthrowman2• 2 years ago

You can trade pre and post market with various brokers, but you are unable to react as quickly as the HFTs and bots that ingest a 10Q and analyze it in microseconds, trade before the closing bell.

Earnings are always released before or after market close.

falcor84• 2 years ago

Earnings are always released before or after market close.

That seems to be an unintended tautology. I assume you meant to say that they're typically released either shortly after closing or shortly before reopening, right?

Meta Beats Sales Forecast Estimates; Announces First Dividend

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