The stock saw at least 19 price target hikes this morning

Actions of Facebook, Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) are up 6.7% to $ 327.61 at last check, and hit a record high of $ 331.81, after the social media giant beat Wall’s Q1 revenue and revenue forecast Street. The company attributed the good results to increased ad spend and higher ad prices during the pandemic, as more people turned to online shopping. However, the tech name said Apple’s new privacy policies (AAPL) could negatively impact its ad revenue going forward.

Still, analysts are singing the praises of the Facebook stock this morning. The stock got at least 19 target price hikes, including a high from Monness Crespi Hardt to $ 460 from $ 375. The brokerage group was already bullish on equities, with 26 of 29 cover analysts sporting a “buy” rating or better. Additionally, the 12-month consensus price of $ 358.87 is a 10.4% premium over current levels.

Today’s pop has helped security overcome recent pressure at the $ 315 level. Equities are also benefiting from the support of the 30-day moving average, which contained FB’s pullback last week. Over the longer term, equities are up 67.5% year-over-year.

The option pits reflect this optimism, with some very popular calls. This is the 50-day buy / sell volume ratio of Facebook stock of 2.67 at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Cboe Options Exchange (CBOE) and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX) , which is in the 82nd percentile of readings over the past 12 years. month. This suggests that calls are being taken at a faster clip than usual.

As of today, options traders are swarming with FB in response to its quarterly report. At the last check, 223,000 calls and 133,000 put crossed the bar, six times the average intraday amount. The most popular is the weekly call for 330 4/30 strikes, followed by the call for 320 strikes in the same weekly series, with open positions in both cases.