Here's Why Facebook Remains A 'Must-Own Stock'

BTIG's Rich Greenfield turned incrementally bearish on Facebook Inc (NASDAQ: FB) on Friday when he downgraded the stock to Neutral from Buy. His research note is based on his belief that investor expectations and analyst forecasts are "simply too aggressive."

MKM Partners' Rob Sanderson presented the other side of the trade in a research note on Friday.

According to Sanderson, Facebook remains a "must-own stock" and near-term expectations of a 48 percent topline growth in the second quarter is "achievable/beatable."

"We do not anticipate any major surprises from FB this quarter," the analyst wrote, adding that "the core business is strong and management continues to execute well.

Related Link: BTIG's Rich Greenfield Downgrades Facebook, Believes Investors Expectations Are 'Simply Too Aggressive'

Meanwhile, Instagram's ramp has "plenty of life left" and contributed 500 basis points to Facebook's ad revenue growth last year and will contribute 700 basis points this year and 600 basis points next year.

In addition, Facebook's efforts in monetizing its Chatbots feature is still in the early stages and has the opportunity to potentially replace call centers for customer support - although this may take many years to realize.

Finally, the analyst stated Facebook could still benefit from its "significant monetization headroom" that will carry through at least all of 2017.

Bottom line, Facebook's growth drivers, strong user engagement and great execution "is why we believe Facebook will remain a consensus long for some time."

Shares remain Buy rated with an unchanged $150 price target.