While Twitter plays mass market catch-up with hearts, Facebook is delivering for its users and giving Wall Street the growth numbers it demands. FB is up 33% year-to-date, while TWTR is down 18% YTD.
From its 2013 IPO week, TWTR has returned -33%. Over the same period, FB shares climbed more than 110%. Click the comparison chart below to enlarge.
1 year ago, we looked at Twitter's stock price performance and concluded that FB had clearly outshined TWTR. As the chart above makes clear, 2015 has been a repeat of 2014. Facebook's shares continue to climb while Twitter struggles to reclaim the $30 level.
This should come as no real surprise to those of you following Finance Trends on Twitter. I've harped on this theme of FB outperforming TWTR for over a year now. Here are a few examples (sorry in advance).
Facebook went from IPO flop to strong stock in its 2nd year. $FB is up over 150% since Aug. '13. pic.twitter.com/hQL5z104pb— David Shvartsman (@FinanceTrends) August 3, 2015
$FB closed near the century mark. $100 after hours. New high. pic.twitter.com/jDWIFmxg2W— David Shvartsman (@FinanceTrends) October 22, 2015
Twitter $TWTR, $YELP, $ETSY. All highly popular web services. All stocks continue to sink w/ selling pressure. pic.twitter.com/YzWteCOoNU— David Shvartsman (@FinanceTrends) August 20, 2015
While I love Twitter as an online service and use it every day, Facebook is the stock chart that is moving in the right direction (up and to the right). The direction of the stock price is what matters in trading, not our opinions. As speculators, we have to respect what is, not our wishes for what could be.
I wised up and stopped shorting FB (via puts) sometime in 2013. Later, I briefly traded FB on the long side (perhaps I should've re-entered and held longer). If TWTR shows signs of a change in trend and attracts renewed buying interest, I will look to buy the stock. For now, it remains a pass, at best.
Disclosure: No current position in FB or TWTR. This may change at any time in the future.
