Meta Platforms (META) reported $48.39 billion in revenue for the quarter ended December 2024, representing a year-over-year increase of 20.6%. EPS of $8.02 for the same period compares to $5.33 a year ago.

The reported revenue represents a surprise of +3.02% over the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $46.97 billion. With the consensus EPS estimate being $6.68, the EPS surprise was +20.06%.

While investors closely watch year-over-year changes in headline numbers -- revenue and earnings -- and how they compare to Wall Street expectations to determine their next course of action, some key metrics always provide a better insight into a company's underlying performance.

Since these metrics play a crucial role in driving the top- and bottom-line numbers, comparing them with the year-ago numbers and what analysts estimated about them helps investors better project a stock's price performance.

Here is how Meta Platforms performed in the just reported quarter in terms of the metrics most widely monitored and projected by Wall Street analysts: