I am unsure you can even rely on analyst estimates to determine what investors are expecting from FB/Google when they report earnings soon. Will anyone be surprised if FB comes out and say they will experience a 20% decline in revenue in Q2?
Yes, sell side analysts expectations are basically expectations of the big participants in the market unless there is disclosure / news from the company or price action on the stock that can influence the outlook.
The estimates are just absurdly wrong though. Ask any investor and most will just laugh at those estimates. 99% of estimates for all companies haven’t dramatically been decreased yet. So I would take these estimates with a grain of salt.
