Written by StockNews.com

Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ:FB) stock will rise significantly in the coming weeks, according to Aegis Capital, reiterating its Buy rating while boosting its price target on FB from $155 to $160. That new target suggests a 15% upside to the stock’s last closing price of $139.39.

Facebook is hosting its annual developer conference Tuesday and Wednesday of this week in San Jose. Dubbed “F8,” the conference will likely focus on innovations with the camera and video, which should help increase engagement and monetization, messaging, Instagram and VR, noted Aegis.

The next major catalyst for the stock will come in a few weeks. Facebook will deliver its latest earnings report on Wednesday, May 3, after the market closes. Aegis lifted its 2017 and 2018 EPS estimates for the company accordingly, citing expectations for stronger growth on its namesake platform, as well as on Instagram and WhatsApp.

Facebook has been busy as of late copying a number of rival Snapchat’s most popular features, some of which have proven even more popular than Snapchat itself. Hence the luxury of being the world’s largest communication platform.

Facebook Inc. shares were trading at $141.07 per share mid-afternoon on Monday, up 1.2%). Year-to-date, FB has gained 22.37%, versus a 4.92% rise in the benchmark S&P 500 index during the same period.

FB currently has a StockNews.com POWR Rating of A (Strong Buy), and is ranked #4 of 44 stocks in the Internet category.