The barrage of downbeat earnings from technology bellwethers like International Business Machines (IBM), Netflix (NFLX) and Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL) are hitting headlines, leading investors to mull over what went wrong with the sector and stoking fears about the others that are yet to report (read: Netflix Drops on Weak User Outlook: ETFs to Watch). Investors should note that there are plenty of areas that the broader tech sector branches into. Among those, social media is a promising corner, but often succumbs to a slowdown due to underperformance of any of its player. In fact, in February, there was a heavy sell-off in the social media space after LinkedIn Corporation (LNKD) issued a lackluster guidance for the first quarter of 2016. This set the alarm bells ringing for the entire social networking space (read: LinkedIn Crashes: Should You Connect with Social Media ETF?). Investors thus must be interested in how the social media space might perform throughout the reporting cycle, so that they can take investing decision on it. As we have a pure-play ETF on the social media – Global X Social Media Index ETF (SOCL) – the investing task becomes easier. For them, we have highlighted our earnings prediction of some of the holdings of SOCL. Facebook Inc. (FB) has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) and an Earnings ESP of -2.27%. Our proven model does not conclusively show that Facebook is likely to beat on earnings this quarter. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for first-quarter 2016 is $0.44, up 5 cents over the past three months. Further, the stock has a favorable Growth Style Score of A, though it fails on the Value and Momentum score of F. The company is expected to report on April 27. FB is the top holding of SOCL with 12.41% weight. LinkedIn Corporation has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell) and an Earnings ESP of +14.29%. Since a stock needs to have both a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank of #1, 2 or 3 for an earnings beat to happen, as per our proven model, chances of a beat are slim here again. The company witnessed negative earnings estimate revision of 26 cents over the past 90 days for the yet-to-be-reported quarter as the expected loss per share was 2 cents 90 days ago while it stands at 28 cents loss per share currently. The stock has a Growth score of ‘A’, but a Value and Momentum score of ‘F’ each. The company will report on April 28. LNKD takes the fourth spot in SOCL with 6.69% weight. Yandex N.V. (YNDX) is expected to release its earnings report on April 28. It has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) but an Earnings ESP of 0.00%, lowering the chances of an earnings beat. There was no revision in earnings estimates over the past 30 days for the to-be-reported quarter. Its surprise history is more underwhelming with each quarter of 2015 seeing negative earnings surprise, with an average miss of 19.53%. Further, the stock has a Growth score of D and a Value score of ‘F’. However, its Momentum score looks comparatively decent at ‘B’. YNDX has 6.85% weight in the fund. Bottom Line Though the earnings ESP picture does not point to optimism, investors should note that SOCL has a Zacks ETF Rank #2 with a High risk outlook. Maybe the other components of the fund are poised for better performance. Still, given the ongoing market volatility, and earnings recession, investors having a strong stomach for risks can pick SOCL with a long-term notion. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report >> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report FACEBOOK INC-A (FB): Free Stock Analysis Report LINKEDIN CORP-A (LNKD): Free Stock Analysis Report YANDEX NV-A (YNDX): Free Stock Analysis Report MICROSOFT CORP (MSFT): Free Stock Analysis Report ALPHABET INC-A (GOOGL): Free Stock Analysis Report NETFLIX INC (NFLX): Free Stock Analysis Report INTL BUS MACH (IBM): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report