Company beats financial predictions but does not increase daily users as much as Wall Street thought it might
The Silicon Valley company, which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, said it does not plan to slow down its investments anytime soon.
Meta Platforms handily beat Wall Street analysts' estimates in the third quarter, offering an upbeat view of the holiday quarter as its social networks combined to reach almost 3.3 billion daily users. Earnings per share jumped 37% from the year-earlier period to $6.03 on a diluted basis, with total revenue climbing 19% to $40.
Shares of Meta Platforms fell by more than 3% as the company reported earnings and revenue that beat Wall Street expectations Wednesday.
The social media giant is spending billions on artificial intelligence and products for virtual and augmented reality.
Facebook-owner Meta Platforms forecast current-quarter revenue above market expectations on Wednesday, projecting robust holiday ad spending that should continue to cover the cost of its massive artificial intelligence investments.
Meta's Reality Labs unit, which develops augmented and virtual reality technologies, logged an operating loss of $4.4 billion in the third quarter. Reality Labs revenue rose 29% year-over-year to $270 million in the third quarter, below analysts' expectations $310.4 million.
Meta is slated to report third-quarter earnings on Wednesday after the close of regular trading. Analysts polled by LSEG expect the company to report second-quarter revenue of $40.27 billion.
Meta Platforms scheduled to report earnings after Wednesday's close. The stock recently hit a record high near $602/share and is currently trading near that level.
Shares of Meta Platforms (META) ticked higher in early Wednesday trading ahead of the company's next round of financial results, due after the bell.
UPDATE—Oct. 30, 2024: This article has been updated to reflect more recent analyst estimates and share price information.
Meta Platforms has a high chance of beating earnings estimates. It has also seen positive earnings estimate revision for the to-be-reported quarter.