Meta's acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp did not illegally stifle competition in social networking, a judge found, a major win for the tech giant.
Meta wins antitrust lawsuit as judge rules FTC failed to prove monopoly claims. FTC alleged Meta's Instagram and WhatsApp acquisitions harmed social networking competition.
META shares drop due to growing spending on AI infrastructure, although AI integration is driving user engagement across platforms.
John Hegeman has worked on the Facebook app and monetization efforts since joining the social-media company in 2007.
A few accounting items in Meta Platforms, Inc.'s Q3 earnings report can cause underestimation of its true economic profits, growth potential, and also valuation appeal. The large GAAP/non-GAAP EPS divergence for META is due to a non-cash, non-recurring $15.93B tax charge unrelated to META's core operating performance. META's aggressive CAPEX is primarily growth-oriented. Maintenance CAPEX is much lower, and owner's earnings are much higher.
Anyone who thought the surge in artificial intelligence spending might ease should look away now. UBS notes that America's big four cloud providers have unveiled yet another round of eye-watering investment plans.
Meta Platforms' post-earnings selloff reflects investor concern that its accelerating AI capex cycle could mirror the metaverse bust of 2021-2022. This was exacerbated by the lack of a corresponding uplift in near-term growth guidance, while management acknowledges continued margin compression to support ongoing AI infrastructure deployments and additional technical hires. The following analysis will examine parallels between META's AI investments and its metaverse cycle to assess shared risks and how the company's positioned to mitigate the potential shortfalls.
Meta Platforms (META) remains a Buy despite recent disappointments in AI product launches and market skepticism about increased AI spending. META's core business is stable with growing revenue and gross profit, and the profit drop was due to a one-time tax write-off. Llama's open-source adoption in B2B and integration by major cloud providers positions META as a potential central player in decentralized AI.
Meta Platforms (META) stock has dropped about 16% over the past 21 trading days. This recent decline signals renewed worries regarding slowing user growth and substantial investments in artificial intelligence and reality labs, but significant drops like this often raise a more difficult question: is this weakness temporary, or an indication of deeper issues in the narrative?
Meta's advertising business remains incredibly strong, with improving engagement metrics and ad prices along with accelerating adoption of AI tools like Advantage+. The firm is currently in the middle of a very heavy CapEx cycle that will pressure margins over the near term but will likely improve sales in the future. The pros appear to vastly outweigh the cons for Meta, and my DCF model indicates the stock is significantly undervalued, especially following the recent sell-off.
Meta Platforms demonstrates strong fundamentals, robust AI-driven growth, and exceptional long-term returns, outpacing the S&P 500 over the past decade. META's financials show high ROE, ROIC, and gross margins, with a healthy balance sheet and effective cost management supporting continued investment in AI and infrastructure. META passes all key investment criteria, making it a high-quality company worth considering for long-term investors seeking exposure to AI-driven digital platforms.
Shares fell by over 11% after the company released its Q3 2025 earnings report. Selling has not let up.