Meta Q4 results beat estimates, declares first dividend; shares of Facebook parent spikes over 14%

Tech giant Meta Platforms’ revenue rose 25% to $40.1 billion for the quarter ended December 31 as against analysts’ expectations of $39.2 billion, according to LSEG data.

The company’s earnings per share rose over 200% to $14 billion, or $5.33 per share, exceeding estimates of $4.97 per share, according to LSEG data.

Days ahead of its flagship social network Facebook’s 20th anniversary, Meta Platforms said the dividend would be 50 cents per share. It also announced it had authorized an additional $50 billion in share repurchases.

Also Read: Mark Zuckerberg to get $700 million annually from Meta’s new dividend

Meta Platforms stock price surged more than 14% after the bell, extending a long recovery that saw Meta hit record highs in recent weeks for the first time in over two years, Reuters reported. The company’s stock market valuation jumped by more than $140 billion. The increase alone was more than quintuple the entire value of smaller social media rival Snap Inc, the report added.

“We’ve made a lot of progress on our vision for advancing AI and the metaverse,” Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in a prepared statement.

Meta forecast first quarter revenue of $34.5 billion to $37 billion, above Wall Street expectations of $33.8 billion. It expects full-year 2024 total expenses to be unchanged at $94 billion to $99 billion.

Also Read: Amazon and Meta surge after results, while Apple drops

The company’s metaverse-oriented Reality Labs division posted record sales of $1.1 billion, beating estimates for the fourth quarter, led by “strong sales” of its Quest device over the holiday season, Zuckerberg told analysts after the report. Investors had been expecting $804 million, according to LSEG data.

Meta said it still expected operating losses for Reality Labs to “increase meaningfully” as it invests more in augmented and virtual reality in 2024.

Meta share price is witnessing a steady recovery from a meltdown in 2022 that wiped out more than three-quarters of the company’s one-time value. The recovery in Meta shares has been supported by a rebound in user growth and digital ad sales.

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(With inputs from Reuters)

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Published: 02 Feb 2024, 08:44 AM IST