Facebook owner Meta platforms (meta) reported fourth-quarter results late Wednesday that outperformed revenue as the company grapples through its toughest period since its founding 19 years ago. Meta stock rose as the company announced a $40 billion share buyback.
X
Also, Meta provided revenue guidance that beat estimates. In the first quarter, the company expects revenue in the range of $26 billion to $28.5 billion. The midpoint of $27.4 billion is higher than the estimate of $27.1 billion.
The company reported adjusted earnings of $1.76 per share on revenue of $32.16 billion. Analysts expected revenue of $31.55 billion, according to FactSet.
Meta stock rose 17.9% to 180.85, during after-hours trading on Monday stock market today.
Tough year for the Metta
The earnings report comes amid a very difficult year for Meta, which announced plans in November to cut 11,000 jobs. Job cuts include 13% of Meta’s workforce. Meta also said it announced on Wednesday an increase of $40 billion in its stake licensing.
Like other social media companies, incl pop (pop), etsy (ETSY) And pinterest (pins), Meta is being challenged not only by weak macroeconomics but also by the painful decline in digital advertising, which accounts for nearly all of its revenue.
More evidence of these challenges became apparent in Fourth quarter earnings Snap reports, owner of Snapchat, which was hit after disappointing results. Snap stock fell about 10.3% to close at 10.37 on Wednesday.
Privacy changes dealing with Meta Stock
Meta lost nearly $10 billion in advertising revenue last year after that an Apple (AAPL) Change iPhone privacy policies. This change made it more difficult to precisely target ads to users.
But the company has made technical improvements with its approach to advertising strategy. In a note to clients, Credit Suisse analyst Stephen Gu said he expects to see “incremental improvements in Meta dollar revenue growth” as a result.
Meta also plans to pour billions into its development of the so-called metaverse.
Meta stock contains a file Relative strength rating of 72 out of 100.
Please follow Brian Deagon on Twitter at @employee Learn more about technical stocks, analysis and financial markets.
You may also like:
Facebook-Parent Meta, hit by hard times in 2022, may overcome hurdles
In an emotional letter, Zuckerberg explains the reason for the mass layoffs
Best Growth Stocks to Buy and Watch: See updates to IBD stock listings
Find the best long-term investments with IBD’s long-term leaders
“Infuriatingly humble analyst. Bacon maven. Proud food specialist. Certified reader. Avid writer. Zombie advocate. Incurable problem solver.”
