Meta (META) reported a blowout fourth quarter after the bell on Wednesday, posting better-than-anticipated earnings per share and revenue. But the big news came during the company’s earnings call. CEO Mark Zuckerberg used his opening remarks to deliver what felt more like a state of the union address, laying out his plans for the company’s AI moves in 2026 after a tough 2025. Meta spent a large chunk of the last year reforming its AI arm after the disappointing release of its Llama 4 models in April. ...

Meta Platforms ( META ) renewed its resiliency in Q4’25 with an upbeat outlook for revenue growth and a roadmap to improving the operating environment for Reality Labs. With the expectation of substantial reinvestment in the business as well as a step-upMonte Independent Investment Research: Michael Del Monte is a buy-side equity analyst with expertise in the technology, energy, industrials, and materials sectors. Prior to working in the investment management industry, Michael spent over a decade in profess ...

The 2026 guidance is deliberately aggressive on investment while still promising earnings growth. Management expects Q1 2026 revenue between $53.5 billion and $56.5 billion. Total 2026 expenses are projected in the $162–169 billion range. The centerpiece is capital expenditures: $115–135 billion for 2026, up sharply from around $72 billion in 2025, implying a step-up of roughly 60–90%. That is one of the largest single-year CapEx ramps ever announced by a consumer-internet company. Despite that, Meta expect ...

Meta Platforms ( NASDAQ:META ) had been trading near its 52-week low in early January 2026, as investors worried about its heavy reliance on advertising for 98% of revenues, making earnings volatile compared to its diversified peers. ...

Core Insights - The company reported a quarterly revenue of $59.89 billion, representing a 24% increase from the same period a year earlier, exceeding LSEG analyst expectations of $58.59 billion by approximately $1.3 billion [1][3] - Earnings per share (EPS) were reported at $8.88, surpassing the expected EPS of $8.23 by 60 cents [1][3] User Metrics - The company revealed additional metrics regarding its user base, indicating potential growth and engagement trends [2]

Core Insights - Meta Platforms (META) reported fourth-quarter 2025 non-GAAP earnings of $8.88 per share, exceeding the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 8.16% [1] - Revenues reached $59.89 billion, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2.22% and reflecting a year-over-year increase of 23.8% [1] - At constant currency, revenues increased by 23% year over year [1] Revenue Breakdown - Revenues from the Family of Apps, which constitutes 98.4% of total revenues, rose 24.6% year over year to $58.94 billion, driven by WhatsApp paid messaging and Meta Verified subscriptions [2] - Daily Active People (DAP) across Family of Apps reached 3.58 billion, marking a 7% year-over-year increase, with significant revenue growth across various regions: United States & Canada (21.5%), Asia-Pacific (21%), Europe (25.9%), and Rest of the World (32.5%) [3] Engagement and Content - Instagram Reels saw over 30% year-over-year growth in watch time in the United States, with a 10% increase in original content [4] - Facebook video time also grew in double digits year-over-year, with a 7% increase in views of organic Feed and video posts due to ranking and product improvements [5] Advertising Performance - Advertising revenues, which account for 98.6% of Family of Apps revenues, increased 24.3% year over year to $58.14 billion, representing 97.1% of total revenues [6] - Ad impressions across Family of Apps grew 18% year over year, with a 6% increase in average price per ad [7] Cost and Margin Analysis - Total costs and expenses rose 40.5% year over year to $35.15 billion, leading to an operating margin contraction to 41.3%, down 700 basis points year over year [11][12] - Operating income for the quarter was $24.75 billion, an 18.4% year-over-year increase [12] Financial Position - As of December 31, 2025, cash and cash equivalents along with marketable securities totaled $81.59 billion, up from $44.45 billion as of September 30, 2025 [13] - Long-term debt remained stable at $58.74 billion, with capital expenditures of $22.14 billion and free cash flow of $14.08 billion [13] Future Guidance - For Q1 2026, Meta expects total revenues between $53.5 billion and $56.5 billion, with a 4% tailwind from favorable foreign exchange [14] - Anticipated total expenses for 2026 are projected between $162 billion and $169 billion, driven by increased infrastructure costs and higher employee compensation [14][15]

Welcome back to Morning Trade Live. It's time now for the big picture. So, let's welcome in Lisanne Saunders, chief investment strategist, Sharp Center for Financial Research.Always lovely to see you, Lisanne. >> You too, sir. >> So, we cleared some hurdles yesterday.We got through the Fed, which as you describe is a bit of a snore um because obviously we did see the S&P 500 just teetering around the flatline. It didn't budge much from that. We got through three of the MAG 7.Very different reactions in the ...

Threats to stocks and the dollar remain. President Trump has threatened new 100% tariffs on US imports from Canada, the possibility of a US government shutdown over ICE funding, and lingering concerns about Greenland. In addition, there is the risk of another partial government shutdown. Senate Democrats threatened to block a government funding deal over Department of Homeland Security/ICE funding after the ICE shooting of an ICU nurse in Minnesota on Saturday. There could be a partial government shutdown w ...

Group 1: Tesla - Tesla's total deliveries decreased by 16%, but investors remain optimistic due to potential future revenue from robo-taxis and humanoid robots [4][20] - Elon Musk announced plans to build "terra fabs" for semiconductor manufacturing, which will require significant capital investment [5][22] - The shift in focus from traditional car production to robotics is seen as a long-term growth strategy for Tesla [21][28] Group 2: Microsoft - Microsoft reported disappointing Azure cloud sales and guidance, leading to a negative market reaction [6][13] - The company has a significant portion of its backlog (45%) tied to OpenAI, raising concerns about circular financing [16][17] - Free cash flow plummeted to $5 billion, down from the usual $20 billion range, indicating potential cash flow issues due to high capital expenditures [14][15] Group 3: Meta - Meta's capital expenditures are expected to double year-over-year, but the focus is on AI investments driving revenue growth across its platforms [7][8] - The company reported strong growth in paid co-pilot subscribers, indicating successful monetization of AI [6][7] - Meta's performance is being positively received by the market, contrasting with Microsoft's struggles [10][15] Group 4: Levi's - Levi's reported quarterly earnings that beat estimates, with a positive sales outlook for 2026 [34][35] - The company is transitioning to a denim lifestyle brand, with significant growth in its women's business, which has doubled in size [39][42] - Levi's is focusing on marketing strategies, including a Super Bowl ad, to enhance brand visibility and drive growth [44][46] Group 5: Corporate Layoffs - Major companies like UPS and Amazon are announcing significant layoffs, with UPS planning to cut 30,000 jobs and Amazon 16,000 [53][54] - These layoffs are seen as a reflection of the growing impact of AI on workforce requirements [53]

ZINGER KEY POINTS:Social media and tech juggernaut Meta Platforms is embracing the brave new world in automation.Despite the relevance, execution uncertainties help fuel speculation in Direxion's METU and METD ETFs.The big day comes on Jan. 28 after the closing bell. Wall Street analysts will be looking for earnings per share of $8.18 on revenue of $58.41 billion. In the year-ago quarter, the social media giant posted EPS of $8.02 on sales of $48.38 billion, beating out the consensus expectations of $6.76 a ...