1 AI Stock I'm Buying in 2026 and Holding Forever

Core Viewpoint - Meta Platforms is considered an attractive investment opportunity due to its strong user base, profitable advertising business, and reasonable valuation compared to other AI stocks in the market [1]. Group 1: User Base and Engagement - Meta has an extensive user base, with an average of 3.54 billion daily active people (DAP) as of September 2025, which includes users across its platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and WhatsApp [3]. Group 2: Financial Performance - In Q3 2025, Meta reported revenues of $51.2 billion, with 98% of this revenue generated from advertising [4]. - Despite significant capital expenditures, Meta maintains high operating margins at 40% [4]. - The company has a gross margin of 82% and a dividend yield of 0.32% [6]. Group 3: Stock Valuation - Meta's current stock price is $659.12, trading at 20 times forward earnings, which is lower than other major tech companies like Microsoft, which trades at 27 times forward earnings [5][7]. - The stock has experienced volatility following its Q3 earnings report, but the current price is viewed as a good buying opportunity [6].