Andreas Rasmussen’s Post

🚀 Meta (formerly Facebook) just released their Q3 earnings report for October 2023, and it's a game-changer! 📈💰 Discover the latest insights on the tech giant's performance, growth, and innovations. Dive into the details here: [Link to the Global News Article] 📊 #MetaEarnings #Q3Report #TechInnovation #FinancialNews #MetaGrowth #FacebookRebrand #TechIndustry #EarningsReport #MetaUpdates #DigitalMarketing #FinancialInsights Don't miss out on this financial scoop. Share the news and stay ahead of the game! 🔥💼 https://lnkd.in/gFU3A_jb

Today, Meta shared our Q3 2023 earnings report, revealing our highest operating margin in two years. Here are some notable highlights:   1. Continued Growth: We estimate there are now more than 3.9 billion people who use at least one of our apps every month, representing an increase of 7% year-over-year.   2. AI Expansion: We introduced a range of Gen AI initiatives, including Meta AI, our new AI assistant; Emu, our innovative image creation model; Llama 2 with an impressive 30 million downloads last month. Additionally, our Meta Advantage+ solution is gaining significant traction; more than half of our advertisers are leveraging Advantage+ Creative tools to optimize images and text in their ad content.   3. Reels Success: Reels and video content in general continue to experience robust growth and contribute to increased user engagement. Reels has led to a more than 40% increase in time spent on Instagram since its launch. Our video services now make up more than half of time spent on Facebook and Instagram.   This impressive news comes in addition to the array of new product launches, including Quest 3, Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, and Threads. Furthermore, we recently introduced our GenAI Creative Features for ads manager, which empowers advertisers to quickly create variations of their ads with a simple click.   As we peer into the future and our plans for 2024, I would like to extend my gratitude to our business partners across Taiwan and Hong Kong, and to all our amazing teams for their hard work!  https://lnkd.in/dJ-RD8eN

With Meta set to report Q1 earnings on Wednesday, Fortune spoke with a top analyst to get a better sense of what investors may be looking for. bit.ly/4d7iMPL In a recent note to investors, Scott Devitt of Wedbush Securities, while keeping his outperform rating on Meta, raised his price target to $570 from $520, while also noting that Meta provided notably strong forward guidance for Q1. It’s a forecast bolstered by the company’s strength in digital advertising and more internet users turning to Meta’s apps. According to Wedbush’s latest Consumer Internet Survey, which included responses from more than 1,000 people in the U.S., YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram are the most likely to see increased user engagement this year, and that’s with over 80% of respondents saying they already use a Meta product (Facebook, Instagram, or Whatsapp) multiple times per day.

🇺🇸📰 Meta Platforms' financial results for the fourth quarter: - Daily active Facebook users: 2.11 billion, +5.5% y-o-y, 2.07 billion was forecast. - Monthly active Facebook users: 3.07 billion, +3.7% y-o-y, 3.06 billion was forecast. - Growth in the number of advertising views: +21% year-on-year, +23% was forecast. - Average price per ad: +2% year-on-year, the forecast was -22%. - Average number of users per day of Meta Family services: 3.19 billion, +7.8% year-on-year, 3.11 billion was forecast. - Average number of users per month of Meta Family services: 3.98 billion, +6.4% y-o-y, 3.93 billion was forecast. Comments and context: - "We expect total revenues for the first quarter of 2024 to be in the range of $34.5 billion to $37 billion." - "We expect full-year expenses for 2024 to be in the range of $94 billion to $99 billion, unchanged from our previous forecast." - "We anticipate capital expenditures in 2024 to be in the range of $30 billion to $37 billion, an increase of $2 billion from the high end of our previous range." - "Given our increased investment in capital in recent years, we expect depreciation and amortization expense to increase by a greater amount in 2024 than in 2023." - "Meta Platforms will pay a quarterly dividend of 50 cents per share." - "Meta increases share buyback program by $50 billion." $META = +16% #Report #TecnologyServices #InternetSoftware #Services 

Meta Platforms: Graduation Day Tonight, Meta Platforms (aka Facebook) delivered a blowout quarter across the board and made the surprise announcement of a dividend introduction. For CEO Mark Zuckerberg, tonight's earnings represent the beginning of the next step in Meta's journey—its graduation day! So what did we learn in Q4? Meta's Competitive Advantage: It's clear that Meta is successfully navigating the most direct threat to its dominance in social media, TikTok, since its inception. User engagement, a key metric of success across its "Family of Apps" (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, etc.), was up 8% to 3.19 billion users. This represents a tremendous success story for the team, as they replicated the attractive features of TikTok and won users back to the Meta ecosystem. Social media requires a different set of measurement tools to gauge the value of its franchise, and user engagement is at the top of that list to measure the durability of a competitive advantage. Management Discipline: The biggest surprise of the post-Covid era in the technology world has been the personal journey of Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg. The seasoning of this management team is setting a standard for successful execution at scale. Years ago, it would have been unthinkable for Meta to lead the tech industry in cost discipline and capital management, but here we are today. The "Year of Efficiency," as articulated by management, has evolved into an ongoing and proactive approach to managing expenses. This quarter was a perfect example, with revenue growing at a brisk 25% year-over-year while expenses fell 8% year-over-year. In addition, the decision to continue a significant buyback program and introduce a dividend confirms that they are committed to maintaining this newfound discipline. Few businesses ever have the luxury of having lower costs and higher revenue in tandem—all Meta needed was the discipline to realize this potential, and we are starting to see it. There is no other large-cap technology company more polarizing than Meta, both for the public and for portfolio managers. It's been a long journey from the Cambridge Analytica scandal of 2015 to the TikTok challenge (which still poses a potential future threat). However, it's worth acknowledging the maturation and impressive progress on multiple fronts. Tonight, Meta Platforms not only showed investors why it's a modern-day technology goliath, but it also finally graduated to become a dividend aristocrat. Have a great weekend!

Meta reported Q3'23 earnings today with highest operating margin in two years. Exciting Highlights: 📈 The Meta community keeps growing: 3.9 billion people use at least one of our apps every month, an increase of +7% year-over-year. Asia-Pacific is the largest contributor to Facebook users and user growth - accounting for 43% and 45% of global Daily Active Users (DAU) and Monthly Active Users (MAU) respectively, and 53% and 49% of total DAU and MAU Y/Y growth respectively. 🪜 Reels continue to climb, driving more than 40% increase in time spent on Instagram since launch 💬 Business Messaging momentum with more than 600 million conversations between people and businesses happening every day. 🧵 Threads hit just under 100 million monthly actives. 💥 Gen AI rollouts: Meta AI, our new AI assistant; Emu, our new image creation model; Llama 2 (30 million downloads last month!); and an early alpha of Business AIs so every business can eventually have an AI to interface with customers. I’m grateful to our global brand partners who put their trust in our platforms and our teams. We will continue to work to be the best minute and best dollar businesses can spend to grow their businesses. #Meta https://lnkd.in/gjfz9-dR

Meta plunges 18% on weak revenue guidance even as first-quarter results top estimates. The stock selloff accelerated early in the earnings call after Mark Zuckerberg jumped into his discussion about investments, namely in areas like glasses, mixed reality, and strategic AI bets where the company does not currently make money. But correcting for R&D and the Reality Lab investment, the online advertising business remains a strong money machine, generating sky-high margins. I also understand that some investors do not have a clear sense of what the Metaverse is and, more importantly, the business opportunities that exists. In 2022, for example, almost all the drop in profitability was coming from Meta's R&D and Metaverse investments. And if a large portion of that expenditure were treated as capital expense, that drop would have been far smaller: https://lnkd.in/gah2ZYAW. Meta has raised investor expectations due to its improved financial performance in recent quarters, leaving little room for error. By prioritizing efficiency and flexibility, Meta aims to balance investments in future growth opportunities while delivering returns to shareholders, exemplified by its first dividend payment. However, despite positive prospects, Meta faces potential challenges stemming from regulatory and macroeconomic factors. Regulatory limitations on Meta's advertising business, which currently fuels its investments, pose a significant threat to future results, highlighting the company's dependence on this revenue stream. I warmly recommend reading our Meta Valuation Presentation FY2012-Present that sheds insight into our thinking, investment philosophy, conviction, and much more: https://lnkd.in/etKcbtaE As always, what is most important is to watch the headlines, but do numbers as well. Without a solid grounding in the numbers, we are at the whim of someone else's narrative. Or, as Winston Churchill once said: “A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes”.  Whatever the public perception is, with Meta, it is not just the 3.59 billion people who are in its ecosystem (more than 77% of Internet users) that should draw attention, but the amount of time they spend in it. Meta is already leading in developing the technology to define the future of social connection and is poised for continued growth and success in the future, driven by its strategic focus on AI innovation and messaging capabilities. AI remains central to Meta's operations, with investments in general AI aimed at propelling the company into another growth phase. Additionally, Meta is exploring messaging as a key tool for businesses to streamline customer service operations efficiently. And given how markets usually reward companies with demonstrated commitment to capital returns and solid balance sheet, we do expect an increase in price as % of value for META ⬇️

Meta Q1 FY 24 Meta has two business segments: FoA: Family of Apps (Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, and WhatsApp). RL: Reality Labs (virtual reality hardware and supporting software). FoA Daily Active People grew +7% Y/Y to 3.24 billion. Zuck called out healthy growth in the US, on WhatsApp specifically. As expected, management stopped reporting Facebook standalone numbers. 📊 Ad impressions grew +20% Y/Y (vs. +21% Y/Y in Q4). Average price per ad grew +6% Y/Y (vs. +2% Y/Y in Q4). Growth was strongest in Europe and Rest of World. The average revenue per person grew +18% Y/Y to $11.20. Higher engagement met continued strong advertising demand. For context, 💰 Operating cash flow was $19.2 billion (53% margin, +4pp Y/Y). Free cash flow was $12.5 billion (34% margin, +10pp Y/Y). Balance sheet: Cash, cash equivalent, and marketable securities: $71.5 billion. Long-term debt: $18.4 billion. 👀 Q2 FY24 revenue was $37.7 billion in the mid-range ($38.3 billion expected). FY24 expenses $96-$99 billion (previously $94-$99 billion). FY24 Capex $35-40 billion (previously $30-$37 billion). So what to make of all this? User net additions were consistent with Q4 metrics. Meta still found a way to add another 50 million users to its Family of Apps. However, it was a slight slowdown after four consecutive quarters of accelerating growth. Revenue grew +27% Y/Y in constant currency. It was another acceleration from +23% Y/Y in Q4. The usual suspects were behind ad revenue growth: The online commerce vertical was the largest contributor to year-over-year growth, followed by gaming and entertainment & media. Growth was strongest in Rest of World (40%) and Europe (33%). 💻 Reality Labs revenue grew 30%, driven by Quest 3. The lower loss for this segment was primarily due to a favorable comp with restructuring costs last The operating margin improved following the “year of efficiency.” Meta incurred $3.5 billion in restructuring charges in FY23 (primarily facilities consolidation and employee severance costs). However, it was slightly down sequentially. 💰 Returning cash to shareholders: Stock buybacks were $15 billion in Q1, a huge increase compared to $9 billion in the prior year. Management still finds the stock attractive enough. They also paid $1.3 billion in dividends. Free cash flow hit a Q1 record, another manifestation of the year of efficiency. While Meta loses nearly $16 billion annually on Reality Labs, the company remains a cash-printing machine ($48 billion in free cash flow in the past 12 months). FY24 Capex and operating expenses were raised, primarily due to higher infrastructure investment to support the AI roadmap. #meta #ai #ads #growth

In the first quarter of 2024, Meta made $36.45 billion dollars - $12.37 billion dollars of which was pure profit. Though the company no longer reports daily active users, it now uses another metric: “family daily active people.” This number refers to “registered and logged-in users of one or more of Facebook’s Family products who visited at least one of these products on a particular day.” (...) What’s confusing is that in its Q4 2023 earnings, Meta reported it had 2.11 billion daily active users across its properties — a number that is somehow distinct from the 3.19 billion “family daily active people” that it reported in the same earnings. Daily Active Users is a simple metric — how many people have engaged with a product in a given day — but Daily Family Daily Active People is a number that is somehow so distinct that it’s a billion users higher.

Meta Platforms Inc., formerly known as Facebook, showed robust growth in its Q1 2021 earnings report. The social media giant boasted a solid 48% increase in year-over-year revenue, reaching a staggering $26.2 billion, significantly surpassing expectations. The prime contributors to this growth are increased ad prices due to the improved economy and global vaccine rollouts. The average price per ad grew by 30%, while the number of ad impressions increased by 12%. This hints at increased demand from advertisers who are willing to pay more to reach Facebook's vast user base. Meta's DAUs