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META Q4 Earnings and Revenues Surpass Estimates, Rise Y/Y
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Meta Platforms (META - Free Report) reported fourth-quarter 2024 earnings of $8.02 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 20.06%. The figure surged 50.5% year over year.
Revenues of $48.385 billion beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 3.02% and increased 20.6% year over year. At constant currency (cc), revenues soared 21% year over year.
META’s Top-Line Growth Rides on Strong User Base
Revenues from Family of Apps (97.8% of total revenues), which includes Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp and other services, increased 21.2% year over year to $47.302 billion.
Family Daily Active People or DAP, defined as a registered and logged-in user who visited at least one of the Family products (Facebook, Instagram, Messenger and/or WhatsApp) on a given day, was 3.35 billion, up 5% year over year.
Meta Platforms, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Geographically, revenues from the United States & Canada, Asia-Pacific, Europe and the Rest of the World (RoW) surged 17.2%, 23.1%, 21.8% and 28% on a year-over-year basis, respectively.
META’s Advertising Revenues Jump Y/Y
Advertising revenues (98.9% of Family of Apps revenues) increased 20.9% year over year to $46.78 billion and accounted for 96.7% of fourth-quarter revenues. At cc, revenues increased 21% year over year.
Advertising revenues from the United States & Canada, Asia-Pacific, Europe and the RoW surged 18%, 23.2%, 21.8% and 26.7% on a year-over-year basis, respectively.
Ad impressions delivered across Family of Apps increased 6% year over year, and the average price per ad jumped 14% in the reported quarter. Impression growth from Asia-Pacific, the RoW, the United States & Canada and Europe was 10%, 3%, 6% and 5%, respectively.
Family of Apps’ other revenues soared 55.4% year over year to $519 million.
Reality Labs’ revenues (2.2% of total revenues) increased 1.1% year over year to $1.08 billion.
META Expands Operating Margin Despite Higher Costs
In the fourth quarter of 2024, total costs and expenses increased 5.4% year over year to $25.02 billion. As a percentage of revenues, total costs and expenses were 51.7%, significantly down from 59.2% in the year-ago quarter.
In the reported quarter, Family of Apps expenses were $19 billion, accounting for 76% of Meta Platforms’ overall expenses. FoA expenses were up 5% year over year, primarily due to higher infrastructure and headcount-related costs.
Reality Labs’ expenses were $6 billion, up 6% year over year.
As a percentage of revenues, marketing & sales expenses decreased 130 basis points (bps), while general & administrative expenses fell 410 bps on a year-over-year basis.
Research & development expenses, as a percentage of revenues, were 25.2%, down 100 bps on a year-over-year basis.
Meta Platforms’ employee base was 74,067 at the end of the fourth quarter, up 10% year over year.
Operating income of $23.37 billion jumped 42.6% year over year. The operating margin was 48.3%, expanding significantly from 40.8% in the year-ago quarter.
Family of Apps’ operating income surged 34.7% year over year to $28.332 billion. Reality Labs reported a loss of $4.97 billion compared with the year-ago quarter’s loss of $4.65 billion.
META’s Balance Sheet & Cash Flow Remains Strong
As of Dec. 31, 2024, cash & cash equivalents and marketable securities were $77.82 billion compared with $70.90 billion as of Sept. 30, 2024.
Long-term debt was $28.83 billion as of Dec. 31, 2024, compared with $28.82 billion as of Sept. 30, 2024.
Capital expenditures were $14.84 billion in the third quarter compared with $9.2 billion in the previous quarter. Free cash flow was $15.52 billion compared with $10.9 billion reported in the previous quarter.
META Offers Positive Guidance
Meta Platforms expects total revenues between $39.5 billion and $41.8 billion for the first quarter of 2025, assuming 8-15% year-over-year growth or 11%-18% at cc.
For 2025, META anticipates total expenses between $114 billion and $119 billion.
META expects 2025 capital expenditure to be in the range of $60-$65 billion.
Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider
Currently, Meta Platforms carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
BILL is scheduled to report its second-quarter fiscal 2025 results on Feb. 6. Twilio is set to report fourth-quarter 2024 results on Feb. 13, while AMETEK is scheduled to report its fourth-quarter 2024 results on Feb. 4.
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META Q4 Earnings and Revenues Surpass Estimates, Rise Y/Y
Meta Platforms (META - Free Report) reported fourth-quarter 2024 earnings of $8.02 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 20.06%. The figure surged 50.5% year over year.
Find the latest EPS estimates and surprises on Zacks Earnings Calendar.
Revenues of $48.385 billion beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 3.02% and increased 20.6% year over year. At constant currency (cc), revenues soared 21% year over year.
META’s Top-Line Growth Rides on Strong User Base
Revenues from Family of Apps (97.8% of total revenues), which includes Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp and other services, increased 21.2% year over year to $47.302 billion.
Family Daily Active People or DAP, defined as a registered and logged-in user who visited at least one of the Family products (Facebook, Instagram, Messenger and/or WhatsApp) on a given day, was 3.35 billion, up 5% year over year.
Meta Platforms, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Meta Platforms, Inc. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Meta Platforms, Inc. Quote
Geographically, revenues from the United States & Canada, Asia-Pacific, Europe and the Rest of the World (RoW) surged 17.2%, 23.1%, 21.8% and 28% on a year-over-year basis, respectively.
META’s Advertising Revenues Jump Y/Y
Advertising revenues (98.9% of Family of Apps revenues) increased 20.9% year over year to $46.78 billion and accounted for 96.7% of fourth-quarter revenues. At cc, revenues increased 21% year over year.
Advertising revenues from the United States & Canada, Asia-Pacific, Europe and the RoW surged 18%, 23.2%, 21.8% and 26.7% on a year-over-year basis, respectively.
Ad impressions delivered across Family of Apps increased 6% year over year, and the average price per ad jumped 14% in the reported quarter. Impression growth from Asia-Pacific, the RoW, the United States & Canada and Europe was 10%, 3%, 6% and 5%, respectively.
Family of Apps’ other revenues soared 55.4% year over year to $519 million.
Reality Labs’ revenues (2.2% of total revenues) increased 1.1% year over year to $1.08 billion.
META Expands Operating Margin Despite Higher Costs
In the fourth quarter of 2024, total costs and expenses increased 5.4% year over year to $25.02 billion. As a percentage of revenues, total costs and expenses were 51.7%, significantly down from 59.2% in the year-ago quarter.
In the reported quarter, Family of Apps expenses were $19 billion, accounting for 76% of Meta Platforms’ overall expenses. FoA expenses were up 5% year over year, primarily due to higher infrastructure and headcount-related costs.
Reality Labs’ expenses were $6 billion, up 6% year over year.
As a percentage of revenues, marketing & sales expenses decreased 130 basis points (bps), while general & administrative expenses fell 410 bps on a year-over-year basis.
Research & development expenses, as a percentage of revenues, were 25.2%, down 100 bps on a year-over-year basis.
Meta Platforms’ employee base was 74,067 at the end of the fourth quarter, up 10% year over year.
Operating income of $23.37 billion jumped 42.6% year over year. The operating margin was 48.3%, expanding significantly from 40.8% in the year-ago quarter.
Family of Apps’ operating income surged 34.7% year over year to $28.332 billion. Reality Labs reported a loss of $4.97 billion compared with the year-ago quarter’s loss of $4.65 billion.
META’s Balance Sheet & Cash Flow Remains Strong
As of Dec. 31, 2024, cash & cash equivalents and marketable securities were $77.82 billion compared with $70.90 billion as of Sept. 30, 2024.
Long-term debt was $28.83 billion as of Dec. 31, 2024, compared with $28.82 billion as of Sept. 30, 2024.
Capital expenditures were $14.84 billion in the third quarter compared with $9.2 billion in the previous quarter. Free cash flow was $15.52 billion compared with $10.9 billion reported in the previous quarter.
META Offers Positive Guidance
Meta Platforms expects total revenues between $39.5 billion and $41.8 billion for the first quarter of 2025, assuming 8-15% year-over-year growth or 11%-18% at cc.
For 2025, META anticipates total expenses between $114 billion and $119 billion.
META expects 2025 capital expenditure to be in the range of $60-$65 billion.
Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider
Currently, Meta Platforms carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
BILL Holdings (BILL - Free Report) , Twilio (TWLO - Free Report) and AMETEK (AME - Free Report) are some better-ranked stocks in the broader Zacks Computer & Technology sector. While BILL and TWLO sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) each, AME has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
BILL is scheduled to report its second-quarter fiscal 2025 results on Feb. 6. Twilio is set to report fourth-quarter 2024 results on Feb. 13, while AMETEK is scheduled to report its fourth-quarter 2024 results on Feb. 4.