SAN FRANCISCO — Meta Platforms Inc. posted sharply greater revenue and income for its fourth quarter on Wednesday, due to greater advert income on its social media properties, sending its shares up in after-hours buying and selling even because it forecast growing bills on its synthetic intelligence efforts.
CEO Mark Zuckerberg mentioned he expects 2025 to “be the yr when a extremely smart and personalised AI assistant reaches greater than 1 billion folks, and I anticipate Meta AI to be that main AI assistant.”
The Menlo Park, California-based firm earned $20.83 billion, or $8.02 per share, within the October-December quarter. That is up 49% from $14.02 billion, or $5.33 per share, in the identical interval a yr earlier.
Income grew 21% to $48.39 billion from $40.11 billion.
Analysts, on common, had been anticipating earnings of $6.76 per share on income of $47 billion, based on a ballot by FactSet.
“We proceed to make good progress on AI, glasses, and the way forward for social media,” Zuckerberg mentioned in an announcement.
For the present quarter, Meta mentioned expects income of $39.5 billion to $41.8 billion. Analysts expect income on the excessive finish of that vary — $41.68 billion.
The corporate additionally mentioned it expects bills within the vary of $114 billion to $119 billion, pushed by infrastructure prices and worker compensation. Meta had 74,067 workers as of Dec. 31, up 10% from a yr earlier.
“Meta’s This fall efficiency underscores the corporate’s resilience in a still-uncertain digital advert market. By beating each earnings and income estimates, they’ve demonstrated that value self-discipline and effectivity positive factors are paying dividends,” mentioned Jesse Cohen, an analyst with Investing.com. “Nonetheless, the actual headline is their dedication to aggressive capital expenditures. This indicators Meta is doubling down on its AI infrastructure and metaverse ambitions, at the same time as traders grapple with the prices.”
Individually, Meta has agreed to pay roughly $25 million to settle a 2021 lawsuit that President Donald Trump introduced in opposition to the corporate and Zuckerberg after Trump’s accounts had been suspended following the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol.
“That is additionally going to be a giant yr for redefining our relationship with governments,” Zuckerberg mentioned in a convention name with analysts. “We now have a U.S. administration that’s pleased with our main firms, prioritizes American know-how profitable, and that can defend our values and pursuits overseas. And I’m optimistic in regards to the progress and innovation that is going to unlock.”
Meta’s inventory rose $13.53, or 2%, to $690.02 in after-hours buying and selling.