Meta Platforms Stock Is Tumbling Thursday: What's Going On?

Meta Platforms Inc META shares are falling Thursday on the heels of the company’s first-quarter financial results. Several analysts also cut price targets on the stock following the print.

What Happened: Meta reported first-quarter revenue of $36.455 billion, which came in ahead of analyst estimates of $36.156 billion. The company also beat earnings estimates when it reported EPS of $4.71 versus estimates of $4.33, according to Benzinga Pro.

Family daily active people were up 7% year-over-year to 3.24 billion. Ad impressions climbed 20% and average price per ad jumped 6% year-over-year.

“It’s been a good start to the year. The new version of Meta AI with Llama 3 is another step towards building the world’s leading AI. We’re seeing healthy growth across our apps and we continue making steady progress building the metaverse as well,” said Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Meta.

Related Link: Mark Zuckerberg Says ‘Tens Of Millions’ Users Have Already Tried Meta AI, And People Are ‘Asking Us To Release…Wherever They Are’

Despite beating estimates, the stock is facing heavy selling pressure likely due to the company's guidance. Meta said it expects second-quarter revenue to be in the range of $36.5 billion to $39 billion versus estimates of $38.3 billion. 

The company raised its expense outlook for the year from a range of $94 billion to $99 billion to a new range of $96 billion to $99 billion. Meta also raised its capital expenditures forecast from a range of $30 billion to $37 billion to a new range of $35 billion to $40 billion as the company continues to accelerate its infrastructure investments to support its AI roadmap.

"While we are not providing guidance for years beyond 2024, we expect capital expenditures will continue to increase next year as we invest aggressively to support our ambitious AI research and product development efforts," the company said.

Meta also noted that it expects operating losses to "increase meaningfully" year-over-year for its Reality Labs division.

Check This Out: Meta Platforms Q1 Earnings Highlights: Facebook Owner Beats Estimates, But Guidance, Higher Costs Ding Stock

Analyst Changes:

• Goldman Sachs analyst Eric Sheridan maintained Meta with a Buy and lowered the price target from $555 to $500.

• Wolfe Research analyst Deepak Mathivanan maintained Meta with an Outperform and lowered the price target from $530 to $500.

• Needham analyst Laura Martin reiterated Meta with an Underperform.

• Rosenblatt analyst Barton Crockett maintained Meta with a Buy and raised the price target from $520 to $562.

• Wedbush analyst Scott Devitt maintained Meta with an Outperform and lowered the price target from $570 to $480.

• Oppenheimer analyst Jason Helfstein maintained Meta with an Outperform and lowered the price target from $585 to $500.

META Price Action: Meta shares were down 15.3% at $417.88 at the time of publication, according to Benzinga Pro.

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