In the second quarter, Meta Platforms, the parent company of Facebook, reported better-than-expected results, attributing the growth to a recovery in online advertising following the pandemic’s impact.
Based in Menlo Park, California, the company recorded earnings of $7.79 billion, equivalent to $2.98 per share, during the April-June period. This marks a 16% increase compared to the same period in the previous year when they earned $6.69 billion, or $2.46 per share.
Furthermore, Meta Platforms experienced an 11% surge in revenue, reaching $32 billion in the second quarter, compared to $28.82 billion during the same quarter the previous year. This represents the first time the company has achieved double-digit revenue growth since 2021.
According to a FactSet Research poll, analysts had anticipated earnings of $2.91 per share on revenue of $31.08 billion, but Meta Platforms surpassed these expectations with its second-quarter earnings.
As of June 30, Facebook reported having 3.03 billion monthly active users, indicating a 3% increase compared to the previous year.
Facing challenges due to a decline in online advertising and global economic uncertainty, Meta has taken measures to address these issues, resulting in a reduction of more than 20,000 jobs since last November. As of June 30, the company had 71,469 employees, reflecting a 14% decrease from the previous year.
Numerous other tech giants, such as Alphabet (Google’s parent company) and Amazon, have also implemented significant job cuts in response to various challenges.
According to Debra Aho Williamson, an analyst with Insider Intelligence, Meta has several positive aspects to celebrate at the moment. The company has achieved steady growth in monthly and daily active users on both Facebook and its suite of apps. Additionally, Meta’s AI-powered ad automation tools, known as Advantage, have demonstrated robust performance.
Looking ahead, Meta anticipates revenue between $32 billion to $34.5 billion for the current quarter, surpassing the analysts’ expectations of $31.22 billion.
Meta’s strong earnings report follows a similar trend set by Alphabet, which reported solid earnings a day earlier.
In response to the positive results, Meta’s stock experienced a significant increase of $14.45, or 4.8%, reaching $313.02 during after-hours trading.