Meta raises low-end of 2026 capex outlook, announces Class C stock plan to preserve founder-led control

Meta Platforms

Today 21:09

Overview
Social media giant's Q3 revenue grew 26% yr/yr, beating analyst expectations
Adjusted EPS for Q3 rose sharply, boosted by core business and excluding litigation charge
Company approved new Class C common stock and a one-time stock dividend

Outlook
Meta expects Q4 2026 revenue between $73 bln and $76 bln
Meta raises low-end of 2026 capex outlook to $135 billion-$145 billion from $130 billion-$145 billion to incorporate ~$9.9 billion legal charge
Meta expects 2026 Reality Labs losses to narrow to $18-19 bln

Result Drivers
ADVERTISING GROWTH - Higher ad impressions and a 14% increase in average price per ad drove revenue growth
AI INVESTMENTS - Co said AI investments boosted advertising revenue by improving engagement and monetization

Company press release: ID:nPn9DC0Xqa

Key Details
Metric
Beat/Miss
Actual
Consensus Estimate
Q3 Revenue
Beat
$64.60 bln
$63.37 bln (47 Analysts)
Q3 EPS
 
$3.83
 
Q3 Operating Margin
 
20%
 

Analyst Coverage
The current average analyst rating on the shares is "buy" and the breakdown of recommendations is 56 "strong buy" or "buy", 6 "hold" and 1 "sell" or "strong sell"
The average consensus recommendation for the online services peer group is "buy"
Wall Street's median 12-month price target for Meta Platforms, Inc. is $815.00, about 17.4% above its October 20 closing price of $694.25
The stock recently traded at 21 times the next 12-month earnings vs. a P/E of 17 three months ago

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Oct 19 - AI stocks bounce back after bruising selloff, CoreWeave gets Goldman upgrade

For questions concerning the data in this report, contact Estimates.Support@lseg.com. For any other questions or feedback, contact reuters.support@thomsonreuters.com.

(This story was created using Reuters automation and AI based on LSEG and company data. It was checked and edited by a Reuters journalist prior to publication.)