27 April 2023
If you are covering Meta’s latest financial results, please find below a comment from Ben Barringer, equity research analyst at Quilter Cheviot:
“You have to take your hat off to Mark Zuckerberg and Meta given the transformation of the business over the last six months. Revenues are back growing for the first time in a long while and the ‘year of efficiency’ Zuckerberg likes to talk about is bearing fruit. These results are a strong beat on the expectations and given the improving macro backdrop Meta should continue to recover well.
“Interestingly, it is the fight against TikTok and the short video market that is helping to drive revenues higher at Meta. Furthermore, its use of artificial intelligence in targeting users and recommending content is also paying off and as such it is no surprise to see capex in this area maintained, just like with all the other tech giants.
“After further redundancies later this year, the company plans to begin hiring again next year and with the shape the company is looking in it is looking well positioned to take advantage of long-term trends. It continues to believe in the Metaverse but does need to be realistic on timelines on this, but ultimately Facebook has changed massively in the last couple of years and is now delivering again. With the share price not particularly expensive relative to history and the recovery well on the way, it is once again looking attractive.”
