Meta shares surge as second quarter profits hit $13.5 billion

Meta has recorded a higher-than-anticipated profit of $13.5 billion for the second quarter of 2024. 

The financial results for the period covering April through June this year sent the company share price upward by around 7% following publication on Wednesday. Revenue for the same period was posted at $39 billion, a 22% increase over the same period last year, exceeding market expectations. 

Meta founder and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg commented on the results, backing the performance of Meta AI to underpin further growth when he said, “We had a strong quarter, and Meta AI is on track to be the most used AI assistant in the world by the end of the year.”

Zuckerberg added, “We’ve released the first frontier-level open source AI model, we continue to see good traction with our Ray-Ban Meta AI glasses, and we’re driving good growth across our apps.”

The parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp set revenue expectations for the third quarter to fall between $38.5 billion and $41 billion.

Zuckerberg promotes open source for AI growth

Meta will be relatively happy with its returns, especially given the contrasting fortunes of its rival big tech companies, such as Microsoft and Google. 

At Microsoft, shares dropped by around 8% on Tuesday as its Azure cloud computing enterprise recorded sluggish growth, despite a rise of 15% year on year. Google also filed similar underwhelming results through its parent company Alphabet.

Meta will continue to plough vast resources into AI projects including data centers, as it strives to position the company as a market leader. Zuckerberg recently commented on plans to pursue an open-source approach, stating it is “necessary for a positive AI future”.

The second quarter report also noted a requirement to be vigilant of ongoing regulatory challenges in markets like the EU, with the “headwinds” posing a threat that could “significantly impact our business and our financial results.”

Image credit: Via Ideogram

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