Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) saw its shares soar in premarket trading on Thursday following a strong second-quarter earnings report driven by robust performance in its advertising segment and growing optimism around its artificial intelligence investments.
The company posted a 22% year-over-year revenue increase to $47.5 billion for the April-to-June quarter, with net income reaching $18.3 billion—both figures surpassing Wall Street forecasts. According to analysts at Vital Knowledge, Meta’s impressive top-line results were “underpinned by an 11% uptick in ad impressions as well as a 9% increase in ad pricing.”
Meta’s suite of services—including Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp—also saw an increase in daily active users across its family of apps.
Looking ahead, Meta expects third-quarter revenue to grow between 17% and 24% compared to the same period last year. However, the company cautioned that tougher year-over-year comparisons could dampen growth in the fourth quarter.
Despite broader Big Tech trends toward aggressive AI spending, Meta left its capital expenditure forecast largely unchanged at a range of $66 billion to $72 billion, a slight increase from the prior range of $64 billion to $72 billion. For 2026, capex is expected to rise significantly, with early projections pointing to approximately $100 billion. Analysts currently estimate next year’s figure at $80 billion.
CEO Mark Zuckerberg continues to position AI as a critical engine for Meta’s future, emphasizing its role in enhancing ad quality and user engagement via tools like chatbots. In pursuit of that vision, Meta recently acquired data firm Scale AI for $14 billion and has stepped up efforts to bring in top AI talent.
“Being in the conversation of frontier AI labs remains a notable priority for management, and they expect to continue investing in top-tier talent and building out best-in-class infrastructure to hopefully get back into the frontier race,” DA Davidson analysts noted.
In April, Meta introduced new versions of its Llama AI model, although it has delayed releasing its larger, more advanced model—codenamed Behemoth—to the public.
Executives also flagged potential cost headwinds, noting that increased depreciation and higher compensation levels could place “meaningful upward pressure” on operating expenses in 2026.
“Bottom line: the Meta report is extremely robust, and the only negative takeaway is the warning management issues about 2026 costs,” Vital Knowledge analysts concluded.
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