🚀 META’s Q4: Billions of Users, Billions in Profits, and a Pair of Fancy Glasses! – What’s Next?

🚀 Meta (META) just dropped its Q4 2024 earnings report, and let’s just say… they didn’t disappoint. Revenue? Up. Profits? Up. Users? Oh yeah, they’ve got 3.35 BILLION of them. That’s nearly half the planet scrolling, liking, and arguing in comment sections. So, what does this mean for investors? Let’s break it down.

💰 Meta’s Money Machine is Printing

• Revenue: $48.4 billion (a 21% YoY increase)

• Profit? Through the roof—operating margin jumped from 20% to 48%!

• Family of Apps (FoA) raked in $46.8 billion from ads, with ad impressions up 6% and prices per ad climbing 14%.

• ARPP (Average Revenue Per Person): $14.25, up from $12.33 last year. More eyeballs, more cash.

• Oh, and they’re giving back to shareholders with dividends and share buybacks. 🤑

Meta’s ad empire keeps flexing its dominance, with Zuckerberg stating, “Our strong engagement trends, combined with improvements to our ad ranking and measurement systems, are driving real business results.” The increase in ad pricing shows that businesses are willing to pay more for Meta’s targeted advertising capabilities. Meanwhile, the company remains committed to returning value to shareholders, with Susan Li emphasizing, “We are focused on delivering sustainable earnings growth while continuing to invest in AI and other key areas.” Simply put, Meta is proving that scaling a platform with over 3 billion users is a money-printing machine that’s only getting more efficient. 💸

🤖 AI is the Main Character Now

Mark Zuckerberg is betting big on AI. How big? Hundreds of billions of dollars in AI infrastructure over the long term. Here’s what he’s excited about:

• A personalized AI assistant (Meta AI) that could reach 1 billion people in 2025. Move over, Siri? 🤔

• AI-powered ad targeting to squeeze even more $$$ out of those 3.35 billion users.

• A mid-level AI engineer that codes. (Does it also take coffee breaks? ☕)

• Andromeda, Meta’s latest machine learning system, is making ads even smarter.

Zuckerberg believes this is the year “when a highly intelligent and personalized AI assistant reaches more than 1 billion people,” and he expects Meta AI to lead the pack. AI isn’t just about engagement—it’s about making ads more relevant, more effective, and ultimately, more profitable. With continued investment in AI infrastructure, Meta is doubling down on its ability to serve better, more targeted ads while laying the groundwork for future AI-driven revenue streams.

🕶️ Ray-Ban Meta AI Glasses – The Future or Just a Cool Gadget?

Zuck is really into these glasses. He says they’re “a real hit,” and 2025 will be the year we find out if AI glasses are the next big thing or just another Google Glass moment.

• Style + AI = The perfect combo? Maybe.

• A major computing platform in the making? Meta is testing the waters. 🌊

“We are seeing people recognize that these glasses are the perfect form factor for AI—as well as just great, stylish glasses,” Zuckerberg noted. If these smart glasses take off, it could mark the start of a new era in wearable AI technology, bringing Meta even deeper into consumers’ daily lives. But will people actually wear them? That’s the billion-dollar question.

🌍 The Metaverse Isn’t Dead (Yet)

Remember when Meta was all-in on the metaverse? Well, those investments are still happening, but AI is stealing the spotlight. That said:

• Horizon Worlds is still growing.

• Long-term metaverse plans could start “landing” in 2025.

• Reality Labs lost nearly $5 billion this quarter. (Ouch.)

Meta is still committed to the long game with its metaverse vision. Zuckerberg emphasized, “We’re continuing to invest in our vision for the metaverse, and we expect some of these investments to start really paying off in 2025.” While Reality Labs continues to be a money sink, any breakthrough in VR or AR adoption could unlock new monetization opportunities down the line.

📈 Challenges and What to Watch

• Reality Labs is still burning cash. The metaverse is expensive, and revenue there is growing sloooowly.

• Competition in AI. Chinese AI models (like DeepSeek) are emerging, and Meta wants to maintain an “American standard” for open-source AI.

• Q1 2025 Guidance was a tad light. Expected revenue: $39.5B-$41.8B, reflecting 8-15% YoY growth. Still strong, but not quite as mind-blowing.

While Meta’s core business remains strong, the company must navigate the balance between heavy AI investments and profitability. As Zuckerberg put it, “We believe AI will drive the next wave of growth, but we need to execute well to ensure these investments translate into value for users and shareholders.”

🎯 So, What’s the Opportunity Here?

Meta controls one of the most powerful ad platforms on Earth, and they’re still figuring out new ways to monetize their 3.35 billion users. If AI ads, premium features, and AI glasses gain traction, Meta could unlock even more revenue streams.

💡 Long-term things to watch:

✅ AI expansion and monetization strategies 📊 

✅ Growth in ad revenue and engagement across the Family of Apps 👀 

✅ Progress in AI glasses and metaverse developments 🕶️  

There are definitely opportunities for expansion going forward.  Time will still tell if these ventures lead to further revenue and margin growth.  

For the time being, Meta is growing revenues and bringing value for shareholders.  They seem to be firing on all cylinders with their advertising platform.  I for one, would not bet against Meta.  This continues to be a part of my portfolio going forward.  

🤔 Let me know your thoughts!

🚀 Until next time,

Henry Dalsania