Microsoft share jumped 20% or +$30 in pre-market Thursday

Meta Platforms Inc. (META) shares soared in after-hours trading Wednesday guided for potentially more revenue than Wall Street expected in 2023 and promised more share repurchases amid cost cuts.

Earning Report

Meta reported $32.17 billion in fourth-quarter revenue, down from $33.67 billion a year ago but stronger than the expectation of $31.55 billion.

Earnings were $4.65 billion, or $1.76 a share, compared with $10.3 billion, or $3.67 a share, last year, but stronger than the expectation of $2.26 a share.

Share Jumped +$30 in premarket Thursday

Shares jumped more than 20% in after-hours trading immediately following the release of the results, after closing with a 2.8% gain at $153.12.

CEO Mark Zukerberg statement

“Our community continues to grow and I’m pleased with the strong engagement across our apps. Facebook just reached the milestone of 2 billion daily actives,” Meta Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg said in a statement announcing the results. “The progress we’re making on our AI discovery engine and Reels are major drivers of this. Beyond this, our management theme for 2023 is the ‘Year of Efficiency’ and we’re focused on becoming a stronger and more nimble organization.”

2 billion daily user 
Facebook’s 2 billion-user milestone was slightly better than analysts expected for user growth on Meta’s core social network. Daily active users across all of Facebook’s apps neared, but did not crest, another round number, reaching 2.96 billion, up 5% from a year ago.

Meta shares have plunged 53% over the past 12 months.