Mark Zuckerberg gains $13 billion as Meta posts second-best day since 2012

Mark Zuckerberg’s cost-cutting efforts for Meta have paid off for investors and him personally as the company’s stock price rose 22% on Thursday.

The boost extends the stock’s winning streak, bringing this year’s gains to almost 55%. Since Meta went public in 2012, Thursday’s performance was its second-best day at $189 per share.

Zuckerberg’s wealth skyrockets: The stock’s positive performance subsequently increased Mark Zuckerberg’s net worth by about $13 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index where he is ranked 13th. Currently, the total value of his fortune is $69 billion.

Mark stated that the company’s primary product, Facebook, which gave rise to the corporation, now had 2 billion daily active users. According to the corporation, about 3 billion people use its apps every day, up 5 per cent from this time last year.

After the firm reported its first-ever annual revenue decline, Mark Zuckerberg’s troubled social media company announced plans for a $40 billion share buyback.

Proposed share buyback: Meanwhile, Meta said that it will spend billions more buying up its shares. The buyback announcement caused Meta’s shares to soar more than 22% in after-hours trading.

Note that share buybacks reward investors by giving them their money back and promote share prices by lowering the number of circulating stocks. Despite the company reporting the first year sales decline in its history, Meta managed to rise.

Year of efficiency: Mr Zuckerberg has proclaimed 2023 the “Year of Efficiency,” and he is committed to building a stronger, more adaptable organization.

Chinese-owned TikTok, which competes with Instagram and Facebook, is a significant threat to Meta. Mr Zuckerberg said that his business was making significant strides with its AI discovery engine, an area where its Chinese rival has gotten a jump on it, and Instagram’s Reels product, which is viewed as a rival to TikTok’s short-form films.

In case you missed it: Meta’s profits fell by 41% to $23.2 billion in 2022. A pricey round of layoffs and ongoing significant losses on Mr Zuckerberg’s metaverse wager harmed performance.

The Reality Labs branch of the social media business, which houses its metaverse operations, reported worsening losses of $13 billion, an increase of $3 billion above the $10 billion loss it reported in 2021. In just the last three months of 2022, the division lost $4.3 billion.

A restructuring charge of $4.1 billion was also made by the corporation, including 11,000 layoffs that were announced at the close of the previous year.

SOURCE: NAIRAMETRICS