Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:META) stock surges 14.06% (As on April 27, 11:36:19 AM UTC-4, Source: Google Finance) after the company reported first-quarter results that topped Wall Street expectations and the social media giant provided upbeat revenue guidance amid ongoing progress to bring down costs. The better-than-expected results come as the company continued to make progress on its ‘year of efficiency’ pledge in 2022 and advertising revenue grew. Headcount fell 1% to 77,114 year-on-year in Q1. Facebook daily active users, or DAUs, rose 4% to 2.04B, while monthly active people, or MAUs, rose 2% to 2.99B. Ad Impressions across the company’s apps jumped 26%, but average price per ad fell 17% year-on-year, pressured by increasing competition. Total costs and expenses were $21.42 billion, an increase of 10% year-over-year. This includes charges related to our restructuring efforts of $1.14 billion in the first quarter of 2023. Capital expenditures, including principal payments on finance leases, were $7.09 billion for the first quarter of 2023.
META in the first quarter of FY 23 has reported the adjusted earnings per share of $2.20, beating the analysts’ estimates for the adjusted earnings per share of $2.02. The company had reported the adjusted revenue growth of 3 percent to $28.65 billion in the first quarter of FY 23, beating the analysts’ estimates for revenue of $27.61 billion.
Additionally, the company repurchased $9.22 billion of our Class A common stock in the first quarter of 2023. As of March 31, 2023, we had $41.73 billion available and authorized for repurchases. Cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities were $37.44 billion as of March 31, 2023. Long-term debt was $9.92 billion as of March 31, 2023.
The company guided second-quarter revenue in a range of $29.5B to $32B, above Wall Street estimates of $29.47B. The company forecast second-quarter revenue above market expectations on Wednesday as the digital advertising market shifts to tried and tested platforms such as Facebook and Instagram at a time of increasing economic uncertainties.
Looking further ahead, the company sees 2023 revenue guidance in the range of $86B to $90B, adding that it continued to expect Reality Labs operating losses to increase year-over-year in 2023.
Meanwhile, the company in March 2023, has announced three rounds of planned layoffs to further reduce our company size by approximately 10,000 employees across the Family of Apps (FoA) and Reality Labs (RL) segments. In connection with these layoffs, META expects to incur total pre-tax severance and related personnel costs of approximately $1 billion, of which $523 million was recognized during the first quarter of 2023 and the remaining charges will be substantially recorded by the end of 2023.