META POSTS LOWER Q4 PROFIT, ANNOUNCES HUGE STOCK BUYBACK

Facebook parent company Meta posted lower fourth-quarter profit and revenue, hurt by a downturn in the online advertising market and competition from rivals such as TikTok.

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But the company’s stock soared in extended trading, as its revenue beat Wall Street’s muted expectations and the Menlo Park, California-based company announced a $40 billion stock buyback.

This is the third consecutive quarter of revenue decline for the tech giant, which laid off 11,000 workers, or about 13% of its workforce, in November. CEO Mark Zuckerberg blamed the layoffs on aggressive hiring during the pandemic, when Meta’s business boomed because people were stuck at home, scrolling on their phones and computers, glued to social media. But as the lockdowns ended and people started going outside again, revenue growth began to falter.

“(Our) management theme for 2023 is the ‘Year of Efficiency’ and we’re focused on becoming a stronger and more nimble organization,” Zuckerberg said in a statement.