Meta shares plunge by 22%

The majority of Wall Street’s stocks are starting the day higher, with the notable exception of Facebook’s corporate entity. After Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg implored investors for patience with the social media giant’s growing investments in unproven bets at a time that is already difficult for digital-advertising companies, Meta Platforms fell as much as 25% on Thursday morning.

The Nasdaq fell 0.2% as a result of Meta’s decline, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 223.03 points, or 0.70%, at the opening to reach 32,062.14.

The S&P 500 dropped after the session began in the green.

The government’s announcement that the US economy returned to growth last quarter, expanding 2.6%, gave the markets some upbeat economic news.

After data revealed that the US gross domestic product increased for the first time this year, the dollar’s gains were reduced. Ten-year Treasury yields fluctuated after briefly falling below 4%.

After reporting excellent third-quarter revenues, aided by customer engagement on its app, McDonald’s stock increased by 3% in premarket trading. Thanks to high summer travel demand, Southwest Airlines saw a more than 4% increase as it recorded record operating revenue in its third quarter.

Value investors, who purchase beaten-down equities in anticipation of a rebound, have been drawn to the stock’s slide this year. But there’s little indication that those wagers will succeed any time soon.

A year ago, Meta Platforms announced a change in focus from traditional investments to virtual reality, as well as a name change from Facebook Inc. to Meta Platforms. The business stated on Wednesday that it anticipates its overall expenses for this year to range between $85 billion and $87 billion.

This amount is projected to increase to between $96 and $101 billion in 2023. Investors had hoped Meta would make significant cost cuts, according to Neil Campling, an analyst at Mirabaud Securities.

According to Bloomberg data, the company’s quarterly capital expenditure exceeded what all but 16 of the S&P 500 companies spent overall last year.