META Q3 2021 Earnings

Call Details

• Call Title: Meta Platforms, Inc. Q3 2021 Earnings Call
• Date: October 25, 2021 at 9:00 PM UTC
• Management Team:
  • Deborah Crawford (Vice President of Investor Relations)
  • Mark Zuckerberg (Chief Executive Officer)
  • Sheryl Sandberg (Chief Operating Officer)
  • Dave Wehner (Chief Financial Officer)

Call Summary

Financial Performance

• Q3 total revenue was $29.0B, up 35% year over year and up 34% on a constant currency basis.
• Q3 ad revenue was $28.3B, up 33% year over year and up 32% on a constant currency basis.
• Other revenue was $734M, up 195% year over year and driven primarily by Quest 2 hardware sales.
• Facebook daily active users reached 1.93B, which was up 6% or 110M versus the prior year.
• Monthly active users were approximately 3.6B, which grew by 170M or 6% year over year.
• Total ad impressions increased 9% year over year while average price per ad increased 22% year over year.
• Q3 total expenses were $18.6B, up 38% year over year, resulting in operating income of $10.4B and a 36% operating margin.
• Net income was $9.2B, or $3.22 per share, and the reported tax rate for the quarter was 13%.
• Capital expenditures for the quarter were $4.5B and cash and marketable securities totaled $58.1B at quarter end.

Guidance

• Q4 2021 total revenue was guided to a range of $31.5B to $34.0B reflecting significant uncertainty from iOS changes, macro, and COVID factors.
• Full-year 2021 total expenses were updated to $70B to $71B from a prior $70B to $73B outlook.
• Preliminary 2022 total expenses were projected at $91B to $97B driven by investments in technical and product talent and infrastructure.
• Full-year 2021 capital expenditures were updated to approximately $19B, revised from $19B to $21B.
• 2022 capital expenditures were guided to $29B to $34B, with a stated large increment for AI/ML investments.
• Q4 2021 tax rate was guided to be in the high teens, and 2022 full-year tax rate was expected to be similar to full-year 2021 absent U.S. tax law changes.