Meta shares rise over 9% in after-hours trading on Wednesday, driven by better-than-expected quarterly results and an upbeat outlook for the start of the year. The group posted EPS of $8.88 in Q4 2025, versus $8.23 expected, on revenue of $59.89bn, up 24% y-o-y. For Q1 2026, Meta forecasts revenue of between $53.5bn and $56.5bn, well above the consensus of $51.41bn. Daily active users reached 3.58 billion, in line with expectations.

Despite these performances, Meta is anticipating a sharp increase in spending in 2026, between $162bn and $169bn, including up to $135bn in capital expenditures, mainly for artificial intelligence. These figures are well above market expectations and reflect the group's ambitions in advanced AI, via its Meta Superintelligence Labs and the TBD structure, strengthened by talent from Scale AI. The group is currently testing a new AI model, "Avocado,” the successor to Llama, with a release expected in H1.

At the same time, Reality Labs, the virtual reality (VR) division behind Meta Quest headsets, continues to weigh on Meta's results with a loss of $6.02bn in Q4 on $955m in revenue, figures above analysts' estimates. Over 1,000 job cuts were announced in early January in that division, marking a refocus toward AI and connected devices such as Ray-Ban Meta glasses. While growth in the virtual reality market remains slow, Meta says it is not abandoning the segment. The group also warns of looming legal and regulatory risks, notably in the US and the EU, which could lead to significant financial losses.