Meta stock plummets 20 per cent as Zuckerberg calls for patience with pricey metaverse bets

Facebook parent Meta Platforms forecast a weak holiday quarter, knocking about US$67 billion off its stock market value

Investors are increasingly wary about Meta’s expensive metaverse spending, but CEO Mark Zuckerberg said ‘those who are patient … will end up being rewarded’

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Published: 10:02am, 27 Oct 2022

Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc on Wednesday forecast a weak holiday quarter and significantly more costs next year, sending shares down nearly 20 per cent as investors voiced scepticism about the company’s pricey metaverse bets.

The forecast knocked about US$67 billion off Meta’s stock market value in extended trade, adding to the more than half a trillion dollars in value already lost this year.

If Meta’s after-hours stock rout is matched in Thursday’s trading session, it will have been its deepest one-day loss since February 2, when the company last issued a dismal forecast.

The disappointing outlook comes as Meta is contending with slowing global economic growth, competition from TikTok, privacy changes from Apple, concerns about massive spending on the metaverse and the ever-present threat of regulation.

Executives announced plans to consolidate offices and said Meta would keep headcount flat through the end of 2023.

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