Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, reported a 52 per cent annual drop in third quarter net profit as it recorded its second consecutive quarterly revenue decline, underpinned by a decrease in average price per advertisement.
Net profit for the three-month period to the end of September skidded to about $4.4 billion, nearly $4.8bn less than the same period a year earlier. It was down about 34 per cent from the second quarter of this year.
This is the second consecutive quarter that the California-based technology conglomerate reported a double-digit drop in net profit.
The share price of the company fell 6 per cent at the close of trading on Wednesday but plummeted 20 per cent in after hours trading to $104.30. The company's stock price has declined almost 62 per cent since the start of the year.
The social media company's revenue dropped nearly 4 per cent annually to about $27.7bn in the third quarter, exceeding analysts’ estimates of $27.4bn, according to Refinitiv, down nearly 3.8 per cent on a quarterly basis.
“While we face near-term challenges on revenue, the fundamentals are there for a return to stronger revenue growth,” Meta founder and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said.
“We are approaching 2023 with a focus on prioritisation and efficiency that will help us navigate the current environment and emerge an even stronger company.”
The platform's number of daily active users grew 3 per cent yearly to reach about two billion in the last quarter. Its monthly active users increased 2 per cent to nearly 2.96 billion.
“Our community continues to grow and I am pleased with the strong engagement we are seeing driven by progress on our discovery engine and products like Reels,” Mr Zuckerberg said.
Advertisement impressions delivered across Meta’s family of apps increased by 17 per cent a year in the third quarter, while the average price for advertisements decreased by 18 per cent annually.
Meta’s apps include Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp and others.
Last quarter, the company’s diluted earnings dropped 49 per cent to $1.64 a share, compared to the $1.89 expected by analysts, Refinitiv reported.
Advertising revenue, which dropped 3.6 per cent a year, added more than $27.2bn to Meta’s overall revenue. It constituted more than 98 per cent of the company’s total sales.
Revenue from other streams rose 9 per cent on an annual basis to nearly $192 million.
The company’s reality labs business — which include metaverse, augmented and virtual reality-related consumer hardware, software and content — recorded a 49 per cent yearly drop to $285m in the third quarter.
Meta’s capital expenditure, including principal payments on finance leases, in the third quarter was more than $9.5bn. It is expected to be in the range of $32bn to $33bn for the 2022 full financial year.
For 2023, the company expects capex to be in the range of $34bn to $39bn, driven by investments in data centres, servers and network infrastructure.
“An increase in AI [artificial intelligence] capacity is driving substantially all of our capital expenditure growth in 2023,” Meta said.
The company, which employs 87,314 employees, repurchased $6.55bn of its common stock in the third quarter. It had more than $17.78bn available and authorised for repurchases as of September 30.
While we face near-term challenges on revenue, the fundamentals are there for a return to stronger revenue growth
Mark Zuckerberg,
Meta founder and chief executive
The cash and cash equivalents and marketable securities were $41.78bn as of September 30, a yearly drop of 28 per cent, the company said.
Meta expects the 2022 financial year’s total expenses to be between $85bn and $87bn, lowered from its prior outlook of $85bn to $88bn.
This includes an estimated $900m in additional charges related to the office facilities footprint that Meta is expected to record in the fourth quarter.
The company expects its full-year 2023 total expenses to be in the range of $96bn to $101bn.
The company expects sales in its fourth quarter, ending on December 31, to be in the range of $30bn to $32.5bn, said Meta’s chief financial officer David Wehner.
“To provide some context on the approach we are taking towards setting our 2023 budget, we are making significant changes across the board to operate more efficiently,” he said.
“We are holding some teams flat in terms of headcount, shrinking others and investing headcount growth only in our highest priorities.
“As a result, we expect headcount at the end of 2023 will be approximately in line with third-quarter 2022 levels.”
The specs: 2019 Lincoln MKC
Price, base / as tested: Dh169,995 / Dh192,045
Engine: Turbocharged, 2.0-litre, in-line four-cylinder
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Power: 253hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque: 389Nm @ 2,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 10.7L / 100km
How Apple's credit card works
The Apple Card looks different from a traditional credit card — there's no number on the front and the users' name is etched in metal. The card expands the company's digital Apple Pay services, marrying the physical card to a virtual one and integrating both with the iPhone. Its attributes include quick sign-up, elimination of most fees, strong security protections and cash back.
What does it cost?
Apple says there are no fees associated with the card. That means no late fee, no annual fee, no international fee and no over-the-limit fees. It also said it aims to have among the lowest interest rates in the industry. Users must have an iPhone to use the card, which comes at a cost. But they will earn cash back on their purchases — 3 per cent on Apple purchases, 2 per cent on those with the virtual card and 1 per cent with the physical card. Apple says it is the only card to provide those rewards in real time, so that cash earned can be used immediately.
What will the interest rate be?
The card doesn't come out until summer but Apple has said that as of March, the variable annual percentage rate on the card could be anywhere from 13.24 per cent to 24.24 per cent based on creditworthiness. That's in line with the rest of the market, according to analysts
What about security?
The physical card has no numbers so purchases are made with the embedded chip and the digital version lives in your Apple Wallet on your phone, where it's protected by fingerprints or facial recognition. That means that even if someone steals your phone, they won't be able to use the card to buy things.
Is it easy to use?
Apple says users will be able to sign up for the card in the Wallet app on their iPhone and begin using it almost immediately. It also tracks spending on the phone in a more user-friendly format, eliminating some of the gibberish that fills a traditional credit card statement. Plus it includes some budgeting tools, such as tracking spending and providing estimates of how much interest could be charged on a purchase to help people make an informed decision.
* Associated Press
The specs
Price, base / as tested Dh135,000
Engine 1.6L turbo
Gearbox Six speed automatic with manual and sports mode
Power 165hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque 240Nm @ 1,400rpm 0-100kph: 9.2 seconds
Top speed 420 kph (governed)
Fuel economy, combined 35.2L / 100km (est)
88 Video's most popular rentals
Avengers 3: Infinity War: an American superhero film released in 2018 and based on the Marvel Comics story.
Sholay: a 1975 Indian action-adventure film. It follows the adventures of two criminals hired by police to catch a vagabond. The film was panned on release but is now considered a classic.
Lucifer: is a 2019 Malayalam-language action film. It dives into the gritty world of Kerala’s politics and has become one of the highest-grossing Malayalam films of all time.
Volunteers offer workers a lifeline
Community volunteers have swung into action delivering food packages and toiletries to the men.
When provisions are distributed, the men line up in long queues for packets of rice, flour, sugar, salt, pulses, milk, biscuits, shaving kits, soap and telecom cards.
Volunteers from St Mary’s Catholic Church said some workers came to the church to pray for their families and ask for assistance.
Boxes packed with essential food items were distributed to workers in the Dubai Investments Park and Ras Al Khaimah camps last week. Workers at the Sonapur camp asked for Dh1,600 towards their gas bill.
“Especially in this year of tolerance we consider ourselves privileged to be able to lend a helping hand to our needy brothers in the Actco camp," Father Lennie Connully, parish priest of St Mary’s.
Workers spoke of their helplessness, seeing children’s marriages cancelled because of lack of money going home. Others told of their misery of being unable to return home when a parent died.
“More than daily food, they are worried about not sending money home for their family,” said Kusum Dutta, a volunteer who works with the Indian consulate.
Five ways to get fit like Craig David (we tried for seven but ran out of time)
Start the week as you mean to go on. So get your training on strong on a Monday.
Train hard, but don’t take it all so seriously that it gets to the point where you’re not having fun and enjoying your friends and your family and going out for nice meals and doing that stuff.
Think about what you’re training or eating a certain way for — don’t, for example, get a six-pack to impress somebody else or lose weight to conform to society’s norms. It’s all nonsense.
Get your priorities right.
And last but not least, you should always, always chill on Sundays.
Neil Thomson – THE BIO
Family: I am happily married to my wife Liz and we have two children together.
Favourite music: Rock music. I started at a young age due to my father’s influence. He played in an Indian rock band The Flintstones who were once asked by Apple Records to fly over to England to perform there.
Favourite book: I constantly find myself reading The Bible.
Favourite film: The Greatest Showman.
Favourite holiday destination: I love visiting Melbourne as I have family there and it’s a wonderful place. New York at Christmas is also magical.
Favourite food: I went to boarding school so I like any cuisine really.
Januzaj's club record
Manchester United 50 appearances, 5 goals
Borussia Dortmund (loan) 6 appearances, 0 goals
Sunderland (loan) 25 appearances, 0 goals
Dunki
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Various Artists
Habibi Funk: An Eclectic Selection Of Music From The Arab World (Habibi Funk)
Dr Amal Khalid Alias revealed a recent case of a woman with daughters, who specifically wanted a boy.
A semen analysis of the father showed abnormal sperm so the couple required IVF.
Out of 21 eggs collected, six were unused leaving 15 suitable for IVF.
A specific procedure was used, called intracytoplasmic sperm injection where a single sperm cell is inserted into the egg.
On day three of the process, 14 embryos were biopsied for gender selection.
The next day, a pre-implantation genetic report revealed four normal male embryos, three female and seven abnormal samples.
Day five of the treatment saw two male embryos transferred to the patient.
The woman recorded a positive pregnancy test two weeks later.
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
WITHIN%20SAND
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At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
MATCH INFO
Manchester United 1 (Rashford 36')
Liverpool 1 (Lallana 84')
Man of the match: Marcus Rashford (Manchester United)
