Bernstein on $META
Still need to see it to believe it, but risk-reward remains attractive. Core performance remains strong, with revenue up 28% Y/Y with an ever evolving laundry list of AI enhances driving material financial performance. Yet so long as every incremental dollar generated gets re-invested into strategic AI efforts across model training, talent, and infrastructure build out, investors remain stuck waiting to see evidence of the next big thing. There are (very) early monetization signals emerging within business messaging, paid model APIs, and subscriptions, and expect we’ll hear more product launches and traction updates at Meta Connect next month. AI investments are expected to remain heavy through at least 2027, though Meta is exploring ways to generate returns on excess compute capacity in the short-term and may look to slow 2028+ investments depending on the uptake/needs of supporting consumer AI efforts. Ultimately, Meta does not need every AI initiative to succeed; a single meaningful consumer AI success could materially shift investor sentiment. At ~15x next year's earnings, we believe the valuation already discounts much of the uncertainty. We remain Outperform on Meta, with a PT of $800/share. We value Meta using a 50/50 combination of a 2027e EV/Sales multiple of 6.7x and a DCF using a WACC of 10% and terminal growth of 3.5%.