Meta Platforms has seen its stock drop below $600, which is quite a shift from the nearly $800 it was trading at six months ago. While some of this decline can be attributed to the overall economic climate, Meta’s significant investments in artificial intelligence (AI) have also raised eyebrows on Wall Street.
I get where the worries come from, but honestly, if you step back and look at the bigger picture, there’s still a lot to appreciate about Meta as an investment, especially now that it’s at a lower price point.
The primary concern for Meta lately is the expected capital expenditures for 2026, which are projected to be between $115 billion and $135 billion. By comparison, the company spent about $72 billion in 2025, meaning the costs might really spike this year.
Interestingly, despite those hefty capital outlays last year, Meta still managed to report free cash flow of $43.6 billion—largely thanks to improvements from its AI initiatives. It seems that tools like the Andromeda ad recommendation system and the Llama 4 multimodal model have contributed to a 12% rise in ad impressions and a 9% increase in the average ad price in 2025.
Additionally, Meta’s CFO, Susan Lee, mentioned during the fourth quarter earnings call that operating profits for 2026 are expected to surpass those of 2025. The company is still profitable enough to support its AI development while boosting revenue.
As of March 20, Meta is trading at 20 times forward earnings, which makes it the most affordable of the “Magnificent Seven”—the seven largest tech companies. Given Meta’s robust business performance, which includes sales of $201 billion in 2025, the current stock valuation appears quite reasonable.
Before diving into an investment in Meta, you might want to think about a few things:
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