Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg speaks during the F8 Facebook Developers Conference on April 30, 2019 in San Jose, California.
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The father of Facebook Metaplatforms said in its quarterly earnings report on Wednesday that it had increased its share buyback authorization by $40 billion.
The social network operator will buy back about $28 billion in shares in 2022, the statement said.
The company began buying back shares in 2017, but quarterly share buybacks topped $10 billion for the first time in 2021 as growth from the Covid pandemic helped double net income, according to FactSet. Meta has not yet started paying dividends to shareholders.
Meta’s fourth-quarter results beat analysts’ revenue estimates, sending shares up more than 17% in after-hours trading.
During the quarter, co-founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg said Meta is laying off 13% of its employees as the company works to “become a leaner, more efficient company.” Meta’s revenue has now declined year-over-year for three consecutive quarters, prompting the company to become more cost-conscious.
Net income fell 55% to $4.65 billion, but Meta had nearly $41 billion in cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities at the end of 2022.
Meta announced an increase in its share buyback authorization of $50 billion in October 2021.
