Meta Stock Split Follows Earnings Beat as AI Spending Hits $145B

• Meta reported Q3 2026 revenue of $64.60 billion, up 26%, with diluted EPS of $3.83 after a $9.89 billion legal charge
• A one-for-one dividend of new non-voting Class C shares should work like a two-for-one stock split after January 19, 2027
• Meta narrowed its 2026 capex outlook to $135-145 billion, and heavy AI spending left Q3 free cash flow negative

The Meta stock split is a two-for-one split that Meta will deliver as a dividend of one new non-voting Class C share for every Class A and Class B share, effective January 19, 2027. Meta announced it with a new earnings report that beat estimates, with AI spending heads toward $145 billion this year.

As Meta reveals in its third-quarter 2026 results release, revenue rose 26% to $64.60 billion, and stock earnings came in at $3.83 per diluted share. On October 22, MarketCapOf data showed the Meta stock price near $707.94, a level that would drop to roughly $354 per share once the Class C dividend lands.

Also Read: Netflix Stock Slides 6% as Ad Forecast Falls After 1,000 Job Cuts

Meta Stock Earnings, AI Spending and Class C Shares Explained

How The Meta Stock Split Works Through Class C Shares

Independent directors recommended the Class C stock, and the board will set payment dates later.

Meta CFO Susan Li said on the earnings call:

“We expect trading to begin in late January 2027.”

A $707.94 Meta stock price would sit near $354 after the payout, with one Class A and one Class C share per holder. Voting power stays the same, and the Meta stock split hands nobody extra wealth.

Why Meta Wants A Non-Voting Share Class

As TradingKey shows in its breakdown of the new share class, the setup gives Meta a fresh way to raise equity for AI without diluting Mark Zuckerberg’s control. The AI spending drives the move, alongside employee pay and acquisitions. Big AI infrastructure bets still split Wall Street, and CoreWeave has one analyst warning of zero and Goldman seeing 73% upside.

What The Meta Earnings Report Showed

The Meta earnings report landed with the Meta stock split news, and as INDmoney reveals in its Q3 earnings analysis, revenue topped the $63.34 billion MarketBeat consensus. Meta stock earnings would have reached $7.40 per share without the charge, above a $6.54 consensus reference.

What The $9.89 Billion Legal Charge Changed

The $9.89 billion charge comes from an agreement with 52 attorneys general over teen mental health lawsuits. It pushed operating income down 37% to $12.99 billion.

Ads Carried The Quarter

Advertising brought in $63.06 billion of the revenue in the Meta earnings report, and daily active people across apps hit 3.64 billion. For scale, even TRON, one of the busiest blockchains, is averaging 4.41 million daily active accounts.

Mark Zuckerberg, Meta founder and CEO, said:

“We hit major milestones this quarter toward delivering personal superintelligence for everyone – including launching Muse and Muse Wonder, our first frontier model. Our investments are paying off, the core business is strong, and we’re seeing velocity across the board.”

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Meta AI Spending Pushes Free Cash Flow Negative

AI spending lifted capital expenditures to $34.91 billion in Q3, and free cash flow turned negative at $2.12 billion.

The earnings report also narrowed the 2026 capex outlook to $135 billion to $145 billion. Meta spent $85.82 billion in nine months, so Q4 could need roughly $49 billion to $59 billion, and the Meta stock split gives the company another way to fund it.

Muse Shows Where The Money Goes

Muse is where Meta AI spending meets users, with more than 10 million US and Canadian sign-ups in about six weeks. Zuckerberg added on the earnings call:

“We expect to grow Muse to serve billions of people.”

Big investors are spreading bets too, as new reports show the wealthy putting more money into crypto.

Meta Stock Price Reaction And The MCO Comparison

The Meta stock price rose 2.17% after hours, according to INDmoney, as traders weighed Meta stock earnings.

MarketCapOf’s ROI Calculator compares Meta with Nvidia, a major supplier of the chips that Meta AI spending buys. From January 1 to October 22, 2026, META returned 1.31x, turning $1,000 into $1,314.54, against 1.14x, or $1,138.71, for NVDA.

The buyer of AI capacity has outrun a key supplier by $175.83 on every $1,000. The chart also shows sharp swings ahead of the Meta stock split, as the Meta stock price topped $750 in late September before sliding toward $700. The MCO prices track Robinhood’s tokenized versions, and Robinhood keeps adding tools for US crypto traders, such as 10x leverage.

Legal Bills Still Weigh On Meta Stock Earnings

The Meta earnings report also flagged upcoming US youth-related trials, and a New Mexico court ordered Meta to pay $25 billion in a Cambridge Analytica privacy case that Meta plans to appeal, INDmoney reports. Neither changes the tock split, but they can hit stock earnings and the Meta stock price.

Binance, the exchange behind BNB, is also facing scrutiny under Europe’s MiCA rules.

Also Read: Amazon Stock Jumps 5% as $350 Target Meets New Nvidia Challenge

What Meta Shareholders Should Watch Before January

Meta guided Q4 revenue at $73 billion to $76 billion, with a midpoint above the $73.65 billion analysts expected, per INDmoney. Shareholders still need the Meta stock split payment date and a clearer view of Meta AI spending for 2027 in the next Meta earnings report. Growth money has other homes too, with Bitcoin funds pulling in $241 million in ETF inflows.

The Meta stock split will halve the Meta stock price per share on paper, but the next round of Meta stock earnings and the AI bill will decide where the shares go from here.