Meta’s (META) hiring spree to create a super AI team has led it to recruit talent from OpenAI and Anthropic, with the headline $14.3 billion acquisition of data-labeling company Scale AI perhaps being the most noteworthy. Now, the owner of social media giants such as WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook has come knocking on the doors of Apple (AAPL).
According to a recent report by Bloomberg, Ruoming Pang, the head of AI models at Apple, is leaving the company to join Meta for a compensation package reported to be more than a cool $200 million. Pang was responsible for several elements of Apple Intelligence and other on-device features at the iPhone maker. Before Apple, he was also at Google (GOOGL).
This is an interesting move by Meta. Apple has been a known laggard in artificial intelligence, a key reason for its dismal share price performance in 2025. However, Pang’s credentials are impressive, and at Meta, he may be able to seriously move the needle.
But what does this latest move mean for the Meta stock, which is already up 24% on a YTD basis? Let’s find out.
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Pang’s addition to Zuckerberg’s “AI Avengers” only reinforces the Meta CEO’s strategic focus on AI as he remains convinced that this revolutionary tech will be the next growth driver for his company, as I highlighted in a recent article.
Further, Meta’s ongoing push into AI is already showing up in user behavior across its key platforms. Time spent is climbing, with Facebook showing growth of 7%, Instagram 6%, and Threads by a much higher 35%. These increases closely track the company’s use of AI to refine what users see, making content more engaging. At the same time, the global average price per ad has gone up by 10%, signalling that advertisers are recognizing better returns, possibly due to the improved targeting these algorithms now offer.
Notably, Meta also rolled out its dedicated Meta AI app. It’s intended to add more nuance to user experience through voice interaction, personalized responses, and content that feels more tailored to individual tastes. This fits in well with Zuckerberg’s broader strategy of building Meta AI into a dominant assistant, an ambition that doesn’t appear far-fetched, thanks to Meta’s access to vast pools of user data from across its ecosystem,
There’s also a clear rationale for the sharp increase in capital expenditures linked to AI. The company believes it can boost advertising precision, deliver richer interactions, and increase Meta AI’s reach as it moves toward fully automating the ad lifecycle by 2026. If that happens, it would represent a structural shift in how campaigns are created and deployed, requiring less human input and more AI oversight.
Interestingly, it’s not just software. More vigorous integration of AI into the company’s hardware products, such as its Ray-Ban augmented reality/virtual reality glasses, can drive a new structural shift that may threaten the hegemony of the smartphone.
Meta has not compromised on its financials, despite an aggressive push in acquisitions and innovation. Meta has consistently delivered strong financial results. Over the past ten years, the company has grown both revenue and earnings at compound annual growth rates of 29% and 37%, respectively.
Moreover, the company has now reported earnings that exceeded expectations for nine quarters in a row. In the latest quarter, Q1 2025, Meta posted revenue of $42.3 billion, reflecting a 16% increase over the same period a year ago.
Earnings rose even more sharply. Profit per share came in at $6.43, representing a 37% jump from the prior year and beating the consensus estimate of $5.24. This was accompanied by an expansion in operating margins, which improved to 41% from 38% in the comparable period.
Cash flow performance was similarly solid. Net cash from operating activities amounted to $24.03 billion, compared to $19.25 billion in the previous year. The company ended the quarter with $30.1 billion in cash and equivalents, further reinforcing its financial strength.
For Q2 2025, Meta expects revenue to fall within a range of $42.5 billion to $45.5 billion. The midpoint of this guidance suggests a year-over-year growth of 12.6%. However, management did revise its full-year outlook slightly downward, now forecasting total revenue between $113 billion and $118 billion, compared with the earlier projection of $114 billion to $119 billion.
Overall, analysts remain convinced about Meta’s prospects. Hence, they have assigned a consensus rating of “Strong Buy” with a mean target price of $731.50. Although this denotes limited upside potential, the high target price of $935 implies upside potential of about 30% from current levels.
Out of 54 analysts covering the stock, 45 have a “Strong Buy” rating, three have a “Moderate Buy” rating, five have a “Hold” rating, and one has a “Strong Sell” rating.
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On the date of publication, Pathikrit Bose did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. This article was originally published on Barchart.com
