Meta's revenue hits record high, but profits plunge due to one-time tax expenses.

According to Coin World, Meta Platforms ( META.O ) announced its third-quarter earnings on Wednesday, achieving a record high in revenue, but the company warned that future capital expenditures will continue to rise, causing the stock price to fall about 8% in after-hours trading. The company reported third-quarter revenue of $51.2 billion, a year-on-year increase of 26%; net profit was $2.7 billion, far below analyst expectations. The company attributed the significant decline in net profit to a one-time tax expense of $15.93 billion related to promoting Trump's “Great American Rescue Plan.” Meta expects fourth-quarter revenue to be between $56 billion and $59 billion, roughly in line with market expectations. The company also stated that it expects total expenditure growth in 2026 to significantly exceed that of 2025, mainly due to rising infrastructure costs, including increased cloud computing expenses and higher depreciation costs. Meta also raised its capital expenditure forecast for 2025, expecting expenditures to be between $70 billion and $72 billion, compared to the previous estimated range of $66 billion to $72 billion.