Derick Hudson
Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) is planning to implement large-scale job cuts this week that could affect thousands of employees, The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday.
“Many thousands” of employees could be in the firing line in what may be the largest number of Big Tech layoffs seen of late, the Journal said, citing people familiar with the situation.
The company has told its more than 87K employees to cancel non-essential travel this week, sources told the paper.
New Twitter owner Elon Musk began massive layoffs at the company on Friday as he looked to cut costs amid caution from advertisers. Former Twitter chief Jack Dorsey apologized in a tweet for growing the company too fast.
Shares of META have tumbled more than 35% in the last month and more than 70% year to date as the company moved to its new metaverse direction and investors saw the high costs that’s incurred.
The stock plunged 25% after the latest earnings report showed little sign of immediate progress that could bring in revenue to offset spending.
“We typically don’t like ‘night-of’ ratings changes as they can be reactionary,” Morgan Stanley’s Brian Nowak said. “But we think META’s latest results and forward capex guidance are thesis changing and likely to weigh on the shares for some period … until the market can feel confident in execution and return on invested capital from these outsized investments.”
Seeking Alpha contributor BeanKounter Capital wrote Sunday that a bet on Meta is a bet on Mark Zuckerberg, but is skeptical.
