Meta's Q2 revenue jumps 28% to $60.8B while free cash flow drops 91% to $784M

July 27, 2026 · forbes.kz

Revenue at Meta reached $60.8 billion in the second quarter of 2026, up 28% year over year, while free cash flow collapsed to $784 million, down 91% from $8.5 billion a year earlier. The drop followed $31.1 billion in capital expenditures against $31.9 billion in operating cash flow. Earnings per share of $6.18 missed the $7.2 analysts had expected, an outcome the company tied largely to $2.4 billion in legal charges and $1.2 billion in severance payments after the layoff of roughly 8,000 employees in May; stripped of those one-time items, operating profit would have risen 9%. Shares closed at $585 on July 29 and fell almost 10% immediately after the report, extending losses to about 11% by the close of the following session, near $518. Third-quarter revenue guidance of $61 billion to $64 billion also came in below the roughly $63.1 billion consensus.

Ad prices on Meta's platforms are climbing faster than reach. The average price per ad rose 12% in the quarter, up from 9% growth a year earlier, while impressions grew 14%; in the US and Canada, prices rose 20% and average revenue per user reached $16.86, up from $13.65. Meta credited its GEM ranking system, which combines large language models with ad delivery, for an 8.3% increase in clicks and a 15.7% increase in conversions on Facebook. Budgets planned against Meta inventory are buying into a platform that is both more expensive and more efficient at once. Zuckerberg's remarks about distributing scarce AI computing capacity through an auction model like Meta's ad auction, paired with the company's decision to withhold 2027 capital expenditure guidance, signal a business still working out how much of its future growth will come from advertising.