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META Platform (META) Expands Global Music Deal With UMG
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META Platform’s (META - Free Report) is expanding footprint in the music industry. It recently expanded global partnership with Universal Music Group (“UMG”), solidifying a multi-year agreement that will enhance creative and commercial opportunities for UMG artists and Universal Music Publishing Group (“UMPG”) songwriters across Meta’s extensive network of platforms.
Building on the companies’ 2017 landmark deal, this upgraded agreement integrates UMG’s music into Meta’s ecosystem, now including Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, Horizon, Threads and, for the first time, WhatsApp.
By focusing on fair compensation and addressing challenges such as unauthorized AI-generated content, Meta and UMG continue its collaborative efforts to enrich the music experience across Meta’s platforms.
Expanding Portfolio Aid META’s Prospects
META shares have surged 45.8% year to date compared with the Zacks Computer and Technology sector’s growth of 14.8%. The upside has been driven by a robust portfolio, which includes Threads, Reels, Llama 2, Ray-Ban Meta smart glass and mixed reality device Quest 3.
Meta’s daily active user base across its apps exceeded 3.2 billion in the second quarter of 2024. Notably, WhatsApp surpassed 100 million monthly active users in the United States and Threads is approaching 200 million monthly active users.
The latest move is in sync with META’s growing efforts to strengthen the company’s platforms on the back of its strategic collaborations.
In June, Meta Platforms partnered with the National Association of Software and Service Companies (Nasscom) to launch an AI Enablement for MSMEs program. The program aims to empower tech-enabled micro, small and medium enterprises in India through AI awareness, capacity building and access to resources.
Meta also continues to enhance its AI capabilities, focusing on improving content recommendations, advertising experiences and AI-driven tools like Meta AI and AI Studio.
The launch of the AI studio in the second quarter of 2024 is a significant addition to META’s expanding AI capabilities. The AI studio enables creators to develop AIs that interact within apps across META’s service offerings.
META’s advancement in generative AI capabilities with Meta Llama, which offers users more interactive and personalized experiences, has been noteworthy.
The latest Llama 3.1 introduces the first frontier-level open-source model and features new, industry-leading small and medium-sized models. META is also developing Llama 4, which is anticipated to further enhance its capabilities in the future.
META expects to invest significantly in the next few years in developing more advanced models and the most extensive AI services in the world. However, monetization of these AI services will take considerable time, which is a concern for its top-line growth.
For third-quarter 2024, META expects total revenues to be between $38.5 billion and $41 billion, assuming an unfavorable forex impact of 2% to year-over-year revenue growth.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for third-quarter 2024 revenues is currently pegged at $40.08 billion, indicating 17.39% year-over-year growth. The consensus mark for earnings is pegged at $5.12 per share, which increased 26 cents in the past 30 days.
Image: Bigstock
META Platform (META) Expands Global Music Deal With UMG
META Platform’s (META - Free Report) is expanding footprint in the music industry. It recently expanded global partnership with Universal Music Group (“UMG”), solidifying a multi-year agreement that will enhance creative and commercial opportunities for UMG artists and Universal Music Publishing Group (“UMPG”) songwriters across Meta’s extensive network of platforms.
Building on the companies’ 2017 landmark deal, this upgraded agreement integrates UMG’s music into Meta’s ecosystem, now including Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, Horizon, Threads and, for the first time, WhatsApp.
By focusing on fair compensation and addressing challenges such as unauthorized AI-generated content, Meta and UMG continue its collaborative efforts to enrich the music experience across Meta’s platforms.
Expanding Portfolio Aid META’s Prospects
META shares have surged 45.8% year to date compared with the Zacks Computer and Technology sector’s growth of 14.8%. The upside has been driven by a robust portfolio, which includes Threads, Reels, Llama 2, Ray-Ban Meta smart glass and mixed reality device Quest 3.
Meta Platforms, Inc. Price and Consensus
Meta Platforms, Inc. price-consensus-chart | Meta Platforms, Inc. Quote
Meta’s daily active user base across its apps exceeded 3.2 billion in the second quarter of 2024. Notably, WhatsApp surpassed 100 million monthly active users in the United States and Threads is approaching 200 million monthly active users.
The latest move is in sync with META’s growing efforts to strengthen the company’s platforms on the back of its strategic collaborations.
In June, Meta Platforms partnered with the National Association of Software and Service Companies (Nasscom) to launch an AI Enablement for MSMEs program. The program aims to empower tech-enabled micro, small and medium enterprises in India through AI awareness, capacity building and access to resources.
Meta also continues to enhance its AI capabilities, focusing on improving content recommendations, advertising experiences and AI-driven tools like Meta AI and AI Studio.
The launch of the AI studio in the second quarter of 2024 is a significant addition to META’s expanding AI capabilities. The AI studio enables creators to develop AIs that interact within apps across META’s service offerings.
META’s advancement in generative AI capabilities with Meta Llama, which offers users more interactive and personalized experiences, has been noteworthy.
The latest Llama 3.1 introduces the first frontier-level open-source model and features new, industry-leading small and medium-sized models. META is also developing Llama 4, which is anticipated to further enhance its capabilities in the future.
META expects to invest significantly in the next few years in developing more advanced models and the most extensive AI services in the world. However, monetization of these AI services will take considerable time, which is a concern for its top-line growth.
For third-quarter 2024, META expects total revenues to be between $38.5 billion and $41 billion, assuming an unfavorable forex impact of 2% to year-over-year revenue growth.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for third-quarter 2024 revenues is currently pegged at $40.08 billion, indicating 17.39% year-over-year growth. The consensus mark for earnings is pegged at $5.12 per share, which increased 26 cents in the past 30 days.
Zacks Rank & Other Stocks to Consider
Currently, META carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
Some other top-ranked stocks in the broader technology sector are Arista Networks (ANET - Free Report) , Badger Meter (BMI - Free Report) and CEVA (CEVA - Free Report) , each sporting a Zacks Rank #1(Strong Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
Arista Networks’ shares have gained 43.6% in the year-to-date period. The long-term earnings growth rate for ANET is pegged at 17.20%.
Badger Meter shares have gained 23.5% in the year-to-date period. The long-term earnings growth rate for BMI is pegged at 17.92%.
Shares of CEVA have declined 11.2% in the year-to-date period. The long-term earnings growth rate for CEVA is pegged at 20%.