Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ:META) stock rose in Tuesday’s premarket session, outperforming a weaker broader market ahead of the company’s quarterly earnings. Nasdaq futures fell 0.91%, while S&P 500 futures slipped 0.18%.
Meta’s gains came despite a risk-off tone in equity futures as investors positioned ahead of the company’s second-quarter earnings report, due on Wednesday, July 29. The stock is drawing attention as traders weigh expectations for advertising growth, artificial intelligence investments and spending discipline..
Meta, BlackRock Partner On $14 Billion Texas AI Data Center Venture
Investor sentiment also received a boost after Meta Platforms and BlackRock Inc. (NYSE:BLK) announced a venture to develop a $14 billion, 1-gigawatt artificial intelligence data center campus in El Paso, Texas.
Funds managed by BlackRock will own an 80% stake in the venture, while Meta will retain the remaining 20% and lease the entire campus.
The project, which is expected to begin coming online in 2028, includes more than $10 billion in Meta investment and is projected to create more than 4,000 construction jobs and 300 operational jobs once complete.
Meta founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg said expanding infrastructure for superintelligence is essential to broadening access to AI technology.
He added that partnering with BlackRock will help Meta build data centers more quickly and at greater scale by combining its operational expertise with BlackRock’s infrastructure investment capabilities.
BlackRock Chairman and CEO Larry Fink said the partnership will support thousands of skilled jobs and contribute to economic growth in El Paso.
He added that the deal reflects rising demand for long-term infrastructure financing and demonstrates BlackRock’s ability, alongside GIP and HPS, to provide investment opportunities tied to AI infrastructure and energy projects.
Technical Analysis
Meta remains under pressure despite Tuesday’s modest rebound. The stock is trading 4.5% below its 20-day simple moving average of $623.15, 1.7% below its 50-day SMA of $605.62 and 6.6% below its 200-day SMA of $637.48.
Momentum also remains weak. The moving average convergence divergence (MACD) indicator is below its signal line, while the histogram remains negative, suggesting buying momentum has eased.
The moving averages present a mixed picture. The 20-day SMA remains above the 50-day SMA, but the 50-day SMA is still below the 200-day SMA, a bearish “death cross” that formed in December 2025. The pattern suggests the stock is attempting to stabilize but has yet to confirm a longer-term trend reversal.
The 50-day SMA near $606 remains the first major resistance level. On the downside, $577 is an important support area. A break below that level could shift attention toward the stock’s March 52-week low.
Earnings In Focus
Meta is scheduled to report second-quarter results on July 29, 2026.
Wall Street expects earnings of $7.18 per share, up from $7.14 a year earlier, on revenue of $60.22 billion, compared with $47.52 billion in the prior-year quarter. The stock trades at about 21.6 times earnings.
Analysts remain broadly bullish. The consensus rating is Buy, with an average price forecast of $820.81. Recent forecast increases include Raymond James to $850, Wells Fargo to $835 and Rothschild & Co. to $1,000, all issued on July 21.
Benzinga Edge Rankings
Meta scores highly on Growth (88.99) and Quality (86.23) but ranks weak on Momentum (13.21). Its Value score of 52.60 suggests the shares are fairly valued relative to peers.
Strong fundamentals continue to support Meta, but weak price momentum is limiting its near-term performance.
ETF Exposure
Meta remains a major holding in several growth-focused exchange-traded funds, including the Capital Group Growth ETF (NYSE:CGGR), First Trust Dow Jones Internet Index Fund (NYSE:FDN) and Natixis Loomis Sayles Focused Growth ETF (NYSE:LSGR). As a large index component, fund inflows and outflows can influence demand for the stock.
META Stock Price Activity: Meta Platforms shares were up 0.36% at $595.99 during premarket trading on Tuesday, according to Benzinga Pro data.
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