Breaking: Facebook Q4 earnings prove distrastrous, stock plunges more than 20%

Investors in Meta Platforms (FB), formerly Facebook, are heading for the exits after the social media conglomerate reported earnings per share from the fourth quarter of 2021 about 4% short of expectations. GAAP EPS came in at $3.67, 16 cents shy of the $3.83 consensus figure.

FB shares careened down as much as 21.7% to $253 in the afterhours market.

Revenue, however, was fine. That figure arrived at $33.67 billion, about $230 million ahead of the forecast. Management's guidance for the first quarter was worrisome though. They put Q1 revenue at between $27 to $29 billion, which was short of prior forecasts for $30.3 billion.

The primary user data also added to the carnage. Daily active users (DAUs) amounted to 1.93 billion, 20 million short of projections. Monthly active users (MAUs) of 2.91 billion was 40 million short of prior expectations.