04:47 PM EDT, 04/24/2024 (MT Newswires) -- Meta Platforms ( META ) first-quarter results exceeded Wall Street's estimates while the Facebook parent late Wednesday projected higher capital spending this year than previously expected.

Per-share earnings more than doubled to $4.71 from $2.20 a year earlier, surpassing the Capital IQ-polled consensus of $4.32. Revenue gained 27% to $36.46 billion, topping market estimates of $36.22 billion.

Advertising revenue increased to $35.64 billion from $28.1 billion. The average price per ad rose 6% annually in the first quarter as aggregate ad impressions advanced 20%.

Facebook's daily active users increased 7% year-over-year to 3.24 billion on average for March. The consensus among analysts on Visible Alpha was for 3.22 billion users.

Meta, which also owns Instagram and WhatsApp, expects second-quarter revenue of $36.5 billion to $39 billion, compared with the consensus of $38.32 billion. Meta shares sank 12% in after-hours trade.

Meta raised its 2024 capital expenditure guidance to between $35 billion and $40 billion from the prior $30 billion to $37 billion range due to infrastructure investments required to support its artificial intelligence strategy, Chief Financial Officer Susan Li said in a statement.

"While we are not providing guidance for years beyond 2024, we expect capital expenditures will continue to increase next year as we invest aggressively to support our ambitious AI research and product development efforts," Li said.

The company now projects 2024 total expenses in the $96 billion to $99 billion range, raising the bottom end of the prior guidance from $94 billion. Li attributed the revised guidance to higher infrastructure and legal costs.

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