Meta Platforms (NASDAQ: META) is set to release its second-quarter financial results on July 29, with investors and analysts closely monitoring the stock. Ahead of the report, META shares were trading near $627.52, down approximately 2.5% for the session.

Leading Wall Street firms have reiterated their bullish stances. Bernstein analyst Mark Shmulik maintained his Buy recommendation, expressing confidence that the risk-reward profile remains favorable heading into the quarterly report. He highlighted the strength of Meta's core advertising platform while noting that year-over-year comparisons will become more challenging in the third quarter. Shmulik expects Meta to provide progress updates on its artificial intelligence initiatives, including developments related to Muse Spark and recent infrastructure partnerships. He also pointed to a significant ramp in capital expenditures, with 2027 capacity additions and bill-of-materials inflation driving spending estimates into the $225 billion to $250 billion range.

Mizuho analyst Lloyd Walmsley similarly upheld his Outperform rating, setting a price target of $835. Walmsley positioned Meta as his top pick within the digital advertising sector, citing robust user engagement and consistent expansion across advertising platforms. He also flagged potential developments around WhatsApp and Messenger revenue generation, along with anticipated details on Meta's strategy to offer computing capacity as part of its broader AI approach.

Wall Street consensus projects Q2 earnings per share of $7.19 on revenue of $60.22 billion, representing a 26.7% increase compared to the same period last year. Despite these elevated expectations, analysts remain confident in Meta's ability to meet or exceed forecasts. Meta's core advertising business, which accounts for the overwhelming majority of revenue, has benefited from ongoing AI-driven improvements in ad targeting and measurement, though investors will be watching for any signs of deceleration after several quarters of strong growth.

Cloud Computing Announcement Expected

The most closely watched storyline heading into the earnings release may extend beyond advertising performance. Growing speculation suggests Meta could officially unveil a cloud computing division during the July 29 call.

Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg indicated earlier this year that launching a cloud operation is "definitely on the table." Bloomberg subsequently reported that the company is actively developing such capabilities, while The New York Times disclosed that Meta is negotiating to provide computing resources to Anthropic through an arrangement potentially valued at $10 billion over two years. Meta has not officially confirmed either report.

The strategic rationale is notable. Meta anticipates capital expenditures of $125 billion to $145 billion this year, predominantly directed toward AI infrastructure. The company currently remains the only one among the four dominant hyperscale providers — alongside Alphabet, Microsoft, and Amazon — without a dedicated cloud services operation. For comparison, Alphabet recently reported 82% revenue growth in Google Cloud to $24.8 billion, with operating profit surging more than threefold to $8.8 billion. Meta has also developed its open-source Llama family of large language models, which could serve as a competitive differentiator if the company offers AI computing services to external clients.

Analyst Ratings and Valuation

Zuckerberg has disclosed that Meta receives inquiries about cloud offerings on a weekly basis. Introducing a cloud platform would create a secondary major revenue channel and provide clearer justification for the company's substantial infrastructure investments, particularly as Reality Labs — Meta's metaverse and hardware division — continues to report multibillion-dollar quarterly operating losses.

Trading at a price-to-earnings multiple near 24, Meta represents a valuation discount relative to most mega-cap technology peers. Based on 37 analyst assessments compiled by TipRanks over the previous three months, META carries a consensus Strong Buy rating, with 32 Buy recommendations and five Hold ratings. The average analyst price target stands at $818.23, approximately 40% above current trading levels.