Key Stock Updates for Meta, SAP, and Booking
Meta Platforms' Growth: Meta has seen a 15.2% increase in shares year-to-date, driven by user growth and AI enhancements across its platforms, although monetization of AI services remains a concern.
SAP's Cloud and AI Strategy: SAP's shares have gained 1% this year, supported by strong Cloud ERP growth and AI-driven solutions, despite challenges from weak software license revenue and competitive pressures.
Booking Holdings' Market Position: Booking's shares rose 5.4% year-to-date, benefiting from a global presence and direct-channel bookings, but faces challenges from U.S. travel trends and competitive pressures.
Willis Lease Finance's Strategic Expansion: Despite underperforming in the market, Willis Lease Finance is strategically expanding into the MRO sector and enhancing liquidity through a credit facility, while facing risks from asset write-downs and customer concentration.
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- Strong Earnings: Meta reported a 24% revenue growth in Q4 2025, beating market expectations, although the stock has drifted lower post-earnings, indicating investor concerns over future spending.
- Surge in Capex: The capital expenditure forecast for 2026 has been raised to between $115 billion and $135 billion, nearly doubling the $72.2 billion spent in 2025, leading to a divide among investors regarding the sustainability of this spending plan.
- Robust User Growth: Meta's Family of Apps now boasts 3.58 billion daily active users, representing 43% of the global population, showcasing effective AI application in its advertising business with an 18% increase in ad impressions.
- Strong Profitability: Meta anticipates Q1 2026 revenues between $53.5 billion and $56.5 billion, implying growth rates as high as 34%, and despite spending pressures, the company maintains strong cash flow and profitability metrics.
- Global AI Summit: The Web Summit in Doha attracted over 30,000 founders, investors, and experts, establishing itself as a global hub for AI discussions and showcasing the Middle East's rise in the global AI landscape.
- Innovation Sandbox: Qatar Foundation Chairperson Sheikha Moza bint Nasser described the event as a 'sandbox of innovation,' highlighting AI's potential to empower small businesses and drive economic growth, particularly as large enterprises face implementation challenges.
- Energy and Data Infrastructure: Attendees discussed the resilience of supply chains, energy systems, and data infrastructure amid rising geopolitical tensions, emphasizing the need for governments to ensure supply and diversification of computing capabilities to meet the demands of the information age.
- Investment Opportunities: Qatar's Prime Minister announced an additional $2 billion for the Qatar Investment Authority's Fund of Funds program, bringing total committed capital to $3 billion, supporting 12 regional and international fund managers, reflecting the country's ambition and potential in global AI investments.
- New Regulations Announced: UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has announced that AI chatbots will be included in the Online Safety Act, requiring compliance with illegal content duties, with penalties including fines or blocking, highlighting the government's commitment to child protection.
- Expanded Regulatory Scope: The new measures target not only OpenAI's ChatGPT and Google's Gemini but also Microsoft's Copilot, aiming to close existing loopholes in the law to prevent children from accessing inappropriate content and enhance social responsibility.
- International Trend Influence: With countries like Australia and Spain implementing social media bans, the UK government is also considering restrictions on social media use for those under 16, reflecting a global concern for youth mental health and legislative responses.
- New Direction in Tech Regulation: Legal experts note that the government's latest actions signify a more proactive regulatory approach to rapidly evolving technologies, aiming to address risks arising from the design and behavior of technologies themselves, rather than just user-generated content.
- Meta's Smart Glasses Success: Meta Platforms has developed a successful smart glasses business, indicating a strong foothold in the market.
- Mainstream Adoption Challenge: The company faces the challenge of making the product mainstream before competitors can catch up.
- AI Trade Stalling: According to David Woo, the Nasdaq 100 index (QQQ) has shown no significant movement since last October, with its 100-day rolling return rapidly approaching zero, indicating a potential leadership erosion and the risk of a deeper market correction.
- Earnings Momentum Weakening: During the fourth-quarter earnings season, the combined EBIT four-quarter moving average of the Magnificent Seven fell to its lowest level since 2023, and despite a rebound at Apple, the overall fading earnings growth momentum raises concerns about profit-taking risks for investors.
- Capex Correlation Breakdown: Woo noted that for the first time since the launch of ChatGPT, the strong correlation between AI stocks and hyperscaler capital expenditures has turned negative, suggesting a loss of market trust in capex as a signal for higher returns, which could lead to over-investment risks.
- Market Psychology Shift: As AI-related capex grows much faster than AI-related revenue, Woo warns that this unsustainable gap may indicate a shift in investment cycles outpacing revenue cycles, posing significant risks for the market, especially with an uncertain outlook heading into 2026.
AI Impact Summit in New Delhi: Top tech executives will convene in New Delhi, India, for an AI Impact Summit starting Monday.
Previous Summits: This event follows government-led summits on artificial intelligence that have taken place in the U.K., South Korea, and France.










