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Late April will see a string of the world’s largest companies report financial results. This includes tech giant Meta Platforms (NASDAQ: META), as well as other members of the Magnificent Seven.

For Meta, this follows a clear V-shaped recovery in its share price between March and April. The stock nearly hit a 52-week low in late March, driven by escalating tensions in the Middle East and losing two significant legal battles.

But after dropping to around $525, the stock is now trading around $675, staging a more than 25% rebound. Easing tensions in the Middle East and the release of Meta’s Muse Spark artificial intelligence (AI) model contributed to this surge.

Meta will report its Q1 2026 financial results after the market close on April 29.

For current shareholders and prospective investors, here are the key factors that the market will be watching.

Meta Looks to Extend Its Beat Streak, Eyes Fastest Growth in Years

The Mark Zuckerberg-led firm has set high expectations for itself in Q1. The company’s guidance implies midpoint revenue growth of 30% year-over-year (YOY) during the quarter, which, if achieved, would mark the tech firm's fastest YOY growth rate since Q2 2021.

But 2021's growth can largely be attributed to COVID-era volatility. In 2020 to 2021, many companies saw unusually distinct peaks and troughs in revenue growth. The shutdown and reopening of the economy during the pandemic drove much of this. Pre-COVID, Meta had not achieved 30% YOY growth since Q4 2018—more than seven years ago.

Currently, consensus revenue expectations are for $55.36 billion in Q1 2026. This implies even faster growth than Meta's own guidance for nearly 31% YOY growth—a tall order for a company that doesn’t take sales forecasts lightly. Meta has not missed sales expectations since Q2 2022, marking a 14-quarter streak of beats.

On adjusted earnings per share (EPS), analysts are forecasting $6.67, equating to less than a 4% YOY increase. Meta’s adjusted EPS track record is slightly less strong but still impressive. The company has not posted a miss since Q4 2022.

The Iran-U.S. Conflict Could Potentially Weigh on Results

Guiding for its fastest growth in years comes at a somewhat inopportune time for Meta. The company’s results will show its financial performance from the beginning of 2026 to the end of March.

This leaves around one month of its results exposed to potential impacts from the war between Iran and United States and Israel, which began on Feb. 28.

It is possible that over that month, advertisers reduced spending at Meta. As oil and gas prices surged, advertisers may have worried about their customers' ability to purchase other products and services. Demand for gas is highly inelastic; consumption often drops little in relation to price increases, as gas is a product many cannot go without. This leaves consumers with less money to spend on discretionary items, like those that they see advertisements for on Meta’s apps.

Additionally, it is possible that legal issues surrounding the company contributed to elevated costs. None of this is to say that Meta will miss in its latest earnings report, but these are risk factors worthy of recognition. The company’s guidance for Q2 will also be a critical sticking point with analysts looking for Meta to provide guidance near $59.6 billion, which would represent growth of around 25% YOY.

Muse Spark and Courtroom Setbacks Could Shape the Call

It is likely that Meta’s Muse Spark model will be a key topic of discussion in the company’s earnings call. According to various AI model benchmarks, Muse Spark’s intelligence is much higher than any model the company has put out before. Analysts will likely be looking for information on how Meta made such a large jump in such a short period of time. Alexandr Wang, who now heads Meta Superintelligence Labs, has only been in the role for around nine months, but many believe that he has had a significant influence on Muse Spark’s success.

Additionally, it will be important to gauge Meta's confidence in its ability to create even better models than Muse Spark going forward. Specifics around monetization pathways for Muse Spark and future models could also be telling.

Lastly, it would be helpful to hear any commentary around Meta’s recent legal losses. Earlier this year, these events hit META shares hard, and although the stock has recovered, the risks of future large-scale litigation have not dissipated. A concrete plan or framework for how the company will look to prevent future legal losses would be a positive development if disclosed during the earnings call. However, it's fully possible that the company cannot discuss this in detail due to ongoing proceedings.

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