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 Meta Crashes 12%Shares in iconic US tech company Meta (parent of Facebook) are trading heavily lower ahead of the US open today. The stock is currently almost 13% down from yesterday’s closing price as traders digest the details of Meta’s Q1 earnings, which came out after the bell yesterday.  On the numbers front, Meta topped both earnings and revenues forecasts with EPS of $4.71 vs $4.39 expected and revenues of $36.45 billion vs $36.14 billion expected. However, it was the details of the company’s spending and strategy which shook investor sentiment and led the selling.
 Spending Targets RaisedInvestors recoiled at Meta’s plans to significantly overspend this year compared with earlier guidance. CEO Mark Zuckerberg told investors that the company plans to ramp up its spending on AI, projecting 2024 spending of between $35 billion and $40 billion vs $30 billion – $37 billion predicted last year.
 Zuckerberg Defends AI SpendingZuckerberg has defended his aggressive spending strategy and said he is fully confident that the group’s big bet on AI will reap huge dividends down the line. However, the reaction in Meta’s stock prices suggests that investors are not on board with the group’s vision. Investors have had similar issues previously when Meta first started overspending on its Metaverse project, which has now been overtaken in focus by Meta. However, with TikTok facing a ban in the US, Meta stands to gain massively if it can make its social media offerings as attractive to former TikTok users.Technical ViewsMeta The sell off has seen price breaking down below the 476.34 and 455.21 support levels. For now, price is holding a test of the bull channel lows. However, with momentum studies weak, should we break here, 388.24 will be next key support to note. More By This Author:Copper Market Commentary – Thursday, April 25Crude Oil Commentary – Wednesday, April 24US Market Commentary – Wednesday, April 24