Missed Nvidia in 2009? This Rare Signal Is Flashing Again.\u00a0In 2009, a “Double Down” signal flashed for a little-known chipmaker called Nvidia.\u00a0For the first time in years, that same “Total Conviction” signal is flashing for a company 1\/100th the size of Nvidia.\u00a0Continue \u00bb<\/a> <\/p>\n But whether there will be a profitable payoff on these colossal expenditures is a huge point of uncertainty. <\/p>\n Here’s what Meta shareholders should be thinking about. <\/p>\n On Meta’s first-quarter earnings call, an analyst asked founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg what the return on invested capital<\/a> would be over the coming 12 to 24 months from its AI-related spending spree. <\/p>\n “That’s a very technical question,” the tech mogul replied, and went on to explain that the company’s philosophy rests on building great products and experiences first, then scaling and monetizing them afterward. <\/p>\n It’s understandable if Meta bulls want to give its management team the benefit of the doubt. This is one of the world’s most dominant and successful companies. Investors could be forgiven for trusting Zuckerberg’s capital allocation decisions. <\/p>\n On the other hand, this is an unprecedented level of spending. Analysts’ consensus view is that Meta will report $145 billion in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) in 2026. Its capex plans will soak up nearly all of that. <\/p>\n Spending on that scale should be paired with the ability to give investors a more insightful response about expected ROI than the one Zuckerberg gave on the most recent earnings call. Investors would have more confidence in the company’s direction if they had some insight into what metrics management is tracking to gauge the success of its AI spending spree, or timelines for when to expect adequate returns. <\/p>\n It’s getting cloudy <\/p>\n Because virtually all of Meta’s revenue comes from ad sales, an obvious reason for all this spending would be to bolster its digital advertising capabilities through better targeting and monetization techniques, and to improve user engagement. This segment is firing on all cylinders, with sales soaring 33% year over year in the first quarter. <\/p>\n Meta’s latest move, however, indicates it has overbuilt capacity and is spending too much. As part of the Meta Compute initiative, the company recently announced it is forming a new cloud segment to lease excess compute resources to external customers. The good news is that this can generate revenue quickly, as data center demand globally is substantially outstripping supply. <\/p>\n However, investors should still be more critical of Meta than they have been, as hundreds of billions of dollars are now at stake. <\/p>\n Should you buy stock in Meta Platforms right now? <\/p>\n Before you buy stock in\u00a0Meta Platforms, consider this: <\/p>\n The Motley Fool\u00a0Stock Advisor\u00a0analyst team just identified what they believe are the\u00a010 best stocks<\/a>\u00a0for investors to buy now\u2026 and\u00a0Meta Platforms\u00a0wasn’t one of them.\u00a0The 10 stocks that made the cut are built for long-term growth and could produce monster returns in the coming years. <\/p>\n Consider when\u00a0Netflix\u00a0made this list on December 17, 2004… if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation,\u00a0you’d have $400,964!*\u00a0Or\u00a0when\u00a0Nvidia\u00a0made this list on April 15, 2005… if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation,\u00a0you’d have $1,272,955!* <\/p>\n That performance is why people listen. With a track record of\u00a0beating the S&P 500 by 4x,\u00a0Stock Advisor\u00a0offers a distinct advantage. Don’t miss the latest top 10 list, available with\u00a0Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built for the long haul. <\/p>\n See the 10 stocks \u00bb<\/a> <\/p>\n *Stock Advisor returns as of July 17, 2026. <\/p>\n Neil Patel<\/a> has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Meta Platforms. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy<\/a>. <\/p>\n<\/a> Image source: Getty Images. There’s no clear line of sight <\/p>\n