Meta dividend: payments, cash coverage and yield
Meta pays $2.10 per share, supported by four quarterly declarations of $0.525. Coverage is assessed from free cash flow after capital spending and stock-based pay, with dividends and buybacks shown against cash available to shareholders.
How much does Meta pay in dividends?
Dividends start at $2.10 per share. Base reaches $2.43, bear holds at $2.10, and bull reaches $2.66. The starting point is supported by four quarterly declarations of $0.525, after a 5% increase in 2025.
| Year to Dec 2025 | Year to Dec 2024 | Year to Dec 2023 | Year to Dec 2022 | Year to Dec 2021 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free cash flow per share (calculated) | 16.93 | 19.93 | 16.36 | 6.82 | 13.44 |
| Free cash flow after stock pay, per share (calculated) | 9.00 | 13.55 | 11.02 | 2.39 | 10.24 |
| Buybacks per share (calculated) | 10.20 | 11.52 | 7.52 | 10.35 | 15.58 |
| Dividend per share | 2.10 | 2.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 |
| Net share dilution (calculated) | -1.5% | -0.6% | -2.7% | -5.5% | -1.0% |
Does Meta's cash cover its dividend?
Operating cash rose in 2025, but purchases of property and equipment rose faster. Calculated free cash flow therefore fell even as sales and operating profit grew. Meta’s own figure is lower because it also deducts principal payments on finance leases, which are another way of paying for assets.
Stock compensation is a real cost to existing owners even when no cash leaves that day. Employees receive valuable shares or share-linked awards, and those claims can dilute other shareholders. Subtracting stock-based pay from free cash flow produces an analytical measure of what owners might more realistically regard as available.
| Year to Dec 2025 | Year to Dec 2024 | Year to Dec 2023 | Year to Dec 2022 | Year to Dec 2021 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Real free cash flow (after stock pay) (calculated) | 25,682 | 37,382 | 30,041 | 7,297 | 29,829 |
| Dividends paid | 5,298 | 5,068 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Shares bought back | 26,248 | 30,125 | 19,774 | 27,956 | 44,537 |
| Returned to shareholders, share of real free cash flow (calculated) | 122.8% | 94.1% | 65.8% | 383.1% | 149.3% |
What could change Meta's dividend?
The view would move toward the bear case by October 2027 if advertising demand, measurement or average pricing weakened. Through 2029, slower infrastructure utilization, persistent Reality Labs losses and falling free cash flow would reinforce that move.
| FY2026 | FY2027 | FY2028 | FY2029 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue growth | 23.0 % (20.0 % / 26.0 %) | 18.0 % (13.0 % / 24.0 %) | 16.0 % (9.0 % / 22.0 %) | 14.0 % (6.0 % / 20.0 %) |
| Measure (EBITDA / cash flow) | 109,999 (103,698 / 116,480) | 132,715 (109,004 / 153,855) | 159,025 (115,844 / 199,195) | 185,146 (122,795 / 248,227) |
| Net debt | 32,695 (32,895 / 37,334) | 87,414 (61,979 / 99,606) | 134,096 (71,150 / 156,475) | 166,657 (69,820 / 199,728) |
| Buybacks | 5,000 (0.00 / 15,000) | 15,000 (0.00 / 30,000) | 22,000 (5,000 / 40,000) | 28,000 (10,000 / 50,000) |
| Dividend per share | 2.10 (2.10 / 2.10) | 2.20 (2.10 / 2.20) | 2.31 (2.10 / 2.42) | 2.43 (2.10 / 2.66) |
What is Meta's dividend yield today?
Revenue returned to 22.2% growth in 2025. Operating margin slipped to 41.4% from 42.2% in 2024. Meta’s diluted EPS was $23.49 in 2025. Its free cash flow after stock-based pay per share fell to $9.00 from $13.55 in 2024. At $720.89 per share, the valuation is 27.2x trailing P/E. Forward P/E is 21.2x and free cash flow yield is 2.4%. Dividend yield is 0.3%. Net debt remained negative in 2025, but the net-cash cushion narrowed from 2024.