Facebook Projects ‘More Difficult’ Quarter as CEO Spends
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Facebook Inc. Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg has spent freely on long-term bets including virtual reality and connecting the world to the Web. Now those moves are set to face increased scrutiny.
Facebook yesterday projected fourth-quarter sales that fell short of the highest analysts’ predictions and said spending would increase 50 percent to 70 percent next year as the company hires more and invests in newer products. The combination of slower revenue growth and higher costs triggered a selloff in the company’s shares, with the stock falling 6.1 percent today.