Meta Platforms Inc. Meta (META) shares ticked up in Tuesday's premarket session, bucking a weaker broader market as investors looked ahead to the company's quarterly earnings. Nasdaq futures were down 0.91%, and S&P 500 futures slipped 0.18%, but Meta managed to gain 0.36% to $595.99.

The move comes as traders weigh expectations for advertising growth, artificial intelligence investments, and spending discipline ahead of Meta's second-quarter earnings report, due Wednesday, July 29.

A $14 Billion AI Data Center in El Paso

Investor sentiment got a boost from a big announcement: Meta and BlackRock Inc. BlackRock (BLK) are partnering to develop a $14 billion, 1-gigawatt artificial intelligence data center campus in El Paso, Texas. Funds managed by BlackRock will own an 80% stake in the venture, while Meta will hold the remaining 20% and lease the entire campus.

The project, expected to start coming online in 2028, includes more than $10 billion in Meta investment and is projected to create over 4,000 construction jobs and 300 operational jobs once complete.

Meta founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg said expanding infrastructure for superintelligence is essential to broadening access to AI technology. He added that partnering with BlackRock will help Meta build data centers more quickly and at greater scale by combining its operational expertise with BlackRock's infrastructure investment capabilities.

BlackRock Chairman and CEO Larry Fink said the partnership will support thousands of skilled jobs and contribute to economic growth in El Paso. He noted that the deal reflects rising demand for long-term infrastructure financing and demonstrates BlackRock's ability, alongside GIP and HPS, to provide investment opportunities tied to AI infrastructure and energy projects.

Technical Picture: Mixed Signals

Despite Tuesday's modest rebound, Meta remains under pressure. The stock is trading 4.5% below its 20-day simple moving average of $623.15, 1.7% below its 50-day SMA of $605.62, and 6.6% below its 200-day SMA of $637.48.

Momentum is weak. The moving average convergence divergence (MACD) indicator is below its signal line, and the histogram remains negative, suggesting buying momentum has eased.

The moving averages present a mixed picture. The 20-day SMA remains above the 50-day SMA, but the 50-day SMA is still below the 200-day SMA — a bearish "death cross" that formed in December 2025. The pattern suggests the stock is trying to stabilize but hasn't confirmed a longer-term trend reversal yet.

The 50-day SMA near $606 is the first major resistance level. On the downside, $577 is an important support area. A break below that could shift attention toward the stock's March 52-week low.

Earnings on Deck

Meta is scheduled to report second-quarter results on July 29, 2026. Wall Street expects earnings of $7.18 per share, up from $7.14 a year earlier, on revenue of $60.22 billion, compared with $47.52 billion in the prior-year quarter. The stock trades at about 21.6 times earnings.

Analysts remain broadly bullish. The consensus rating is Buy, with an average price forecast of $820.81. Recent forecast increases include Raymond James to $850, Wells Fargo to $835, and Rothschild & Co. to $1,000, all issued on July 21.

Fundamentals vs. Momentum

Meta scores highly on Growth (88.99) and Quality (86.23) but ranks weak on Momentum (13.21). Its Value score of 52.60 suggests the shares are fairly valued relative to peers. Strong fundamentals continue to support Meta, but weak price momentum is limiting its near-term performance.

ETF Exposure

Meta remains a major holding in several growth-focused exchange-traded funds, including the Capital Group Growth ETF Capital Group Growth ETF (CGGR), First Trust Dow Jones Internet Index Fund First Trust Dow Jones Internet Index Fund (FDN), and Natixis Loomis Sayles Focused Growth ETF Natixis Loomis Sayles Focused Growth ETF (LSGR). As a large index component, fund inflows and outflows can influence demand for the stock.