What Does Meta Own?

Meta Platforms (META 0.43%) is the undisputed leader in social media. The technology company owns three of the four biggest platforms by monthly active users (Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram). Its growing family of apps is a huge moneymaker. Meta also has a virtual experiences technology platform focused on the metaverse.

The tech titan built its platforms through organic investment and acquisitions. Meta has purchased several notable companies over the years that form the foundation of some of its most popular apps and products. Meta Platforms will likely continue to buy companies as it acquires talent and products to grow its business platforms. Future deals could make it an even better company to invest money in.

Here's a look at some of the notable companies Meta owns and ones that the social media company might acquire in the future.

List of companies

What companies does Meta own?

Meta Platforms is one of the world's largest technology companies. It has two business segments:

• Family of Apps: Meta Platforms owns several social media platforms that generate revenue from advertising and other sources.
• Reality Labs: The company also has a business and research unit that produces hardware and software for virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR). This segment also focuses on artificial intelligence (AI) and the metaverse.

The company generates almost all of its revenue from advertising (98% of its $134.9 billion in 2023). Meanwhile, its family of apps produces all of its profits ($21 billion in operating income in 2023 vs. a $4.6 billion operating loss for Reality Labs).

Here's a look at some of the notable companies Meta Platforms owns.

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1. Facebook

Mark Zuckerberg co-founded Facebook in 2004 (originally FaceMash and then TheFacebook). It was the biggest social media platform in the world in early 2024, with more than 3 billion monthly active users. Facebook is now part of Meta's family of apps business after the social technology company rebranded to Meta Platforms in 2021 to reflect its growing platform and focus on the metaverse.

2. Beluga (Now Facebook Messenger)

Facebook acquired group messaging service Beluga for an undisclosed sum in 2011. The company used Beluga to help bolster its instant messaging platform, which is now Facebook Messenger. It's the seventh-largest social media platform with the potential to reach an estimated 979 million people with advertising. Facebook Messenger is part of Meta's family of apps business unit.

3. WhatsApp

Facebook bought messaging company WhatsApp in 2014 for $16 billion in cash and stock. At the time, 450 million people used it on any given day. WhatsApp has grown into the third-largest social media platform as of early 2024, behind Facebook and YouTube, with at least 2 billion monthly active users.

4. Instagram

Facebook bought the popular photo-sharing app Instagram for $1 billion in cash and stock in 2012. That acquisition has been a smashing success for the company. Instagram was right behind WhatsApp as the fourth-largest social media platform globally, with 2 billion monthly active users. It was the world's most popular downloaded app in December 2023, with 54 million downloads.

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5. Reels

The company launched Instagram Reels in 2020 to compete against social video sites like YouTube and TikTok. The app is part of Instagram. Users can also watch and share Reels on Facebook and its messenger apps.

6. Threads

Meta Platforms launched the text-sharing app Threads in 2023. The team behind Instagram built the app to compete with Twitter (now X). Threads had more than 130 million monthly active users as of early 2024. Meta aims to grow Threads to 1 billion users in the future. Threads was the sixth-most-popular downloaded app in December 2023.

7. Oculus VR

Facebook bought Oculus VR for $2 billion in cash and stock in 2014. Oculus was a leader in immersive VR technology. Oculus VR is now part of Meta's Reality Labs business unit. The company has developed several VR headsets, including Meta Quest 3.

8. Reality Labs

Facebook formed Reality Labs in 2020, combining its VR and AR hardware and software, including Oculus, Portal (discontinued), and Spark AR. Meta is investing heavily in research and development (R&D) in Reality Labs on new products, including Project Aria (smart glasses), AI, and the metaverse (Horizon Worlds).

Reality Labs hasn't been a major revenue driver for Meta (revenue declined from $2.2 billion in 2022 to $1.9 billion in 2023). It's also losing a significant amount of money ($16.1 billion in 2023 and $13.7 billion in 2022). However, Meta is investing heavily in the business because it believes Reality Labs can eventually become a meaningful contributor to its results.

Potential future acquisitions

What companies could Meta buy in the future?

Meta Platforms has made more than 100 acquisitions over the years. Most of these acquisitions have been to buy talent, not products or companies. It will buy start-ups to bring their founders into the Meta family.

However, Meta will make product acquisitions when it finds a compelling opportunity. Notable ones include its purchases of Instagram, WhatsApp, and Oculus VR.

The company certainly has the financial firepower to continue making big deals. It ended 2023 with $65.4 billion of cash against $18.4 billion of debt. Meanwhile, it has become a cash-generating machine. It produced $43 billion in free cash flow during 2023, giving the social media giant the cash to repurchase shares and pay dividends.

The company could expand its family of apps by acquiring rival social media platforms. For example, while it has launched competitors to TikTok (Reels) and X (Threads), they haven't been as successful as those rivals (TikTok can potentially reach 1.6 billion adults over 18 each month while X has the potential advertising reach of 619 million). Meta could seek to acquire those rival apps if they become available. For example, the U.S. government wants TikTok's Chinese owner to sell its U.S. operations or face a shutdown. Meta would likely be interested in buying the app if it was for sale. Meanwhile, Elon Musk, who currently owns X, said he would be willing to sell the app to the right person. Although that's likely not Mark Zuckerberg's Meta, it's not outside the realm of possibility that Meta would be interested in buying the platform.

Other potential social media app acquisition targets Meta might consider are Snap (SNAP 27.63%), a camera-focused technology communications company, and Pinterest (PINS 4.04%), a visual discovery company. Snap is the 10th-largest social media platform, with 750 million monthly active users, while Pinterest clocks in at No. 15 with 482 million. Buying either company would enable Meta to expand its family of apps. Its expertise in monetizing social apps could enable it to maximize the profitability of a company like Snap or Pinterest.

However, buying another app could prove difficult from a regulatory perspective since Meta is already the biggest social media company with three of the four most popular apps. For example, Meta acquired the popular Giphy platform for sharing animated images in messaging apps in 2020 for $315 million. However, due to anti-competitive concerns, the U.K. Competition and Market Authority ordered the company to sell that app in 2022. It took a huge loss by selling it to Shutterstock (SSTK 0.43%) for $53 million. Given the likelihood of regulatory pushback if it tried to buy another social media company, Meta might opt to focus on deals that grow its Reality Labs unit, though even purchases in that space could be tough to get past regulators.

The most likely approach is to continue acquiring talent by purchasing small start-ups that fly under the radar of regulators. However, if Meta wanted to make a more impactful acquisition, it could seek to acquire a gaming company like Roblox (RBLX 1.35%) or Epic Games. Roblox launched Meta Quest VR headsets last year, providing gamers with an immersive experience in the metaverse. Meanwhile, Epic Games is becoming a major player in the metaverse, so it would also be a potential fit for Meta's strategy. Buying a large gaming company could help turn Reality Labs from a money-losing business into a more profitable venture. While both Roblox and Epic Games are currently losing money, they're growing fast (and Roblox is producing positive cash flow). By combining a gaming company with Reality Labs, Meta could leverage the increased scale to turn that entity into a more profitable venture.

Another option Meta could consider is making acquisitions to build its AI capabilities. The company launched several AI experiences across its family of Apps and devices last year. One of the tools it's seeking to build is AI for businesses and creators. It could potentially accelerate its AI ambitions by acquiring a company like Canva.

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The bottom line on companies Meta owns

Meta Platforms is a behemoth in the social media space. That will make it more challenging for the company to make additional acquisitions in the sector. However, Meta has other avenues to grow, including making deals to expand its gaming and AI capabilities. A meaningful acquisition that could turn Reality Labs from a money pit into a profit machine could help Meta create a lot of value for its investors in the future, making it an even better stock to buy and hold.