EU Regulatory Pressure Fails to Dent Meta’s Market Momentum

While European regulators have launched a fresh offensive against Meta Platforms, investor sentiment remains notably unshaken. The focus on Wall Street has firmly shifted from regulatory skirmishes to the company's colossal strategic bets on artificial intelligence.

On Monday, February 9, 2026, the European Commission escalated its confrontation with the tech giant by issuing a formal statement of objections. The core allegation centers on a mid-January update to WhatsApp’s terms of service. Regulators assert that Meta is deliberately stifling competition in the AI assistant market by blocking rivals’ access to its popular messaging platform, while prominently featuring its own "Meta AI" as the sole integrated option for users.

Adding significant weight to the action, the Commission has indicated it is considering interim measures. Such a move would be an unusually aggressive step, compelling Meta to alter its business practices immediately, even before the conclusion of the full antitrust investigation. Commission Vice President Teresa Ribera emphasized the imperative to safeguard competition within this rapidly evolving sector. Meta has rejected the accusations, countering that consumers have ample alternative channels for accessing competing AI services.

Colossal AI Spending Overshadows Regulatory Risks

The market’s muted reaction, with shares holding steady around $669.50, is attributed to a broader investment narrative. The dominant story captivating analysts is not regulatory pressure but Meta’s audacious expenditure plans for future growth.

Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying Meta?

For the 2026 fiscal year, the company has projected capital expenditures in a range of $115 to $135 billion. This represents a massive leap from the approximately $72 billion spent in 2025. Virtually all of this capital is earmarked for expanding AI infrastructure and data centers, which CEO Mark Zuckerberg describes as the foundational bedrock for the "Meta Superintelligence Labs."

Solid Fundamentals Provide a Buffer

This enormous wager on artificial intelligence is being backed by robust operational performance. The company’s fourth-quarter results showed revenue climbing 24% to nearly $60 billion, with profits exceeding market expectations. Market experts interpret the current stock stability as a signal that institutional investors are assigning greater weight to the long-term potential of Meta’s AI division than to near-term margin compression or regulatory disputes in Europe.

As long as Meta continues to reinforce its dominant market position through these unprecedented infrastructure investments, shareholders appear willing to largely discount political friction from Brussels. The critical factor for the equity’s future trajectory will likely be Zuckerberg’s effectiveness in translating these announced billions of dollars in spending into tangible monetization.