Meta went to Wall Street for money on Monday, and it didn’t ask for a little. The Facebook parent launched about $35 billion in stock offerings on October 26, 2026, to help pay for the data centers, chips and AI systems behind its “personal superintelligence” push. Shares had closed Friday at $642.62, and trading turned choppy in the premarket hours after the announcement.

That’s a lot of stock.

The $35 billion stock sale, piece by piece

The offering comes in two parts, according to Meta’s announcement and filings reported by Reuters and Bloomberg. About $22.5 billion is Class A common stock, sold through forward sale agreements with Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs as lead bookrunners. The other roughly $12.5 billion is depositary shares representing mandatory convertible preferred stock, which convert automatically into common stock around August 15, 2029. Don’t expect Meta to bank the forward-sale cash right away. Under a forward sale, banks borrow shares and sell them now, and Meta receives cash at settlement, which is due no later than November 19, 2027, if it settles by delivering new shares.

Then there’s the second, larger number. Meta also plans a separate at-the-market program to sell up to about $60 billion of its new Class C non-voting shares, expected to start in the first quarter of 2027 once those shares begin trading. Add the two pieces together and the full financing plan reaches up to $95 billion. Meta has not yet signed an agreement for the Class C program, so that part is a plan, not a done deal.

The chipmakers in the book

The most telling detail sits in the buyer list. Nvidia, AMD and Broadcom have indicated non-binding interest in buying up to $5 billion of Meta’s Class A shares in aggregate, on the same terms as other investors. Read that carefully: interest is not a purchase order. Any of the three could buy more, less, or nothing at all when pricing is set. Still, the signal matters. These are the companies that sell Meta the chips filling its data centers, and now they may also own a piece of the customer buying them. That circular flow — chipmakers funding the AI builder that buys their chips — is exactly what has some investors asking harder questions about the AI boom.

Meta framed the raise as one leg of a broader funding mix. The company said it intends to pay for its AI investments through operating cash flow, investment-grade debt, strategic partnerships and equity capital. In plain terms, the stock sale spreads the bill around instead of loading it all onto debt or cash flow at a moment when both are under strain.

Why Meta needs the cash now

Strain is the right word. Meta told investors to expect $135 billion to $145 billion in capital spending in 2026, a figure that dwarfs most companies’ entire annual revenue. Reuters reported the company posted a $2.12 billion free cash flow deficit in the third quarter, its first negative result in more than a decade, as AI spending outran cash coming in. That context explains Monday’s timing better than any single headline number. When a buildout costs more than $100 billion a year, even a company of Meta’s size eventually needs fresh equity.

Meta is not alone in reaching for the equity markets. Anthropic filed its IPO paperwork the same day, and AI-linked stocks rose Monday as investors weighed a new pure-play AI listing against worries about debt-fueled data center spending. Add SpaceX’s $40 billion GPU debt deal from the weekend, and the pattern is clear: the AI buildout is now being financed in public, in very large numbers, and investors get to vote on each one with their wallets.

What this means for investors

For shareholders, Monday’s deal cuts both ways. New shares dilute existing holders, and a $60 billion follow-on program in 2027 would dilute them further. On the other side, a funded buildout removes one source of doubt: Meta won’t have to choose between its AI plans and its balance sheet in the next year. Investors who believe the spending turns into better ads, better products and a real AI assistant business will see cheap insurance. Investors who don’t will see a company asking the market to underwrite a bet it can’t yet prove.

Watch three dates from here. First, pricing of the $35 billion offerings, which will show how much demand exists at today’s price. Second, the first quarter of 2027, when the Class C program is supposed to start. Third, November 19, 2027, the outside date for forward-sale settlement, when the cash actually lands. Until then, Meta has announced a plan to raise up to $95 billion. It has not yet raised it all.

FAQ

Why is Meta selling $35 billion in stock?

Meta is raising equity to help pay for AI infrastructure and its personal superintelligence push, alongside operating cash flow, debt and partnerships, as its 2026 capital spending reaches $135 billion to $145 billion.

Are Nvidia, AMD and Broadcom buying Meta shares?

They have indicated non-binding interest in buying up to $5 billion of Meta’s Class A shares combined, on the same terms as other buyers. That interest is not a firm commitment to buy.

What is the $60 billion part of Meta’s plan?

It is a planned at-the-market program in new Class C non-voting shares, expected to start in the first quarter of 2027 once those shares begin trading. Meta has not yet signed an agreement for that program.

When does Meta get the cash from the forward sale?

The $22.5 billion Class A piece is sold through forward sale agreements, with settlement due no later than November 19, 2027, when Meta would receive cash if it settles by delivering new shares.

Sources: Reuters, Bloomberg, TradingView, Stocktwits.