Balance Sheet: Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity

The balance sheet provides creditors, investors, and analysts with information on company resources (assets) and its sources of capital (its equity and liabilities). It normally also provides information about the future earnings capacity of a company assets as well as an indication of cash flows that may come from receivables and inventories.

Liabilities represents obligations of a company arising from past events, the settlement of which is expected to result in an outflow of economic benefits from the entity.

Meta Platforms Inc., consolidated balance sheet: liabilities and stockholders’ equity

US$ in millions

	Dec 31, 2025	Dec 31, 2024	Dec 31, 2023	Dec 31, 2022	Dec 31, 2021
Accounts payable	8,894)	7,687)	4,849)	4,990)	4,083)
Operating lease liabilities, current	2,213)	1,942)	1,623)	1,367)	1,127)
Legal-related accruals	6,867)	5,523)	6,592)	4,795)	3,254)
Accrued compensation and benefits	7,151)	6,350)	6,659)	4,591)	3,152)
Accrued property and equipment	4,402)	2,582)	2,213)	2,921)	1,392)
Accrued taxes	1,922)	3,438)	3,655)	2,339)	1,256)
Finance lease liabilities, current	308)	76)	90)	129)	75)
Other current liabilities	10,079)	5,998)	6,279)	5,894)	6,796)
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities	30,729)	23,967)	25,488)	20,669)	15,925)
Current liabilities	41,836)	33,596)	31,960)	27,026)	21,135)
Operating lease liabilities, non-current	22,940)	18,292)	17,226)	15,301)	12,746)
Long-term debt	58,744)	28,826)	18,385)	9,923)	—)
Long-term income taxes	21,005)	9,987)	7,514)	6,645)	5,938)
Finance lease liabilities, non-current	876)	633)	600)	558)	506)
Other liabilities	3,377)	2,083)	770)	561)	783)
Non-current liabilities	106,942)	59,821)	44,495)	32,988)	19,973)
Total liabilities	148,778)	93,417)	76,455)	60,014)	41,108)
Common stock, $0.000006 par value	—)	—)	—)	—)	—)
Additional paid-in capital	95,793)	83,228)	73,253)	64,444)	55,811)
Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss)	271)	(3,097)	(2,155)	(3,530)	(693)
Retained earnings	121,179)	102,506)	82,070)	64,799)	69,761)
Stockholders’ equity	217,243)	182,637)	153,168)	125,713)	124,879)
Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity	366,021)	276,054)	229,623)	185,727)	165,987)

Based on: 10-K (reporting date: 2025-12-31), 10-K (reporting date: 2024-12-31), 10-K (reporting date: 2023-12-31), 10-K (reporting date: 2022-12-31), 10-K (reporting date: 2021-12-31).

Overall, the financial position reflected in the provided information demonstrates a significant increase in both liabilities and stockholders’ equity over the five-year period. While stockholders’ equity remains a substantial portion of the company’s capital structure, liabilities have grown at a faster rate, particularly in the later years of the observed period.

Current Liabilities: Current liabilities exhibit a consistent upward trend, increasing from US$21.135 billion in 2021 to US$41.836 billion in 2025. A substantial portion of this increase is attributable to growth in accrued expenses and other current liabilities, which nearly doubled over the period. Accounts payable also increased notably, especially between 2023 and 2025. Accrued compensation and benefits, and accrued taxes also show significant increases, though with some fluctuation in the latter.
Non-Current Liabilities: Non-current liabilities demonstrate a more dramatic increase than current liabilities, rising from US$19.973 billion in 2021 to US$106.942 billion in 2025. Long-term debt is the primary driver of this growth, with a substantial increase beginning in 2023 and accelerating through 2025. Long-term income taxes also contribute significantly to the increase, nearly quadrupling over the period. Operating lease liabilities, non-current, also show consistent growth, though to a lesser extent.
Total Liabilities: As a result of the increases in both current and non-current liabilities, total liabilities more than tripled, growing from US$41.108 billion in 2021 to US$148.778 billion in 2025. The rate of increase accelerated significantly after 2022, indicating a shift in the company’s financing strategy or operational needs.
Stockholders’ Equity: Stockholders’ equity also increased over the period, from US$124.879 billion in 2021 to US$217.243 billion in 2025. Retained earnings are the largest component of stockholders’ equity and demonstrate consistent growth, reflecting profitability. Additional paid-in capital also increased steadily. Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) was negative for the majority of the period, but became positive in 2025.
Total Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity: The combined growth of liabilities and equity resulted in a substantial increase in total capitalization, rising from US$165.987 billion in 2021 to US$366.021 billion in 2025. This indicates significant overall expansion of the company’s financial structure.

The increasing reliance on debt financing, as evidenced by the growth in long-term debt, warrants further investigation to assess the associated risks and implications for the company’s financial flexibility. The substantial growth in accrued liabilities suggests potential increases in short-term obligations and may require monitoring for potential liquidity concerns.

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Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Balance Sheet: Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity