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Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg probably isn’t going anywhere. But on Tuesday, his company’s investors thought he was, and Meta’s stock rose 1%, reports the New York Post.
An outlet called The Leak published a story in which an anonymous source said Zuckerberg would leave in 2023 because of Meta’s earnings shortfall. “Information obtained by The Leak,” the article reads, “suggests that Zuckerberg has decided to step down himself. The decision, according to our insider source, ‘does not affect metaverse.'”
Meta’s stock rose 1.4% after the report was published.
This is wrong.
— Andy Stone (@andymstone) November 22, 2022
The company’s Andy Stone tweeted a curt denial of the report: “This is false.”
As the After noted, there are reasons to believe that Zuckerberg might reconsider his position:
Meta shareholders have grown restless in recent months as the company embarked on a costly shift to metaverse technology despite a major profit drop and economic headwinds. Meta’s stock is down more than 67% so far this year.
Earlier this month, Meta laid off 11,000 employees, or about 13% of its workforce, as part of a major cost-cutting effort.
Zuckerberg is Meta’s dominant shareholder, owning more than half of the shares. Given this substantial level of power and his dedication to the metaverse, it seems unlikely that there is any truth to this news.
The Leak acknowledged Andy Stone’s denial, but has not retracted his report.
