Meta Platforms Stock Surges to Eighth in Trading Volume Amid Legal Settlements

On July 24, 2025, Meta Platforms Inc. (META) saw a trading volume of $7.819 billion, ranking it eighth in the day's stock market activity. The company's stock price increased by 0.17%, marking its second consecutive day of gains, with a total increase of 1.42% over the past two days.

Meta Platforms has reached a settlement agreement, ending an $8 billion trial over Facebook's user privacy violations. The settlement was reported by multiple sources, including Law360 UK and The Insurer, and involved attorneys for Meta stockholders. The agreement was reached mid-trial and was announced on July 17, 2025. This settlement is significant as it resolves a major legal battle for Meta, which has been facing numerous privacy-related lawsuits in recent years. The company has been under scrutiny for its handling of user data, and this settlement marks a step towards addressing these concerns and potentially improving its public image.

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey has been actively involved in various legal actions and investigations, many of which have implications for Meta. On June 27, 2025, Bailey issued a Civil Investigative Demand (CID) to Google, YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram, all within Meta Platforms, to determine whether the companies were censoring firearm-related content. This investigation is part of a broader effort by Bailey to address what he perceives as censorship and bias in social media platforms. Additionally, on July 9, 2025, Bailey sent a formal demand letter to Google, Microsoft, OpenAI, and Meta regarding biased and factually inaccurate responses produced by the companies’ artificial intelligence chatbots. This letter demands that the companies address the issues raised by the chatbots' responses, which Bailey argues are harmful to users and society at large.