Facebook reported its first-quarter earnings after the markets closed Wednesday, beating much of Wall Street’s expectations and seeming to overcome concerns that the Cambridge Analytica data scandal would slow the company's growth.
The average number of daily active users in March grew 13 percent from the year before to 1.45 billion. Facebook's overall revenue jumped by 49 percent from last year to nearly $12 billion based on growth in advertising revenue. The news sent shares surging by almost 7 percent after hours.
“We don’t see a decelerating business model here,” said Andrew Keene, chief executive of AlphaShark.com. “The numbers are great and I think that Facebook is going to move higher from here.”
The controversy over data privacy protections reached its height at the end of the first quarter, and it could take some time to see if the fallout has a lasting effect on the company's stock. Facebook shares are down 13 percent from the period before the Cambridge Analytica news was reported.
Facebook reported earnings just a day after it made public for the first time its [internal guidelines](https://cheddar.com/videos/facebook-wants-to-be-more-transparent-with-its-content-policy) for policing content on its site. In a bid to regain trust from its users, Facebook put out a 27-page document outlining how it defines hate speech, bullying, and child nudity. It also announced that it would allow users to make a direct appeal if they disagree with Facebook’s decision to pull something down.
For full coverage, [click here](https://cms.cheddar.com/videos/VmlkZW8tMTY3MTA=).
Kraft Heinz is splitting into two companies a decade after they joined in a massive merger that created one of the biggest food companies on the planet. One of the companies will include brands such as Heinz, Philadelphia cream cheese and Kraft Mac & Cheese. The other will include brands like Oscar Mayer, Kraft Singles and Lunchables. When the company formed in 2015 it wanted to capitalize on its massive scale, but shifting tastes complicated those plans, with households seeking to introduce healthier options at the table. Kraft Heinz's net revenue has fallen every year since 2020.
About 780,000 pressure washers sold at retailers like Home Depot are being recalled across the U.S. and Canada, due to a projectile hazard that has resulted in fractures and other injuries among some consumers.
President Donald Trump has fired one of two Democratic members of the U.S. Surface Transportation Board to break a 2-2 tie ahead of the board considering the largest railroad merger ever proposed.
Ford is recalling more than 355,000 of its pickup trucks across the U.S. because of an instrument panel display failure that’s resulted in critical information, like warning lights and vehicle speed, not showing up on the dashboard.
