Analysts Set Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Price Target at $847.98

Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fifty-three research firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, forty-one have assigned a buy rating and five have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $848.50.

META has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $685.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Citigroup reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Rothschild & Co Redburn upgraded Meta Platforms from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $740.00 to $900.00 in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Meta Platforms from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 10th. Finally, Roth Mkm decreased their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $800.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 26th.

Key Headlines Impacting Meta Platforms

Here are the key news stories impacting Meta Platforms this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street has been upgrading Meta and lifting price targets after the company’s strong Q4 print and exceptionally strong Q1 revenue guide, supporting upside expectations. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Several brokerages reiterated/raised ratings — examples include Cantor Fitzgerald bumping its target to $860 and Barclays keeping an Overweight — reinforcing the buy-side view that fundamentals and ad recovery justify higher multiples. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Macro/tech headlines around AI capex are creating mixed market reactions: Meta’s AI investments and infrastructure plans underpin growth but also increase near-term spending volatility; that ambiguity is tempering momentum. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta is locking in off-grid power for hyperscale data needs (reported prepayment/agreements with SMR developers), which secures energy for AI workloads but implies long-dated infrastructure commitments. This is strategic but capital-intensive. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts and commentators warn that AI capex and Reality Labs spending are rising quickly; several notes caution that mounting expenses could compress margins if revenue acceleration slows. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory risk: India’s top court questioned WhatsApp’s data-sharing with Meta entities and warned a ban could be reimposed — a tangible legal/regulatory headwind in a major market. Read More.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Meta Platforms news, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 580 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $618.28, for a total transaction of $358,602.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 5,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,454,330.36. This trade represents a 9.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 517 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $665.00, for a total value of $343,805.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 10,132 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,737,780. This represents a 4.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 39,077 shares of company stock worth $23,955,958. 13.61% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Meta Platforms

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Westchester Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Bare Financial Services Inc purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 2nd quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, Knuff & Co LLC purchased a new position in Meta Platforms during the second quarter valued at $44,000. 79.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 2.1%

Shares of NASDAQ:META opened at $691.70 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.74 trillion, a P/E ratio of 29.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.28. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $655.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $695.91. The company has a current ratio of 2.60, a quick ratio of 2.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. Meta Platforms has a 12-month low of $479.80 and a 12-month high of $796.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The social networking company reported $8.88 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.16 by $0.72. The company had revenue of $59.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $58.33 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 38.61% and a net margin of 30.08%.Meta Platforms’s quarterly revenue was up 23.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $8.02 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms will post 26.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 15th were issued a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. Meta Platforms’s payout ratio is 8.94%.

Meta Platforms Company Profile

Meta Platforms, Inc (NASDAQ: META), formerly Facebook, Inc, is a global technology company best known for building social networking services and immersive computing platforms. Founded in 2004 and headquartered in Menlo Park, California, the company operates a family of consumer-facing products and services that connect users, creators and businesses. In October 2021 the company rebranded as Meta to reflect an expanded strategic focus on augmented and virtual reality technologies alongside its social media businesses.

Meta’s core consumer products include Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger, which enable social networking, messaging, content sharing and community building across mobile and desktop devices.