Meta Platforms’ (META) “Buy” Rating Reaffirmed at Bank of America

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reissued by equities research analysts at Bank of America in a report released on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $810.00 price target on the social networking company’s stock. Bank of America‘s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 13.19% from the company’s current price.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on META. Rosenblatt Securities restated a “buy” rating and set a $886.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Wednesday, September 16th. Susquehanna decreased their target price on Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $650.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Rothschild & Co Redburn upped their target price on Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Meta Platforms from $830.00 to $750.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt decreased their target price on Meta Platforms from $890.00 to $730.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-four have given a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $787.86.

Meta Platforms Trading Down 4.8%

Shares of Meta Platforms stock traded down $36.04 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $715.62. 27,677,978 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 22,129,420. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 2.23. The company has a market cap of $1.82 trillion, a PE ratio of 26.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.25. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $615.16 and a 200-day moving average of $612.83. Meta Platforms has a 12 month low of $520.26 and a 12 month high of $779.82.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.19 by ($1.01). The business had revenue of $60.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $60.22 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 29.83% and a return on equity of 33.18%. Meta Platforms’s revenue was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $7.14 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Meta Platforms will post 27.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Christopher Cox sold 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $712.76, for a total transaction of $28,510,400.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 184,516 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $131,515,624.16. The trade was a 17.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 946 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $680.27, for a total transaction of $643,535.42. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 9,770 shares in the company, valued at $6,646,237.90. The trade was a 8.83% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 123,333 shares of company stock valued at $80,795,845 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 13.53% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Meta Platforms

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of META. QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 5.5% during the second quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 372,579 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $209,870,000 after acquiring an additional 19,353 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 6.4% during the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 119,557 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $67,330,000 after acquiring an additional 7,184 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 2.0% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,236,516 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $1,823,088,000 after acquiring an additional 64,136 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 4.0% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 92,033,963 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $51,841,811,000 after acquiring an additional 3,510,123 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Silicon Valley Capital Partners increased its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 13.9% during the second quarter. Silicon Valley Capital Partners now owns 74,799 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $42,134,000 after acquiring an additional 9,114 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Meta Platforms News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta launched the Meta Enterprise Platform, offering businesses and developers access to its Muse AI agent, Business Agent, Muse API and Muse Code. The company hired MongoDB CEO Chirantan “CJ” Desai to lead the initiative, signaling an effort to generate revenue from its multibillion-dollar AI investments beyond advertising. Meta launches enterprise AI platform
• Positive Sentiment: Muse’s integration across Facebook, Instagram, Messenger and WhatsApp is supporting rapid user adoption; the AI-powered app reportedly reached the top spot in the U.S. App Store. Analysts also see potential revenue from subscriptions, transaction fees, enterprise tools and commercial API licensing. Meta Platforms boosts ad engagement with AI
• Positive Sentiment: Monness Crespi & Hardt raised its price target on META to $830 from $730 and maintained a Buy rating, citing the company’s AI opportunity and expanding ecosystem. AI improvements are also reportedly increasing ad engagement, clicks and conversions. Meta Platforms price target raised
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors remain divided over Meta’s AI strategy. Bullish analysts expect new AI agents, smart glasses and enterprise software to create additional revenue streams, while others question whether the returns will justify the investment.
• Negative Sentiment: Capital expenditures rose sharply to $31.1 billion in the second quarter from $19.4 billion a year earlier. The scale of data-center and AI spending is raising concerns about returns on capital and near-term margins. Meta Platforms: Are You Going to Buy the Promise?
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that OpenAI is developing a competing AI assistant intensified competitive concerns. Separately, alleged Muse disclosures of private messages and a user’s address have triggered privacy and safety criticism, potentially creating regulatory and reputational risks. Elon Musk amplifies privacy concerns over Muse
• Negative Sentiment: Meta also faces legal and political overhang after a New Mexico jury found that Facebook misled residents about personal-data practices, while lawmakers are questioning AI and data-center tax subsidies. Recent gains have additionally left the valuation less compelling, increasing sensitivity to execution disappointments.

About Meta Platforms

Meta Platforms, Inc is a technology company that develops social networking, messaging, virtual and augmented reality, and artificial intelligence products. The company operates a global family of apps that includes Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp and Threads, enabling users to connect, communicate, share content and discover communities.

Meta generates most of its business through digital advertising displayed across its platforms. Its products serve individuals, creators, businesses and organizations in markets around the world, while its advertising tools help businesses reach audiences based on factors such as interests, activity and demographics.

Through its Reality Labs division, Meta develops virtual and augmented reality hardware, software and services, including the Meta Quest line of headsets and related experiences.