TD Cowen Reaffirms “Buy” Rating for Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META)

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reissued by TD Cowen in a report released on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They presently have a $865.00 price target on the social networking company’s stock. TD Cowen’s target price suggests a potential upside of 19.35% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other equities analysts have also issued reports on the company. Arete Research upped their target price on Meta Platforms from $735.00 to $806.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 16th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $830.00 to $780.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $725.00 target price (down from $815.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. President Capital raised Meta Platforms from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $660.00 to $897.00 in a report on Thursday, September 24th. Finally, Erste Group Bank raised Meta Platforms from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-four have assigned a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Meta Platforms has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $791.86.

Meta Platforms Stock Up 0.5%

META stock traded up $3.88 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $724.77. 5,215,334 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 17,409,719. The stock has a market cap of $1.85 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.29, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.19. Meta Platforms has a fifty-two week low of $520.26 and a fifty-two week high of $779.82. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $637.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $619.40. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.19 by ($1.01). The company 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $7.14 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Meta Platforms will post 27.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In related news, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,848 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $558.00, for a total transaction of $4,379,184.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $462,024. The trade was a 90.46% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Susan Li sold 9,196 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $550.61, for a total transaction of $5,063,409.56. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,186 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,260,343.46. The trade was a 41.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 148,222 shares of company stock worth $101,033,627 over the last three months. 13.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Meta Platforms

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of META. Auto Owners Insurance Co increased its holdings in Meta Platforms by 76,587.7% in the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 105,292,277 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $69,502,379,000 after buying an additional 105,154,977 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position 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 worth $51,841,811,000 after purchasing an additional 3,510,123 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 14.6% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 21,038,035 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $12,036,491,000 after buying an additional 2,673,494 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 18,200,469 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $12,013,948,000 after acquiring an additional 1,046,715 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 12,836,063 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $7,230,426,000 after purchasing an additional 162,909 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s decision to ban ByteDance and TikTok advertisements across Facebook and Instagram in the U.S. and several other countries could reduce a competitor’s ability to reach users while potentially redirecting ad budgets to Meta’s platforms. Meta Draws a Line With TikTok, Bans ByteDance Ads Across Facebook and Instagram
• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s Muse artificial-intelligence assistant expanded to a dedicated iPad app, reinforcing the company’s aggressive AI product rollout and its efforts to increase engagement across its ecosystem. Meta’s Muse launches on iPad
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain constructive: TD Cowen reaffirmed its buy rating with an $865 price target, while Wells Fargo argued that AI could eventually support a $1,000 valuation. Micro-drama content is also emerging as a potential source of incremental advertising revenue. Meta Could Hit $1,000, Says Wells Fargo
• Neutral Sentiment: President Donald Trump disclosed purchasing as much as $25 million of Meta stock in August. The purchase may support sentiment, but it does not change Meta’s operating outlook. Trump bought up to $25 million in Meta
• Negative Sentiment: Jefferies found that roughly one-third of tested websites blocked Muse, potentially delaying Meta’s plans to monetize AI agents through online commerce and transaction fees. Meta’s Muse AI agent blocked by websites
• Negative Sentiment: Investors continue to question whether Meta’s enormous AI infrastructure spending will generate returns quickly enough, raising cash-flow and valuation concerns despite strong revenue growth. Why AI Infrastructure Is Turning Meta Into a Cash-Flow Sink
• Negative Sentiment: Florida officials are pursuing restrictions on teen access and infinite-scroll features, adding regulatory risk to Meta’s engagement model. Separately, COO Javier Olivan disclosed stock sales under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, a modest sentiment headwind.

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.