Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Price Target Raised to $820.00

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) had its price target upped by Stifel Nicolaus from $785.00 to $820.00 in a research note published on Thursday morning, MarketBeat reports. They currently have a buy rating on the social networking company’s stock.

Several other analysts have also recently commented on the stock. TD Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $808.00 to $890.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Bank of America increased their price objective on Meta Platforms from $810.00 to $885.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Meta Platforms from $875.00 to $900.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Erste Group Bank lowered Meta Platforms from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 10th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $847.98.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:META opened at $716.50 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $652.06 and a 200-day moving average of $696.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a current ratio of 2.60. Meta Platforms has a twelve month low of $479.80 and a twelve month high of $796.25. The firm has a market cap of $1.81 trillion, a PE ratio of 30.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.29.

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

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 23rd. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 15th. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.94%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In related news, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 580 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $618.28, for a total value of $358,602.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 5,587 shares in the company, valued at $3,454,330.36. This represents a 9.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 517 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 10,132 shares in the company, valued at $6,737,780. The trade was a 4.85% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 40,113 shares of company stock valued at $24,621,042. Corporate insiders own 13.61% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meta Platforms

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of META. Norges Bank bought a new position in Meta Platforms in the second quarter valued at approximately $23,155,393,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 73,443.1% during the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,417,003 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $6,212,506,000 after acquiring an additional 8,405,558 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 199,995,630 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $132,015,115,000 after acquiring an additional 7,269,279 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its position in Meta Platforms by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 86,925,674 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $64,158,971,000 after acquiring an additional 1,650,435 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Danske Bank A S acquired a new position in Meta Platforms in the 3rd quarter worth $1,191,175,000. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

More Meta Platforms News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 beat + AI narrative shift: Meta reported stronger‑than‑expected Q4 revenue and EPS and management framed ad strength as early proof that AI investments are improving monetization and engagement — a narrative some analysts now call an AI profit cycle. Meta’s Story Just Flipped — Seeking Alpha
• Positive Sentiment: Strong guidance & analyst upgrades: Q1 revenue guidance topped Street expectations and many firms raised price targets or reiterated buys, supporting the recent rally and giving institutional investors cover to support higher valuations. MarketBeat: Meta Soars After‑Hours
• Neutral Sentiment: Business diversification tests: Meta is piloting premium subscriptions for Instagram/Facebook/WhatsApp and expanding AI features — potential long‑term upside but unclear near‑term revenue impact. CNBC: Premium subscription tests
• Neutral Sentiment: Supply deals validate buildout but signal capital intensity: large supplier agreements (e.g., with Corning) back the AI data‑center plan while confirming heavy multi‑year spending. CNBC: Corning deal
• Negative Sentiment: Massive 2026 CapEx: Management guided to $115B–$135B of capex for 2026 — far above prior levels — raising near‑term cash intensity and margin dilution concerns despite management saying operating income should hold. Reuters: CapEx rise
• Negative Sentiment: Reality Labs drag: XR/Reality Labs continues to burn cash (multi‑billion losses), creating an ongoing margin headwind and execution risk for non‑ad businesses. TechCrunch: $19B VR burn
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory & reputational headlines: A New Mexico trial alleging platforms exposed minors to exploitation and reports about content‑blocking controversies add legal and reputational risk that can pressure multiple‑quarter sentiment. Reuters: New Mexico trial
• Negative Sentiment: Near‑term profit‑taking & headline noise: high short‑term expectations after the rally, occasional pundit criticism (e.g., Jim Cramer) and small insider sales add to volatility and can push the stock down after its run. 247WallSt: Jim Cramer critique

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.