Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Price Target Raised to $1,144.00

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) had its price target boosted by Rosenblatt Securities from $1,117.00 to $1,144.00 in a research report released on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the social networking company’s stock.

META has been the topic of several other reports. Wedbush dropped their target price on Meta Platforms from $920.00 to $880.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 19th. Raymond James Financial dropped their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $825.00 to $800.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $875.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Barclays restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $800.00 target price (up from $770.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $808.00 to $890.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $847.98.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

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

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

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 580 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $618.28, for a total value of $358,602.40. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 5,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,454,330.36. The trade was a 9.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 519 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $658.69, for a total value of $341,860.11. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 28,658 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,876,738.02. This represents a 1.78% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 40,113 shares of company stock worth $24,621,042. 13.61% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meta Platforms

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Westchester Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Bare Financial Services Inc bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms during the second quarter worth about $42,000. Knuff & Co LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms in the second quarter worth about $44,000. Finally, Key Capital Management INC bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $48,000. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about Meta Platforms

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

About Meta Platforms

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.