KeyCorp Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Stock

Key Points

• KeyCorp raised its Meta Platforms price target to $905 from $900 and maintained an “overweight” rating, implying about 29.75% upside from the prior close.
• Meta reported quarterly earnings of $7.40 per share and revenue of $64.6 billion, beating analyst estimates; revenue increased 26.1% year over year, supported by strong advertising performance.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and average price target of $819.94, although investors face risks from rising AI spending, Reality Labs losses, potential dilution and a $25 billion privacy-related judgment.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) had its target price upped by equities researchers at KeyCorp from $900.00 to $905.00 in a report issued on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "overweight" rating on the social networking company's stock. KeyCorp's price target would suggest a potential upside of 29.75% from the stock's previous close.

META has been the subject of several other research reports. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $830.00 to $750.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 30th. BNP Paribas Exane dropped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $955.00 to $855.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Arete Research upped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $735.00 to $806.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 16th. Mizuho set a $750.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $840.00 to $860.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $819.94.

Meta Platforms Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of Meta Platforms stock opened at $697.52 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 2.23 and a quick ratio of 2.23. The business has a 50-day moving average of $662.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $629.10. Meta Platforms has a 1 year low of $520.26 and a 1 year high of $779.82. The company has a market capitalization of $1.78 trillion, a P/E ratio of 26.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.19.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The social networking company reported $7.40 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.54 by $0.86. The firm had revenue of $64.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $63.34 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 29.83% and a return on equity of 33.18%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 26.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $7.25 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Meta Platforms will post 27.32 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In other Meta Platforms news, CAO Aaron Anderson sold 3,240 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $618.06, for a total value of $2,002,514.40. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 6,271 shares in the company, valued at $3,875,854.26. The trade was a 34.07% 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, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 27,474 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $777.44, for a total transaction of $21,359,386.56. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 149,906 shares of company stock worth $102,347,409. Corporate insiders own 13.53% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meta Platforms

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in META. Culbertson A N & Co. Inc. increased its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 12.3% in the third quarter. Culbertson A N & Co. Inc. now owns 2,406 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $1,745,000 after buying an additional 263 shares during the period. Seros Financial LLC bought a new stake in Meta Platforms during the third quarter valued at $258,000. Legacy Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 5.8% during the 3rd quarter. Legacy Financial Group Inc. now owns 764 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $554,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. NBT Bank N.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $6,545,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC grew its holdings in Meta Platforms by 7.9% in the third quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC now owns 9,611 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $6,970,000 after purchasing an additional 704 shares during the period. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta reported third-quarter revenue of $64.6 billion, up 26.1% year over year and above the roughly $63.3 billion analyst estimate. Adjusted earnings of $7.40 per share also exceeded consensus near $6.54, reinforcing the strength of its advertising business. Meta third-quarter earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s Muse AI assistant has surpassed 10 million users, with shopping among the leading activities. Bulls believe Muse could eventually create new subscription, commerce and enterprise revenue streams and improve advertising engagement. Meta Muse user growth
• Positive Sentiment: Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed its Buy rating, while bullish analysts cited strong ad growth and potential margin-accretive monetization of Meta’s AI products. Rosenblatt Buy rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta raised the low end of its 2026 capital-expenditure outlook to $135 billion, while maintaining a top end of $145 billion. The spending supports AI infrastructure and data centers but increases pressure on cash flow and future margins. Meta AI spending outlook
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta plans to issue nonvoting Class C shares to help fund its AI expansion without reducing Mark Zuckerberg’s voting control. The structure may improve financing flexibility but raises investor concerns about dilution and governance. Meta new share class
• Negative Sentiment: A New Mexico judge ordered Meta to pay $25 billion in penalties tied to Cambridge Analytica-era privacy practices. Meta plans to appeal, but the ruling adds substantial legal and headline risk. New Mexico privacy judgment
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are also weighing Muse’s high computing costs, projected Reality Labs losses of about $15 billion next year, an Australian class-action lawsuit alleging harm to children, and the departure of an AI researcher. These issues reinforce concerns that Meta’s AI strategy may take years to become profitable.

Meta Platforms Company Profile

Meta Platforms, Inc is a technology company that develops social networking, messaging, virtual and augmented reality, and artificial intelligence products. The company's principal platforms include Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp, and Threads, which enable users to connect, communicate, share content, and discover products and services.

Meta also operates Reality Labs, its division focused on virtual, augmented, and mixed reality technologies. Reality Labs develops products such as Meta Quest virtual reality headsets and related software and experiences, along with research and hardware intended to support immersive computing.

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