Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Earns Buy Rating from Guggenheim

Key Points

• Guggenheim reaffirmed a Buy rating on Meta Platforms with an $850 price target, implying 21.86% potential upside from the prior close. The stock has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average target of $821.22.
• Meta exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $7.40 in EPS versus $6.54 expected and $64.60 billion in revenue versus $63.34 billion forecast. Revenue rose 26.1% year over year.
• Meta insiders sold 149,906 shares worth approximately $102.3 million during the last quarter, while institutional investors own about 79.91% of the stock.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy" rating reissued by research analysts at Guggenheim in a report released on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $850.00 target price on the social networking company's stock. Guggenheim's price target points to a potential upside of 21.86% from the company's previous close.

META has been the subject of several other reports. Evercore boosted their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $820.00 to $860.00 in a research note on Tuesday, August 25th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $810.00 to $845.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday. TD Cowen restated a "buy" rating and set a $865.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Tigress Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $945.00 price target (down from $995.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, September 24th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $895.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $821.22.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Meta Platforms stock opened at $697.52 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $1.78 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.19. Meta Platforms has a 12 month low of $520.26 and a 12 month high of $779.82. 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 stock's 50-day moving average is $662.27 and its 200-day moving average is $629.10.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In other news, insider Christopher K. Cox sold 40,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the insider directly owned 184,516 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $131,515,624.16. The trade was a 17.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Susan J. Li sold 9,196 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was 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. In the last quarter, insiders sold 149,906 shares of company stock valued at $102,347,409. 13.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Advantage Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Philadelphia Investment Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the second quarter worth about $32,000. Horizons Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the third quarter worth about $33,000. Axiom Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Meta Platforms in the first quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Schuylkill Financial LLC acquired a new position in Meta Platforms in the second quarter worth about $36,000. 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: Strong Q3 operating performance: Meta reported earnings of $7.40 per share versus the $6.54 consensus estimate and revenue of $64.60 billion versus expectations of $63.34 billion. Revenue increased 26.1% year over year, supported by advertising growth and improved AI-driven ad performance. Meta Q3 earnings report
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain bullish: Guggenheim reaffirmed a Buy rating with an $850 price target, while Susquehanna, KeyCorp, Pivotal Research and Bank of America also raised or maintained positive ratings with targets ranging from $845 to $960. Meta analyst ratings
• Positive Sentiment: Muse is gaining traction: Meta said its AI assistant has surpassed 10 million users, while AI tools are reportedly increasing ad conversions, click-through rates and average ad prices. This supports the argument that AI is already strengthening Meta’s core advertising business. Meta Muse user growth
• Neutral Sentiment: New Class C shares: Meta plans to issue nonvoting stock to help fund its AI expansion without reducing Mark Zuckerberg’s voting control. The structure may improve funding flexibility but raises investor concerns about dilution and governance. Meta new stock class
• Negative Sentiment: AI spending is overshadowing the earnings beat: Meta raised the low end of its 2026 capital-expenditure outlook to $135 billion, with potential spending as high as $145 billion. Investors are questioning how quickly Muse and other AI initiatives can generate returns, particularly as Muse carries high computing costs and Reality Labs is expected to lose about $15 billion next year. Meta AI spending concerns
• Negative Sentiment: Large legal liabilities add uncertainty: A New Mexico court ordered Meta to pay $25 billion over alleged privacy violations tied to Cambridge Analytica. Meta plans to appeal, but the verdict adds to recurring litigation expenses and regulatory risk. The company also faces an Australian class-action lawsuit alleging harm to children. Meta New Mexico privacy verdict

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.