Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Susquehanna Analyst Says

Key Points

• Susquehanna raised Meta’s price target to $850 from $650 and maintained a positive rating, implying 21.86% upside from the previous close. The broader analyst consensus is “Moderate Buy,” with an average target of $819.94.
• Meta reported strong quarterly results, including $7.40 in adjusted earnings per share versus the $6.54 estimate and revenue of $64.6 billion, up 26.1% year over year and above expectations.
• Investors are balancing Meta’s advertising strength and growing AI opportunities against substantial AI infrastructure spending, projected Reality Labs losses, insider selling, and legal and governance risks.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) had its target price hoisted by research analysts at Susquehanna from $650.00 to $850.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a "positive" rating on the social networking company's stock. Susquehanna's price target would indicate a potential upside of 21.86% from the company's previous close.

META has been the subject of a number of other reports. Arete Research upped their price target on Meta Platforms from $735.00 to $806.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 16th. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $850.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $810.00 to $845.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday. Wolfe Research restated an "outperform" rating and set a $700.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $710.00 to $875.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 22nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $819.94.

Meta Platforms Stock Up 0.5%

META opened at $697.52 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $662.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $629.10. Meta Platforms has a twelve month low of $520.26 and a twelve month high of $779.82. The company has a market cap of $1.78 trillion, a PE ratio of 26.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.19. 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 - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The social networking company reported $7.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.54 by $0.86. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 33.18% and a net margin of 29.83%. The business had revenue of $64.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $63.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $7.25 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 26.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Meta Platforms will post 27.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In other news, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,848 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $558.00, for a total value of $4,379,184.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 828 shares in the company, valued at approximately $462,024. This represents a 90.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 27,474 shares of the 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. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 149,906 shares of company stock valued at $102,347,409 over the last quarter. 13.53% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Meta Platforms

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp grew its position in Meta Platforms by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 92,033,963 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $51,841,811,000 after acquiring an additional 3,510,123 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in Meta Platforms by 14.6% during the 1st 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 purchasing an additional 2,673,494 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in Meta Platforms by 1.3% in 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. Amundi raised its position in Meta Platforms by 18.1% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 11,858,972 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $6,784,873,000 after purchasing an additional 1,815,017 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Meta Platforms by 4.0% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 10,429,812 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $5,964,745,000 after acquiring an additional 404,948 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.

More Meta Platforms News

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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