Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Upgraded to "Buy" at President Capital

Key Points

• President Capital upgraded Meta Platforms to “Buy” from “Neutral” and raised its price target to $897 from $660, implying 16.49% upside from the prior close. Meta has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average target of $793.16.
• Meta shares rose to $770.05, near their 52-week high, while quarterly revenue increased 28% year over year to $60.8 billion. However, earnings of $6.18 per share missed analysts’ $7.19 estimate.
• Investor sentiment is being supported by rapid adoption of Meta’s AI products and new hardware, but high valuation, rising AI spending, privacy concerns and competition remain key risks; insiders also sold shares under pre-arranged trading plans.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) was upgraded by investment analysts at President Capital from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report issued on Thursday. The brokerage currently has a $897.00 target price on the social networking company's stock, up from their previous target price of $660.00. President Capital's target price points to a potential upside of 16.49% from the company's previous close.

META has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Citigroup reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $815.00 to $725.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $800.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $820.00 to $920.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, KeyCorp increased their target price on Meta Platforms from $780.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-five have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Meta Platforms presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $793.16.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Meta Platforms stock traded up $25.95 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $770.05. The stock had a trading volume of 19,022,294 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,358,818. The company has a 50-day moving average of $610.79 and a two-hundred day moving average of $611.16. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The company has a market cap of $1.96 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.25. Meta Platforms has a fifty-two week low of $520.26 and a fifty-two week high of $770.90.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.19 by ($1.01). The firm had revenue of $60.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $60.22 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 33.18% and a net margin of 29.83%.Meta Platforms's revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $7.14 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms will post 27.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In other news, CFO Susan J. Li sold 9,196 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated 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 owned 13,186 shares in the company, valued at $7,260,343.46. The trade was a 41.09% decrease in their position. 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, insider Christopher K. Cox sold 40,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $712.76, for a total value of $28,510,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 184,516 shares of the company's stock, valued at $131,515,624.16. This represents a 17.82% 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 123,333 shares of company stock valued at $80,795,845. Insiders own 13.53% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Meta Platforms

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of META. Auto Owners Insurance Co raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 76,587.7% during the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 105,292,277 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $69,502,379,000 after acquiring an additional 105,154,977 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth about $22,152,075,000. Corient Private Wealth LP lifted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 723.1% in the second quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP now owns 8,801,764 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $4,957,946,000 after purchasing an additional 7,732,446 shares in the last quarter. Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the second quarter valued at about $2,948,486,000. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 488.1% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 5,466,595 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $3,608,445,000 after buying an additional 4,537,076 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Headlines Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised price targets. Citizens JMP increased its target to $885 from $770, while other firms—including JPMorgan, KeyCorp, Cantor Fitzgerald and RBC—also offered bullish assessments. JPMorgan compared Muse’s early potential with ChatGPT’s launch. Meta stock rises as analysts raise price targets
• Positive Sentiment: Muse is gaining users quickly. Apptopia estimated approximately 642,000 daily U.S. users during Muse’s first 12 days, compared with 231,000 for ChatGPT at the same stage of its mobile launch. Investors are increasingly expecting monetization through subscriptions, advertising, commerce and business services. Meta unveils Muse Charm handheld device
• Positive Sentiment: Meta expanded its AI hardware ecosystem. The company unveiled the Muse Charm handheld device, camera-free Ray-Ban Meta Audio glasses and $1,299 Meta VR Glasses, giving Muse additional distribution channels and potentially strengthening Meta’s long-term platform strategy. Mark Zuckerberg debuts Meta VR Glasses and Muse Charm
• Positive Sentiment: Non-advertising revenue opportunities are emerging. Meta One subscription offerings, in-app purchases and Muse’s commerce integrations—including Shopify’s Shop Pay—could help diversify revenue beyond the company’s core advertising business. Meta One subscriptions show positive early signs
• Neutral Sentiment: Macro conditions remain a near-term influence. Rising Treasury yields and oil prices pressured broader technology stocks, although Meta’s gains outpaced the major indexes as investors focused on company-specific AI developments.
• Negative Sentiment: AI spending and valuation are significant risks. Analysts are debating whether Meta’s capital expenditures could approach $145 billion while free cash flow reportedly fell sharply. The stock’s steep recent rally increases the risk of profit-taking if Muse monetization does not meet elevated expectations. Meta’s spending and valuation debate
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive and privacy concerns persist. Amazon has blocked Muse from its website, while privacy and security concerns surrounding AI agents and smart glasses could restrict adoption or attract regulatory scrutiny. Insider share sales under pre-arranged trading plans are an additional, though limited, cautionary signal.

Meta Platforms Company Profile

Meta Platforms, Inc develops technologies that help people connect, communicate and build communities online. The company's principal products include Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp and Threads, which enable social networking, messaging, content sharing and digital communication.

Meta generates most of its business through advertising displayed across its family of apps. It also develops artificial intelligence technologies, business messaging tools and hardware and software through its Reality Labs division, including Quest virtual- and mixed-reality devices and related experiences.

The company was founded as Facebook in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg and was renamed Meta Platforms in 2021 to reflect its broader focus on building the metaverse.

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