Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Stock Keeps “Overweight” Rating at KeyCorp

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META)‘s stock had its “overweight” rating reaffirmed by research analysts at KeyCorp in a report issued on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $900.00 price target on the social networking company’s stock. KeyCorp’s target price suggests a potential upside of 18.15% from the company’s current price.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on META. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Meta Platforms from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Pivotal Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Tuesday. Moffett Nathanson decreased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $740.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Mizuho set a $750.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $796.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-five have given a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $796.12.

Meta Platforms Stock Up 2.5%

META stock traded up $18.82 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $761.78. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 5,740,379 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,408,791. 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 has a 52-week low of $520.26 and a 52-week high of $779.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.94 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.72, a PEG ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.19. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $644.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $621.26.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.19 by ($1.01). Meta Platforms had a net margin of 29.83% and a return on equity of 33.18%. The business had revenue of $60.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $60.22 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $7.14 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Meta Platforms will post 27.94 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In related news, insider Christopher 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 value of $28,510,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 184,516 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $131,515,624.16. The trade was a 17.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 946 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $728.08, for a total transaction of $688,763.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 7,878 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,735,814.24. This trade represents a 10.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. In the last three months, insiders sold 148,222 shares of company stock valued at $101,033,627. Insiders own 13.53% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meta Platforms

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of META. Horizons Wealth Management bought a new stake in Meta Platforms in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Advantage Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the second quarter worth $28,000. Philadelphia Investment Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the second quarter worth $32,000. Axiom Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the first quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Schuylkill Financial LLC acquired a new position in Meta Platforms in the second quarter valued at about $36,000. 79.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Meta Platforms News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta introduced Muse Wonder and Muse Wonder Full, its first “frontier” AI models, claiming performance comparable with leading offerings from OpenAI and Anthropic. The models are intended to improve Meta’s AI assistant and support complex, multistep tasks. Reuters article
• Positive Sentiment: Third-party app data reportedly showed Muse’s early retention rates rivaling ChatGPT, easing concerns about user adoption and helping drive the stock higher. Meta is also testing a monetization model with $20 and $100 monthly subscription tiers. Why Meta Stock Is Up Today
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street remains constructive: KeyCorp reaffirmed an overweight rating with a $900 target, while Rosenblatt reiterated buy with an $886 target. Truist also believes Meta may have further upside following the Muse announcement. Barron’s Meta Stock Analysis

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 operates a global family of apps that includes Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp and Threads, enabling users to connect, communicate, share content and discover communities.

Meta generates most of its business through digital advertising displayed across its platforms. Its products serve individuals, creators, businesses and organizations in markets around the world, while its advertising tools help businesses reach audiences based on factors such as interests, activity and demographics.

Through its Reality Labs division, Meta develops virtual and augmented reality hardware, software and services, including the Meta Quest line of headsets and related experiences.