Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Stock Keeps Buy Rating at Guggenheim

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META)‘s stock had its “buy” rating reiterated by investment analysts at Guggenheim in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Benzinga reports. They currently have a $850.00 price target on the social networking company’s stock. Guggenheim‘s target price indicates a potential upside of 30.56% from the company’s previous close.

Several other analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $775.00 to $820.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $840.00 to $860.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. UBS Group set a $940.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday. Rothschild & Co Redburn upped their price target on Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, Citigroup upped their price target 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $823.47.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

META stock traded down $46.45 during trading on Thursday, hitting $651.07. The stock had a trading volume of 15,562,842 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,553,896. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 2.23 and a quick ratio of 2.23. Meta Platforms has a twelve month low of $520.26 and a twelve month high of $779.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.66 trillion, a P/E ratio of 24.61, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.19. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $662.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $629.10.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 22nd. The social networking company reported $7.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $64.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $63.34 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $7.25 EPS. Meta Platforms’s revenue was up 26.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Meta Platforms will post 27.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Meta Platforms news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 27,474 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $777.44, for a total value of $21,359,386.56. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO Aaron Anderson sold 3,240 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $618.06, for a total transaction of $2,002,514.40. Following the completion of 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. 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 sold a total of 149,906 shares of company stock worth $102,347,409 over the last ninety days. 13.53% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Meta Platforms by 4.0% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 92,033,963 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $51,841,811,000 after purchasing an additional 3,510,123 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 14.6% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 21,038,035 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $12,036,491,000 after acquiring an additional 2,673,494 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.3% in the second 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 acquiring an additional 162,909 shares in the last quarter. Amundi raised its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 18.1% in the first quarter. Amundi now owns 11,858,972 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $6,784,873,000 after acquiring an additional 1,815,017 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of 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 valued at $5,964,745,000 after acquiring an additional 404,948 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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

About Meta Platforms

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.