Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Price Target Raised to $830.00 at Robert W. Baird

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) had its price objective lifted by Robert W. Baird from $815.00 to $830.00 in a report released on Thursday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the social networking company’s stock.

META has been the subject of a number of other reports. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $808.00 to $890.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Monday, December 29th. Benchmark cut shares of Meta Platforms from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Meta Platforms from $750.00 to $825.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Roth Mkm lowered their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $800.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $847.98.

Meta Platforms Stock Up 10.4%

Shares of NASDAQ META opened at $738.31 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.86 trillion, a PE ratio of 31.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.29. Meta Platforms has a one year low of $479.80 and a one year high of $796.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 1.98 and a quick ratio of 1.98. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $649.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $696.14.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The social networking company reported $8.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.16 by $0.72. The company had revenue of $59.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.33 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 30.08% and a return on equity of 39.91%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $8.02 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 23.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms will post 26.7 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 9.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Meta Platforms news, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $609.35, for a total transaction of $365,610.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 7,347 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,476,894.45. This represents a 7.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 11,690 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $593.31, for a total transaction of $6,935,793.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer owned 2,415 shares in the company, valued at $1,432,843.65. This represents a 82.88% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 40,113 shares of company stock worth $24,621,042 over the last 90 days. 13.61% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in Meta Platforms by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 34,551 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $20,230,000 after acquiring an additional 570 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 9,456 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $5,537,000 after acquiring an additional 875 shares in the last quarter. Headwater Capital Co Ltd boosted its stake in Meta Platforms by 294.7% in the 1st quarter. Headwater Capital Co Ltd now owns 150,000 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $86,454,000 after purchasing an additional 112,000 shares during the period. Kooman & Associates boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 2.8% during the second quarter. Kooman & Associates now owns 544 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $402,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Global Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 41.7% during the 2nd quarter. Eagle Global Advisors LLC now owns 28,955 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $21,371,000 after purchasing an additional 8,527 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Key Meta Platforms News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 beat and strong guidance — Meta reported $59.9B revenue and $8.88 EPS (both above estimates) and guided Q1 revenue to $53.5B–$56.5B, signaling continued ad strength and giving investors confidence the AI investments are starting to lift monetization. CNBC: Meta beats on top, bottom lines, gives stronger-than-expected forecast
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street upgrades and target increases — Multiple firms raised price targets and ratings after the print, reflecting renewed analyst conviction in revenue upside and AI tailwinds (several targets now imply double‑digit upside). MarketBeat: Meta Soars After-Hours
• Positive Sentiment: Technical/market momentum — Analysts and technical commentators note the stock reclaimed key levels and is showing breakout momentum after earnings, which supports further near‑term buying. FXEmpire: Technical Breakout Signals Higher Prices
• Neutral Sentiment: Local PR / community investment — Meta committed $50M to develop a Sac State downtown center; positive for brand and local relations but unlikely to move fundamentals materially. BizJournals: Meta commits $50M to Sac State downtown center
• Neutral Sentiment: Product tests to diversify revenue — Meta is testing premium subscription tiers across Instagram/Facebook/WhatsApp; potential upside long term but unclear near‑term revenue impact. CNET: Meta confirms testing of premium subscriptions
• Negative Sentiment: Huge 2026 CapEx ramp announced — Management expects 2026 capital expenditures of roughly $115B–$135B to build AI infrastructure, a front‑loaded commitment that raises questions about near‑term returns and margin pressure. Reuters: Meta expects annual capital expenditures to rise
• Negative Sentiment: Reality Labs remains a drag — The XR/Reality Labs unit posted an operating loss (~$6.02B in Q4) and prior reporting shows large cash burn, highlighting ongoing margin risk. CNBC: Reality Labs posts $6.02B loss
• Negative Sentiment: XR cash burn and uncertainty — Reporting that Reality Labs burned ~$19B recently (and has had layoffs) is a reminder that Meta’s non‑ad investments are costly and uncertain. TechCrunch: Meta burned $19B on VR
• Negative Sentiment: Small insider sale — COO Javier Oliván sold 517 shares (disclosed); amount is modest but some investors note insider sales when evaluating sentiment. SEC filing: Oliván insider sale

About Meta Platforms

Meta Platforms, Inc (NASDAQ: META), formerly Facebook, Inc, is a global technology company best known for building social networking services and immersive computing platforms. Founded in 2004 and headquartered in Menlo Park, California, the company operates a family of consumer-facing products and services that connect users, creators and businesses. In October 2021 the company rebranded as Meta to reflect an expanded strategic focus on augmented and virtual reality technologies alongside its social media businesses.

Meta’s core consumer products include Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger, which enable social networking, messaging, content sharing and community building across mobile and desktop devices.