Meta Platforms’ (META) “Overweight” Rating Reiterated at KeyCorp

KeyCorp reaffirmed their overweight rating on shares of Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. KeyCorp currently has a $900.00 price objective on the social networking company’s stock.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $930.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 25th. UBS Group reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Monness Crespi & Hardt boosted their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $730.00 to $830.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 28th. China Renaissance dropped their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $825.00 to $700.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, DA Davidson dropped their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $700.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-five have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $803.39.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 0.1%

NASDAQ:META opened at $736.72 on Tuesday. 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 $1.88 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.19. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $653.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $625.27. The company has a current ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.19 by ($1.01). The company had revenue of $60.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $60.22 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 29.83% and a return on equity of 33.18%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $7.14 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms will post 27.76 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 28th. Investors of record on Monday, September 21st were issued a dividend of $0.5250 per share. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 21st. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.91%.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In other Meta Platforms news, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,848 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $558.00, for a total transaction of $4,379,184.00. Following the sale, the chief technology officer owned 828 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $462,024. This trade represents a 90.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, 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 stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $618.06, for a total value of $2,002,514.40. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 6,271 shares in the company, valued at $3,875,854.26. This trade represents a 34.07% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 149,797 shares of company stock valued at $102,180,385 over the last quarter. 13.53% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Advantage Trust Co purchased a new position in Meta Platforms in the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Philadelphia Investment Partners LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms in the second quarter worth about $32,000. Horizons Wealth Management bought a new position in Meta Platforms in the third quarter worth about $33,000. Axiom Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms in the first quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Schuylkill Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the second quarter valued at about $36,000. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta released the open-weight Muse Spark Open model for coding and AI-agent tasks. The model can be downloaded and adapted by developers, broadening Meta’s reach in the AI ecosystem. Meta releases open-weight Muse Spark model for coding and agentic tasks
• Positive Sentiment: An Apple collaboration will enable developers to run Muse Spark Open locally on high-end Mac computers, potentially reducing reliance on cloud infrastructure and increasing model adoption. Apple and Meta team up to make Muse AI model run on Mac computers
• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s Muse Wonder model scored 83.2% on an accounting AI benchmark, tying for second place and outperforming OpenAI and Google models in that test. Bank of America maintained a Buy rating and an $810 target, while Guggenheim raised its target to $850. Meta Is Back in the AI Race
• Positive Sentiment: Meta- and Google-backed Jio Platforms is preparing a major Indian IPO, which could provide visibility into the value of Meta’s strategic investment and partnership in the business. Meta- and Google-backed Jio Platforms IPO
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta has outperformed megacap peers and gained roughly 12% over the past month, increasing investor focus on whether the recent AI-driven rally can continue or whether some holders will take profits. Meta Just Climbed 12% in a Month
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned that Meta’s more than $130 billion AI investment program is reducing free cash flow, while Reality Labs continues to generate large losses. A roughly $10 billion legal charge and uncertainty around 2027 capital spending could add pressure ahead of the company’s expected October 21 earnings report. Meta: The Muse Rally Has Priced In the Good News Before Q3
• Negative Sentiment: Seven Democratic senators are seeking an explanation for Meta’s claimed $6.6 billion in research tax credits related to AI data centers, creating potential tax and policy risks for Meta and other large technology companies. Senators Want to Know Why Meta Claimed $6.6 Billion in Research Tax Credits
• Negative Sentiment: Goldman Sachs reduced its price target to $762 because of rising operating expenses, though it retained a Buy rating. A COO’s disclosed sales were made under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan and are therefore a limited signal of management sentiment.

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.