Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Trading Up 1.5% – Should You Buy?

Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) traded up 1.5% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $618.27 and last traded at $612.96. 14,247,859 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 2% from the average session volume of 13,943,953 shares. The stock had previously closed at $604.12.

More Meta Platforms News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta will begin showing ads on Threads to users worldwide next week — a direct monetization catalyst for the fast?growing microblogging product. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Threads has exceeded 400 million active users and data show daily engagement gains vs. X, supporting upside to ad revenue per user if ads scale. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s new AI lab has delivered its first in?house models this month, per the CTO — progress that reduces reliance on external models and supports the company’s longer?term AI roadmap. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Oklo’s deal to power Meta data centers with nuclear energy was framed as a meaningful, binding partnership by analysts — a potential long?term infrastructure/cost advantage. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Wall Street expects earnings growth next week; an earnings beat could be a near?term positive catalyst, while guidance (notably 2026 CapEx) will be closely watched. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: UBS trimmed its price target (from $915 to $830) but kept a buy rating — a modest directional headwind in price targets but still supportive analyst sentiment. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: The U.S. Federal Trade Commission said it will appeal last year’s loss in its antitrust case over Instagram/WhatsApp acquisitions — renewed regulatory risk and potential legal costs. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: UK regulators accuse Meta of profiting from illegal gambling ads — another regulatory/reputation headache that could bring fines or stricter ad rules. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Some customers left after Meta’s $2B Manus acquisition, highlighting client concerns about data practices and possible churn in B2B relationships. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Meta disclosed recent Reality Labs cuts (multiple facilities) and an insider sale (director sold 580 shares) — both items that can signal cost pressure and modest insider profit?taking. Read More. Read More.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on META shares. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Barclays decreased their price target on Meta Platforms from $810.00 to $770.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Guggenheim reduced their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $875.00 to $800.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Monness Crespi & Hardt decreased their price objective on Meta Platforms from $860.00 to $808.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Meta Platforms from $820.00 to $750.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-seven have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $821.55.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $640.33 and a 200-day simple moving average of $698.52. The firm has a market cap of $1.54 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.29.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The social networking company reported $7.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.74 by $0.51. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 39.35% and a net margin of 30.89%.The firm had revenue of $51.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $49.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $6.03 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 26.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is presently 9.28%.

Insider Activity

In other Meta Platforms news, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 580 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $618.28, for a total value of $358,602.40. Following the sale, the director owned 5,587 shares in the company, valued at $3,454,330.36. The trade was a 9.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 517 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $653.00, for a total value of $337,601.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 11,166 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,291,398. The trade was a 4.43% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 40,115 shares of company stock worth $24,741,055 over the last quarter. Insiders own 13.61% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Meta Platforms

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Baker Ellis Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Baker Ellis Asset Management LLC now owns 2,249 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $1,485,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares in the last quarter. Sutton Place Investors LLC raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Sutton Place Investors LLC now owns 2,157 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $1,424,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. West Paces Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Meta Platforms by 10.4% during the fourth quarter. West Paces Advisors Inc. now owns 1,294 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $854,000 after purchasing an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC grew its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 6.3% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC now owns 88,424 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $58,368,000 after buying an additional 5,253 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ledyard National Bank increased its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.9% in the 4th quarter. Ledyard National Bank now owns 1,256 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $829,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Company Profile

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.