Meta Platforms Inc. shares rose by 5.01% as the stock crossed above its 5-day SMA, reflecting positive market sentiment. The company announced that it will begin showing ads on its Threads micro-blogging service, which has surpassed 400 million active users since its launch in July 2023. This significant step in its monetization strategy is expected to drive substantial revenue growth, showcasing Threads' strong competitive position in the market.
The rollout of ads on Threads is a gradual process, aimed at balancing user experience with advertising content. Meta's strategy includes introducing new features to enhance the platform's appeal and commercial potential. This move is likely to attract more advertisers and increase revenue, further solidifying Meta's position in the social media landscape.
Overall, this development indicates a positive trajectory for Meta as it continues to innovate and expand its advertising capabilities, which could lead to increased user engagement and revenue growth in the coming quarters.
Wall Street analysts forecast META stock price to rise over the next 12 months. According to Wall Street analysts, the average 1-year price target for META is 824.71 USD with a low forecast of 655.15 USD and a high forecast of 1117 USD. However, analyst price targets are subjective and often lag stock prices, so investors should focus on the objective reasons behind analyst rating changes, which better reflect the company's fundamentals.
44 Analyst Rating
Wall Street analysts forecast META stock price to rise over the next 12 months. According to Wall Street analysts, the average 1-year price target for META is 824.71 USD with a low forecast of 655.15 USD and a high forecast of 1117 USD. However, analyst price targets are subjective and often lag stock prices, so investors should focus on the objective reasons behind analyst rating changes, which better reflect the company's fundamentals.
37 Buy
6 Hold
1 Sell
Strong Buy
Current: 658.760
Low
655.15
Averages
824.71
High
1117
Current: 658.760
Low
655.15
Averages
824.71
High
1117
Rothschild & Co Redburn
James Cordwell
Neutral -> Buy
upgrade
$740 -> $900
2026-01-26
New
Reason
Rothschild & Co Redburn
James Cordwell
Price Target
$740 -> $900
AI Analysis
2026-01-26
New
upgrade
Neutral -> Buy
Reason
Rothschild & Co Redburn analyst James Cordwell upgraded Meta Platforms to Buy from Neutral with a price target of $900, up from $740. The shares could trade down to the mid $500s post the Q4 report if higher costs move down 2026 earnings estimates, the analyst tells investors in a research note. However, Rothschild sees a "disconnect" between the current stock price and Meta's long-term value. At $650, Meta's upside potential far outweighs any near-term risks to the downside, contends the firm. With the company's imminent fiscal 2026 guidance "set to leave estimates factoring in all the cost and little upside from AI, now seems opportune for investors to start building positions," concludes Rothschild. It recommends investors capitalize on any resulting weakness post the Q4 report.
Stifel
Mark Kelley
Buy
downgrade
$875 -> $785
2026-01-23
New
Reason
Stifel
Mark Kelley
Price Target
$875 -> $785
2026-01-23
New
downgrade
Buy
Reason
Stifel analyst Mark Kelley lowered the firm's price target on Meta Platforms to $785 from $875 and keeps a Buy rating on the shares as part of the firm's digital ads Q4 preview. Despite commentary from its Q4 advertising checks supporting "solid" Q4 results, and particular strength from Instagram Reels, the firm believes the bulk of investor attention will be centered on 2026 total and capital expense forecasts, the analyst noted.
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Wells Fargo
Ken Gawrelski
Overweight
downgrade
$795 -> $754
2026-01-23
New
Reason
Wells Fargo
Ken Gawrelski
Price Target
$795 -> $754
2026-01-23
New
downgrade
Overweight
Reason
Wells Fargo analyst Ken Gawrelski lowered the firm's price target on Meta Platforms to $754 from $795 and keeps an Overweight rating on the shares. The firm says that evaluation of capacity contracts drives meaningful upward revision to OpEx/CapEx estimates for 2026-2028. Wells sees a challenging near-term timing mismatch between ramping AI investments in compute capacity and identification of new use cases and products.
Jefferies
Buy
maintain
$910
2026-01-22
New
Reason
Jefferies
Price Target
$910
2026-01-22
New
maintain
Buy
Reason
Jefferies lays out five reasons to buy the pullback in Meta Platforms (META), pointing to an "attractive" risk/reward at the current discount to Alphabet (GOOGL); what it views as "moderate downside" to estimates and stronger upside potential; AI hires that it views as "set to deliver" in 2026; Continued momentum from Meta's core flywheel powered by AI; and accelerating activation of major incremental revenue engines, including WhatsApp, Threads and Llama/AI. The firm keeps a Buy rating and $910 price target on Meta shares.
About META
Meta Platforms, Inc. is building human connections, powered by artificial intelligence and immersive technologies. The Company's products enable people to connect and share with friends and family through mobile devices, personal computers, virtual reality (VR) and mixed reality (MR) headsets, augmented reality (AR), and wearables. It also helps people discover and learn about what is going on in the world around them, enabling people to share their experiences, ideas, photos, videos, and other content with audiences ranging from their closest family members and friends to the public at large. The Company's segments include Family of Apps (FoA) and Reality Labs (RL). FoA segment includes Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp and Threads. RL segment includes its virtual, augmented, and mixed reality related consumer hardware, software and content. Its product offerings in VR include its Meta Quest devices, as well as software and content available through the Meta Horizon Store.
About the author
Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
