Morgan Stanley

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Shares of Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ: META) were mostly flat through a.m. trading on Wednesday as the stock took a breather after its recent run-up saw a gain of 31.24% over the past month. That brings META’s year-to-date gain to 6.25%, and its one-year gain to 37.07%, as the markets remain optimistic in the wake of the 90-day tariff pause between the U.S. and China announced on Sunday, May 11. Despite mixed results from its Q1 earnings announcement — Meta Platforms missed on EPS and beat on revenue — increased user engagement and expansion of its AI tools continue to encourage investors looking down the road. In the wake of last month’s earnings call, Barclays lowered its price target on Meta to $640 from $705, keeping its “Overweight” rating. On the other hand, Bank of America, Citi, JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley all raised their price targets for Meta, to $690, $690, $675 and $650, respectively, while all maintaining their “Buy” or “Overweight” ratings. There are headwinds, of course. The company remains embroiled in legal issues. Meta’s former Director of Global Public Policy Sarah Wynn-Williams recently testified before a Senate Judiciary subcommittee after making claims that the company undermined U.S. national security by briefing Chinese officials on emerging technologies like artificial intelligence — a claim that she said has contributed to Meta’s $18 billion business in China. The company remains embroiled in antitrust legal challenges, which may impact its forward guidance. Additionally, on March 24, the European Union (EU) announced plans to penalize Meta with a fine of up to $1 billion for breaching strict antitrust rules after the EU’s antitrust watchdog — the European Commission — found that the company is not in compliance with the Digital Markets Act. Earlier this year, META announced — alongside authorizing a $50 billion stock buyback — that shares of META would begin paying a dividend. And while its current yield of 0.32% may not seem like much, at its current price, that equates to $0.53 per share quarterly, or $2.12 per share annualized. As the dominant player in the social media landscape, Meta Platforms is now branching out more broadly into tech, and specifically, the artificial intelligence (AI) space. It is the latter that the company is most heavily investing in now, and for that reason, it is also the primary driver of 24/7 Wall St. price predictions and forecasts for 2025–2030. Key Points in This Article: “Meta AI is on track to be the most used AI assistant in the world by the end of the year,” according to CEO Mark Zuckerberg. 24/7 Wall St. projects a 51.53% upside potential for the stock through the end of the decade. If you’re looking for a megatrend with massive potential, make sure to grab a complimentary copy of our “The Next NVIDIA” report. The report includes a complete industry map of AI investments that includes many small caps. Meta Platforms’ 10-Year Results Here’s a table summarizing the performance in share price, revenues, and profits (net income) of META stock from 2014 to 2024: Year Share Price Revenues* Net Income* 2014 $80.78 $12.466 $2.940 2015 $104.66 $17.928 $3.688 2016 $115.05 $27.638 $10.217 2017 $176.46 $40.653 $15.934 2018 $133.20 $55.838 $22.112 2019 $208.10 $70.697 $18.485 2020 $273.16 $85.965 $29.146 2021 $336.35 $117.929 $39.370 2022 $120.34 $116.609 $23.200 2023 $353.96 $134.902 $39.098 2024 $599.24 $164.501 $62.36 *Revenue and net income in $billions From 2014 to 2024, Meta Platforms’ revenue grew 1,196.16% from $12.466 billion to over $164 billion, while its net income went from $2.940 billion to over $62.36 billion. The primary driver of that growth over that decade was ad space for the company’s social media platforms, which include Facebook, Instagram, Threads, Reel and WhatsApp, among others. While Meta Platforms has branched out into augmented reality and virtual reality — a business segment it refers to as Reality Labs — 99% of its revenue generation comes from its Family of Apps business segment, as of year-end 2023. But as the company looks to the second half of the decade, Zuckerberg and the company will focus on a few key focus areas that will have a large impact on Meta Platforms’ stock performance. Key Drivers of Meta Platforms’ Stock Performance 1. AI Investment: Founder and CEO, Mark Zuckerberg announced that Meta Platforms “released the first frontier-level open source AI model, we continue to see good traction with our Ray-Ban Meta AI glasses, and we’re driving good growth across our apps.” While the market for Meta’s social media advertising remains healthy and continues to drive the majority of the company’s revenue, it is focusing heavily on AI investments to expand through the end of the decade. Price-per-ad revenue saw a 10% year-over-year gain, and that success will fund its AI spending aimed at future growth. CFO Susan Li stated that META expects “significant capital expenditure growth in 2025 as we invest to support our artificial intelligence research and product development efforts.” In its Q1 earnings call, the company announced that 30% more advertisers were using its AI creative tools, and its new ads recommendation model increased conversion rates by 5% for reels. 2. Continued Renewable Energy Development: According to the company’s net zero plan, which it is aiming to achieve by 2030, “Since 2020, Meta’s global operations have been supported by 100% renewable energy. As of 2023, we have 10,000MW of contracted renewable energy across six countries.” As part of its net zero plan, Meta Platforms’ reliance on renewable energy will ultimately decrease the cost of its utility expenses, and ultimately, its carbon footprint through contracted and self-employed green technologies. Renewables already cost less than fossil fuel energy sources, and according to Canary Media, “By 2030, technology improvements could slash today’s prices by a quarter for wind and by half for solar.” The company has announced that its goal for its forthcoming data center is that it is 100% sustainable and net zero. 3. Focusing on Growing Free Cash Flow: Zuckerberg labeled 2023 Meta Platforms’ “year of efficiency,” and their results were staggering. By year-end, the company recorded a record free cash flow of $43 billion. That is up from $21 billion in 2019, marking a nearly 105% increase in its cash position in four years. Meta’s free cash flow in 2024 stood at $52.1, another record that showed the company’s focus on its bottom line is driving decisions from the top down and has increasingly strong results. Meta Platforms (META) Stock Price Prediction in 2025 The current median one-year price target for Meta Platforms is $696.12, which represents 9.42% upside potential from today’s share price. Of the 45 analysts covering META stock, it receives a consensus “Strong Buy” rating with 41 analysts assigning it as a “Buy,” three assigning it as a “Hold” and one assigning it as a “Sell.” However, 24/7 Wall St.‘s forecast is more bullish, projecting Meta Platforms’ stock price to be $729.55 based on the company’s ability to sustain its strong ad revenue while increasing efficiency, which in turn will drive its bottom line despite capital expenditures increasing toward its AI objectives. That price target represents potential upside of 14.67% from today’s share price. Meta Platforms (META) Stock Estimates 2025-2030 Year Revenue* Net Income* EPS 2024 $161.579 $54.960 $21.18 2025 $183.459 $62.250 $24.12 2026 $205.257 $70.680 $27.71 2027 $226.332 $78.258 $30.42 2028 $245.319 $85.912 $32.38 2029 $268.306 $97.044 $36.54 2030 $274.947 $91.227 $39.70 *Revenue and net income in $billions META Platforms (META) Price Prediction 2025–2030 By the end of the start of the next decade, we forecast that META’s stock price will reach $1,216.82, or 91.26% higher than it is trading for today, despite estimates that net income will pull back slightly from over $97 billion to over $91 billion. Revenue growth will continue, with an estimated 2.48% year-over-year increase from 2029. Year Price Target %Change From Current Price* 2025 $729.55 14.67% 2026 $935.29 47.01% 2027 $1,208.27 89.92% 2028 $1,525.91 139.85% 2029 $1,049.40 64.95% 2030 $1,216.82 91.26% The post Meta Platforms (NASDAQ: META) Price Prediction and Forecast 2025-2030 for May 21 appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..» Mehr auf 247wallst.com