In a resounding testament to the tech industry’s resilience and innovation, Meta Platforms (NASDAQ: META), formerly known as Facebook, has been riding a wave of success in 2023.
The company’s shares have surged, buoyed by the flourishing artificial intelligence (AI) sector and a revived market demand.
Today, on October 11, Meta continued its remarkable stock market journey, with its stock price achieving a fresh 52-week high.
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Notably, the stock jumped to $328.84 during the trading session – the highest mark in a year but also the highest since January 2022. META later slightly retreated to $326.35 at the time of publication.
Why is META soaring today?
The latest upswing in Meta’s shares comes in what was an overall positive session for US stocks.
The S&P 500 index gained 0.12% on the day while the tech-oriented Nasdaq-100 advanced 0.40%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) also edged 0.8% higher in the opening hours.
However, META’s blistering rally in 2023 and a new 52-week high are primarily attributable to a significant improvement in the company’s financial performance.
After a series of quarterly declines, Meta Platforms returned to revenue growth in Q1 and Q2 reports.
In the second quarter, Meta Platforms’ revenue jumped 11% year-over-year – marking the first time the tech titan reported double-digit growth since the end of 2021.
Apart from its dominance in the advertising market, Meta also received a considerable boost from the latest sensation in the technology space – generative AI.
At the end of last month, Meta unveiled new AI products for consumers, including bots capable of generating photo-realistic images and smart glasses that can answer questions, as well as a new virtual-reality headset.
Analysts’ latest remarks on META
Strategists at Wall Street giant JPMorgan reduced their price target for META from $425 to $400 last week but maintained their ‘Overweight’ rating on the stock.
The analysts reiterated they remain bullish on future prospects of Meta’s stock, but trimmed the price objective slightly to reflect the anticipated increase in expenses.
JPMorgan stated it expects Meta to remain focused on two big tech waves of AI and the metaverse, and continue doubling down on these growth opportunities.
In addition, “AI is clearly paying off in terms of incremental engagement from AI-generated content and Advantage+.”
– the analysts added.
Despite its 2023 rally, Meta’s valuation “remains compelling” with the stock trading at 15x of the bank’s 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates.
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