It really is the year of efficiency. Not even two months after we re-initiated coverage in Meta ($META), the stock has blown past our price target and hit a new pace for growth entirely.
On the back of another strong earnings report a month ago, Meta's focus on AI is driving significant growth in their core products, including Facebook and Instagram, particularly through the use of recommendation engines that enhance user engagement and ad revenue.
The shocking thing about Meta is that their AI frameworks are powerful enough to essentially erase a decent amount of the pain caused by Apple's shift to privacy back in 2021.
Meanwhile, even with a TikTok ban basically on hold, Meta has managed to use AI to increase Reels engagement enough for it to be a real threat.
We were stunned to see this turnaround for a lot of reasons.
First, Meta's core products aren't dead: they're thriving. Second, AI isn't transforming businesses by replacing workers (yet) it is simply supercharging what were already the most powerful algorithms on earth to drive way more value.
Meta's transformational year hit a huge milestone this week as the stock doubled in price this year alone.
In just under six months, Meta has clawed back the majority of their losses since their peak in 2021. Heck, they've nearly tripled their market cap since the stock's zenith in November.
So the main question is: Are these gains going to stick? Is Meta driving volatility or value right now with their turn to AI?
Taking a close look at engagement numbers, our analyst team is choosing cautious optimism in this wild market.
Meta is putting all the right pieces together in the most cost-effective way. And their developments in AI are coming in cheaper and more focused than the generalized crowd.
We almost have no choice, we're boosting our price target and staying bullish.
Let's check out some of the nitty-gritty details 👇