• Benchmark's rating cut underscored growing uncertainty around Meta's aggressive spending on artificial intelligence projects.
• Bernstein analyst Mark Shmulik trimmed his price target to $870 from $900.
• Barclays said Meta's strong third-quarter performance was largely overshadowed by its ballooning AI investment plans.

Meta Platforms Inc. (META) saw a slew of price target and rating cuts after the tech giant forecast significant expense growth in 2026. 

Benchmark has shifted its stance on Meta, lowering its rating to“Hold” from“Buy” and removing its previous price target, according to TheFly. The firm's move underscores growing uncertainty around Meta's aggressive spending on artificial intelligence projects that extend beyond its core advertising business.

Meta Platforms' stock traded over 8% lower in Thursday's premarket and was the top trending equity ticker on Stocktwits. 

Caution On Return On Investments

Benchmark also warned that Meta's AI initiatives may not deliver strong near-term returns, particularly as the company faces rising competition from well-capitalized players such as OpenAI, Alphabet Inc.(GOOGL), and Tesla Inc. (TSLA). 

Bernstein analyst Mark Shmulik trimmed his price target to $870 from $900 but maintained an“Outperform” rating. He cautioned, however, that the company's expanding investment to create what it calls a“leading frontier AI lab” has revived investor memories of its costly Metaverse ambitions.

Barclays also lowered its price target on Meta, cutting it to $770 from $810 while retaining an“Overweight” rating. The firm said Meta's strong third-quarter (Q3) performance was largely overshadowed by its ballooning AI investment plans. 

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