Cathie Wood's ARK Scoops Up Over 32,000 Meta Shares In 2 Days - Wall Street's Split Over AI Spending

(MENAFN- AsiaNet News)

• ARK purchased 20,125 Meta shares through ARKW and 2,609 through ARKF ETFs on Tuesday.
• The firm added another 9,577 shares of Meta through ARKW on Oct. 14.
• Citi raised its Meta price target to $895, citing improving visibility into Meta's product roadmap.

Cathie Wood-led ARK Invest scooped up 32,311 shares of Meta Platforms (META) over two consecutive sessions even as analysts debated the potential earnings impact of the social media giant's growing artificial intelligence (AI) ambitions.

According to ARK's daily trade notifications, the investment firm purchased 22,734 Meta shares on Tuesday through its Next Generation Internet ETF (ARKW) and Fintech Innovation ETF (ARKF). It added another 9,577 shares through ARKW on Wednesday.

At the time of this writing, META stock was trading more than 1% lower in Thursday's premarket session.

Meta's Muse Launch Draws Fresh Wall Street Calls

ARK's purchases followed Meta's October 12 launch of Muse Wonder and Muse Wonder Full, its latest AI models designed for personal and professional AI agents.

Meta said Muse Wonder is available to developers through its Model API and Muse Code, while the more advanced Muse Wonder Full is available to Muse Code subscribers.

The launch has drawn contrasting assessments from Wall Street, with analysts weighing new revenue opportunities against the cost of developing and deploying AI products.

Brokerage	Rating	Previous Target	New Target
Citi	Buy	$800	$895
UBS	Buy	$715	$884
Guggenheim	Buy	$700	$850
Goldman Sachs	Buy	$860	$762
Oppenheimer	Perform	-	-

According to TheFly, Citi cited improving visibility into Meta's product roadmap, while UBS sees opportunities to monetize AI through WhatsApp, Messenger and search advertising.

Guggenheim, meanwhile, pointed to early Muse adoption, citing Apptopia estimates of 1.3 million daily average users over five weeks.

Goldman Sachs took a more cautious view, lowering its target despite raising revenue estimates on favorable digital advertising trends. The firm warned that investments in AI products could push 2027 operating expenses higher.

AI Spending Takes Center Stage Ahead Of Earnings

Oppenheimer maintained a 'Perform' rating, forecasting Meta's earnings per share (EPS) for 2027 and 2028 at roughly 10% below Street estimates as the company ramps up AI investment, according to The Fly.

The firm projects a cumulative free cash flow deficit of $135 billion through 2028, compared with approximately $90 billion in cash and marketable securities reported by Meta at the end of June.

Meta's latest quarterly results underscore the spending debate. The tech giant's second-quarter (Q2) revenue rose 28% year over year to $60.8 billion, but free cash flow declined to $784 million from $8.55 billion a year earlier.

The company expects 2026 capital expenditures, including finance lease principal payments, of $130 billion to $145 billion.

Meta is scheduled to report third-quarter earnings after market close on October 21, with investors watching for further details on its 2027 spending plans and the commercial potential of Muse.

What Retail Thinks About META Stock

On Stocktwits, retail investors' sentiment around META stock remained in the 'bearish' territory.

META stock retail sentiment on October 15, as of 09:00 a.m. ET | Source: Stocktwits

So far this year, META stock has rallied more than 13%. Meanwhile, the Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF (MAGS) and Invesco QQQ Trust, Series 1 (QQQ), which holds Meta stock, have risen over 11% and 18%, respectively, over the same period.

Also Read: Cybersecurity Stocks Retreat From Record Highs - Citi Raises CRWD, PANW, ZS Targets On Improving Spending Momentum

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