5 Cash-Rich Stocks To Buy According To Hedge Funds

4. Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 177

Latest Cash and Short-Term Investments: $41.78 billion

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) is a Menlo Park, California-based technology conglomerate that provides social media and instant messaging solutions through Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. The company is preparing for the next revolution by investing heavily in augmented reality and the metaverse.

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) has significantly expanded its operations by acquiring Instagram for $1 billion in 2012, followed by WhatsApp in 2014 for $16 billion. The stock price of the tech giant has observed a decline of nearly 65% since the start of 2022; Doug Anmuth at JPMorgan thinks this is an attractive entry point for investors. The analyst believes that many pressures on Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) would subside in 2023, and the company has also revealed positive signs of controlling its overheads. On December 16, Anmuth upgraded Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) stock from a Neutral to an Overweight rating and assigned a target price of $150.

Here’s what ClearBridge Investments said about Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) in its Q3 2022 investor letter:

“We initiated a new position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META), in the communication services sector, which operates the Facebook and Instagram social media platforms and is a leading digital advertising provider. We have been carefully watching the company over the last few quarters and believe headwinds from lower monetizing in Facebook and Instagram Reels and pressures from consumer privacy measures are poised to lessen. We believe the company has begun to fully acclimate to this new environment, will achieve greater effectiveness in Reels monetization and find ways to adapt to new privacy standards which will rebound advertising efficiency. Combined with a greater focus on cost control, we believe these initiatives will help contribute to further margin expansion and leave the company well-positioned moving forward.”