10 analysts just hiked their price targets on these 3 stocks — including a Big Tech AI firm

A slew of Wall Street analysts last week turned even more bullish on three stocks ahead of their quarterly earnings reports. The U.S.-listed stocks are Meta Platforms , Asian e-commerce giant Sea Ltd , and miner Barrick Gold . CNBC Pro screened for stocks in the MSCI World Index that have received share price target upgrades from Wall Street analysts over the past seven days. These stocks are also due to report quarterly financial results over the next few weeks. Meta Platforms Twelve equity research analysts raised their price targets for the company behind Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp over the past seven days. The median price target among 70 analysts covering the stock gives it upside potential of just 4%, although this is largely thanks to the stock’s 64% rally this year. However, Jeffrey Wlodarczak of Pivotal Research Group, one of the most bullish analysts, has a $780 price target on the stock that points to a 35% upside over the next 12 months. Wlodarczak believes that, aside from increasing sales and income, Meta will also report cost efficiencies enabled by AI over the coming months. Meta Platforms has been among the companies leading the AI charge this year, releasing the sophisticated chatbot model Llama 3 in April. “In a world that is constantly changing fueled by the rapid development of AI we feel comfortable that Zuckerberg can successfully navigate META to the win,” Wlodarczak said in a note to clients on Oct. 1. META 1Y line Sea Ten analysts have this week upped their price target on shares of Singapore-headquartered Sea Limited, which owns Asian e-commerce platform Shopee, fintech firm Garena, and game developer Garena. However, analysts’ median price target leaves no room for upside, meaning the New York Stock Exchange listed stock is fairly valued after a 144.35% rally this year. Despite raising their price target, Phillip Capital analysts have a “neutral” rating on the stock. They suggest the company has significant long-term prospects if it can navigate short-term pressures from heightened competition. “The company’s triple-sided growth in SeaMoney, Shopee and Garena shows potential to deliver return for long-term growth. However, short-term growth remains challenged by competition as SE currently needs to maintain its high sales and marketing expenses in order to keep market share,” said Helena Wang, analyst at Phillip Capital, in a note to clients. SE 1Y line Barrick Gold Ten analysts also raised their bets on the Canada-listed mining giant. The median price target of 17 analysts points to 18% upside potential. Analysts were broadly disappointed by the company’s earnings pre-release last week, which suggested the company could struggle to meet its forecast for sales and costs for the rest of the year. The company’s share price is correlated to the price of gold , and also copper to a lesser degree. GOLD 1Y line