Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) have been assigned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the forty-two research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have given a hold recommendation, thirty-five have given a buy recommendation and two have issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $613.71.

META has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Evercore ISI lifted their price target on Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Susquehanna raised their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Scotiabank began coverage on Meta Platforms in a report on Friday, October 11th. They set a “sector perform” rating and a $585.00 price objective on the stock. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Meta Platforms from $570.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Pivotal Research began coverage on Meta Platforms in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $780.00 price target on the stock.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of Meta Platforms stock opened at $576.79 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.46 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.13, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.22. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $544.01 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $507.60. The company has a current ratio of 2.83, a quick ratio of 2.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. Meta Platforms has a 1-year low of $279.40 and a 1-year high of $602.95.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The social networking company reported $5.16 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.70 by $0.46. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 34.16% and a net margin of 34.34%. The business had revenue of $39.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $38.26 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.23 EPS. Meta Platforms’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Meta Platforms will post 21.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th were given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.35%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Meta Platforms news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 901 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $451.15, for a total value of $406,486.15. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 33,324 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,034,122.60. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 412 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $463.00, for a total value of $190,756.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 5,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,573,817. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 901 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $451.15, for a total transaction of $406,486.15. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 33,324 shares in the company, valued at $15,034,122.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 249,911 shares of company stock worth $131,887,905. 13.71% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 527.3% in the first quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 69 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. POM Investment Strategies LLC acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 2nd quarter valued at $38,000. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 122.2% during the 2nd quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 80 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in Meta Platforms by 95.6% during the first quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 88 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Finally, Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the first quarter valued at $44,000. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Meta Platforms Company Profile

Meta Platforms, Inc engages in the development of products that enable people to connect and share with friends and family through mobile devices, personal computers, virtual reality headsets, and wearables worldwide. It operates in two segments, Family of Apps and Reality Labs. The Family of Apps segment offers Facebook, which enables people to share, discuss, discover, and connect with interests; Instagram, a community for sharing photos, videos, and private messages, as well as feed, stories, reels, video, live, and shops; Messenger, a messaging application for people to connect with friends, family, communities, and businesses across platforms and devices through text, audio, and video calls; and WhatsApp, a messaging application that is used by people and businesses to communicate and transact privately.