Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Stock Price Down 0%

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)’s share price dropped 0% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as low as $511.07 and last traded at $511.89. Approximately 2,832,755 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 83% from the average daily volume of 17,102,031 shares. The stock had previously closed at $511.90.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on META shares. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $425.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $585.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Meta Platforms from $525.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Meta Platforms from $609.00 to $600.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Meta Platforms from $500.00 to $555.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, thirty-eight have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $509.28.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average of $493.16 and a 200-day moving average of $396.01. The company has a market cap of $1.27 trillion, a P/E ratio of 33.54, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a quick ratio of 2.67, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The social networking company reported $5.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.82 by $0.51. The business had revenue of $40.11 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.12 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 29.48% and a net margin of 28.98%. The business’s revenue was up 24.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.00 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 20.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 22nd were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 21st. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.40%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is currently 13.42%.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In related news, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 8,036 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $473.28, for a total transaction of $3,803,278.08. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer now directly owns 18,432 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,723,496.96. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Meta Platforms news, COO Javier Olivan sold 490 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $488.03, for a total transaction of $239,134.70. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 79,944 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $39,015,070.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 8,036 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $473.28, for a total transaction of $3,803,278.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer now directly owns 18,432 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,723,496.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 1,439,788 shares of company stock valued at $684,542,792. Company insiders own 14.03% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meta Platforms

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms in the first quarter worth about $66,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 12.5% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,244,201 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $499,020,000 after purchasing an additional 249,926 shares during the last quarter. Ergoteles LLC boosted its stake in Meta Platforms by 284.0% in the 1st quarter. Ergoteles LLC now owns 3,356 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $746,000 after purchasing an additional 2,482 shares in the last quarter. First Western Trust Bank purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 1st quarter worth approximately $813,000. Finally, Oxford Financial Group Ltd. increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 26.9% during the 1st quarter. Oxford Financial Group Ltd. now owns 1,888 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $420,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

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.