Meta Platforms’ (META) “Underperform” Rating Reiterated at Needham & Company LLC

Needham & Company LLC restated their underperform rating on shares of Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) in a research report report published on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on META. TD Cowen upped their price target on Meta Platforms from $530.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their target price on Meta Platforms from $610.00 to $575.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $565.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Roth Mkm lifted their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $500.00 to $510.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Benchmark restated a hold rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, thirty-five have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $534.87.

Meta Platforms Trading Up 2.7 %

Meta Platforms stock opened at $465.70 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 2.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The firm has a market cap of $1.18 trillion, a PE ratio of 26.75, a P/E/G ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.21. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $493.20 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $475.36. Meta Platforms has a 12 month low of $274.38 and a 12 month high of $542.81.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The social networking company reported $4.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.32 by $0.39. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.06% and a return on equity of 32.03%. The company had revenue of $36.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $36.28 billion. Analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms will post 20.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.43%. Meta Platforms’s payout ratio is 11.49%.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In related news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $489.80, for a total transaction of $443,269.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 35,130 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,206,674. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $489.80, for a total transaction of $443,269.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 35,130 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,206,674. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 490 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $445.93, for a total transaction of $218,505.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 6,109 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,724,186.37. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 311,348 shares of company stock worth $154,678,120 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 13.71% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meta Platforms

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of META. Baird Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 24.2% in the 4th quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 835,972 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $295,901,000 after purchasing an additional 163,067 shares during the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 3,576,285 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $1,265,862,000 after buying an additional 51,900 shares in the last quarter. Donoghue Forlines LLC raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 94.4% in the fourth quarter. Donoghue Forlines LLC now owns 8,349 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $2,955,000 after buying an additional 4,054 shares in the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 7.7% during the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 451,581 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $159,841,000 after buying an additional 32,423 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Voyager Global Management LP boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 37.3% during the 4th quarter. Voyager Global Management LP now owns 515,000 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $182,289,000 after acquiring an additional 140,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.