Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Trading 0.4% Higher

Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) were up 0.4% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $513.48 and last traded at $512.42. Approximately 2,517,772 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 85% from the average daily volume of 16,449,377 shares. The stock had previously closed at $510.60.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on META shares. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. They set an “underperform” rating and a $360.00 target price on the stock. Wolfe Research dropped their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $530.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $590.00 to $550.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their target price on Meta Platforms from $610.00 to $575.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Guggenheim cut their price target on Meta Platforms from $520.00 to $500.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, thirty-seven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $510.05.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

The company has a 50 day moving average of $479.53 and a two-hundred day moving average of $452.69. The firm has a market cap of $1.32 trillion, a P/E ratio of 29.84, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 2.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The social networking company reported $4.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.32 by $0.39. The company had revenue of $36.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.28 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.06% and a return on equity of 32.03%. Sell-side analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 20.16 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.38%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.49%.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In other news, Director Sheryl Sandberg sold 105,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $476.71, for a total transaction of $50,054,550.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 630,293 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $300,466,976.03. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director Sheryl Sandberg sold 105,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $476.71, for a total value of $50,054,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 630,293 shares in the company, valued at approximately $300,466,976.03. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 412 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $472.70, for a total transaction of $194,752.40. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 15,376 shares in the company, valued at $7,268,235.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 233,512 shares of company stock valued at $113,597,536 in the last three months. 13.71% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meta Platforms

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Old Port Advisors grew its stake in Meta Platforms by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Old Port Advisors now owns 2,535 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $1,231,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. HM Payson & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 8.1% during the first quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 93,423 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $45,365,000 after purchasing an additional 7,007 shares during the period. Chelsea Counsel Co. purchased a new position in Meta Platforms during the first quarter valued at approximately $194,000. Mosaic Family Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Mosaic Family Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,352 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $656,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the period. Finally, Jackson Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms in the 1st quarter worth approximately $599,000. 79.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Meta Platforms

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.