Meta Platforms’ (META) Hold Rating Reiterated at Benchmark

Benchmark reaffirmed their hold rating on shares of Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) in a research report report published on Thursday, Benzinga reports.

A number of other analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $535.00 to $480.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $593.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Roth Mkm lifted their price target on Meta Platforms from $500.00 to $510.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Meta Platforms from $500.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Finally, BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. They set an underperform rating and a $360.00 target price on the stock. Two research 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat, Meta Platforms presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $534.87.

Meta Platforms Stock Up 2.7 %

Shares of Meta Platforms stock opened at $465.70 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.18 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.75, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.21. Meta Platforms has a twelve month low of $274.38 and a twelve month high of $542.81. 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 business’s 50 day simple moving average is $493.20 and its 200-day simple moving average is $475.36.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The social networking company reported $4.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.32 by $0.39. The firm had revenue of $36.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.28 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 32.03% and a net margin of 32.06%. Equities research analysts forecast that Meta Platforms will post 20.23 earnings per share 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 given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.43%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $489.80, for a total value of $443,269.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 35,130 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,206,674. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 2,011 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.92, for a total transaction of $1,007,350.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 318,932 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $159,759,417.44. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $489.80, for a total transaction of $443,269.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 35,130 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,206,674. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 311,348 shares of company stock worth $154,678,120. 13.71% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Meta Platforms

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Clear Investment Research LLC raised its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 411.1% in the 4th quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 92 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 527.3% during the 1st quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 69 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 80.4% during the 4th quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC now owns 101 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Finally, POM Investment Strategies LLC bought a new stake in Meta Platforms in the second quarter valued at about $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

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.