Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Price Target Raised to $650.00

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) had its target price increased by Truist Financial from $570.00 to $650.00 in a report published on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a buy rating on the social networking company’s stock.

Other analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. Wedbush reissued an outperform rating and issued a $600.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on Meta Platforms from $525.00 to $585.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an outperform rating and issued a $570.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Roth Mkm increased their price target on Meta Platforms from $510.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Raymond James boosted their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a strong-buy rating in a report on Monday, July 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, thirty-five have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms presently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $609.71.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

NASDAQ:META opened at $589.95 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $538.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $505.67. The stock has a market cap of $1.50 trillion, a PE ratio of 33.89, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 2.83 and a current ratio of 2.83. Meta Platforms has a one year low of $279.40 and a one year high of $602.95.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The social networking company reported $5.16 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.23 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 22.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Meta Platforms will post 21.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 26th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.34%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $589.89, for a total value of $533,850.45. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 34,197 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,172,468.33. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $589.89, for a total transaction of $533,850.45. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 34,197 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,172,468.33. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 492 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $600.75, for a total value of $295,569.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 518,508 shares in the company, valued at $311,493,681. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 252,443 shares of company stock worth $133,105,284 in the last quarter. 13.71% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Meta Platforms

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