Meta Platforms (META) to Release Earnings on Wednesday

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) is scheduled to issue its quarterly earnings data after the market closes on Wednesday, April 24th. Analysts expect the company to announce earnings of $4.27 per share for the quarter. Meta Platforms has set its Q1 2024 guidance at EPS.Parties that are interested in registering for the company's conference call can do so using this link.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The social networking company reported $5.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $4.82 by $0.51. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 29.48% and a net margin of 28.98%. The business had revenue of $40.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.00 EPS. Meta Platforms's quarterly revenue was up 24.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect Meta Platforms to post $20 EPS for the current fiscal year and $23 EPS for the next fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Trading Down 1.1 %

Shares of META stock traded down $5.59 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $494.17. 12,138,306 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 17,081,678. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $493.16 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $396.01. The company has a market cap of $1.26 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.20. Meta Platforms has a 1-year low of $207.13 and a 1-year high of $531.49. 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 Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In related news, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 8,036 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $473.28, for a total value of $3,803,278.08. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer now directly owns 18,432 shares in the company, valued at $8,723,496.96. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CFO Susan J. Li sold 10,956 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $473.28, for a total value of $5,185,255.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 76,398 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,157,645.44. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 8,036 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $473.28, for a total value of $3,803,278.08. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer now owns 18,432 shares in the company, valued at $8,723,496.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 1,440,278 shares of company stock worth $684,796,490. 14.03% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter valued at about $6,693,000. Oarsman Capital Inc. grew its position in Meta Platforms by 8.8% during the 4th quarter. Oarsman Capital Inc. now owns 2,682 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $949,000 after acquiring an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 8.2% in the 4th quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 8,527 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $3,018,000 after purchasing an additional 646 shares during the period. Aspect Partners LLC bought a new stake in Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Finally, GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,734,000. 79.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on META. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Meta Platforms from $527.00 to $588.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $609.00 to $600.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $450.00 to $525.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $400.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Roth Mkm reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $500.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Monday, March 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, thirty-eight have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $509.90.

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.