Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Given New $550.00 Price Target at Loop Capital

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) had its price objective reduced by investment analysts at Loop Capital from $555.00 to $550.00 in a report issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "buy" rating on the social networking company's stock. Loop Capital's price target would suggest a potential upside of 25.23% from the stock's previous close.

META has been the topic of several other reports. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $609.00 to $600.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Tigress Financial raised their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $435.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. KeyCorp reduced their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $575.00 to $555.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $590.00 to $565.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $425.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, thirty-seven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Meta Platforms has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $513.55.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Meta Platforms stock traded up $9.02 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $439.19. 20,312,433 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,452,602. Meta Platforms has a 12-month low of $229.85 and a 12-month high of $531.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 2.68 and a current ratio of 2.68. The stock has a market cap of $1.12 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.20. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $492.83 and its 200 day simple moving average is $406.97.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The social networking company reported $4.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.28 billion. Equities research analysts predict that Meta Platforms will post 20.17 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 552 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $464.00, for a total transaction of $256,128.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 34,168 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,853,952. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 552 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $464.00, for a total transaction of $256,128.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 34,168 shares of the company's stock, valued at $15,853,952. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 490 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $441.54, for a total transaction of $216,354.60. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 6,599 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,913,722.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 1,257,291 shares of company stock valued at $612,916,087. Insiders own 13.71% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meta Platforms

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of META. Stone House Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 625.0% in the third quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC now owns 87 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the first quarter valued at $44,000. Clear Investment Research LLC boosted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 411.1% in the fourth quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 92 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. Finally, Gilfoyle & Co LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.