Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Shares Up 1.5%

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report)'s share price was up 1.5% during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $459.25 and last traded at $458.56. Approximately 4,628,326 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 75% from the average daily volume of 18,226,727 shares. The stock had previously closed at $451.96.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on META. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $520.00 to $562.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Susquehanna upped their target price on Meta Platforms from $400.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their target price on Meta Platforms from $610.00 to $575.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Roth Mkm upped their target price on Meta Platforms from $500.00 to $510.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group upped their target price on Meta Platforms from $450.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, thirty-seven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $509.80.

Meta Platforms Trading Up 3.0 %

The firm has a market cap of $1.18 trillion, a P/E ratio of 26.75, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 2.68 and a quick ratio of 2.68. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $490.72 and a 200 day moving average of $409.58.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The social networking company reported $4.71 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $4.32 by $0.39. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 32.03% and a net margin of 32.06%. The business had revenue of $36.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $36.28 billion. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 20.1 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In related news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 34,398 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $457.52, for a total transaction of $15,737,772.96. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 34,398 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $457.52, for a total value of $15,737,772.96. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $431.05, for a total value of $252,164.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 36,643 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,794,965.15. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,257,876 shares of company stock valued at $613,168,252. 13.71% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Meta Platforms

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 7.7% in the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 451,581 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $159,841,000 after purchasing an additional 32,423 shares during the period. Bank of Stockton grew its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 9.2% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Stockton now owns 4,743 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $1,819,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares during the period. Signify Wealth bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $228,000. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund increased its holdings in Meta Platforms by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 223,788 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $79,212,000 after acquiring an additional 4,025 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. now owns 10,962 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $3,880,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares during the period. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by 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.

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