Q3 EPS Estimates for Meta Platforms Raised by Roth Capital

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) - Equities researchers at Roth Capital increased their Q3 2026 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Meta Platforms in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, July 8th. Roth Capital analyst R. Kulkarni now anticipates that the social networking company will earn $6.92 per share for the quarter, up from their previous estimate of $6.48. Roth Capital currently has a "Buy" rating and a $740.00 target price on the stock. The consensus estimate for Meta Platforms' current full-year earnings is $26.70 per share. Roth Capital also issued estimates for Meta Platforms' Q4 2026 earnings at $9.00 EPS.

META has been the topic of a number of other reports. KeyCorp increased their price target on Meta Platforms from $645.00 to $655.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $812.00 price target (up from $683.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Meta Platforms from $735.00 to $795.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Meta Platforms from $725.00 to $600.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $725.00 to $750.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-seven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $729.38.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

NASDAQ META traded down $9.73 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $717.51. 10,855,962 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 14,480,953. The stock has a market cap of $1.80 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 1.28. Meta Platforms has a one year low of $442.65 and a one year high of $747.90. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $674.77 and a 200-day moving average of $634.17. The company has a current ratio of 2.66, a quick ratio of 2.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The social networking company reported $6.43 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.33 by $1.10. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 38.69% and a net margin of 39.11%. The company had revenue of $42.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $41.45 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $4.71 EPS. The company's revenue was up 16.1% compared to the same quarter last year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meta Platforms

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of META. Inlight Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Meta Platforms during the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new position in Meta Platforms during the first quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $43,000. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In related news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 519 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $721.57, for a total value of $374,494.83. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 27,107 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,559,597.99. This trade represents a 1.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 2,361 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $716.48, for a total transaction of $1,691,609.28. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 153,792 shares of company stock worth $105,466,325. Insiders own 13.61% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 26th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th were paid a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.29%. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.19%.

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.