Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Earns Buy Rating from Analysts at Pivotal Research

Pivotal Research assumed coverage on shares of Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) in a report published on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports. The firm issued a buy rating and a $780.00 price target on the social networking company’s stock.

Several other brokerages have also weighed in on META. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Meta Platforms from $565.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Raymond James boosted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a strong-buy rating in a research report on Monday, July 1st. Barclays upped their target price on Meta Platforms from $520.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $500.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $610.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, September 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, thirty-five have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $598.08.

Meta Platforms Trading Up 1.7 %

Meta Platforms stock opened at $582.77 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $1.48 trillion, a PE ratio of 33.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.21. Meta Platforms has a 12 month low of $279.40 and a 12 month high of $583.36. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $524.47 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $501.92. The company has a current ratio of 2.83, a quick ratio of 2.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The social networking company reported $5.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.70 by $0.46. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 34.34% and a return on equity of 34.16%. The firm had revenue of $39.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $38.26 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.23 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 22.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms will post 21.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.34%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.49%.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In other news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $578.55, for a total value of $523,587.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 35,102 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,308,262.10. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $578.55, for a total value of $523,587.75. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 35,102 shares in the company, valued at $20,308,262.10. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 16,702 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $533.87, for a total value of $8,916,696.74. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 151,918 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $81,104,462.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 300,228 shares of company stock worth $158,005,260 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 13.71% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of 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 purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 2nd quarter worth about $38,000. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 122.2% during the 2nd 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 in the last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 95.6% in the 1st quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 88 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 1st quarter worth about $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

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.