Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META – Get Free Report)‘s stock had its “hold” rating reaffirmed by stock analysts at Needham & Company LLC in a report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports.
Several other equities research analysts have also commented on the stock. Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $835.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. TD Cowen cut their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $820.00 to $800.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $1,015.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Roth Capital reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have assigned a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $840.64.
Read Our Latest Report on META
Meta Platforms Stock Performance
Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.67 by $3.77. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 36.93% and a net margin of 32.84%.The firm had revenue of $56.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.56 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $6.43 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Meta Platforms will post 29.46 EPS for the current year.
Insider Activity at Meta Platforms
In other Meta Platforms news, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $607.75, for a total transaction of $303,875.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 3,443 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,092,483.25. This trade represents a 12.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 140 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, June 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $600.00, for a total value of $84,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 12,846 shares in the company, valued at $7,707,600. This represents a 1.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 39,513 shares of company stock valued at $24,419,874. 13.53% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Meta Platforms
Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. RHL Group LLC acquired a new position in Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Axiom Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 1st quarter valued at about $36,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at about $42,000. Finally, Bayban boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 100.0% in the first quarter. Bayban now owns 70 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.
Trending Headlines about Meta Platforms
Here are the key news stories impacting Meta Platforms this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Erste Group Bank upgraded Meta Platforms (META) from “hold” to “buy,” reinforcing bullish sentiment around the stock. Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Raised to “Buy” at Erste Group Bank
- Positive Sentiment: Meta launched Muse Image, a new AI image-generation tool from Meta Superintelligence Labs, which could improve engagement with advertisers, creators, and subscribers across Facebook and Instagram. Meta rolls out Muse, a new AI image generator
- Positive Sentiment: Reports that Meta is exploring leasing excess data-center capacity suggest a potential new revenue stream tied to its AI infrastructure investments. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg Just Delivered Fantastic News for Investors
- Positive Sentiment: Lazada joined Meta’s affiliate partnerships program, expanding social commerce tools in Southeast Asia and potentially strengthening monetization on Facebook and Instagram. Lazada Joins Meta’s Affiliate Partnerships Programme to Streamline Social Shopping in Southeast Asia
- Neutral Sentiment: Commentary about Meta potentially entering cloud computing/neocloud markets is strategically interesting, but it remains speculative and not yet a proven earnings driver. If Meta Pushes Into Cloud Computing, Should Investors Care?
- Negative Sentiment: France’s antitrust watchdog ordered Meta to resume talks with media groups over publishing fees, adding another regulatory dispute in Europe. French antitrust watchdog orders Meta resume talks with media groups over publishing fees
- Negative Sentiment: Meta also disclosed that four U.S. states are seeking about $1.4 trillion in penalties in a youth-safety trial, a huge legal risk that is likely weighing on investor sentiment. Meta says US states are seeking $1.4 trillion in penalties in August youth safety trial
- Negative Sentiment: Additional reports of regulatory scrutiny in India over harmful ads on Instagram add to concerns about content moderation and platform safety risks. Meta Exposed for Approving Child Sexual Abuse Ads on Instagram in India
Meta Platforms Company Profile
Meta Platforms, Inc (NASDAQ: META), formerly Facebook, Inc, is a global technology company best known for building social networking services and immersive computing platforms. Founded in 2004 and headquartered in Menlo Park, California, the company operates a family of consumer-facing products and services that connect users, creators and businesses. In October 2021 the company rebranded as Meta to reflect an expanded strategic focus on augmented and virtual reality technologies alongside its social media businesses.
Meta’s core consumer products include Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger, which enable social networking, messaging, content sharing and community building across mobile and desktop devices.
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