Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Price Target Cut to $575.00 by Analysts at UBS Group

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) had its target price decreased by UBS Group from $610.00 to $575.00 in a report issued on Thursday morning, Benzinga reports. UBS Group currently has a buy rating on the social networking company’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $375.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $380.00 to $520.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $425.00 to $510.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $470.00 to $575.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, JMP Securities reissued a market outperform rating and issued a $550.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, thirty-eight have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $509.18.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:META opened at $441.38 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $495.08 and its 200-day moving average price is $403.40. Meta Platforms has a twelve month low of $208.88 and a twelve month high of $531.49. The company has a quick ratio of 2.67, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.13 trillion, a PE ratio of 25.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.20.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The social networking company reported $4.71 earnings per share 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 32.37%. The firm had revenue of $36.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $36.28 billion. Equities research analysts expect that Meta Platforms will post 20.18 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 22nd were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 21st. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.45%. Meta Platforms’s payout ratio is 11.49%.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In related news, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 8,036 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $473.28, for a total value of $3,803,278.08. Following the sale, the chief technology officer now owns 18,432 shares in the company, valued at $8,723,496.96. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Meta Platforms news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 97,093 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $469.67, for a total value of $45,601,669.31. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 8,036 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $473.28, for a total value of $3,803,278.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer now owns 18,432 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,723,496.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 1,349,148 shares of company stock worth $649,552,559. Insiders own 13.75% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Stone House Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 625.0% during the 3rd quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC now owns 87 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 68.9% during the 3rd quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 103 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. PayPay Securities Corp raised its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 65.2% during the 3rd quarter. PayPay Securities Corp now owns 109 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the period. Finally, Clear Investment Research LLC raised its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 411.1% during the 4th quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 92 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the period. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.