Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META – Free Report) – Equities researchers at Wedbush increased their Q1 2025 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for shares of Meta Platforms in a note issued to investors on Monday, January 6th. Wedbush analyst S. Devitt now forecasts that the social networking company will post earnings of $5.44 per share for the quarter, up from their previous estimate of $5.30. Wedbush currently has a “Outperform” rating and a $680.00 price target on the stock. The consensus estimate for Meta Platforms’ current full-year earnings is $22.68 per share. Wedbush also issued estimates for Meta Platforms’ Q3 2025 earnings at $5.95 EPS, Q4 2025 earnings at $7.44 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $24.36 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $27.48 EPS.
Other research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Bank of America lifted their target price on Meta Platforms from $630.00 to $660.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $690.00 to $719.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Rosenblatt Securities restated a “buy” rating and set a $811.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Roth Mkm lifted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $620.00 to $635.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $600.00 to $675.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, thirty-five have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $645.80.
Meta Platforms Price Performance
Meta Platforms stock opened at $630.20 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $590.92 and its two-hundred day moving average is $550.47. The firm has a market cap of $1.59 trillion, a PE ratio of 29.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a quick ratio of 2.73, a current ratio of 2.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Meta Platforms has a 52-week low of $352.05 and a 52-week high of $638.40.
Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The social networking company reported $6.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.19 by $0.84. The business had revenue of $40.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $40.21 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 35.55% and a return on equity of 35.60%.
Meta Platforms Announces Dividend
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.32%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.42%.
Insider Buying and Selling
In other news, CAO Aaron Anderson sold 731 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $557.00, for a total transaction of $407,167.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,414 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,901,598. This represents a 17.64 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $589.97, for a total transaction of $533,922.85. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 33,292 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,641,281.24. This trade represents a 2.65 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 361,640 shares of company stock valued at $219,037,690 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 13.71% of the company’s stock.
Hedge Funds Weigh In On Meta Platforms
Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. JDM Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms during the third quarter worth about $36,000. Halpern Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $46,000. West Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 3rd quarter valued at $49,000. Finally, Hoese & Co LLP boosted its position in Meta Platforms by 2,000.0% during the 3rd quarter. Hoese & Co LLP now owns 105 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
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.
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