Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) PT Lowered to $550.00 at Loop Capital

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) had its price objective trimmed by Loop Capital from $555.00 to $550.00 in a report published on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a buy rating on the social networking company’s stock.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $397.00 to $450.00 and gave the company a market perform rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on Meta Platforms from $525.00 to $500.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Monness Crespi & Hardt increased their target price on Meta Platforms from $370.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. JMP Securities restated a market outperform rating and set a $550.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated an underperform rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, thirty-seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $509.80.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of META stock opened at $451.96 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 2.68 and a current ratio of 2.68. Meta Platforms has a fifty-two week low of $229.85 and a fifty-two week high of $531.49. The firm has a market cap of $1.15 trillion, a P/E ratio of 25.96, a P/E/G ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.21. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $490.72 and its 200-day moving average price is $408.34.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The social networking company reported $4.71 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.32 by $0.39. The company had revenue of $36.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.28 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 32.03% and a net margin of 32.06%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms will post 20.1 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In related news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $431.05, for a total transaction of $252,164.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 36,643 shares in the company, valued at $15,794,965.15. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Meta Platforms news, CFO Susan J. Li sold 10,956 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $473.28, for a total value of $5,185,255.68. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 76,398 shares in the company, valued at $36,157,645.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $431.05, for a total transaction of $252,164.25. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 36,643 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,794,965.15. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 1,257,876 shares of company stock worth $613,168,252 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 13.71% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Meta Platforms

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of META. Stone House Investment Management LLC lifted 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 valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 68.9% during the third quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 103 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. PayPay Securities Corp lifted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 65.2% in the third quarter. PayPay Securities Corp now owns 109 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clear Investment Research LLC boosted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 411.1% in the fourth quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 92 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the period. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.