Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Stock Falls 1.3% – Should You Sell?

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) shares traded down 1.3% during trading on Monday. The stock traded as low as $606.41 and last traded at $606.73. Approximately 18,910,737 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 5% from the average session volume of 18,084,828 shares. The stock had previously closed at $614.99.

Trending Headlines about Meta Platforms

Here are the key news stories impacting Meta Platforms this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Meta acquired Conductor, a startup whose AI agents can work in parallel to build software projects. The deal adds AI coding capabilities, though financial terms were not disclosed. TechCrunch: Meta acquires AI coding startup Conductor
• Positive Sentiment: Investor demand for Meta’s bond offerings was strong: reports said orders for its U.S. sale reached about $58 billion. That suggests investors are willing to finance the company’s AI expansion. Reuters: Meta draws record orders for debut euro bond sale
• Positive Sentiment: Arista Networks said Meta remains one of its customers accounting for more than 10% of revenue, highlighting Meta’s role in demand for AI data-center infrastructure. Arista Networks Cashes In on the AI Infrastructure Build
• Neutral Sentiment: COO Javier Olivan reported stock sales under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. The planned nature of the transactions makes them less informative as a signal about management’s near-term outlook. SEC insider ownership filing
• Negative Sentiment: Meta is raising billions through U.S. and euro bond sales to fund AI infrastructure and expansion. One report said the company agreed to pay 7.5% on 30-year debt, pointing to a substantial financing cost as investment spending grows. Meta Just Paid 7.5% to Borrow for 30 Years

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. BNP Paribas Exane dropped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $955.00 to $855.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Yorkville Ives initiated coverage on Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $900.00 target price on the stock. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $850.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. Citic Securities reduced their target price on Meta Platforms from $770.00 to $718.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Phillip Securities upgraded Meta Platforms from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating and decreased their price target for the company from $795.00 to $750.00 in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have issued a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $833.12.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $672.41 and a two-hundred day moving average of $632.16. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a current ratio of 1.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.61 trillion, a P/E ratio of 20.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.28.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The social networking company reported $7.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.54 by $0.86. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 30.73% and a net margin of 31.15%. The firm had revenue of $64.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $63.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $7.25 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 26.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 21st were given a $0.5250 dividend. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 21st. Meta Platforms’s payout ratio is currently 7.16%.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In other news, COO Javier Olivan sold 946 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $614.15, for a total transaction of $580,985.90. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 4,094 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,514,330.10. This trade represents a 18.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 151,090 shares of company stock valued at $103,150,807. 13.53% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Meta Platforms

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. DBA Trading LLC acquired a new position in Meta Platforms during the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,901,000. New York Life Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in Meta Platforms by 1.3% in the third quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 335,132 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $243,031,000 after purchasing an additional 4,206 shares during the last quarter. Gen Wealth Partners Inc boosted its stake in Meta Platforms by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Gen Wealth Partners Inc now owns 1,355 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $982,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Cpwa LLC grew its holdings in Meta Platforms by 3.2% during the third quarter. Cpwa LLC now owns 1,132 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $841,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Finally, Torrey Growth & Income Advisors grew its holdings in Meta Platforms by 12.3% during the third quarter. Torrey Growth & Income Advisors now owns 786 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $572,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

About Meta Platforms

Meta Platforms, Inc is a technology company that develops social networking, messaging, virtual and augmented reality, and artificial intelligence products. The company’s principal platforms include Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp, and Threads, which enable users to connect, communicate, share content, and discover products and services.

Meta also operates Reality Labs, its division focused on virtual, augmented, and mixed reality technologies. Reality Labs develops products such as Meta Quest virtual reality headsets and related software and experiences, along with research and hardware intended to support immersive computing.