Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Shares Gap Down to $512.70

Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) gapped down before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $512.70, but opened at $497.76. Meta Platforms shares last traded at $498.01, with a volume of 2,943,082 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $450.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Wednesday, June 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $535.00 to $480.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Loop Capital reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $550.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Wednesday, July 3rd. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $550.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $610.00 to $575.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, thirty-seven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Meta Platforms has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $515.64.

Meta Platforms Trading Down 1.2 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 2.68 and a quick ratio of 2.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.29 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.21. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $491.62 and its 200-day moving average price is $464.99.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The social networking company reported $4.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.32 by $0.39. The business had revenue of $36.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.28 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.06% and a return on equity of 32.03%. As a group, analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 20.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th were given a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.39%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.49%.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In related news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $498.59, for a total value of $291,675.15. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 37,813 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,853,183.67. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, insider Nicholas Clegg sold 1,135 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $471.85, for a total value of $535,549.75. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 8,753 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,130,103.05. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $498.59, for a total transaction of $291,675.15. Following the sale, the insider now owns 37,813 shares in the company, valued at $18,853,183.67. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 294,278 shares of company stock worth $146,060,559 in the last three months. Insiders own 13.71% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meta Platforms

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. S.A. Mason LLC raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. S.A. Mason LLC now owns 1,328 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $645,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN now owns 1,057 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $513,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Northern Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Northern Capital Management Inc. now owns 647 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $314,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. LongView Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. LongView Wealth Management now owns 1,762 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $856,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hanson & Doremus Investment Management increased its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 5.3% during the 1st quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management now owns 435 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $211,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. 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.