Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Stock Price Up 1.1% – Should You Buy?

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) shares rose 1.1% on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $593.34 and last traded at $576.14. Approximately 31,144,183 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 85% from the average session volume of 16,843,945 shares. The stock had previously closed at $570.05.

Key Stories Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta agreed to settle claims brought by dozens of U.S. states alleging that Facebook and Instagram were designed to addict children, misled users about safety and improperly collected minors’ data. The agreement ends the closely watched federal trial and reduces the uncertainty associated with potentially much larger penalties. Meta reaches $18 billion of settlements over children’s social media addiction
• Positive Sentiment: The settlement reportedly requires Meta to pay up to approximately $16.7 billion to $18 billion, but the company avoided a trial judgment and potentially far higher damages. The resolution may also provide greater visibility into future legal liabilities. Meta settles federal social media addiction trial with California AG, others
• Positive Sentiment: Unusually heavy call-option activity indicated bullish positioning among some traders, with call volume reported at roughly 920,000 contracts, or about 50% above average. Separately, Evercore ISI said Meta’s expanding AI infrastructure could eventually support revenue from selling excess computing capacity to outside customers. Meta stock has over 50% upside, but investors may be missing this catalyst

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on META shares. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $835.00 to $640.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Raymond James Financial boosted their target price on Meta Platforms from $825.00 to $850.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Monness Crespi & Hardt dropped their target price on Meta Platforms from $890.00 to $730.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Wall Street Zen lowered Meta Platforms from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 16th. Finally, Susquehanna lowered their price objective on Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $650.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $785.32.

Meta Platforms Trading Up 1.1%

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $592.21 and a two-hundred day moving average of $613.14. The company has a market cap of $1.47 trillion, a P/E ratio of 21.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 2.23.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.19 by ($1.01). Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 33.18% and a net margin of 29.83%.The company had revenue of $60.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $60.22 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $7.14 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 28.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th were paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In other news, COO Javier Olivan sold 1,258 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $600.00, for a total value of $754,800.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 1,517 shares in the company, valued at approximately $910,200. This represents a 45.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Susan J. Li sold 9,196 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $550.61, for a total value of $5,063,409.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,186 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,260,343.46. This trade represents a 41.09% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 34,957 shares of company stock worth $20,442,696 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 13.53% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Meta Platforms

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of META. Vista Capital Partners Inc. lifted its position in Meta Platforms by 1.3% during the second quarter. Vista Capital Partners Inc. now owns 1,075 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $794,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. First National Bank Sioux Falls lifted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. First National Bank Sioux Falls now owns 2,001 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $1,321,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. lifted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. now owns 984 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $649,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Arcataur Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Meta Platforms by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Arcataur Capital Management LLC now owns 1,736 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $1,146,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the period. Finally, Acorn Creek Capital LLC grew its stake in Meta Platforms by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Acorn Creek Capital LLC now owns 2,118 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $1,398,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Meta Platforms Company Profile

Meta Platforms, Inc (NASDAQ: META), formerly Facebook, Inc, is a global technology company best known for building social networking services and immersive computing platforms. Founded in 2004 and headquartered in Menlo Park, California, the company operates a family of consumer-facing products and services that connect users, creators and businesses. In October 2021 the company rebranded as Meta to reflect an expanded strategic focus on augmented and virtual reality technologies alongside its social media businesses.

Meta’s core consumer products include Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger, which enable social networking, messaging, content sharing and community building across mobile and desktop devices.