Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Given Hold Rating at Benchmark

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META)‘s stock had its “hold” rating reissued by stock analysts at Benchmark in a research note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. KeyCorp cut their price objective on Meta Platforms from $790.00 to $780.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Wedbush lowered their target price on Meta Platforms from $671.00 to $595.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note 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. DA Davidson reduced their price target on Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $700.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $800.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $785.22.

Meta Platforms Trading Up 1.1%

NASDAQ:META opened at $576.14 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $592.39 and a 200-day moving average price of $612.48. The stock has a market cap of $1.47 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.70, a P/E/G ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a current ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Meta Platforms has a 12 month low of $520.26 and a 12 month high of $790.80.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.19 by ($1.01). Meta Platforms had a net margin of 29.83% and a return on equity of 33.18%. The company had revenue of $60.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $60.22 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $7.14 EPS. Meta Platforms’s quarterly revenue was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Meta Platforms will post 28.5 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In other Meta Platforms news, insider Curtis J. Mahoney sold 1,559 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $558.00, for a total value of $869,922.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 1,957 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,092,006. The trade was a 44.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 3,348 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $600.97, for a total value of $2,012,047.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 9,498 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,708,013.06. This represents a 26.06% 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 have sold a total of 34,957 shares of company stock valued at $20,442,696 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 13.53% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Meta Platforms

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in META. RHL Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Advantage Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Philadelphia Investment Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the second quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Axiom Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the first quarter valued at $36,000. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Settlement removes a major legal overhang. Meta agreed to pay up to approximately $16.7 billion-$18 billion to settle claims brought by dozens of U.S. states alleging that Facebook and Instagram harmed or misled young users. Investors appear to view the agreement as preferable to the potentially much larger damages and business restrictions that could have resulted from an adverse trial outcome. The settlement ends the landmark trial, while Meta’s core advertising model, personalized recommendations and targeted advertising remain intact. Meta reaches $18 billion of settlements over children’s social media addiction
• Positive Sentiment: AI could provide a new growth avenue. Commentary highlights Meta’s substantially increasing AI infrastructure spending, planned expansion toward 14 gigawatts of computing capacity by 2027, and the possibility of selling excess capacity to outside customers. Analysts also point to improving ad-ranking algorithms, rising ad impressions and pricing, and Meta’s strong balance sheet as support for long-term earnings growth. Meta stock has over 50% upside, but investors may be missing this catalyst
• Neutral Sentiment: Needham reaffirmed its Hold rating, suggesting the settlement and AI opportunity are balanced by execution and spending risks. Unusually high call-option volume indicates increased speculative interest but is not a fundamental signal.
• Negative Sentiment: The settlement is financially and operationally significant. The payout could equal several months of profit, while two-hour daily limits, overnight blocks, muted notifications and stronger age-verification measures may reduce teen engagement and increase compliance costs. Florida’s rejection of the agreement and calls from regulators in the U.K., South Korea and Australia for global implementation raise the risk of additional settlements or broader regulation. UK expects Meta to match US child safety measures

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.