Needham & Company LLC Reaffirms “Underperform” Rating for Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META)

Needham & Company LLC reissued their underperform rating on shares of Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) in a report issued on Thursday, Benzinga reports.

Several other research analysts have also issued reports on META. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $610.00 to $575.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $535.00 to $480.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Oppenheimer raised their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $500.00 to $525.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a report on Friday, July 19th. BNP Paribas started coverage on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. They set an underperform rating and a $360.00 price target for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $600.00 to $570.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, thirty-three have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $571.84.

Meta Platforms Trading Down 1.9 %

META opened at $488.14 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $494.09 and its 200-day moving average is $479.09. Meta Platforms has a 1-year low of $274.38 and a 1-year high of $542.81. The company has a current ratio of 2.83, a quick ratio of 2.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The company has a market cap of $1.24 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.04, a PEG ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.21.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The social networking company reported $5.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.70 by $0.46. The business had revenue of $39.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $38.26 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 34.34% and a return on equity of 34.16%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 22.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.23 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Meta Platforms will post 20.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.41%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 14th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 11.49%.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 412 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $472.70, for a total value of $194,752.40. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 15,376 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,268,235.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 412 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $472.70, for a total value of $194,752.40. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 15,376 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,268,235.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead 905 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 30th. The disclosure for this trade can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 310,685 shares of company stock worth $154,398,206. Company insiders own 13.71% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meta Platforms

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of META. Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Clear Investment Research LLC increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 411.1% during the fourth quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 92 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the period. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 527.3% during the first quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 69 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 80.4% during the fourth quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC now owns 101 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Finally, POM Investment Strategies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the second quarter worth about $38,000. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by 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.