Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Given New $627.00 Price Target at Scotiabank

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) had its price target increased by Scotiabank from $583.00 to $627.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a sector perform rating on the social networking company’s stock.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Meta Platforms from $670.00 to $775.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Roth Mkm upped their target price on Meta Platforms from $620.00 to $635.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed an “underperform” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Monday. Susquehanna lifted their target price on Meta Platforms from $600.00 to $675.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $590.00 to $663.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 14th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, thirty-six have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $706.76.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:META opened at $687.00 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $611.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $564.44. The company has a market cap of $1.73 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.72, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 2.73 and a current ratio of 2.73. Meta Platforms has a one year low of $387.10 and a one year high of $710.79.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The social networking company reported $8.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.75 by $1.27. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 37.91% and a return on equity of 39.74%. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $5.33 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Meta Platforms will post 25.44 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th were given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.29%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.36%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In other news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 901 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $567.70, for a total value of $511,497.70. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 30,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,360,833.70. The trade was a 2.86 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 35,921 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $607.97, for a total value of $21,838,890.37. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 661,804 shares of company stock valued at $407,745,741. 13.71% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Meta Platforms

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in META. Philip James Wealth Mangement LLC lifted its position in Meta Platforms by 30.3% during the 4th quarter. Philip James Wealth Mangement LLC now owns 465 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $272,000 after buying an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Capital Performance Advisors LLP now owns 5,465 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $3,200,000 after acquiring an additional 334 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC lifted its position in Meta Platforms by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 15,725 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $9,207,000 after purchasing an additional 959 shares during the period. Hoge Financial Services LLC lifted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 5.8% in the fourth quarter. Hoge Financial Services LLC now owns 2,248 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $1,316,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the period. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter worth $648,000. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.