Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Downgraded by OTR Global

OTR Global downgraded shares of Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META – Get Rating) to a positive rating in a report issued on Wednesday, The Fly reports.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on Meta Platforms from $225.00 to $200.00 and set a buy rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Meta Platforms from a neutral rating to an overweight rating and raised their price objective for the company from $115.00 to $150.00 in a report on Friday, December 16th. Guggenheim raised their price objective on Meta Platforms to $130.00 in a report on Monday, December 12th. New Street Research started coverage on Meta Platforms in a report on Wednesday, January 4th. They issued a buy rating and a $145.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Credit Suisse Group decreased their target price on Meta Platforms from $174.00 to $145.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have given a hold rating, thirty-three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $170.73.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

NASDAQ META opened at $136.98 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $363.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 2.57 and a current ratio of 2.57. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $117.50 and its 200-day moving average price is $140.49. Meta Platforms has a fifty-two week low of $88.09 and a fifty-two week high of $332.73.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 26th. The social networking company reported $1.64 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.88 by ($0.24). Meta Platforms had a net margin of 24.41% and a return on equity of 23.16%. The business had revenue of $27.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $27.40 billion. Sell-side analysts predict that Meta Platforms will post 8.95 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In other news, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 11,718 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $114.22, for a total transaction of $1,338,429.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer now directly owns 11,913 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,360,702.86. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 327 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.93, for a total value of $31,369.11. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 19,917 shares in the company, valued at $1,910,637.81. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 11,718 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.22, for a total value of $1,338,429.96. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer now owns 11,913 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,360,702.86. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 39,664 shares of company stock valued at $4,542,385 in the last three months. 14.03% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Meta Platforms

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Glassy Mountain Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. MADDEN SECURITIES Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Hallmark Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the second quarter worth $42,000. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the second quarter worth $47,000. Finally, Fairfield Bush & CO. purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the first quarter worth $66,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.92% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Meta Platforms, Inc develops products that enable people to connect and share with friends and family through mobile devices, personal computers, virtual reality headsets, wearables, and in-home devices worldwide. It operates in two segments, Family of Apps and Reality Labs. The Family of Apps segment's products include Facebook, which enables people to share, 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, groups, and businesses across platforms and devices through chat, audio and video calls, and rooms; and WhatsApp, a messaging application that is used by people and businesses to communicate and transact privately.