Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Sets New 52-Week High on Earnings Beat

Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) reached a new 52-week high on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as high as $694.66 and last traded at $689.92, with a volume of 1195511 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $676.49.

The social networking company reported $8.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.75 by $1.27. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 35.55% and a return on equity of 35.60%. During the same period last year, the business posted $5.33 earnings per share.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.28%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 16th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.42%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

META has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Pivotal Research raised their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Arete Research raised shares of Meta Platforms to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $700.00 target price (up previously from $680.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on Meta Platforms from $590.00 to $663.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Roth Mkm upped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $620.00 to $635.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, thirty-six have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $673.43.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Aaron Anderson sold 731 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $557.00, for a total transaction of $407,167.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 3,414 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,901,598. This trade represents a 17.64 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CFO Susan J. Li sold 8,951 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $577.16, for a total transaction of $5,166,159.16. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 51,591 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,776,261.56. This trade represents a 14.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 661,312 shares of company stock valued at $407,377,422. Insiders own 13.71% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in META. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 57,001.5% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 9,517,111 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $5,447,975,000 after acquiring an additional 9,500,444 shares during the period. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 61,769.3% in the third quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC now owns 4,132,870 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $2,365,820,000 after purchasing an additional 4,126,190 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 87,269.8% in the fourth quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 1,067,659 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $625,125,000 after purchasing an additional 1,066,437 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in Meta Platforms by 4,658.5% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 909,548 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $520,662,000 after purchasing an additional 890,434 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Meta Platforms by 1.5% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 48,160,608 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $27,470,870,000 after buying an additional 698,884 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Meta Platforms Trading Up 4.2 %

The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $608.52 and its 200 day simple moving average is $563.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 2.73 and a current ratio of 2.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.78 trillion, a P/E ratio of 32.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.19.

Meta Platforms Company Profile

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.