Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Given New $765.00 Price Target at Bank of America

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) had its target price raised by equities research analysts at Bank of America from $710.00 to $765.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "buy" rating on the social networking company's stock. Bank of America's price target would suggest a potential upside of 10.65% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on META. TD Cowen increased their target price on Meta Platforms from $600.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Wolfe Research raised their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $670.00 to $730.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $600.00 to $675.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Meta Platforms from $685.00 to $752.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Wedbush reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $770.00 price target (up from $700.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, thirty-six have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $698.98.

Meta Platforms Stock Up 2.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:META traded up $14.90 during trading on Thursday, hitting $691.39. The stock had a trading volume of 19,926,804 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,151,370. Meta Platforms has a 12 month low of $387.10 and a 12 month high of $710.79. The company has a market capitalization of $1.75 trillion, a PE ratio of 32.47, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a quick ratio of 2.73, a current ratio of 2.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The firm's fifty day moving average is $608.52 and its 200 day moving average is $563.58.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The social networking company reported $8.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 in the previous year, the firm earned $5.33 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms will post 22.96 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Meta Platforms news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 901 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $567.70, for a total value of $511,497.70. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 30,581 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,360,833.70. This represents a 2.86 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 413 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $567.58, for a total value of $234,410.54. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 10,294 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,842,668.52. The trade was a 3.86 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 661,312 shares of company stock worth $407,377,422 in the last 90 days. 13.71% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meta Platforms

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of META. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 57,001.5% during the third 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 purchasing an additional 9,500,444 shares during the period. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 61,769.3% during the 3rd quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC now owns 4,132,870 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $2,365,820,000 after buying an additional 4,126,190 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC lifted its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 1,066,437 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake 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 acquiring an additional 890,434 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Meta Platforms by 1.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 48,160,608 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $27,470,870,000 after purchasing an additional 698,884 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.

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.

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