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Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Downgraded to Positive at OTR Global

OTR Global lowered shares of Meta Platforms to a "positive" rating in a report on Wednesday.

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Feb 4, 2023 • 5 min read

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Rating) was downgraded by equities research analysts at OTR Global to a "positive" rating in a report released on Wednesday, The Fly reports.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $170.00 to $125.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 27th. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $250.00 to $200.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 27th. Canaccord Genuity Group decreased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $200.00 to $170.00 in a report on Thursday, November 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Meta Platforms from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $115.00 to $150.00 in a report on Friday, December 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $105.00 to $100.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, November 15th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have issued a hold rating, thirty-three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $170.73.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

NASDAQ META opened at $132.99 on Wednesday. Meta Platforms has a 52 week low of $88.09 and a 52 week high of $336.36. The company has a current ratio of 2.57, a quick ratio of 2.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The stock has a market cap of $352.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.17. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $114.77 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $141.28.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Rating) last posted its earnings results 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 return on equity of 23.16% and a net margin of 24.41%. The firm had revenue of $27.71 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $27.40 billion. Analysts forecast that Meta Platforms will post 8.95 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In other news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 342 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.00, for a total transaction of $46,854.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 20,928 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,867,136. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 342 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.00, for a total value of $46,854.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 20,928 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,867,136. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Nicholas Clegg sold 6,019 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.22, for a total transaction of $687,490.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 14,257 shares in the company, valued at $1,628,434.54. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 39,322 shares of company stock worth $4,497,572 in the last 90 days. 14.03% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of META. Hallmark Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Meta Platforms in the 2nd quarter valued at $42,000. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms in the 2nd quarter worth $47,000. MinichMacGregor Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter worth $48,000. Gables Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Meta Platforms by 400.0% in the 2nd quarter. Gables Capital Management Inc. now owns 375 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $60,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Schubert & Co grew its position in Meta Platforms by 986.1% in the 2nd quarter. Schubert & Co now owns 391 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 355 shares during the last quarter. 60.92% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Meta Platforms Company Profile

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.