Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Stock Price Down 1.3% – Here’s Why

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) shares traded down 1.3% on Monday. The stock traded as low as $606.41 and last traded at $606.73. 18,910,737 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 5% from the average daily volume of 18,084,828 shares. The stock had previously closed at $614.99.

More Meta Platforms News

Here are the key news stories impacting Meta Platforms this week:

• Positive Sentiment: AI is strengthening Meta’s core advertising business. Advertising revenue rose 26% in the latest quarter, suggesting that improved recommendation systems and AI tools are helping Meta capture demand even as AI agents challenge traditional search. Why AI is boosting Meta’s ad business while hurting Google search
• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s settlement of litigation alleging harmful effects of its platforms on young users removes the near-term uncertainty of another high-profile trial, although the financial terms and continuing criticism remain concerns. Meta delays new business terms after outcry
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta postponed new business-account terms after media companies and open-web advocates objected that they could enable extensive web scraping. The delay reduces immediate regulatory and reputational risk but highlights ongoing concerns about Meta’s data practices. Meta delays new business terms after outcry
• Negative Sentiment: Plans for at least $20 billion in bond offerings are weighing on sentiment because Meta is already committing record amounts to AI infrastructure. Investors are questioning whether future AI gains will justify higher debt, interest costs and weaker near-term free cash flow. Meta eyes at least $20 billion from potential bond offerings
• Negative Sentiment: The social-media settlement and associated legal expense have already created a significant profit headwind, while plaintiffs’ attorneys are calling for further changes. This keeps regulatory and litigation risks visible for investors. Attorney Mark Lanier Calls for Social Media Companies to Make Meaningful Changes

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on META shares. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Meta Platforms from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Yorkville Ives started coverage on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $900.00 target price on the stock. Mizuho increased their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $750.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. TD Cowen cut their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $865.00 to $850.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. Finally, Pivotal Research raised their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $930.00 to $960.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $833.12.

Meta Platforms Trading Down 1.3%

The company has a quick ratio of 1.90, a current ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.55 trillion, a P/E ratio of 20.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.28. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $670.03 and its 200-day simple moving average is $632.26.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 22nd. The social networking company reported $7.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.54 by $0.86. The firm had revenue of $64.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $63.34 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 31.15% and a return on equity of 30.73%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 26.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $7.25 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.01 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 28th. Investors of record on Monday, September 21st were given a $0.5250 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 21st. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Meta Platforms’s payout ratio is 7.16%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Christopher K. Cox sold 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $712.76, for a total value of $28,510,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 184,516 shares in the company, valued at approximately $131,515,624.16. This represents a 17.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 27,474 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $777.44, for a total value of $21,359,386.56. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 149,515 shares of company stock valued at $102,183,520 over the last quarter. Insiders own 13.53% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of META. Horizons Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Advantage Trust Co bought a new stake in Meta Platforms in the second quarter worth $28,000. Philadelphia Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the second quarter valued at about $32,000. Axiom Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the first quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Schuylkill Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the second quarter valued at about $36,000. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Meta Platforms

Meta Platforms, Inc is a technology company that develops social networking, messaging, virtual and augmented reality, and artificial intelligence products. The company’s principal platforms include Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp, and Threads, which enable users to connect, communicate, share content, and discover products and services.

Meta also operates Reality Labs, its division focused on virtual, augmented, and mixed reality technologies. Reality Labs develops products such as Meta Quest virtual reality headsets and related software and experiences, along with research and hardware intended to support immersive computing.