As of Thursday close, Meta Platforms Inc.’s (NASDAQ:META) stock was up $0.79, moving up 0.27 percent to $295.89. The average number of shares traded per day over the past five days has been 18,746,379 shares. 4 times new highs have been achieved over the past 5 days, with a $9.14 gain in that time frame. In the last twenty days, the average volume was 18,303,275, while in the previous 50 days, it was 24,415,570.
Since last month, META stock retreated -5.86%. Shares of the company fell to $274.38 on 08/18/23, the lowest level in the past month. A 52-week high of $326.20 was reached on 07/28/23 after having rallying from a 52-week low of $88.09. Since the beginning of this year, META’s stock price has risen by 145.88% or $175.55, and marked a new high 51 times. However, the stock has declined by -9.29% since its 52-week high.
META stock investors should be aware that Meta Platforms Inc. (META) stock had its last reported insider trading activity 3 days ago on Aug 29. Newstead Jennifer, the Chief Legal Officer of the company, disposed of 670 shares for $288.45 on Aug 29. It resulted in a $193,262 divestment by the insider. Newstead Jennifer sold 670 shares at an average price of $292.55 on Aug 22. The insider now owns 39,690 shares following the transaction. On Aug 17, Chief Operating Officer Olivan Javier sold 4,277 shares at $293.00 apiece. The transaction was valued at $1,253,161.
Valuation Metrics
Right now, Meta Platforms Inc. (META) has a P/E ratio of about 33.44. The stock’s beta is 1.23. Besides these, the trailing price-to-sales (P/S) ratio of 6.34, the price-to-book (PB) ratio of 5.67, and the price-to-cash flow ratio of 31.82 may also be considered.
Financial Health
In the three months ended June 29, Meta Platforms Inc.’s quick ratio stood at 2.30, while its current ratio was 2.30, showing that the company is able to pay off its debt. According to company report, the long-term debt-to-equity ratio for the quarter ending June 29 was 0.14, and the total debt-to-equity ratio was 0.15. On the profitability front, the trailing twelve-month gross margin is 78.20% percent. In the year ended June 29, EBITDA margin amounted to 36.22%, whereas operating margins totaled 23.80%. Based on annual data, META earned $91.36 billion in gross profit and brought in $116.61 billion in revenue.
A company’s management is another factor that investors consider when determining the profitability of an investment. In the past year, return on investment (ROI) was 18.20%. Return on equity (ROE) for the past 12 months was 17.70%.
In Meta Platforms Inc.’s quarter-end financial report for June 29, it reported total debt of $18.38 billion. According to the earnings report, the company had a higher net income in the recent quarter than it did in the previous quarter. META’s revenue rose 9.93% to $28.64 billion during the quarter, while net income inched up to $32.0 billion. While analysts expected Meta Platforms Inc. to report $2.91 quarterly earnings, the actual figure was $2.98 per share, beating the consensus estimate by 2.40%. During the quarter, the company generated $12.02 billion in EBITDA. The liabilities of Meta Platforms Inc. were 72.66 billion at the end of its most recent quarter ended June 29, and its total debt was $36.98 billion. The value of shareholders’ equity is $2.57 billion.
Technical Picture
This quick technical analysis looks at Meta Platforms Inc.’s (META) price momentum. With a historical volatility rate of 27.01%, the RSI 9-day stood at 50.79% on 31 August.
With respect to its five-day moving average, the current Meta Platforms Inc. price is up by +3.19% percent or $9.14. At present, META shares trade -5.52% below its 20-day simple moving average and +37.78% percent above its 100-day simple moving average. However, the stock is currently trading approximately +5.06% above its SMA50 and +161.80% above its SMA200.
Stochastic coefficient K was 63.58% and Stochastic coefficient D was 53.86%, while ATR was 8.62. Given the Stochastic reading of 65.48% for the 14-day period, the RSI (14) reading has been calculated as 49.58%. As of today, the MACD Oscillator reading stands at 4.86, while the 14-day reading stands at 3.90.
Analyst Ratings
Wedbush launched its rating on Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ: META) to an Outperform in a note to investors on August 22, 2023. Meta Platforms Inc. (META) has been rated Buy by analysts. According to 0 brokerage firms, META is a sell, and 6 firms recommend it is a Hold. There are 1 analyst who say the stock is underweight. A total of 5 analysts rate Meta Platforms Inc. stock as buy, with 46 recommending it as overweight.
With a median target price of $380.00, the current consensus forecast for the stock is $238.00 – $435.00. Based on these forecasts, analysts predict Meta Platforms Inc. (META) will achieve an average price target of $375.27.
