Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Stake Reduced by Los Angeles Capital Management LLC

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC reduced its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 10.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,648,226 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 186,570 shares during the period. Meta Platforms comprises 2.7% of Los Angeles Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest position. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC owned 0.06% of Meta Platforms worth $800,346,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Stone House Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 625.0% in the 3rd quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC now owns 87 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Clear Investment Research LLC grew its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 411.1% in the 4th quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 92 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Gilfoyle & Co LLC bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 80.4% in the 4th quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC now owns 101 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

NASDAQ:META opened at $499.49 on Thursday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52-week low of $274.38 and a 52-week high of $531.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 2.68 and a current ratio of 2.68. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $479.79 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $445.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.27 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.21.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The social networking company reported $4.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.32 by $0.39. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 32.03% and a net margin of 32.06%. The business had revenue of $36.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.28 billion. Analysts forecast that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 20.16 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.40%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.49%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In other Meta Platforms news, COO Javier Olivan sold 412 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $472.70, for a total transaction of $194,752.40. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 15,376 shares in the company, valued at $7,268,235.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, COO Javier Olivan sold 412 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $472.70, for a total value of $194,752.40. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 15,376 shares in the company, valued at $7,268,235.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 16,702 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $503.34, for a total value of $8,406,784.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 275,297 shares in the company, valued at $138,567,991.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 391,071 shares of company stock worth $192,834,857 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 13.71% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on META. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $545.00 price target (down from $600.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Meta Platforms from $555.00 to $500.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Truist Financial dropped their price target on Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $535.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating and set a $450.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Meta Platforms from $535.00 to $480.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, thirty-seven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $510.41.

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.