Meyer Handelman Co. Acquires 16,028 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Meyer Handelman Co. lifted its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 44.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 51,714 shares of the social networking company’s stock after buying an additional 16,028 shares during the period. Meyer Handelman Co.’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $25,111,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in META. Stone House Investment Management LLC increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 625.0% in the third quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC now owns 87 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the period. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 68.9% in the 3rd quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 103 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Clear Investment Research LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 411.1% during the 4th quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 92 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the period. Finally, Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 80.4% during the 4th quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC now owns 101 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Trading Down 1.4 %

META opened at $494.78 on Friday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $274.38 and a fifty-two week high of $531.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.26 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 2.68 and a quick ratio of 2.68. The company’s 50-day moving average is $478.61 and its 200 day moving average is $448.41.

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

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

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 paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.40%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.49%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on META shares. UBS Group reduced their target price on Meta Platforms from $610.00 to $575.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Benchmark reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $527.00 to $588.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $450.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. Finally, Raymond James increased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $525.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, thirty-seven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $510.05.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 412 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $505.75, for a total transaction of $208,369.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 8,031 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,061,678.25. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 412 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.75, for a total transaction of $208,369.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 8,031 shares in the company, valued at $4,061,678.25. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 5,058 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $471.85, for a total value of $2,386,617.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer now owns 15,412 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,272,152.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 313,169 shares of company stock worth $153,344,736 in the last quarter. 13.71% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Meta Platforms Profile

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.