Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Position Trimmed by Barry Investment Advisors LLC

Barry Investment Advisors LLC trimmed its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 7.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 592 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 50 shares during the quarter. Barry Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $288,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Meta Platforms by 68.9% in the third quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 103 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Clear Investment Research LLC lifted its stake 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 valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 80.4% in the fourth quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC now owns 101 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gilfoyle & Co LLC acquired a new position in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth $39,000. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

NASDAQ META opened at $504.68 on Tuesday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $274.38 and a 1-year high of $531.49. The company has a 50 day moving average of $480.46 and a 200-day moving average of $456.83. The company has a current ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 2.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The firm has a market cap of $1.28 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.99, a PEG ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.21.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The social networking company reported $4.71 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $36.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $36.28 billion. On average, equities analysts forecast that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 20.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.40%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is 11.49%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on META. Needham & Company LLC reiterated an “underperform” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Monday. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Meta Platforms from $600.00 to $570.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $550.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $540.00 to $500.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, thirty-seven have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Meta Platforms has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $511.27.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Meta Platforms news, COO Javier Olivan sold 490 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $516.51, for a total value of $253,089.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 8,069 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,167,719.19. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $522.00, for a total value of $305,370.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 38,398 shares in the company, valued at $20,043,756. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 490 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $516.51, for a total value of $253,089.90. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 8,069 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,167,719.19. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 218,086 shares of company stock worth $106,423,370 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 13.71% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Company 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.