Marest Capital LLC Has $1.89 Million Stock Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Marest Capital LLC increased its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 0.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,888 shares of the social networking company’s stock after buying an additional 31 shares during the period. Meta Platforms comprises approximately 1.7% of Marest Capital LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 6th largest position. Marest Capital LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $1,889,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Meta Platforms by 2.6% in the 1st quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 75,094 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $36,464,000 after purchasing an additional 1,881 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 59.6% in the first quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 8,484 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $4,120,000 after buying an additional 3,167 shares in the last quarter. Monument Capital Management boosted its stake in Meta Platforms by 18.6% during the first quarter. Monument Capital Management now owns 835 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $405,000 after buying an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV grew its holdings in Meta Platforms by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Azzad Asset Management Inc. ADV now owns 37,721 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $18,317,000 after buying an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hedeker Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Meta Platforms in the 1st quarter worth approximately $3,326,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of META stock opened at $509.96 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $481.05 and its 200 day moving average is $458.42. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $274.38 and a 1-year high of $531.49. 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 has a market cap of $1.29 trillion, a P/E ratio of 29.29, a PEG ratio of 1.32 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. The business had revenue of $36.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $36.28 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.06% and a return on equity of 32.03%. Research analysts predict 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th. Meta Platforms’s payout ratio is presently 11.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on META. BMO Capital Markets reissued a “market perform” rating and issued a $450.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $535.00 to $480.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Truist Financial lowered their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $535.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Canaccord Genuity Group reduced their price objective on Meta Platforms from $610.00 to $575.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Meta Platforms from $609.00 to $600.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, thirty-seven have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $511.27.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 412 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 15,376 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,268,235.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $522.00, for a total transaction of $305,370.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 38,398 shares in the company, valued at $20,043,756. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 412 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $472.70, for a total value of $194,752.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 15,376 shares in the company, valued at $7,268,235.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 252,395 shares of company stock worth $123,781,816. Insiders own 13.71% of the company’s stock.

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.