Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Shares Sold by Jupiter Asset Management Ltd.

Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. lessened its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 38.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 188,399 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 116,353 shares during the period. Meta Platforms comprises 0.9% of Jupiter Asset Management Ltd.’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $94,995,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of META. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $11,285,855,000. Capital Research Global Investors grew its holdings in Meta Platforms by 17.2% in the fourth quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 30,217,175 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $10,695,722,000 after purchasing an additional 4,440,229 shares during the period. Concentrum Wealth Management grew its holdings in Meta Platforms by 111.0% in the fourth quarter. Concentrum Wealth Management now owns 7,391,877 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $2,616,000 after purchasing an additional 3,888,308 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Meta Platforms by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 186,349,346 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $65,960,215,000 after purchasing an additional 3,104,550 shares during the period. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in Meta Platforms by 24.7% in the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 13,867,398 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $6,733,731,000 after purchasing an additional 2,748,620 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on META shares. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $630.00 to $635.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $570.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $625.00 to $647.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Needham & Company LLC reiterated an “underperform” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, thirty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $577.26.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ:META opened at $524.62 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $505.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $495.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.33 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 2.83 and a current ratio of 2.83. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $279.40 and a 1-year high of $544.23.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The social networking company reported $5.16 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.70 by $0.46. The business had revenue of $39.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $38.26 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 34.34% and a return on equity of 34.16%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 22.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.23 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 21.36 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.38%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.49%.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In other news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $507.63, for a total transaction of $459,405.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 37,817 shares in the company, valued at $19,197,043.71. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $507.63, for a total value of $459,405.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 37,817 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,197,043.71. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 2,054 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $501.05, for a total transaction of $1,029,156.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 253,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $126,765,650. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 357,574 shares of company stock worth $185,587,773. 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.