Cohen Investment Advisors LLC Increases Stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Cohen Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 2.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,246 shares of the social networking company’s stock after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for 3.6% of Cohen Investment Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $5,865,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of META. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 14.5% during the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 34,597,001 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $16,799,612,000 after buying an additional 4,379,826 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 1.7% during 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 buying an additional 3,104,550 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC raised its stake in shares of 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 worth $6,733,731,000 after purchasing an additional 2,748,620 shares during the last quarter. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the second quarter worth $595,152,000. Finally, Global Assets Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Meta Platforms during the first quarter valued at about $515,383,000. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Susan J. Li sold 8,950 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $526.76, for a total transaction of $4,714,502.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 74,579 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $39,285,234.04. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $533.95, for a total transaction of $483,224.75. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 36,940 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,724,113. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Susan J. Li sold 8,950 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $526.76, for a total value of $4,714,502.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 74,579 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $39,285,234.04. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 283,526 shares of company stock valued at $149,140,674 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 13.71% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of Meta Platforms stock traded down $11.16 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $584.78. 11,978,209 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 15,505,369. The business has a 50-day moving average of $527.07 and a 200 day moving average of $502.63. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $279.40 and a fifty-two week high of $602.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.48 trillion, a PE ratio of 33.62, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a quick ratio of 2.83, a current ratio of 2.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

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

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.34%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on META shares. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $570.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $600.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $565.00 to $575.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on Meta Platforms from $525.00 to $585.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Guggenheim increased their price objective on Meta Platforms from $600.00 to $665.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, thirty-five have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $601.08.

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.