Sentry Investment Management LLC Sells 2,051 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Sentry Investment Management LLC reduced its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 17.0% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,012 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 2,051 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms makes up 2.2% of Sentry Investment Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $5,048,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Clear Investment Research LLC raised its position in 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 buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in Meta Platforms by 527.3% in the 1st quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 69 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms in the 2nd quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in Meta Platforms by 122.2% in the 2nd quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 80 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

NASDAQ:META opened at $524.62 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $505.13 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $495.43. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a twelve month low of $279.40 and a twelve month high of $544.23. The stock has a market cap of $1.33 trillion, a P/E ratio of 30.13, a PEG ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.21. 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 results on Wednesday, July 31st. The social networking company reported $5.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.70 by $0.46. The firm had revenue of $39.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $38.26 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 34.16% and a net margin of 34.34%. The company’s revenue was up 22.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.23 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 21.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In related news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 2,054 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $501.05, for a total transaction of $1,029,156.70. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 253,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $126,765,650. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CFO Susan J. Li sold 33,018 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $517.94, for a total transaction of $17,101,342.92. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 2,054 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $501.05, for a total value of $1,029,156.70. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 253,000 shares in the company, valued at $126,765,650. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 357,574 shares of company stock valued at $185,587,773. Corporate insiders own 13.71% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on META shares. Wolfe Research started coverage on Meta Platforms in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $620.00 price objective for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $522.00 to $555.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Bank of America upped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $563.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Roth Mkm upped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $510.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $530.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, thirty-four have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $577.26.

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.