Waters Parkerson & CO. LLC Reduces Stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Waters Parkerson & CO. LLC trimmed its position in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 1.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 168,010 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 2,873 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for approximately 4.5% of Waters Parkerson & CO. LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Waters Parkerson & CO. LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $84,714,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in META. Vantage Financial Partners LLC increased its holdings in Meta Platforms by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Vantage Financial Partners LLC now owns 1,323 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $468,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Concentrum Wealth Management grew its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 111.0% during the 4th quarter. Concentrum Wealth Management now owns 7,391,877 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $2,616,000 after acquiring an additional 3,888,308 shares during the period. Aveo Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 45.7% during the 4th quarter. Aveo Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,302 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $815,000 after purchasing an additional 722 shares during the last quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 66.4% in the 4th quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,993 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $1,413,000 after purchasing an additional 1,594 shares during the period. Finally, Rollins Financial lifted its stake in Meta Platforms by 7.5% in the fourth quarter. Rollins Financial now owns 30,657 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $10,851,000 after purchasing an additional 2,133 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ META opened at $561.35 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.83, a quick ratio of 2.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12-month low of $279.40 and a 12-month high of $564.50. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $507.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $497.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.42 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.24, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.21.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.70 by $0.46. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 34.34% and a return on equity of 34.16%. The firm had revenue of $39.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $38.26 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.23 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 21.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

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 paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.36%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 11.49%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.99, for a total transaction of $449,775.95. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 38,750 shares in the company, valued at $19,258,362.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $496.99, for a total transaction of $449,775.95. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 38,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,258,362.50. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 412 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $463.00, for a total transaction of $190,756.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 5,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,573,817. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 356,426 shares of company stock worth $185,053,425 in the last ninety days. 13.71% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. TD Securities raised their target price on Meta Platforms from $530.00 to $600.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Barclays raised their price target on Meta Platforms from $520.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $590.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. DA Davidson began coverage on Meta Platforms in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $600.00 target price for the company. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on Meta Platforms from $530.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, thirty-four have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $577.26.

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.