Financial Strategies Group Inc. Trims Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Financial Strategies Group Inc. trimmed its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 3.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 561 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 22 shares during the period. Financial Strategies Group Inc.’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $290,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 68.9% in the third quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 103 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Clear Investment Research LLC grew its holdings in Meta Platforms by 411.1% during the 4th quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 92 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Meta Platforms by 80.4% during the 4th quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC now owns 101 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gilfoyle & Co LLC acquired a new position in Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. 79.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In other Meta Platforms news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of the 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 38,398 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,043,756. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 490 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $517.75, for a total value of $253,697.50. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 7,579 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,924,027.25. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $522.00, for a total transaction of $305,370.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 38,398 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,043,756. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 218,086 shares of company stock worth $106,423,370 in the last ninety days. 13.71% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of META stock opened at $509.50 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.29 trillion, a PE ratio of 29.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.21. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $480.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $458.05. The company has a current ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 2.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a twelve month low of $274.38 and a twelve month high of $531.49.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The social networking company reported $4.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.32 by $0.39. The business had revenue of $36.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.28 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.06% and a return on equity of 32.03%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 20.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.39%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.49%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

META has been the subject of several analyst reports. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $590.00 to $550.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Wedbush reduced their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $570.00 to $480.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $545.00 price objective (down previously from $600.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. They set an “underperform” rating and a $360.00 price objective for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $555.00 to $500.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Two 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $511.27.

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.