Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Shares Acquired by Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN

Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN increased its stake in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,096 shares of the social networking company’s stock after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for approximately 0.3% of Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN’s holdings, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $553,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. S.A. Mason LLC raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. S.A. Mason LLC now owns 1,328 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $645,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Northern Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Meta Platforms by 3.4% in the first quarter. Northern Capital Management Inc. now owns 647 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $314,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Buckingham Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 5.1% during the second quarter. Buckingham Capital Management Inc. now owns 433 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $218,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the period. LongView Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.3% during the first quarter. LongView Wealth Management now owns 1,762 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $856,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hanson & Doremus Investment Management boosted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 5.3% in the first quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management now owns 435 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $211,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the period. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 0.7 %

META stock opened at $528.00 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $1.34 trillion, a PE ratio of 30.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.21. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $502.96 and its 200 day simple moving average is $491.15. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $276.03 and a fifty-two week high of $544.23. The company has a quick ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 2.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The social networking company reported $5.16 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.70 by $0.46. The company had revenue of $39.07 billion for 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%. Meta Platforms’s revenue was up 22.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.23 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 20.5 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.38%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.49%.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In related news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 16,702 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $533.24, for a total value of $8,906,174.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 28,838 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,377,575.12. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 5,057 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $526.76, for a total transaction of $2,663,825.32. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer now directly owns 11,990 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,315,852.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 16,702 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $533.24, for a total value of $8,906,174.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 28,838 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,377,575.12. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 418,680 shares of company stock valued at $211,992,147. 13.71% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

META has been the topic of several analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $450.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Wednesday, June 12th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. They set an “underperform” rating and a $360.00 target price on the stock. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Meta Platforms from $545.00 to $575.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Raymond James raised their price objective on Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 1st. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $563.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, thirty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $574.41.

Meta Platforms Company 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.