Merriman Wealth Management LLC Acquires 252 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Merriman Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 9.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,844 shares of the social networking company’s stock after acquiring an additional 252 shares during the quarter. Merriman Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $1,434,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in META. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Clear Investment Research LLC grew its holdings in Meta Platforms by 411.1% in the fourth quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 92 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 527.3% during the first quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 69 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 2nd quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 122.2% in the 2nd quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 80 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Meta Platforms Trading Up 0.4 %

META opened at $561.35 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.42 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.21. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $507.58 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $497.27. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $279.40 and a 1-year high of $564.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 2.83 and a quick ratio of 2.83.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. The firm had revenue of $39.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $38.26 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 34.16% and a net margin of 34.34%. The firm’s revenue was up 22.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.23 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 21.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.36%. Meta Platforms’s payout ratio is 11.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on META shares. Rosenblatt Securities upped their target price on Meta Platforms from $562.00 to $643.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating and set a $450.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $500.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, TD Cowen upped their target price 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 issued a hold rating, thirty-four have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $577.26.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In other Meta Platforms news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 150 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.49, for a total transaction of $75,073.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 124,387 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $62,254,449.63. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CFO Susan J. Li sold 8,950 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $526.76, for a total transaction of $4,714,502.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 74,579 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,285,234.04. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 150 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.49, for a total value of $75,073.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 124,387 shares in the company, valued at approximately $62,254,449.63. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 346,666 shares of company stock valued at $180,145,414. 13.71% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.