Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Shares Acquired by Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC

Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 28.3% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 42,667 shares of the social networking company’s stock after buying an additional 9,417 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for 4.4% of Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Cyrus J. Lawrence LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $21,513,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. S.A. Mason LLC grew its holdings in Meta Platforms by 1.5% during the first quarter. S.A. Mason LLC now owns 1,328 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $645,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN increased its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN now owns 1,057 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $513,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Northern Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.4% during the 1st quarter. Northern Capital Management Inc. now owns 647 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $314,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Buckingham Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 5.1% in the 2nd quarter. Buckingham Capital Management Inc. now owns 433 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $218,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. Finally, LongView Wealth Management lifted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. LongView Wealth Management now owns 1,762 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $856,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $480.00 to $610.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Rosenblatt Securities upped their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $562.00 to $643.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $520.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $565.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $590.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, thirty-four have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $578.92.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Christopher K. Cox sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $557.52, for a total transaction of $11,150,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 338,662 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $188,810,838.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Christopher K. Cox sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $557.52, for a total value of $11,150,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 338,662 shares in the company, valued at $188,810,838.24. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 901 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $451.15, for a total value of $406,486.15. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 33,324 shares in the company, valued at $15,034,122.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 365,761 shares of company stock worth $190,846,038 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 13.71% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Shares of Meta Platforms stock opened at $564.41 on Tuesday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $279.40 and a fifty-two week high of $573.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.43 trillion, a P/E ratio of 32.42, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 2.83 and a quick ratio of 2.83. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $507.58 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $497.28.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The social networking company reported $5.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.70 by $0.46. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 34.16% and a net margin of 34.34%. The business had revenue of $39.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $38.26 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.23 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 21.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The firm 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 $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 16th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.35%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.49%.

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.