Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Shares Sold by Victory Capital Management Inc.

Victory Capital Management Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 0.7% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,344,868 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 15,756 shares during the period. Meta Platforms accounts for 1.2% of Victory Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $1,182,329,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Clear Investment Research LLC lifted 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 valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in 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 during the period. POM Investment Strategies LLC bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the second quarter valued at about $38,000. Finally, Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 122.2% during the 2nd quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 80 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Meta Platforms news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.99, for a total transaction of $449,775.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 38,750 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,258,362.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Meta Platforms news, COO Javier Olivan sold 413 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $521.35, for a total transaction of $215,317.55. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 14,011 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,304,634.85. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $496.99, for a total value of $449,775.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 38,750 shares in the company, valued at $19,258,362.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 373,370 shares of company stock valued at $193,527,936 over the last ninety days. 13.71% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Meta Platforms Trading Up 0.9 %

META opened at $504.79 on Tuesday. 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, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $279.40 and a fifty-two week high of $544.23. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $505.18 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $494.59. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.28 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.99, a PEG ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.21.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The social networking company reported $5.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.70 by $0.46. The company had revenue of $39.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 for the quarter was up 22.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.23 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 21.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.40%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 11.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on META shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $625.00 to $647.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Meta Platforms from $535.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. KeyCorp upped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $540.00 to $560.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $570.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $480.00 to $610.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, thirty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $576.66.

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.