Segment Wealth Management LLC Grows Stock Position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Segment Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,418 shares of the social networking company’s stock after acquiring an additional 168 shares during the quarter. Segment Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $13,978,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in META. Capital Research Global Investors increased its position in Meta Platforms by 14.5% during the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 34,597,001 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $16,799,612,000 after purchasing an additional 4,379,826 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC grew its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 24.7% during the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 13,867,398 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $6,733,731,000 after buying an additional 2,748,620 shares in the last quarter. Sustainable Growth Advisers LP acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the second quarter valued at approximately $595,152,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.4% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 187,180,393 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $90,891,055,000 after buying an additional 831,047 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board boosted its position in Meta Platforms by 30.0% during the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 3,411,009 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $1,656,318,000 after acquiring an additional 788,131 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In related news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 901 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $451.15, for a total transaction of $406,486.15. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 33,324 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,034,122.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, COO Javier Olivan sold 412 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $521.48, for a total transaction of $214,849.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 5,147 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,684,057.56. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 901 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $451.15, for a total value of $406,486.15. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 33,324 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,034,122.60. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 250,817 shares of company stock worth $132,547,715. 13.71% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Meta Platforms Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:META opened at $567.78 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.44 trillion, a PE ratio of 32.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $549.53 and a 200 day simple moving average of $509.99. The company has a current ratio of 2.83, a quick ratio of 2.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12-month low of $279.40 and a 12-month high of $602.95.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its earnings results 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. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 34.34% and a return on equity of 34.16%. The company had revenue of $39.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $38.26 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.23 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 22.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 21.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.49%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on META shares. Wolfe Research started coverage on Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $620.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $570.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Needham & Company LLC reissued an “underperform” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Raymond James upped their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $600.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $600.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, thirty-five have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $619.20.

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.