Orser Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 2,942 shares of the social networking company's stock, valued at approximately $1,696,000. Meta Platforms accounts for about 1.3% of Orser Capital Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position.
Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 191,198,005 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $111,948,344,000 after purchasing an additional 1,502,553 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Meta Platforms by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 49,181,127 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $28,719,970,000 after acquiring an additional 1,020,519 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in Meta Platforms by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 42,317,434 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $24,777,282,000 after acquiring an additional 1,049,121 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its position in Meta Platforms by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 40,317,105 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $23,606,338,000 after acquiring an additional 1,141,355 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter worth $19,949,512,000. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.
Meta Platforms Stock Performance
Shares of NASDAQ META traded down $3.33 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $684.62. The stock had a trading volume of 12,570,653 shares, compared to its average volume of 14,508,731. The company has a 50 day moving average of $583.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $613.00. The firm has a market cap of $1.72 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.62, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 2.98 and a current ratio of 2.98. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a twelve month low of $442.65 and a twelve month high of $740.91.
Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The social networking company reported $6.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.33 by $1.10. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 38.17% and a net margin of 37.91%. The company had revenue of $42.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $41.45 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.71 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 16.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.31%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. Meta Platforms's payout ratio is currently 8.19%.
Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms
In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 517 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $644.93, for a total value of $333,428.81. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 9,921 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,398,350.53. This trade represents a 4.95% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 5,057 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $659.36, for a total transaction of $3,334,383.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer now directly owns 16,463 shares in the company, valued at $10,855,043.68. This represents a 23.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 55,652 shares of company stock valued at $34,815,208 in the last ninety days. 13.61% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
Analyst Ratings Changes
Several analysts have issued reports on META shares. Needham & Company LLC restated an "underperform" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Benchmark dropped their target price on Meta Platforms from $820.00 to $640.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Meta Platforms from $610.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Guggenheim increased their target price on Meta Platforms from $675.00 to $725.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on Meta Platforms from $725.00 to $600.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, thirty-seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $702.48.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on META
About Meta Platforms
(
Free Report)
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.
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