Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. Sells 1,200 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc. cut its holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 0.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 128,000 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 1,200 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for 2.9% of Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding. Adams Diversified Equity Fund Inc.'s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $73,774,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. JCIC Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Meta Platforms by 102.6% in the first quarter. JCIC Asset Management Inc. now owns 79 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 2.5% during the first quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 11,314 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $6,521,000 after purchasing an additional 279 shares during the period. Golden State Equity Partners raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.0% during the first quarter. Golden State Equity Partners now owns 5,526 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $3,185,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the period. Lecap Asset Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the first quarter worth approximately $1,386,000. Finally, S.A. Mason LLC raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 8.8% during the first quarter. S.A. Mason LLC now owns 1,827 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $1,053,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the period. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $812.00 target price (up from $683.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and set a $750.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Wednesday, April 30th. Moffett Nathanson upped their target price on Meta Platforms from $525.00 to $605.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Raymond James Financial lowered their target price on Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $750.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, TD Securities lowered their target price on Meta Platforms from $725.00 to $700.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. One 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 issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Meta Platforms presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $719.52.

Meta Platforms Stock Up 1.0%

META stock opened at $733.63 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 2.66 and a current ratio of 2.66. The company has a market capitalization of $1.84 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.61, a PEG ratio of 1.79 and a beta of 1.26. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $442.65 and a fifty-two week high of $740.91. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $638.51 and a 200-day moving average of $626.52.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The social networking company reported $6.43 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.33 by $1.10. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 38.69% and a net margin of 39.11%. The business had revenue of $42.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $41.45 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.71 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 16.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th were issued a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.29%. Meta Platforms's payout ratio is currently 8.19%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 406 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $491.69, for a total transaction of $199,626.14. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 4,608 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,265,707.52. This trade represents a 8.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Susan J. Li sold 6,874 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 value of $4,532,440.64. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 70,040 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,181,574.40. This represents a 8.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 124,831 shares of company stock valued at $83,868,872 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 13.61% of the company's stock.

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.

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