Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Shares Acquired by Smith Chas P & Associates PA Cpas

Key Points

• Smith Chas P & Associates PA Cpas increased its Meta Platforms stake by 496.5% in the fourth quarter, ending with 2,541 shares valued at about $1.68 million.
• Meta shares were under pressure, opening at $593 and falling 5.5% as the article highlighted broader concerns around funding AI infrastructure, delayed AI product rollout, and privacy/regulatory issues.
• Despite the stock dip, Meta recently posted strong quarterly results, with EPS of $10.44 versus $6.67 expected and revenue of $56.31 billion, while also announcing a $0.525 quarterly dividend.

Smith Chas P & Associates PA Cpas boosted its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 496.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,541 shares of the social networking company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,115 shares during the quarter. Smith Chas P & Associates PA Cpas' holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $1,677,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Westchester Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Meta Platforms in the third quarter valued at $26,000. RHL Group LLC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Key Capital Management INC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth approximately $48,000. Finally, Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth approximately $48,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 5.5%

Shares of NASDAQ META opened at $593.00 on Friday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1 year low of $520.26 and a 1 year high of $796.25. The firm has a market cap of $1.50 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.56, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a current ratio of 2.35. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $618.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $636.57.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.67 by $3.77. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 36.93% and a net margin of 32.84%.The business had revenue of $56.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $55.56 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $6.43 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. Meta Platforms's payout ratio is presently 7.63%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Friday, March 27th. Benchmark initiated coverage on Meta Platforms in a research note on Tuesday. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. Arete Research set a $735.00 price objective on Meta Platforms and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on Meta Platforms from $820.00 to $800.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on Meta Platforms from $805.00 to $780.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have given a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $840.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 837 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $629.29, for a total value of $526,715.73. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 12,986 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,171,959.94. The trade was a 6.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 504 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $629.29, for a total value of $317,162.16. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 3,943 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,481,290.47. This represents a 11.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 42,860 shares of company stock valued at $26,555,260. Company insiders own 13.53% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Meta Platforms this week:

• Negative Sentiment: Meta is reportedly weighing a large stock sale to fund AI infrastructure, sparking dilution concerns and pressuring the shares. Article: Meta weighs big equity raising after blockbuster Google deal
• Negative Sentiment: Meta’s AI rollout has faced another delay, with the Muse Spark developer API still lacking a launch date, raising questions about when the company can monetize its AI investments. Article: Meta repeatedly pushes back new AI model release for developers
• Negative Sentiment: Privacy concerns resurfaced after reports that Meta smart glasses could use facial-recognition-style “faceprint” tracking, which could invite regulatory scrutiny and consumer backlash. Article: Code Reveals Meta Smart Glasses Can Use 'Faceprint' Tracking, Raising Privacy Alarms
• Negative Sentiment: Meta is also battling renewed policy and legal pressure in Australia over proposed payments for news, adding another regulatory overhang. Article: Meta accuses Australia of breaching FTA, invokes US 'trade action'
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta continues to receive bullish long-term commentary from some analysts and investors who view it as a major AI and advertising platform, but that optimism is being overshadowed today by funding and execution concerns. Article: Analyst Sees Multi-Billion Dollar Potential In Meta Platforms’ Subscription Model

Meta Platforms Profile

Meta Platforms, Inc NASDAQ: META, formerly Facebook, Inc, is a global technology company best known for building social networking services and immersive computing platforms. Founded in 2004 and headquartered in Menlo Park, California, the company operates a family of consumer-facing products and services that connect users, creators and businesses. In October 2021 the company rebranded as Meta to reflect an expanded strategic focus on augmented and virtual reality technologies alongside its social media businesses.

Meta's core consumer products include Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger, which enable social networking, messaging, content sharing and community building across mobile and desktop devices.

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