Channel Wealth LLC Sells 379 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Channel Wealth LLC reduced its stake in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 7.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,753 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 379 shares during the quarter. Channel Wealth LLC's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $2,740,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter worth $40,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at $43,000. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter worth about $45,000. Stuart Chaussee & Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter worth about $47,000. Finally, Conquis Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter worth about $59,000. 79.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Meta Platforms stock traded up $13.09 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $697.71. 11,707,462 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 14,495,197. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12-month low of $442.65 and a 12-month high of $740.91. The business's 50-day moving average is $585.44 and its 200-day moving average is $613.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 2.98 and a quick ratio of 2.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.75 trillion, a PE ratio of 29.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.24.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The social networking company reported $6.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.33 by $1.10. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 37.91% and a return on equity of 38.17%. The firm had revenue of $42.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $41.45 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $4.71 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 16.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a dividend of $0.525 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.30%. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio is currently 8.19%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Scotiabank dropped their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $627.00 to $525.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $725.00 to $600.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 7th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Meta Platforms from $615.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Meta Platforms from $675.00 to $735.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Meta Platforms from $752.00 to $664.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, thirty-seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $702.48.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 519 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $671.00, for a total value of $348,249.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 29,702 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,930,042. This trade represents a 1.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Susan J. Li sold 6,874 shares of Meta Platforms 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. The trade was a 8.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 56,171 shares of company stock worth $35,163,457. Company insiders own 13.61% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms Company 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.