Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. Grows Stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. lifted its position in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 3.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 201,924 shares of the social networking company's stock after purchasing an additional 6,924 shares during the period. Meta Platforms accounts for about 1.6% of Cullen Frost Bankers Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc.'s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $116,381,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Inlight Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,000. Finally, Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter worth approximately $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Shares of META stock traded down $8.16 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $704.81. The stock had a trading volume of 8,873,115 shares, compared to its average volume of 14,295,031. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $686.09 and its 200 day simple moving average is $638.61. The company has a quick ratio of 2.66, a current ratio of 2.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a one year low of $442.65 and a one year high of $747.90. The firm has a market cap of $1.77 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.49, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.28.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last released its 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 return on equity of 38.69% and a net margin of 39.11%. The company had revenue of $42.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $41.45 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $4.71 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 16.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th were issued a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.30%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio is presently 8.19%.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In related news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 2,361 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $716.48, for a total value of $1,691,609.28. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 519 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $723.08, for a total value of $375,278.52. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 26,588 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,225,251.04. The trade was a 1.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 152,437 shares of company stock worth $105,068,570. Insiders own 13.61% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

META has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wedbush upped their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $680.00 to $750.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $525.00 to $675.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Pivotal Research dropped their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $875.00 to $830.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $740.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $705.00 to $640.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-eight have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $748.60.

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.