Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Stock Position Cut by Trivest Advisors Ltd

Key Points

• Trivest Advisors Ltd has reduced its stake in Meta Platforms by 59.1%, now holding 150,000 shares, which constitutes 7.3% of its investment portfolio.
• Meta Platforms reported $7.14 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding estimates, with revenue reaching $47.52 billion.
• Analyst ratings are optimistic, with target prices raised significantly, indicating strong potential for the stock, which currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy."

Trivest Advisors Ltd trimmed its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 59.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 150,000 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 217,000 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for approximately 7.3% of Trivest Advisors Ltd's portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest position. Trivest Advisors Ltd's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $86,454,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Inlight Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the first quarter valued at $28,000. MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. purchased a new position in Meta Platforms during the first quarter worth about $33,000. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth about $45,000. Finally, JCIC Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Meta Platforms by 102.6% during the first quarter. JCIC Asset Management Inc. now owns 79 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

NASDAQ META traded up $8.07 on Wednesday, hitting $771.53. The stock had a trading volume of 6,427,694 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,569,056. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52-week low of $479.80 and a 52-week high of $784.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.97 and a current ratio of 1.97. The company has a market capitalization of $1.94 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.27. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $707.08 and a 200-day moving average of $648.07.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The social networking company reported $7.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.75 by $1.39. The firm had revenue of $47.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $44.55 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 39.99% and a return on equity of 39.33%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 21.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $5.16 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The company 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. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 16th. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 7.60%.

Insider Activity

In other Meta Platforms news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 519 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $719.86, for a total transaction of $373,607.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 25,550 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $18,392,423. This trade represents a 1.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 15,847 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $753.43, for a total transaction of $11,939,605.21. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 167,298 shares of company stock worth $116,742,790 in the last quarter. Insiders own 13.61% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Moffett Nathanson raised their price objective on Meta Platforms from $525.00 to $605.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $800.00 price target (up previously from $725.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Monday, July 28th. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price target on Meta Platforms from $828.00 to $920.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Meta Platforms from $775.00 to $870.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, JMP Securities boosted their price target on Meta Platforms from $750.00 to $900.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-nine have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $822.41.

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.