Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Shares Acquired by Certuity LLC

Certuity LLC lifted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 37.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 18,154 shares of the social networking company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,910 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms comprises about 1.1% of Certuity LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest position. Certuity LLC's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $10,457,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Csenge Advisory Group raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 12.0% in the first quarter. Csenge Advisory Group now owns 9,539 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $5,498,000 after buying an additional 1,019 shares during the period. Suvretta Capital Management LLC grew its position in Meta Platforms by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Suvretta Capital Management LLC now owns 170,338 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $99,735,000 after acquiring an additional 1,850 shares in the last quarter. Skye Global Management LP grew its position in Meta Platforms by 130.9% in the fourth quarter. Skye Global Management LP now owns 76,200 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $44,616,000 after acquiring an additional 43,200 shares in the last quarter. ARQ Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Meta Platforms by 4.5% in the first quarter. ARQ Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 785 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $452,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JMG Financial Group Ltd. acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms in the first quarter valued at approximately $284,000. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ META opened at $785.23 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $724.43 and a 200 day simple moving average of $655.43. The company has a current ratio of 1.97, a quick ratio of 1.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.97 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.43, a PEG ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.27. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a one year low of $479.80 and a one year high of $796.25.

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

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th were given a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 16th. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio is 7.60%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $685.00 to $690.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $700.00 to $720.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Guggenheim reissued a "buy" rating and set a $800.00 price target (up previously from $725.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Monday, July 28th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Meta Platforms from $812.00 to $897.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on Meta Platforms from $775.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-nine have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $822.41.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Meta Platforms news, insider Christopher K. Cox sold 15,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $767.80, for a total value of $11,517,000.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 222,205 shares in the company, valued at $170,608,999. This represents a 6.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 515 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $776.38, for a total value of $399,835.70. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 25,035 shares in the company, valued at $19,436,673.30. This trade represents a 2.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 269,243 shares of company stock valued at $200,605,051. 13.61% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Meta Platforms 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.

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