Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Shares Bought by Banco Santander S.A.

Key Points

• Banco Santander S.A. increased its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. by 25.8% during the first quarter, acquiring an additional 53,401 shares, bringing its total holdings to 260,496 shares, valued at approximately $150 million.
• Meta Platforms reported a record earnings per share (EPS) of $7.14 for the last quarter, which exceeded analysts' expectations by $1.39, alongside a 21.6% increase in year-over-year revenue.
• Several research firms have recently upgraded their ratings for Meta Platforms, with Cantor Fitzgerald raising the price target from $828 to $920 and a consensus target price of $822.41 reflecting a "Moderate Buy" rating.

Banco Santander S.A. increased its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 25.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 260,496 shares of the social networking company's stock after purchasing an additional 53,401 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms makes up 1.7% of Banco Santander S.A.'s portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Banco Santander S.A.'s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $150,139,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Inlight Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms in the first quarter worth $25,000. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 1st quarter worth $33,000. Marshall & Sterling Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth about $45,000. Finally, JCIC Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Meta Platforms by 102.6% in the first quarter. JCIC Asset Management Inc. now owns 79 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the period. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In other news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 519 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $719.86, for a total transaction of $373,607.34. Following the completion of the sale, 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 15,847 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $768.67, for a total transaction of $12,181,113.49. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 199,509 shares of company stock valued at $141,509,323. Company insiders own 13.61% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

META has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price target on Meta Platforms from $828.00 to $920.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Needham & Company LLC upgraded shares of Meta Platforms from an "underperform" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $775.00 to $900.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $635.00 to $740.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on Meta Platforms from $825.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Four 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 company. According to MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $822.41.

Meta Platforms Stock Up 1.1%

META opened at $771.99 on Thursday. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $709.65 and its 200 day simple moving average is $648.93. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $479.80 and a 1-year high of $784.75. The stock has a market cap of $1.94 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.97, a quick ratio of 1.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15.

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

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

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

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.

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