Wedgewood Partners Inc. Has $46.58 Million Stock Position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Wedgewood Partners Inc. reduced its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 4.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 79,557 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 3,291 shares during the period. Meta Platforms accounts for about 9.2% of Wedgewood Partners Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest position. Wedgewood Partners Inc.'s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $46,581,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of META. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth approximately $19,949,512,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its position in Meta Platforms by 78,471.1% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,248,763 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $3,658,713,000 after buying an additional 6,240,810 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter valued at $2,243,603,000. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 13.5% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 23,445,565 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $13,727,613,000 after buying an additional 2,787,832 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 27.0% in the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 8,901,521 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $5,211,967,000 after buying an additional 1,892,509 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on META shares. Barclays reduced their price target on Meta Platforms from $705.00 to $640.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $650.00 to $665.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Benchmark lowered their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $820.00 to $640.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Susquehanna dropped their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $700.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $624.00 to $676.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, thirty-seven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Meta Platforms presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $701.05.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:META traded down $5.61 on Friday, hitting $630.96. 4,674,943 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 14,459,968. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $442.65 and a 1-year high of $740.91. The company has a market capitalization of $1.59 trillion, a PE ratio of 26.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 2.98 and a current ratio of 2.98. The firm's 50-day moving average is $573.91 and its 200 day moving average is $608.53.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The social networking company reported $6.43 earnings per share (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 company had revenue of $42.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $41.45 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $4.71 earnings per share. Meta Platforms's revenue for the quarter was up 16.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Meta Platforms news, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 475 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $628.25, for a total value of $298,418.75. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 10,272 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,453,384. This trade represents a 4.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 519 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $635.50, for a total transaction of $329,824.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 30,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at $19,535,270. This trade represents a 1.66% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 77,157 shares of company stock worth $49,411,000 in the last quarter. 13.71% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.