UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Key Points

• UBS AM increased its holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. by 4.5% during the first quarter, owning approximately 12.5 million shares valued at over $7 billion.
• Meta Platforms recently reported strong quarterly earnings, beating estimates with $7.14 earnings per share and revenue of $47.52 billion.
• Analysts remain positive on Meta, with several upgrading their ratings and target prices, suggesting an average price target of around $822.41.

UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 4.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 12,543,468 shares of the social networking company's stock after acquiring an additional 536,160 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for 1.9% of UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC owned approximately 0.50% of Meta Platforms worth $7,229,553,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 42,317,434 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $24,777,282,000 after acquiring an additional 1,049,121 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 40,317,105 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $23,606,338,000 after purchasing an additional 1,141,355 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 67,172.9% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 23,452,665 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $13,517,178,000 after purchasing an additional 23,417,803 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 13.5% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 23,445,565 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $13,727,613,000 after purchasing an additional 2,787,832 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 17,669,795 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $10,184,163,000 after purchasing an additional 400,927 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 1,037 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $785.18, for a total value of $814,231.66. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 517 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $770.00, for a total value of $398,090.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 4,751 shares in the company, valued at $3,658,270. The trade was a 9.81% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 269,243 shares of company stock worth $200,605,051 over the last ninety days. 13.61% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Meta Platforms Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of META stock opened at $785.23 on Friday. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $724.43 and its 200-day simple moving average is $655.43. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $1.97 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.63 and a beta of 1.27. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $479.80 and a fifty-two week high of $796.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. The business had revenue of $47.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $44.55 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 39.33% and a net margin of 39.99%. The company's revenue was up 21.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $5.16 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 26th. Stockholders 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio is presently 7.60%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on META shares. HSBC upgraded Meta Platforms from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $610.00 to $900.00 in a report on Thursday, July 31st. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Raymond James Financial lifted their target price on Meta Platforms from $750.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on Meta Platforms from $775.00 to $870.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Citigroup reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirty-nine have given a buy rating and three have assigned 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.

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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