Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. Has $9.96 Million Stock Position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd. decreased its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 12.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 17,018 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 2,497 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms makes up about 1.7% of Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position. Sompo Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $9,964,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Millstone Evans Group LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Avondale Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth approximately $41,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Cordant Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter worth approximately $59,000. Finally, Conquis Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter worth approximately $59,000. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on META shares. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Meta Platforms from $660.00 to $615.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Meta Platforms from $530.00 to $610.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $680.00 to $750.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Susquehanna raised their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $675.00 to $800.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $811.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, thirty-five have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $679.02.

Meta Platforms Stock Up 2.6 %

Shares of Meta Platforms stock traded up $14.12 on Friday, hitting $547.27. The company had a trading volume of 17,064,639 shares, compared to its average volume of 14,374,342. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $587.00 and a 200-day moving average of $604.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 2.98 and a quick ratio of 2.98. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a twelve month low of $427.11 and a twelve month high of $740.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.39 trillion, a P/E ratio of 22.88, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.28.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The social networking company reported $8.02 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.75 by $1.27. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 37.91% and a return on equity of 38.17%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $5.33 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were given a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Meta Platforms's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 608 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $488.18, for a total transaction of $296,813.44. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 5,622 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,744,547.96. This represents a 9.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 921 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $491.87, for a total value of $453,012.27. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 27,498 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,525,441.26. This trade represents a 3.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 308,068 shares of company stock worth $214,968,924. Corporate insiders own 13.71% of the company's stock.

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.