Investors Research Corp Decreases Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Investors Research Corp cut its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 27.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,468 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 1,292 shares during the quarter. Investors Research Corp’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $1,228,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of META. Hoxton Planning & Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 7.0% in the fourth quarter. Hoxton Planning & Management LLC now owns 2,894 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $1,024,000 after buying an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Ballast Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 22.1% during the 4th quarter. Ballast Advisors LLC now owns 3,547 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $1,255,000 after purchasing an additional 643 shares during the last quarter. Dakota Wealth Management grew its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 16.7% in the fourth quarter. Dakota Wealth Management now owns 85,730 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $30,345,000 after purchasing an additional 12,268 shares in the last quarter. Drake & Associates LLC increased its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 21.8% in the fourth quarter. Drake & Associates LLC now owns 1,676 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $593,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cullen Investment Group LTD. purchased a new position in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth approximately $3,066,000. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

META stock opened at $500.23 on Tuesday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $492.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $394.61. The company has a quick ratio of 2.67, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. The stock has a market cap of $1.28 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.57, a PEG ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.20. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $207.13 and a fifty-two week high of $531.49.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The social networking company reported $5.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.82 by $0.51. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 28.98% and a return on equity of 29.48%. The business had revenue of $40.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.12 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.00 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 24.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 20.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 22nd were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 21st. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.40%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is presently 13.42%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Meta Platforms from $420.00 to $535.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $435.00 to $535.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Tigress Financial lifted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $435.00 to $575.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Susquehanna increased their price objective on Meta Platforms from $400.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their target price on Meta Platforms from $370.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, thirty-eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $509.28.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In related news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $522.00, for a total value of $305,370.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 38,398 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,043,756. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 490 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $516.51, for a total value of $253,089.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 8,069 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,167,719.19. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $522.00, for a total transaction of $305,370.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 38,398 shares in the company, valued at $20,043,756. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 1,459,469 shares of company stock worth $691,726,161. Corporate insiders own 14.03% 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.