Meritage Portfolio Management Sells 440 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Meritage Portfolio Management decreased its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 33,177 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 440 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms comprises 0.8% of Meritage Portfolio Management’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Meritage Portfolio Management’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $11,743,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. WoodTrust Financial Corp boosted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. WoodTrust Financial Corp now owns 1,547 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $548,000 after buying an additional 27 shares during the last quarter. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners now owns 4,566 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $1,616,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. Peterson Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Peterson Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,468 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $520,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Edge Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 4.0% in the 4th quarter. Edge Wealth Management LLC now owns 730 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $258,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Yarger Wealth Strategies LLC boosted its stake in Meta Platforms by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Yarger Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 736 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $260,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Meta Platforms stock traded down $1.58 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $439.80. 26,147,784 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,303,029. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52-week low of $229.85 and a 52-week high of $531.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 2.67 and a current ratio of 2.67. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $495.08 and its 200 day moving average is $403.40. The stock has a market cap of $1.12 trillion, a P/E ratio of 25.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.20.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The social networking company reported $4.71 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.32 by $0.39. The company had revenue of $36.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $36.28 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.06% and a return on equity of 32.37%. Analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 20.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 22nd were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 21st. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.45%. Meta Platforms’s payout ratio is 11.49%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $470.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $450.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $545.00 price target (down from $600.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday. Benchmark reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Monday. Finally, Raymond James dropped their target price on Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $525.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, thirty-eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $509.18.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $491.25, for a total transaction of $287,381.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 37,228 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,288,255. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 490 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $517.75, for a total value of $253,697.50. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 7,579 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,924,027.25. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $491.25, for a total value of $287,381.25. Following the sale, the insider now owns 37,228 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,288,255. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,349,148 shares of company stock worth $649,552,559. 13.75% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.