Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Shares Sold by Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co.

Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. decreased its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 79.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,047 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 19,997 shares during the period. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $2,545,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in META. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 527.3% during the first quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 69 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC acquired a new position in Meta Platforms during the second quarter worth $38,000. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. boosted its position in Meta Platforms by 122.2% during the second quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 80 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew its holdings in Meta Platforms by 95.6% in the first quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 88 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Meta Platforms news, insider Christopher K. Cox sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $569.93, for a total value of $5,699,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 328,662 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $187,314,333.66. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Christopher K. Cox sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $569.93, for a total value of $5,699,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 328,662 shares in the company, valued at $187,314,333.66. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 901 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $451.15, for a total transaction of $406,486.15. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 33,324 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,034,122.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 342,358 shares of company stock valued at $179,431,101. Corporate insiders own 13.71% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

META opened at $567.36 on Friday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52-week low of $279.40 and a 52-week high of $577.40. The company has a 50 day moving average of $516.19 and a two-hundred day moving average of $499.60. The company has a market cap of $1.44 trillion, a P/E ratio of 32.59, a P/E/G ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 2.83, a current ratio of 2.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The social networking company reported $5.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.70 by $0.46. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 34.34% and a return on equity of 34.16%. The firm had revenue of $39.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $38.26 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.23 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 22.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 21.36 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 26th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.35%. Meta Platforms’s payout ratio is currently 11.49%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on META shares. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed a “market perform” rating and set a $450.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Wednesday, June 12th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $575.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. JMP Securities raised their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $635.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $630.00 to $635.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Meta Platforms from $565.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, thirty-four have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $591.23.

Meta Platforms Company 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.