Guinness Atkinson Asset Management Inc Sells 84 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Guinness Atkinson Asset Management Inc lessened its stake in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 0.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 18,318 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 84 shares during the period. Meta Platforms accounts for about 4.2% of Guinness Atkinson Asset Management Inc’s portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest position. Guinness Atkinson Asset Management Inc’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $8,895,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 186,349,346 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $65,960,215,000 after buying an additional 3,104,550 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 38,054,513 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $13,469,906,000 after buying an additional 927,491 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 3.4% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 36,277,772 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $10,890,950,000 after buying an additional 1,184,978 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 34,738,470 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $12,296,383,000 after buying an additional 1,083,719 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth $11,285,855,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of META opened at $498.91 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $478.58 and its 200 day simple moving average is $450.54. The company has a market capitalization of $1.27 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.66, a P/E/G ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 2.68 and a quick ratio of 2.68. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $274.38 and a 1-year high of $531.49.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The social networking company reported $4.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.32 by $0.39. The business had revenue of $36.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.28 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.06% and a return on equity of 32.03%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 20.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.49%.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In other Meta Platforms news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 31,493 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $492.14, for a total transaction of $15,498,965.02. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Meta Platforms news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $485.00, for a total transaction of $283,725.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 38,983 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,906,755. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 31,493 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $492.14, for a total transaction of $15,498,965.02. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 237,638 shares of company stock valued at $115,205,996 over the last three months. 13.71% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on META shares. Rosenblatt Securities increased their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $520.00 to $562.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Canaccord Genuity Group lowered their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $610.00 to $575.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $545.00 target price (down previously from $600.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated an “underperform” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $360.00 target price for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, thirty-seven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $510.05.

About Meta Platforms

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.