Occidental Asset Management LLC Purchases 3,327 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Occidental Asset Management LLC raised its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 14.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 25,800 shares of the social networking company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,327 shares during the period. Meta Platforms accounts for 2.3% of Occidental Asset Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest position. Occidental Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $12,528,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 68.9% in the third quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 103 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Clear Investment Research LLC boosted its stake in Meta Platforms by 411.1% in the fourth quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 92 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Meta Platforms by 80.4% during the fourth quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC now owns 101 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gilfoyle & Co LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Meta Platforms news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $431.05, for a total value of $252,164.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 36,643 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,794,965.15. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Meta Platforms news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 31,465 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $491.49, for a total value of $15,464,732.85. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $431.05, for a total transaction of $252,164.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 36,643 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,794,965.15. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 233,512 shares of company stock valued at $113,597,536. Insiders own 13.71% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Guggenheim reduced their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $520.00 to $500.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Wolfe Research reduced their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $530.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Roth Mkm increased their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $500.00 to $510.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $600.00 to $570.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $610.00 to $575.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, thirty-seven have issued a buy rating and two have issued 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 $510.05.

Meta Platforms Trading Down 3.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ META opened at $504.22 on Friday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1 year low of $274.38 and a 1 year high of $531.49. The stock has a market cap of $1.28 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.21. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $480.00 and a 200 day moving average of $454.77. 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 (NASDAQ:META) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The social networking company reported $4.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.32 by $0.39. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.06% and a return on equity of 32.03%. The company had revenue of $36.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $36.28 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 20.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.40%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 11.49%.

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.