Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Position Lessened by Central Bank & Trust Co.

Central Bank & Trust Co. trimmed its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 4.2% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 24,011 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 1,053 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms makes up about 1.7% of Central Bank & Trust Co.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Central Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $12,106,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of META. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 527.3% in the first quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 69 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in Meta Platforms by 122.2% in 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 during the period. Richardson Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in Meta Platforms by 95.6% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the 1st quarter worth $44,000. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Shares of META opened at $529.28 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.34 trillion, a PE ratio of 30.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 2.83 and a quick ratio of 2.68. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a one year low of $276.03 and a one year high of $542.81. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $501.01 and its 200 day moving average price is $489.45.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The social networking company reported $5.16 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.70 by $0.46. The business had revenue of $39.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $38.26 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 34.16% and a net margin of 34.34%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.23 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 20.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.49%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on META. Susquehanna lifted their target price on Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $565.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Roth Mkm raised their price objective on Meta Platforms from $510.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $525.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $480.00 to $610.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, thirty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $574.41.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In other Meta Platforms news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $476.69, for a total transaction of $431,404.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 42,370 shares in the company, valued at $20,197,355.30. The sale 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 905 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $476.69, for a total value of $431,404.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 42,370 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,197,355.30. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 16,702 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $529.09, for a total transaction of $8,836,861.18. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 55,019 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,110,002.71. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 384,783 shares of company stock valued at $194,001,589. Company insiders own 13.71% of the company’s stock.

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.