Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Stock Position Increased by AustralianSuper Pty Ltd

AustralianSuper Pty Ltd raised its holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 51.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,109,444 shares of the social networking company’s stock after acquiring an additional 374,981 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms makes up 3.2% of AustralianSuper Pty Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 6th largest holding. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $635,090,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. US Bancorp DE grew its position in Meta Platforms by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 845,308 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $483,889,000 after acquiring an additional 23,182 shares during the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. grew its position in Meta Platforms by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 340,762 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $195,066,000 after acquiring an additional 2,465 shares during the last quarter. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Meta Platforms by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Palumbo Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,326 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $759,000 after acquiring an additional 48 shares during the last quarter. Austin Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Meta Platforms by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Austin Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,526 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $889,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HM Payson & Co. grew its position in Meta Platforms by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 172,112 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $98,524,000 after acquiring an additional 7,255 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:META opened at $567.16 on Monday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52-week low of $308.33 and a 52-week high of $602.95. The stock has a market cap of $1.43 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.72, a PEG ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a quick ratio of 2.83, a current ratio of 2.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $555.99 and a 200-day moving average price of $513.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The social networking company reported $6.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.19 by $0.84. The company had revenue of $40.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $40.21 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 35.60% and a net margin of 35.55%. Equities analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 21.84 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 26th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.35%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.42%.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In related news, Director Peggy Alford sold 1,052 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $479.00, for a total transaction of $503,908.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,168 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,954,472. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Meta Platforms news, Director Peggy Alford sold 1,052 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $479.00, for a total value of $503,908.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 6,168 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,954,472. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 16,702 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $513.09, for a total value of $8,569,629.18. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 98,654 shares in the company, valued at approximately $50,618,380.86. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 251,092 shares of company stock worth $132,865,496. 13.71% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

META has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Meta Platforms from $605.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Benchmark reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Meta Platforms in a research report on Tuesday, July 16th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $620.00 price target on the stock. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “buy” rating and set a $811.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $670.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, thirty-five have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $634.10.

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.