Heritage Investors Management Corp Sells 1,470 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Heritage Investors Management Corp cut its position in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 4.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,015 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 1,470 shares during the period. Heritage Investors Management Corp’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $17,182,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of META. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Meta Platforms by 48.8% during the first quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 49,191 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $23,886,000 after purchasing an additional 16,138 shares during the period. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 1st quarter worth approximately $119,989,000. TFB Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Meta Platforms by 97.1% in the 1st quarter. TFB Advisors LLC now owns 3,367 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $1,635,000 after buying an additional 1,659 shares in the last quarter. Avidian Wealth Solutions LLC grew its position in Meta Platforms by 1.1% in the first quarter. Avidian Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 9,161 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $4,448,000 after acquiring an additional 103 shares during the period. Finally, Catalina Capital Group LLC raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 108.1% during the first quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 8,975 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $4,358,000 after acquiring an additional 4,662 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. DA Davidson started coverage on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $600.00 target price on the stock. Benchmark reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $670.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $600.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Tigress Financial boosted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $575.00 to $645.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, thirty-five have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $634.10.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 0.4 %

Meta Platforms stock opened at $589.34 on Friday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $313.66 and a fifty-two week high of $602.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.49 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.22. The company’s 50-day moving average is $560.42 and its 200-day moving average is $515.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 2.73 and a quick ratio of 2.73.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The social networking company reported $6.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.19 by $0.84. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 35.60% and a net margin of 35.55%. The firm had revenue of $40.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $40.21 billion. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 22.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 16th were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.34%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.42%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 16,702 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $514.89, for a total value of $8,599,692.78. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 89,927 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,302,513.03. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 16,702 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $514.89, for a total transaction of $8,599,692.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 89,927 shares in the company, valued at $46,302,513.03. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 413 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $536.92, for a total value of $221,747.96. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 14,424 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,744,534.08. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 228,118 shares of company stock valued at $121,237,935 over the last ninety days. 13.71% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Meta Platforms 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.