Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Stake Decreased by Los Angeles Capital Management LLC

Los Angeles Capital Management LLC trimmed its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 13.3% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,252,759 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 191,757 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms comprises 2.9% of Los Angeles Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest position. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $717,129,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 527.3% in the 1st quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 69 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC purchased a new position in Meta Platforms in the second quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in Meta Platforms by 122.2% during the second quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 80 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Halpern Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the third quarter worth approximately $46,000. Finally, West Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the third quarter worth $49,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 0.8 %

META stock opened at $580.00 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $1.46 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.22. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $564.48 and its 200 day simple moving average is $518.29. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $313.66 and a fifty-two week high of $602.95. The company has a quick ratio of 2.73, a current ratio of 2.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18.

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

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th were paid 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 payout ratio is 9.42%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 16,702 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $529.09, for a total value of $8,836,861.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 55,019 shares in the company, valued at $29,110,002.71. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 901 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $567.70, for a total transaction of $511,497.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 30,581 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,360,833.70. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 16,702 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 16th. The stock was 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 owns 55,019 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,110,002.71. This trade represents 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 have sold 175,807 shares of company stock valued at $93,851,617. Company insiders own 13.71% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

META has been the topic of several recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $555.00 to $636.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. UBS Group upped their target price on Meta Platforms from $690.00 to $719.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Mizuho raised their target price on Meta Platforms from $650.00 to $675.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Tigress Financial boosted their price target on Meta Platforms from $575.00 to $645.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $652.00 to $641.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, thirty-five have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.