Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Shares Sold by Portside Wealth Group LLC

Portside Wealth Group LLC cut its stake in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 0.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,883 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 33 shares during the period. Portside Wealth Group LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $3,368,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of META. JDM Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new position in Meta Platforms in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Avondale Wealth Management purchased a new position in Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. Halpern Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 3rd quarter valued at $46,000. Finally, West Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the third quarter valued at $49,000. 79.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of Meta Platforms stock opened at $612.77 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.55 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.19. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $597.37 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $557.77. The company has a current ratio of 2.73, a quick ratio of 2.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $370.95 and a 1-year high of $638.40.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued 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. The firm had revenue of $40.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $40.21 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 35.60% and a net margin of 35.55%. On average, equities analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 22.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th were given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. Meta Platforms’s payout ratio is presently 9.42%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

META has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Truist Financial upped their price target on Meta Platforms from $650.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Wolfe Research raised their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $670.00 to $730.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Needham & Company LLC reiterated an “underperform” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $670.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Meta Platforms from $555.00 to $636.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, thirty-five have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $650.05.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Nicholas Clegg sold 7,296 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $553.48, for a total value of $4,038,190.08. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 38,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,416,908.60. This trade represents a 15.86 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 35,921 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $607.97, for a total value of $21,838,890.37. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 495,269 shares of company stock valued at $300,888,396. 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.