Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC Boosts Stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 26.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 10,858 shares of the social networking company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,248 shares during the period. Meta Platforms comprises approximately 0.7% of Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $6,216,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 187,180,393 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $90,891,055,000 after purchasing an additional 831,047 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in Meta Platforms by 0.6% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 38,299,316 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $18,597,382,000 after buying an additional 244,803 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in Meta Platforms by 14.5% in the first quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 34,597,001 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $16,799,612,000 after buying an additional 4,379,826 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC grew its position in Meta Platforms by 24.7% during the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 13,867,398 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $6,733,731,000 after acquiring an additional 2,748,620 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GQG Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.1% during the first quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 11,497,335 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $5,582,876,000 after acquiring an additional 342,742 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of META opened at $576.47 on Friday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $279.40 and a fifty-two week high of $602.95. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $546.53 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $508.76. The stock has a market cap of $1.46 trillion, a PE ratio of 33.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a quick ratio of 2.83 and a current ratio of 2.83.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The social networking company reported $5.16 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.70 by $0.46. The company had revenue of $39.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $38.26 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 34.16% and a net margin of 34.34%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 22.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.23 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 21.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th were given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is presently 11.49%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on META. Roth Mkm increased their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $620.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Meta Platforms from $610.00 to $640.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Meta Platforms in a research note on Tuesday, July 16th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $620.00 target price for the company. Truist Financial increased their target price on Meta Platforms from $570.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on Meta Platforms from $520.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, thirty-five have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $617.37.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Meta Platforms news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $489.80, for a total transaction of $443,269.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 35,130 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,206,674. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 84 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $600.00, for a total transaction of $50,400.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 518,424 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $311,054,400. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $489.80, for a total value of $443,269.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 35,130 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,206,674. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 250,816 shares of company stock worth $132,421,828 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 13.71% of the company’s stock.

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.