PFG Investments LLC Boosts Stock Position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

PFG Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 8.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 45,100 shares of the social networking company’s stock after buying an additional 3,495 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for approximately 1.7% of PFG Investments LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest position. PFG Investments LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $25,817,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of META. Vanguard Group Inc. grew 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 acquiring an additional 831,047 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 38,299,316 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $18,597,382,000 after purchasing an additional 244,803 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 14.5% during the 1st 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 during the period. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its stake 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 buying an additional 2,748,620 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GQG Partners LLC lifted its stake in 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 valued at $5,582,876,000 after buying an additional 342,742 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Meta Platforms Stock Up 2.6 %

META opened at $593.28 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $553.36 and a 200-day moving average of $511.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.50 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.08, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a current ratio of 2.83, a quick ratio of 2.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $296.86 and a 1-year high of $602.95.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The social networking company reported $5.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.70 by $0.46. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 34.34% and a return on equity of 34.16%. The firm had revenue of $39.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $38.26 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.23 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 22.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 21.44 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 26th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.34%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. Meta Platforms’s payout ratio is presently 11.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

META has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $643.00 to $811.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $570.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Bank of America increased their target price on Meta Platforms from $563.00 to $630.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Guggenheim lifted their price target on Meta Platforms from $600.00 to $665.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, thirty-five have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Meta Platforms has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $621.63.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Meta Platforms news, COO Javier Olivan sold 413 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $574.16, for a total value of $237,128.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 10,707 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,147,531.12. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 901 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $451.15, for a total value of $406,486.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 33,324 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,034,122.60. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 413 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $574.16, for a total value of $237,128.08. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 10,707 shares in the company, valued at $6,147,531.12. 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 251,230 shares of company stock valued at $132,784,843 over the last three months. 13.71% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.