Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Shares Acquired by Clarkston Capital Partners LLC

Clarkston Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 0.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 16,371 shares of the social networking company’s stock after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the period. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $9,585,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. JDM Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Avondale Wealth Management bought a new position in Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth approximately $43,000. Finally, Cordant Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter worth approximately $59,000. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 55,589 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $717.72, for a total value of $39,897,337.08. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 413 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $612.10, for a total transaction of $252,797.30. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 17,101 shares in the company, valued at $10,467,522.10. This represents a 2.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 549,113 shares of company stock worth $364,668,246. Company insiders own 13.71% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 5.1 %

META stock opened at $504.73 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $1.28 trillion, a PE ratio of 21.10, a P/E/G ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.28. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12 month low of $414.50 and a 12 month high of $740.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 2.98 and a quick ratio of 2.98. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $648.15 and a 200 day simple moving average of $610.27.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The social networking company reported $8.02 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.75 by $1.27. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 38.17% and a net margin of 37.91%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $5.33 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.42%. This is a boost from Meta Platforms’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.78%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on META. Bank of America upped their price target on Meta Platforms from $710.00 to $765.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “buy” rating and set a $811.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $660.00 to $725.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $700.00 to $770.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $685.00 to $752.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, thirty-five have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $718.55.

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.