Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Stock Position Lowered by Cresset Asset Management LLC

Cresset Asset Management LLC lessened its stake in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 652,711 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 13,842 shares during the period. Meta Platforms comprises approximately 2.1% of Cresset Asset Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. Cresset Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $481,760,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 192,591,101 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $142,149,566,000 after buying an additional 1,532,568 shares during the period. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 608,429.2% in the second quarter. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC now owns 59,775,823 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $44,119,937,000 after acquiring an additional 59,766,000 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.3% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 51,575,209 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $37,902,948,000 after acquiring an additional 682,768 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms in the second quarter worth about $23,155,393,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in Meta Platforms by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 17,669,795 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $10,184,163,000 after acquiring an additional 400,927 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Trading Down 1.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:META opened at $650.13 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $668.73 and its 200 day moving average is $707.04. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1 year low of $479.80 and a 1 year high of $796.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.64 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 1.98 and a quick ratio of 1.98.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The social networking company reported $7.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.74 by $0.51. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 39.35% and a net margin of 30.89%.The business had revenue of $51.24 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $49.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $6.03 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 26.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th will be given a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 15th. Meta Platforms’s payout ratio is currently 9.28%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In related news, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $609.35, for a total value of $365,610.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 7,347 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,476,894.45. This represents a 7.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Susan J. Li sold 6,875 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Saturday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $609.46, for a total value of $4,190,037.50. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 88,370 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $53,857,980.20. This represents a 7.22% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 41,440 shares of company stock worth $26,233,492 in the last three months. 13.61% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on META shares. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $870.00 price target (down previously from $900.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, October 30th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Monday, November 24th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $800.00 price objective on the stock. Citizens Jmp restated an “outperform” rating and set a $900.00 target price (up previously from $750.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Monday, November 24th. Truist Financial dropped their target price on Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $875.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane assumed coverage on Meta Platforms in a research report on Monday, November 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $800.00 price target for the company. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-nine have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Meta Platforms presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $821.63.

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.