Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Shares Sold by BDF Gestion

BDF Gestion decreased its holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 6.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 53,317 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 3,500 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms makes up 2.8% of BDF Gestion’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. BDF Gestion’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $30,521,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of META. Gradient Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 8.9% in the 2nd quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 72,587 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $36,600,000 after acquiring an additional 5,953 shares in the last quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. grew its position in Meta Platforms by 14.0% in the 1st quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co. now owns 6,101,501 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $2,962,767,000 after purchasing an additional 748,076 shares in the last quarter. ERn Financial LLC lifted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 59.0% during the first quarter. ERn Financial LLC now owns 1,652 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $802,000 after acquiring an additional 613 shares during the period. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 26.5% during the 2nd quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd. now owns 1,678 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $846,000 after purchasing an additional 352 shares during the period. Finally, Lincoln National Corp boosted its stake in Meta Platforms by 7.8% in the first quarter. Lincoln National Corp now owns 34,790 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $16,894,000 after acquiring an additional 2,504 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Meta Platforms Trading Down 1.0 %

Meta Platforms stock traded down $5.85 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $584.57. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 6,989,238 shares, compared to its average volume of 15,284,165. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $540.41 and its 200 day moving average is $506.41. 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, Inc. has a 1-year low of $279.40 and a 1-year high of $602.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.48 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.73, a P/E/G ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.22.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The social networking company reported $5.16 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.70 by $0.46. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 34.16% and a net margin of 34.34%. The firm had revenue of $39.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $38.26 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.23 EPS. Meta Platforms’s revenue for the quarter was up 22.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 21.37 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.34%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.49%.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In related news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $589.89, for a total value of $533,850.45. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 34,197 shares in the company, valued at $20,172,468.33. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Meta Platforms news, COO Javier Olivan sold 412 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $463.00, for a total value of $190,756.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 5,559 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,573,817. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $589.89, for a total value of $533,850.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 34,197 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,172,468.33. This trade represents 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 249,826 shares of company stock worth $131,791,613 in the last three months. 13.71% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on META shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on Meta Platforms from $525.00 to $585.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $600.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $590.00 to $663.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $610.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on Meta Platforms from $565.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating, thirty-five have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $613.46.

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.