RFG Advisory LLC Increases Stock Position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

RFG Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 31.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 19,743 shares of the social networking company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,727 shares during the quarter. RFG Advisory LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $9,955,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. S.A. Mason LLC grew its holdings in Meta Platforms by 1.5% during the first quarter. S.A. Mason LLC now owns 1,328 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $645,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN grew its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN now owns 1,057 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $513,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Northern Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Northern Capital Management Inc. now owns 647 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $314,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. LongView Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. LongView Wealth Management now owns 1,762 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $856,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hanson & Doremus Investment Management lifted its stake in Meta Platforms by 5.3% during the first quarter. Hanson & Doremus Investment Management now owns 435 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $211,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 0.5 %

NASDAQ META traded down $2.76 during trading on Monday, hitting $515.01. 7,084,755 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 16,426,666. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12 month low of $274.38 and a 12 month high of $542.81. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $496.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $483.87. The company has a market capitalization of $1.31 trillion, a P/E ratio of 29.64, a PEG ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a current ratio of 2.83, a quick ratio of 2.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. The business 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 revenue was up 22.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.23 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 20.5 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Guggenheim upped their price target on Meta Platforms from $500.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Bank of America boosted their target price on Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $563.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Citigroup increased their price target on Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $580.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $480.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $625.00 to $647.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, thirty-three have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $572.51.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In other news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $533.95, for a total value of $483,224.75. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 36,940 shares in the company, valued at $19,724,113. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $533.95, for a total value of $483,224.75. Following the sale, the insider now owns 36,940 shares in the company, valued at $19,724,113. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 6,534 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.04, for a total transaction of $3,299,931.36. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 116,108 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,639,184.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 319,158 shares of company stock worth $158,629,849. 13.71% of the stock is owned by 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.