Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Shares Bought by GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC

GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC increased its holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 9.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,428 shares of the social networking company’s stock after buying an additional 565 shares during the period. GPS Wealth Strategies Group LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $3,241,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Meta Platforms by 527.3% during the 1st quarter. Delos Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 69 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 95.6% during the first quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 88 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the first quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Finally, Clear Investment Research LLC boosted its position in Meta Platforms by 411.1% during the fourth quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 92 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In related news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $467.57, for a total value of $423,150.85. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 43,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,234,091.75. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Meta Platforms news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $467.57, for a total value of $423,150.85. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 43,275 shares in the company, valued at $20,234,091.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 2,011 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $500.92, for a total value of $1,007,350.12. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 318,932 shares in the company, valued at $159,759,417.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 349,174 shares of company stock valued at $175,146,777 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 13.71% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

META has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup lifted their price target on Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $580.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $522.00 to $555.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $565.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $535.00 to $570.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $570.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, thirty-three have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $572.51.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:META traded up $11.09 during trading on Thursday, reaching $537.85. 4,747,012 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 16,320,536. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 2.83 and a quick ratio of 2.68. The company has a 50 day moving average of $498.92 and a 200-day moving average of $485.97. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12 month low of $274.38 and a 12 month high of $542.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.36 trillion, a P/E ratio of 30.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.21.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The social networking company reported $5.16 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $38.26 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.23 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 22.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 20.5 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th were given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.37%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 14th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.49%.

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.