Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Stake Lifted by Sovereign Financial Group Inc.

Sovereign Financial Group Inc. boosted its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 21.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,817 shares of the social networking company’s stock after purchasing an additional 497 shares during the period. Sovereign Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $997,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Stone House Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 625.0% in the 3rd quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC now owns 87 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 68.9% during the third quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 103 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the period. PayPay Securities Corp lifted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 65.2% in the 3rd quarter. PayPay Securities Corp now owns 109 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Meta Platforms by 80.4% in the 4th quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC now owns 101 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. Finally, Gilfoyle & Co LLC purchased a new position in Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Meta Platforms news, COO Javier Olivan sold 490 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $445.93, for a total transaction of $218,505.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 6,109 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,724,186.37. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 490 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $445.93, for a total transaction of $218,505.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 6,109 shares in the company, valued at $2,724,186.37. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $431.05, for a total transaction of $252,164.25. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 36,643 shares in the company, valued at $15,794,965.15. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 1,223,416 shares of company stock valued at $597,392,856. 13.71% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Meta Platforms Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of Meta Platforms stock traded up $4.36 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $472.60. 11,648,149 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,223,398. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $490.03 and its 200 day moving average price is $411.78. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $230.72 and a 1-year high of $531.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.20 trillion, a P/E ratio of 27.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12, a current ratio of 2.68 and a quick ratio of 2.68.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The social networking company reported $4.71 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.32 by $0.39. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.06% and a return on equity of 32.03%. The business had revenue of $36.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $36.28 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 20.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on META shares. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Meta Platforms from $585.00 to $540.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $425.00 to $510.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $520.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on Meta Platforms from $590.00 to $530.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Meta Platforms from $609.00 to $600.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, thirty-seven have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $509.80.

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.