Gerber LLC Takes $1.31 Million Position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Gerber LLC acquired a new position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 3,701 shares of the social networking company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,310,000. Meta Platforms makes up 1.2% of Gerber LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 15th largest holding.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Stone House Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 68.9% in 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 last quarter. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Clear Investment Research LLC raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 411.1% during the 4th quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 92 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Meta Platforms by 80.4% in the fourth quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC now owns 101 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Up 0.1 %

META stock traded up $0.56 during trading on Friday, hitting $504.16. 10,243,347 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 10,607,878. The stock has a market cap of $1.28 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.31 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, Inc. has a 1 year low of $271.42 and a 1 year high of $531.49. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $480.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $442.26.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The social networking company reported $4.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.32 by $0.39. The company had revenue of $36.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.28 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.06% and a return on equity of 32.03%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 20.16 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.40%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 11.49%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 36,643 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,794,965.15. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Meta Platforms news, insider Nicholas Clegg sold 1,135 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $471.85, for a total transaction of $535,549.75. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 8,753 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,130,103.05. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $431.05, for a total transaction of $252,164.25. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 36,643 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,794,965.15. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 437,528 shares of company stock valued at $215,768,262. 13.71% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $535.00 to $480.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Raymond James raised their price objective on Meta Platforms from $525.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 5th. Roth Mkm boosted their target price on Meta Platforms from $500.00 to $510.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Barclays reduced their price target on Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $520.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, BNP Paribas initiated coverage on Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $360.00 price objective for the company. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, thirty-seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $510.41.

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.