Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Stock Position Lifted by Connective Capital Management LLC

Connective Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 36.7% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 5,848 shares of the social networking company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,570 shares during the period. Meta Platforms makes up about 4.0% of Connective Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Connective Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $4,316,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 237.5% during the 2nd quarter. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC now owns 54 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Briaud Financial Planning Inc acquired a new position in Meta Platforms during the 2nd quarter valued at about $42,000. WFA Asset Management Corp raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 42.6% in the second quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 67 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Maseco LLP acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms in the second quarter worth about $54,000. Finally, Piscataqua Savings Bank boosted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 433.3% in the second quarter. Piscataqua Savings Bank now owns 80 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $59,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

NASDAQ:META opened at $673.42 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $673.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $706.04. The firm has a market cap of $1.70 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.74, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a current ratio of 1.98. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a one year low of $479.80 and a one year high of $796.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The social networking company reported $7.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.74 by $0.51. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 39.35% and a net margin of 30.89%.The business had revenue of $51.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $49.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $6.03 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 26.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th will be given a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 15th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.28%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 600 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $609.35, for a total transaction of $365,610.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 7,347 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,476,894.45. The trade was a 7.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 517 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $639.03, for a total transaction of $330,378.51. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 14,268 shares in the company, valued at $9,117,680.04. This trade represents a 3.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 41,959 shares of company stock worth $26,671,107. Corporate insiders own 13.61% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Roth Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $810.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $870.00 price objective (down from $900.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Meta Platforms from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 1st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $875.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-nine have issued a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Meta Platforms presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $819.43.

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.