Swedbank AB Purchases 34,238 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Swedbank AB raised its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 1.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,482,627 shares of the social networking company’s stock after buying an additional 34,238 shares during the period. Meta Platforms makes up about 2.6% of Swedbank AB’s holdings, making the stock its 7th biggest holding. Swedbank AB’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $2,557,572,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Cypress Wealth Services LLC increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 2.6% during the third quarter. Cypress Wealth Services LLC now owns 5,013 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $3,682,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. Matthew Goff Investment Advisor LLC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $258,000. Enclave Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 42.8% in the 3rd quarter. Enclave Advisors LLC now owns 6,270 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $4,605,000 after purchasing an additional 1,878 shares in the last quarter. Defined Financial Planning LLC boosted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. Defined Financial Planning LLC now owns 817 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $586,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Apeiron RIA LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $298,000. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In other Meta Platforms news, CFO Susan J. Li sold 6,875 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Saturday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $609.46, for a total value of $4,190,037.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 88,370 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,857,980.20. This represents a 7.22% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 2,610 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Saturday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $609.46, for a total transaction of $1,590,690.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 9,784 shares in the company, valued at $5,962,956.64. The trade was a 21.06% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 42,074 shares of company stock valued at $26,359,548. Corporate insiders own 13.61% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 0.6%

NASDAQ:META opened at $663.29 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $654.81 and a 200-day moving average of $706.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.67 trillion, a PE ratio of 29.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 1.28. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52 week low of $479.80 and a 52 week high of $796.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The social networking company reported $7.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $49.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $6.03 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 26.2% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 15th were issued a dividend of $0.525 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 15th. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Meta Platforms’s payout ratio is 9.28%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on META. Erste Group Bank cut shares of Meta Platforms from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $875.00 to $800.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. KeyCorp decreased their price target on Meta Platforms from $905.00 to $875.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, December 4th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their target price on Meta Platforms from $925.00 to $815.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-nine have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $820.22.

Meta Platforms Profile

Meta Platforms, Inc (NASDAQ: META), formerly Facebook, Inc, is a global technology company best known for building social networking services and immersive computing platforms. Founded in 2004 and headquartered in Menlo Park, California, the company operates a family of consumer-facing products and services that connect users, creators and businesses. In October 2021 the company rebranded as Meta to reflect an expanded strategic focus on augmented and virtual reality technologies alongside its social media businesses.

Meta’s core consumer products include Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger, which enable social networking, messaging, content sharing and community building across mobile and desktop devices.