Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) is Washington Trust Advisors Inc.’s 9th Largest Position

Washington Trust Advisors Inc. cut its holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 88,041 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 600 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for 3.0% of Washington Trust Advisors Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest position. Washington Trust Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $31,163,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of META. Stone House Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Meta Platforms by 625.0% in the third 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. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms during the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Meta Platforms by 68.9% in the 3rd quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 103 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Finally, PayPay Securities Corp lifted its stake in Meta Platforms by 65.2% in the third quarter. PayPay Securities Corp now owns 109 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of META stock traded down $5.77 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $488.09. 8,125,758 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 17,786,563. The company has a quick ratio of 2.67, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52-week low of $202.54 and a 52-week high of $523.57. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $464.84 and a 200 day moving average of $375.30. The company has a market cap of $1.24 trillion, a PE ratio of 32.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.21.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The social networking company reported $5.33 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.82 by $0.51. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 29.48% and a net margin of 28.98%. The business had revenue of $40.11 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $39.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.00 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 24.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 19.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 22nd were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.41%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 21st. Meta Platforms’s payout ratio is 13.42%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

META has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Meta Platforms from $536.00 to $609.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, March 18th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $400.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $450.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $440.00 to $525.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Tigress Financial increased their price objective on Meta Platforms from $435.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, thirty-nine have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Meta Platforms currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $496.35.

Insider Activity

In other Meta Platforms news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 566 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.55, for a total transaction of $198,977.30. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 36,984 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,001,725.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Meta Platforms news, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 8,036 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $473.28, for a total value of $3,803,278.08. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer now owns 18,432 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,723,496.96. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 566 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.55, for a total value of $198,977.30. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 36,984 shares in the company, valued at $13,001,725.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 1,504,435 shares of company stock worth $703,629,367 over the last 90 days. 13.75% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.