Nikulski Financial Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Nikulski Financial Inc. reduced its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 2.8% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 2,097 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 60 shares during the quarter. Nikulski Financial Inc.’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $1,200,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Central Valley Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.3% in the third quarter. Central Valley Advisors LLC now owns 5,714 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $3,271,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the period. Cherrydale Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Meta Platforms by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Cherrydale Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,841 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $2,199,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 0.7% in the third quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,787 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $1,595,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the period. Kozak & Associates Inc. lifted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.0% during the third quarter. Kozak & Associates Inc. now owns 1,906 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $1,099,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.5% during the third quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 3,560 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $2,038,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In other news, Director Peggy Alford sold 1,052 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $479.00, for a total transaction of $503,908.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 6,168 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,954,472. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director Peggy Alford sold 1,052 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $479.00, for a total transaction of $503,908.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 6,168 shares in the company, valued at $2,954,472. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 420 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $600.17, for a total value of $252,071.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 518,004 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $310,890,460.68. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 251,092 shares of company stock valued at $132,865,496. 13.71% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $570.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $605.00 to $630.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Meta Platforms from $525.00 to $530.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $570.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated an “underperform” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, thirty-five have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $634.10.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

META opened at $567.16 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 2.73, a quick ratio of 2.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12-month low of $308.33 and a 12-month high of $602.95. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $555.99 and a two-hundred day moving average of $513.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.43 trillion, a PE ratio of 26.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.36 and a beta of 1.22.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The social networking company reported $6.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.19 by $0.84. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 35.55% and a return on equity of 35.60%. The firm had revenue of $40.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $40.21 billion. On average, analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 21.84 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 26th. Investors of record on Monday, September 16th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.35%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is currently 9.42%.

Meta Platforms 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.