Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Shares Purchased by Norway Savings Bank

Norway Savings Bank raised its holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 4.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,826 shares of the social networking company’s stock after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for approximately 1.2% of Norway Savings Bank’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding. Norway Savings Bank’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $2,240,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. JDM Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Meta Platforms during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Halpern Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $46,000. West Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the third quarter worth $49,000. Finally, Hoese & Co LLP grew its position in Meta Platforms by 2,000.0% during the third quarter. Hoese & Co LLP now owns 105 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $60,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

NASDAQ:META traded down $12.44 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $617.76. 9,077,158 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,873,400. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $590.92 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $550.47. The company has a market capitalization of $1.56 trillion, a P/E ratio of 29.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a quick ratio of 2.73, a current ratio of 2.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12 month low of $352.05 and a 12 month high of $638.40.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The social networking company reported $6.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.19 by $0.84. The firm had revenue of $40.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $40.21 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 35.55% and a return on equity of 35.60%. Sell-side analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 22.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.32%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 9.42%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on META shares. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $600.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $600.00 to $675.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Meta Platforms to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Roth Mkm boosted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $620.00 to $635.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $620.00 to $660.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, thirty-five have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Meta Platforms has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $645.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Meta Platforms news, COO Javier Olivan sold 413 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $584.83, for a total value of $241,534.79. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 11,533 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,744,844.39. This represents a 3.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 35,921 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $603.98, for a total transaction of $21,695,565.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 361,640 shares of company stock valued at $219,037,690 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 13.71% of the company’s stock.

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.