Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Shares Acquired by Laurel Oak Wealth Management LLC

Laurel Oak Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 38.3% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 14,666 shares of the social networking company’s stock after buying an additional 4,060 shares during the period. Meta Platforms makes up approximately 1.4% of Laurel Oak Wealth Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Laurel Oak Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $8,391,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in META. RHL Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Niles Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, Key Capital Management INC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth about $48,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,847 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $607.83, for a total value of $4,769,642.01. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 414 shares in the company, valued at $251,641.62. This trade represents a 94.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, insider Curtis J. Mahoney sold 2,079 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $609.92, for a total transaction of $1,268,023.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,118 shares in the company, valued at $681,890.56. This represents a 65.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 39,013 shares of company stock worth $24,115,999. 13.53% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:META opened at $564.11 on Wednesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $607.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $629.23. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a one year low of $520.26 and a one year high of $796.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a current ratio of 2.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.43 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.51, a PEG ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.23.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.67 by $3.77. The firm had revenue of $56.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $55.56 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 36.93% and a net margin of 32.84%.The business’s revenue was up 33.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $6.43 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.35 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th were paid a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 7.63%.

Key Headlines Impacting Meta Platforms

Here are the key news stories impacting Meta Platforms this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Meta continues to draw bullish commentary from analysts and investors who view it as a strong long-term growth story, with some recent coverage calling it a market favorite and one of billionaire Dan Loeb’s preferred growth holdings.
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Meta is rolling out a cheaper new line of smart glasses, starting at $299, support the company’s push beyond social media into wearable AI hardware and could broaden adoption.
• Positive Sentiment: One recent article argued Meta has clear AI-driven upside over the next several years, reinforcing the view that its scale, ad business, and AI investments could support higher earnings over time.
• Neutral Sentiment: Mark Zuckerberg is reportedly building a standalone prediction-market app, which could create a new product category, but it remains early and its financial impact is unclear.
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader “Magnificent 7” weakness has weighed on mega-cap tech stocks overall, adding a market-level headwind even for companies with strong fundamentals.
• Negative Sentiment: The lawsuit ruling in the Facebook and Instagram addiction case keeps legal exposure alive and could increase uncertainty around Meta’s platform practices and future costs. Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta loses bid to toss lawsuit alleging Facebook and Instagram addict children

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $725.00 price objective (down from $825.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. BNP Paribas Exane began coverage on Meta Platforms in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating for the company. Wedbush upgraded Meta Platforms from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Guggenheim dropped their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $800.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $840.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $840.60.

About Meta Platforms

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.