Simplicity Wealth LLC Has $3.58 Million Stock Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Simplicity Wealth LLC trimmed its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 34.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,121 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 3,199 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms makes up 0.7% of Simplicity Wealth LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Simplicity Wealth LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $3,584,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ballentine Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 58,218 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $34,087,000 after buying an additional 808 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in Meta Platforms by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 140,585 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $82,314,000 after acquiring an additional 897 shares during the period. Brueske Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at $459,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 13,827,565 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $7,915,451,000 after purchasing an additional 118,298 shares during the period. Finally, Apollon Financial LLC boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 11.1% in the 4th quarter. Apollon Financial LLC now owns 1,479 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $866,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Meta Platforms Stock Up 2.9 %

Shares of META stock opened at $607.60 on Friday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52-week low of $414.50 and a 52-week high of $740.91. The stock has a market cap of $1.54 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.40, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.23. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $658.01 and its 200-day moving average is $602.61. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 2.98 and a current ratio of 2.98.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The social networking company reported $8.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.75 by $1.27. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 38.17% and a net margin of 37.91%. During the same period last year, the business earned $5.33 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.35%. This is a boost from Meta Platforms’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Meta Platforms’s payout ratio is 8.78%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on META shares. Mizuho upped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $675.00 to $750.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price target on Meta Platforms from $720.00 to $790.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $700.00 to $800.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Benchmark raised shares of Meta Platforms from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $820.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Arete Research upgraded shares of Meta Platforms to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, thirty-five have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $719.26.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In related news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $626.66, for a total value of $567,127.30. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 34,725 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,760,768.50. This represents a 2.54 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 413 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $629.56, for a total transaction of $260,008.28. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 18,340 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,546,130.40. This trade represents a 2.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 690,689 shares of company stock worth $451,269,409 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 13.71% of the company’s stock.

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.