Washington Trust Advisors Inc. Has $31.16 Million Stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Washington Trust Advisors Inc. cut its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 88,041 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 600 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms comprises 3.0% of Washington Trust Advisors Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Washington Trust Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $31,163,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Stone House Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 625.0% during the 3rd quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC now owns 87 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 75 shares during the period. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Meta Platforms by 68.9% in the third quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 103 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the second quarter valued at $30,000. PayPay Securities Corp lifted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 65.2% during the 3rd quarter. PayPay Securities Corp now owns 109 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Finally, E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 3rd quarter worth $40,000. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of META stock traded down $5.77 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $488.09. 8,125,758 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 17,786,563. The company has a market capitalization of $1.24 trillion, a PE ratio of 32.84, a PEG ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a current ratio of 2.67, a quick 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 business has a 50 day moving average of $464.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $375.30.

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

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. KeyCorp upped their target price on Meta Platforms from $465.00 to $575.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $425.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. JMP Securities boosted their target price on Meta Platforms from $410.00 to $500.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their price target on Meta Platforms from $370.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on Meta Platforms from $450.00 to $525.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, thirty-nine have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $496.35.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 1,064 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.51, for a total transaction of $374,006.64. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 1,064 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $351.51, for a total transaction of $374,006.64. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 490 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $488.03, for a total value of $239,134.70. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 79,944 shares in the company, valued at approximately $39,015,070.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 1,504,435 shares of company stock worth $703,629,367 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 13.75% 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.