Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) is Retirement Systems of Alabama’s 6th Largest Position

Retirement Systems of Alabama cut its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 1.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 794,892 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 12,289 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for about 1.5% of Retirement Systems of Alabama’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest position. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $385,984,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 186,349,346 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $65,960,215,000 after acquiring an additional 3,104,550 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 38,054,513 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $13,469,906,000 after acquiring an additional 927,491 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.4% during the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 36,277,772 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $10,890,950,000 after acquiring an additional 1,184,978 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its holdings in Meta Platforms by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 34,738,470 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $12,296,383,000 after purchasing an additional 1,083,719 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter valued at $11,285,855,000. 79.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Meta Platforms Trading Up 5.9 %

Shares of META traded up $29.95 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $539.91. The company had a trading volume of 21,212,180 shares, compared to its average volume of 16,284,765. The firm has a market cap of $1.37 trillion, a P/E ratio of 31.01, a P/E/G ratio of 1.32 and a beta of 1.21. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $482.42 and its 200 day moving average price is $458.78. The company has a quick ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 2.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52-week low of $274.38 and a 52-week high of $540.87.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The social networking company reported $4.71 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.32 by $0.39. The firm had revenue of $36.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $36.28 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 32.03% and a net margin of 32.06%. On average, research analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 20.15 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.37%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.49%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Meta Platforms from $585.00 to $540.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Meta Platforms from $525.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Needham & Company LLC reissued an “underperform” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Monday. Oppenheimer reduced their price objective on Meta Platforms from $585.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on Meta Platforms from $590.00 to $550.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, thirty-seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Meta Platforms has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $511.27.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In other news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $522.00, for a total value of $305,370.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 38,398 shares in the company, valued at $20,043,756. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $522.00, for a total value of $305,370.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 38,398 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,043,756. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 490 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $517.75, for a total value of $253,697.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 7,579 shares in the company, valued at $3,924,027.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 251,905 shares of company stock worth $123,528,726. Company 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.