Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC Boosts Stock Position in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 2.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 118,460 shares of the social networking company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,871 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for approximately 1.6% of Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Signature Estate & Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $78,195,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Westchester Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Key Capital Management INC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 36.8% during the 4th quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 78 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In related news, insider Curtis J. Mahoney sold 2,079 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $609.92, for a total value of $1,268,023.68. Following the transaction, the insider owned 1,118 shares in the company, valued at approximately $681,890.56. This trade represents a 65.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Susan J. Li sold 9,195 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $607.84, for a total value of $5,589,088.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,186 shares in the company, valued at $8,014,978.24. This trade represents a 41.08% 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. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold a total of 40,890 shares of company stock worth $25,315,558 over the last ninety days. 13.53% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on META. Citizens Jmp reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $900.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their price target on Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $750.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Bank of America reduced their price target on Meta Platforms from $885.00 to $820.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 20th. Mizuho reduced their price target on Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $835.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Friday, March 27th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $840.19.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:META opened at $632.51 on Monday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $617.84 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $636.92. The stock has a market cap of $1.60 trillion, a PE ratio of 22.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a current ratio of 2.35. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a one year low of $520.26 and a one year high of $796.25.

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

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 25th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.63%.

Key Headlines Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta launched paid subscription plans across its flagship apps and Meta AI, opening a new monetization path that could reduce reliance on ad revenue. Mark Zuckerberg says a Meta cloud computing business ‘definitely on the table’
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentators are pointing to the subscription push as a meaningful upside driver, with some estimating it could add billions in annual revenue if adoption is strong. Meta’s Subscription Push Could Add $13.5 Billion By 2028 Across Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta also said it may eventually use excess AI/data-center capacity for a cloud business, which adds long-term optionality but is still early-stage. Mark Zuckerberg says a Meta cloud computing business ‘definitely on the table’
• Neutral Sentiment: The company declared a quarterly dividend, which is modest but reinforces capital-return strength. Meta Announces Quarterly Cash Dividend
• Negative Sentiment: Reuters reported Meta’s employee mouse-click tracking tool for AI training may run into EU privacy concerns, creating regulatory risk around data collection and cross-border use. Exclusive: Meta tool to track employee mouse clicks on collision course with EU privacy rules
• Negative Sentiment: Recent commentary from Jim Cramer and disclosures of insider selling add some caution around execution and valuation. Jim Cramer Says Meta “Has Not Excelled in a Visible Way”

Meta Platforms Company Profile

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.