Thames Capital Management LLC Purchases 6,305 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Thames Capital Management LLC raised its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 23.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 33,767 shares of the social networking company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,305 shares during the period. Meta Platforms accounts for about 3.2% of Thames Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest position. Thames Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $22,289,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Westchester Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. RHL Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Key Capital Management INC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter worth approximately $48,000. Finally, Entrust Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter worth approximately $48,000. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Meta Platforms Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of NASDAQ:META opened at $585.39 on Tuesday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52 week low of $520.26 and a 52 week high of $796.25. The company’s 50 day moving average is $619.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $636.72. The company has a current ratio of 2.35, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The company has a market cap of $1.48 trillion, a PE ratio of 21.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.23.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 32.84% and a return on equity of 36.93%. The company had revenue of $56.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.56 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $6.43 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is currently 7.63%.

Meta Platforms News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta announced a partnership with Associated Builders and Contractors to launch a $115 million workforce academy that will train construction technicians for its data center projects, helping address labor shortages and supporting its AI infrastructure expansion. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Italy’s competition regulator dropped its investigation into Meta’s WhatsApp AI bot, removing a legal overhang tied to how the company integrates AI into WhatsApp. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Meta also partnered with Best Buy to create “Meta Lab” experiential spaces where shoppers can test VR headsets and AI glasses, which could help boost hardware awareness and adoption. Article Title

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on META shares. Arete Research set a $735.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Guggenheim reduced their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $800.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 30th. UBS Group lowered shares of Meta Platforms from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Citizens Jmp reiterated a “market outperform” rating and set a $900.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have issued a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $840.60.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In related news, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,847 shares of the 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 of the company’s stock, 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 accessible through 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 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 trade 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 41,305 shares of company stock valued at $25,567,928. Corporate insiders own 13.53% of the company’s stock.

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.