First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. Purchases 2,025 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. lifted its position in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 3.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 56,439 shares of the social networking company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,025 shares during the period. Meta Platforms accounts for approximately 0.5% of First Citizens Bank & Trust Co.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $32,529,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 191,198,005 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $111,948,344,000 after acquiring an additional 1,502,553 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 49,181,127 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $28,719,970,000 after purchasing an additional 1,020,519 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 42,317,434 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $24,777,282,000 after purchasing an additional 1,049,121 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its position in Meta Platforms by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 40,317,105 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $23,606,338,000 after purchasing an additional 1,141,355 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth about $19,949,512,000. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Susan J. Li sold 6,874 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $659.36, for a total transaction of $4,532,440.64. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 70,040 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $46,181,574.40. This represents a 8.94% 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. Also, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 475 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $628.25, for a total transaction of $298,418.75. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 10,272 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,453,384. The trade was a 4.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 55,563 shares of company stock valued at $34,793,185 in the last ninety days. 13.61% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Meta Platforms Stock Up 1.9%

Meta Platforms stock opened at $697.71 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $1.75 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.17, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.26. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52-week low of $442.65 and a 52-week high of $740.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 2.98 and a current ratio of 2.98. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $587.67 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $615.55.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The social networking company reported $6.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.33 by $1.10. The business had revenue of $42.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $41.45 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 37.91% and a return on equity of 38.17%. Meta Platforms’s quarterly revenue was up 16.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $4.71 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.30%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.19%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Roth Capital raised their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $580.00 to $620.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Scotiabank decreased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $627.00 to $525.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Susquehanna lowered their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $700.00 and set a “positive” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. UBS Group upped their target price on Meta Platforms from $650.00 to $683.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $740.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, thirty-seven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $702.48.

Meta Platforms 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.