Koss Olinger Consulting LLC Sells 2,716 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Koss Olinger Consulting LLC lessened its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 46.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,099 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 2,716 shares during the period. Koss Olinger Consulting LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $2,046,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of META. Westchester Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. RHL Group LLC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Key Capital Management INC purchased a new position in Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter worth $48,000. Finally, Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new position in Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter worth $48,000. 79.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:META opened at $593.00 on Monday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a twelve month low of $520.26 and a twelve month high of $796.25. 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 $1.50 trillion, a PE ratio of 21.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.23. The company’s 50 day moving average is $618.83 and its 200 day moving average is $636.81.

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

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.63%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Susan J. Li sold 9,195 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief financial officer owned 13,186 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,014,978.24. This trade represents a 41.08% decrease in their position. The transaction 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. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,847 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $607.83, for a total transaction of $4,769,642.01. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 414 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $251,641.62. The trade was a 94.99% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 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. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 41,305 shares of company stock worth $25,567,928. Corporate insiders own 13.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on META shares. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective on Meta Platforms from $805.00 to $780.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 1st. TD Cowen dropped their target price on Meta Platforms from $820.00 to $800.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their target price on Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $750.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Erste Group Bank cut Meta Platforms from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler started coverage on Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They issued an “overweight” rating for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have given a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $840.60.

Trending Headlines about Meta Platforms

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

• Negative Sentiment: Meta is reportedly weighing a large stock sale to fund AI infrastructure, sparking dilution concerns and pressuring the shares. Article: Meta weighs big equity raising after blockbuster Google deal
• Negative Sentiment: Meta’s AI rollout has faced another delay, with the Muse Spark developer API still lacking a launch date, raising questions about when the company can monetize its AI investments. Article: Meta repeatedly pushes back new AI model release for developers
• Negative Sentiment: Privacy concerns resurfaced after reports that Meta smart glasses could use facial-recognition-style “faceprint” tracking, which could invite regulatory scrutiny and consumer backlash. Article: Code Reveals Meta Smart Glasses Can Use ‘Faceprint’ Tracking, Raising Privacy Alarms
• Negative Sentiment: Meta is also battling renewed policy and legal pressure in Australia over proposed payments for news, adding another regulatory overhang. Article: Meta accuses Australia of breaching FTA, invokes US ‘trade action’
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta continues to receive bullish long-term commentary from some analysts and investors who view it as a major AI and advertising platform, but that optimism is being overshadowed today by funding and execution concerns. Article: Analyst Sees Multi-Billion Dollar Potential In Meta Platforms’ Subscription Model

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.