ARK Investment Management LLC Takes Position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

ARK Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 199,745 shares of the social networking company’s stock, valued at approximately $57,323,000.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Worth Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 248.6% in the first quarter. Worth Asset Management LLC now owns 122 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the period. Sageworth Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Finally, Corrado Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. 62.87% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on META shares. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $335.00 to $400.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 27th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $310.00 to $365.00 in a report on Thursday, July 27th. New Street Research raised Meta Platforms from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $350.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, July 25th. Wolfe Research lifted their price target on Meta Platforms from $300.00 to $330.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 14th. Finally, HSBC upgraded Meta Platforms from a “reduce” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $285.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating, forty-four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Meta Platforms presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $319.79.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In related news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 722 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $278.73, for a total transaction of $201,243.06. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 35,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,811,296. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Nicholas Clegg sold 2,146 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $306.19, for a total transaction of $657,083.74. Following the sale, the insider now owns 12,631 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,867,485.89. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 722 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $278.73, for a total transaction of $201,243.06. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 35,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,811,296. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 41,179 shares of company stock valued at $12,474,820 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 13.75% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 3.7 %

META opened at $300.31 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.14, a quick ratio of 2.32 and a current ratio of 2.32. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1 year low of $88.09 and a 1 year high of $326.20. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $302.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $259.30. The company has a market cap of $772.75 billion, a PE ratio of 35.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.23.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 26th. The social networking company reported $3.23 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.87 by $0.36. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 18.70% and a return on equity of 21.72%. The business had revenue of $32 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $30.91 billion. Sell-side analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 13.17 earnings per share for the current year.

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.