21,026 Shares in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Acquired by Sycale Advisors NY LLC

Sycale Advisors NY LLC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 21,026 shares of the social networking company's stock, valued at approximately $11,844,000. Meta Platforms accounts for 3.6% of Sycale Advisors NY LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest position.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Auto Owners Insurance Co boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 76,587.7% during the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 105,292,277 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $69,502,379,000 after buying an additional 105,154,977 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 52,806,712 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $34,734,628,000 after acquiring an additional 878,396 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter valued at about $22,152,075,000. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in Meta Platforms by 14.6% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 21,038,035 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $12,036,491,000 after acquiring an additional 2,673,494 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Meta Platforms by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 18,200,469 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $12,013,948,000 after acquiring an additional 1,046,715 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: AI strategy is boosting investor confidence. Goldman Sachs reiterated its bullish view, citing the rollout of Meta’s Muse AI agent and a recent legal settlement as potential catalysts. Analysts also argue that Meta’s valuation remains attractive relative to its growth, with one estimate assigning an $817 price target. Why is Meta stock gaining in premarket today
• Positive Sentiment: Advertising momentum supports earnings expectations. A bullish analysis highlighted second-quarter ad impressions growth of 14% and a 12% increase in average ad prices. Meta’s forward PEG ratio was also described as below both the sector median and its five-year average, suggesting investors may still view the stock as reasonably valued despite its recent rally. Meta Platforms: AI Spending Is Starting To Pay Off
• Positive Sentiment: Meta is benefiting from a shift in AI sentiment. Shares of Meta and Alphabet gained while AI-chip stocks weakened after several AI executives called for a slower approach to developing frontier models. Investors may be favoring Meta because its large user base and advertising business provide diversified ways to monetize AI. Why Google and Meta Stocks Are the Big Winners From the Latest AI Concerns
• Neutral Sentiment: AI investment is creating both opportunity and financial risk. AI-related debt issuance has surged, and Meta is viewed as better positioned than highly leveraged infrastructure providers because of its stronger cash generation. Nevertheless, the scale of data-center spending could pressure free cash flow and increase execution risk. AI-Related Debt Sales Are Near $500 Billion
• Negative Sentiment: Meta faces a proposed class-action lawsuit over smart-glasses privacy. Parents and children in California and Illinois allege that the company’s unreleased “NameTag” facial-recognition feature improperly used Facebook and Instagram data. The case could create legal costs, regulatory scrutiny and reputational damage if the allegations gain traction. Meta Faces Lawsuit Over Smart Glasses Facial Recognition
• Negative Sentiment: Content-moderation and insider-selling headlines add caution. Meta’s Oversight Board urged it not to replace professional fact-checking with Community Notes, while a reported insider stock sale worth about $13 million may weigh modestly on sentiment. These developments raise governance and reputational concerns, although neither necessarily changes Meta’s underlying operating outlook. Oversight Board asks Meta not to replace fact-checking with Community Notes

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on META shares. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $700.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Citigroup dropped their price target on Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $800.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Meta Platforms from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. KeyCorp decreased their price objective on Meta Platforms from $790.00 to $780.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane assumed coverage on Meta Platforms in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They set an "outperform" rating on the stock. Four 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 a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $788.88.

Meta Platforms Stock Up 2.7%

NASDAQ META opened at $665.60 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $520.26 and a 1-year high of $790.80. The company has a 50 day moving average of $602.89 and a 200-day moving average of $608.92. The company has a market cap of $1.70 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.07, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.19 by ($1.01). The company had revenue of $60.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $60.22 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 29.83% and a return on equity of 33.18%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $7.14 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 28.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 21st will be given a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 21st. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio is presently 7.91%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Curtis Mahoney sold 1,559 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $558.00, for a total transaction of $869,922.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 1,957 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,092,006. This represents a 44.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Susan Li sold 9,196 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $550.61, for a total value of $5,063,409.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 13,186 shares in the company, valued at $7,260,343.46. The trade was a 41.09% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders sold 60,183 shares of company stock worth $36,673,495. 13.53% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About Meta Platforms

Meta Platforms, Inc develops technologies that help people connect, communicate and build communities online. The company's principal products include Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp and Threads, which enable social networking, messaging, content sharing and digital communication.

Meta generates most of its business through advertising displayed across its family of apps. It also develops artificial intelligence technologies, business messaging tools and hardware and software through its Reality Labs division, including Quest virtual- and mixed-reality devices and related experiences.

The company was founded as Facebook in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg and was renamed Meta Platforms in 2021 to reflect its broader focus on building the metaverse.

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