3,017 Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Shares Acquired by First Merchants Corp

Key Points

• First Merchants Corp increased its Meta stake by 13.7%, purchasing 3,017 shares to hold 25,009 shares worth approximately $18.1 million. Institutional investors collectively own 79.91% of Meta’s outstanding stock.
• Analysts remain broadly optimistic, with Meta receiving a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $808.88, although some firms have issued hold ratings or reduced expectations.
• Meta reported strong 28% year-over-year revenue growth but missed quarterly EPS estimates, while insider selling totaled nearly $102.2 million last quarter. Investors are also monitoring the company’s substantial AI infrastructure spending and related regulatory and tax risks.

First Merchants Corp boosted its holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 13.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 25,009 shares of the social networking company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,017 shares during the quarter. First Merchants Corp's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $18,136,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Advantage Trust Co purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms in the 2nd quarter valued at about $28,000. Philadelphia Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. Horizons Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Axiom Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 1st quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Schuylkill Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the second quarter worth approximately $36,000. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 27,474 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $777.44, for a total value of $21,359,386.56. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,848 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 $4,379,184.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 828 shares of the company's stock, valued at $462,024. The trade was a 90.46% 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. Insiders sold a total of 149,797 shares of company stock valued at $102,180,385 over the last quarter. 13.53% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on META. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $796.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 6th. Pivotal Research increased their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $790.00 to $930.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Phillip Securities raised shares of Meta Platforms from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $795.00 to $750.00 in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $886.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, October 13th. Finally, Benchmark reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, August 27th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-six have given a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $808.88.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Meta Platforms stock opened at $709.33 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $1.81 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.19. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12 month low of $520.26 and a 12 month high of $779.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 2.23 and a quick ratio of 2.23. The stock's 50-day moving average is $655.78 and its 200-day moving average is $625.86.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $7.19 by ($1.01). The firm had revenue of $60.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $60.22 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 33.18% and a net margin of 29.83%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $7.14 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 28.81 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 28th. Investors of record on Monday, September 21st were issued a $0.5250 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 21st. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.91%.

Meta Platforms News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America expects Meta to exceed third-quarter revenue expectations, forecasting $63.8 billion versus a $63.3 billion consensus estimate, and maintained a Buy rating with an $810 price target. Meta expected to beat revenue forecasts as AI boosts advertising, says Bank of America
• Positive Sentiment: Meta released the open-weight Muse Spark model for coding and AI-agent tasks, while its collaboration with Apple enables developers to run the model locally on high-end Mac computers. The developments could broaden adoption of Meta’s AI technology and reduce reliance on cloud infrastructure. Meta releases open-weight Muse Spark model
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan reaffirmed its Overweight rating and set a $920 price target, implying substantial upside, while other analysts including KeyCorp and Rosenblatt also maintained positive ratings. JPMorgan reaffirms Meta rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta is expected to report third-quarter results on October 21. Investors will focus on advertising growth, user metrics, profitability, capital expenditures, and management’s outlook for AI infrastructure spending. Meta Q3 earnings estimates
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta withdrew $25 million from a previously announced $65 million effort to support political candidates considered favorable to the AI industry. The move may reduce near-term spending but signals a change in its political strategy. Meta Withdraws $25 Million from Its Midterms Push
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst-related pressure is weighing on the stock after Goldman Sachs lowered its expectations and Meta was reported down following an analyst downgrade, countering the more bullish JPMorgan view. Meta stock price down on analyst downgrade
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned that AI infrastructure spending could reach approximately $205 billion in 2027. Heavy capital expenditures are reducing free cash flow, while potential legal charges and regulatory scrutiny add to earnings risk. Meta AI spending could hit $205 billion
• Negative Sentiment: Seven U.S. senators are questioning Meta’s claim of $6.6 billion in research tax credits for AI data centers, creating potential tax liability and reputational risk. Senators question Meta AI data-center tax credits

Meta Platforms Company Profile

Meta Platforms, Inc is a technology company that develops social networking, messaging, virtual and augmented reality, and artificial intelligence products. The company's principal platforms include Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp, and Threads, which enable users to connect, communicate, share content, and discover products and services.

Meta also operates Reality Labs, its division focused on virtual, augmented, and mixed reality technologies. Reality Labs develops products such as Meta Quest virtual reality headsets and related software and experiences, along with research and hardware intended to support immersive computing.

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