Allworth Financial LP Sells 12,426 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Allworth Financial reduced its Meta Platforms position by 12.2% in the second quarter, selling 12,426 shares and retaining 89,681 shares valued at approximately $50.5 million.
• Institutional investors own about 79.91% of Meta’s outstanding shares, while insiders have sold 60,183 shares worth roughly $36.7 million over the past 90 days.
• Analysts remain broadly optimistic, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $788.88, despite Meta’s latest earnings missing EPS expectations and ongoing concerns over AI spending and regulatory risks.

Allworth Financial LP cut its position in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 12.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 89,681 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 12,426 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $50,517,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Auto Owners Insurance Co lifted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 76,587.7% in the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 105,292,277 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $69,502,379,000 after purchasing an additional 105,154,977 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth approximately $22,152,075,000. Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 488.1% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 5,466,595 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $3,608,445,000 after purchasing an additional 4,537,076 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 14.6% in the 1st 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 buying an additional 2,673,494 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 18.1% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 11,858,972 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $6,784,873,000 after buying an additional 1,815,017 shares during the period. 79.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Javier Olivan sold 3,348 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $600.97, for a total value of $2,012,047.56. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 9,498 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,708,013.06. The trade was a 26.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO Aaron Anderson sold 3,240 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $618.06, for a total transaction of $2,002,514.40. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 6,271 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,875,854.26. The trade was a 34.07% 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 60,183 shares of company stock valued at $36,673,495. 13.53% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

META has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Robert W. Baird decreased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $830.00 to $750.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Citigroup cut their target price on Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $800.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $883.00 to $886.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 27th. Susquehanna cut their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $650.00 and set a "positive" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $785.00 price objective (down from $800.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have given a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $788.88.

Key Meta Platforms News

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

• Positive Sentiment: New Meta One subscriptions could create recurring AI revenue. Meta introduced plans ranging from individual to creator and business tiers, priced from $2.99 to $499 per month, offering expanded access to AI image, video and editing tools across Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Meta AI. The initiative gives investors a clearer path to monetizing AI beyond advertising. Reuters article on Meta One subscriptions
• Positive Sentiment: AI agents are being integrated into WhatsApp Business. Businesses will be able to use third-party AI agents to set up and manage customer messaging, potentially increasing WhatsApp’s commercial utility and supporting higher business adoption and revenue. TechCrunch article on WhatsApp Business AI agents
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment remains broadly favorable. Recent coverage highlights bullish views tied to Meta’s Muse AI platform, improving advertising performance and the company’s valuation relative to growth. One report says 55 analysts covering Meta have no sell ratings, while Goldman Sachs has identified further upside potential. Analyst coverage article
• Positive Sentiment: Meta reportedly plans camera-free smart glasses. The internally named Luna glasses could broaden Meta’s wearables strategy while addressing privacy concerns associated with cameras, although launch details remain unconfirmed. Reuters article on Meta’s camera-free smart glasses
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta said it will directly report child-safety cases to India’s cybercrime portal, a move that could improve regulatory cooperation but also underscores continuing scrutiny of its platforms. Article on Meta’s child-safety reporting in India
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory and legal risks remain significant. California’s restrictions on certain youth-targeted advertising practices and a lawsuit involving alleged facial-recognition features in Meta’s smart glasses could increase legal costs and limit product functionality. Article on Meta’s regulatory risks
• Negative Sentiment: Investors continue to debate whether Meta’s aggressive AI infrastructure commitments will generate sufficient returns, particularly if interest rates remain elevated. A recent SEC filing also disclosed an insider sale worth approximately $13 million, which may weigh modestly on sentiment. Analysis of Meta’s AI spending

Meta Platforms Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:META opened at $670.24 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.71 trillion, a PE ratio of 25.24, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a current ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The business has a 50 day moving average of $603.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $609.04. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12-month low of $520.26 and a 12-month high of $790.80.

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

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

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

Meta Platforms Profile

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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