Arete Wealth Advisors LLC Purchases 1,610 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Arete Wealth Advisors increased its Meta Platforms stake by 10% in the second quarter, purchasing 1,610 shares and bringing its holdings to 17,687 shares valued at approximately $9.96 million. Institutional investors collectively own 79.91% of Meta’s stock.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish, with Meta carrying a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $788.88, despite several firms recently lowering their targets. Meta shares opened at $682.31, while the company reported 28% year-over-year revenue growth in its latest quarter but missed earnings estimates.
• Meta’s AI-chip strategy and new AI products could support future growth and recurring revenue, but the company faces legal and reputational risks tied to fraudulent or deepfake advertisements, alongside continued insider selling under pre-arranged trading plans.

Arete Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 10.0% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 17,687 shares of the social networking company's stock after buying an additional 1,610 shares during the quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $9,963,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Objective Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Meta Platforms by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Objective Capital Management LLC now owns 553 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $365,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the period. Watchman Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.3% in the first quarter. Watchman Group Inc. now owns 5,091 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $2,913,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the period. Penney Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.9% in the first quarter. Penney Financial LLC now owns 399 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $228,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Barnes Pettey Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.0% in the first quarter. Barnes Pettey Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,519 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $869,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CWS Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. CWS Financial Advisors LLC now owns 985 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $564,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the period. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Meta Platforms News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America maintained a Buy view, estimating Meta could save approximately $8.5 billion in 2027 by shifting AI workloads to its in-house MTIA chips. Meta reportedly plans to deploy newer chips in 2027, potentially reducing dependence on Nvidia and improving AI margins. Meta Can Save $8.5 Billion in 2027 by Using Its Own MTIA Chips
• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s Muse AI agent and the new Meta One subscription are strengthening the investment case that the company can diversify beyond advertising. Meta One combines higher AI usage limits and features across Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, creating a potential recurring-revenue stream. Meta Platforms: Get In Before September 23
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst optimism remains a near-term catalyst. Citi identified Meta Connect on September 23 as a possible trigger for additional product announcements and investor enthusiasm, while Rosenblatt reiterated a Buy rating with an $886 price target. Meta Event Next Week Could Spark Stock Gains, Says Citi
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta is expanding Muse’s capabilities, including phone calls, as it competes with emerging AI-agent providers. The move could improve user engagement and monetization, but competition and the execution required to turn usage into paid revenue remain significant. Rival AI Agents and Meta’s Muse Add Calling
• Negative Sentiment: A German court ruled Meta liable for fraudulent third-party advertisements on Facebook and Instagram, ordering the company to remove such content and pay damages. The decision could increase legal costs and raise concerns about platform-monitoring obligations. German Court Rules Meta Liable for Fake Ads
• Negative Sentiment: Consumer advocate Clark Howard said Meta declined to remove a deepfake advertisement using his likeness. The episode adds reputational and regulatory risk as Meta attempts to control AI-generated scams and fraudulent advertising. Facebook Told Clark Howard a Deepfake Ad Meets Its Standards
• Negative Sentiment: Chief Product Officer Christopher Cox sold 20,000 Meta shares worth about $13.5 million. The transaction was made under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, which reduces its signaling value, but insider selling can still weigh modestly on sentiment. SEC Insider Trading Filing

Analysts Set New Price Targets

META has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $835.00 to $810.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Mizuho set a $750.00 price objective on Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Evercore reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Meta Platforms from $835.00 to $640.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Citizens Jmp dropped their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $770.00 and set a "market outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have assigned a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $788.88.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of META stock opened at $682.31 on Friday. The stock's fifty day moving average is $606.40 and its 200-day moving average is $609.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 2.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.74 trillion, a PE ratio of 25.70, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.25. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52 week low of $520.26 and a 52 week high of $790.80.

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 for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $7.19 by ($1.01). The company had revenue of $60.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $60.22 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 29.83% and a return on equity of 33.18%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $7.14 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 27.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Susan Li sold 9,196 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $550.61, for a total transaction of $5,063,409.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,186 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,260,343.46. The trade was a 41.09% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 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 that occurred on Thursday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $618.06, for a total transaction of $2,002,514.40. Following the completion of 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. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 81,758 shares of company stock valued at $51,214,020. Insiders own 13.53% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms Company 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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