BKM Wealth Management LLC Trims Stock Position in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• BKM Wealth Management cut its Meta stake by 26.6% in the second quarter, selling 929 shares and retaining 2,567 shares valued at approximately $1.45 million.
• Meta reported quarterly revenue of $60.8 billion, up 28% year over year and above estimates, but earnings of $6.18 per share fell short of the $7.19 consensus forecast.
• Despite recent price-target reductions, analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average target of $785.32; institutional investors own roughly 79.91% of Meta’s outstanding shares.

BKM Wealth Management LLC decreased its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 26.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,567 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 929 shares during the period. BKM Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $1,446,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of META. Auto Owners Insurance Co increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 76,587.7% during the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 105,292,277 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $69,502,379,000 after purchasing an additional 105,154,977 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter valued at about $22,152,075,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 199,995,630 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $132,015,115,000 after purchasing an additional 7,269,279 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 488.1% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 5,466,595 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $3,608,445,000 after purchasing an additional 4,537,076 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp grew its stake in Meta Platforms by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 90,841,345 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $59,963,463,000 after buying an additional 4,395,763 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Meta Platforms Stock Up 1.1%

Meta Platforms stock opened at $576.14 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $592.39 and a two-hundred day moving average of $612.48. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a twelve month low of $520.26 and a twelve month high of $790.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.47 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.70, a PEG ratio of 0.97 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.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.19 by ($1.01). Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 33.18% and a net margin of 29.83%.The company had revenue of $60.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $60.22 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $7.14 EPS. Meta Platforms's revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 28.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Settlement ends a high-profile trial and reduces legal uncertainty. Meta agreed to pay up to roughly $16.7 billion–$18 billion to settle claims brought by dozens of states alleging that Facebook and Instagram harmed or misled young users. Investors appear to prefer a defined cost over the possibility of much larger damages or an adverse trial ruling. The payout is substantial but reportedly equivalent to only several months of Meta’s profits. Reuters settlement report
• Positive Sentiment: Restrictions are less disruptive than a fundamental business overhaul. The agreement requires measures including two-hour daily limits for teenage users, overnight blocking, muted school-hour notifications, autoplay controls, parental tools and stronger age verification. However, Meta is not required to abandon personalized recommendations or targeted advertising, preserving the core of its advertising model. Associated Press settlement report
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors continue to highlight Meta’s advertising and AI potential. A bullish analysis points to improving ad-ranking algorithms, rising ad impressions and pricing, strong network effects and Meta’s AA- credit rating. Evercore ISI also sees possible future revenue from excess AI-computing capacity as Meta expands its data-center infrastructure. These catalysts compete with concerns that the stock has declined in recent months and remains below its longer-term moving averages. Invezz AI infrastructure analysis
• Negative Sentiment: The settlement creates meaningful financial and regulatory costs. The maximum payment could reach $18 billion, while usage limits may reduce teen engagement and potentially weaken future advertising data and impressions. Reports also question whether Meta’s age-verification technology works reliably, and the company’s final obligations could become stricter if TikTok, YouTube and other competitors adopt similar safeguards. Meta still faces thousands of additional youth-related lawsuits. TechCrunch age-verification report

Insider Activity

In other Meta Platforms news, insider Curtis J. Mahoney sold 1,559 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $558.00, for a total transaction of $869,922.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 1,957 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,092,006. This represents a 44.34% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,848 shares of the firm's 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 owned 828 shares of the company's stock, valued at $462,024. This trade represents 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. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 34,957 shares of company stock valued at $20,442,696. 13.53% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on META shares. Monness Crespi & Hardt cut their price target on Meta Platforms from $890.00 to $730.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. BNP Paribas Exane assumed coverage on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They set an "outperform" rating on the stock. Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $840.00 to $770.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $835.00 to $640.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Phillip Securities upgraded shares of Meta Platforms to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $785.32.

About Meta Platforms

Meta Platforms, Inc NASDAQ: META, formerly Facebook, Inc, is a global technology company best known for building social networking services and immersive computing platforms. Founded in 2004 and headquartered in Menlo Park, California, the company operates a family of consumer-facing products and services that connect users, creators and businesses. In October 2021 the company rebranded as Meta to reflect an expanded strategic focus on augmented and virtual reality technologies alongside its social media businesses.

Meta's core consumer products include Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger, which enable social networking, messaging, content sharing and community building across mobile and desktop devices.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

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