Clark Asset Management LLC Has $4.06 Million Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Clark Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Meta by 66.3% in Q4, adding 2,449 shares to hold 6,142 shares worth about $4.06 million per its SEC filing.
• Meta reported a strong Q1 beat with EPS $10.44 versus estimates of $6.67 and revenue of $56.31 billion (up 33.1% year-over-year), supporting its growth narrative.
• Despite the beat, shares pulled back as Meta raised FY capital-expenditure guidance to ramp AI/data-center investment and Reality Labs posted >$4 billion in losses, producing mixed investor reaction.

Clark Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 66.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 6,142 shares of the social networking company's stock after buying an additional 2,449 shares during the quarter. Clark Asset Management LLC's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $4,055,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Westchester Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Meta Platforms in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Key Capital Management INC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth approximately $48,000. Dorato Capital Management acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth approximately $62,000. PMV Capital Advisers LLC raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 26.3% during the fourth quarter. PMV Capital Advisers LLC now owns 96 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Finally, Evergreen Private Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 64.8% during the third quarter. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $65,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Meta Platforms Trading Down 0.3%

Shares of Meta Platforms stock opened at $669.12 on Thursday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1 year low of $520.26 and a 1 year high of $796.25. The firm has a market cap of $1.69 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.47, a P/E/G ratio of 1.10 and a beta of 1.31. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $630.28 and a 200-day moving average price of $648.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.60 and a quick ratio of 2.60.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.67 by $3.77. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 38.61% and a net margin of 30.08%.The firm had revenue of $56.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $55.36 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $6.43 EPS. The business's revenue was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.83 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th were given a dividend of $0.525 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 16th. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.94%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on META. Scotiabank upped their target price on Meta Platforms from $685.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Meta Platforms from $856.00 to $765.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Raymond James Financial lowered their target price on Meta Platforms from $825.00 to $800.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Meta Platforms from $825.00 to $775.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Pivotal Research lowered their target price on Meta Platforms from $930.00 to $910.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $837.09.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In other news, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 580 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $667.00, for a total transaction of $386,860.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 3,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,565,949. This represents a 13.10% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 629 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $670.84, for a total value of $421,958.36. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 2,372 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,591,232.48. The trade was a 20.96% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 167,155 shares of company stock valued at $107,067,129. Insiders own 13.61% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Strong monetization and product moves — Meta continues to monetize AI-driven ad demand and reported robust Q1 results that beat revenue/earnings expectations, supporting the company's growth narrative. Earnings/Press Release
• Positive Sentiment: New revenue/creator options — Meta launched a pilot to pay eligible creators in USDC stablecoins (Colombia, Philippines), which could lower payout friction and open new monetization paths in developing markets. Meta Pays Creators In Stablecoins
• Positive Sentiment: Energy/infra partnerships to support AI data centers — Meta announced collaborations (space-based solar, long-duration storage) intended to lock in continuous power for AI workloads, a strategic move to reduce energy risk and support long-term AI capacity. Meta Bets on Space-Based Solar
• Neutral Sentiment: Management disclosures and housekeeping — Meta filed its Q1 results, slide deck and conference materials; COO Javier Oliván executed a planned Rule 10b5-1 sale (disclosed). These are routine but noted by traders. SEC Filing
• Negative Sentiment: Big increase in capital spending — Meta raised FY capital-expenditure guidance substantially (now targeting far larger AI/data-center investment), a near-term cash and free‑cash‑flow headwind that spooked investors. CapEx Forecast Increase
• Negative Sentiment: Reality Labs losses persist — Reality Labs recorded a multibillion-dollar operating loss in Q1 (reported >$4B), reinforcing concerns about long-standing cash burn in AR/VR. Reality Labs Loss
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory and legal risks in Europe — EU regulators charged Meta with failing to keep under‑13s off Facebook/Instagram under the Digital Services Act and warned of potential fines; the company also flagged legal scrutiny in its communications. EU Charges
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction to guidance and user growth — Despite strong top-line beats, investors focused on higher spending, mixed user-growth signals and slightly cautious guidance, which led to a pullback in shares after the print. Market Reaction / WSJ

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding META? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report).

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.