Davis Rea LTD. Has $24.73 Million Stock Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Davis Rea LTD. increased its stake in Meta by 6.4% to 37,465 shares valued at $24.73 million, with Meta comprising 6.2% of the fund’s holdings and ranking as its third-largest position.
• Meta reported a strong quarter—EPS $10.44 (vs. $6.67 est.) and 33.1% revenue growth to $56.31 billion driven by AI‑powered ad pricing—while analysts remain mixed but the consensus rating is a Moderate Buy with a ~$840.67 target.
• Corporate insiders sold a total of 166,638 shares (~$106.7 million) in the last three months, and the company faces notable legal and regulatory risks (youth‑safety trial and board oversight investigations) that could pressure sentiment.

Davis Rea LTD. boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 6.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 37,465 shares of the social networking company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,248 shares during the period. Meta Platforms comprises 6.2% of Davis Rea LTD.'s holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Davis Rea LTD.'s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $24,730,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of META. State Street Corp increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 1.9% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 86,925,674 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $64,158,971,000 after purchasing an additional 1,650,435 shares during the period. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.7% during the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 39,247,690 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $28,823,375,000 after purchasing an additional 278,180 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.8% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 17,153,754 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $12,597,374,000 after purchasing an additional 142,229 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 4.1% in the third quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 14,332,168 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $10,525,258,000 after purchasing an additional 558,792 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 13,619,341 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $10,001,772,000 after buying an additional 481,276 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of META opened at $610.45 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a current ratio of 2.35. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $629.62 and a 200-day moving average price of $647.50. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $520.26 and a fifty-two week high of $796.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.54 trillion, a PE ratio of 22.19, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. The company had revenue of $56.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $55.56 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.84% and a return on equity of 36.93%. Meta Platforms's revenue was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $6.43 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 30.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th were issued a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 16th. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.63%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on META shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $725.00 price objective (down from $825.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $810.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $800.00 target price (down from $880.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $765.00 to $770.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Roth Mkm reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $840.67.

Meta Platforms News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Strong AI-driven ad momentum: Meta’s recent quarter showed ~33% revenue growth driven by AI-powered ad pricing, reinforcing revenue durability and upside to ad monetization trends. Meta Platforms vs Snap: Who’s Really Winning Digital Ads?
• Positive Sentiment: Big data‑center expansion: Bloomberg/Reuters report Meta is lining up roughly $13 billion in financing (led by Morgan Stanley and JPMorgan) for a new El Paso, TX, AI/data-center complex — a sign of ongoing investment in AI capacity that supports long‑term revenue opportunities but also signals heavy capex. Meta taps Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan for El Paso data center deal, Bloomberg News reports
• Positive Sentiment: Product/AI R&D push: Meta acquired Assured Robot Intelligence (ARI) to accelerate humanoid‑robot AI efforts — an R&D move that underscores Meta’s broader AI roadmap and long‑term platform expansion. Meta Acquires ARI to Fuel Humanoid Robot Push
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst actions are mixed: Several firms reaffirm Buy but trimmed price targets (e.g., Truist lowered its PT to $840 from $900 while keeping a Buy). This keeps institutional support intact but signals tempered near‑term upside expectations. Truist Reduces PT on Meta Platforms (META) Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Legal/regulatory risk — New Mexico youth‑safety trial: State seeks court-ordered platform changes and large penalties in a case alleging harm to young users; outcomes could force costly product changes or damages. New Mexico seeks changes to Meta platforms in youth harm trial
• Negative Sentiment: Reputation and regulatory headlines: Reuters won a Pulitzer for reporting on investigations that allege Meta knowingly exposed users (including minors) to harmful AI chatbots and profited from fraudulent ads — amplifies regulatory scrutiny and reputational risk. Reuters wins beat reporting Pulitzer for Meta investigations
• Negative Sentiment: Governance/legal probe: A shareholder law firm is investigating Meta’s board for potential oversight failures around privacy and AI training practices — another headline that can pressure investor sentiment. Berger Montague PC Investigates Meta Platforms, Inc.'s Board of Directors for Breach of Fiduciary Duty

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In related news, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 8,089 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $631.24, for a total transaction of $5,106,100.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 2,841 shares in the company, valued at $1,793,352.84. This represents a 74.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Susan J. Li sold 56,571 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $644.70, for a total value of $36,471,323.70. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders sold 166,638 shares of company stock valued at $106,697,681. Corporate insiders own 13.61% of the company's stock.

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.

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