Equitable Trust Co. Sells 1,192 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Equitable Trust Co. reduced its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 4.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 24,744 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 1,192 shares during the period. Equitable Trust Co.'s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $14,157,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Auto Owners Insurance Co raised its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 105,154,977 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth approximately $22,152,075,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 199,995,630 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $132,015,115,000 after acquiring an additional 7,269,279 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 488.1% during 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 acquiring an additional 4,537,076 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp grew its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 90,841,345 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $59,963,463,000 after purchasing an additional 4,395,763 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on META. UBS Group lowered their target price on Meta Platforms from $865.00 to $766.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Susquehanna raised Meta Platforms from a "positive" rating to a "positive" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective 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. Wolfe Research dropped their target price on Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $800.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $810.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-six have assigned a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $835.90.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:META opened at $681.31 on Thursday. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $601.49 and its 200 day simple moving average is $626.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.72 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 2.35 and a quick ratio of 2.35. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1 year low of $520.26 and a 1 year high of $796.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.67 by $3.77. The firm had revenue of $56.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $55.56 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 36.93% and a net margin of 32.84%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 33.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $6.43 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 25th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th were 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 was Monday, June 15th. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio is currently 7.63%.

Key Meta Platforms News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Multiple pieces highlighted Meta’s expanding AI strategy, including reports that it is building out custom chips and massive computing capacity, with some commentary suggesting Meta could even broaden into cloud services. That supports the view that META is investing aggressively to stay competitive in AI. How Meta Platforms (META) Is Strengthening Its AI Infrastructure With Custom Chips and Massive Computing Expansion
• Positive Sentiment: Several market articles argued that investors are still warming to Meta ahead of its next earnings report, pointing to strong ad growth, AI engagement, and continued long-term demand for its platforms. This is helping sentiment around the stock. Meta Platforms, Inc. (META) is Attracting Investor Attention: Here is What You Should Know
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta announced it will release second-quarter 2026 results on July 29, keeping attention on the upcoming earnings print. That event is adding anticipation, but it is not a direct operational surprise yet. Meta to Announce Second Quarter 2026 Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Some analysts are debating valuation and capital spending, with concerns that heavy AI capex could pressure free cash flow even if revenue remains strong. That creates a valuation headwind, but it is still largely a longer-term debate. Meta Q2 Preview: CAPEX And Free Cash Flow In Focus
• Negative Sentiment: Meta is facing a new lawsuit from former employees alleging it used AI tools and workplace metrics to target workers on medical, parental, or other protected leave during layoffs. That raises legal and reputational risk for META. Meta used AI to target workers with medical conditions for layoffs, former employees' lawsuit claims

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Meta Platforms news, COO Javier Olivan sold 3,348 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $600.97, for a total transaction of $2,012,047.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 9,498 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $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 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, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $607.75, for a total transaction of $303,875.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 3,443 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,092,483.25. This trade represents a 12.68% 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. Insiders sold a total of 39,503 shares of company stock worth $24,241,859 in the last ninety days. 13.53% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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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