Ethic Inc. Increases Stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Ethic Inc. lifted its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 5.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 169,248 shares of the social networking company's stock after acquiring an additional 8,752 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for 1.2% of Ethic Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position. Ethic Inc.'s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $95,336,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in META. First National Bank Sioux Falls lifted its stake in Meta Platforms by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. First National Bank Sioux Falls now owns 2,001 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $1,321,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. now owns 984 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $649,000 after buying an additional 14 shares during the period. Vista Capital Partners Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.3% in the second quarter. Vista Capital Partners Inc. now owns 1,075 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $794,000 after buying an additional 14 shares during the period. Arcataur Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Arcataur Capital Management LLC now owns 1,736 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $1,146,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Acorn Creek Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Acorn Creek Capital LLC now owns 2,118 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $1,398,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:META opened at $571.10 on Friday. The business's 50 day moving average is $592.26 and its 200 day moving average is $611.84. The stock has a market cap of $1.45 trillion, a P/E ratio of 21.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.98 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. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last issued its 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). Meta Platforms had a net margin of 29.83% and a return on equity of 33.18%. The firm had revenue of $60.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $60.22 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $7.14 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 28.5 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta agreed to settle claims brought by dozens of U.S. states for up to approximately $16.7 billion to $18 billion, substantially below figures that analysts and states had discussed as potentially reaching $200 billion or more. The deal ends the trial and leaves Meta’s core advertising business, personalized recommendations and targeted advertising largely intact. Meta's social media settlement leaves its money machine unscathed
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support remains favorable in some quarters: Rosenblatt raised its price target to $886 and maintained a buy rating, while Benchmark and Needham reiterated hold ratings. Investors also continue to point to Meta’s advertising momentum, AI infrastructure and potential to monetize excess computing capacity. Meta price target raised by Rosenblatt
• Neutral Sentiment: The settlement requires two-hour daily limits for users under 18, overnight blocking from midnight to 6 a.m. without parental consent, muted school-hour notifications, autoplay controls, stronger age checks and expanded parental controls. The measures may reduce engagement, but could also lower future regulatory and litigation risk. Meta settles federal social media addiction trial
• Negative Sentiment: The payout could equal several months of profit, and the agreement’s restrictions may pressure usage and advertising opportunities among younger users. Critics and a case whistleblower said the changes do not adequately address mental-health harms, while the settlement reportedly gives states protection from certain future lawsuits involving children’s data. Whistleblower criticizes Meta settlement
• Negative Sentiment: Regulators in the U.K., South Korea and Australia are urging Meta to apply the safeguards globally, raising the possibility of additional compliance costs and similar actions overseas. Investors are also monitoring Meta’s heavy AI spending and reports that it could spend up to $10 billion annually on Anthropic tools. South Korea urges global youth protections

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In related news, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,848 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $558.00, for a total value of $4,379,184.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 828 shares in the company, valued at $462,024. The trade was a 90.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Susan J. Li sold 9,196 shares of the company'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 sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,186 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,260,343.46. This trade represents a 41.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 ninety days, insiders have sold 34,957 shares of company stock worth $20,442,696. Corporate insiders own 13.53% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on META shares. Evercore reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. DA Davidson decreased their target price on Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $700.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Phillip Securities raised shares of Meta Platforms to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Truist Financial cut their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $770.00 to $763.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $785.22.

Meta Platforms Company Profile

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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