Griffin Asset Management Inc. Increases Position in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Griffin Asset Management increased its Meta Platforms stake by 23.8% in the fourth quarter, adding 1,731 shares to reach 8,994 shares valued at about $5.94 million.
• Meta’s latest earnings beat expectations, with EPS of $10.44 versus $6.67 expected and revenue of $56.31 billion, up 33.1% year over year.
• The company is expanding potential revenue streams through paid subscriptions across its apps and Meta AI, while also facing some caution from analyst target cuts, insider selling, and possible EU privacy scrutiny over AI data collection tools.

Griffin Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 23.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 8,994 shares of the social networking company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,731 shares during the quarter. Griffin Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $5,937,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of META. Westchester Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Key Capital Management INC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Entrust Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 36.8% in the 4th quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 78 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Meta Platforms News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta launched paid subscription plans across its flagship apps and Meta AI, opening a new monetization path that could reduce reliance on ad revenue. Mark Zuckerberg says a Meta cloud computing business 'definitely on the table'
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentators are pointing to the subscription push as a meaningful upside driver, with some estimating it could add billions in annual revenue if adoption is strong. Meta's Subscription Push Could Add $13.5 Billion By 2028 Across Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta also said it may eventually use excess AI/data-center capacity for a cloud business, which adds long-term optionality but is still early-stage. Mark Zuckerberg says a Meta cloud computing business 'definitely on the table'
• Neutral Sentiment: The company declared a quarterly dividend, which is modest but reinforces capital-return strength. Meta Announces Quarterly Cash Dividend
• Negative Sentiment: Reuters reported Meta’s employee mouse-click tracking tool for AI training may run into EU privacy concerns, creating regulatory risk around data collection and cross-border use. Exclusive: Meta tool to track employee mouse clicks on collision course with EU privacy rules
• Negative Sentiment: Recent commentary from Jim Cramer and disclosures of insider selling add some caution around execution and valuation. Jim Cramer Says Meta “Has Not Excelled in a Visible Way”

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on META shares. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $800.00 price objective (down from $880.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Meta Platforms from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 16th. 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 research note on Thursday, April 30th. Guggenheim reduced their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $800.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price target on Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $750.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $840.19.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:META opened at $632.51 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.60 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.25. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $520.26 and a 1-year high of $796.25. The company's fifty day moving average is $617.84 and its two-hundred day moving average is $636.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a current ratio of 2.35.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.67 by $3.77. The company had revenue of $56.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $55.56 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.84% and a return on equity of 36.93%. The firm's revenue was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $6.43 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.35 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.63%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In other Meta Platforms news, insider Curtis J. Mahoney sold 2,079 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $609.92, for a total value of $1,268,023.68. Following the transaction, the insider owned 1,118 shares of the company's stock, valued at $681,890.56. This trade represents a 65.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,847 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $607.83, for a total transaction of $4,769,642.01. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 414 shares in the company, valued at $251,641.62. This represents a 94.99% decrease in their position. 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. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last three months, insiders sold 42,445 shares of company stock worth $26,306,420. Insiders own 13.53% 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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