HighTower Advisors LLC Reduces Position in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• HighTower Advisors reduced its Meta position by 6.2% in the second quarter, selling 85,949 shares and retaining 1.29 million shares valued at approximately $729.2 million. Institutional investors collectively own 79.91% of Meta.
• Meta is expanding beyond advertising with its new Meta Enterprise Platform and AI products, but sharply higher capital expenditures—$31.1 billion in the second quarter—are raising concerns about returns and margins.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish, with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $787.86, although Meta recently missed quarterly EPS expectations and faces competitive, privacy, legal and valuation risks.

HighTower Advisors LLC cut its holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 6.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,294,473 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 85,949 shares during the quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC owned 0.05% of Meta Platforms worth $729,164,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Watchman Group Inc. lifted its stake in Meta Platforms by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Watchman Group Inc. now owns 5,091 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $2,913,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares during the period. Penney Financial LLC grew its position in Meta Platforms by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Penney Financial LLC now owns 399 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $228,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the period. Barnes Pettey Financial Advisors LLC grew its position in Meta Platforms by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. Barnes Pettey Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,519 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $869,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the period. CWS Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. CWS Financial Advisors LLC now owns 985 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $564,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tenzing Financial LLC raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Tenzing Financial LLC now owns 1,210 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $726,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta launched the Meta Enterprise Platform, offering businesses and developers access to its Muse AI agent, Business Agent, Muse API and Muse Code. The company hired MongoDB CEO Chirantan “CJ” Desai to lead the initiative, signaling an effort to generate revenue from its multibillion-dollar AI investments beyond advertising. Meta launches enterprise AI platform
• Positive Sentiment: Muse’s integration across Facebook, Instagram, Messenger and WhatsApp is supporting rapid user adoption; the AI-powered app reportedly reached the top spot in the U.S. App Store. Analysts also see potential revenue from subscriptions, transaction fees, enterprise tools and commercial API licensing. Meta Platforms boosts ad engagement with AI
• Positive Sentiment: Monness Crespi & Hardt raised its price target on META to $830 from $730 and maintained a Buy rating, citing the company’s AI opportunity and expanding ecosystem. AI improvements are also reportedly increasing ad engagement, clicks and conversions. Meta Platforms price target raised
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors remain divided over Meta’s AI strategy. Bullish analysts expect new AI agents, smart glasses and enterprise software to create additional revenue streams, while others question whether the returns will justify the investment.
• Negative Sentiment: Capital expenditures rose sharply to $31.1 billion in the second quarter from $19.4 billion a year earlier. The scale of data-center and AI spending is raising concerns about returns on capital and near-term margins. Meta Platforms: Are You Going to Buy the Promise?
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that OpenAI is developing a competing AI assistant intensified competitive concerns. Separately, alleged Muse disclosures of private messages and a user’s address have triggered privacy and safety criticism, potentially creating regulatory and reputational risks. Elon Musk amplifies privacy concerns over Muse
• Negative Sentiment: Meta also faces legal and political overhang after a New Mexico jury found that Facebook misled residents about personal-data practices, while lawmakers are questioning AI and data-center tax subsidies. Recent gains have additionally left the valuation less compelling, increasing sensitivity to execution disappointments.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of Meta Platforms stock opened at $715.62 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.82 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.95, a PEG ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $616.56 and its 200-day simple moving average is $613.27. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52 week low of $520.26 and a 52 week high of $779.82.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.19 by ($1.01). Meta Platforms had a net margin of 29.83% and a return on equity of 33.18%. The business 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 business posted $7.14 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 27.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 21st were given a dividend of $0.5250 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 21st. 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 presently 7.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on META. Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $730.00 to $830.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $640.00 to $796.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, September 21st. Tigress Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating and set a $945.00 price target (down from $995.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday. Raymond James Financial lifted their target price on Meta Platforms from $650.00 to $860.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group decreased their price objective on Meta Platforms from $790.00 to $687.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-four have assigned a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Meta Platforms has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $787.86.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In related news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 27,474 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $777.44, for a total value of $21,359,386.56. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Christopher Cox sold 40,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $712.76, for a total value of $28,510,400.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 184,516 shares of the company's stock, valued at $131,515,624.16. This represents a 17.82% 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 three months, insiders have sold 150,807 shares of company stock valued at $102,155,232. 13.53% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Meta Platforms

Meta Platforms, Inc is a technology company that develops social networking, messaging, virtual and augmented reality, and artificial intelligence products. The company operates a global family of apps that includes Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp and Threads, enabling users to connect, communicate, share content and discover communities.

Meta generates most of its business through digital advertising displayed across its platforms. Its products serve individuals, creators, businesses and organizations in markets around the world, while its advertising tools help businesses reach audiences based on factors such as interests, activity and demographics.

Through its Reality Labs division, Meta develops virtual and augmented reality hardware, software and services, including the Meta Quest line of headsets and related experiences.

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