Hoey Investments Inc. Has $73.05 Million Stock Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Hoey Investments Inc. cut its Meta Platforms stake by 4.3% in the first quarter, but it still held 127,688 shares valued at about $73.05 million. Meta remains the firm’s third-largest holding and makes up roughly 10.5% of its portfolio.
• Meta’s latest earnings beat expectations, with EPS of $10.44 versus the $6.67 consensus and revenue of $56.31 billion, up 33.1% year over year. The company also maintained strong profitability, posting a 36.93% return on equity and a 32.84% net margin.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on META, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $838.26. However, insider selling has been notable, including recent sales by COO Javier Olivan and other executives under pre-arranged trading plans.

Hoey Investments Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 4.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 127,688 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 5,732 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms makes up about 10.5% of Hoey Investments Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Hoey Investments Inc.'s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $73,054,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of META. RHL Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Niles Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Bayban boosted its position in Meta Platforms by 100.0% in the first quarter. Bayban now owns 70 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Meta Platforms news, COO Javier Olivan sold 3,348 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 9,498 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,708,013.06. The trade was a 26.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, 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 transaction of $1,268,023.68. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,118 shares in the company, valued at $681,890.56. This trade represents a 65.03% 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 quarter, insiders sold 40,083 shares of company stock worth $24,628,719. Insiders own 13.53% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of META opened at $669.21 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.69 trillion, a PE ratio of 24.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.25. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12-month low of $520.26 and a 12-month high of $796.25. The company has a current ratio of 2.35, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The business's 50 day moving average is $598.11 and its 200 day moving average is $626.85.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.67 by $3.77. The business had revenue of $56.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.56 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 36.93% and a net margin of 32.84%.The company's revenue was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $6.43 EPS. Research analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 25th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio is presently 7.63%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $810.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Monday, June 1st. Citizens Jmp cut their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $825.00 to $800.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Raymond James Financial raised Meta Platforms from an "underperform" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Meta Platforms from a "buy" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have given a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $838.26.

Key Stories Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s latest AI push is drawing bullish attention, including the launch of Muse Spark 1.1, expanded developer access through its Model API, and reports that the company plans to start producing an in-house AI chip in September. Investors are betting these moves could lower compute costs, reduce reliance on Nvidia and AMD, and open new revenue streams beyond advertising. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Meta is also benefiting from optimism around its cloud and AI infrastructure ambitions, including a new C$13 billion data center in Alberta and commentary that the company may be building a stronger long-term “AI revenue stack” than the market currently prices in. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Several analysts and commentators are still constructive on META, with bullish notes saying the stock looks attractively valued relative to its AI growth potential and that recent weakness created an opportunity for long-term investors. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Citizens JMP trimmed its price target to $800 from $825 while maintaining an outperform rating, suggesting continued upside but a slightly more cautious near-term view on valuation and spending. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Meta faces renewed regulatory risk after the European Union said Facebook and Instagram may violate the Digital Services Act with “addictive” design features such as infinite scroll, autoplay, and push notifications, potentially exposing the company to fines and product changes. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Separate reporting also highlighted investor concern that Meta’s aggressive AI capex could pressure margins if monetization takes longer than expected, even though the market is currently rewarding the strategy. Article Title

Meta Platforms 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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