Horizon Investments LLC Has $69.35 Million Stock Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Horizon Investments LLC cut its Meta Platforms stake by 36.8% in the fourth quarter, selling 61,065 shares and ending with 105,059 shares valued at about $69.35 million.
• Meta’s latest quarterly results were strong, with EPS of $10.44 beating estimates and revenue of $56.31 billion topping expectations, while revenue rose 33.1% year over year.
• Despite positive earnings and analyst support, Meta faces ongoing attention from regulators and lawsuits, including a case over scam ads and a European court loss tied to publisher compensation.

Horizon Investments LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 36.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 105,059 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 61,065 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for approximately 0.9% of Horizon Investments LLC's holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Horizon Investments LLC's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $69,348,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Acorn Creek Capital LLC lifted its stake in Meta Platforms by 0.7% in 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 in the last quarter. One Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in Meta Platforms by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. One Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 8,454 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $5,580,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Davis Selected Advisers increased its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Davis Selected Advisers now owns 1,752,974 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $1,157,131,000 after purchasing an additional 37,460 shares during the period. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 137.9% in the 4th quarter. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC now owns 19,540 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $12,898,000 after purchasing an additional 11,325 shares during the period. Finally, Whelan Financial lifted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Whelan Financial now owns 5,882 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $3,882,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 580 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $667.00, for a total transaction of $386,860.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 3,847 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,565,949. This represents a 13.10% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 926 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $607.74, for a total transaction of $562,767.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 7,779 shares in the company, valued at $4,727,609.46. The trade was a 10.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 167,676 shares of company stock valued at $107,299,848 over the last 90 days. 13.61% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

META opened at $603.00 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a current ratio of 2.35. The company has a market cap of $1.53 trillion, a PE ratio of 21.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.25. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $624.72 and a 200-day moving average of $642.58. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52-week low of $520.26 and a 52-week high of $796.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 firm's revenue was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $6.43 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th were given a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 16th. 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 currently 7.63%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on META shares. Arete Research restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Evercore upped their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $875.00 to $900.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Argus reissued a "buy" rating and set a $800.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Erste Group Bank cut shares of Meta Platforms from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, Pivotal Research dropped their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $930.00 to $910.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $840.31.

Key Stories Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: One bullish analysis argues Meta is attractively priced for a recession scenario, citing 33% year-over-year revenue growth, strong operating margins, and the potential for long-term margin expansion as AI investments drive efficiency. Why Meta Is My Top Pick: Priced For A Recession With Massive Upside
• Positive Sentiment: Meta is testing deeper AI integration in Threads, which could improve engagement and strengthen its product ecosystem over time. Threads tests a Meta AI integration that works similarly to Grok
• Positive Sentiment: Meta offered rival AI chatbots temporary free access to WhatsApp as part of talks with EU antitrust regulators, suggesting the company is actively trying to reduce regulatory friction in Europe. Meta offers rival AI chatbots free access to WhatsApp month
• Neutral Sentiment: Several articles discuss Meta’s role in the broader attention economy and compare its platform model with earlier media strategies, but these are not immediate stock catalysts. Ted Turner built the original infinite scroll
• Negative Sentiment: Santa Clara County filed a lawsuit accusing Meta of profiting from scam ads on Facebook and Instagram, adding to concerns about ad quality, moderation, and legal exposure. California county sues Meta over scam ads
• Negative Sentiment: Meta also lost a court fight in Europe over compensation for Italian publishers, reinforcing ongoing regulatory and content-rights risks. Meta loses court fight over compensation to Italian publishers
• Negative Sentiment: Fresh reports and lawsuits alleging scam ads targeting seniors, along with investigations into Meta’s board oversight and privacy/AI practices, could keep sentiment under pressure if they broaden. Meta Faces Fresh Controversy Over Facebook Scam Ads

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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