K2 Principal Fund L.P. Makes New $1.41 Million Investment in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• K2 Principal Fund purchased 2,500 Meta Platforms shares worth approximately $1.41 million in the second quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 79.91% of Meta’s stock.
• Meta reported $60.80 billion in quarterly revenue, up 28% year over year, but earnings of $6.18 per share missed analysts’ $7.19 estimate. The stock recently opened at $648.03, while analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $787.54.
• Meta declared a quarterly dividend of $0.525 per share, equivalent to a $2.10 annualized payout and a 0.3% yield. Investors are also focused on potential growth from AI products such as Muse, alongside concerns about monetization, privacy, regulatory issues and AI execution.

K2 Principal Fund L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 2,500 shares of the social networking company's stock, valued at approximately $1,408,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Auto Owners Insurance Co boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 76,587.7% during the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 105,292,277 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $69,502,379,000 after buying an additional 105,154,977 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in Meta Platforms by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 90,841,345 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $59,963,463,000 after buying an additional 4,395,763 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Meta Platforms by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 52,806,712 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $34,734,628,000 after buying an additional 878,396 shares during the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its position in Meta Platforms by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 39,558,637 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $26,112,735,000 after buying an additional 310,947 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley grew its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 2.2% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 37,553,102 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $24,788,429,000 after acquiring an additional 823,883 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

NASDAQ:META opened at $648.03 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.65 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.41, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.25. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $520.26 and a 1-year high of $790.80. The business has a 50 day moving average of $601.58 and a 200 day moving average of $608.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 2.23 and a quick ratio of 2.23.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $7.19 by ($1.01). The firm had revenue of $60.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $60.22 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 33.18% and a net margin of 29.83%.Meta Platforms's revenue was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $7.14 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 28.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 21st will be given a dividend of $0.525 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 21st. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.91%.

Insider Activity

In other Meta Platforms news, insider Curtis Mahoney sold 1,559 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $558.00, for a total transaction of $869,922.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 1,957 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,092,006. This trade represents a 44.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Christopher Cox sold 20,000 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $650.28, for a total value of $13,005,600.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 244,516 shares of the company's stock, valued at $159,003,864.48. The trade was a 7.56% 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. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 61,581 shares of company stock worth $37,512,295. 13.53% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Meta Platforms News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Muse gains early consumer traction: Meta’s new AI agent reportedly reached No. 2 or No. 3 on the U.S. App Store shortly after its launch. Muse can interact with social platforms and outside services, while paid tiers priced at $20 and $100 per month create a potential new revenue stream beyond advertising. Meta's AI agent Muse is now the No. 2 app in the US
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan upgraded the stock: JPMorgan raised Meta to Overweight from Neutral and increased its price target to $820, citing meaningful growth potential from frontier AI models and agentic products. The upgrade helped reinforce the bullish view that Meta can diversify beyond advertising. JPMorgan upgrades Meta on AI models and agents
• Positive Sentiment: AI infrastructure optionality: Analysts believe Meta’s large AI-compute investments could eventually support a cloud-computing or infrastructure business, adding an opportunity not currently reflected in the valuation. The company’s strong revenue growth and substantial cash resources support this investment thesis.
• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly dividend declared: Meta announced a $0.525-per-share dividend payable September 28 to shareholders of record September 21. While the yield is modest, the payout signals confidence in ongoing cash generation.
• Neutral Sentiment: Legal settlement viewed as manageable: Commentary suggests Meta’s potential $18 billion social-media-addiction settlement, spread over a decade, may have a limited impact on annual free cash flow. Resolving the litigation could also remove an overhang, but the headline liability remains material.
• Negative Sentiment: Monetization and privacy concerns: Muse’s usefulness depends on access to users’ inboxes, accounts and payments, raising adoption and privacy questions. Analysts remain uncertain about conversion rates and near-term revenue.
• Negative Sentiment: AI execution and regulatory risks: A prominent AI researcher is leaving Meta for Anthropic, while an internal effort to capture employee screens for AI training reportedly triggered resistance. Meta is also discussing possible teen social-media restrictions in South Korea, and TikTok rejected Meta advertisements urging participation in a child-safety settlement.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $800.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $883.00 to $886.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. Bank of America reduced their price objective on Meta Platforms from $835.00 to $810.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, KeyCorp lowered their target price on Meta Platforms from $790.00 to $780.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. 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 company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $787.54.

About Meta Platforms

Meta Platforms, Inc develops technologies that help people connect, communicate and build communities online. The company's principal products include Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp and Threads, which enable social networking, messaging, content sharing and digital communication.

Meta generates most of its business through advertising displayed across its family of apps. It also develops artificial intelligence technologies, business messaging tools and hardware and software through its Reality Labs division, including Quest virtual- and mixed-reality devices and related experiences.

The company was founded as Facebook in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg and was renamed Meta Platforms in 2021 to reflect its broader focus on building the metaverse.

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