Lincoln Capital Corp Acquires 2,996 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Lincoln Capital increased its Meta Platforms stake by 225.4% in the third quarter, purchasing 2,996 additional shares for a total of 4,325 shares valued at approximately $3.14 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of Meta’s shares.
• Meta shares recently traded at $762.50, up 2.6%, with a market capitalization of about $1.94 trillion. The stock has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average analyst price target of $796.51.
• Investors are focused on Meta’s upcoming third-quarter results, including advertising growth, AI monetization and significant planned AI spending. While new AI products and bullish analyst targets support the outlook, concerns remain about valuation, rising costs and competitive pressures.

Lincoln Capital Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 225.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,325 shares of the social networking company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,996 shares during the period. Lincoln Capital Corp's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $3,136,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of META. Horizons Wealth Management purchased a new position in Meta Platforms during the third quarter worth $33,000. Advantage Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the second quarter valued at $28,000. Philadelphia Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the second quarter valued at $32,000. Axiom Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the first quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Schuylkill Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

More Meta Platforms News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta launched Muse Wonder and Muse Wonder Full, frontier AI models designed for personal assistants and professional agents capable of memory retention and complex, multi-step tasks. The release is viewed as helping Meta close the gap with OpenAI and Anthropic and potentially expand its subscription and AI-assistant revenue opportunities. Meta releases its first frontier model, Muse Wonder
• Positive Sentiment: Third-party data indicated early Muse user retention was competitive with ChatGPT, supporting investor confidence that Meta’s AI products can attract and retain users. The company is charging $20 or $100 monthly for access to its most advanced model tiers. Why Meta Stock Is Up
• Positive Sentiment: Truist set a Street-high $1,000 price target, while KeyCorp and Rosenblatt reaffirmed bullish ratings with targets of $900 and $886, respectively. Analysts cited Muse adoption and AI-driven advertising improvements as potential catalysts. Social Media Stocks Rally on Meta Target
• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s Quest ecosystem received a boost as Virtuix became an official Meta reseller and reported Omni One orders roughly tripled after launching for Quest. The announcement suggests continued third-party engagement with Meta’s virtual-reality platform, although direct financial benefits to Meta were not disclosed. Virtuix Deepens Meta Partnership
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are looking ahead to Meta’s third-quarter results on October 21. Management previously guided to revenue of $61 billion–$64 billion, making advertising growth, Muse monetization and spending plans central to the earnings reaction. Meta to Announce Third Quarter 2026 Results
• Negative Sentiment: Concerns remain over Meta’s premium valuation and planned AI investment of approximately $130 billion–$145 billion. Some commentary warns that slowing assistant downloads, rising costs and competitive threats could pressure returns, despite analysts arguing that recent bearish headlines overstate those risks. Bearish AI Headlines

Meta Platforms Trading Up 2.6%

NASDAQ META traded up $19.54 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $762.50. 22,673,083 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 17,516,543. The business's 50 day moving average is $644.04 and its 200-day moving average is $621.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 2.23. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12-month low of $520.26 and a 12-month high of $779.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.94 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.19.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.19 by ($1.01). The business had revenue of $60.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $60.22 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 29.83% and a return on equity of 33.18%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $7.14 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 27.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 28th. Investors of record on Monday, September 21st were issued a $0.5250 dividend. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 21st. Meta Platforms's payout ratio is presently 7.91%.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In other news, insider Christopher K. Cox sold 40,000 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $712.76, for a total value of $28,510,400.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 184,516 shares of the company's stock, valued at $131,515,624.16. The trade was a 17.82% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 946 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $728.08, for a total transaction of $688,763.68. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 7,878 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,735,814.24. This represents a 10.72% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. Over the last three months, insiders sold 148,222 shares of company stock worth $101,033,627. 13.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on META shares. Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, August 27th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Meta Platforms from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Thursday. Phillip Securities upgraded shares of Meta Platforms from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $795.00 to $750.00 in a report on Monday, August 3rd. CICC Research lowered their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $773.00 to $700.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn upped their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-five have given a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $796.51.

Meta Platforms Profile

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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