Manning & Napier Advisors LLC Grows Stock Position in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Manning & Napier Advisors LLC increased its Meta Platforms stake by 28.5% in the first quarter, adding 81,499 shares to reach 367,335 shares worth about $210.2 million.
• Wall Street sentiment on META remains mostly positive, with the stock carrying a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $835.90 despite one recent downgrade to neutral.
• Meta’s latest results were strong, with EPS of $10.44 and revenue of $56.31 billion beating estimates, while the company continues to draw attention for its aggressive AI investments and upcoming earnings on July 29.

Manning & Napier Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 28.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 367,335 shares of the social networking company's stock after acquiring an additional 81,499 shares during the period. Meta Platforms makes up approximately 3.0% of Manning & Napier Advisors LLC's holdings, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Manning & Napier Advisors LLC's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $210,163,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of META. First National Bank Sioux Falls raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. First National Bank Sioux Falls now owns 2,001 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $1,321,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. grew its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. now owns 984 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $649,000 after buying an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. Vista Capital Partners Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.3% in the 2nd quarter. Vista Capital Partners Inc. now owns 1,075 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $794,000 after buying an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Arcataur Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Arcataur Capital Management LLC now owns 1,736 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $1,146,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Acorn Creek Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Acorn Creek Capital LLC now owns 2,118 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $1,398,000 after buying an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on META shares. BNP Paribas Exane started coverage on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a "buy" rating and set a $1,015.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. Wedbush upgraded Meta Platforms from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. KeyCorp reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $760.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Benchmark began coverage on Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-six have given a Buy rating, eight have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $835.90.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In other Meta Platforms news, insider Curtis J. Mahoney sold 2,079 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $609.92, for a total value of $1,268,023.68. Following the transaction, the insider owned 1,118 shares of the company's stock, valued at $681,890.56. This represents a 65.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $607.75, for a total value of $303,875.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 3,443 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,092,483.25. The trade was a 12.68% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 39,503 shares of company stock worth $24,241,859. 13.53% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

More Meta Platforms News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Multiple pieces highlighted Meta’s expanding AI strategy, including reports that it is building out custom chips and massive computing capacity, with some commentary suggesting Meta could even broaden into cloud services. That supports the view that META is investing aggressively to stay competitive in AI. How Meta Platforms (META) Is Strengthening Its AI Infrastructure With Custom Chips and Massive Computing Expansion
• Positive Sentiment: Several market articles argued that investors are still warming to Meta ahead of its next earnings report, pointing to strong ad growth, AI engagement, and continued long-term demand for its platforms. This is helping sentiment around the stock. Meta Platforms, Inc. (META) is Attracting Investor Attention: Here is What You Should Know
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta announced it will release second-quarter 2026 results on July 29, keeping attention on the upcoming earnings print. That event is adding anticipation, but it is not a direct operational surprise yet. Meta to Announce Second Quarter 2026 Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Some analysts are debating valuation and capital spending, with concerns that heavy AI capex could pressure free cash flow even if revenue remains strong. That creates a valuation headwind, but it is still largely a longer-term debate. Meta Q2 Preview: CAPEX And Free Cash Flow In Focus
• Negative Sentiment: Meta is facing a new lawsuit from former employees alleging it used AI tools and workplace metrics to target workers on medical, parental, or other protected leave during layoffs. That raises legal and reputational risk for META. Meta used AI to target workers with medical conditions for layoffs, former employees' lawsuit claims

Meta Platforms Price Performance

META stock opened at $681.31 on Thursday. 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 company has a 50-day moving average price of $601.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $626.86. The stock has a market cap of $1.72 trillion, a PE ratio of 24.77, a P/E/G ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.67 by $3.77. The company had revenue of $56.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $55.56 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.84% and a return on equity of 36.93%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 33.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $6.43 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th were paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio is currently 7.63%.

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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