MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB Lowers Stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB reduced its Meta stake by 3% in the third quarter, selling 2,987 shares and retaining 98,111 shares valued at approximately $71.1 million. Institutional investors collectively own 79.91% of Meta.
• Wall Street remains broadly bullish, with 44 analysts rating Meta a Buy and a consensus price target of $787.86, although some firms recently lowered their targets. Meta shares opened at $728.08, near the upper end of their 52-week range.
• Meta reported 28% year-over-year revenue growth but missed quarterly EPS estimates, while insiders—including CEO Mark Zuckerberg—sold shares under pre-arranged trading plans. The company also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.525 per share, yielding about 0.3%.

MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB cut its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 98,111 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 2,987 shares during the period. Meta Platforms makes up about 1.8% of MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB's portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $71,148,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of META. Advantage Trust Co acquired a new position in Meta Platforms in the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Niles Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Philadelphia Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms during the second quarter worth about $32,000. Axiom Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms in the 1st quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Schuylkill Financial LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms in the 2nd quarter valued at about $36,000. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on META. Loop Capital increased their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $740.00 to $955.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 24th. Bank of America restated a "buy" rating and set a $810.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Tuesday, September 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $725.00 target price (down from $815.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, August 27th. CICC Research reduced their target price on Meta Platforms from $773.00 to $700.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Tigress Financial reiterated a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $945.00 price target (down from $995.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, September 24th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-four have assigned a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $787.86.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

NASDAQ META opened at $728.08 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $1.85 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.19. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a twelve month low of $520.26 and a twelve month high of $779.82. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The business's fifty day moving average is $625.52 and its 200 day moving average is $615.98.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last issued its 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 analyst estimates 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 for the quarter was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $7.14 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 27.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 28th. Investors of record on Monday, September 21st were given a dividend of $0.5250 per share. The ex-dividend date was 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 Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 27,474 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $777.44, for a total transaction of $21,359,386.56. 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, insider Christopher K. Cox sold 40,000 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Monday, September 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $712.76, for a total transaction of $28,510,400.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 184,516 shares in the company, valued at approximately $131,515,624.16. This trade represents a 17.82% 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. Insiders have sold a total of 146,647 shares of company stock worth $99,886,901 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 13.53% of the company's stock.

More Meta Platforms News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s Muse AI agent is gaining significant attention and reportedly surpassed 5 million downloads. Investors see the free product as a potential way to expand engagement, strengthen Meta’s AI ecosystem and eventually support new advertising or commerce revenue. Zuckerberg's Free AI Agent Hit 5 Million Downloads
• Positive Sentiment: Meta is expanding Muse for small businesses, linking the AI assistant with advertising, sales and operations. That strategy could accelerate ad growth and create a broader commercial use case for Meta’s AI investments. Meta Expands Muse for Small Businesses
• Positive Sentiment: Recent analyst optimism and Meta’s reported claims for billions of dollars in tax credits tied to AI data-center costs are supporting the bullish narrative around advertising growth, AI infrastructure and potential cost relief. Meta Stock Jumps Following Analyst Upgrade
• Neutral Sentiment: Long-time Meta executive Justin Osofsky is leaving to become COO of AI infrastructure company Nscale ahead of its planned IPO. The move highlights demand for Meta’s AI and technology talent but could raise limited concerns about executive departures. Nscale Hires Meta’s Justin Osofsky
• Negative Sentiment: New Mexico prosecutors are seeking between $35 billion and $40 billion in penalties after a jury found Meta misled Facebook users about data privacy. Although the final amount and legal outcome remain unresolved, the potential liability is a major overhang. New Mexico Wants Meta to Pay Up to $40 Billion
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts warn that Meta’s recent rally now depends on Muse generating returns and avoiding privacy-related execution problems. Heavy AI spending could also pressure results if monetization fails to keep pace with investment. Meta Platforms: Things May Get Ugly

Meta Platforms Company 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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