MBL Wealth LLC Trims Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• MBL Wealth LLC reduced its Meta Platforms stake by 33.2% in the second quarter, selling 3,117 shares and retaining 6,271 shares valued at approximately $3.53 million. Institutional investors still own about 79.91% of META.
• Analysts maintain a generally bullish outlook, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $785.32, although several brokerages recently lowered their targets.
• Meta reported quarterly revenue of $60.8 billion, up 28% year over year, but earnings per share of $6.18 missed the $7.19 consensus estimate. Investors are also monitoring heavy AI infrastructure spending and significant legal risks related to alleged harms to children.

MBL Wealth LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 33.2% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 6,271 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 3,117 shares during the quarter. MBL Wealth LLC's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $3,532,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in META. RHL Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Axiom Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Meta Platforms during the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, Bayban increased its holdings in Meta Platforms by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Bayban now owns 70 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on META. DA Davidson cut their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $700.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $800.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Rothschild & Co Redburn increased their price objective on Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Truist Financial dropped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $840.00 to $770.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Susquehanna reduced their target price on Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $650.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $785.32.

Trending Headlines about Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta is reportedly considering selling excess data-center capacity to third parties, which could help monetize its substantial AI infrastructure spending and create an additional revenue stream. The plan remains exploratory. Should You Buy Meta Platforms Stock Below $600 Before Mark Zuckerberg Unveils Its AI Cloud Business?
• Neutral Sentiment: Alibaba’s release of a laptop-ready Qwen model and open model weights underscores intensifying competition in AI, although the immediate financial impact on Meta is uncertain. Alibaba answers Meta's AI challenge with new laptop-ready model
• Negative Sentiment: Meta is facing a major federal trial brought by 29 state attorneys general, who allege Facebook and Instagram were deliberately designed to addict children and that the company misled the public about related risks. The states are seeking financial penalties—potentially as high as $1.4 trillion—and court-ordered product changes. Meta faces ‘astronomical' consequences as legal fight reaches critical moment in California
• Negative Sentiment: The legal overhang intensified after Meta recently lost a nearly $1 billion judgment in a similar New Mexico case. Investors are concerned that an adverse outcome could produce significant financial penalties, costly changes to platform design and broader regulatory restrictions, with thousands of related lawsuits potentially following. Meta Faces 29 States in Court Tuesday
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are also scrutinizing Meta’s AI spending. Data-center construction is consuming cash, while reported off-balance-sheet financing arrangements and residual-value guarantees could create future obligations if AI assets become unprofitable or underused. What Could Meta Platforms Off Balance Sheet AI Financing Mean For Investors?

Meta Platforms Price Performance

META opened at $568.97 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.45 trillion, a P/E ratio of 21.43, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.25. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $595.62 and a 200-day moving average price of $619.31. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12-month low of $520.26 and a 12-month high of $790.80.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $7.19 by ($1.01). The firm had revenue of $60.80 billion for 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 business's quarterly revenue was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $7.14 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 28.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 25th. Shareholders 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 7.91%.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In related news, insider Curtis J. Mahoney sold 2,079 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at $681,890.56. This trade represents a 65.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 3,348 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $600.97, for a total transaction of $2,012,047.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 9,498 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,708,013.06. This represents a 26.06% 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. Insiders have sold 17,772 shares of company stock worth $10,823,658 over the last three months. Insiders own 13.53% of the company's stock.

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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This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

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