Meta Platforms, Inc. $META is 3G Capital Partners LP's 3rd Largest Position

Key Points

• 3G Capital Partners increased its Meta stake by 12.5% in the fourth quarter, buying 10,000 more shares to reach 90,000 shares valued at about $59.4 million. Meta now makes up roughly 14% of the firm’s holdings, making it its third-largest position.
• Meta continues to draw attention for its AI and product expansion: Threads has reached 500 million monthly active users, and the company has rolled out AI search and creative tools on Facebook that could create new monetization opportunities.
• The company recently beat earnings expectations, posting $10.44 EPS on $56.31 billion in revenue, while analysts remain broadly positive with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $840.60.

3G Capital Partners LP boosted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 12.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 90,000 shares of the social networking company's stock after buying an additional 10,000 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for about 14.0% of 3G Capital Partners LP's holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. 3G Capital Partners LP's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $59,408,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of META. Redwood Park Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Redwood Park Advisors LLC now owns 18,997 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $12,540,000 after purchasing an additional 929 shares in the last quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 10.8% during the fourth quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 387,342 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $255,681,000 after purchasing an additional 37,785 shares in the last quarter. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec now owns 1,655,608 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $1,092,850,000 after purchasing an additional 22,726 shares in the last quarter. Challenger Wealth Management raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 6.9% during the fourth quarter. Challenger Wealth Management now owns 577 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $381,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Appalachian Capital Management Ltd acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth approximately $216,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta said Threads has reached 500 million monthly active users, while new community features and feed controls could improve engagement and strengthen the long-term value of its social platform. Reuters: Meta's Threads reaches 500 million monthly users, rolls out new features
• Positive Sentiment: Meta rolled out AI search and creative tools across Facebook, which analysts say could open a new monetization opportunity and support future ad growth. Proactive Investors: Meta introduces AI search and creative tools, Bank of America flags emerging monetization opportunity
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America reiterated a Buy view on Meta, citing AI strategy as a key growth catalyst, which may help support investor confidence in the company’s long-term earnings potential. Insider Monkey: BofA reiterates Buy rating on Meta Platforms
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta is expected to pay its next quarterly dividend next week, a routine shareholder return that is supportive but unlikely to be a major near-term stock driver. Finbold: Meta to pay dividends next week
• Negative Sentiment: Reuters reported that a Meta executive overseeing part of the company’s AI-for-work restructuring is leaving, adding to concerns about execution during a major AI transition. Reuters: Meta head of product for 'AI for work' transformation is leaving company
• Negative Sentiment: Two SEC filings showed COO Javier Olivan sold shares under a pre-arranged 10b5-1 plan, which can still weigh on sentiment even though the sales were scheduled. SEC filing for Javier Olivan transaction
• Negative Sentiment: Recent commentary has also focused on Meta’s heavy AI spending, Reality Labs losses, and valuation concerns, reinforcing fears that profit growth could slow if investment remains elevated. Zacks: Meta Platforms is Overvalued at 5.5X PS

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 2,778 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Monday, April 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $629.45, for a total value of $1,748,612.10. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 10,557 shares in the company, valued at $6,645,103.65. This trade represents a 20.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Susan J. Li sold 9,195 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $607.84, for a total transaction of $5,589,088.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 13,186 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,014,978.24. This trade represents a 41.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 40,568 shares of company stock valued at $25,057,365. Corporate insiders own 13.53% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Shares of META opened at $567.58 on Thursday. 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 firm has a market cap of $1.44 trillion, a PE ratio of 20.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.23. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $621.93 and its 200-day simple moving average is $635.05. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12-month low of $520.26 and a 12-month high of $796.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.67 by $3.77. The business 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 company's revenue for the quarter was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $6.43 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.35 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a dividend of $0.525 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 7.63%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on META. Roth Mkm reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $885.00 to $820.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $725.00 price objective (down from $825.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Citizens Jmp reissued a "market outperform" rating and set a $900.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $840.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have issued a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $840.60.

Meta Platforms Profile

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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