Meta Platforms, Inc. $META is Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s 9th Largest Position

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management increased its Meta stake by 8.5% in the second quarter to 5.54 million shares valued at approximately $3.12 billion, making Meta its ninth-largest holding. Institutional investors collectively own 79.91% of the company.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $787.54. However, Meta’s latest quarterly EPS of $6.18 missed estimates, despite revenue rising 28% year over year to $60.80 billion.
• Meta faces mixed investor signals: insiders sold more than $24.5 million of stock over the past 90 days, while its AI initiatives offer growth potential but bring significant infrastructure costs, privacy concerns and talent-retention risks.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 8.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,539,703 shares of the social networking company's stock after purchasing an additional 433,174 shares during the period. Meta Platforms accounts for 1.7% of Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned 0.22% of Meta Platforms worth $3,120,725,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. RHL Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Advantage Trust Co purchased a new position in Meta Platforms during the second quarter valued at $28,000. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Niles Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Axiom Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Meta Platforms in the 1st quarter valued at $36,000. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Phillip Securities raised shares of Meta Platforms to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Scotiabank reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and issued a $600.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Meta Platforms from $830.00 to $750.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. BNP Paribas Exane initiated coverage on Meta Platforms in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They issued an "outperform" rating on the stock. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $785.00 price target (down from $800.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have issued a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Meta Platforms currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $787.54.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In related news, insider Curtis Mahoney sold 1,559 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $558.00, for a total value of $869,922.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 1,957 shares in the company, valued at $1,092,006. This trade represents a 44.34% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,848 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $558.00, for a total transaction of $4,379,184.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 828 shares of the company's stock, valued at $462,024. The trade was a 90.46% 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 a total of 41,581 shares of company stock worth $24,506,695 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 13.53% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan upgraded Meta from Neutral to Overweight and raised its price target from $640 to $820, citing the company’s frontier AI models and AI-agent opportunity as potential growth drivers beyond advertising. JPMorgan upgrades Meta on AI models and agents
• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s Muse AI agent gained significant early traction, reportedly reaching the No. 2 position among U.S. apps. Its free and paid subscription tiers could create a recurring revenue stream and help monetize Meta’s substantial AI investments. Meta's AI agent Muse reaches No. 2 app ranking
• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s board declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.525 per share, payable September 28 to shareholders of record September 21. The dividend adds to shareholder returns and signals confidence in cash generation. Meta announces quarterly cash dividend
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors remain divided over whether Muse can become a material financial catalyst. Dedicated computing, security and inference costs could pressure margins before subscription revenue scales, while Meta continues to commit heavily to AI infrastructure.
• Negative Sentiment: Star AI researcher Andrew Tulloch is leaving Meta for Anthropic. The departure raises concerns about Meta’s ability to retain high-value technical talent amid intensifying competition for AI researchers. Top AI researcher leaves Meta for Anthropic
• Negative Sentiment: Meta faces renewed privacy and regulatory scrutiny as Muse can access sensitive information and perform actions across third-party applications. Reports of fraudulent cryptocurrency advertisements and related lawsuits add to reputational and legal risks.
• Negative Sentiment: COO Javier Olivan sold shares worth approximately $3.3 million in two transactions under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. Although scheduled sales are less concerning, the sizable reduction in his direct holdings may weigh modestly on sentiment.

Meta Platforms Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of NASDAQ META opened at $644.38 on Friday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $520.26 and a 1-year high of $790.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 2.23 and a quick ratio of 2.23. The business's 50 day moving average is $600.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $608.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.64 trillion, a P/E ratio of 24.27, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.19 by ($1.01). The company had revenue of $60.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $60.22 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 29.83% and a return on equity of 33.18%. 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 business earned $7.14 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 28.17 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Profile

Meta Platforms, Inc develops technologies that help people connect, communicate and build communities online. The company's principal products include Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp and Threads, which enable social networking, messaging, content sharing and digital communication.

Meta generates most of its business through advertising displayed across its family of apps. It also develops artificial intelligence technologies, business messaging tools and hardware and software through its Reality Labs division, including Quest virtual- and mixed-reality devices and related experiences.

The company was founded as Facebook in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg and was renamed Meta Platforms in 2021 to reflect its broader focus on building the metaverse.

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