Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Position Raised by Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI

Key Points

• Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 1.2% during Q1, holding 652,529 shares valued at approximately $376 million, making it the 6th largest position in their portfolio.
• Meta reported $7.14 EPS for the last quarter, outperforming estimates, with a 21.6% year-over-year revenue increase, totaling $47.52 billion.
• A number of research firms have upgraded Meta's stock rating, with price targets ranging from $740 to $900, reflecting strong investor confidence in the company's future performance.

Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI grew its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 1.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 652,529 shares of the social networking company's stock after purchasing an additional 7,986 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms makes up 3.0% of Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI's investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest position. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $376,092,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of META. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 4.0% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 94,888 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $54,690,000 after buying an additional 3,621 shares in the last quarter. AAF Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.2% during the 1st quarter. AAF Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,835 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $1,634,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. HFM Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 1st quarter valued at about $70,000. MBB Public Markets I LLC increased its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. MBB Public Markets I LLC now owns 28,540 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $16,449,000 after acquiring an additional 540 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ascent Group LLC raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 36.2% during the 1st quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 50,879 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $29,325,000 after acquiring an additional 13,528 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:META opened at $752.30 on Tuesday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a one year low of $479.80 and a one year high of $796.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.89 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.24, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $738.68 and a 200-day simple moving average of $659.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.97 and a current ratio of 1.97.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The social networking company reported $7.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.75 by $1.39. The firm had revenue of $47.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $44.55 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 39.33% and a net margin of 39.99%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 21.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $5.16 EPS. Meta Platforms has set its Q3 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on META. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Meta Platforms from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $750.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $635.00 to $740.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Bank of America raised their price objective on Meta Platforms from $775.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Meta Platforms from $845.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-nine have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Meta Platforms currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $822.41.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In other Meta Platforms news, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 465 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $784.32, for a total transaction of $364,708.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 8,877 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,962,408.64. This represents a 4.98% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 519 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $726.25, for a total transaction of $376,923.75. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 31,908 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,173,185. The trade was a 1.60% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 290,046 shares of company stock valued at $218,812,787. Corporate insiders own 13.61% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms Company Profile

Meta Platforms, Inc engages in the development of products that enable people to connect and share with friends and family through mobile devices, personal computers, virtual reality headsets, and wearables worldwide. It operates in two segments, Family of Apps and Reality Labs. The Family of Apps segment offers Facebook, which enables people to share, discuss, discover, and connect with interests; Instagram, a community for sharing photos, videos, and private messages, as well as feed, stories, reels, video, live, and shops; Messenger, a messaging application for people to connect with friends, family, communities, and businesses across platforms and devices through text, audio, and video calls; and WhatsApp, a messaging application that is used by people and businesses to communicate and transact privately.

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