Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Shares Acquired by Naples Global Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Naples Global Advisors LLC increased its Meta Platforms stake by 7.5% in the fourth quarter, buying 910 more shares and bringing its total to 13,037 shares worth about $8.6 million.
• Meta’s latest earnings topped expectations, with quarterly EPS of $10.44 versus the $6.67 estimate and revenue rising 33.1% year over year to $56.31 billion.
• Insider selling and AI restructuring are in focus: executives including Javier Olivan and Andrew Bosworth sold shares, while Meta is cutting about 8,000 jobs and shifting resources toward its AI strategy.

Naples Global Advisors LLC grew its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 7.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 13,037 shares of the social networking company's stock after purchasing an additional 910 shares during the period. Naples Global Advisors LLC's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $8,605,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 199,995,630 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $132,015,115,000 after buying an additional 7,269,279 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 86,925,674 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $64,158,971,000 after buying an additional 1,650,435 shares during the period. Danske Bank A S purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,191,175,000. PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at about $813,994,000. Finally, Concentrum Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 948.7% during the 3rd quarter. Concentrum Wealth Management now owns 1,243,577 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $913,000 after buying an additional 1,124,998 shares during the period. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Javier Olivan sold 837 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $609.35, for a total value of $510,025.95. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 14,660 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,933,071. The trade was a 5.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 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. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,847 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $607.83, for a total value of $4,769,642.01. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer owned 414 shares of the company's stock, valued at $251,641.62. This trade represents a 94.99% 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. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold 171,517 shares of company stock worth $109,138,067 in the last three months. 13.53% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

META stock opened at $605.06 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52-week low of $520.26 and a 52-week high of $796.25. The stock's 50 day moving average is $619.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $637.47. The company has a market capitalization of $1.53 trillion, a PE ratio of 21.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.67 by $3.77. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 36.93% and a net margin of 32.84%.The company had revenue of $56.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.56 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $6.43 EPS. Meta Platforms's revenue for the quarter was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Tigress Financial raised their target price on Meta Platforms from $935.00 to $945.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Meta Platforms from $805.00 to $780.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 1st. Barclays raised their target price on Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their target price on Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $930.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on Meta Platforms from $908.00 to $865.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $840.19.

Key Stories Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Negative Sentiment: Meta began cutting about 8,000 jobs, or roughly 10% of its workforce, as part of a broader AI-first restructuring. Investors may view the move as evidence that the company needs to offset rising AI investment costs, which could weigh on near-term profitability. Meta Begins Laying Off Thousands of Employees as It Transforms Around AI
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple reports say Meta tied the layoffs to funding its AI push, reinforcing worries that aggressive investment in AI could pressure earnings and cash flow before the benefits show up. Zuckerberg says 'success isn't a given' in memo to employees amid Meta layoffs
• Negative Sentiment: Management’s decision to reassign about 7,000 workers into AI-related roles while cutting headcount highlights the scale of the internal overhaul and may keep morale and execution risks in focus. Meta Moves 7,000 Workers Into AI Roles Ahead of Job Cuts
• Negative Sentiment: Meta’s CFO, Susan Li, sold shares in a pre-arranged transaction, which can add to short-term caution even though the sale was reportedly for tax withholding purposes. Meta Platforms NASDAQ: META CFO Susan Li Sells 2,127 Shares
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta also offered rival AI chatbots limited free access to WhatsApp in Europe, a move that could support platform usage but does not yet have a clear near-term financial impact. Exclusive: Meta offers AI rival chatbots limited free WhatsApp access, sources say
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts remain generally constructive on Meta’s long-term earnings power, with Wells Fargo only slightly trimming its price target while keeping an Overweight rating. Wells Fargo Trims Meta Platforms Price Target to $765: Why the AI Infrastructure Bet Still Has Believers

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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