Barrett & Company Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 20.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,761 shares of the social networking company's stock after buying an additional 1,321 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for approximately 1.7% of Barrett & Company Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest holding. Barrett & Company Inc.'s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $5,123,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in META. State Street Corp grew its position in Meta Platforms by 1.9% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 86,925,674 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $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 in the third quarter valued at about $1,191,175,000. Concentrum Wealth Management lifted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 948.7% in the third quarter. Concentrum Wealth Management now owns 1,243,577 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $913,000 after purchasing an additional 1,124,998 shares in the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 209.3% in the third quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 430,434 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $314,340,000 after purchasing an additional 824,276 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the third quarter valued at about $540,634,000. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Meta Platforms Stock Performance
Shares of META opened at $608.74 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a current ratio of 2.35. The company has a market capitalization of $1.54 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.13, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.25. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $629.62 and its 200 day simple moving average is $647.50. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1 year low of $520.26 and a 1 year high of $796.25.
Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.67 by $3.77. The business had revenue of $56.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.56 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.84% and a return on equity of 36.93%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $6.43 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 30.82 EPS for the current year.
Meta Platforms Announces Dividend
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 26th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th were paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 16th. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio is presently 7.63%.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $880.00 to $920.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and issued a $900.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Guggenheim reduced their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $800.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Finally, Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $685.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have given a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $840.67.
Check Out Our Latest Report on META
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other Meta Platforms news, CFO Susan J. Li sold 56,571 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $644.70, for a total transaction of $36,471,323.70. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 8,089 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $631.24, for a total transaction of $5,106,100.36. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 2,841 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,793,352.84. This represents a 74.01% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 166,638 shares of company stock valued at $106,697,681 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 13.61% of the company's stock.
Key Headlines Impacting Meta Platforms
Here are the key news stories impacting Meta Platforms this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat & AI ad momentum — Meta reported robust Q1 revenue and EPS, and management highlighted AI-driven ad tools and full‑stack model+chip co‑design that are expanding ad automation and advertiser reach. Meta Does Things Their Own Way
- Positive Sentiment: Robotics/AI talent add — Meta acquired humanoid‑robot startup Assured Robot Intelligence to accelerate robotics model optimization, signaling product diversification in AI/robotics. WSJ: Meta Acquires Assured Robot Intelligence
- Positive Sentiment: Energy and creator initiatives — Meta is signing energy partnerships (space solar/long‑duration storage) to secure power for compute-heavy AI centers and piloting stablecoin creator payouts — moves that support long‑term AI scale and monetization. AI drives growth (context)
- Neutral Sentiment: Analyst reactions mixed — Some firms (e.g., Stifel) trimmed price targets but retained “buy”; others raised targets on longer‑term AI upside. These tweaks sustain divergent Wall Street views on valuation vs. heavy CapEx. Benzinga: Analyst Moves
- Neutral Sentiment: Insider sales disclosed — COO Javier Oliván sold shares under a Rule 10b5‑1 plan; routine but notable given market noise. SEC Filing
- Negative Sentiment: Large CapEx raise spooks investors — Meta lifted 2026 capital expenditure guidance materially (now targeting major AI data‑center buildout), prompting concerns about near‑term free‑cash‑flow and returns; that is the primary reason the stock has been sold. Reuters: CapEx & market reaction
- Negative Sentiment: Regulatory/legal pressure — Threats to pull apps from New Mexico over child‑safety rules and US senators’ scrutiny over ad removals amplify litigation/compliance risk and potential costs. Reuters: Lawmaker Scrutiny
- Negative Sentiment: Reality Labs losses & deal setbacks — Continued multi‑billion losses in Reality Labs and a blocked Manus acquisition in China highlight near‑term cash drag and execution risks on speculative bets. CNBC: Reality Labs Loss
About Meta Platforms
(
Free Report)
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.
Further Reading
Want to see what other hedge funds are holding META? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report).
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.
Before you consider Meta Platforms, you'll want to hear this.
MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and Meta Platforms wasn't on the list.
While Meta Platforms currently has a Moderate Buy rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.
View The Five Stocks Here
MarketBeat just released its list of the 7 hottest IPOs expected to hit Wall Street in 2026. See which companies are preparing to go public and why investors are watching closely.
Get This Free Report
