Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Shares Bought by Rakuten Securities Inc.

Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its position in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 149.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,125 shares of the social networking company's stock after purchasing an additional 6,657 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for 2.4% of Rakuten Securities Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Rakuten Securities Inc.'s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $7,344,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Westchester Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the third quarter worth approximately $26,000. Key Capital Management INC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter valued at $48,000. Fairway Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Meta Platforms by 36.8% during the 4th quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 78 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 64.8% during the 3rd quarter. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $65,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PMV Capital Advisers LLC grew its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 26.3% in the 4th quarter. PMV Capital Advisers LLC now owns 96 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In related news, CFO Susan J. Li sold 56,571 shares of the business's 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 8,089 shares of the company's 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 sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 2,841 shares in the company, valued at $1,793,352.84. This trade represents a 74.01% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 166,638 shares of company stock valued at $106,697,681 in the last quarter. 13.61% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Meta Platforms Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of Meta Platforms stock opened at $604.96 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.53 trillion, a P/E ratio of 21.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.25. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52-week low of $520.26 and a 52-week high of $796.25. 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 stock's 50-day simple moving average is $628.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $646.71.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.84% and a return on equity of 36.93%. The company had revenue of $56.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $55.56 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $6.43 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.59 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th were paid a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 16th. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.63%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on META shares. TD Cowen cut their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $820.00 to $800.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Citigroup reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Barclays lifted their price target on Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Citizens Jmp restated a "market outperform" rating and issued a $900.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, UBS Group decreased their target price on Meta Platforms from $908.00 to $865.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $840.31.

Trending Headlines about Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat and AI-driven ad pricing — Meta reported stronger-than-expected revenue and EPS, with AI-powered ad tools and pricing cited as driving high revenue growth and improved monetization, supporting upside case for ad margins and cash flow. Meta: Keep Calm And Focus On Muse, Spark And Record Revenue Growth
• Neutral Sentiment: Expansion of teen-safety and age-verification tech — Meta announced it will roll out new AI safeguards for teens across 27 EU countries and to Facebook in the U.S., including visual AI checks to help flag under‑13 accounts; this may reduce regulatory pressure but could carry implementation costs and user-friction risk. Meta to expand teen safeguards to 27 EU countries, Facebook safeguards in June
• Neutral Sentiment: Product roadmap: advanced 'agentic' AI assistant — FT/Reuters report that Meta is building a highly personalized AI assistant that can act on users' behalf. Positive for long-term engagement but highlights why investors are watching rising AI R&D and capex. Meta plans advanced 'agentic' AI assistant for users, FT reports
• Neutral Sentiment: Big capex and data‑center financing — Bloomberg/Reuters report Meta is lining up ~ $13B financing for an El Paso data center, underscoring heavy near‑term cash commitments that support growth but pressure free cash flow. Meta taps Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan for El Paso data center deal, Bloomberg News reports
• Negative Sentiment: New Mexico youth‑harm trial and potential remedies — State seeks sweeping changes and up to $3.7B plus injunction-style platform changes in ongoing trial alleging harm to children; a court order could force product changes and sizable remediation costs. New Mexico seeks changes to Meta platforms in youth harm trial
• Negative Sentiment: Major publishers sue over AI training — Large publishers (Elsevier, Macmillan, McGraw Hill, Hachette, etc.) filed copyright suits alleging Meta used books and journals to train Llama; litigation could lead to damages, injunctive relief or changes to data‑use practices. Major publishers sue Meta for copyright infringement over AI training
• Negative Sentiment: EU/Irish regulatory scrutiny — Ireland opened probes into Instagram/Facebook algorithmic personalization and Meta is contesting an EU order that could force rival AI chatbot access on WhatsApp; regulatory actions could impose operational constraints or fines. Ireland probles Meta's Instagram, Facebook over EU manipulation concerns Meta seeks to fend off EU order to allow rival AI chatbots on WhatsApp at hearing
• Negative Sentiment: Reputational/legal fallout and shareholder scrutiny — Reuters won a Pulitzer on Meta investigations into harmful chatbots/fraudulent ads; law firms and shareholder groups are probing the board for oversight breaches, increasing litigation and governance risk. Reuters wins beat reporting Pulitzer for Meta investigations

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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