Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Shares Bought by Waycross Partners LLC

Key Points

• Waycross Partners modestly increased its Q4 stake in Meta by 2.2% to 83,775 shares (worth about $55.3 million), making META roughly 4.5% of the firm's portfolio and its sixth-largest holding.
• Institutional ownership is very high at about 79.91%, with major holders like State Street (≈86.9M shares, ~$64.2B value) and large moves from Capital World, Invesco and a new Norges Bank position (~$23.2B reported).
• Meta recently beat quarterly estimates (EPS $8.88 vs. $8.16; revenue $59.89B) and analysts remain broadly constructive—MarketBeat shows a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average price target of about $845.54.

Waycross Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 83,775 shares of the social networking company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,818 shares during the period. Meta Platforms makes up about 4.5% of Waycross Partners LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding. Waycross Partners LLC's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $55,299,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in META. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.9% in 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 purchasing an additional 1,650,435 shares during the period. Capital World Investors boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.7% during the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 39,247,690 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $28,823,375,000 after buying an additional 278,180 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the second quarter worth about $23,155,393,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Meta Platforms by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 17,153,754 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $12,597,374,000 after buying an additional 142,229 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Meta Platforms by 1.8% in the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 14,489,621 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $10,694,644,000 after buying an additional 262,550 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Rosenblatt Securities upped their price target on Meta Platforms from $1,117.00 to $1,144.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $710.00 to $730.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $850.00 target price (up from $800.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $840.00 to $880.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt increased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $808.00 to $890.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-nine have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Meta Platforms has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $845.54.

Key Meta Platforms News

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

• Positive Sentiment: China’s commerce ministry said it supports law‑abiding transnational technology deals, which reduces near‑term risk that Beijing will block or heavily restrict Meta’s cross‑border partnerships. China says it supports law-abiding transnational deals after reports of Meta deal review
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley trimmed its price target to $775 but kept an “Overweight” rating and called Meta a top pick — a high‑profile analyst endorsement that supports buying interest after the recent pullback. Morgan Stanley Trims PT on Meta Platforms (META) to $775 Amid Softer Advertising Backdrop
• Positive Sentiment: Meta continues to push AI product and infra initiatives: it’s building an elite AI lab for recommendations and expanding data‑center supply chains (Corning ground‑breaking) — moves that underpin management’s AI monetization thesis. Meta is assembling an elite new AI lab for its recommendations division Corning and Meta Celebrate Start of Construction on Cable Manufacturing Expansion
• Positive Sentiment: New product launches — two new Ray‑Ban prescription smart glasses and Oakley updates — provide nearer‑term consumer monetization levers outside ads. Product momentum is being cited as a reason investors are “buying the dip.” Meta unveils two new Ray‑Ban prescription smart glasses
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta said it’s deploying AI to speed internal risk reviews during product development — operationally positive but with unclear immediate financial impact. Meta Deploys AI to Accelerate and Enhance Risk Review During Product Development
• Neutral Sentiment: More layoffs (168 roles in Washington state, VR division hit) are being reported — lowers near‑term opex but highlights execution and morale risks. Latest Meta layoffs target 168 employees in Washington state
• Negative Sentiment: Legal setbacks remain the largest overhang: recent jury verdicts (New Mexico and a California “addiction” case) create precedent risk and could open the door to thousands of follow‑on suits and potentially large aggregate damages — a major driver of the recent volatility. Meta is appealing, but uncertainty is high. Meta was finally held accountable for harming teens. Now what? Why Meta's "Bellwether" Legal Loss Could Open Up a Can of Worms

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, COO Javier Olivan sold 2,461 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Sunday, February 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $639.77, for a total value of $1,574,473.97. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 12,108 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,746,335.16. This trade represents a 16.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 Meta Platforms stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $631.24, for a total value of $5,106,100.36. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer owned 2,841 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,793,352.84. This represents a 74.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 161,448 shares of company stock valued at $103,333,788 over the last 90 days. 13.61% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

NASDAQ META opened at $579.23 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.47 trillion, a P/E ratio of 24.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a current ratio of 2.60, a quick ratio of 2.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $640.94 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $662.64. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1 year low of $479.80 and a 1 year high of $796.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The social networking company reported $8.88 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $8.16 by $0.72. The company had revenue of $59.89 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $58.33 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 30.08% and a return on equity of 38.61%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 23.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $8.02 EPS. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th were given a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 16th. Meta Platforms's payout ratio is 8.94%.

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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