Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Stake Decreased by Alyeska Investment Group L.P.

Key Points

• Alyeska Investment Group L.P. significantly reduced its stake in Meta Platforms by 54.4%, now holding 577,395 shares valued at approximately $332.8 million.
• Insider sales include CFO Susan J. Li selling 18,332 shares worth about $14 million, indicating a 17.89% decrease in her ownership position.
• Analysts have increased their price targets for Meta Platforms, with ranges now up to $900, reflecting a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

Alyeska Investment Group L.P. lowered its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 54.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 577,395 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 689,905 shares during the period. Meta Platforms accounts for approximately 1.3% of Alyeska Investment Group L.P.'s holdings, making the stock its 5th largest position. Alyeska Investment Group L.P.'s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $332,787,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of META. Inlight Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the first quarter worth approximately $28,000. MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. JCIC Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 102.6% in the first quarter. JCIC Asset Management Inc. now owns 79 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stuart Chaussee & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

META has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $812.00 to $897.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $825.00 to $850.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Meta Platforms from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 19th. Roth Capital lifted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $620.00 to $740.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $775.00 to $900.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-nine have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Meta Platforms presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $822.41.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 15,847 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $753.43, for a total transaction of $11,939,605.21. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Christopher K. Cox sold 60,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $775.95, for a total transaction of $46,557,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 237,205 shares in the company, valued at $184,059,219.75. This represents a 20.19% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 312,341 shares of company stock worth $234,443,690. Company insiders own 13.61% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ META traded up $3.80 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $752.45. 9,655,823 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,390,477. The company has a quick ratio of 1.97, a current ratio of 1.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a one year low of $479.80 and a one year high of $796.25. The stock has a market cap of $1.89 trillion, a P/E ratio of 27.24, a PEG ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.24. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $738.39 and its 200-day moving average price is $659.37.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The social networking company reported $7.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.75 by $1.39. The company had revenue of $47.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $44.55 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 39.99% and a return on equity of 39.33%. Meta Platforms'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 earnings per share. Meta Platforms has set its Q3 2025 guidance at EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms 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.