Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Shares Sold by AMS Capital Ltda

Key Points

• AMS Capital reduced its Meta stake by 40% in the first quarter, selling 20,074 shares and retaining 30,067 shares worth approximately $17.2 million. Institutional investors collectively own about 79.9% of Meta.
• Meta insiders sold 37,770 shares valued at roughly $23.0 million over the last quarter, including transactions by Director Robert Kimmitt and COO Javier Olivan conducted under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and average price target of $789.95. Meta’s latest revenue rose 28% to $60.8 billion and exceeded estimates, but EPS missed expectations and rising AI-related spending remains a key investor concern.

AMS Capital Ltda lowered its holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 40.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 30,067 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 20,074 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for 6.7% of AMS Capital Ltda's holdings, making the stock its 6th biggest position. AMS Capital Ltda's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $17,202,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. RHL Group LLC acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Axiom Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the first quarter worth about $36,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Bayban boosted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Bayban now owns 70 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In other news, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $607.75, for a total value of $303,875.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 3,443 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,092,483.25. This trade represents a 12.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 837 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $607.85, for a total transaction of $508,770.45. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 6,290 shares in the company, valued at $3,823,376.50. The trade was a 11.74% 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. Insiders sold 37,770 shares of company stock valued at $23,034,051 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 13.53% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Weiss Ratings lowered Meta Platforms from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $800.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. BNP Paribas Exane initiated coverage on Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They issued an "outperform" rating on the stock. Wedbush cut their price objective on Meta Platforms from $671.00 to $595.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their target price on Meta Platforms from $770.00 to $680.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-six have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Meta Platforms has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $789.95.

Meta Platforms News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: AI spending narrative improves: Strong earnings from Amazon, Microsoft, Alphabet and other cloud companies suggest enterprise AI demand remains robust, supporting the case for continued infrastructure investment and potentially greater monetization of Meta’s AI tools and recommendation systems. Amazon Just Flipped the AI Capex Narrative
• Positive Sentiment: Valuation attracts buyers: Multiple analyses describe Meta as inexpensive relative to its growth, citing a forward P/E near 17 and expectations for approximately 40% upside. Evercore’s Mark Mahaney reportedly named Meta a top large-cap idea with an $820 price target, while other analysts also maintain bullish views. Meta Named a Top Large-Cap Long Idea
• Positive Sentiment: Core advertising business remains strong: Recent coverage highlights rising revenue, ad impressions, ad prices and user engagement. Investors are encouraged that Meta’s AI investments may already be improving targeting, recommendations and advertising performance. Mark Zuckerberg Says He's Betting Big on AI Compute
• Positive Sentiment: Recent earnings showed substantial growth: Meta’s latest quarter produced $60.8 billion in revenue, up 28% year over year and above estimates. That growth, combined with a comparatively low valuation, is driving “buy-the-dip” recommendations. Is Meta Stock a Buy on the Dip?
• Neutral Sentiment: International exposure is a key variable: Investors are assessing Meta’s dependence on overseas revenue, including the stability of international advertising demand and currency-related risks. Meta International Revenues Trends
• Negative Sentiment: AI investment remains the main risk: Meta’s earnings miss and concerns about sharply higher capital expenditures, weaker free cash flow and the timing of returns caused the recent post-earnings pressure. Some analysts have also reduced price targets, including Bank of America to $810 and Monness Crespi & Hardt to $730. What's Going on With Meta Stock?

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

NASDAQ META opened at $590.24 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 2.23 and a quick ratio of 2.23. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $520.26 and a 1-year high of $796.25. The company has a market cap of $1.49 trillion, a PE ratio of 22.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.25. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $600.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $622.55.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.19 by ($1.01). The firm had revenue of $60.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $60.22 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 29.83% and a return on equity of 33.18%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $7.14 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 28.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th were given a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio is 7.91%.

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.

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.

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