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Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Shares Sold by B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG

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Key Points

  • B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG cut its Meta stake by 19.7% in the second quarter, selling 106,438 shares and retaining 434,801 shares valued at roughly $244.9 million. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 79.91% of Meta.
  • Meta shares rose 1.3% to $552.79, but the company’s latest quarterly EPS of $6.18 missed estimates of $7.19 despite 28% year-over-year revenue growth to $60.8 billion. Analysts maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with an average price target of $785.32.
  • Insiders have sold $22.6 million of Meta stock over the past three months under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans, while legal challenges involving child safety and social-media addiction and elevated AI capital spending remain key risks for investors.
  • MarketBeat previews the top five stocks to own by September 1st.

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG trimmed its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 19.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 434,801 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 106,438 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for 2.1% of B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG's holdings, making the stock its 10th largest holding. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $244,918,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in META. RHL Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Advantage Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Axiom Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms during the first quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth $42,000. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In related news, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,848 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $558.00, for a total transaction of $4,379,184.00. Following the sale, the chief technology officer owned 828 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $462,024. This represents a 90.46% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $561.56, for a total value of $280,780.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 2,943 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,652,671.08. This represents a 14.52% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 38,502 shares of company stock worth $22,603,485. Company insiders own 13.53% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Up 1.3%

NASDAQ:META traded up $6.96 on Friday, hitting $552.79. The stock had a trading volume of 6,861,574 shares, compared to its average volume of 16,777,023. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1 year low of $520.26 and a 1 year high of $790.80. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $593.85 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $615.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 2.23. The stock has a market cap of $1.41 trillion, a P/E ratio of 20.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $7.19 by ($1.01). Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 33.18% and a net margin of 29.83%.The business had revenue of $60.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $60.22 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $7.14 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 28.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

META has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Raymond James Financial increased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $825.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Bank of America decreased their target price on Meta Platforms from $835.00 to $810.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. BNP Paribas Exane began coverage on Meta Platforms in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They issued an "outperform" rating for the company. TD Cowen dropped their price target on Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $750.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Wolfe Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $700.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $785.32.

View Our Latest Report on Meta Platforms

Key Meta Platforms News

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

  • Positive Sentiment: A California judge reportedly dismissed one teen-related claim against Meta, Alphabet’s Google and Snap ahead of an October trial. The development removes one legal issue, although the companies still face broader litigation over alleged harms to young users. Market Chatter: Meta Platforms, Google, Snap See Teen Dismiss Lawsuit Ahead of October Trial
  • Positive Sentiment: Meta launched Pocket across the United States, an AI-powered app that lets users create and share interactive games through text prompts. The product could expand Meta’s consumer AI ecosystem and increase engagement. Meta brings Pocket to US users
  • Positive Sentiment: Meta introduced a Mac app for Meta AI with system-wide dictation and screen-context capabilities. Analysts also argue that the company’s heavy AI investment could eventually create new revenue streams beyond advertising. Meta AI’s new Mac app
  • Positive Sentiment: Meta’s data-center expansion is supporting demand for fiber-optic infrastructure. A large-scale buildout could strengthen the company’s AI capacity and improve ad recommendations, although it requires substantial capital spending. Meta data-center fiber demand
  • Neutral Sentiment: CTO Andrew Bosworth, CFO Susan Li and insider Curtis Mahoney sold roughly $10.3 million of META shares in aggregate. The transactions were made under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans, reducing their value as a discretionary bearish signal, but the insider selling may still affect sentiment. Meta insider transaction filing
  • Neutral Sentiment: Technical traders are watching support and resistance levels for META alongside other mega-cap technology stocks, suggesting near-term trading may remain sensitive to broader Nasdaq and AI-sector momentum. Key support and resistance levels for META
  • Negative Sentiment: Meta’s child-safety and social-media-addiction trial remains the dominant risk. Former employee testimony alleged that some safety tools were “designed to fail,” while prosecutors are challenging recommendation systems, infinite scrolling and other engagement features. An adverse outcome could result in major damages, mandated product changes, regulatory restrictions and weaker monetization. Meta social media lawsuit trial
  • Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned that elevated AI capital expenditures will pressure free cash flow, particularly after Meta’s latest quarterly EPS miss despite strong revenue growth. The combination of spending demands and legal uncertainty is weighing on the stock’s valuation. Meta’s trial adds risk to the stock

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.

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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).

Institutional Ownership by Quarter for Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META)

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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