Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Shares Sold by NS Partners Ltd

Key Points

• NS Partners reduced its Meta stake by 7.5% in the second quarter, selling 9,213 shares and retaining 114,227 shares valued at approximately $64.3 million. Institutional investors collectively own 79.91% of Meta’s stock.
• Meta reported $60.8 billion in quarterly revenue, up 28% year over year, but earnings of $6.18 per share missed the $7.19 consensus estimate. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.525 per share, equivalent to a 0.3% annual yield.
• AI agent Muse is a major growth catalyst, with early consumer adoption, Shopify and PayPal partnerships, and higher analyst price targets; however, elevated capital spending, execution issues and concerns about reliability and scalability remain risks.

NS Partners Ltd lowered its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 7.5% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 114,227 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 9,213 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for about 2.8% of NS Partners Ltd's portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position. NS Partners Ltd's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $64,343,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Auto Owners Insurance Co increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 76,587.7% during the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 105,292,277 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $69,502,379,000 after acquiring an additional 105,154,977 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Meta Platforms by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 52,806,712 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $34,734,628,000 after acquiring an additional 878,396 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter valued at $22,152,075,000. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its stake in Meta Platforms by 14.6% in the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 21,038,035 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $12,036,491,000 after purchasing an additional 2,673,494 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Meta Platforms by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 18,200,469 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $12,013,948,000 after purchasing an additional 1,046,715 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ META opened at $736.59 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The business's 50 day moving average price is $609.53 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $610.57. The company has a market cap of $1.88 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.25. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a twelve month low of $520.26 and a twelve month high of $770.60.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results 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 business had revenue of $60.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $60.22 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 33.18% and a net margin of 29.83%.The business's revenue was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $7.14 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 27.93 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 21st will be given a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 21st. Meta Platforms's payout ratio is 7.91%.

Key Headlines Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Muse is gaining significant consumer traction. The agent reportedly surpassed ChatGPT’s early mobile download pace and can handle tasks such as shopping, travel bookings, email and financial-related services. Investors increasingly view Muse as a potential new revenue platform rather than simply another AI feature. Wall Street expects Meta's AI agent to shape into a new revenue engine
• Positive Sentiment: Commercial partnerships strengthen the monetization case. Shopify is integrating Shop Pay checkout with Muse, while PayPal is also expected to use the agent. These deals could help Meta capture value from AI-powered commerce and create a platform for outside developers and services. Shopify Brings Shop Pay Checkout Solution to Meta's Muse AI Agent
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised their targets. Jefferies increased its Meta price target to $875 from $710 and maintained a Buy rating, while Bank of America reaffirmed Buy with an $810 target. Analysts cited Muse’s early adoption and potential to add a new earnings stream. Jefferies Adjusts Price Target on Meta Platforms
• Positive Sentiment: The core advertising business remains supportive. Meta’s latest reported revenue increased 28% year over year to $60.8 billion, with stronger ad pricing helping offset slower impression growth. Investors are also looking ahead to additional AI announcements at Meta Connect.
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta continues to expand its AI infrastructure. Its planned Petal subsea cable and reported custom CPU work with Arm could improve long-term computing capacity and efficiency, but these projects require substantial capital and will not produce immediate revenue.
• Negative Sentiment: Execution and spending concerns remain. Meta’s recent EPS missed consensus despite revenue growth, while rising capital expenditures, debt and weaker cash-flow expectations could limit near-term upside after the stock’s large advance.
• Negative Sentiment: Amazon’s refusal to allow Muse shopping highlights platform friction. Meta is also testing human contractors to complete some Muse calls, raising questions about reliability, privacy, scalability and the cost of delivering the service. Meta testing a human concierge for Muse

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In related news, CAO Aaron Anderson sold 3,240 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $618.06, for a total value of $2,002,514.40. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 6,271 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,875,854.26. This represents a 34.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 946 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $657.73, for a total transaction of $622,212.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 10,716 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,048,234.68. This represents a 8.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 81,758 shares of company stock worth $51,214,020 in the last quarter. 13.53% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

META has been the topic of several research reports. Wedbush boosted their target price on Meta Platforms from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, September 11th. Wolfe Research restated an "outperform" rating and set a $700.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $710.00 to $875.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings cut Meta Platforms from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Friday, June 26th. Finally, Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $800.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have assigned a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $789.63.

Meta Platforms Company Profile

Meta Platforms, Inc develops technologies that help people connect, communicate and build communities online. The company's principal products include Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp and Threads, which enable social networking, messaging, content sharing and digital communication.

Meta generates most of its business through advertising displayed across its family of apps. It also develops artificial intelligence technologies, business messaging tools and hardware and software through its Reality Labs division, including Quest virtual- and mixed-reality devices and related experiences.

The company was founded as Facebook in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg and was renamed Meta Platforms in 2021 to reflect its broader focus on building the metaverse.

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