Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Shares Sold by Tudor Financial Inc.

Key Points

• Tudor Financial cut its Meta stake by 91.7% in the second quarter, selling 9,440 shares and retaining 858 shares valued at approximately $483,000.
• Other institutional investors increased their holdings, while institutional investors collectively own 79.91% of Meta’s stock. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $785.90.
• Meta shares opened at $751.66, near their 12-month high, but investors face risks from heavy AI spending, insider selling, regulatory litigation and a reported Muse security vulnerability.

Tudor Financial Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 91.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 858 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 9,440 shares during the period. Tudor Financial Inc.'s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $483,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of META. Fairtree Asset Management Pty Ltd raised its position in Meta Platforms by 18.6% in the second quarter. Fairtree Asset Management Pty Ltd now owns 18,777 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $10,577,000 after purchasing an additional 2,939 shares during the period. Madison Wealth Partners Inc increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 33.6% during the second quarter. Madison Wealth Partners Inc now owns 3,031 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $1,707,000 after acquiring an additional 763 shares during the last quarter. Sone Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 38.2% during the second quarter. Sone Capital Management LLC now owns 16,059 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $9,046,000 after acquiring an additional 4,440 shares during the last quarter. Lakewood Capital Management LP raised its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 63.7% in the 2nd quarter. Lakewood Capital Management LP now owns 115,985 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $65,333,000 after acquiring an additional 45,130 shares during the period. Finally, Abbot Financial Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 53.5% in the 2nd quarter. Abbot Financial Management Inc. now owns 2,845 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $1,603,000 after acquiring an additional 991 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Muse momentum remains the main bullish catalyst. Early reviews, rising user traction and Meta’s new early-access program for upcoming Muse features are reinforcing expectations that the AI assistant could become a major consumer product and future revenue stream. Meta opens early access program for new Muse features
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts are raising price targets. Deutsche Bank, TD Cowen, Canaccord Genuity and other firms lifted targets and maintained bullish ratings, citing Muse’s potential to expand Meta beyond advertising through subscriptions, commerce and AI services. Meta price targets raised as Muse gains momentum
• Positive Sentiment: AI hardware could broaden Muse’s distribution. Meta is integrating Muse into Ray-Ban AI glasses and introducing additional wearable and VR products, creating potential new hardware, services and commerce opportunities.
• Neutral Sentiment: Friday’s decline appears largely technical. After rising roughly 36% during September and approaching a $2 trillion market value, Meta faced profit-taking and a pullback from recent highs. Bullish options activity suggests some traders continue to view the weakness as a buying opportunity.
• Neutral Sentiment: Large capital spending remains a key debate. Investors are encouraged by Meta’s AI strategy but remain uncertain whether heavy spending on infrastructure and Reality Labs will generate sufficient returns.
• Negative Sentiment: New Mexico litigation adds regulatory risk. A jury found that Meta misled state residents in a case related to the Cambridge Analytica data scandal, potentially increasing legal costs and scrutiny. Meta misled consumers in New Mexico jury case
• Negative Sentiment: A Muse security vulnerability was identified. Meta is adding clearer safety warnings after a vulnerability reportedly could expose sensitive user information, raising concerns about trust and adoption of its AI agent. Meta bolsters Muse safety warning after vulnerability
• Negative Sentiment: Competition and monetization obstacles remain. Amazon blocked Muse from accessing its platform, while privacy concerns around camera-equipped glasses and skepticism toward new AI hardware could limit Meta’s growth plans.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling adds a cautionary signal. Christopher Cox sold 40,000 shares and COO Javier Olivan sold shares under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans. The transactions do not necessarily indicate reduced confidence, but they add to concerns after the stock’s rapid advance.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In other Meta Platforms news, CAO Aaron Anderson sold 3,240 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $618.06, for a total transaction of $2,002,514.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 6,271 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,875,854.26. This represents a 34.07% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Christopher K. Cox sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $712.76, for a total value of $28,510,400.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 184,516 shares of the company's stock, valued at $131,515,624.16. The trade was a 17.82% 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. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 123,333 shares of company stock worth $80,795,845. Company insiders own 13.53% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Shares of META opened at $751.66 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The firm has a market cap of $1.91 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.25. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $615.16 and its 200-day simple moving average is $613.07. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12-month low of $520.26 and a 12-month high of $779.82.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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 quarter last year, the company earned $7.14 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 27.93 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 21st will be paid a $0.5250 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 21st. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. Meta Platforms's payout ratio is currently 7.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on META shares. New Street Research lowered their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $730.00 to $700.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Barclays cut their target price on Meta Platforms from $830.00 to $780.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Meta Platforms from $785.00 to $875.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $725.00 target price (down from $815.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, August 27th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $770.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-four have issued a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $785.90.

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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