Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Stake Lifted by Berbice Capital Management LLC

Key Points

• Berbice Capital Management increased its Meta Platforms stake by 4.2% in the fourth quarter, bringing its holdings to 20,705 shares valued at about $13.7 million.
• Meta’s latest quarterly earnings beat expectations, with EPS of $10.44 versus $6.67 expected and revenue of $56.31 billion, up 33.1% from a year earlier.
• Wall Street remains constructive on the stock: analysts now have an average rating of “Moderate Buy” with a consensus price target of $840.19, while Meta also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.525 per share.

Berbice Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 4.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 20,705 shares of the social networking company's stock after acquiring an additional 840 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms makes up 8.2% of Berbice Capital Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 3rd biggest position. Berbice Capital Management LLC's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $13,667,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 34.2% in the 3rd quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 52,252 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $38,373,000 after buying an additional 13,311 shares during the period. Keybank National Association OH increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 15.7% in the 4th quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 133,798 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $88,319,000 after buying an additional 18,169 shares during the period. Becker Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter. Becker Capital Management Inc. now owns 35,052 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $25,741,000 after buying an additional 1,657 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co. increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co. now owns 84,059 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $55,487,000 after buying an additional 3,336 shares during the period. Finally, Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 16.2% in the 3rd quarter. Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC now owns 6,933 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $5,091,000 after buying an additional 968 shares during the period. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

META has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Tigress Financial raised their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $935.00 to $945.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Scotiabank raised their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $685.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Wedbush increased their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $880.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Argus reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $800.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Friday, March 27th. Four 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, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $840.19.

Meta Platforms Stock Up 0.0%

NASDAQ:META opened at $635.29 on Friday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $520.26 and a fifty-two week high of $796.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.61 trillion, a P/E ratio of 23.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a current ratio of 2.35. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $617.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $636.91.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $6.67 by $3.77. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.84% and a return on equity of 36.93%. The business had revenue of $56.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $55.56 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $6.43 EPS. The company's revenue was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 25th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.63%.

More Meta Platforms News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta launched paid subscription plans for Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Meta AI, creating a new monetization path beyond advertising. Early reports suggest the pricing could meaningfully add to revenue over time, and analysts have highlighted upside if adoption builds. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Meta also announced a quarterly cash dividend, which may appeal to income-focused investors and signals confidence in the company’s cash generation. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary remained constructive, with Rosenblatt reaffirming a buy rating and raising its price target, reflecting optimism around Meta’s ad business, AI efforts, and new subscription revenue. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta committed additional funding to its Oversight Board through 2028, which supports governance stability but is unlikely to move the stock much on its own. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: COO Javier Olivan sold shares under a pre-arranged trading plan, which is routine insider activity and not necessarily a bearish signal.
• Negative Sentiment: Meta faces continued legal and reputational overhangs, including a Kentucky trial seeking a large penalty and a Supreme Court setback in the Vermont Instagram addiction case. Article Title

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 2,778 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $629.45, for a total value of $1,748,612.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 10,557 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,645,103.65. This trade represents a 20.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,847 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $607.83, for a total transaction of $4,769,642.01. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 414 shares of the company's stock, valued at $251,641.62. The trade was a 94.99% 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. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold 40,366 shares of company stock valued at $25,038,396 in the last three months. 13.53% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Meta Platforms Company Profile

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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