Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Stake Raised by United Asset Strategies Inc.

Key Points

• United Asset Strategies increased its stake in Meta by 6.2% in Q4 to 49,155 shares (about $32.45M), making META ~2.5% of its holdings and its 7th-largest position.
• Meta beat Q1 expectations (EPS $10.44 vs. $6.67 est., revenue $56.31B, +33% YoY) and highlighted AI-driven ad momentum, but a material rise in 2026 CapEx, continued Reality Labs losses, regulatory/legal scrutiny and notable insider selling have pressured the stock.

United Asset Strategies Inc. grew its stake in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 6.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 49,155 shares of the social networking company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,885 shares during the period. Meta Platforms makes up about 2.5% of United Asset Strategies Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 7th largest position. United Asset Strategies Inc.'s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $32,447,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Caprock Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 11.9% during the 4th quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 94,085 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $62,105,000 after purchasing an additional 10,013 shares in the last quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 27.1% in the 4th quarter. Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 26,655 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $17,595,000 after buying an additional 5,684 shares in the last quarter. Columbia Asset Management boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 6.0% in the 4th quarter. Columbia Asset Management now owns 656 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $433,000 after buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.0% in the 4th quarter. Alphinity Investment Management Pty Ltd now owns 544,615 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $359,495,000 after buying an additional 15,698 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quaker Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 18.2% in the 4th quarter. Quaker Wealth Management LLC now owns 930 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $614,000 after buying an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat & AI ad momentum — Meta reported robust Q1 revenue and EPS, and management highlighted AI-driven ad tools and full‑stack model+chip co‑design that are expanding ad automation and advertiser reach. Meta Does Things Their Own Way
• Positive Sentiment: Robotics/AI talent add — Meta acquired humanoid‑robot startup Assured Robot Intelligence to accelerate robotics model optimization, signaling product diversification in AI/robotics. WSJ: Meta Acquires Assured Robot Intelligence
• Positive Sentiment: Energy and creator initiatives — Meta is signing energy partnerships (space solar/long‑duration storage) to secure power for compute-heavy AI centers and piloting stablecoin creator payouts — moves that support long‑term AI scale and monetization. AI drives growth (context)
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst reactions mixed — Some firms (e.g., Stifel) trimmed price targets but retained “buy”; others raised targets on longer‑term AI upside. These tweaks sustain divergent Wall Street views on valuation vs. heavy CapEx. Benzinga: Analyst Moves
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider sales disclosed — COO Javier Oliván sold shares under a Rule 10b5‑1 plan; routine but notable given market noise. SEC Filing
• Negative Sentiment: Large CapEx raise spooks investors — Meta lifted 2026 capital expenditure guidance materially (now targeting major AI data‑center buildout), prompting concerns about near‑term free‑cash‑flow and returns; that is the primary reason the stock has been sold. Reuters: CapEx & market reaction
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory/legal pressure — Threats to pull apps from New Mexico over child‑safety rules and US senators’ scrutiny over ad removals amplify litigation/compliance risk and potential costs. Reuters: Lawmaker Scrutiny
• Negative Sentiment: Reality Labs losses & deal setbacks — Continued multi‑billion losses in Reality Labs and a blocked Manus acquisition in China highlight near‑term cash drag and execution risks on speculative bets. CNBC: Reality Labs Loss

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on META. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $750.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $908.00 to $865.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Citizens Jmp reiterated a "market outperform" rating and issued a $900.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Meta Platforms from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $820.00 to $800.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Meta Platforms has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $840.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 580 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $667.00, for a total transaction of $386,860.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 3,847 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,565,949. This represents a 13.10% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 629 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $670.84, for a total transaction of $421,958.36. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 2,372 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,591,232.48. This trade represents a 20.96% decrease in their position. 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. In the last three months, insiders have sold 167,155 shares of company stock valued at $107,067,129. Corporate insiders own 13.61% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 0.5%

META opened at $608.74 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 2.35 and a quick ratio of 2.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.54 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.25. The business has a 50-day moving average of $629.62 and a two-hundred day moving average of $647.93. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12 month low of $520.26 and a 12 month high of $796.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.67 by $3.77. The company had revenue of $56.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $55.56 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 36.93% and a net margin of 32.84%.The firm's revenue was up 33.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $6.43 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 30.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 26th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th were 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 was Monday, March 16th. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio is 7.63%.

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.

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