Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Stake Reduced by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Key Points

• Handelsbanken Fonder AB cut its Meta Platforms stake by 5.6% in the fourth quarter, selling 66,755 shares and leaving it with 1,122,058 shares valued at about $740.7 million.
• Meta delivered strong quarterly results, reporting $10.44 EPS versus $6.67 expected and revenue of $56.31 billion, up 33.1% year over year.
• Analysts remain generally positive: Meta has a Moderate Buy consensus rating, though Sanford C. Bernstein trimmed its price target to $850 from $900 while other firms raised or reaffirmed bullish views.

Handelsbanken Fonder AB lowered its holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 5.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,122,058 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 66,755 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for 2.2% of Handelsbanken Fonder AB's holdings, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Handelsbanken Fonder AB's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $740,659,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in META. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Meta Platforms by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 199,995,630 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $132,015,115,000 after purchasing an additional 7,269,279 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.9% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 86,925,674 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $64,158,971,000 after buying an additional 1,650,435 shares in the last quarter. Danske Bank A S acquired a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the third quarter valued at $1,191,175,000. PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab acquired a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at $813,994,000. Finally, Concentrum Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 948.7% in the third quarter. Concentrum Wealth Management now owns 1,243,577 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $913,000 after buying an additional 1,124,998 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on META shares. Sanford C. Bernstein dropped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $850.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Citigroup reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $825.00 to $850.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Tigress Financial lifted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $935.00 to $945.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Four 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $840.19.

Meta Platforms Trading Up 0.0%

META opened at $635.29 on Friday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12 month low of $520.26 and a 12 month high of $796.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.61 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.09, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 2.35 and a quick ratio of 2.35. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $617.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $636.91.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.67 by $3.77. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 36.93% and a net margin of 32.84%.The firm had revenue of $56.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $55.56 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $6.43 EPS. Meta Platforms's revenue for the quarter was up 33.1% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 25th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. Meta Platforms's payout ratio 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 Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Susan J. Li sold 9,195 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $607.84, for a total transaction of $5,589,088.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,186 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,014,978.24. The trade was a 41.08% decrease in their position. The transaction 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. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,847 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $607.83, for a total value of $4,769,642.01. Following 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. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 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 corporate insiders.

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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