Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Stock Acquired by TT Capital Management LLC

Key Points

• TT Capital Management increased its Meta stake by 76.4% in the third quarter, acquiring 1,829 additional shares and ending with 4,223 shares valued at approximately $3.06 million. Institutional investors collectively own 79.91% of Meta.
• Meta insiders sold 149,797 shares worth about $102.2 million over the past 90 days, including sales by CEO Mark Zuckerberg and insider Christopher Cox under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish, with Meta holding a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $808.88 versus a recent price of $709.33. However, investors remain concerned about rising AI infrastructure spending, regulatory scrutiny and pressure on free cash flow.

TT Capital Management LLC increased its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 76.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 4,223 shares of the social networking company's stock after buying an additional 1,829 shares during the period. Meta Platforms accounts for 1.5% of TT Capital Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest holding. TT Capital Management LLC's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $3,063,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Watchman Group Inc. grew its position in Meta Platforms by 0.3% in the first quarter. Watchman Group Inc. now owns 5,091 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $2,913,000 after acquiring an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Penney Financial LLC raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.9% during the 1st quarter. Penney Financial LLC now owns 399 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $228,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Barnes Pettey Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Barnes Pettey Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,519 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $869,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Bill Few Associates Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Bill Few Associates Inc. now owns 1,206 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $874,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWS Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.7% in the 1st quarter. CWS Financial Advisors LLC now owns 985 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $564,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In related news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 27,474 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $777.44, for a total transaction of $21,359,386.56. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Christopher Cox sold 40,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $712.76, for a total value of $28,510,400.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 184,516 shares in the company, valued at $131,515,624.16. This represents a 17.82% 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. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 149,797 shares of company stock worth $102,180,385. Company insiders own 13.53% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

META has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $715.00 to $884.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. HSBC cut their target price on Meta Platforms from $905.00 to $830.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Guggenheim boosted their price target on Meta Platforms from $700.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $886.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Phillip Securities upgraded Meta Platforms from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $795.00 to $750.00 in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-six have assigned a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Meta Platforms currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $808.88.

Key Headlines Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America expects Meta to exceed third-quarter revenue expectations, forecasting $63.8 billion versus a $63.3 billion consensus estimate, and maintained a Buy rating with an $810 price target. Meta expected to beat revenue forecasts as AI boosts advertising, says Bank of America
• Positive Sentiment: Meta released the open-weight Muse Spark model for coding and AI-agent tasks, while its collaboration with Apple enables developers to run the model locally on high-end Mac computers. The developments could broaden adoption of Meta’s AI technology and reduce reliance on cloud infrastructure. Meta releases open-weight Muse Spark model
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan reaffirmed its Overweight rating and set a $920 price target, implying substantial upside, while other analysts including KeyCorp and Rosenblatt also maintained positive ratings. JPMorgan reaffirms Meta rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta is expected to report third-quarter results on October 21. Investors will focus on advertising growth, user metrics, profitability, capital expenditures, and management’s outlook for AI infrastructure spending. Meta Q3 earnings estimates
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta withdrew $25 million from a previously announced $65 million effort to support political candidates considered favorable to the AI industry. The move may reduce near-term spending but signals a change in its political strategy. Meta Withdraws $25 Million from Its Midterms Push
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst-related pressure is weighing on the stock after Goldman Sachs lowered its expectations and Meta was reported down following an analyst downgrade, countering the more bullish JPMorgan view. Meta stock price down on analyst downgrade
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned that AI infrastructure spending could reach approximately $205 billion in 2027. Heavy capital expenditures are reducing free cash flow, while potential legal charges and regulatory scrutiny add to earnings risk. Meta AI spending could hit $205 billion
• Negative Sentiment: Seven U.S. senators are questioning Meta’s claim of $6.6 billion in research tax credits for AI data centers, creating potential tax liability and reputational risk. Senators question Meta AI data-center tax credits

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

NASDAQ META traded down $27.39 during trading on Friday, hitting $709.33. The company's stock had a trading volume of 20,582,358 shares, compared to its average volume of 22,124,532. The firm has a market cap of $1.81 trillion, a P/E ratio of 26.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.19. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52 week low of $520.26 and a 52 week high of $779.82. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $655.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $625.86. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $7.19 by ($1.01). Meta Platforms had a net margin of 29.83% and a return on equity of 33.18%. The company had revenue of $60.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $60.22 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $7.14 earnings per share. Meta Platforms's revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 28.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 28th. Investors of record on Monday, September 21st were paid a $0.5250 dividend. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 21st. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.91%.

About Meta Platforms

Meta Platforms, Inc is a technology company that develops social networking, messaging, virtual and augmented reality, and artificial intelligence products. The company operates a global family of apps that includes Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp and Threads, enabling users to connect, communicate, share content and discover communities.

Meta generates most of its business through digital advertising displayed across its platforms. Its products serve individuals, creators, businesses and organizations in markets around the world, while its advertising tools help businesses reach audiences based on factors such as interests, activity and demographics.

Through its Reality Labs division, Meta develops virtual and augmented reality hardware, software and services, including the Meta Quest line of headsets and related experiences.

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