Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Stock: Carmel Capital Partners LLC Reduces Position

Key Points

• Carmel Capital Partners cut its Meta stake by 59.3% in the third quarter, selling 2,251 shares and ending the period with 1,547 shares valued at about $1.12 million.
• Institutional investors own 79.91% of Meta shares, with several large firms—including State Street and Bank of America—reporting increases in their holdings.
• Meta beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, with revenue up 26.1% year over year. Analysts’ consensus rating was “Moderate Buy,” with an average price target of $833.12.

Carmel Capital Partners LLC lessened its holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 59.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,547 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 2,251 shares during the quarter. Carmel Capital Partners LLC's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $1,122,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 4.0% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 92,033,963 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $51,841,811,000 after buying an additional 3,510,123 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 14.6% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 21,038,035 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $12,036,491,000 after acquiring an additional 2,673,494 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 1.3% in the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 12,836,063 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $7,230,426,000 after acquiring an additional 162,909 shares during the period. Amundi boosted its position in Meta Platforms by 18.1% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 11,858,972 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $6,784,873,000 after purchasing an additional 1,815,017 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Meta Platforms by 4.0% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 10,429,812 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $5,964,745,000 after purchasing an additional 404,948 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 946 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $614.15, for a total transaction of $580,985.90. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 4,094 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,514,330.10. This represents a 18.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 149,398 shares of company stock worth $102,134,435. 13.42% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on META. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $763.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 13th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Meta Platforms from $875.00 to $850.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. Wedbush boosted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $700.00 to $730.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. Yorkville Ives started coverage on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $900.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Raymond James Financial boosted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $650.00 to $860.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, September 24th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have issued a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $833.12.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 2.0%

Shares of META opened at $628.77 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $678.62 and a 200 day moving average price of $632.12. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a one year low of $520.26 and a one year high of $779.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a current ratio of 1.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.61 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.44, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.28.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 22nd. The social networking company reported $7.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $6.54 by $0.86. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 30.73% and a net margin of 31.15%. The company had revenue of $64.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $63.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $7.25 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 26.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 28th. Investors of record on Monday, September 21st were given a dividend of $0.5250 per share. The ex-dividend date was 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 presently 7.16%.

Recent Meta Platforms Headlines

Investors following META have been watching these headlines:

• Positive Sentiment: Meta launched its Muse AI agent on Apple Watch and Wear OS, adding voice and text access that could broaden use of its assistant. Article: Meta's AI agent Muse lands on Apple Watch
• Neutral Sentiment: Infrastructure chief Santosh Janardhan is set to leave in early 2027, with former AWS executive David Brown slated to succeed him and lead infrastructure work tied to Meta’s AI computing initiative. The planned succession may support continuity, though the leadership change comes during a major infrastructure buildout. Article: Meta head of infrastructure will leave and be succeeded by former AWS cloud exec
• Negative Sentiment: United Airlines barred AI agents from booking flights, raising doubts about a prominent potential use for Meta’s Muse agent and weighing on sentiment toward the company’s AI ambitions. Article: United Airlines bars AI agents from booking tickets

Meta Platforms Profile

Meta Platforms, Inc. is a global technology company that develops social networking, messaging, and digital communication products. Its services include Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger, and Threads, which connect people and help businesses reach audiences around the world. The company also develops virtual and augmented reality products and technologies through its Reality Labs division, including Quest headsets and related software and services. Advertising is a central part of Meta's business, with its platforms providing tools for businesses to promote products and services.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.