Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Stock Holdings Trimmed by Baskin Financial Services Inc.

Key Points

• Baskin Financial Services trimmed its Meta stake by 1.6% in the third quarter, selling 861 shares and retaining 52,212 shares worth approximately $37.9 million. Meta represents 3.1% of the firm’s portfolio.
• Institutional investors and hedge funds own approximately 79.91% of Meta’s shares, while insiders have sold $102.3 million worth of stock over the past three months, largely through pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans.
• Meta reported quarterly revenue of $64.6 billion and EPS of $7.40, exceeding analyst expectations; Wall Street maintains a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $811.24, despite concerns over heavy AI spending and legal liabilities.

Baskin Financial Services Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 52,212 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 861 shares during the period. Meta Platforms accounts for 3.1% of Baskin Financial Services Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Baskin Financial Services Inc.'s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $37,863,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 4.0% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 92,033,963 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $51,841,811,000 after purchasing an additional 3,510,123 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in Meta Platforms by 14.6% in the 1st 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 buying an additional 2,673,494 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 1.3% in the 2nd 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 worth $7,230,426,000 after buying an additional 162,909 shares during the last quarter. Amundi boosted its holdings 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 buying an additional 1,815,017 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings 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 buying an additional 404,948 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In other Meta Platforms news, CFO Susan J. Li sold 9,196 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $550.61, for a total value of $5,063,409.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,186 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,260,343.46. This trade represents a 41.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,848 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $558.00, for a total value of $4,379,184.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer owned 828 shares in the company, valued at approximately $462,024. This represents a 90.46% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 149,906 shares of company stock valued at $102,347,409 in the last three months. Company insiders own 13.53% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on META. KeyCorp reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $900.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, October 13th. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their target price on Meta Platforms from $730.00 to $830.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, September 28th. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $886.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Tuesday. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $800.00 price target (down from $850.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Erste Group Bank upgraded Meta Platforms from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have issued a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $811.24.

Key Meta Platforms News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Revenue and earnings exceeded expectations. Meta reported record quarterly revenue of approximately $64.6 billion, up 26% year over year and above the roughly $63.3 billion consensus estimate. Earnings of $7.40 per share also surpassed analyst expectations near $6.54. The results highlighted continued strength in advertising volume, pricing and monetization. Meta Platforms Tops Q3 Earnings and Revenue Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Muse is gaining meaningful traction. Meta said its AI assistant Muse has more than 10 million users, with shopping among the leading activities. Investors see the product as a potential way to increase engagement, improve recommendations and generate additional advertising and commerce revenue across Meta’s roughly 3.5 billion-user ecosystem. Meta Says Muse Has Over 10M Users
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts view the core business and AI returns favorably. Commentary following the report cited strong ad efficiency, higher engagement and healthy adjusted operating margins, supporting bullish views that Meta’s AI investments are beginning to contribute to the advertising business. Meta Q3 Strong Growth Makes This a Strong Buy
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta is expanding AI funding while trying to manage cash pressure. Third-quarter capital expenditures reached about $34.9 billion, and the company raised the low end of its annual spending outlook. A new nonvoting Class C share is intended to help fund the AI buildout without reducing Mark Zuckerberg’s voting control, but it introduces potential dilution and reinforces concerns about heavy future investment. Meta to Issue New Class of Shares
• Negative Sentiment: Legal liabilities remain a major overhang. A $9.9 billion charge tied to a teen social-media lawsuit weighed on reported profit, while a New Mexico court ordered Meta to pay $25 billion in a separate privacy case. Meta plans to appeal, but the judgment increases regulatory, financial and reputational risks. Meta Ordered to Pay $25 Billion to New Mexico
• Negative Sentiment: AI profitability is not yet established. Zuckerberg said Muse carries very high computing costs, and Reality Labs could lose approximately $15 billion next year. These losses may limit free cash flow and keep investors sensitive to whether AI growth ultimately produces returns exceeding the cost of the buildout. Meta CEO Says Muse and Reality Labs Are Unprofitable
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling added a modest cautionary signal. COO Javier Olivan sold shares under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. Because the transactions were scheduled in advance, they are not necessarily a judgment on Meta’s outlook, but they reduce his direct ownership. SEC Insider Ownership Filing

Meta Platforms Trading Up 0.5%

META opened at $697.52 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.78 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.19. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $662.27 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $629.10. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $520.26 and a 1-year high of $779.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 2.23 and a quick ratio of 2.23.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 21st. The social networking company reported $7.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $6.54 by $0.86. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 33.18% and a net margin of 29.83%. The business had revenue of $64.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $63.34 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $7.25 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 26.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 27.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 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's principal platforms include Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp, and Threads, which enable users to connect, communicate, share content, and discover products and services.

Meta also operates Reality Labs, its division focused on virtual, augmented, and mixed reality technologies. Reality Labs develops products such as Meta Quest virtual reality headsets and related software and experiences, along with research and hardware intended to support immersive computing.

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