Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Stock: Lodestar Private Asset Management LLC Increases Stake

Key Points

• Lodestar Private Asset Management increased its Meta stake by 52.4% in the third quarter, bringing its holdings to 3,170 shares valued at approximately $2.3 million. Institutional investors collectively own 79.91% of Meta’s stock.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with Meta receiving a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $833.12; several firms recently raised their targets or upgraded the stock.
• Meta’s latest quarterly results exceeded expectations, with earnings of $7.40 per share and revenue of $64.6 billion, up 26.1% year over year. The company also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.525 per share, equivalent to a 0.3% yield.

Lodestar Private Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 52.4% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,170 shares of the social networking company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,090 shares during the quarter. Lodestar Private Asset Management LLC's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $2,299,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Corient Private Wealth LP boosted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 723.1% during the 2nd quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP now owns 8,801,764 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $4,957,946,000 after purchasing an additional 7,732,446 shares during the period. Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms in the second quarter worth approximately $2,948,486,000. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 4.0% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 92,033,963 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $51,841,811,000 after buying an additional 3,510,123 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE raised its stake 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 buying an additional 2,673,494 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi grew its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 18.1% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 11,858,972 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $6,784,873,000 after buying an additional 1,815,017 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. Rothschild & Co Redburn upped their price target on Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Monness Crespi & Hardt reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $875.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. President Capital raised Meta Platforms from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $660.00 to $897.00 in a report on Thursday, September 24th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Meta Platforms from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group cut their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $790.00 to $687.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. 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 Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:META opened at $614.99 on Monday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $520.26 and a 1-year high of $779.82. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $670.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $632.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.57 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.97, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 1.90 and a current ratio of 1.90.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 22nd. 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 30.73% and a net margin of 31.15%. The firm had revenue of $64.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $63.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $7.25 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 26.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 21st were issued a dividend of $0.5250 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, September 21st. Meta Platforms's payout ratio is currently 7.16%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Meta Platforms news, COO Javier Olivan sold 946 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $640.00, for a total transaction of $605,440.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 5,040 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,225,600. This represents a 15.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 149,515 shares of company stock worth $102,183,520. Company insiders own 13.53% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta settled a teen lawsuit alleging that Instagram and Facebook contributed to addiction, depression and eating disorders. Financial terms were not disclosed, but the agreement removes Meta from an upcoming Los Angeles trial and reduces near-term litigation uncertainty. Reuters settlement report
• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s advertising fundamentals remain strong: recent coverage cited higher ad pricing, rising impressions, improved AI-driven ad conversions and strong engagement. Analysts also see meaningful upside, with one fair-value estimate raised from $813.65 to $848.38 per share. Meta fair value report
• Positive Sentiment: Meta expanded its relationship with Advanced Micro Devices, including a $1 billion equity investment and multi-generation chip co-design for Meta’s AI data centers. The deal may improve access to computing capacity and supplier diversification. AMD and Meta partnership report

Meta Platforms Company Profile

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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