Mizuho Markets Cayman LP Has $235.34 Million Stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Mizuho Markets Cayman LP nearly doubled its Meta stake in the fourth quarter, buying 175,807 more shares and bringing its total to 356,528 shares worth about $235.3 million. Meta is now its second-largest holding and makes up about 11.9% of its portfolio.
• Meta’s latest earnings were strong, with EPS of $10.44 versus $6.67 expected and revenue of $56.31 billion, up 33.1% from a year earlier. The company also maintains solid profitability and a sizable market cap of about $1.6 trillion.
• Management has been active on shareholder returns and growth initiatives, including a quarterly dividend and new paid subscription plans across its apps and Meta AI. At the same time, insider selling and potential EU privacy concerns around AI data collection present some caution flags.

Mizuho Markets Cayman LP boosted its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 97.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 356,528 shares of the social networking company's stock after purchasing an additional 175,807 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms makes up approximately 11.9% of Mizuho Markets Cayman LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Mizuho Markets Cayman LP's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $235,341,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 34.2% in the third quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 52,252 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $38,373,000 after purchasing an additional 13,311 shares in the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 15.7% in the fourth quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 133,798 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $88,319,000 after purchasing an additional 18,169 shares in the last quarter. Becker Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 5.0% during the third quarter. Becker Capital Management Inc. now owns 35,052 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $25,741,000 after acquiring an additional 1,657 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co. grew its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Diversified Trust Co. now owns 84,059 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $55,487,000 after acquiring an additional 3,336 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC grew its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 16.2% during the third quarter. Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC now owns 6,933 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $5,091,000 after acquiring an additional 968 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ META opened at $632.51 on Monday. The business's 50 day moving average price is $617.84 and its 200 day moving average price is $636.92. The firm has a market cap of $1.60 trillion, a P/E ratio of 22.99, a P/E/G ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.23. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52 week low of $520.26 and a 52 week high of $796.25. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24.

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

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 25th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th will be given a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio is currently 7.63%.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In related news, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,847 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the chief technology officer owned 414 shares in the company, valued at $251,641.62. This represents a 94.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at 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, CFO Susan J. Li sold 9,195 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $607.84, for a total value of $5,589,088.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 13,186 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,014,978.24. This represents a 41.08% 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. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders have sold 40,890 shares of company stock worth $25,315,558 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 13.53% of the company's stock.

Key Meta Platforms News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta launched paid subscription plans across its flagship apps and Meta AI, opening a new monetization path that could reduce reliance on ad revenue. Mark Zuckerberg says a Meta cloud computing business 'definitely on the table'
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentators are pointing to the subscription push as a meaningful upside driver, with some estimating it could add billions in annual revenue if adoption is strong. Meta's Subscription Push Could Add $13.5 Billion By 2028 Across Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta also said it may eventually use excess AI/data-center capacity for a cloud business, which adds long-term optionality but is still early-stage. Mark Zuckerberg says a Meta cloud computing business 'definitely on the table'
• Neutral Sentiment: The company declared a quarterly dividend, which is modest but reinforces capital-return strength. Meta Announces Quarterly Cash Dividend
• Negative Sentiment: Reuters reported Meta’s employee mouse-click tracking tool for AI training may run into EU privacy concerns, creating regulatory risk around data collection and cross-border use. Exclusive: Meta tool to track employee mouse clicks on collision course with EU privacy rules
• Negative Sentiment: Recent commentary from Jim Cramer and disclosures of insider selling add some caution around execution and valuation. Jim Cramer Says Meta “Has Not Excelled in a Visible Way”

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on META. Bank of America dropped their price target on Meta Platforms from $885.00 to $820.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Barclays boosted their price target on Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Wolfe Research dropped their price target on Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $800.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Arete Research restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald dropped their price target on Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $750.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $840.19.

Meta Platforms Profile

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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