Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Oppenheimer Asset Management cut its Meta Platforms stake by 5.0% in the fourth quarter, selling 5,510 shares and leaving it with 105,670 shares valued at about $69.8 million.
• Meta reported strong quarterly results, with earnings of $10.44 per share beating estimates and revenue rising 33.1% year over year to $56.31 billion.
• Despite recent volatility and some legal/governance concerns, analyst sentiment remains upbeat: the stock has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $840.31.

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 5.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 105,670 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 5,510 shares during the period. Meta Platforms makes up about 0.9% of Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $69,752,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of META. Secured Retirement Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Meta Platforms by 7.4% during the fourth quarter. Secured Retirement Advisors LLC now owns 3,786 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $2,499,000 after acquiring an additional 260 shares during the period. Sigma Planning Corp boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Sigma Planning Corp now owns 40,343 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $26,700,000 after purchasing an additional 1,143 shares in the last quarter. Cullinan Associates Inc. grew its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Cullinan Associates Inc. now owns 21,128 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $13,946,000 after purchasing an additional 923 shares during the period. North Star Investment Management Corp. grew its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. now owns 6,200 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $4,092,000 after purchasing an additional 283 shares during the period. Finally, Safe Harbor Family Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter valued at about $431,000. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 1.8%

Shares of NASDAQ META opened at $598.86 on Tuesday. The firm's 50-day moving average is $625.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $643.49. The company has a market capitalization of $1.51 trillion, a PE ratio of 21.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.25. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12-month low of $520.26 and a 12-month high of $796.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 2.35 and a quick ratio of 2.35.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.67 by $3.77. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.84% and a return on equity of 36.93%. The business had revenue of $56.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $55.56 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $6.43 EPS. The company's revenue was up 33.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th were given a dividend of $0.525 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 16th. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.63%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Tigress Financial raised their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $935.00 to $945.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $1,015.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Wolfe Research lowered their price target on Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $800.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 10th. Guggenheim dropped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $800.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Mizuho reduced their price objective on Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $835.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have issued a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $840.31.

More Meta Platforms News

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

• Negative Sentiment: Santa Clara County sued Meta, alleging the company earned money from scam advertisements on Facebook and Instagram and violated California false advertising and unfair business practices laws. California county sues Meta over scam ads
• Negative Sentiment: Another report highlighted the same lawsuit, framing it as a claim that Meta earned billions from scam Facebook ads, reinforcing investor worries about reputational damage and possible legal costs. Meta accused of earning billions from scam Facebook ads in new California lawsuit
• Negative Sentiment: A plaintiffs’ law firm also announced an investigation into Meta’s board over possible breaches of fiduciary duty tied to privacy oversight and AI training practices, which could keep governance concerns in focus. Berger Montague PC Investigates Meta Platforms, Inc.'s Board of Directors for Breach of Fiduciary Duty (META)
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst commentary remained constructive overall, with coverage noting that Wall Street still sees upside in Meta despite recent post-earnings volatility, which may help limit downside. Meta Platforms’ Wild Post-Earnings Swings: Where Analyst Price Targets Stand Now

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 2,778 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $629.45, for a total transaction of $1,748,612.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 10,557 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,645,103.65. This trade represents a 20.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 8,089 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $631.24, for a total transaction of $5,106,100.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 2,841 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,793,352.84. The trade was a 74.01% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 167,676 shares of company stock valued at $107,299,848. Corporate insiders own 13.61% of the company's stock.

About Meta Platforms

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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