Pittenger & Anderson Inc. Raises Position in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Pittenger & Anderson Inc. increased its Meta Platforms stake by 2.3% in the fourth quarter, adding 1,151 shares to reach 52,177 shares worth about $34.4 million.
• Meta delivered a strong quarterly report, posting $10.44 EPS versus the $6.67 consensus and $56.31 billion in revenue, up 33.1% year over year.
• Analyst sentiment remains constructive overall, with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $840.31, even as insiders have sold shares recently and some legal/regulatory risks remain.

Pittenger & Anderson Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 2.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 52,177 shares of the social networking company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,151 shares during the period. Meta Platforms makes up about 1.3% of Pittenger & Anderson Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Pittenger & Anderson Inc.'s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $34,442,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in META. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 199,995,630 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $132,015,115,000 after purchasing an additional 7,269,279 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 86,925,674 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $64,158,971,000 after purchasing an additional 1,650,435 shares during the last quarter. Danske Bank A S purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,191,175,000. PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at $813,994,000. Finally, Concentrum Wealth Management lifted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 948.7% during the 3rd quarter. Concentrum Wealth Management now owns 1,243,577 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $913,000 after purchasing an additional 1,124,998 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, COO Javier Olivan sold 926 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $604.57, for a total transaction of $559,831.82. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 6,853 shares in the company, valued at $4,143,118.21. This trade represents a 11.90% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 580 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $667.00, for a total value of $386,860.00. Following the sale, the director owned 3,847 shares in the company, valued at $2,565,949. This trade represents a 13.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 169,231 shares of company stock worth $108,239,954 over the last ninety days. 13.61% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of META opened at $616.63 on Thursday. The business's 50-day moving average is $623.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $641.75. The company has a market capitalization of $1.56 trillion, a P/E ratio of 22.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a current ratio of 2.35. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $520.26 and a fifty-two week high of $796.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.67 by $3.77. The company had revenue of $56.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.56 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 36.93% and a net margin of 32.84%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $6.43 EPS. Research analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on META shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on Meta Platforms from $880.00 to $920.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. UBS Group reduced their target price on Meta Platforms from $908.00 to $865.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $725.00 target price (down from $825.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised their target price on Meta Platforms from $808.00 to $890.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Citigroup restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have given a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $840.31.

More Meta Platforms News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta is expanding WhatsApp’s privacy tools with a new “incognito” mode for AI chats, which could help ease user concerns and support adoption of its AI features. Reuters article on WhatsApp incognito mode
• Positive Sentiment: The company also introduced more private messaging and sharing products, including an Instagram feature and additional AI privacy controls, which may help strengthen engagement and user trust over time. CNET article on Instagram Instants
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta is reportedly preparing to monetize WhatsApp more aggressively through a premium subscription model, which could eventually add high-margin recurring revenue, but the financial impact is still speculative. Seeking Alpha article on WhatsApp Plus
• Negative Sentiment: Santa Clara County filed a lawsuit accusing Meta of profiting from scam ads on Facebook and Instagram, adding to concerns that the company may face restitution, damages, and stricter oversight of its ad systems. Business Wire article on Santa Clara County complaint
• Negative Sentiment: Reuters reported that Meta is challenging New Mexico’s proposed $3.7 billion remedy in the teen mental health trial, underscoring the scale of potential liabilities from social media-related lawsuits. Reuters article on New Mexico trial
• Negative Sentiment: Separate reports said Meta lost a court fight in Italy over paying publishers for news snippets, reinforcing that international regulation could create additional costs and legal pressure. Reuters article on Italian publishers ruling

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding META? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report).

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.