Premier Fund Managers Ltd Sells 16,010 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Premier Fund Managers Ltd reduced its Meta Platforms stake by 42.9% in the fourth quarter, selling 16,010 shares and ending with 21,276 shares valued at about $14.17 million.
• Despite some investors trimming positions, Meta remains heavily owned by institutions, with large holders like Vanguard and State Street increasing their stakes and institutional ownership at 79.91%.
• Wall Street sentiment stays broadly positive: analysts rate Meta a Moderate Buy on average, with a consensus price target of $840.31, while the company also posted a strong earnings beat with revenue up 33.1% year over year.

Premier Fund Managers Ltd trimmed its position in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 42.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 21,276 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 16,010 shares during the quarter. Premier Fund Managers Ltd's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $14,169,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of META. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in 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 acquiring an additional 7,269,279 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its position in 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 acquiring an additional 1,650,435 shares in the last quarter. Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,191,175,000. PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab bought a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $813,994,000. Finally, Concentrum Wealth Management boosted its position in 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 acquiring an additional 1,124,998 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on META. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $765.00 to $770.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Citizens Jmp reissued a "market outperform" rating and issued a $900.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $810.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Raymond James Financial dropped their price target on Meta Platforms from $825.00 to $800.00 and set a "strong-buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on Meta Platforms from $880.00 to $920.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Four equities research 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's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $840.31.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In related news, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 8,089 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $631.24, for a total value of $5,106,100.36. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 2,841 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,793,352.84. This represents a 74.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Susan J. Li sold 56,571 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $644.70, for a total value of $36,471,323.70. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 160,352 shares of company stock valued at $102,559,436. 13.61% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Shares of META opened at $614.23 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $1.55 trillion, a P/E ratio of 22.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.25. 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. The business's 50 day moving average price is $622.18 and its 200-day moving average price is $640.72.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.67 by $3.77. The business had revenue of $56.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $55.56 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 36.93% and a net margin of 32.84%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 33.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $6.43 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square continues to hold Meta alongside other megacap AI leaders, reinforcing the view that META remains a core long-term AI and digital ads name. Microsoft, Meta, Amazon and Google. Is Ackman's Hedge Fund Just a Mag 7 Play?
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentary continue to point out that Meta’s latest earnings beat was strong, with faster revenue growth and better-than-expected EPS, which supports the bull case despite recent volatility. Meta Platforms Stock Performance
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta is getting attention as one of the most-watched stocks on Zacks, suggesting investors are closely focused on what comes next for AI spending, ad growth, and margins. Meta Platforms, Inc. (META) is Attracting Investor Attention: Here is What You Should Know
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta is still a key part of the AI trade, but commentary about an AI bubble and crowded megacap positioning is keeping sentiment cautious around the stock. UBS warns AI stocks are overheating as growth expectations collide with history
• Negative Sentiment: Meta’s CFO said 2026 capital expenditures are expected to keep rising, intensifying concerns that heavy AI infrastructure spending could weigh on free cash flow and near-term profitability. Money Pit? Zuckerberg Just Exposed Why Hyperscaler AI Spending Keeps Going Up
• Negative Sentiment: Meta is facing fresh legal and regulatory pressure, including a New Mexico youth-safety trial, an Italian lawsuit over minors’ social media use, and a California suit tied to AI scam ads and advertising practices. Meta and Google fund US kids' groups, as critics warn of social media risk
• Negative Sentiment: Some fund managers trimmed META holdings, which may add to near-term caution even though other investors increased exposure. ARK Investment’s Cathie Wood Cuts Meta Platforms Stake Sharply

Meta Platforms Company 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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