Pure Financial Advisors LLC Increases Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Pure Financial Advisors LLC increased its Meta Platforms stake by 50.6% in the fourth quarter, adding 3,027 shares to bring its total to 9,007 shares valued at about $5.95 million.
• Institutional interest in Meta remains strong overall, with firms like Norges Bank, Vanguard, and State Street also expanding their positions; roughly 79.91% of Meta’s stock is held by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
• Meta continues to get generally favorable analyst coverage and solid operating results, including a recent earnings beat and a quarterly dividend, with Wall Street’s average rating at Moderate Buy and an average price target of $840.60.

Pure Financial Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 50.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 9,007 shares of the social networking company's stock after acquiring an additional 3,027 shares during the period. Pure Financial Advisors LLC's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $5,945,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $22,152,075,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted 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 worth $132,015,115,000 after acquiring an additional 7,269,279 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC boosted its position in Meta Platforms by 488.1% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 5,466,595 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $3,608,445,000 after buying an additional 4,537,076 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 90,841,345 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $59,963,463,000 after acquiring an additional 4,395,763 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi boosted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 56.2% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 10,043,955 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $6,629,913,000 after purchasing an additional 3,613,211 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

META has been the topic of several analyst reports. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Benchmark began coverage on Meta Platforms in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They set a "buy" rating for the company. Arete Research set a $735.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. UBS Group lowered Meta Platforms from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Finally, Erste Group Bank lowered shares of Meta Platforms from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have assigned a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $840.60.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:META opened at $577.22 on Monday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52 week low of $520.26 and a 52 week high of $796.25. The company's 50 day moving average is $621.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $634.10. The company has a market cap of $1.46 trillion, a PE ratio of 20.98, a P/E/G ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a current ratio of 2.35, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $6.67 by $3.77. The business had revenue of $56.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $55.56 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.84% and a return on equity of 36.93%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 33.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $6.43 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid 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 0.4%. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.63%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Curtis J. Mahoney sold 2,079 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $609.92, for a total transaction of $1,268,023.68. Following the sale, the insider owned 1,118 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $681,890.56. This trade represents a 65.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 504 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $629.29, for a total value of $317,162.16. Following the sale, the director owned 3,943 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,481,290.47. The trade was a 11.33% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 39,013 shares of company stock valued at $24,115,999 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 13.53% of the company's stock.

Trending Headlines about Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street commentary remains constructive on Meta’s long-term AI strategy, with Evercore ISI’s Mark Mahaney naming META one of the best “Magnificent 7” stock buys, reinforcing the view that the stock may still offer upside after its recent pullback. Article: Famous Wall Street Tech Analyst Names Meta and Amazon the Best Magnificent 7 Stock Buys Today
• Positive Sentiment: Meta continues to expand its AI infrastructure, including new computing deals with Crusoe and a strategic data-center partnership in India, which supports the company’s long-term AI capacity and monetization plans. Article: Meta signs new AI computing deals with data center firm Crusoe
• Positive Sentiment: Meta also drew favorable attention for rolling out new AI features for Facebook creators and broader AI tools that could deepen engagement and create new ad products over time. Article: Meta Platforms Rolls Out New AI Features On Facebook For Content Creators
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta continues to get attention for its cloud-computing ambitions, but that move is still viewed as a longer-term optionality story rather than an immediate earnings driver. Article: Meta and Cloud Computing: Real Potential, or a Shot in the Dark?
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta’s strong last reported quarter and upcoming dividend remain supportive, but these are already well known and are not the main catalysts behind today’s trading. Article: META stock and company profile
• Negative Sentiment: Sentiment was hurt by reports that a senior AI executive is leaving Meta during a major AI transition, raising execution concerns at a time when the company is trying to accelerate its artificial intelligence roadmap. Article: Meta head of product for 'AI for work' transformation is leaving company
• Negative Sentiment: Meta was also hit by reports that attackers exploited its AI-powered support chatbot to take over high-profile Instagram accounts, adding security and trust concerns around its AI tools and platform controls. Article: Meta faces AI support breach as key internal AI executive exits
• Negative Sentiment: Meta is also facing regulatory and legal pressure, including a Washington high court decision upholding a $35 million campaign finance penalty, which adds to headline risk. Article: Washington high court upholds $35 million campaign finance penalty against Meta

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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