Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC Has $10.35 Million Position in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Richard Bernstein Advisors cut its Meta Platforms stake by 9.5% in the fourth quarter, but still held 15,681 shares valued at about $10.35 million, making META its 25th-largest position.
• Institutional ownership remains heavy: large investors such as Vanguard and State Street increased their holdings, and the article notes that nearly 80% of Meta’s stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
• Wall Street remains bullish overall after Meta’s strong earnings beat, with analysts maintaining mostly Buy ratings and a consensus price target of about $840.31, despite some concerns about rising AI spending and regulatory pressure.

Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC reduced its holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 9.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 15,681 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 1,646 shares during the period. Meta Platforms makes up about 0.3% of Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest position. Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $10,351,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of META. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 199,995,630 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $132,015,115,000 after buying an additional 7,269,279 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 1.9% in the second 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 in the last quarter. Danske Bank A S bought a new stake in Meta Platforms in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,191,175,000. PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab bought a new stake in Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $813,994,000. Finally, Concentrum Wealth Management increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 948.7% in the third 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 in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on META shares. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $825.00 to $775.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Truist Financial lowered their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $840.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $1,015.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Evercore upped their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $875.00 to $900.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $840.31.

Key Meta Platforms News

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 Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of META stock opened at $614.23 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $622.18 and a 200-day moving average of $640.72. 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, Inc. has a 12-month low of $520.26 and a 12-month high of $796.25. The company has a market capitalization of $1.55 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.25.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.67 by $3.77. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.84% and a return on equity of 36.93%. The company had revenue of $56.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.56 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $6.43 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In other news, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 580 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $667.00, for a total transaction of $386,860.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 3,847 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,565,949. This represents a 13.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal 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. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 926 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $604.57, for a total transaction of $559,831.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 6,853 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,143,118.21. This trade represents a 11.90% decrease in their position. 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 160,352 shares of company stock valued at $102,559,436 in the last three months. 13.61% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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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