Security National Bank Lowers Stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Security National Bank cut its Meta Platforms stake by 64.8% in the fourth quarter, leaving it with 668 shares valued at about $441,000.
• Despite some selling by one investor, Meta still has strong institutional support, with 79.91% of shares owned by hedge funds and other institutions.
• Wall Street remains broadly bullish on Meta, with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $840.19; the company also beat recent earnings estimates with $10.44 EPS and 33.1% revenue growth year over year.

Security National Bank reduced its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 64.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 668 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 1,232 shares during the period. Security National Bank's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $441,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 34.2% in the third quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 52,252 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $38,373,000 after buying an additional 13,311 shares during the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 15.7% in the fourth quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 133,798 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $88,319,000 after buying an additional 18,169 shares during the last quarter. Becker Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 5.0% in the third quarter. Becker Capital Management Inc. now owns 35,052 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $25,741,000 after buying an additional 1,657 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co. raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 4.1% in the fourth quarter. Diversified Trust Co. now owns 84,059 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $55,487,000 after buying an additional 3,336 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 16.2% in the third quarter. Cramer Rosenthal Mcglynn LLC now owns 6,933 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $5,091,000 after buying an additional 968 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

META has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $815.00 to $830.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Evercore lifted their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $875.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a "buy" rating and set a $1,015.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Wolfe Research decreased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $800.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Four 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. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $840.19.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Meta Platforms news, 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 2,778 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the chief operating officer owned 10,557 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,645,103.65. The trade was a 20.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 95,471 shares of company stock worth $60,616,955 over the last three months. 13.53% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Key Meta Platforms News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta is being viewed as an early leader in the AI trade, with recent commentary arguing the market may be underestimating how much AI could boost the company’s long-term earnings and valuation. The AI Trade Might Be Grossly Underestimated — and It Could Be Time To Rethink How We View the Mag 7
• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s AI strategy is getting more attention, including reporting on CTO Andrew Bosworth’s push to use AI to reshape the workforce and improve efficiency, which could support margins over time. Meet Mark Zuckerberg's Right-Hand Man Who's Unleashing AI at Meta
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain bullish on Meta Platforms despite recent volatility, reinforcing confidence that the company’s ad business and AI investments can continue driving upside. Wall Street analysts predict Meta stock price for the next 12 months
• Positive Sentiment: Meta is expanding its AI ecosystem through a $125 million UCLA semiconductor hub with partners including Broadcom and Synopsys, which could help strengthen long-term AI infrastructure and talent development. Meta, Broadcom And Others Launch $125 Million UCLA AI Chip Hub
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage about a potential AI “sidekick” or digital twin for Mark Zuckerberg adds to the company’s AI narrative, but it is more of a concept story than a confirmed business catalyst. Mark Zuckerberg May Already Have an AI Agent Sidekick — Could This Be the Future for CEOs?
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta’s expanding use of WhatsApp in government services in Gujarat is a positive adoption signal, but the direct financial impact is still unclear. Gujarat moves to WhatsApp governance, signs MoU with Meta Platforms
• Negative Sentiment: Meta is also dealing with scrutiny over the environmental impact of its data centers, after lawmakers raised concerns about water usage and called for an EPA probe, which could create regulatory and reputational pressure. AOC Raises Concerns Over Meta Data Center Water Impact

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ META opened at $610.26 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $617.12 and a 200 day moving average of $636.87. The company has a current ratio of 2.35, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.54 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.08 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.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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. The business had revenue of $56.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 was up 33.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $6.43 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.49 earnings per share for the current year.

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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