StoneX Group Inc. Sells 2,502 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• StoneX Group cut its Meta stake by 22.5%, selling 2,502 shares in the third quarter and ending the period with 8,635 shares valued at about $6.1 million.
• Institutional investors own 79.91% of Meta. COO Javier Olivan also sold 946 shares under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan; company insiders sold about $103.1 million in stock over the past three months.
• Meta’s latest quarterly results beat estimates, with EPS of $7.40 and revenue of $64.6 billion, up 26.1% year over year. Analysts’ consensus rating is Moderate Buy, with an average price target of $833.12.

StoneX Group Inc. lowered its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 22.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,635 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 2,502 shares during the period. StoneX Group Inc.'s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $6,114,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Unify Financial Advisors boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 2.0% in the third quarter. Unify Financial Advisors now owns 1,733 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $1,257,000 after buying an additional 34 shares during the last quarter. Eiger Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms in the 3rd quarter worth $316,000. Cincinnati Insurance Co. purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,523,000. Ethos Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 10.4% during the 3rd quarter. Ethos Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,167 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $3,747,000 after acquiring an additional 486 shares during the period. Finally, Pictet Asset Management Holding SA raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 13.2% during the 3rd quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA now owns 1,536,844 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $1,114,489,000 after acquiring an additional 179,071 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In other news, COO Javier Olivan sold 946 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $631.03, for a total transaction of $596,954.38. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 3,148 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,986,482.44. This trade represents a 23.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 150,973 shares of company stock valued at $103,128,307. 13.42% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Key Meta Platforms News

Investors following META have been watching these news items:

• Neutral Sentiment: COO Javier Olivan reported stock sales under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. Such planned sales are not necessarily a signal about the company’s outlook, but may still draw investor attention. SEC ownership filing
• Negative Sentiment: United Airlines barred AI agents from booking flights, raising doubts about a prominent potential use case for Meta’s Muse agent and adding pressure to expectations for AI-related growth. United Airlines Bars AI Agents From Booking Tickets
• Negative Sentiment: Regulators in the UK fined Meta over repeated inaccuracies in WhatsApp Business data, while a Brazilian electoral court also fined Facebook over alleged campaign-related content issues. These actions add regulatory and reputational risk. Meta Fined by UK Regulator

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on META. Deutsche Bank lifted their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $750.00 to $820.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, September 25th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $800.00 price objective (down from $850.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $700.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Roth Capital dropped their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $820.00 to $750.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Citizens Jmp reissued a "market outperform" rating and set a $885.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $833.12.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 0.8%

NASDAQ META opened at $623.61 on Friday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52 week low of $520.26 and a 52 week high of $779.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.59 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.26, a PEG ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.90, a current ratio of 1.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30. The company has a fifty day moving average of $679.23 and a two-hundred day moving average of $631.88.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The social networking company reported $7.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.54 by $0.86. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 30.73% and a net margin of 31.15%. The business had revenue of $64.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $63.34 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $7.25 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 26.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 21st were given a $0.5250 dividend. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 21st. Meta Platforms's payout ratio is 7.16%.

Meta Platforms Company Profile

Meta Platforms, Inc. is a global technology company that develops social networking, messaging, and digital communication products. Its services include Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger, and Threads, which connect people and help businesses reach audiences around the world. The company also develops virtual and augmented reality products and technologies through its Reality Labs division, including Quest headsets and related software and services. Advertising is a central part of Meta's business, with its platforms providing tools for businesses to promote products and services.

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.