Strategic Wealth Partners Ltd. Increases Stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Strategic Wealth Partners increased its Meta stake by 44.6% in the second quarter, adding 13,996 shares for a total of 45,403 shares valued at approximately $25.6 million. Institutional investors collectively own 79.91% of Meta’s stock.
• Meta insiders sold 61,758 shares worth about $37.7 million over the past three months, including sales by the CFO and chief accounting officer under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans.
• Analysts remain generally bullish, with Meta holding a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $788.88. The company recently reported 28% year-over-year revenue growth, declared a quarterly dividend of $0.525 per share, and is pursuing AI subscriptions, hardware and infrastructure initiatives.

Strategic Wealth Partners Ltd. raised its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 44.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 45,403 shares of the social networking company's stock after purchasing an additional 13,996 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for 1.6% of Strategic Wealth Partners Ltd.'s portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest position. Strategic Wealth Partners Ltd.'s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $25,575,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Auto Owners Insurance Co boosted its position in Meta Platforms by 76,587.7% during the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 105,292,277 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $69,502,379,000 after buying an additional 105,154,977 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Meta Platforms by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 52,806,712 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $34,734,628,000 after acquiring an additional 878,396 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at about $22,152,075,000. Bank of America Corp DE increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 14.6% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 21,038,035 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $12,036,491,000 after acquiring an additional 2,673,494 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 18,200,469 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $12,013,948,000 after acquiring an additional 1,046,715 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Susan J. Li sold 9,196 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $550.61, for a total transaction of $5,063,409.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 13,186 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,260,343.46. The trade was a 41.09% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO Aaron Anderson sold 3,240 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $618.06, for a total value of $2,002,514.40. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 6,271 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,875,854.26. This represents a 34.07% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders sold 61,758 shares of company stock valued at $37,709,420. 13.53% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ META opened at $673.31 on Thursday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a twelve month low of $520.26 and a twelve month high of $790.80. The company has a 50 day moving average of $605.39 and a 200 day moving average of $609.16. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The firm has a market cap of $1.72 trillion, a P/E ratio of 25.36, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.19 by ($1.01). The business had revenue of $60.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $60.22 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 29.83% and a return on equity of 33.18%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $7.14 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 28.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 21st. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio is presently 7.91%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Meta Platforms from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $640.00 to $820.00 in a report on Thursday, September 10th. BNP Paribas Exane initiated coverage on Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They set an "outperform" rating on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $810.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Monday, June 1st. Evercore reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price objective on Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $750.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $788.88.

Key Meta Platforms News

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

• Positive Sentiment: AI subscriptions create a potential new revenue stream. Meta launched Meta One subscription tiers offering expanded access to AI tools and premium features across Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp. The company says the program has reached 15 million subscriptions and trials, supporting the case that Meta can generate recurring revenue beyond advertising. Reuters article on Meta One subscriptions
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain bullish. Rosenblatt reaffirmed a Buy rating with an $886 price target, while JPMorgan highlighted improving AI monetization and better advertising performance. Citi also said next week’s developers conference could provide a catalyst if Meta unveils compelling AI and hardware updates. Citi commentary on Meta’s upcoming event
• Positive Sentiment: New hardware and infrastructure initiatives could broaden Meta’s AI ecosystem. Meta reportedly plans to launch camera-free smart glasses this fall, while expanded use of proprietary AI chips could reduce reliance on Nvidia and potentially lower computing costs. Reuters article on camera-free smart glasses
• Neutral Sentiment: Management is defending a faster, company-led AI development strategy. CEO Mark Zuckerberg said Meta delayed its Muse AI agent to address safety concerns but opposed broad development slowdowns, favoring independent evaluators and internal safeguards.
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory and execution risks remain. BMO identified expanding age-verification requirements as a potential challenge, while new restrictions on youth-oriented advertising practices could increase Meta’s legal and compliance costs. Investors are also watching the company’s large AI infrastructure commitments, which could pressure free cash flow if advertising growth or AI utilization disappoints.
• Neutral Sentiment: Insider selling adds a limited cautionary signal. COO Javier Olivan sold shares worth roughly $1.0 million under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The transactions reduce his holdings but do not necessarily indicate a change in management’s outlook.

Meta Platforms Profile

Meta Platforms, Inc develops technologies that help people connect, communicate and build communities online. The company's principal products include Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp and Threads, which enable social networking, messaging, content sharing and digital communication.

Meta generates most of its business through advertising displayed across its family of apps. It also develops artificial intelligence technologies, business messaging tools and hardware and software through its Reality Labs division, including Quest virtual- and mixed-reality devices and related experiences.

The company was founded as Facebook in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg and was renamed Meta Platforms in 2021 to reflect its broader focus on building the metaverse.

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