Thompson Investment Management Inc. Increases Stock Position in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Thompson Investment Management increased its Meta Platforms stake by 4.5% in the second quarter, bringing its holdings to 20,504 shares valued at approximately $11.55 million. Institutional investors collectively own 79.91% of Meta’s stock.
• Meta reported 28% year-over-year revenue growth to $60.8 billion, though quarterly EPS of $6.18 missed analysts’ $7.19 estimate. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $785.32.
• Investors are weighing Meta’s strong advertising growth and AI opportunities against concerns over its approximately $145 billion AI investment plan, potential diminishing returns, youth-safety litigation and regulatory costs.

Thompson Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 4.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,504 shares of the social networking company's stock after purchasing an additional 876 shares during the period. Meta Platforms makes up about 1.3% of Thompson Investment Management Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Thompson Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $11,550,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. RHL Group LLC acquired a new position in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Niles Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Axiom Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms in the first quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Bayban boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Bayban now owns 70 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain constructive on Meta’s long-term outlook, citing 28% revenue growth, resilient advertising demand and additional monetization opportunities in WhatsApp. Some commentary argues that the market is assigning little value to future AI and messaging revenue streams. Meta Has $27 Billion That Isn't On Its Balance Sheet
• Positive Sentiment: Meta released Glimmer, an open-weight AI model that users can download and run on their own hardware, supporting Mark Zuckerberg’s strategy of broadening access to AI. The move could strengthen developer adoption and Meta’s competitive position, although its financial payoff is uncertain. Meta's open AI, and a $250M deal gone very wrong
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta removed approximately 756,000 suspected under-16 accounts in Australia—462,000 from Instagram and 294,000 from Facebook—as it enforces the country’s youth social-media restrictions. The action demonstrates regulatory compliance but may raise moderation costs and reduce engagement among younger users. Meta says it has taken down 756,000 Australian teen accounts
• Neutral Sentiment: Institutional trading was mixed: Dodge & Cox increased its position by 1.47 million shares, while Sands Capital and Columbus Hill reduced their stakes. These transactions may influence sentiment but do not by themselves change Meta’s fundamentals. Dodge and Cox boosts Meta Platforms stake
• Negative Sentiment: A Ninth Circuit ruling removed a procedural barrier to more than 3,000 lawsuits alleging Meta’s product features harm young users. The court did not determine liability, but the decision allows the cases to proceed and adds potential litigation costs, damages and pressure to change platform design. How Serious Are Thousands of Addiction Lawsuits for Meta and Snap?
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned that Meta’s roughly $145 billion AI investment plan and major data-center projects could produce diminishing returns, compress margins and weigh on free cash flow before monetization catches up. Meta: Diminishing Q2 CapEx ROI Is Alarming
• Negative Sentiment: Meta COO Javier Olivan disclosed additional sales under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, while several funds also trimmed holdings. Although planned insider sales are not necessarily bearish, they can add to near-term selling pressure. Meta COO insider stock sale

Meta Platforms Price Performance

META stock opened at $589.85 on Friday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1 year low of $520.26 and a 1 year high of $796.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 2.23. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $595.94 and its 200 day moving average price is $620.41. The firm has a market cap of $1.50 trillion, a P/E ratio of 22.22, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $7.19 by ($1.01). The company had revenue of $60.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $60.22 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 29.83% and a return on equity of 33.18%. Meta Platforms's quarterly revenue was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $7.14 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 28.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 25th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th were paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $725.00 price target (down from $825.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Roth Capital reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $840.00 to $770.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Meta Platforms from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $770.00 to $680.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $785.32.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Meta Platforms news, COO Javier Olivan sold 1,258 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $600.00, for a total transaction of $754,800.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 1,517 shares of the company's stock, valued at $910,200. This trade represents a 45.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 500 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $561.56, for a total transaction of $280,780.00. Following the sale, the director owned 2,943 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,652,671.08. This trade represents a 14.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 36,280 shares of company stock worth $22,075,696. Corporate insiders own 13.53% of the company's stock.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding META? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report).

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