UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Boosts Stock Position in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• UBS Asset Management increased its Meta stake by 1.3% in the second quarter, adding 162,909 shares to reach 12.84 million shares worth approximately $7.23 billion. Institutional investors collectively own 79.91% of Meta’s stock.
• Meta shares were trading at $741.24, up 11.3%, with a market capitalization of about $1.89 trillion. The company’s latest revenue rose 28% year over year to $60.8 billion, although earnings of $6.18 per share missed analysts’ $7.19 estimate.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, giving Meta a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating and an average price target of $792.68; Wells Fargo recently raised its target to $796. Meta also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.525 per share.

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 12,836,063 shares of the social networking company's stock after acquiring an additional 162,909 shares during the period. Meta Platforms comprises 1.3% of UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC's holdings, making the stock its 12th biggest position. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned about 0.50% of Meta Platforms worth $7,230,426,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of META. Auto Owners Insurance Co grew its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 105,154,977 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth approximately $22,152,075,000. Corient Private Wealth LP grew its stake in Meta Platforms by 723.1% during the 2nd quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP now owns 8,801,764 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $4,957,946,000 after acquiring an additional 7,732,446 shares in the last quarter. Jupiter Topco LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the second quarter valued at approximately $2,948,486,000. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 488.1% in the 4th quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 5,466,595 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $3,608,445,000 after acquiring an additional 4,537,076 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms Trading Up 11.3%

NASDAQ:META opened at $741.24 on Tuesday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1 year low of $520.26 and a 1 year high of $785.73. 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 has a fifty day moving average price of $608.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $610.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.89 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.92, a PEG ratio of 1.16 and a beta of 1.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $7.19 by ($1.01). Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 33.18% and a net margin of 29.83%.The company had revenue of $60.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $60.22 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $7.14 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 27.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 21st will be issued a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 21st. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 7.91%.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In related news, insider Curtis J. Mahoney sold 1,559 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $558.00, for a total value of $869,922.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 1,957 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,092,006. This represents a 44.34% decrease in their position. 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, CFO Susan J. Li sold 9,196 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $550.61, for a total transaction of $5,063,409.56. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 13,186 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $7,260,343.46. The trade was a 41.09% 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 90 days, insiders sold 81,758 shares of company stock worth $51,214,020. 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: Muse is gaining rapid user adoption. Muse reportedly surpassed ChatGPT in early U.S. iOS downloads, with approximately 730,000 downloads in its first five days and stronger first-12-day performance than ChatGPT’s mobile launch. The traction is strengthening expectations that Meta can monetize AI through advertising, subscriptions and commerce. Meta Muse downloads article
• Positive Sentiment: Partnerships support a broader AI platform strategy. Shopify plans to let Muse complete purchases across its merchant network, while reports also cited interest from services such as Stripe. These integrations could increase Muse’s usefulness and create future transaction or platform revenue opportunities. Shopify Muse checkout article
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst optimism added momentum. Wells Fargo raised its Meta price target to $796 from $640 and maintained an Overweight rating, citing Muse’s early traction, recent model launches and the upcoming Connect conference. Wells Fargo price target article
• Positive Sentiment: AI infrastructure investments are being viewed as strategic growth spending. Meta’s planned Alberta data center and reported high-capacity subsea network reinforce its commitment to supporting AI workloads, although the investments could raise near-term costs.
• Neutral Sentiment: Connect is a near-term catalyst. Traders expect potentially significant volatility around Meta’s annual event, where the company may provide updates on Muse, AI models, hardware and monetization plans. Meta Connect trading expectations article
• Negative Sentiment: Amazon blocked Muse from shopping on its website, citing unauthorized access, security and credential concerns. The dispute highlights regulatory, privacy and platform-integration risks that could limit agentic-commerce adoption. Amazon blocks Muse article

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on META shares. Arete Research set a $735.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Barclays cut their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $830.00 to $780.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Mizuho set a $750.00 price target on Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Monness Crespi & Hardt decreased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $890.00 to $730.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Meta Platforms from $640.00 to $796.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Meta Platforms has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $792.68.

About Meta Platforms

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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