UNICOM Systems Inc. Invests $20.45 Million in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• UNICOM Systems purchased 30,985 shares of Meta valued at approximately $20.45 million, representing 2.0% of UNICOM's portfolio and making Meta its 12th-largest holding.
• Significant insider selling: insiders have sold 161,448 Meta shares (~$103.33 million) in the past 90 days — including sales by CTO Andrew Bosworth and CFO Susan Li — though insiders still own 13.61% of the company.
• Mixed backdrop for Meta: the company beat quarterly estimates (EPS $8.88; revenue $59.89B) and is investing in AI and hardware, but recent legal losses and analyst price-target cuts have created a near-term overhang on sentiment.

UNICOM Systems Inc. bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 30,985 shares of the social networking company's stock, valued at approximately $20,453,000. Meta Platforms makes up 2.0% of UNICOM Systems Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest position.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Trust Co of the South boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.8% during the third quarter. Trust Co of the South now owns 1,850 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $1,359,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Sentinel Pension Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Meta Platforms by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Sentinel Pension Advisors LLC now owns 915 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $672,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Alpine Bank Wealth Management increased its holdings in Meta Platforms by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Alpine Bank Wealth Management now owns 4,301 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $3,159,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 454 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $334,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vista Capital Partners Inc. grew its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.3% during the second quarter. Vista Capital Partners Inc. now owns 1,075 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $794,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley kept Meta as a top pick despite trimming its price target to $775, signaling continued conviction in the company's long‑term AI and ad recovery story. Morgan Stanley trims PT
• Positive Sentiment: Meta is building an elite AI lab for its recommendations division and deploying AI to accelerate risk reviews — moves that should improve product relevancy, ad monetization, and safety over time. Business Insider: AI lab
• Positive Sentiment: Product updates (new Ray‑Ban prescription smart glasses) expand hardware monetization optionality and signal progress in Reality Labs consumer offerings. MSN: Ray‑Ban glasses
• Neutral Sentiment: China’s commerce ministry said it supports law‑abiding transnational tech deals amid reports of a review of a Meta transaction — a stabilizing comment for deal risk but not a definitive clearance. Reuters: China supports deals
• Negative Sentiment: Wells Fargo cut Meta’s price target sharply to $765 (from $856) though it kept an Overweight rating — the sizable PT cut reinforces near‑term sentiment weakness despite a positive medium‑term view; Wells Fargo highlighted upcoming earnings as a potential catalyst. Invezz: Wells Fargo PT cut
• Negative Sentiment: Erste Group downgraded META from Buy to Hold, adding to analyst caution and likely contributing to selling pressure. Finviz: Erste downgrade
• Negative Sentiment: Recent legal losses (New Mexico civil penalties and a “bellwether” California jury verdict) are the largest near‑term overhang — they raise the risk of follow‑on suits, potential billings for damages/legal fees, and political/regulatory scrutiny that could materially affect sentiment and valuation. MarketBeat: legal losses analysis

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Meta Platforms news, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 8,089 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $631.24, for a total value of $5,106,100.36. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer owned 2,841 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,793,352.84. This trade represents a 74.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Susan J. Li sold 56,571 shares of the business'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. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 161,448 shares of company stock valued at $103,333,788. Company insiders own 13.61% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

NASDAQ META opened at $574.46 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $1.45 trillion, a P/E ratio of 24.45, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 2.60 and a current ratio of 2.60. The business's 50 day moving average price is $639.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $662.03. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $479.80 and a fifty-two week high of $796.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The social networking company reported $8.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $8.16 by $0.72. The company had revenue of $59.89 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $58.33 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 38.61% and a net margin of 30.08%.Meta Platforms's revenue was up 23.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $8.02 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 26th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th were paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 16th. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Meta Platforms's payout ratio is currently 8.94%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $872.00 target price (up from $830.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Barclays restated an "overweight" rating and set a $800.00 price target (up from $770.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Meta Platforms from $856.00 to $765.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $825.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Tigress Financial raised their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $935.00 to $945.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Meta Platforms currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $843.57.

Meta Platforms 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.

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.