Vanderbilt University Grows Stock Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Vanderbilt University increased its Meta Platforms stake by 16.0% in the first quarter, buying 2,097 additional shares and bringing its total to 15,186 shares valued at about $8.69 million.
• Institutional ownership remains high, with several other funds also modestly adding to their positions and institutions collectively owning 79.91% of Meta’s stock.
• Meta continues to attract mixed attention: analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus and point to AI-driven growth, but investors are also worried about heavy AI spending, while insiders recently sold shares under pre-arranged trading plans.

Vanderbilt University lifted its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 16.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,186 shares of the social networking company's stock after buying an additional 2,097 shares during the period. Meta Platforms comprises approximately 1.7% of Vanderbilt University's holdings, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Vanderbilt University's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $8,688,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. First National Bank Sioux Falls increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. First National Bank Sioux Falls now owns 2,001 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $1,321,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. boosted its position in Meta Platforms by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. now owns 984 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $649,000 after buying an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. Vista Capital Partners Inc. grew its stake in 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 worth $794,000 after buying an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Arcataur Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Meta Platforms by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Arcataur Capital Management LLC now owns 1,736 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $1,146,000 after buying an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Acorn Creek Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Acorn Creek Capital LLC now owns 2,118 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $1,398,000 after buying an additional 15 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Trending Headlines about Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Wedbush’s Dan Ives said Meta is being treated like a “bear market” stock despite its central role in the AI buildout, arguing the recent selloff is more about short-term impatience than a broken AI thesis.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary said Meta’s AI push is driving revenue growth, stronger ad engagement, and rising user activity, supporting the case for further upside.
• Positive Sentiment: Qualcomm’s new AI data-center push and partnerships with Meta and Microsoft reinforce Meta’s role in major AI infrastructure deals, which may support long-term growth expectations. Qualcomm stock jumps on AI data center push, Meta and Microsoft deals
• Positive Sentiment: One article framed Meta as one of the most attractive mega-cap tech names after the 2026 selloff, suggesting the stock could have meaningful recovery potential from current levels.
• Neutral Sentiment: Mark Zuckerberg is reportedly pushing Meta to explore working with prediction-market platforms Polymarket and Kalshi as part of an Arena app aimed at younger users, which could expand engagement but is still early-stage. Mark Zuckerberg Urges Meta to Explore Working With Polymarket and Kalshi
• Neutral Sentiment: Consumer-sentiment commentary said Meta continues to keep users on its platforms longer, but investor sentiment remains weighed down by AI spending concerns. Ca$htag$: Is META Winning Over Consumers?
• Negative Sentiment: Meta is facing fresh legal and reputational pressure after Sarah Wynn-Williams accused the company of surveilling her to silence criticism, adding to headline risk around the stock.
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple reports continue to highlight investor concern that Meta’s aggressive AI infrastructure spending is compressing near-term cash flow, which has been a major factor behind the stock’s weakness.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Susquehanna upgraded Meta Platforms from a "positive" rating to a "positive" rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Mizuho cut their price objective on Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $835.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Roth Mkm reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Meta Platforms from $825.00 to $775.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 30th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their target price on Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $850.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Meta Platforms presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $840.60.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In related news, CFO Susan J. Li sold 9,195 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $607.84, for a total value of $5,589,088.80. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,186 shares in the company, valued at $8,014,978.24. This represents a 41.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,847 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $607.83, for a total transaction of $4,769,642.01. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 414 shares in the company, valued at approximately $251,641.62. The trade was a 94.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 39,013 shares of company stock valued at $24,115,999. 13.53% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of META opened at $550.25 on Monday. The business's fifty day moving average price is $612.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $630.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.39 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.00, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.23. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52 week low of $520.26 and a 52 week high of $796.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a current ratio of 2.35.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $6.67 by $3.77. The company had revenue of $56.31 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.56 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 36.93% and a net margin of 32.84%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 33.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $6.43 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th were given a dividend of $0.525 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio is presently 7.63%.

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.

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