Varenne Capital Partners Buys 4,080 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Varenne Capital Partners initiated a Meta stake by purchasing 4,080 shares valued at approximately $65,000 during the second quarter. Institutional investors collectively own about 79.9% of Meta’s stock.
• Analysts maintain a bullish outlook, with Meta receiving a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $785.90, despite several firms recently lowering their targets.
• Insiders have been selling shares: company executives sold 123,333 shares worth roughly $80.8 million over the past three months, while Meta’s latest quarterly revenue rose 28% year over year but earnings per share came in below expectations.

Varenne Capital Partners bought a new stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 4,080 shares of the social networking company's stock, valued at approximately $65,000. Meta Platforms comprises about 0.0% of Varenne Capital Partners' portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest holding.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in META. Henrickson Nauta Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its position in Meta Platforms by 35.8% during the second quarter. Henrickson Nauta Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 2,064 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $1,163,000 after acquiring an additional 544 shares during the period. Kintra Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 7.6% in the 2nd quarter. Kintra Wealth LLC now owns 6,503 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $3,869,000 after purchasing an additional 457 shares during the period. Morling Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 5.0% in the 2nd quarter. Morling Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,590 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $896,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares in the last quarter. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 4.2% in the 2nd quarter. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. now owns 3,985 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $2,245,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sovereign Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 6.0% during the 2nd quarter. Sovereign Investment Advisors LLC now owns 879 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $495,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently commented on META. Roth Capital cut their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $820.00 to $750.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Moffett Nathanson decreased their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $740.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Citic Securities decreased their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $770.00 to $718.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Guggenheim reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $800.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. Finally, Wolfe Research reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $700.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-four have assigned a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Meta Platforms has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $785.90.

Insider Activity

In other Meta Platforms news, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,848 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $558.00, for a total transaction of $4,379,184.00. Following the sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 828 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $462,024. This represents a 90.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO Aaron Anderson sold 3,240 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $618.06, for a total transaction of $2,002,514.40. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 6,271 shares in the company, valued at $3,875,854.26. This trade represents a 34.07% 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. Insiders sold a total of 123,333 shares of company stock valued at $80,795,845 over the last three months. 13.53% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Key Headlines Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Muse momentum remains the main bullish catalyst. Early reviews, rising user traction and Meta’s new early-access program for upcoming Muse features are reinforcing expectations that the AI assistant could become a major consumer product and future revenue stream. Meta opens early access program for new Muse features
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts are raising price targets. Deutsche Bank, TD Cowen, Canaccord Genuity and other firms lifted targets and maintained bullish ratings, citing Muse’s potential to expand Meta beyond advertising through subscriptions, commerce and AI services. Meta price targets raised as Muse gains momentum
• Positive Sentiment: AI hardware could broaden Muse’s distribution. Meta is integrating Muse into Ray-Ban AI glasses and introducing additional wearable and VR products, creating potential new hardware, services and commerce opportunities.
• Neutral Sentiment: Friday’s decline appears largely technical. After rising roughly 36% during September and approaching a $2 trillion market value, Meta faced profit-taking and a pullback from recent highs. Bullish options activity suggests some traders continue to view the weakness as a buying opportunity.
• Neutral Sentiment: Large capital spending remains a key debate. Investors are encouraged by Meta’s AI strategy but remain uncertain whether heavy spending on infrastructure and Reality Labs will generate sufficient returns.
• Negative Sentiment: New Mexico litigation adds regulatory risk. A jury found that Meta misled state residents in a case related to the Cambridge Analytica data scandal, potentially increasing legal costs and scrutiny. Meta misled consumers in New Mexico jury case
• Negative Sentiment: A Muse security vulnerability was identified. Meta is adding clearer safety warnings after a vulnerability reportedly could expose sensitive user information, raising concerns about trust and adoption of its AI agent. Meta bolsters Muse safety warning after vulnerability
• Negative Sentiment: Competition and monetization obstacles remain. Amazon blocked Muse from accessing its platform, while privacy concerns around camera-equipped glasses and skepticism toward new AI hardware could limit Meta’s growth plans.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling adds a cautionary signal. Christopher Cox sold 40,000 shares and COO Javier Olivan sold shares under pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plans. The transactions do not necessarily indicate reduced confidence, but they add to concerns after the stock’s rapid advance.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

META stock opened at $751.66 on Monday. 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 stock's 50 day moving average is $615.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $612.83. The company has a market capitalization of $1.91 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.31 and a beta of 1.25. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52-week low of $520.26 and a 52-week high of $779.82.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 the consensus estimate of $60.22 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 29.83% and a return on equity of 33.18%. The company's revenue was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $7.14 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 27.93 earnings per share 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. Investors of record on Monday, September 21st will be given a dividend of $0.5250 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 currently 7.91%.

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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