Visionary Wealth Advisors Has $10.03 Million Stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Visionary Wealth Advisors increased its Meta position by 4.9% in the second quarter, owning 17,812 shares valued at approximately $10.03 million. Institutional investors collectively own 79.91% of Meta’s stock.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive, with Meta holding a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $788.88; JPMorgan recently upgraded the stock to “overweight” and raised its target to $820.
• Meta’s AI expansion offers growth potential through its Muse assistant and custom MTIA chips, but investors face risks from sharply higher capital spending, declining free cash flow, legal and reputational issues, and insider selling under pre-arranged trading plans.

Visionary Wealth Advisors increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 4.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 17,812 shares of the social networking company's stock after acquiring an additional 829 shares during the quarter. Visionary Wealth Advisors' holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $10,033,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. RHL Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Advantage Trust Co bought a new position in Meta Platforms during the second quarter worth $28,000. Axiom Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the first quarter valued at $36,000. Bayban raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 100.0% in the first quarter. Bayban now owns 70 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares during the period. Finally, Entrust Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at about $48,000. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

META has been the topic of several research reports. UBS Group decreased their target price on Meta Platforms from $766.00 to $715.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Erste Group Bank upgraded Meta Platforms from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Meta Platforms from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $640.00 to $820.00 in a report on Thursday, September 10th. Scotiabank reissued a "sector perform" rating and issued a $600.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and issued a $800.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Meta Platforms currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $788.88.

Key Headlines Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s Muse personal AI agent reached No. 1 on Apple’s U.S. free-app chart, surpassing ChatGPT roughly one week after launch. Its ability to handle shopping, bookings, email and phone calls could give Meta a significant consumer-AI growth platform and strengthen the case for future subscriptions or commerce revenue. Meta's Muse tops Apple's US free app chart
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America said Meta’s internally developed MTIA AI chips could save approximately $8.5 billion in 2027 by reducing reliance on third-party processors. Custom silicon could improve the economics of Meta’s expanding AI infrastructure over time. Meta Can Save $8.5 Billion in 2027 by Using Its Own MTIA Chips
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst support and upcoming product announcements remain potential catalysts. Rosenblatt reiterated a Buy rating, while investors are looking ahead to Meta Connect on September 23 for additional AI, glasses and subscription details. Meta Earns Buy Rating from Rosenblatt Securities
• Neutral Sentiment: Muse’s early popularity is encouraging, but analysts disagree on its financial impact. The generous free tier may accelerate adoption while delaying revenue and increasing computing costs; consumer distrust of Meta and the need to provide sensitive account data could also limit paid conversion. Meta’s Muse Agent Has Wall Street Divided on Its AI Potential
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are taking profits after META rose roughly 23%–24% over the past month. Valuation and expectations have risen quickly, increasing sensitivity to any evidence that AI spending will not generate near-term earnings growth.
• Negative Sentiment: Meta’s AI investment program is placing significant pressure on cash flow. Articles highlighted a more than 90% decline in free cash flow as capital expenditures rise, raising concerns about the payback period for data centers, chips and other infrastructure. Meta Versus Oracle: AI Capex Payback Velocity
• Negative Sentiment: Legal and reputational pressure is increasing. A German court held Meta liable for fraudulent third-party ads, while regulators and its Oversight Board criticized safeguards against deepfakes and nonconsensual filming involving its smart glasses. These issues could increase compliance costs and threaten user trust. German Court Rules Meta Liable for Fake Ads
• Negative Sentiment: Chief Product Officer Christopher Cox sold 20,000 shares worth approximately $13.5 million under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. The planned nature reduces the signal, but the sale may still weigh modestly on sentiment. SEC Insider Trading Filing

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Meta Platforms news, CFO Susan Li sold 9,196 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $550.61, for a total transaction of $5,063,409.56. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,186 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,260,343.46. This represents a 41.09% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Christopher Cox sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $675.23, for a total transaction of $13,504,600.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 224,516 shares of the company's stock, valued at $151,599,938.68. This represents a 8.18% decrease in their position. 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 81,758 shares of company stock worth $51,214,020 in the last ninety days. 13.53% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Meta Platforms stock opened at $665.75 on Friday. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $606.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $609.79. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12 month low of $520.26 and a 12 month high of $790.80. The company has a market cap of $1.70 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.08, a PEG ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a current ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

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

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 28th. Investors of record on Monday, September 21st will be paid a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 21st. Meta Platforms's payout ratio is currently 7.91%.

Meta Platforms Company 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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