Wilian Securities LLC Acquires New Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Wilian Securities LLC opened a new position in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter, buying 1,157 shares worth about $764,000.
• Meta is pushing new growth drivers, including paid subscriptions across its apps and Meta AI, with analysts saying this could add meaningful annual revenue if adoption is strong.
• The company also reported strong recent results, beating earnings and revenue estimates, while investors continue to watch regulatory risk and insider selling as potential headwinds.

Wilian Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 1,157 shares of the social networking company's stock, valued at approximately $764,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of META. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 199,995,630 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $132,015,115,000 after buying an additional 7,269,279 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 86,925,674 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $64,158,971,000 after purchasing an additional 1,650,435 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 39,247,690 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $28,823,375,000 after purchasing an additional 278,180 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 17,153,754 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $12,597,374,000 after purchasing an additional 142,229 shares during the period. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 4.1% in the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 14,332,168 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $10,525,258,000 after purchasing an additional 558,792 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Key Meta Platforms News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta launched paid subscription plans across its flagship apps and Meta AI, opening a new monetization path that could reduce reliance on ad revenue. Mark Zuckerberg says a Meta cloud computing business 'definitely on the table'
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentators are pointing to the subscription push as a meaningful upside driver, with some estimating it could add billions in annual revenue if adoption is strong. Meta's Subscription Push Could Add $13.5 Billion By 2028 Across Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta also said it may eventually use excess AI/data-center capacity for a cloud business, which adds long-term optionality but is still early-stage. Mark Zuckerberg says a Meta cloud computing business 'definitely on the table'
• Neutral Sentiment: The company declared a quarterly dividend, which is modest but reinforces capital-return strength. Meta Announces Quarterly Cash Dividend
• Negative Sentiment: Reuters reported Meta’s employee mouse-click tracking tool for AI training may run into EU privacy concerns, creating regulatory risk around data collection and cross-border use. Exclusive: Meta tool to track employee mouse clicks on collision course with EU privacy rules
• Negative Sentiment: Recent commentary from Jim Cramer and disclosures of insider selling add some caution around execution and valuation. Jim Cramer Says Meta “Has Not Excelled in a Visible Way”

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of Meta Platforms stock opened at $632.51 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a current ratio of 2.35 and a quick ratio of 2.35. The company has a 50-day moving average of $617.84 and a 200 day moving average of $636.92. The firm has a market cap of $1.60 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.99, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.23. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1 year low of $520.26 and a 1 year high of $796.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $6.67 by $3.77. The business had revenue of $56.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $55.56 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.84% and a return on equity of 36.93%. Meta Platforms's revenue was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $6.43 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.63%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Tigress Financial boosted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $935.00 to $945.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $820.00 to $800.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $825.00 to $775.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 30th. KeyCorp reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $760.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $840.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have issued a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $840.19.

Insider Activity

In other Meta Platforms news, CFO Susan J. Li sold 9,195 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $607.84, for a total transaction of $5,589,088.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,186 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,014,978.24. This trade represents a 41.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 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, COO Javier Olivan sold 837 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $608.98, for a total transaction of $509,716.26. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 13,823 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,417,930.54. This represents a 5.71% 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 have sold a total of 40,890 shares of company stock valued at $25,315,558 in the last quarter. 13.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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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