World Investment Advisors Purchases 16,197 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• World Investment Advisors increased its Meta Platforms stake by 21% in the fourth quarter, buying 16,197 additional shares and bringing its total to 93,212 shares valued at about $61.5 million.
• Meta reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $10.44 beating estimates and revenue rising 33.1% year over year to $56.31 billion, while analysts now expect $29.49 EPS for the current year.
• Recent developments around Meta include a new “Forum” app, job cuts tied to a bigger AI push, and ongoing legal pressure from lawsuits in Texas and elsewhere that keep regulatory risk in focus.

World Investment Advisors boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 21.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 93,212 shares of the social networking company's stock after purchasing an additional 16,197 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms comprises 1.0% of World Investment Advisors' holdings, making the stock its 12th biggest position. World Investment Advisors' holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $61,528,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 454 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $334,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. First National Bank Sioux Falls raised its holdings in 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 during the last quarter. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. now owns 984 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $649,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Vista Capital Partners Inc. raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Vista Capital Partners Inc. now owns 1,075 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $794,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 539 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $396,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Meta Platforms stock opened at $610.26 on Friday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1 year low of $520.26 and a 1 year high of $796.25. The company has a current ratio of 2.35, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.54 trillion, a P/E ratio of 22.18, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.25. The business has a 50-day moving average of $617.68 and a 200-day moving average of $637.00.

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 the consensus estimate of $6.67 by $3.77. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 36.93% and a net margin of 32.84%.The business had revenue of $56.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $55.56 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $6.43 EPS. Meta Platforms's revenue for the quarter was up 33.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.49 EPS for the current year.

Key Meta Platforms News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta launched a standalone “Forum” app for Facebook Groups, signaling a new product push that could deepen user engagement and add pressure to competitors like Reddit. Meta quietly launches a new Reddit-like app called Forum
• Positive Sentiment: Meta is cutting jobs and shifting resources toward AI, which investors may view as an efficiency move that supports long-term profit margins and keeps the company focused on its biggest growth area. Meta Cuts 8,000 Jobs, Boosts AI Team: What This Means for Employees
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta also settled a school-district lawsuit over alleged social media addiction harms, removing one legal overhang, though the broader regulatory and litigation risk around its platforms remains. Texas sues Meta, WhatsApp over encryption privacy claims
• Neutral Sentiment: Other headlines around Meta’s dual-class control structure, insider share sales, and broader AI spending debate are adding to the narrative, but they are less likely to drive the stock on their own than the new app launch and workforce reshaping.
• Negative Sentiment: The Texas attorney general’s lawsuit against Meta and WhatsApp over encryption and privacy claims adds another legal risk for investors to monitor. Google, Meta, TikTok face EU consumer complaints about handling of financial scams
• Negative Sentiment: Competition concerns are also in focus after Meta’s Forum app appeared to pressure Reddit shares, reinforcing worries that Meta’s scale lets it copy or crowd out rival social platforms.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 2,778 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $629.45, for a total value of $1,748,612.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 10,557 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,645,103.65. The trade was a 20.83% decrease in their position. The sale 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. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,847 shares of the business'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 value of $4,769,642.01. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer owned 414 shares of the company's stock, valued at $251,641.62. This represents 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 three months, insiders sold 152,728 shares of company stock worth $96,925,217. 13.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

META has been the subject of several recent research reports. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $820.00 to $800.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their target price on Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $930.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Meta Platforms from $770.00 to $765.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $810.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Meta Platforms from $710.00 to $730.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $840.19.

Meta Platforms Company 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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