Zevenbergen Capital Investments LLC Trims Stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Key Points

• Zevenbergen Capital Investments trimmed its Meta stake by 2% in the second quarter, selling 4,590 shares and retaining 220,423 shares valued at approximately $124.2 million. Institutional investors collectively own 79.91% of Meta.
• Meta reported quarterly revenue of $60.8 billion, up 28% year over year and above estimates, but earnings per share of $6.18 missed the $7.19 consensus forecast. Shares recently opened at $568.97, well below their 52-week high of $790.80.
• Analysts maintain a broadly positive view, with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $785.32, but investors face risks from rising AI infrastructure costs, insider selling and significant legal challenges related to alleged harm to children.

Zevenbergen Capital Investments LLC cut its stake in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Free Report) by 2.0% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 220,423 shares of the social networking company's stock after selling 4,590 shares during the period. Meta Platforms makes up approximately 2.8% of Zevenbergen Capital Investments LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Zevenbergen Capital Investments LLC's holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $124,162,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Lighthouse Financial Services Inc. ADV lifted its stake in Meta Platforms by 1.4% in the second quarter. Lighthouse Financial Services Inc. ADV now owns 4,580 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $2,807,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the period. Bell Bank grew its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter. Bell Bank now owns 21,773 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $12,265,000 after buying an additional 468 shares during the period. Prospera Financial Services Inc increased its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 87,954 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $49,567,000 after acquiring an additional 1,020 shares during the last quarter. Bar Harbor Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 9.2% in the 2nd quarter. Bar Harbor Wealth Management now owns 7,931 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $4,467,000 after acquiring an additional 671 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Birch Financial Group LLC raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 5.9% in the 2nd quarter. Birch Financial Group LLC now owns 1,801 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $1,014,000 after acquiring an additional 101 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ META opened at $568.97 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $1.45 trillion, a PE ratio of 21.43, a PEG ratio of 1.01 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, Inc. has a 1-year low of $520.26 and a 1-year high of $790.80. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $595.62 and a 200 day moving average price of $619.31.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $7.19 by ($1.01). The firm had revenue of $60.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $60.22 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 33.18% and a net margin of 29.83%.Meta Platforms's revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $7.14 EPS. Research analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 28.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 25th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th were given a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 7.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $561.56, for a total transaction of $280,780.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 2,943 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,652,671.08. This trade represents a 14.52% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 1,258 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $600.00, for a total transaction of $754,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 1,517 shares in the company, valued at $910,200. This trade represents a 45.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders sold 17,772 shares of company stock worth $10,823,658. 13.53% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Key Stories Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta is reportedly considering selling excess data-center capacity to third parties, which could help monetize its substantial AI infrastructure spending and create an additional revenue stream. The plan remains exploratory. Should You Buy Meta Platforms Stock Below $600 Before Mark Zuckerberg Unveils Its AI Cloud Business?
• Neutral Sentiment: Alibaba’s release of a laptop-ready Qwen model and open model weights underscores intensifying competition in AI, although the immediate financial impact on Meta is uncertain. Alibaba answers Meta's AI challenge with new laptop-ready model
• Negative Sentiment: Meta is facing a major federal trial brought by 29 state attorneys general, who allege Facebook and Instagram were deliberately designed to addict children and that the company misled the public about related risks. The states are seeking financial penalties—potentially as high as $1.4 trillion—and court-ordered product changes. Meta faces ‘astronomical' consequences as legal fight reaches critical moment in California
• Negative Sentiment: The legal overhang intensified after Meta recently lost a nearly $1 billion judgment in a similar New Mexico case. Investors are concerned that an adverse outcome could produce significant financial penalties, costly changes to platform design and broader regulatory restrictions, with thousands of related lawsuits potentially following. Meta Faces 29 States in Court Tuesday
• Negative Sentiment: Investors are also scrutinizing Meta’s AI spending. Data-center construction is consuming cash, while reported off-balance-sheet financing arrangements and residual-value guarantees could create future obligations if AI assets become unprofitable or underused. What Could Meta Platforms Off Balance Sheet AI Financing Mean For Investors?

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Phillip Securities raised shares of Meta Platforms to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Scotiabank reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and issued a $600.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $830.00 to $750.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $800.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $750.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have issued a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $785.32.

About Meta Platforms

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

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