Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Raises Position in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lifted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 0.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 94,915 shares of the social networking company’s stock after purchasing an additional 890 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms comprises about 1.1% of Wedge Capital Management L L P NC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest position. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $62,652,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Fairvoy Private Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Fairvoy Private Wealth LLC now owns 6,283 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $4,147,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Crumly & Associates Inc. raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. Crumly & Associates Inc. now owns 1,231 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $813,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the period. Evansbrook LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter valued at $302,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC grew its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 41.6% during the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 455,018 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $300,353,000 after buying an additional 133,751 shares during the period. Finally, Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 14.8% during the 4th quarter. Wealthcare Advisory Partners LLC now owns 17,796 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $11,747,000 after buying an additional 2,296 shares during the period. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

META has been the topic of several research reports. Mizuho increased their target price on Meta Platforms from $815.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. TD Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. KeyCorp reduced their price objective on Meta Platforms from $875.00 to $835.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 26th. UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $872.00 target price (up from $830.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $825.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-nine have issued a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $845.54.

Meta Platforms News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: China’s commerce ministry said it supports law‑abiding transnational technology deals, which reduces near‑term risk that Beijing will block or heavily restrict Meta’s cross‑border partnerships. China says it supports law-abiding transnational deals after reports of Meta deal review
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley trimmed its price target to $775 but kept an “Overweight” rating and called Meta a top pick — a high‑profile analyst endorsement that supports buying interest after the recent pullback. Morgan Stanley Trims PT on Meta Platforms (META) to $775 Amid Softer Advertising Backdrop
• Positive Sentiment: Meta continues to push AI product and infra initiatives: it’s building an elite AI lab for recommendations and expanding data‑center supply chains (Corning ground‑breaking) — moves that underpin management’s AI monetization thesis. Meta is assembling an elite new AI lab for its recommendations division Corning and Meta Celebrate Start of Construction on Cable Manufacturing Expansion
• Positive Sentiment: New product launches — two new Ray‑Ban prescription smart glasses and Oakley updates — provide nearer‑term consumer monetization levers outside ads. Product momentum is being cited as a reason investors are “buying the dip.” Meta unveils two new Ray‑Ban prescription smart glasses
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta said it’s deploying AI to speed internal risk reviews during product development — operationally positive but with unclear immediate financial impact. Meta Deploys AI to Accelerate and Enhance Risk Review During Product Development
• Neutral Sentiment: More layoffs (168 roles in Washington state, VR division hit) are being reported — lowers near‑term opex but highlights execution and morale risks. Latest Meta layoffs target 168 employees in Washington state
• Negative Sentiment: Legal setbacks remain the largest overhang: recent jury verdicts (New Mexico and a California “addiction” case) create precedent risk and could open the door to thousands of follow‑on suits and potentially large aggregate damages — a major driver of the recent volatility. Meta is appealing, but uncertainty is high. Meta was finally held accountable for harming teens. Now what? Why Meta’s “Bellwether” Legal Loss Could Open Up a Can of Worms

Meta Platforms Price Performance

META stock opened at $579.23 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 2.60 and a current ratio of 2.60. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1 year low of $479.80 and a 1 year high of $796.25. The firm has a market cap of $1.47 trillion, a P/E ratio of 24.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.31. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $640.94 and a 200-day simple moving average of $662.64.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The social networking company reported $8.88 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.16 by $0.72. The firm had revenue of $59.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.33 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 38.61% and a net margin of 30.08%.Meta Platforms’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $8.02 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 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, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th were paid a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 16th. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is 8.94%.

Insider Activity

In other Meta Platforms news, COO Javier Olivan sold 2,461 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Sunday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $639.77, for a total value of $1,574,473.97. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 12,108 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,746,335.16. This represents a 16.89% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 8,089 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $631.24, for a total value of $5,106,100.36. Following the sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 2,841 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,793,352.84. The trade was a 74.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders sold 161,448 shares of company stock worth $103,333,788. 13.61% of the stock is currently 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.