Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. Trims Stock Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. cut its position in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 3.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 665,461 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 25,819 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms comprises approximately 2.1% of Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $439,101,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in META. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its stake in Meta Platforms by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 34,551 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $20,230,000 after purchasing an additional 570 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in Meta Platforms by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 9,456 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $5,537,000 after purchasing an additional 875 shares during the last quarter. Headwater Capital Co Ltd lifted its stake in Meta Platforms by 294.7% in the first quarter. Headwater Capital Co Ltd now owns 150,000 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $86,454,000 after purchasing an additional 112,000 shares during the last quarter. Dymon Asia Capital Singapore PTE. LTD. bought a new stake in Meta Platforms in the second quarter worth about $213,000. Finally, Capital & Planning LLC bought a new stake in Meta Platforms in the second quarter worth about $322,000. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In related news, CFO Susan J. Li sold 9,195 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief financial officer owned 13,186 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,014,978.24. This trade represents a 41.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at 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 on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $608.98, for a total transaction of $509,716.26. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 13,823 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,417,930.54. This trade represents a 5.71% decrease in their position. 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. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 40,366 shares of company stock worth $25,038,396. Company insiders own 13.53% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Shares of META stock opened at $635.29 on Friday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52-week low of $520.26 and a 52-week high of $796.25. The company’s 50 day moving average is $617.50 and its 200 day moving average is $636.91. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The firm has a market cap of $1.61 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.09, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.67 by $3.77. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.84% and a return on equity of 36.93%. The company had revenue of $56.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $55.56 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $6.43 earnings per share. Meta Platforms’s revenue for the quarter was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 15th. Meta Platforms’s payout ratio is presently 7.63%.

Meta Platforms News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta launched paid subscription plans for Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Meta AI, creating a new monetization path beyond advertising. Early reports suggest the pricing could meaningfully add to revenue over time, and analysts have highlighted upside if adoption builds. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Meta also announced a quarterly cash dividend, which may appeal to income-focused investors and signals confidence in the company’s cash generation. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary remained constructive, with Rosenblatt reaffirming a buy rating and raising its price target, reflecting optimism around Meta’s ad business, AI efforts, and new subscription revenue. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta committed additional funding to its Oversight Board through 2028, which supports governance stability but is unlikely to move the stock much on its own. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: COO Javier Olivan sold shares under a pre-arranged trading plan, which is routine insider activity and not necessarily a bearish signal.
• Negative Sentiment: Meta faces continued legal and reputational overhangs, including a Kentucky trial seeking a large penalty and a Supreme Court setback in the Vermont Instagram addiction case. Article Title

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on META. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $840.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Erste Group Bank cut shares of Meta Platforms from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 2nd. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $930.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $815.00 to $830.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $750.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. 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 MarketBeat, Meta Platforms has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $840.19.

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.