Burr Financial Services LLC Trims Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Burr Financial Services LLC lessened its holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 76.7% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 3,858 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 12,699 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for 1.7% of Burr Financial Services LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Burr Financial Services LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $2,798,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in META. Peterson Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.0% during the third quarter. Peterson Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,020 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $739,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the period. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. boosted its position in Meta Platforms by 10.6% during the 3rd quarter. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. now owns 2,434 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $1,765,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. grew its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 39.3% during the 3rd quarter. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. now owns 96,774 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $70,179,000 after acquiring an additional 27,298 shares during the period. Toth Financial Advisory Corp raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 86.9% in the 3rd quarter. Toth Financial Advisory Corp now owns 114 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $83,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ayalon Insurance Comp Ltd. raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 48.6% in the 3rd quarter. Ayalon Insurance Comp Ltd. now owns 21,400 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $15,519,000 after acquiring an additional 7,000 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In other Meta Platforms news, COO Javier Olivan sold 946 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $728.08, for a total transaction of $688,763.68. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 7,878 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,735,814.24. This represents a 10.72% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 27,474 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $777.44, for a total transaction of $21,359,386.56. 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. Insiders have sold 148,222 shares of company stock valued at $101,033,627 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 13.53% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: TD Cowen reaffirmed its “Buy” rating and set an $865 price target, implying roughly 20% upside from recent levels. The firm’s view supports the case that Meta’s AI investments can drive future growth. TD Cowen rating report
• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s Muse AI assistant launched on iPad shortly after its mobile debut and has topped app-download charts. Sustained adoption could create a new consumer platform and improve the long-term payoff from Meta’s AI spending. Meta Muse launches on iPad
• Positive Sentiment: Meta and Sierra are developing the Personal Agent Protocol with partners including Shopify, Stripe, Walmart and Genesys. An open standard for AI agents to transact with businesses could expand Meta’s role in AI commerce and customer interactions. Meta and Sierra AI agent protocol
• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo recently raised its price target to $1,000 and maintained an Overweight rating, citing enthusiasm around the Muse product cycle. A broad analyst consensus remains “Moderate Buy.” Wells Fargo raises Meta price target
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta is collaborating with AMD, Broadcom, Microsoft and Arista Networks on open, high-density Ethernet infrastructure. The effort may improve AI data-center flexibility, but it also underscores the scale of capital spending required. AI infrastructure collaboration
• Neutral Sentiment: Manus raised more than $500 million after Meta unwound its proposed acquisition of the Chinese AI startup. The financing gives Manus independence but highlights that Meta no longer controls a potentially valuable AI asset. Manus funding after Meta exit
• Negative Sentiment: Florida’s attorney general is seeking restrictions on users under 14 and wants a court to limit features such as Instagram and Facebook’s infinite scroll. Potential product restrictions, compliance costs and reduced engagement pose risks to advertising revenue. Florida legal action against Meta
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned that Meta and other hyperscalers are burning cash on AI data centers before returns are proven. Meta’s AI strategy primarily depends on monetizing its own apps rather than selling cloud capacity externally, increasing execution risk. AI infrastructure cash-flow analysis
• Negative Sentiment: COO Javier Olivan sold shares through a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. While the transactions are not necessarily a warning, insider selling can modestly weigh on sentiment. Meta insider sale filing

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

META has been the topic of a number of research reports. Loop Capital boosted their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $740.00 to $955.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 24th. Daiwa Securities Group lowered their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $790.00 to $687.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $820.00 to $920.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 24th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $785.00 to $875.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 25th. Finally, Benchmark reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, August 27th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-four have given a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $791.86.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 0.8%

Meta Platforms stock traded down $5.89 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $715.42. The stock had a trading volume of 6,828,145 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,427,426. The company has a quick ratio of 2.23, a current ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.82 trillion, a P/E ratio of 26.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.19. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12-month low of $520.26 and a 12-month high of $779.82. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $634.11 and its 200-day moving average price is $618.50.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 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 analysts’ expectations of $60.22 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 29.83% and a return on equity of 33.18%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $7.14 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 27.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 21st were issued a dividend of $0.5250 per share. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 21st. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.91%.

Meta Platforms Company Profile

Meta Platforms, Inc is a technology company that develops social networking, messaging, virtual and augmented reality, and artificial intelligence products. The company operates a global family of apps that includes Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp and Threads, enabling users to connect, communicate, share content and discover communities.

Meta generates most of its business through digital advertising displayed across its platforms. Its products serve individuals, creators, businesses and organizations in markets around the world, while its advertising tools help businesses reach audiences based on factors such as interests, activity and demographics.

Through its Reality Labs division, Meta develops virtual and augmented reality hardware, software and services, including the Meta Quest line of headsets and related experiences.