Profund Advisors LLC Sells 6,982 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Profund Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 6.5% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 99,696 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 6,982 shares during the period. Meta Platforms accounts for about 2.1% of Profund Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Profund Advisors LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $72,298,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in META. Fairtree Asset Management Pty Ltd grew its stake in Meta Platforms by 18.6% in the 2nd quarter. Fairtree Asset Management Pty Ltd now owns 18,777 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $10,577,000 after acquiring an additional 2,939 shares during the last quarter. Madison Wealth Partners Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 33.6% during the second quarter. Madison Wealth Partners Inc now owns 3,031 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $1,707,000 after purchasing an additional 763 shares during the last quarter. William John Sempolinski acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 2nd quarter valued at about $3,107,000. Sone Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 38.2% during the second quarter. Sone Capital Management LLC now owns 16,059 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $9,046,000 after purchasing an additional 4,440 shares during the period. Finally, Lakewood Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 63.7% in the second quarter. Lakewood Capital Management LP now owns 115,985 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $65,333,000 after acquiring an additional 45,130 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta launched Spaces, a collaboration feature for its Muse AI agents, following the rollout of Muse Voice. The new offerings may help strengthen user engagement and expand Meta’s consumer AI ecosystem. Meta introduces Spaces
• Positive Sentiment: Recent earnings commentary points to AI supporting Meta’s advertising operations, reinforcing the potential for the company’s AI investments to generate revenue. Takeaways from recent earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta paused planned updates to its terms and is keeping existing rules in place. The move avoids an immediate policy change, though the underlying issues remain unresolved. Meta pauses planned terms updates
• Neutral Sentiment: Plans for new nonvoting Class C shares have been described as effectively creating a 2-for-1 split. A split changes the number of shares, but does not by itself change the company’s underlying value; the structure preserves Mark Zuckerberg’s voting control. Is Meta Platforms next for a stock split?
• Negative Sentiment: Meta and other platforms sued to block California restrictions on social-media features for users under 16. The case adds regulatory uncertainty and potential legal costs. Platforms sue over California teen social-media law
• Negative Sentiment: Meta warned that political backlash and possible limits on data-center construction could complicate its AI expansion. Its $15 billion senior-notes offering also highlights the scale of financing required for investment. Data-center expansion concerns
• Negative Sentiment: Reported ETF net selling and insider share sales may add short-term pressure, although the disclosed insider transaction was made under a pre-arranged trading plan. ETFs are net sellers of Meta Platforms

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on META shares. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $770.00 to $800.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $895.00 to $905.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $865.00 to $850.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $580.00 to $685.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. Finally, Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $850.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $833.12.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In related news, CAO Aaron Anderson sold 3,240 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $618.06, for a total value of $2,002,514.40. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 6,271 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,875,854.26. This represents a 34.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Susan Li sold 9,196 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $550.61, for a total value of $5,063,409.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 13,186 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,260,343.46. The trade was a 41.09% 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. Insiders have sold a total of 151,090 shares of company stock worth $103,150,807 in the last three months. Insiders own 13.53% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of Meta Platforms stock traded up $5.07 on Friday, hitting $610.15. The company had a trading volume of 15,673,971 shares, compared to its average volume of 23,359,418. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52 week low of $520.26 and a 52 week high of $779.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 1.90 and a quick ratio of 1.90. The company has a market cap of $1.56 trillion, a PE ratio of 20.80, a PEG ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.28. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $674.97 and a 200-day simple moving average of $632.16.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 22nd. The social networking company reported $7.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.54 by $0.86. The firm had revenue of $64.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $63.34 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 30.73% and a net margin of 31.15%. Meta Platforms’s revenue was up 26.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $7.25 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 28th. Investors of record on Monday, September 21st were given a $0.5250 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 21st. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 7.16%.

Meta Platforms Profile

Meta Platforms, Inc is a global technology company that develops social networking, messaging, and digital communication products. Its services include Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger, and Threads, which connect people and help businesses reach audiences around the world.

The company also develops virtual and augmented reality products and technologies through its Reality Labs division, including Quest headsets and related software and services. Advertising is a central part of Meta’s business, with its platforms providing tools for businesses to promote products and services.

Founded in 2004 as Facebook by Mark Zuckerberg and fellow students, the company changed its name to Meta Platforms in 2021 to reflect its broader focus on building social technologies and immersive digital experiences.