Northeast Investment Management Boosts Stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Northeast Investment Management raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 1.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 106,985 shares of the social networking company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,168 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for approximately 2.5% of Northeast Investment Management’s holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Northeast Investment Management’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $61,209,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 14.0% in the 1st quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 28,448 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $16,276,000 after purchasing an additional 3,502 shares during the period. MRWM Advisors LLC grew its position in Meta Platforms by 12.1% during the first quarter. MRWM Advisors LLC now owns 371 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $212,000 after buying an additional 40 shares during the period. AA Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Meta Platforms by 2.1% during the first quarter. AA Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,084 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $1,764,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Falcon Wealth Planning increased its holdings in Meta Platforms by 1.6% during the first quarter. Falcon Wealth Planning now owns 5,626 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $3,219,000 after buying an additional 89 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Grey Ledge Advisors LLC raised its position in Meta Platforms by 9.7% in the first quarter. Grey Ledge Advisors LLC now owns 3,315 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $1,896,000 after acquiring an additional 293 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of Meta Platforms stock opened at $562.60 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $609.99 and its 200-day simple moving average is $629.84. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52 week low of $520.26 and a 52 week high of $796.25. The company has a market capitalization of $1.42 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.45, a PEG ratio of 0.97 and a beta of 1.23. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.67 by $3.77. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 36.93% and a net margin of 32.84%.The firm had revenue of $56.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $55.56 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $6.43 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 33.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. Meta Platforms’s payout ratio is 7.63%.

Meta Platforms News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta is being highlighted as a market outperformer, with coverage noting it has exceeded broader market returns, reinforcing the view that investors still see strong fundamentals behind the stock. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Meta and EssilorLuxottica launched a cheaper new line of AI smart glasses starting at $299, which could expand adoption of its wearables strategy and support long-term growth. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s analyst consensus remains “Moderate Buy,” suggesting Wall Street still sees upside potential despite recent volatility. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple pieces point to Meta being a preferred growth stock for long-term investors, including commentary citing billionaire Dan Loeb’s bullish stance. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage comparing Meta with Snap underscores Meta’s much larger revenue base and more consistent growth, but this is more of a fundamentals refresher than a new catalyst. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that Google is limiting Meta’s use of Gemini AI models raise a potential constraint on Meta’s access to outside AI compute capacity, which could be a modest headwind for its AI development plans. Article Title

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In other Meta Platforms news, insider Curtis J. Mahoney sold 2,079 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $609.92, for a total value of $1,268,023.68. Following the sale, the insider owned 1,118 shares in the company, valued at $681,890.56. The trade was a 65.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed 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, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,847 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $607.83, for a total transaction of $4,769,642.01. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer owned 414 shares in the company, valued at approximately $251,641.62. The trade was a 94.99% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 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. Insiders have sold a total of 39,013 shares of company stock worth $24,115,999 in the last three months. Insiders own 13.53% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $810.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Monday, June 1st. Mizuho decreased their target price on Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $835.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 5th. Barclays raised their target price on Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $830.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Erste Group Bank lowered Meta Platforms from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 2nd. Finally, Benchmark started coverage on Meta Platforms in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have issued a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $840.60.

Meta Platforms Company 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.