Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Stock Holdings Lessened by Waycross Partners LLC

Waycross Partners LLC reduced its holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 5.5% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 81,957 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 4,769 shares during the period. Meta Platforms makes up 5.2% of Waycross Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding. Waycross Partners LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $60,188,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Goldstone Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 44.4% during the third quarter. Goldstone Financial Group LLC now owns 3,752 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $2,756,000 after buying an additional 1,153 shares during the period. CW Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 27.8% during the second quarter. CW Advisors LLC now owns 176,762 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $130,467,000 after purchasing an additional 38,432 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Meta Platforms by 34.2% during the third quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 52,252 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $38,373,000 after buying an additional 13,311 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR lifted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 5.6% during the second quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 84,687 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $62,507,000 after buying an additional 4,473 shares during the period. Finally, Cherokee Insurance Co bought a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 2nd quarter valued at $3,321,000. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Huge AMD chip partnership: Meta agreed to a multiyear deal to deploy up to ~6 GW of AMD AI GPUs (potentially tens of billions in purchases and a warrant structure that could give Meta an equity stake), which validates its AI infrastructure roadmap and diversifies suppliers. AMD clinches second mega chip supply deal, this time with Meta
• Positive Sentiment: Shareholder return: Meta declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.525 per share (payable March 26), a signal to income‑oriented investors and a partial cushion against capex-driven volatility. Meta (META) Strengthens Investor Appeal With Dividend Payout
• Neutral Sentiment: Stablecoin/payments plans: Multiple reports say Meta is preparing a stablecoin‑based payments pilot for H2 2026 — a potential long‑term monetization and engagement lever but dependent on partners and regulation. Meta Hopes to Launch Stablecoin Payments Project This Year
• Neutral Sentiment: Renewable power agreement: Meta signed an 80 MW solar offtake for U.S. data‑center power — improves ESG profile and operating stability but has limited near‑term earnings impact. MN8 Energy Supports Meta’s U.S. Data Center Operations
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: CFO Susan J. Li sold 18,789 shares (~$12.2M at ~$650 avg.), trimming her stake ~21% — routine disclosures can still trigger short‑term selling and investor concern about insider conviction. SEC filing: Susan J. Li sale
• Negative Sentiment: Legal and reputational risk: A plaintiff is testifying in a landmark case alleging social‑media addiction harms, and internal filings show executives warned that end‑to‑end encryption could impede child‑abuse reporting — heightened litigation/regulatory headlines are a persistent downside risk. Woman suing Meta, YouTube over social media addiction takes the stand at trial
• Negative Sentiment: Technical/market concerns: Some traders warn META may be entering a late‑stage technical correction after the recent rally, which can accelerate short‑term downside if momentum shifts. Meta stock on the verge of a brutal bear cycle, warns expert

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Meta Platforms news, COO Javier Olivan sold 2,461 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Sunday, February 15th. The stock was 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 approximately $7,746,335.16. The trade was a 16.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 580 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $646.00, for a total transaction of $374,680.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 6,167 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,983,882. This represents a 8.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 46,580 shares of company stock worth $30,048,498. 13.61% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Zacks Research cut Meta Platforms from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 18th. Argus restated a “buy” rating and issued a $800.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $880.00 to $920.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Roth Mkm decreased their price objective on Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $800.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Wedbush upped their target price on Meta Platforms from $880.00 to $900.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-nine have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Meta Platforms presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $844.44.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ META opened at $639.30 on Wednesday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52 week low of $479.80 and a 52 week high of $796.25. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $656.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $687.24. The company has a quick ratio of 2.60, a current ratio of 2.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm has a market cap of $1.62 trillion, a P/E ratio of 27.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.28.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The social networking company reported $8.88 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.16 by $0.72. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 30.08% and a return on equity of 38.61%. The business had revenue of $59.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $58.33 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $8.02 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 23.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. 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 presently 8.94%.

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.