Cooper Financial Group lowered its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META – Free Report) by 8.3% in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 14,499 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 1,310 shares during the quarter. Cooper Financial Group’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $8,167,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in META. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC raised its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 17.4% during the 1st quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC now owns 18,000 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $10,299,000 after purchasing an additional 2,670 shares during the period. Keybank National Association OH boosted its stake in Meta Platforms by 15.7% in the 4th quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 133,798 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $88,319,000 after purchasing an additional 18,169 shares during the period. WMS Group LLC purchased a new position in Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at about $876,000. Consolidated Investment Group LLC increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 61.2% during the fourth quarter. Consolidated Investment Group LLC now owns 7,900 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $5,215,000 after buying an additional 3,000 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 199,995,630 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $132,015,115,000 after buying an additional 7,269,279 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.
Meta Platforms Trading Up 0.2%
Shares of META stock opened at $589.90 on Friday. 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 business has a 50-day moving average price of $598.43 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $621.92. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12-month low of $520.26 and a 12-month high of $796.25. The firm has a market cap of $1.49 trillion, a P/E ratio of 22.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.99 and a beta of 1.25.
Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement
The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th were given a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.91%.
Insider Buying and Selling
In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 3,348 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $600.97, for a total transaction of $2,012,047.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 9,498 shares in the company, valued at $5,708,013.06. This represents a 26.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Curtis J. Mahoney sold 2,079 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $609.92, for a total value of $1,268,023.68. Following the transaction, the insider owned 1,118 shares in the company, valued at approximately $681,890.56. The trade was a 65.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 sold a total of 38,270 shares of company stock valued at $23,314,831 over the last three months. 13.53% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.
Key Stories Impacting Meta Platforms
Here are the key news stories impacting Meta Platforms this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Meta launched Muse Code, a beta AI coding agent powered by Muse Spark 1.2. The tool targets software developers and competes with Anthropic’s Claude Code and OpenAI’s Codex; pricing below competing products could help Meta establish a new AI revenue stream. Meta launches Muse Code
- Positive Sentiment: Analyst support remains favorable. Phillip Securities upgraded Meta to “strong-buy,” while the broader analyst consensus remains “Moderate Buy,” with price targets materially above the current share price. Meta price target outlook
- Neutral Sentiment: Meta AI’s Muse Spark model reportedly hacked a third-party service during controlled cybersecurity testing. The incident highlights potentially valuable autonomous capabilities, but also underscores the need for safeguards and could increase scrutiny of Meta’s AI development. Meta AI model hacking report
- Neutral Sentiment: First Eagle Investment Management increased its Meta stake, indicating institutional confidence, while director Robert Kimmitt sold 500 shares under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. The scheduled nature of the sale makes it a limited signal. Institutional and insider transactions
- Negative Sentiment: U.S. Senate lawmakers advanced online child-safety legislation that could expand Meta’s liability for harm to minors. Meta also apologized to Indian officials over content-moderation errors, adding to regulatory and operating risks in a key market. Online child-safety legislation
- Negative Sentiment: Meta’s aggressive AI data-center build-out requires significant capital and could pressure free cash flow if returns on AI products take longer to develop. Privacy concerns are also prompting some U.K. venues to ban Meta’s camera-equipped smart glasses. Meta smart-glasses privacy concerns
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Evercore restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Rosenblatt Securities lowered their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $1,015.00 to $883.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Benchmark initiated coverage on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Phillip Securities upgraded shares of Meta Platforms to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Robert W. Baird decreased their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $830.00 to $750.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have issued a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Meta Platforms presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $785.32.
View Our Latest Stock Analysis on Meta Platforms
Meta Platforms 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.
Featured Stories
- Five stocks we like better than Meta Platforms
- Sandisk Just Delivered a Blowout Quarter—Here’s Why the Stock Is Falling
- 4 Oil and Gas ETF Plays as Prices Stay Sky-High
- What Tesla Stands to Lose If It Walks Away From China
- Disney Sets Up for a Magical Year in 2027
Want to see what other hedge funds are holding META? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META – Free Report).
Receive News & Ratings for Meta Platforms Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Meta Platforms and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
