657 Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Shares Sold by Ring Mountain Capital LLC

Ring Mountain Capital LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 17,833 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 657 shares during the period. Meta Platforms makes up approximately 5.3% of Ring Mountain Capital LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding. Ring Mountain Capital LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $12,932,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Fairtree Asset Management Pty Ltd boosted its position in Meta Platforms by 18.6% during the second quarter. Fairtree Asset Management Pty Ltd now owns 18,777 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $10,577,000 after purchasing an additional 2,939 shares in the last quarter. Madison Wealth Partners Inc grew its holdings in Meta Platforms by 33.6% in the second quarter. Madison Wealth Partners Inc now owns 3,031 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $1,707,000 after purchasing an additional 763 shares during the last quarter. William John Sempolinski purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the second quarter valued at $3,107,000. Sone Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 38.2% in the second quarter. Sone Capital Management LLC now owns 16,059 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $9,046,000 after buying an additional 4,440 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lakewood Capital Management LP increased its position in shares of 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 buying an additional 45,130 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on META. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Meta Platforms from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Thursday. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $830.00 to $750.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $820.00 to $920.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 24th. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $886.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $830.00 to $780.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-five have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Meta Platforms has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $796.51.

Trending Headlines about Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s launch of the Muse Wonder and Muse Wonder Full AI models is the primary catalyst. The models are positioned to compete with offerings from OpenAI and Anthropic and could improve Meta’s Muse assistant and support new subscription revenue. Reuters article on Meta’s Muse Wonder models
• Positive Sentiment: Third-party data reportedly showed early Muse user retention rates rivaling ChatGPT, strengthening confidence that Meta’s large AI investment can generate meaningful user engagement and monetization. Yahoo Finance article on Muse retention
• Positive Sentiment: Truist issued a Street-high $1,000 price target, citing Muse adoption and Meta’s machine-learning advertising push. KeyCorp and Rosenblatt also reiterated bullish ratings with targets of $900 and $886, respectively. 247WallSt article on Truist’s Meta price target
• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s advertising business remains strong: second-quarter revenue increased 28% year over year to $60.8 billion, while improved ad conversions and AI-driven targeting continue to support growth expectations.
• Positive Sentiment: Meta expanded its Quest ecosystem partnership with Virtuix. Virtuix said Omni One orders rose approximately threefold following its Quest launch, potentially supporting demand for Meta’s virtual-reality hardware and platform. Virtuix Meta partnership announcement
• Neutral Sentiment: Investors are awaiting third-quarter earnings on October 21. Meta has guided for revenue of $61 billion to $64 billion, making results, outlook, AI spending and advertising trends key near-term catalysts.
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts and market commentary caution that Meta’s shares have already advanced substantially and trade at a premium valuation. Rising AI infrastructure costs and a planned $130 billion–$145 billion spending program could pressure margins and free cash flow.
• Negative Sentiment: Muse’s global download growth has slowed, and Meta’s latest earnings included an EPS miss despite strong revenue growth. Cantor Fitzgerald also trimmed its target to $840, underscoring valuation and execution risks. Wall Street Journal article on Muse and Meta’s AI model

Meta Platforms Stock Up 2.5%

Shares of META stock traded up $18.86 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $761.82. The company had a trading volume of 15,503,121 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,476,549. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 2.23. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a twelve month low of $520.26 and a twelve month high of $779.82. The company has a market capitalization of $1.94 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.25 and a beta of 1.19. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $644.04 and its 200 day simple moving average is $621.26.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.19 by ($1.01). Meta Platforms had a net margin of 29.83% and a return on equity of 33.18%. The firm had revenue of $60.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $60.22 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $7.14 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 27.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 21st were given a dividend of $0.5250 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 presently 7.91%.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In other Meta Platforms news, COO Javier Olivan sold 946 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $728.08, for a total transaction of $688,763.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 7,878 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,735,814.24. This trade represents a 10.72% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 27,474 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 148,222 shares of company stock valued at $101,033,627. 13.53% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.