Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Holdings Decreased by Curated Wealth Partners LLC

Curated Wealth Partners LLC cut its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 87.4% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 11,369 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 79,174 shares during the period. Meta Platforms makes up 0.7% of Curated Wealth Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Curated Wealth Partners LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $8,245,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in META. Fairtree Asset Management Pty Ltd grew its stake in Meta Platforms by 18.6% during 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 in the last quarter. Madison Wealth Partners Inc raised its stake 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 buying an additional 763 shares in the last quarter. William John Sempolinski acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 2nd quarter worth $3,107,000. Sone Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 4,440 shares during the period. Finally, Lakewood Capital Management LP increased its position in Meta Platforms by 63.7% in the 2nd 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 period. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America expects Meta to exceed third-quarter revenue expectations, forecasting $63.8 billion versus a $63.3 billion consensus estimate, and maintained a Buy rating with an $810 price target. Meta expected to beat revenue forecasts as AI boosts advertising, says Bank of America
• Positive Sentiment: Meta released the open-weight Muse Spark model for coding and AI-agent tasks, while its collaboration with Apple enables developers to run the model locally on high-end Mac computers. The developments could broaden adoption of Meta’s AI technology and reduce reliance on cloud infrastructure. Meta releases open-weight Muse Spark model
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan reaffirmed its Overweight rating and set a $920 price target, implying substantial upside, while other analysts including KeyCorp and Rosenblatt also maintained positive ratings. JPMorgan reaffirms Meta rating
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta is expected to report third-quarter results on October 21. Investors will focus on advertising growth, user metrics, profitability, capital expenditures, and management’s outlook for AI infrastructure spending. Meta Q3 earnings estimates
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta withdrew $25 million from a previously announced $65 million effort to support political candidates considered favorable to the AI industry. The move may reduce near-term spending but signals a change in its political strategy. Meta Withdraws $25 Million from Its Midterms Push
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst-related pressure is weighing on the stock after Goldman Sachs lowered its expectations and Meta was reported down following an analyst downgrade, countering the more bullish JPMorgan view. Meta stock price down on analyst downgrade
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned that AI infrastructure spending could reach approximately $205 billion in 2027. Heavy capital expenditures are reducing free cash flow, while potential legal charges and regulatory scrutiny add to earnings risk. Meta AI spending could hit $205 billion
• Negative Sentiment: Seven U.S. senators are questioning Meta’s claim of $6.6 billion in research tax credits for AI data centers, creating potential tax liability and reputational risk. Senators question Meta AI data-center tax credits

Meta Platforms Trading Down 3.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:META opened at $709.33 on Friday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a twelve month low of $520.26 and a twelve month high of $779.82. The firm has a market cap of $1.81 trillion, a P/E ratio of 26.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a 50 day moving average of $655.78 and a 200-day moving average of $625.86. The company has a current ratio of 2.23, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.19 by ($1.01). The company had revenue of $60.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $60.22 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 29.83% and a return on equity of 33.18%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $7.14 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 28.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 28th. Investors of record on Monday, September 21st were issued a $0.5250 dividend. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 21st. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 7.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on META shares. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $800.00 price objective (down from $850.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Meta Platforms from $785.00 to $875.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 25th. China Renaissance lowered their price target on Meta Platforms from $825.00 to $700.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 31st. Daiwa Securities Group reduced their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $790.00 to $687.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, New Street Research lowered their price objective on Meta Platforms from $730.00 to $700.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-six have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $808.88.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In related news, insider Christopher K. Cox sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $712.76, for a total value of $28,510,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 184,516 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $131,515,624.16. This represents a 17.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,848 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $558.00, for a total value of $4,379,184.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer owned 828 shares in the company, valued at $462,024. This trade represents a 90.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 149,797 shares of company stock valued at $102,180,385. 13.53% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Meta Platforms

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.