Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. Has $66.27 Million Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 147.1% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 100,400 shares of the social networking company’s stock after buying an additional 59,770 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for 2.2% of Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co.’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. Lockheed Martin Investment Management Co.’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $66,273,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth about $118,325,000. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC now owns 56,992 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $37,620,000 after buying an additional 1,944 shares during the last quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI lifted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 11.7% during the 4th quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 160,059 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $105,653,000 after buying an additional 16,728 shares during the last quarter. HFM Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 66.4% during the 4th quarter. HFM Investment Advisors LLC now owns 238 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $157,000 after buying an additional 95 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Investment Management Company LLC now owns 69,588 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $45,934,000 after buying an additional 459 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Meta Platforms News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta is being viewed as an early leader in the AI trade, with recent commentary arguing the market may be underestimating how much AI could boost the company’s long-term earnings and valuation. The AI Trade Might Be Grossly Underestimated — and It Could Be Time To Rethink How We View the Mag 7
• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s AI strategy is getting more attention, including reporting on CTO Andrew Bosworth’s push to use AI to reshape the workforce and improve efficiency, which could support margins over time. Meet Mark Zuckerberg’s Right-Hand Man Who’s Unleashing AI at Meta
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain bullish on Meta Platforms despite recent volatility, reinforcing confidence that the company’s ad business and AI investments can continue driving upside. Wall Street analysts predict Meta stock price for the next 12 months
• Positive Sentiment: Meta is expanding its AI ecosystem through a $125 million UCLA semiconductor hub with partners including Broadcom and Synopsys, which could help strengthen long-term AI infrastructure and talent development. Meta, Broadcom And Others Launch $125 Million UCLA AI Chip Hub
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage about a potential AI “sidekick” or digital twin for Mark Zuckerberg adds to the company’s AI narrative, but it is more of a concept story than a confirmed business catalyst. Mark Zuckerberg May Already Have an AI Agent Sidekick — Could This Be the Future for CEOs?
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta’s expanding use of WhatsApp in government services in Gujarat is a positive adoption signal, but the direct financial impact is still unclear. Gujarat moves to WhatsApp governance, signs MoU with Meta Platforms
• Negative Sentiment: Meta is also dealing with scrutiny over the environmental impact of its data centers, after lawmakers raised concerns about water usage and called for an EPA probe, which could create regulatory and reputational pressure. AOC Raises Concerns Over Meta Data Center Water Impact

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on META. Guggenheim reduced their price target on Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $800.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company 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. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Sanford C. Bernstein reduced their price target on Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $850.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have issued a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $840.19.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of META stock opened at $610.26 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $617.12 and its 200 day simple moving average is $636.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a current ratio of 2.35. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a twelve month low of $520.26 and a twelve month high of $796.25. The company has a market capitalization of $1.54 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.18, a PEG ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.67 by $3.77. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 36.93% and a net margin of 32.84%.The business had revenue of $56.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.56 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $6.43 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.49 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In other Meta Platforms news, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,847 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $607.83, for a total value of $4,769,642.01. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 414 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $251,641.62. The trade was a 94.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 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. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 2,778 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $629.45, for a total value of $1,748,612.10. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 10,557 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,645,103.65. This trade represents a 20.83% 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. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 95,471 shares of company stock valued at $60,616,955. Corporate insiders own 13.53% of the company’s stock.

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.