Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Stock: Jackson Square Capital LLC Boosts Holdings

Jackson Square Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 176.9% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,321 shares of the social networking company’s stock after buying an additional 844 shares during the period. Jackson Square Capital LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $958,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kaufman Rossin Wealth LLC grew its stake in Meta Platforms by 160.6% during the 3rd quarter. Kaufman Rossin Wealth LLC now owns 1,308 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $948,000 after acquiring an additional 806 shares in the last quarter. Foguth Wealth Management LLC. lifted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 17.0% in the third quarter. Foguth Wealth Management LLC. now owns 1,912 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $1,356,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares in the last quarter. Prospera Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the third quarter worth approximately $271,000. Optivise Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 10.4% during the third quarter. Optivise Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,963 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $1,424,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares during the period. Finally, Generali Investments Management Co LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.9% during the third quarter. Generali Investments Management Co LLC now owns 42,037 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $30,484,000 after purchasing an additional 788 shares during the period. 79.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 27,474 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $777.44, for a total transaction of $21,359,386.56. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 946 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $707.20, for a total transaction of $669,011.20. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 5,986 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,233,299.20. This trade represents a 13.65% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 149,906 shares of company stock valued at $102,347,409 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 13.53% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Revenue and earnings exceeded expectations. Meta reported record quarterly revenue of approximately $64.6 billion, up 26% year over year and above the roughly $63.3 billion consensus estimate. Earnings of $7.40 per share also surpassed analyst expectations near $6.54. The results highlighted continued strength in advertising volume, pricing and monetization. Meta Platforms Tops Q3 Earnings and Revenue Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Muse is gaining meaningful traction. Meta said its AI assistant Muse has more than 10 million users, with shopping among the leading activities. Investors see the product as a potential way to increase engagement, improve recommendations and generate additional advertising and commerce revenue across Meta’s roughly 3.5 billion-user ecosystem. Meta Says Muse Has Over 10M Users
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts view the core business and AI returns favorably. Commentary following the report cited strong ad efficiency, higher engagement and healthy adjusted operating margins, supporting bullish views that Meta’s AI investments are beginning to contribute to the advertising business. Meta Q3 Strong Growth Makes This a Strong Buy
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta is expanding AI funding while trying to manage cash pressure. Third-quarter capital expenditures reached about $34.9 billion, and the company raised the low end of its annual spending outlook. A new nonvoting Class C share is intended to help fund the AI buildout without reducing Mark Zuckerberg’s voting control, but it introduces potential dilution and reinforces concerns about heavy future investment. Meta to Issue New Class of Shares
• Negative Sentiment: Legal liabilities remain a major overhang. A $9.9 billion charge tied to a teen social-media lawsuit weighed on reported profit, while a New Mexico court ordered Meta to pay $25 billion in a separate privacy case. Meta plans to appeal, but the judgment increases regulatory, financial and reputational risks. Meta Ordered to Pay $25 Billion to New Mexico
• Negative Sentiment: AI profitability is not yet established. Zuckerberg said Muse carries very high computing costs, and Reality Labs could lose approximately $15 billion next year. These losses may limit free cash flow and keep investors sensitive to whether AI growth ultimately produces returns exceeding the cost of the buildout. Meta CEO Says Muse and Reality Labs Are Unprofitable
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling added a modest cautionary signal. COO Javier Olivan sold shares under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. Because the transactions were scheduled in advance, they are not necessarily a judgment on Meta’s outlook, but they reduce his direct ownership. SEC Insider Ownership Filing

Meta Platforms Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of Meta Platforms stock opened at $697.52 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $1.78 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.19. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $662.27 and a 200-day simple moving average of $629.10. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52-week low of $520.26 and a 52-week high of $779.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 2.23 and a quick ratio of 2.23.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 21st. The social networking company reported $7.40 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.54 by $0.86. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 33.18% and a net margin of 29.83%. The firm had revenue of $64.60 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $63.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $7.25 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 26.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 27.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on META shares. Rosenblatt Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $886.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Tuesday. BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $720.00 to $580.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Arete Research increased their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $735.00 to $806.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 16th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $796.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Finally, Wolfe Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $700.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have given a Buy rating and eight have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $811.24.

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’s principal platforms include Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp, and Threads, which enable users to connect, communicate, share content, and discover products and services.

Meta also operates Reality Labs, its division focused on virtual, augmented, and mixed reality technologies. Reality Labs develops products such as Meta Quest virtual reality headsets and related software and experiences, along with research and hardware intended to support immersive computing.