Woodard & Co. Asset Management Group Inc. ADV Buys 1,145 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Woodard & Co. Asset Management Group Inc. ADV lifted its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 133.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,006 shares of the social networking company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,145 shares during the period. Woodard & Co. Asset Management Group Inc. ADV’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $1,473,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of META. Bare Financial Services Inc bought a new stake in Meta Platforms in the second quarter valued at about $30,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 2nd quarter worth about $42,000. Knuff & Co LLC bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the 2nd quarter valued at about $44,000. WFA Asset Management Corp raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 42.6% in the 2nd quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 67 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. Finally, Spurstone Advisory Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $59,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

META has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Roth Mkm lowered their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $800.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $900.00 price target (up previously from $870.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Rothschild Redb upgraded Meta Platforms from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Meta Platforms from $754.00 to $849.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty have issued a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $847.98.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 3.0%

META stock opened at $716.50 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.60 and a quick ratio of 1.98. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.81 trillion, a P/E ratio of 30.49, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.29. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $479.80 and a fifty-two week high of $796.25. The business has a 50-day moving average of $652.06 and a 200-day moving average of $696.11.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The social networking company reported $8.88 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $8.16 by $0.72. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 38.61% and a net margin of 30.08%.The firm had revenue of $59.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $58.33 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $8.02 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 23.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 23rd. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th were issued a dividend of $0.525 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is presently 8.94%.

More Meta Platforms News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 beat + AI narrative shift: Meta reported stronger‑than‑expected Q4 revenue and EPS and management framed ad strength as early proof that AI investments are improving monetization and engagement — a narrative some analysts now call an AI profit cycle. Meta’s Story Just Flipped — Seeking Alpha
• Positive Sentiment: Strong guidance & analyst upgrades: Q1 revenue guidance topped Street expectations and many firms raised price targets or reiterated buys, supporting the recent rally and giving institutional investors cover to support higher valuations. MarketBeat: Meta Soars After‑Hours
• Neutral Sentiment: Business diversification tests: Meta is piloting premium subscriptions for Instagram/Facebook/WhatsApp and expanding AI features — potential long‑term upside but unclear near‑term revenue impact. CNBC: Premium subscription tests
• Neutral Sentiment: Supply deals validate buildout but signal capital intensity: large supplier agreements (e.g., with Corning) back the AI data‑center plan while confirming heavy multi‑year spending. CNBC: Corning deal
• Negative Sentiment: Massive 2026 CapEx: Management guided to $115B–$135B of capex for 2026 — far above prior levels — raising near‑term cash intensity and margin dilution concerns despite management saying operating income should hold. Reuters: CapEx rise
• Negative Sentiment: Reality Labs drag: XR/Reality Labs continues to burn cash (multi‑billion losses), creating an ongoing margin headwind and execution risk for non‑ad businesses. TechCrunch: $19B VR burn
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory & reputational headlines: A New Mexico trial alleging platforms exposed minors to exploitation and reports about content‑blocking controversies add legal and reputational risk that can pressure multiple‑quarter sentiment. Reuters: New Mexico trial
• Negative Sentiment: Near‑term profit‑taking & headline noise: high short‑term expectations after the rally, occasional pundit criticism (e.g., Jim Cramer) and small insider sales add to volatility and can push the stock down after its run. 247WallSt: Jim Cramer critique

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 517 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $665.00, for a total transaction of $343,805.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 10,132 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,737,780. This represents a 4.85% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 580 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $618.28, for a total value of $358,602.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 5,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,454,330.36. This represents a 9.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders have sold 40,113 shares of company stock worth $24,621,042. Insiders own 13.61% 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.