Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Stock Position Raised by Goldstone Financial Group LLC

Goldstone Financial Group LLC lifted its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 44.4% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 3,752 shares of the social networking company’s stock after buying an additional 1,153 shares during the quarter. Goldstone Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $2,756,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bare Financial Services Inc acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 2nd quarter worth $30,000. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 237.5% in the 2nd quarter. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC now owns 54 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the last quarter. Briaud Financial Planning Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the 2nd quarter valued at $42,000. Knuff & Co LLC bought a new stake in Meta Platforms in the second quarter worth $44,000. Finally, WFA Asset Management Corp increased its position in Meta Platforms by 42.6% during the second quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 67 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In other news, COO Javier Olivan sold 2,610 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction that occurred on Saturday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $609.46, for a total transaction of $1,590,690.60. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 9,784 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,962,956.64. This trade represents a 21.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CFO Susan J. Li sold 6,875 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Saturday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $609.46, for a total value of $4,190,037.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 88,370 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $53,857,980.20. The trade was a 7.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 42,074 shares of company stock worth $26,269,739. 13.61% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

NASDAQ:META opened at $650.41 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 1.98 and a quick ratio of 1.98. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a one year low of $479.80 and a one year high of $796.25. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $647.29 and a 200 day moving average price of $705.02. The stock has a market cap of $1.64 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.73, a PEG ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.29.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 29th. The social networking company reported $7.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.74 by $0.51. The company had revenue of $51.24 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $49.34 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 30.89% and a return on equity of 39.35%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 26.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $6.03 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th were issued a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 15th. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is 9.28%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on META. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Monday. Wedbush decreased their target price on Meta Platforms from $920.00 to $880.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 19th. Mizuho lowered their price target on Meta Platforms from $925.00 to $815.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $950.00 to $910.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $822.22.

More Meta Platforms News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s acquisition of AI startup Manus (reported >$2B) is being viewed as strategically accretive — Manus has rapid ARR growth and deployed AI agents at scale, which could strengthen Meta’s business-focused AI offerings and ad performance. Why Meta’s +$2B AI Startup Acquisition Could Be a Huge Win
• Positive Sentiment: Research/coverage remains upbeat: Rosenblatt reaffirmed a Buy on META, and commentators (including Jim Cramer) have highlighted Meta as a buy, supporting investor confidence. Rosenblatt Securities Reaffirms Buy Rating for Meta Platforms
• Positive Sentiment: Monetization tailwinds continue: the WSJ reports Instagram Reels has become a ~\$50B business — evidence Meta’s AI-driven ad products are driving revenue expansion. How Meta’s Reels Became a $50 Billion Business
• Neutral Sentiment: Options market activity has surged around META, signaling elevated trader interest and potential volatility but not a clear directional signal for fundamentals. Spotlight on Meta Platforms: Analyzing the Surge in Options Activity
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry pieces and stock roundups (Fool, 247WallSt) compare Meta to peers and include it in AI/tech buy lists — helpful context but not immediate catalysts. Meta Platforms vs. Pinterest
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling has surfaced (including a ~\$341k sale by Jennifer Newstead and separate COO stock sales), which can spook investors despite being modest relative to Meta’s market cap. Jennifer Newstead Sells 519 Shares of Meta Platforms
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory/legal pressure increased: the U.S. Virgin Islands filed a lawsuit over scam ads and Reuters ran an investigation alleging Meta misled regulators about fake ads — these raise reputational and potential legal risk that can weigh on the stock. U.S. Virgin Islands Files Lawsuit Against Meta Over Scam Ads and User Safety

About Meta Platforms

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.