HS Management Partners LLC Lowers Stock Position in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

HS Management Partners LLC trimmed its holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 38.6% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 48,870 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 30,705 shares during the period. Meta Platforms accounts for 4.7% of HS Management Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 10th largest position. HS Management Partners LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $35,889,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in META. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in Meta Platforms by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 34,551 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $20,230,000 after buying an additional 570 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 10.2% during the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 9,456 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $5,537,000 after acquiring an additional 875 shares during the period. Headwater Capital Co Ltd boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 294.7% during the 1st quarter. Headwater Capital Co Ltd now owns 150,000 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $86,454,000 after acquiring an additional 112,000 shares in the last quarter. Financiere des Professionnels Fonds d investissement inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $6,580,000. Finally, Baron Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 64.8% in the second quarter. Baron Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,572 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $1,160,000 after acquiring an additional 618 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on META. TD Cowen raised their target price on Meta Platforms from $810.00 to $820.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Citizens Jmp restated an “outperform” rating and set a $900.00 price objective (up from $750.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Monday, November 24th. Wall Street Zen cut Meta Platforms from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 1st. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $802.00 to $795.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 12th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-nine have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $822.96.

Trending Headlines about Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Deals that de‑risk Meta’s AI/data‑center power needs — Meta has signed prepayment/partnership agreements (e.g., Oklo) to secure long‑term baseload energy for its Prometheus supercluster and broader Meta Compute buildout, lowering a major execution risk for its massive data‑center plans. Oklo’s Meta Deal De-Risks the Story—Rebound Setup Emerging
• Positive Sentiment: BofA and other firms show constructive analyst interest — BofA reiterated/maintained a buy stance tied to Meta’s AI infra progress; Rosenblatt and some boutiques have also been positive recently, which can support sentiment if execution continues. BofA Securities Asserts Buy Stance
• Positive Sentiment: Hardware demand signal — reports say Meta is discussing doubling Ray‑Ban Meta glasses output, signaling potential early revenue diversification from AI wearables beyond advertising. Meta mulls doubling output of Ray‑Ban glasses
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta Compute initiative is long‑term strategic but capital intensive — the plan to build “tens/hundreds of gigawatts” of compute capacity underscores AI ambition (control and optionality) but raises timing and ROI questions for investors. Meta Compute: Inside Zuckerberg’s Massive Data Center Bet
• Neutral Sentiment: Wikipedia/API partnerships broaden AI training access — Meta joins others to formalize access to Wikipedia content for LLM training; strategic but not an immediate revenue driver. Wikipedia signs AI content training deals
• Neutral Sentiment: Near‑term catalyst: Q4/2025 earnings and 2026 guidance (scheduled Jan. 28) — results and explicit capex/FCF guidance will likely be the primary short‑term driver. Meta to Announce Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Results
• Negative Sentiment: Reality Labs headcount cuts (~1,000–1,500 jobs) signal a pullback in metaverse investment — while lowering costs, the layoffs underscore a strategic pivot (and product risk) away from VR, which can unsettle investors focused on long‑term innovation stories. Meta Cuts Reality Labs Jobs
• Negative Sentiment: Capex and free‑cash‑flow pressure — analysts and articles highlight materially higher 2026 capex and declining LTM FCF, which has prompted some downgrades and valuation concerns; that pressure can weigh on the stock until FCF trends stabilize. Meta Compute: Capex/FCF analysis
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling / high‑profile sales — recent disclosures show COO Javier Olivan has sold blocks of shares; combined with other negative headlines this can amplify short‑term selling pressure. SEC filing: Olivan sale
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst downgrades and valuation skepticism — some firms have trimmed targets or expressed caution about the funding intensity and timing of AI monetization, which keeps shares vulnerable to multiple compression. Analyst downgrade reports

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Shares of META stock opened at $620.25 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.56 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.40, a PEG ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $641.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $700.22. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12 month low of $479.80 and a 12 month high of $796.25.

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

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In other Meta Platforms news, COO Javier Olivan sold 2,610 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 9,784 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,962,956.64. The trade was a 21.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $609.35, for a total value of $365,610.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 7,347 shares in the company, valued at $4,476,894.45. This trade represents a 7.55% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 40,571 shares of company stock valued at $25,137,541 in the last quarter. Insiders own 13.61% of the company’s stock.

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.