Alpha Cubed Investments LLC Buys 1,539 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Alpha Cubed Investments LLC boosted its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 1.3% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 122,722 shares of the social networking company’s stock after buying an additional 1,539 shares during the period. Meta Platforms accounts for about 3.1% of Alpha Cubed Investments LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest position. Alpha Cubed Investments LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $90,124,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Goldstone Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 44.4% in the third quarter. Goldstone Financial Group LLC now owns 3,752 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $2,756,000 after purchasing an additional 1,153 shares during the period. CW Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 27.8% in the second quarter. CW Advisors LLC now owns 176,762 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $130,467,000 after purchasing an additional 38,432 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its stake in Meta Platforms by 11.0% in the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 210,526 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $155,387,000 after buying an additional 20,912 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR lifted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 5.6% during the 2nd quarter. Stephens Inc. AR now owns 84,687 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $62,507,000 after buying an additional 4,473 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Motiv8 Investments LLC boosted its position in Meta Platforms by 11.5% in the 2nd quarter. Motiv8 Investments LLC now owns 2,080 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $1,535,000 after buying an additional 214 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analyst & media bullishness around Meta’s AI leadership and product traction reinforces upside potential — commentators (e.g., Jim Cramer) highlight Meta’s progress in automating model development, which supports the view that Meta can scale AI more efficiently. Meta Platforms (META) CEO Zuckerberg Has “Figured Out How to Have AI Make AI,” Says Jim Cramer
• Positive Sentiment: Bull case pieces argue Meta is monetizing AI strongly (ad redistribution, Reels engagement, models like Lattice/GEM), underpinning revenue and margins upside if execution continues. Meta: Buy The AI Revolution
• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s elevated 2026 capex guide and extension of MTIA from inference to training signal sustained hyperscaler demand for AI infrastructure — positive for long‑term AI revenue capture and for partners/suppliers. Meta Soars After-Hours Forecasting Fastest Growth Since 2021
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed institutional moves: some funds (e.g., First Eagle) trimmed positions while others boosted stakes (Alecta, Davis), reflecting both profit‑taking and conviction — a wash for longer‑term ownership trends. First Eagle Investment Management Trims Meta Platforms Stake
• Neutral Sentiment: ESG/energy moves (new PPA for Skull Creek solar) reduce power/operational risk long‑term but are non‑revenue and increase near‑term capital/contract commitments. Zelestra Expands Relationship with Meta — Skull Creek Solar PPA
• Negative Sentiment: Broad market pressure: a broad Big Tech sell‑off tied to fears of an AI spending bubble has removed over $1 trillion from sector values, pressuring META alongside peers as investors de‑risk. Big Tech sees over $1 trillion wiped from stocks as fears of AI bubble ignite sell-off
• Negative Sentiment: Sell‑side caution: Needham warns of 10–15% downside citing valuation and capex risk — analyst caution can amplify short‑term selling if investors fear margin pressure from rising AI spend. Why Needham Warns That Meta Platforms Stock Could Be Headed for 10%-15% Downside
• Negative Sentiment: Legal/regulatory risk: reports questioning the legality of Meta’s data collection and renewed scrutiny around research/data practices (e.g., Moltbook comparisons to 2017 experiments) raise reputational and compliance concerns in key markets. Why Meta Platforms’ data collection is illegal Moltbook furor reminiscent of 2017 Facebook research experiment
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: small, regular sales by COO Javier Olivan have been disclosed — modest on their own but can feed narratives of near‑term profit taking. SEC Filing – Javier Olivan sale

Meta Platforms Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of NASDAQ META opened at $661.46 on Friday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $479.80 and a 1-year high of $796.25. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $656.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $695.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.67 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 1.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.60 and a quick ratio of 2.60.

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

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In other news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 519 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $658.69, for a total transaction of $341,860.11. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 28,658 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,876,738.02. This represents a 1.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 517 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $714.60, for a total value of $369,448.20. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 9,615 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,870,879. This represents a 5.10% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 39,594 shares of company stock valued at $24,325,407 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 13.61% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

META has been the topic of a number of research reports. BNP Paribas Exane started coverage on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Monday, November 24th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $800.00 target price on the stock. Raymond James Financial reduced their price objective on Meta Platforms from $825.00 to $800.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 26th. Scotiabank lifted their target price on Meta Platforms from $685.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Oppenheimer downgraded Meta Platforms from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on Meta Platforms from $880.00 to $920.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty have assigned a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $847.40.

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.