Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Shares Bought by Cullen Investment Group LTD.

Cullen Investment Group LTD. raised its holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 73.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 14,303 shares of the social networking company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,069 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms comprises approximately 1.2% of Cullen Investment Group LTD.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Cullen Investment Group LTD.’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $9,341,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in Meta Platforms by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 34,551 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $20,230,000 after purchasing an additional 570 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in Meta Platforms by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 9,456 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $5,537,000 after purchasing an additional 875 shares in the last quarter. Headwater Capital Co Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 294.7% in the 1st quarter. Headwater Capital Co Ltd now owns 150,000 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $86,454,000 after buying an additional 112,000 shares during the period. Dymon Asia Capital Singapore PTE. LTD. purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 2nd quarter valued at about $213,000. Finally, Capital & Planning LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the second quarter worth about $322,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on META. Wedbush upped their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $880.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Meta Platforms from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 5th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Monday, December 29th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $849.00 to $856.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Raymond James Financial reduced their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $825.00 to $800.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 26th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-nine have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $846.63.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In other Meta Platforms news, COO Javier Olivan sold 926 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $605.38, for a total value of $560,581.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 13,335 shares in the company, valued at $8,072,742.30. This represents a 6.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 580 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $632.02, for a total value of $366,571.60. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 4,427 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,797,952.54. The trade was a 11.58% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 162,484 shares of company stock valued at $104,015,906 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 13.61% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Entergy revised its Louisiana data-center deal with Meta so Meta will pay full cost-of-service and fund local energy upgrades (including seven natural‑gas plants), reducing project/regulatory risk for the hyperscale build. Entergy revised Meta data-center deal (Reuters)
• Positive Sentiment: Some sell‑the‑news rhetoric has created value opportunities: analysts point to cheaper valuation metrics and upgraded EPS forecasts, with commentators highlighting potential cost-savings from restructuring. Meta Platforms: Lean Into The Fear (Seeking Alpha)
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta is aggressively doubling down on AI infrastructure (Arm CPU initiative, large new data‑center programs) — a long‑term strategic positive for AI monetization but a near‑term cash drain that fuels investor uncertainty. Meta deepens AI strategy with new Arm CPU initiative (Zacks)
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta paid its first 2026 dividend ($0.525/share) — a modest income signal to investors but not material to the valuation story. Meta paid dividend (Finbold)
• Negative Sentiment: Two recent jury verdicts (including a $375M award and punitive damages from a social‑media addiction case) have raised the prospect of broader legal liability, regulatory changes and appeals that could increase future costs and compliance expenses. Meta shares slip after US jury verdicts (Reuters)
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction: Meta joins a tech selloff this week (Nasdaq weakness), with share price declines of double‑digit percentages from recent highs as investors factor in litigation risk and margin pressure from AI capex. Tech stocks suffer worst week in nearly a year (CNBC)
• Negative Sentiment: Several outlets report steep intraday drops and heavy option activity as traders reposition; headlines argue the verdicts could trigger follow‑on litigation or regulatory remedies that resemble a “Big Tobacco”‑style reckoning. Meta stock plunges after lawsuit defeats (Blockonomi)

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Shares of Meta Platforms stock opened at $525.72 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.33 trillion, a P/E ratio of 22.37, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.30. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 52 week low of $479.80 and a 52 week high of $796.25. The company has a quick ratio of 2.60, a current ratio of 2.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $643.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $666.63.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The social networking company reported $8.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.16 by $0.72. The business had revenue of $59.89 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $58.33 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 30.08% and a return on equity of 38.61%. The company’s 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 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 26th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th were paid a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 16th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.94%.

Meta Platforms Company 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.