BNB Wealth Management LLC Takes Position in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

BNB Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund bought 2,932 shares of the social networking company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,936,000. Meta Platforms accounts for 1.2% of BNB Wealth Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest position.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Westchester Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. RHL Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Niles Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Key Capital Management INC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms News Summary

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta said Threads has reached 500 million monthly active users, while new community features and feed controls could improve engagement and strengthen the long-term value of its social platform. Reuters: Meta’s Threads reaches 500 million monthly users, rolls out new features
• Positive Sentiment: Meta rolled out AI search and creative tools across Facebook, which analysts say could open a new monetization opportunity and support future ad growth. Proactive Investors: Meta introduces AI search and creative tools, Bank of America flags emerging monetization opportunity
• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America reiterated a Buy view on Meta, citing AI strategy as a key growth catalyst, which may help support investor confidence in the company’s long-term earnings potential. Insider Monkey: BofA reiterates Buy rating on Meta Platforms
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta is expected to pay its next quarterly dividend next week, a routine shareholder return that is supportive but unlikely to be a major near-term stock driver. Finbold: Meta to pay dividends next week
• Negative Sentiment: Reuters reported that a Meta executive overseeing part of the company’s AI-for-work restructuring is leaving, adding to concerns about execution during a major AI transition. Reuters: Meta head of product for ‘AI for work’ transformation is leaving company
• Negative Sentiment: Two SEC filings showed COO Javier Olivan sold shares under a pre-arranged 10b5-1 plan, which can still weigh on sentiment even though the sales were scheduled. SEC filing for Javier Olivan transaction
• Negative Sentiment: Recent commentary has also focused on Meta’s heavy AI spending, Reality Labs losses, and valuation concerns, reinforcing fears that profit growth could slow if investment remains elevated. Zacks: Meta Platforms is Overvalued at 5.5X PS

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

META opened at $567.58 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.44 trillion, a P/E ratio of 20.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.23. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $621.93 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $635.05. The company has a quick ratio of 2.35, a current ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12-month low of $520.26 and a 12-month high of $796.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.67 by $3.77. The firm had revenue of $56.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $55.56 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 36.93% and a net margin of 32.84%.The company’s revenue was up 33.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $6.43 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 15th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.63%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on META shares. Truist Financial reduced their target price on Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $840.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. UBS Group lowered Meta Platforms from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 2nd. Piper Sandler started coverage on Meta Platforms in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. They issued an “overweight” rating for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their target price on Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $750.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Citizens Jmp reiterated a “market outperform” rating and issued a $900.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have issued a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $840.60.

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In other news, insider Curtis J. Mahoney sold 2,079 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $609.92, for a total transaction of $1,268,023.68. Following the sale, the insider owned 1,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $681,890.56. This trade represents a 65.03% 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. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 140 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $600.00, for a total value of $84,000.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 12,846 shares in the company, valued at $7,707,600. The trade was a 1.08% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 40,568 shares of company stock valued at $25,057,365. 13.53% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.