Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. Has $128.92 Million Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. increased its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 3.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 175,547 shares of the social networking company’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,414 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms comprises about 2.5% of Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S.’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $128,918,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of META. Bare Financial Services Inc bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the second quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC raised its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Briaud Financial Planning Inc bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 2nd quarter valued at $42,000. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 2nd quarter worth $44,000. Finally, WFA Asset Management Corp increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 42.6% in the second quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 67 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Shares of META stock opened at $648.69 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.64 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.65, a PEG ratio of 1.31 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 $641.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $704.34. 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 issued a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. Meta Platforms’s payout ratio is 9.28%.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In other Meta Platforms news, COO Javier Olivan sold 2,610 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Saturday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $609.46, for a total value of $1,590,690.60. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 9,784 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,962,956.64. The trade was a 21.06% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 600 shares of the 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 directly owned 7,347 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,476,894.45. The trade was a 7.55% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 41,555 shares of company stock valued at $25,869,502 in the last quarter. 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: Strong demand for Meta’s new Ray‑Ban Display AI glasses supports future hardware upside and Reality Labs growth potential — the company says waitlists extend into 2026, suggesting early product-market fit that could improve long-term monetization. Meta’s New AI Glasses See “Unprecedented Demand”
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst bullishness around Meta’s combined growth and profitability (a high “Rule of 40” score) reinforces buy case for investors focused on AI-driven revenue expansion and strong margins. Meta Platforms: Rule Of 40 Says Buy
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta is pausing the international rollout of Ray‑Ban Display glasses due to “unprecedented” U.S. demand and limited inventory — positive for U.S. unit economics but delays near‑term international revenue and prolongs uncertainty over manufacturing scale. Meta delays global rollout of Ray‑Ban glasses
• Positive Sentiment: Executive hire: Meta appointed C.J. Mahoney (formerly at Microsoft and with government experience) as chief legal officer — a hiring that may strengthen regulatory and litigation navigation amid increasing scrutiny. Meta names Microsoft’s Mahoney as chief legal officer
• Negative Sentiment: Chinese officials are reportedly reviewing Meta’s $2B acquisition of AI startup Manus for possible technology control violations — added regulatory risk that could delay integration or limit strategic options in China. China reviews Meta’s purchase of Manus
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: COO Javier Oliván sold 517 shares (reducing his stake ~4.24% of holdings disclosed) — a small dollar amount but often viewed negatively by some investors as a signal to monitor. SEC filing for insider sale

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on META shares. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $875.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 30th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $915.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $810.00 to $770.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. BNP Paribas Exane started coverage on Meta Platforms in a report on Monday, November 24th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $800.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Arete Research set a $718.00 price target on Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have assigned a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $822.22.

Meta Platforms 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.