Narus Financial Partners LLC Cuts Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Narus Financial Partners LLC decreased its holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 21.7% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,184 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 883 shares during the period. Meta Platforms comprises approximately 0.5% of Narus Financial Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Narus Financial Partners LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $1,794,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. RHL Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Advantage Trust Co purchased a new position in Meta Platforms in the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Niles Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Axiom Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the first quarter valued at about $36,000. 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’s AI strategy remains a potential long-term catalyst. Analysts point to its roughly $60 billion AI investment program as a way to improve ad targeting, monetization and possibly challenge Google in search and digital advertising. Meta’s $60 Billion AI Machine Could Dethrone Google Search by Year-End
• Positive Sentiment: Meta-backed Indian telecom operator Jio Platforms received regulatory approval for an initial public offering. A successful listing could provide a valuation reference for Meta’s investment and highlight the value of its strategic holdings. Meta- and Google-backed Indian telecom operator Jio Platforms gets regulatory nod for IPO
• Positive Sentiment: Some investment commentary describes META as undervalued after its shares fell well below their prior record, citing second-quarter revenue growth of 28% to $60.8 billion and the potential for a recovery. Prediction: Meta Stock Reclaims Its All-Time High Before 2029
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta has begun removing fraudulent advertisements in India that used explicit content to distribute malware. The action limits immediate user risk but underscores continuing challenges in ad-quality enforcement and platform trust. Meta removes ads for fraud apps posing as porn after India sounds alarm
• Negative Sentiment: Meta agreed to an approximately $17 billion to $18 billion settlement with U.S. states over allegations that its platforms harmed children and teens. The agreement requires stronger age verification and other safeguards, creating a substantial financial cost and potentially higher compliance expenses. Explainer: Settlement requires Meta to check young users’ ages
• Negative Sentiment: Research claiming Temu spent as much as $962 million on advertising tied to fake creators raises additional concerns about content moderation, advertiser oversight and reputational risk on Meta’s platforms. Temu spent up to $962 million on ads that helped finance an army of fake creators on Meta platforms

Analysts Set New Price Targets

META has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Rothschild & Co Redburn raised their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Mizuho set a $750.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. BNP Paribas Exane began coverage on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Tuesday, June 2nd. They issued an “outperform” rating for the company. Rosenblatt Securities lifted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $883.00 to $886.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 27th. Finally, Raymond James Financial upped their price target on Meta Platforms from $825.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have assigned a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Meta Platforms presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $785.22.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of META stock opened at $572.34 on Tuesday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $520.26 and a fifty-two week high of $790.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.46 trillion, a PE ratio of 21.56, a P/E/G ratio of 1.00 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 2.23. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $592.45 and its 200-day simple moving average is $610.45.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.19 by ($1.01). The firm had revenue of $60.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $60.22 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 33.18% and a net margin of 29.83%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $7.14 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 28.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In other news, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,848 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $558.00, for a total value of $4,379,184.00. Following the sale, the chief technology officer owned 828 shares in the company, valued at $462,024. This represents a 90.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Susan J. Li sold 9,196 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $550.61, for a total transaction of $5,063,409.56. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,186 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,260,343.46. This trade represents a 41.09% 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. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 32,987 shares of company stock valued at $19,202,995. 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.