Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Shares Acquired by Salomon & Ludwin LLC

Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 64.6% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 2,375 shares of the social networking company’s stock after acquiring an additional 932 shares during the quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $1,688,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of META. Bare Financial Services Inc acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 2nd quarter valued at $30,000. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Meta Platforms by 237.5% in the second quarter. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC now owns 54 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. Briaud Financial Planning Inc acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the second quarter worth about $42,000. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the second quarter worth about $44,000. Finally, WFA Asset Management Corp boosted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 42.6% during the 2nd quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 67 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $49,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 517 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $658.14, for a total transaction of $340,258.38. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 12,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,029,308. This represents a 4.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, 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 value of $341,860.11. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 28,658 shares in the company, valued at $18,876,738.02. This represents a 1.78% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 41,038 shares of company stock worth $25,533,240. Insiders own 13.61% of the company’s stock.

Key Stories Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Strong consumer demand for Ray‑Ban Display smartglasses signals product-market fit and brand momentum — waitlists now extend into 2026, implying sustained interest and upside for future monetization. Meta says it can’t make its Ray-Ban Displays fast enough — and it’s hitting pause on a wider rollout
• Positive Sentiment: Meta showcased new augmented‑reality features for the Ray‑Ban Display at CES 2026, reinforcing its hardware/AR roadmap and potential for future ecosystem-driven revenue. Meta Hits Pause on a Key Plan for Ray-Ban Display Glasses
• Positive Sentiment: Meta appointed C.J. Mahoney (ex‑Microsoft and former U.S. government official) as chief legal officer — a hire that could strengthen regulatory, litigation and M&A execution at a critical time. Meta hires Microsoft exec, former Trump deputy as chief legal officer
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and commentators are highlighting a cheaper entry point after a recent pullback — forward P/E compression (~21.5x) vs. solid revenue and margin trends, plus AI integration and the pending Manus acquisition cited as drivers of engagement and monetization. Meta: Recent Pullback Is Your New Year’s Gift
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta is pausing the planned early‑2026 launches in France, Italy, Canada and the U.K. to prioritize U.S. demand; this delays international revenue but preserves inventory for the largest initial market. Meta pauses international expansion of its Ray-Ban Display glasses
• Negative Sentiment: Limited inventory and supply constraints could cap near‑term sales and slow global adoption, introducing execution risk for hardware revenue and potentially pushing out expected contribution from the product in 2026. Meta delays global rollout of Ray-Ban Display glasses on strong US demand, supply squeeze

Meta Platforms Stock Up 0.3%

NASDAQ META opened at $660.62 on Wednesday. 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 1.98, a current ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $643.64 and its 200-day simple moving average is $704.73. The firm has a market cap of $1.67 trillion, a PE ratio of 29.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.29.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The social networking company reported $7.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.74 by $0.51. The company had revenue of $51.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $49.34 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 39.35% and a net margin of 30.89%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 26.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $6.03 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 23rd. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th were issued a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 9.28%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on META shares. Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their price target on Meta Platforms from $830.00 to $720.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, November 19th. Citizens Jmp restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $900.00 price objective (up from $750.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Monday, November 24th. Barclays decreased their target price on Meta Platforms from $810.00 to $770.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Raymond James Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating and issued a $825.00 price target (down previously from $900.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $820.00 to $750.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $822.22.

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.