AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc Raises Stock Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc raised its stake in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 465,288 shares of the social networking company’s stock after purchasing an additional 13,739 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms comprises about 4.1% of AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest position. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $341,746,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Bare Financial Services Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the second quarter worth about $30,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc bought a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $42,000. Knuff & Co LLC acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $44,000. WFA Asset Management Corp lifted its stake in Meta Platforms by 42.6% in the second quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 67 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Spurstone Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the second quarter valued at approximately $59,000. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Meta Platforms News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta reported strong Q4 results and gave a very aggressive ~30% Q1 revenue guide, which has led analysts to lift price targets and underpins the bullish case. Meta Platforms Posted Its Fastest Growth Guide in Years—Now What?
• Positive Sentiment: Several broker actions reinforce buy-side sentiment: Cantor Fitzgerald raised its price target (to $860) and Barclays reiterated an Overweight rating; Argus reiterated a Buy — supportive for medium-term upside. Cantor Fitzgerald Hikes Price Target on Meta Platforms, Inc. (META) to $860, Maintains Overweight Rating Barclays Keeps an Overweight rating on Meta Platforms, Inc. (META) Argus Reiterates “Buy” Rating for Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META)
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional demand: Davis Selected Advisers has boosted its Meta stake, a sign of conviction from a value-oriented manager. Davis Selected Advisers boosts Meta Platforms stake
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage arguing Meta is monetizing AI better than peers adds to the bull narrative that ad/AI revenue upside can continue. Meta Beats Microsoft At AI Monetization – Here’s Why
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta expanded a clean‑energy PPA with Zelestra for the 176 MWdc Skull Creek solar plant in Texas — supports 100% renewable matching but is a long-dated, non-revenue ESG move. Zelestra Expands Relationship with Meta in the US, with a New Power Purchase Agreement for the 176 MWdc Skull Creek Solar Plant in Texas
• Neutral Sentiment: Long-term infrastructure context: commentary on AI’s power needs and Meta’s agreements (e.g., with Oklo/SMR developers) highlight heavy, multi-year capital intensity for AI infrastructure — strategic but costly. The Atomic Pivot: AI’s $50 Billion Power Move
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory risk: India’s top court questioned WhatsApp’s data‑sharing with Meta entities and warned of reimposing restrictions — a potential headwind for user trust and growth in a key market. India’s top court questions WhatsApp policy of sharing user data with Meta entities
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: COO Javier Olivan disclosed a sale of 517 shares (~$369k), a small reduction in holdings; typically viewed as minor but can feed short‑term profit‑taking narratives. SEC Filing – Javier Olivan sale
• Negative Sentiment: Cost/capex worries: commentary that AI capex and Meta’s rising 2026 spending could dent margins has investors taking profits after the big rally. AI Capex Clouds Tech Horizon, Even as Meta and Tesla Shine Meta: Still A ‘Buy,’ But Nearing The End Of Its Run As Expenses Mount

Meta Platforms Trading Down 3.3%

NASDAQ META opened at $668.99 on Thursday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12 month low of $479.80 and a 12 month high of $796.25. The company has a current ratio of 2.60, a quick ratio of 2.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $655.74 and a 200-day moving average of $695.72. The company has a market cap of $1.69 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.47, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.28.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The social networking company reported $8.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.16 by $0.72. The firm had revenue of $59.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.33 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 30.08% and a return on equity of 38.61%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 23.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $8.02 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 23rd. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th were paid 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 8.94%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

META has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Benchmark lowered shares of Meta Platforms from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Meta Platforms from $754.00 to $849.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $880.00 to $920.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Barclays reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $800.00 price objective (up from $770.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $900.00 target price (up previously from $870.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-one have issued a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $848.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Meta Platforms

In other news, CFO Susan J. Li sold 6,875 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction that occurred on Saturday, November 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $609.46, for a total transaction of $4,190,037.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 88,370 shares in the company, valued at approximately $53,857,980.20. The trade was a 7.22% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 11,690 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $593.31, for a total value of $6,935,793.90. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 2,415 shares in the company, valued at $1,432,843.65. The trade was a 82.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 39,594 shares of company stock valued at $24,325,407 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 13.61% of the company’s stock.

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.