NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC Purchases 3,157 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC boosted its position in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 5.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 63,034 shares of the social networking company’s stock after buying an additional 3,157 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms makes up approximately 0.9% of NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest position. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $41,526,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of META. Westchester Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 3rd quarter valued at $26,000. Bare Financial Services Inc bought a new stake in Meta Platforms in the second quarter worth $30,000. Knuff & Co LLC bought a new stake in Meta Platforms in the second quarter worth $44,000. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC boosted its position in Meta Platforms by 64.8% during the third quarter. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $65,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Finally, Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the third quarter valued at about $71,000. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 1.8%

Shares of NASDAQ:META opened at $592.92 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $647.70 and its 200 day moving average is $670.27. The company has a market cap of $1.50 trillion, a PE ratio of 25.23, a P/E/G ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.60 and a quick ratio of 2.60. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1 year low of $479.80 and a 1 year high of $796.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The social networking company reported $8.88 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.16 by $0.72. The business had revenue of $59.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $58.33 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 38.61% and a net margin of 30.08%.The business’s revenue was up 23.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $8.02 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate 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 will be paid on Thursday, March 26th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th will be paid a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.4%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.94%.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In other Meta Platforms news, CFO Susan J. Li sold 56,571 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $644.70, for a total transaction of $36,471,323.70. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 580 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $632.02, for a total transaction of $366,571.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 4,427 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,797,952.54. This trade represents a 11.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 160,929 shares of company stock worth $103,074,540 over the last quarter. Corporate 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: CTO Andrew Bosworth will lead Meta’s “AI for Work” initiatives, signaling a top-down push to embed AI across operations that could improve productivity and long-term margins. Meta Names New Leader of Company’s Efforts To Become AI Native
• Positive Sentiment: Meta hired the Dreamer team to scale personalized AI agents, strengthening its talent and product roadmap for agentic AI — a strategic move that supports future ad/product monetization. Meta Recruits Dreamer Team to Scale Personalized AI Agents
• Positive Sentiment: Meta is building in-house AI infrastructure (custom MTIA chips and optical interconnect work) to lower long-term AI costs and secure supply — a step that could expand gross margins as GenAI demand grows. Meta’s Custom AI Chips And Optical Links Reframe Long Term Margins
• Positive Sentiment: Erste Group upgraded META to Buy, citing AI investments and pricing power — a supportive analyst signal that may attract some buyers despite near-term volatility. Erste Group Upgrades Meta (META) to Buy, Highlights the Company’s AI Investments
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta is experimenting with internal CEO/exec AI agents and paying creators to boost engagement — these are strategic experiments that could help product engagement but are not guaranteed to move near-term revenue. Meta Will Pay Influencers Up to $3,000/Month to Post on Facebook
• Neutral Sentiment: Reported short-interest figures in the feed appear inconsistent/zero and are not providing clear bearish pressure today (data unreliable).
• Negative Sentiment: A New Mexico jury ordered Meta to pay $375 million after finding the company misled consumers and failed to protect minors from predators — a significant legal loss that raises potential damages exposure, regulatory scrutiny and reputational risk; a separate Los Angeles trial remains unresolved and could add further liability. Meta Ordered to Pay $375 Million Over Child Safety Violations
• Negative Sentiment: Additional legal pressure: a lawsuit alleges Meta targeted older workers in layoffs — another potential litigation headline that can add to near-term uncertainty. Lawsuit Claims Meta Platforms Targeted Older Workers in Layoffs

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on META shares. Arete Research reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Bank of America increased their target price on Meta Platforms from $810.00 to $885.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. KeyCorp reduced their price target on Meta Platforms from $875.00 to $835.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Roth Mkm decreased their price target on Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $800.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 26th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $880.00 to $920.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-nine have issued a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $846.63.

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.