SWS Partners Raises Position in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

SWS Partners lifted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 34.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,938 shares of the social networking company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,274 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms comprises about 1.1% of SWS Partners’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. SWS Partners’ holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $5,035,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in META. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 17.4% in the 1st quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC now owns 18,000 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $10,299,000 after purchasing an additional 2,670 shares during the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH increased its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 15.7% during the 4th quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 133,798 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $88,319,000 after buying an additional 18,169 shares during the last quarter. WMS Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth $876,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 199,995,630 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $132,015,115,000 after buying an additional 7,269,279 shares during the period. Finally, Czech National Bank raised its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 4.9% in the 2nd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 625,079 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $352,101,000 after buying an additional 29,411 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: New AI model strengthens product narrative: Meta launched Muse Spark 1.3, described as its most advanced AI model, supporting the view that the company is intensifying competition with leading AI developers and could create new monetization opportunities. Meta Platforms unveils most powerful AI model
• Positive Sentiment: $18 billion settlement removes a major overhang: The settlement of lawsuits alleging harm to children provides greater legal visibility. Analysts believe limits on teen usage should have a limited effect on revenue and that resolving the case could clear the way for accelerated AI-product launches. Meta settlement could clear the way for new AI product launches
• Positive Sentiment: Valuation is attracting buyers: Articles characterize META as undervalued at roughly 16–20 times forward earnings, well below its historical valuation, despite 28% recent revenue growth and resilient user engagement. Morgan Stanley analysts see potential for substantial upside if AI improves advertising and product growth. Meta stock looks undervalued
• Positive Sentiment: Advertising outlook remains favorable: An analyst report argues that AI-powered targeting and engagement could help Meta challenge Google for leadership in digital advertising, adding to the stock’s growth appeal. Meta versus Google digital advertising outlook
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst stance remains cautious: Wedbush reaffirmed a neutral rating with a $595 price target, suggesting limited near-term upside despite the improving legal and AI backdrop.
• Negative Sentiment: AI spending is pressuring cash flow: Meta’s latest results showed margin compression and sharply lower free cash flow as capital expenditures increased, creating concern that returns on its large AI investments may take time.
• Negative Sentiment: Trust and safety issues persist: Meta disabled cameras on thousands of AI glasses after detecting tampering with recording lights, while it also removed scam advertisements in India linked to malware and stolen banking credentials. These incidents could increase regulatory and reputational pressure.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

META has been the subject of a number of research reports. Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered their price target on Meta Platforms from $890.00 to $730.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Wolfe Research restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $700.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Susquehanna reduced their price objective on Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $650.00 and set a “positive” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their target price on Meta Platforms from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $766.00 to $715.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $785.22.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In other news, Director Robert M. Kimmitt sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $561.56, for a total transaction of $280,780.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 2,943 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,652,671.08. This trade represents a 14.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Susan J. Li sold 9,196 shares of Meta Platforms 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer 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. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 32,987 shares of company stock worth $19,202,995 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 13.53% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Up 2.5%

Shares of NASDAQ META opened at $592.85 on Thursday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1 year low of $520.26 and a 1 year high of $790.80. The firm has a market cap of $1.51 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.33, a PEG 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 $593.48 and its 200-day simple moving average is $609.41.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.19 by ($1.01). The business had revenue of $60.80 billion during 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 was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $7.14 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 28.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.