Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Boosts Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 11.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 210,526 shares of the social networking company’s stock after purchasing an additional 20,912 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms accounts for approximately 1.1% of Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $155,387,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Barnes Dennig Private Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. MJT & Associates Financial Advisory Group Inc. bought a new stake in Meta Platforms in the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Meta Platforms by 237.5% in the 2nd quarter. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC now owns 54 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 38 shares in the last quarter. JCIC Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Meta Platforms by 102.6% in the 1st quarter. JCIC Asset Management Inc. now owns 79 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $46,000 after buying an additional 40 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Maseco LLP bought a new stake in Meta Platforms in the 2nd quarter worth about $54,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Meta Platforms Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of META opened at $733.41 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $744.01 and its 200-day simple moving average is $687.02. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1 year low of $479.80 and a 1 year high of $796.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.84 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.53 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a current ratio of 1.97 and a quick ratio of 1.97.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The social networking company reported $7.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.75 by $1.39. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 39.33% and a net margin of 39.99%.The company had revenue of $47.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $44.55 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $5.16 EPS. Meta Platforms’s quarterly revenue was up 21.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Meta Platforms has set its Q3 2025 guidance at EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 29th. Investors of record on Monday, September 22nd were issued a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 22nd. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is presently 7.60%.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In related news, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 519 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $707.85, for a total transaction of $367,374.15. Following the sale, the insider owned 28,794 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,381,832.90. This represents a 1.77% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 517 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $721.30, for a total value of $372,912.10. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 8,475 shares in the company, valued at $6,113,017.50. The trade was a 5.75% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 213,663 shares of company stock worth $164,569,365. Company insiders own 13.61% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Guggenheim reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $800.00 price objective (up from $725.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Monday, July 28th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $920.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Needham & Company LLC upgraded Meta Platforms from an “underperform” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $808.00 to $880.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 31st. Finally, JMP Securities boosted their price target on Meta Platforms from $750.00 to $900.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 31st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-nine have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $829.66.

About Meta Platforms

Meta Platforms, Inc engages in the development of products that enable people to connect and share with friends and family through mobile devices, personal computers, virtual reality headsets, and wearables worldwide. It operates in two segments, Family of Apps and Reality Labs. The Family of Apps segment offers Facebook, which enables people to share, discuss, discover, and connect with interests; Instagram, a community for sharing photos, videos, and private messages, as well as feed, stories, reels, video, live, and shops; Messenger, a messaging application for people to connect with friends, family, communities, and businesses across platforms and devices through text, audio, and video calls; and WhatsApp, a messaging application that is used by people and businesses to communicate and transact privately.