Brown Shipley& Co Ltd Has $7.71 Million Stock Position in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Brown Shipley& Co Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 85.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,493 shares of the social networking company’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,833 shares during the quarter. Meta Platforms comprises 4.1% of Brown Shipley& Co Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 7th largest holding. Brown Shipley& Co Ltd’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $7,706,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in META. Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors grew its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors now owns 3,506 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $2,587,000 after buying an additional 13 shares during the last quarter. Pachira Investments Inc. boosted its stake in Meta Platforms by 3.0% in the second quarter. Pachira Investments Inc. now owns 488 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $360,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. Hemington Wealth Management grew its holdings in Meta Platforms by 0.6% in the second quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 2,223 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $1,641,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Trust Co of the South increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.8% during the third quarter. Trust Co of the South now owns 1,850 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $1,359,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vista Capital Partners Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Vista Capital Partners Inc. now owns 1,075 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $794,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ META opened at $650.41 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $647.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $705.08. The stock has a market cap of $1.64 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.73, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12 month low of $479.80 and a 12 month high of $796.25.

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

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at Meta Platforms

In other news, COO Javier Olivan sold 517 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 519 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $658.69, for a total value of $341,860.11. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 28,658 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,876,738.02. The trade was a 1.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 42,074 shares of company stock worth $26,269,739 over the last quarter. 13.61% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on META shares. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $925.00 to $815.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have issued a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $822.22.

Key Stores Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s acquisition of AI startup Manus (reported >$2B) is being viewed as strategically accretive — Manus has rapid ARR growth and deployed AI agents at scale, which could strengthen Meta’s business-focused AI offerings and ad performance. Why Meta’s +$2B AI Startup Acquisition Could Be a Huge Win
• Positive Sentiment: Research/coverage remains upbeat: Rosenblatt reaffirmed a Buy on META, and commentators (including Jim Cramer) have highlighted Meta as a buy, supporting investor confidence. Rosenblatt Securities Reaffirms Buy Rating for Meta Platforms
• Positive Sentiment: Monetization tailwinds continue: the WSJ reports Instagram Reels has become a ~\$50B business — evidence Meta’s AI-driven ad products are driving revenue expansion. How Meta’s Reels Became a $50 Billion Business
• Neutral Sentiment: Options market activity has surged around META, signaling elevated trader interest and potential volatility but not a clear directional signal for fundamentals. Spotlight on Meta Platforms: Analyzing the Surge in Options Activity
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry pieces and stock roundups (Fool, 247WallSt) compare Meta to peers and include it in AI/tech buy lists — helpful context but not immediate catalysts. Meta Platforms vs. Pinterest
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling has surfaced (including a ~\$341k sale by Jennifer Newstead and separate COO stock sales), which can spook investors despite being modest relative to Meta’s market cap. Jennifer Newstead Sells 519 Shares of Meta Platforms
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory/legal pressure increased: the U.S. Virgin Islands filed a lawsuit over scam ads and Reuters ran an investigation alleging Meta misled regulators about fake ads — these raise reputational and potential legal risk that can weigh on the stock. U.S. Virgin Islands Files Lawsuit Against Meta Over Scam Ads and User Safety

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.