5,554 Shares in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META Purchased by Clear Trail Advisors LLC

Clear Trail Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 5,554 shares of the social networking company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,666,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Westchester Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Bare Financial Services Inc bought a new position in Meta Platforms in the second quarter worth approximately $30,000. Knuff & Co LLC purchased a new position in Meta Platforms during the 2nd quarter worth $44,000. PMV Capital Advisers LLC increased its holdings in Meta Platforms by 26.3% during the 4th quarter. PMV Capital Advisers LLC now owns 96 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Finally, Evergreen Private Wealth LLC raised its position in Meta Platforms by 64.8% during the 3rd quarter. Evergreen Private Wealth LLC now owns 89 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Meta Platforms news, COO Javier Olivan sold 2,461 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Sunday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $639.77, for a total value of $1,574,473.97. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 12,108 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,746,335.16. The trade was a 16.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 8,089 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $631.24, for a total transaction of $5,106,100.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief technology officer directly owned 2,841 shares in the company, valued at $1,793,352.84. This represents a 74.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 162,484 shares of company stock worth $104,015,906 in the last 90 days. 13.61% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Trending Headlines about Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Large AI infrastructure commitment — Meta told investors it will boost spending on a West Texas AI data center to about $10 billion, signaling continued investment in model training capacity and long-term AI revenue opportunities. Meta boosts investment in West Texas AI data center by over sixfold to $10 billion
• Positive Sentiment: Strategic silicon partnership — Meta is the lead partner / launch customer for Arm’s new AGI CPU, which could lower Meta’s long‑run costs for AI inference/training and validate its data‑center strategy. This reduces execution risk on large compute builds. Arm launches first own-brand chip with Meta as launch customer
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst view improving — Erste Group modestly raised FY2027 EPS estimates for Meta, showing some sell‑side confidence in profit power despite near‑term noise. Erste Group raises FY2027 EPS estimate for META
• Neutral Sentiment: Cost moves and workforce cuts — Meta has cut several hundred roles and reports of broader restructuring persist; layoffs can boost near‑term margins but also signal stress amid massive CapEx. Meta Lays Off 700 Employees, While Rewarding Top Executives
• Neutral Sentiment: Executive retention program — Meta awarded performance‑tied stock units/options to senior leaders to retain talent for its AI push; upside‑only payoff if aggressive targets are met (long‑term positive if execution succeeds). Meta grants senior executives stock awards to retain talent
• Neutral Sentiment: Unusual options activity — A surge in call buying suggests some traders are speculating on a rebound, increasing intraday volume and volatility (short‑term noise).
• Negative Sentiment: Landmark legal losses — Back‑to‑back jury verdicts (including a Los Angeles negligent‑design verdict and a New Mexico penalty) found Meta liable for harms to minors; investors fear follow‑on suits, regulatory changes and larger fines or restrictions that could materially affect business models and costs. Meta shares slip after US jury verdicts raise concerns of new legal exposure
• Negative Sentiment: Huge AI CapEx and free‑cash‑flow risk — Market commentary highlights an aggressive 2026 CapEx plan (reported ranges well above prior years), which could compress free cash flow and make the stock more sensitive to execution and legal shocks. That combination is a primary driver of the selloff. Meta Reportedly Plans 20% Layoff: A Sign of Weakness or Strength?

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of META stock opened at $547.25 on Friday. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $479.80 and a 1-year high of $796.25. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $645.82 and its 200 day moving average is $668.89. The company has a market cap of $1.38 trillion, a P/E ratio of 23.29, a PEG ratio of 0.92 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 (NASDAQ:META) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The social networking company reported $8.88 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $8.16 by $0.72. The business had revenue of $59.89 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $58.33 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 30.08% and a return on equity of 38.61%. The firm’s revenue was up 23.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $8.02 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th were given a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 16th. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Meta Platforms’s payout ratio is presently 8.94%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on META. KeyCorp lowered their target price on Meta Platforms from $875.00 to $835.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 26th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $840.00 to $880.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Scotiabank upped their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $685.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Tigress Financial increased their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $935.00 to $945.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-nine have given a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Meta Platforms currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.