Congress Asset Management Co. Cuts Stock Holdings in Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Congress Asset Management Co. lessened its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 10.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 305,525 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 34,146 shares during the period. Meta Platforms comprises approximately 1.4% of Congress Asset Management Co.’s holdings, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Congress Asset Management Co.’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $201,674,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Westchester Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Bare Financial Services Inc purchased 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 valued at $44,000. PMV Capital Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 26.3% in the fourth quarter. PMV Capital Advisers LLC now owns 96 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $63,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Evergreen Private Wealth LLC increased 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 during the period. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $685.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $750.00 to $825.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $825.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $810.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $900.00 price objective (up from $870.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-nine have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $846.63.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 8.0%

Shares of Meta Platforms 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 firm has a market cap of $1.38 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.29, a PEG ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a 50-day moving average of $645.82 and a 200 day moving average of $668.89. 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 posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The social networking company reported $8.88 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.16 by $0.72. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 30.08% and a return on equity of 38.61%. The business had revenue of $59.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.33 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $8.02 earnings per share. Meta Platforms’s quarterly revenue was up 23.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate 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 Thursday, March 26th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th were paid a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 16th. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is presently 8.94%.

Insider Activity at Meta Platforms

In other news, CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 8,089 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $631.24, for a total value of $5,106,100.36. Following the sale, the chief technology officer directly owned 2,841 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,793,352.84. This represents a 74.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Susan J. Li sold 56,571 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $644.70, for a total value of $36,471,323.70. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold a total of 162,484 shares of company stock valued at $104,015,906 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 13.61% of the company’s stock.

More Meta Platforms News

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 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.