Conning Inc. Sells 1,722 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. $META

Conning Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) by 9.8% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 15,904 shares of the social networking company’s stock after selling 1,722 shares during the quarter. Conning Inc.’s holdings in Meta Platforms were worth $9,099,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of META. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake 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 valued at $132,015,115,000 after buying an additional 7,269,279 shares during the period. Auto Owners Insurance Co raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 76,587.7% during the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 105,292,277 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $69,502,379,000 after buying an additional 105,154,977 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 90,841,345 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $59,963,463,000 after buying an additional 4,395,763 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 52,806,712 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $34,734,628,000 after acquiring an additional 878,396 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital World Investors boosted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 39,558,637 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $26,112,735,000 after acquiring an additional 310,947 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. BNP Paribas Exane initiated coverage on Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating for the company. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Meta Platforms from $825.00 to $775.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 30th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $765.00 to $767.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $750.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They set an “overweight” rating on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-six have assigned a Buy rating, eight have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $835.90.

Meta Platforms Trading Up 3.1%

NASDAQ META opened at $681.31 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 2.35, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $601.49 and a 200 day simple moving average of $626.86. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12 month low of $520.26 and a 12 month high of $796.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.72 trillion, a P/E ratio of 24.77, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.67 by $3.77. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.84% and a return on equity of 36.93%. The firm had revenue of $56.31 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.56 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $6.43 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 33.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 25th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th were issued a dividend of $0.525 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. Meta Platforms’s payout ratio is 7.63%.

Trending Headlines about Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Multiple pieces highlighted Meta’s expanding AI strategy, including reports that it is building out custom chips and massive computing capacity, with some commentary suggesting Meta could even broaden into cloud services. That supports the view that META is investing aggressively to stay competitive in AI. How Meta Platforms (META) Is Strengthening Its AI Infrastructure With Custom Chips and Massive Computing Expansion
• Positive Sentiment: Several market articles argued that investors are still warming to Meta ahead of its next earnings report, pointing to strong ad growth, AI engagement, and continued long-term demand for its platforms. This is helping sentiment around the stock. Meta Platforms, Inc. (META) is Attracting Investor Attention: Here is What You Should Know
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta announced it will release second-quarter 2026 results on July 29, keeping attention on the upcoming earnings print. That event is adding anticipation, but it is not a direct operational surprise yet. Meta to Announce Second Quarter 2026 Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Some analysts are debating valuation and capital spending, with concerns that heavy AI capex could pressure free cash flow even if revenue remains strong. That creates a valuation headwind, but it is still largely a longer-term debate. Meta Q2 Preview: CAPEX And Free Cash Flow In Focus
• Negative Sentiment: Meta is facing a new lawsuit from former employees alleging it used AI tools and workplace metrics to target workers on medical, parental, or other protected leave during layoffs. That raises legal and reputational risk for META. Meta used AI to target workers with medical conditions for layoffs, former employees’ lawsuit claims

Insider Activity

In other Meta Platforms news, CFO Susan J. Li sold 9,195 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $607.84, for a total value of $5,589,088.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 13,186 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,014,978.24. This trade represents a 41.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 3,348 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $600.97, for a total transaction of $2,012,047.56. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 9,498 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,708,013.06. This represents a 26.06% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 39,503 shares of company stock valued at $24,241,859 in the last three months. 13.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.