Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Trading Down 1.2% Following Insider Selling

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) fell 1.2% during trading on Friday after an insider sold shares in the company. The stock traded as low as $622.37 and last traded at $623.35. 1,899,384 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 87% from the average session volume of 14,713,942 shares. The stock had previously closed at $630.79.

Specifically, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $618.00, for a total value of $559,290.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 35,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,019,340. This trade represents a 2.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 12,975 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $614.36, for a total transaction of $7,971,321.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 594,129 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $365,009,092.44. The trade was a 2.14 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In related news, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 35,921 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $633.25, for a total value of $22,746,973.25. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on META shares. TD Cowen upped their price target on Meta Platforms from $600.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $670.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Susquehanna lifted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $600.00 to $675.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $690.00 to $719.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $570.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, thirty-five have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $635.20.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.57 trillion, a PE ratio of 29.22, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.20. The business’s 50 day moving average is $583.97 and its 200 day moving average is $537.82. The company has a current ratio of 2.73, a quick ratio of 2.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The social networking company reported $6.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.19 by $0.84. The business had revenue of $40.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $40.21 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 35.55% and a return on equity of 35.60%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 22.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 16th will be given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.32%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.42%.

Institutional Trading of Meta Platforms

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in META. JDM Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms in the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the second quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Halpern Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the third quarter valued at approximately $46,000. Finally, West Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms in the third quarter worth approximately $49,000. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.