Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Stock Price Down 0.8% on Insider Selling

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) shares dropped 0.8% on Thursday after an insider sold shares in the company. The stock traded as low as $585.10 and last traded at $585.51. Approximately 1,883,011 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 88% from the average daily volume of 15,366,649 shares. The stock had previously closed at $590.51.

Specifically, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 492 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, October 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $600.75, for a total value of $295,569.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 518,508 shares in the company, valued at $311,493,681. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 413 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $583.73, for a total value of $241,080.49. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 11,946 shares in the company, valued at $6,973,238.58. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Rosenblatt Securities upped their price target on Meta Platforms from $643.00 to $811.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on Meta Platforms from $525.00 to $615.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Meta Platforms from $530.00 to $600.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on Meta Platforms from $520.00 to $550.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, thirty-five have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $608.58.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average is $534.36 and its two-hundred day moving average is $504.36. The company has a market capitalization of $1.49 trillion, a P/E ratio of 33.63, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a quick ratio of 2.83, a current ratio of 2.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The social networking company reported $5.16 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.70 by $0.46. The business had revenue of $39.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $38.26 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 34.34% and a return on equity of 34.16%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 22.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.23 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 21.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, September 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 16th were issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 16th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.34%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is currently 11.49%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meta Platforms

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Central Valley Advisors LLC lifted its position in Meta Platforms by 0.3% in the third quarter. Central Valley Advisors LLC now owns 5,714 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $3,271,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. S.A. Mason LLC raised its holdings in Meta Platforms by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. S.A. Mason LLC now owns 1,328 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $645,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Front Row Advisors LLC boosted its position in Meta Platforms by 5.7% during the 2nd quarter. Front Row Advisors LLC now owns 371 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $187,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Merrion Investment Management Co LLC grew its holdings in Meta Platforms by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Merrion Investment Management Co LLC now owns 1,145 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $655,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 2.0% in the first quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN now owns 1,057 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $513,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

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.