Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Shares Down 2.2% on Insider Selling

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) fell 2.2% on Friday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $484.66 and last traded at $490.73. 6,650,881 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 61% from the average session volume of 16,893,307 shares. The stock had previously closed at $501.80.

Specifically, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $498.59, for a total transaction of $291,675.15. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 37,813 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,853,183.67. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 490 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $488.03, for a total value of $239,134.70. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 79,944 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $39,015,070.32. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $498.59, for a total value of $291,675.15. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 37,813 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,853,183.67. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,421,182 shares of company stock valued at $677,574,550 in the last ninety days. 13.75% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on META shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $420.00 to $535.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $465.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 30th. Wolfe Research raised their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $430.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $530.00 to $610.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Susquehanna increased their price target on Meta Platforms from $400.00 to $550.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, thirty-eight have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Meta Platforms currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $519.53.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $1.24 trillion, a PE ratio of 32.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.26 and a beta of 1.20. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $494.29 and its 200-day moving average price is $397.43. The company has a quick ratio of 2.67, a current ratio of 2.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The social networking company reported $5.33 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.82 by $0.51. The business had revenue of $40.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.12 billion. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 28.98% and a return on equity of 29.48%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 24.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.00 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 20.18 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Thursday, February 22nd were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 21st. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 13.42%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC bought a new stake in Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Stone House Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 625.0% in the 3rd quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC now owns 87 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the 2nd quarter valued at about $30,000. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 68.9% in the 3rd quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 103 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. 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.