Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Insider Sells $613,155.75 in Stock

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) insider Jennifer Newstead sold 921 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $665.75, for a total transaction of $613,155.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 34,866 shares in the company, valued at $23,212,039.50. This trade represents a 2.57 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link.

Jennifer Newstead also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, February 18th, Jennifer Newstead sold 921 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $736.07, for a total transaction of $677,920.47.
• On Tuesday, February 11th, Jennifer Newstead sold 902 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $713.32, for a total transaction of $643,414.64.
• On Tuesday, February 4th, Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $702.24, for a total transaction of $635,527.20.
• On Tuesday, January 28th, Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $666.00, for a total value of $602,730.00.
• On Tuesday, January 21st, Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $618.00, for a total value of $559,290.00.
• On Tuesday, January 14th, Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $604.54, for a total value of $547,108.70.
• On Tuesday, January 7th, Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $631.55, for a total value of $571,552.75.
• On Tuesday, December 31st, Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $591.76, for a total transaction of $535,542.80.
• On Tuesday, December 24th, Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $602.47, for a total transaction of $545,235.35.
• On Tuesday, December 17th, Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $626.66, for a total transaction of $567,127.30.

Meta Platforms Stock Down 2.3 %

NASDAQ:META traded down $15.46 on Thursday, reaching $658.24. 12,449,715 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 13,645,709. The company has a current ratio of 2.98, a quick ratio of 2.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The company has a market capitalization of $1.67 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.52, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.20. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12 month low of $414.50 and a 12 month high of $740.91. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $650.26 and its 200 day simple moving average is $594.62.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The social networking company reported $8.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.75 by $1.27. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 38.17% and a net margin of 37.91%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $5.33 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.525 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from Meta Platforms’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.32%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on META. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Meta Platforms from $688.00 to $765.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Meta Platforms from $680.00 to $750.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $630.00 to $705.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $650.00 to $800.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $583.00 to $627.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, thirty-five have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $719.26.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meta Platforms

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. AMF Tjanstepension AB grew its position in Meta Platforms by 32.5% in the 3rd quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 457,092 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $261,680,000 after purchasing an additional 112,047 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 17.9% in the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 1,652 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $946,000 after acquiring an additional 251 shares during the period. PFG Investments LLC increased its position in Meta Platforms by 8.4% during the third quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 45,100 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $25,817,000 after acquiring an additional 3,495 shares during the last quarter. Benedict Financial Advisors Inc. increased its position in Meta Platforms by 2.8% during the third quarter. Benedict Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 805 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $461,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Covenant Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 12.9% in the third quarter. Covenant Partners LLC now owns 3,782 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $2,165,000 after acquiring an additional 432 shares during the period. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Meta Platforms Company Profile

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.