Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Stock Price Down 1.6% on Insider Selling

Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) were down 1.6% on Friday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $589.83 and last traded at $593.95. Approximately 2,061,874 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 86% from the average daily volume of 14,722,797 shares. The stock had previously closed at $603.35.

Specifically, insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $602.47, for a total value of $545,235.35. Following the sale, the insider now owns 33,820 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,375,535.40. This represents a 2.61 % 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. Also, CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 35,921 shares of Meta Platforms stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $604.46, for a total transaction of $21,712,807.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 413 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $590.00, for a total value of $243,670.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 17,927 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,576,930. This represents a 2.25 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on META shares. Bank of America upped their target price on Meta Platforms from $630.00 to $660.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Mizuho upped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $650.00 to $675.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Barclays lifted their target price on Meta Platforms from $550.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $555.00 to $636.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $605.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, thirty-five have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $638.00.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 2.73, a current ratio of 2.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18. The company has a market capitalization of $1.51 trillion, a PE ratio of 28.25, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.20. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $587.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $545.85.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 30th. The social networking company reported $6.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.19 by $0.84. The firm had revenue of $40.59 billion for 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%. Equities research analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 22.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 16th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 16th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.33%. Meta Platforms’s payout ratio is currently 9.42%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meta Platforms

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. JDM Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new position in Meta Platforms in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Halpern Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Meta Platforms during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $46,000. West Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $49,000. Finally, Hoese & Co LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 2,000.0% in the 3rd quarter. Hoese & Co LLP now owns 105 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $60,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other 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.