Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) CEO Sells $9,683,513.58 in Stock

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 13,793 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, June 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $702.06, for a total value of $9,683,513.58. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 96,684 shares in the company, valued at approximately $67,877,969.04. This trade represents a 12.48% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Mark Zuckerberg also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Tuesday, June 17th, Mark Zuckerberg sold 8,312 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $702.13, for a total value of $5,836,104.56.
• On Wednesday, June 18th, Mark Zuckerberg sold 2,753 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $700.43, for a total transaction of $1,928,283.79.
• On Monday, June 9th, Mark Zuckerberg sold 7,466 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $701.25, for a total transaction of $5,235,532.50.
• On Tuesday, June 10th, Mark Zuckerberg sold 13,793 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $701.13, for a total transaction of $9,670,686.09.
• On Wednesday, June 11th, Mark Zuckerberg sold 7,802 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $701.96, for a total transaction of $5,476,691.92.
• On Friday, June 6th, Mark Zuckerberg sold 1,462 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $701.13, for a total transaction of $1,025,052.06.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of META stock opened at $695.77 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 2.66 and a quick ratio of 2.66. The company has a market capitalization of $1.75 trillion, a PE ratio of 27.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 1.26. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $612.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $621.89. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12 month low of $442.65 and a 12 month high of $740.91.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The social networking company reported $6.43 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.33 by $1.10. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 39.11% and a return on equity of 38.69%. The firm had revenue of $42.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $41.45 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $4.71 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 16.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 16th will be given a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.30%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.19%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

META has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $740.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Loop Capital upped their target price on Meta Platforms from $695.00 to $888.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Raymond James Financial decreased their target price on Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $750.00 and set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $705.00 to $640.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, June 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, thirty-seven have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $710.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Meta Platforms

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Valley Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Meta Platforms by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Valley Financial Group Inc. now owns 588 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $344,000 after buying an additional 14 shares during the period. Lantern Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Lantern Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,976 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $1,743,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the last quarter. Meredith Wealth Planning boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Meredith Wealth Planning now owns 1,873 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $1,097,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the period. Maiden Cove Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Maiden Cove Capital LLC now owns 481 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $282,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the period. Finally, Riverwater Partners LLC increased its holdings in Meta Platforms by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Riverwater Partners LLC now owns 572 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $335,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently 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.