Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Insider Jennifer Newstead Sells 905 Shares

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) insider Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $591.76, for a total transaction of $535,542.80. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 32,915 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,477,780.40. This trade represents a 2.68 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

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

• 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 value 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 value of $567,127.30.
• On Tuesday, December 10th, Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $618.00, for a total value of $559,290.00.
• On Tuesday, December 3rd, Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $595.00, for a total transaction of $538,475.00.
• On Tuesday, November 26th, Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $565.30, for a total transaction of $511,596.50.
• On Tuesday, November 5th, Jennifer Newstead sold 901 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $567.70, for a total transaction of $511,497.70.
• On Tuesday, October 29th, Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $580.10, for a total value of $524,990.50.
• On Tuesday, October 22nd, Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $574.70, for a total value of $520,103.50.
• On Tuesday, October 15th, Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $589.97, for a total value of $533,922.85.
• On Tuesday, October 8th, Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $589.89, for a total transaction of $533,850.45.

Meta Platforms Trading Up 0.9 %

NASDAQ META opened at $604.63 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.53 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.48, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.20. The business’s fifty day moving average is $589.88 and its 200-day moving average is $548.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 2.73 and a quick ratio of 2.73. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a one year low of $343.40 and a one year high of $638.40.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The social networking company reported $6.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.19 by $0.84. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 35.55% and a return on equity of 35.60%. The firm had revenue of $40.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $40.21 billion. Equities research analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 22.68 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on META shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $660.00 to $725.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Meta Platforms from $525.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Wolfe Research upped their target price on Meta Platforms from $670.00 to $730.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Meta Platforms from $555.00 to $636.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 14th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their price target on Meta Platforms from $650.00 to $670.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, thirty-five have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $642.88.

Institutional Trading of Meta Platforms

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division grew its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division now owns 13,850 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $8,109,000 after acquiring an additional 214 shares during the period. First Citizens Financial Corp lifted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 14.3% during the fourth quarter. First Citizens Financial Corp now owns 766 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $449,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Modus Advisors LLC boosted its position in Meta Platforms by 8.7% during the fourth quarter. Modus Advisors LLC now owns 3,917 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $2,293,000 after purchasing an additional 314 shares during the period. Franchise Capital Ltd increased its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 34.4% in the fourth quarter. Franchise Capital Ltd now owns 44,488 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $26,048,000 after purchasing an additional 11,397 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NRI Wealth Management LC bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $594,000. 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.