Insider Selling: Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) COO Sells $447,530.56 in Stock

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) COO Javier Olivan sold 608 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $736.07, for a total value of $447,530.56. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 9,878 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,270,899.46. The trade was a 5.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Javier Olivan also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Saturday, February 15th, Javier Olivan sold 4,706 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $736.67, for a total transaction of $3,466,769.02.
• On Monday, February 3rd, Javier Olivan sold 413 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $676.00, for a total transaction of $279,188.00.
• On Monday, January 27th, Javier Olivan sold 413 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $627.59, for a total transaction of $259,194.67.
• On Tuesday, January 21st, Javier Olivan sold 413 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $618.00, for a total transaction of $255,234.00.
• On Monday, January 13th, Javier Olivan sold 413 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $606.77, for a total transaction of $250,596.01.
• On Monday, January 6th, Javier Olivan sold 413 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $612.10, for a total transaction of $252,797.30.
• On Monday, December 30th, Javier Olivan sold 413 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $589.16, for a total transaction of $243,323.08.
• On Monday, December 23rd, Javier Olivan sold 413 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $590.00, for a total transaction of $243,670.00.
• On Monday, December 16th, Javier Olivan sold 413 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $629.56, for a total transaction of $260,008.28.
• On Monday, December 9th, Javier Olivan sold 413 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $623.50, for a total transaction of $257,505.50.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Meta Platforms stock opened at $683.62 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $1.73 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $647.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $590.57. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12-month low of $414.50 and a 12-month high of $740.91. The company has a current ratio of 2.98, a quick ratio of 2.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The social networking company reported $8.02 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.75 by $1.27. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 37.91% and a return on equity of 38.17%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $5.33 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.525 dividend. 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.31%. Meta Platforms’s payout ratio is 8.36%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wolfe Research raised their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $670.00 to $730.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and set a $770.00 price target (up previously from $700.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $685.00 to $752.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Pivotal Research raised their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $875.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $736.00 to $786.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, thirty-five have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $717.90.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meta Platforms

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. JDM Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms in the third quarter valued at $30,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new position in Meta Platforms in the third quarter valued at $36,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at $40,000. Avondale Wealth Management acquired a new position in Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at $41,000. Finally, WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter valued at $43,000. 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.