Jennifer Newstead Sells 902 Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Stock

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) insider Jennifer Newstead sold 902 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $713.32, for a total value of $643,414.64. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 27,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $19,607,740.16. The trade was a 3.18 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

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

• 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 value of $635,527.20.
• On Tuesday, January 28th, Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was 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 shares were 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 shares were 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 shares were sold at an average price of $591.76, for a total value of $535,542.80.
• On Tuesday, December 24th, Jennifer Newstead sold 905 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were 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 stock was 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 stock was 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 value of $538,475.00.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

NASDAQ:META opened at $736.67 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $638.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $582.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.87 trillion, a PE ratio of 30.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a quick ratio of 2.98, a current ratio of 2.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a twelve month low of $414.50 and a twelve month high of $740.91.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The social networking company reported $8.02 earnings per share 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 last year, the firm earned $5.33 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.66 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 paid a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is a positive change from Meta Platforms’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.29%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 8.36%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Citigroup upped their price target on Meta Platforms from $753.00 to $780.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays upped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $630.00 to $705.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $770.00 price objective (up previously from $700.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $600.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $620.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating, thirty-five have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $717.90.

Institutional Trading of Meta Platforms

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Ballentine Partners LLC raised its position in Meta Platforms by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 58,218 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $34,087,000 after purchasing an additional 808 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in Meta Platforms by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 140,585 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $82,314,000 after purchasing an additional 897 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Meta Platforms by 0.9% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 13,827,565 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $7,915,451,000 after purchasing an additional 118,298 shares during the last quarter. LS Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Meta Platforms by 111.4% in the third quarter. LS Investment Advisors LLC now owns 11,679 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $6,686,000 after purchasing an additional 6,155 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Apollon Financial LLC raised its position in Meta Platforms by 11.1% in the fourth quarter. Apollon Financial LLC now owns 1,479 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $866,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.