Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) CEO Mark Zuckerberg Sells 35,921 Shares

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold 35,921 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $604.46, for a total value of $21,712,807.66. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

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

• On Friday, December 20th, Mark Zuckerberg sold 10,100 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $601.54, for a total transaction of $6,075,554.00.
• On Monday, December 16th, Mark Zuckerberg sold 35,921 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $624.85, for a total transaction of $22,445,236.85.
• On Wednesday, December 18th, Mark Zuckerberg sold 22,035 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $618.63, for a total value of $13,631,512.05.
• On Friday, December 13th, Mark Zuckerberg sold 35,921 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $622.24, for a total value of $22,351,483.04.
• On Monday, December 9th, Mark Zuckerberg sold 12,975 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $614.36, for a total value of $7,971,321.00.
• On Wednesday, December 11th, Mark Zuckerberg sold 35,921 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $633.25, for a total value of $22,746,973.25.
• On Friday, December 6th, Mark Zuckerberg sold 22,946 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $621.84, for a total transaction of $14,268,740.64.
• On Tuesday, December 3rd, Mark Zuckerberg sold 35,921 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $607.97, for a total transaction of $21,838,890.37.
• On Wednesday, October 30th, Mark Zuckerberg sold 420 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $600.17, for a total value of $252,071.40.
• On Monday, October 14th, Mark Zuckerberg sold 84 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $600.00, for a total value of $50,400.00.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

NASDAQ META opened at $603.35 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $587.33 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $545.17. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 12-month low of $340.01 and a 12-month high of $638.40. The firm has a market cap of $1.52 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.42, a PEG ratio of 1.39 and a beta of 1.20. The company has a quick ratio of 2.73, a current ratio of 2.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The social networking company reported $6.03 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.19 by $0.84. The company had revenue of $40.59 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $40.21 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 35.60% and a net margin of 35.55%. On average, equities analysts forecast 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 will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Monday, December 16th will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.33%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 16th. Meta Platforms’s payout ratio is 9.42%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on META. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $600.00 price target on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, September 26th. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $811.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $650.00 to $700.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. Monness Crespi & Hardt lifted their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $620.00 to $660.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Meta Platforms from $600.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $638.00.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meta Platforms

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Independent Solutions Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Meta Platforms by 11.6% during the 3rd quarter. Independent Solutions Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,908 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $5,099,000 after purchasing an additional 928 shares during the period. SMART Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 53.7% in the 3rd quarter. SMART Wealth LLC now owns 1,374 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $787,000 after buying an additional 480 shares during the last quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.0% during the third quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 613,015 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $350,914,000 after acquiring an additional 6,249 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Wealth Management LLC MS purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms in the third quarter worth $433,000. Finally, SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda boosted its holdings in Meta Platforms by 33.9% in the third quarter. SPX Gestao de Recursos Ltda now owns 13,500 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $7,728,000 after acquiring an additional 3,420 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.91% of the company’s stock.

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.