Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) Insider Sells $268,606.08 in Stock

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) insider Jennifer Newstead sold 576 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $466.33, for a total value of $268,606.08. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 36,067 shares in the company, valued at $16,819,124.11. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

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

• On Tuesday, April 30th, Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $431.05, for a total value of $252,164.25.
• On Tuesday, April 23rd, Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $491.25, for a total transaction of $287,381.25.
• On Tuesday, April 16th, Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $498.59, for a total transaction of $291,675.15.
• On Tuesday, April 9th, Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $522.00, for a total value of $305,370.00.
• On Tuesday, April 2nd, Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $485.00, for a total value of $283,725.00.
• On Tuesday, March 26th, Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $505.29, for a total transaction of $295,594.65.
• On Tuesday, March 19th, Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $488.50, for a total transaction of $285,772.50.
• On Tuesday, March 12th, Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $493.75, for a total value of $288,843.75.
• On Tuesday, March 5th, Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $495.00, for a total value of $289,575.00.
• On Tuesday, February 27th, Jennifer Newstead sold 585 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $480.00, for a total value of $280,800.00.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of META traded up $2.82 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $475.42. 9,422,173 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 18,126,488. The company has a quick ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 2.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $230.72 and a fifty-two week high of $531.49. The company has a market cap of $1.21 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.21. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $489.80 and its 200 day moving average is $412.20.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The social networking company reported $4.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.32 by $0.39. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.06% and a return on equity of 32.03%. The business had revenue of $36.46 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $36.28 billion. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 20.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meta Platforms

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in META. Stone House Investment Management LLC grew its position in Meta Platforms by 625.0% during the 3rd quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC now owns 87 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. increased its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 95.6% in the first quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 88 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 43 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the first quarter valued at $44,000. Finally, Clear Investment Research LLC raised its position in Meta Platforms by 411.1% during the 4th quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 92 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on META shares. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $600.00 to $570.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Oppenheimer dropped their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $585.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Wolfe Research decreased their price objective on Meta Platforms from $530.00 to $500.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Monness Crespi & Hardt increased their target price on Meta Platforms from $370.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their price target on Meta Platforms from $400.00 to $550.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, thirty-seven have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $509.80.

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.