Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) CFO Sells $1,315,400.61 in Stock

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) CFO Susan Li sold 2,127 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $618.43, for a total transaction of $1,315,400.61. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 15,346 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,490,426.78. The trade was a 12.17% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards.

Meta Platforms Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:META traded down $8.60 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $602.61. 11,716,804 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 15,909,861. The company has a current ratio of 2.35, a quick ratio of 2.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.24. The firm has a market cap of $1.52 trillion, a P/E ratio of 21.91, a PEG ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 1.25. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $620.35 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $637.91. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $520.26 and a 1-year high of $796.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The social networking company reported $10.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.67 by $3.77. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 32.84% and a return on equity of 36.93%. The firm had revenue of $56.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $55.56 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $6.43 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 33.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

META has been the topic of several analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Meta Platforms from $910.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Arete Research reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, March 5th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Meta Platforms from $805.00 to $780.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Rosenblatt Securities reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $1,015.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Guggenheim cut their price objective on Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $800.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-four have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $840.31.

Trending Headlines about Meta Platforms

Here are the key news stories impacting Meta Platforms this week:

• Negative Sentiment: Meta began laying off about 8,000 employees, or roughly 10% of its workforce, as part of a broader AI-first transformation. The move highlights rising restructuring costs and suggests more cuts could follow later this year. Meta Begins Laying Off 8,000 Employees Amid A.I. Transformation
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that Meta is cutting jobs while ramping up AI investment have kept attention on margin pressure and the scale of the company’s AI spending bill, which some investors view as a near-term drag on earnings. Meta Moves 7,000 Workers Into AI Roles Ahead of Job Cuts
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta offered rival AI chatbot makers limited free access to WhatsApp in Europe before charging once usage limits are reached. The move could support platform engagement and developer adoption, but the financial impact is still unclear. Exclusive: Meta offers AI rival chatbots limited free WhatsApp access, sources say
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta also drew attention for new AI-related product and safety initiatives, including an incognito chat feature for WhatsApp’s AI assistant and new parental supervision tools, but these are not likely to move the stock in the near term. Meta Platforms (META) Launching Incognito Chat for WhatsApp AI Assistant

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meta Platforms

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Westchester Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Meta Platforms in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. RHL Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Niles Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Bayban lifted its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 100.0% during the 1st quarter. Bayban now owns 70 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Meta Platforms

Meta Platforms, Inc (NASDAQ: META), formerly Facebook, Inc, is a global technology company best known for building social networking services and immersive computing platforms. Founded in 2004 and headquartered in Menlo Park, California, the company operates a family of consumer-facing products and services that connect users, creators and businesses. In October 2021 the company rebranded as Meta to reflect an expanded strategic focus on augmented and virtual reality technologies alongside its social media businesses.

Meta’s core consumer products include Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger, which enable social networking, messaging, content sharing and community building across mobile and desktop devices.