Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Shares Down 1.8% Following Insider Selling

Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) traded down 1.8% during trading on Wednesday after an insider sold shares in the company. The company traded as low as $644.81 and last traded at $648.69. 12,746,971 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 3% from the average session volume of 12,432,818 shares. The stock had previously closed at $660.62.

Specifically, COO Javier Olivan sold 517 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $650.41, for a total value of $336,261.97. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 11,683 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,598,740.03. This represents a 4.24% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on META. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Meta Platforms from $837.00 to $802.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $810.00 to $770.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. Rosenblatt Securities restated a “buy” rating and set a $1,117.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, December 30th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt decreased their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $860.00 to $808.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-eight have given a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $822.89.

Key Meta Platforms News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Secured multi?gigawatt nuclear power deals (Vistra, TerraPower, Oklo) to supply Meta’s Prometheus AI data center — long?dated agreements help lock in reliable, low?carbon capacity for heavy AI compute and reduce power?supply risk for future growth. Meta strikes nuclear power agreements with three companies
• Positive Sentiment: Nuclear deals receive broad coverage (TechCrunch, Bloomberg) and have already lifted shares of partners (Oklo, Vistra) — a signal markets view the agreements as material to Meta’s AI infrastructure buildout and future margins. Meta signs deals with three nuclear companies for 6+ GW
• Positive Sentiment: Strong demand signals for Meta’s Ray?Ban Display AI glasses — company paused international rollout because U.S. demand outstripped limited inventory, which supports upside for Reality Labs if Meta can scale production. Meta’s New AI Glasses See “Unprecedented Demand”
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst activity mixed but constructive: some price targets trimmed (Guggenheim lowered its target) yet many firms retain Buy/Outperform views given AI growth and healthy fundamentals — watch updates for guidance impact. Guggenheim price target note
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory risk in China — Beijing announced a probe/assessment of Meta’s ~$2B Manus acquisition to check export/security compliance; this creates near?term transaction uncertainty and geopolitical headline risk. China to assess/investigate Manus deal
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: COO Javier Oliván disclosed small, regular share sales — routine but sometimes interpreted by market participants as a mild near?term negative signal. SEC filing: Javier Oliván sale

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $641.26 and a 200-day moving average price of $703.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.15, a quick ratio of 1.98 and a current ratio of 1.98. The company has a market cap of $1.65 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.85, a P/E/G ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 1.29.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 29th. The social networking company reported $7.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.74 by $0.51. The business had revenue of $51.24 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $49.34 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 39.35% and a net margin of 30.89%.The firm’s revenue was up 26.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $6.03 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 23rd. Investors of record on Monday, December 15th were paid a $0.525 dividend. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 15th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 9.28%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.4% in the 2nd quarter. Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors now owns 3,506 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $2,587,000 after buying an additional 13 shares in the last quarter. Pachira Investments Inc. grew its position in Meta Platforms by 3.0% in the second quarter. Pachira Investments Inc. now owns 488 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $360,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the period. Hemington Wealth Management raised its stake in Meta Platforms by 0.6% during the second quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 2,223 shares of the social networking company’s stock worth $1,641,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. Trust Co of the South lifted its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 0.8% during the third quarter. Trust Co of the South now owns 1,850 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $1,359,000 after acquiring an additional 14 shares during the period. Finally, Sentinel Pension Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Meta Platforms by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Sentinel Pension Advisors LLC now owns 915 shares of the social networking company’s stock valued at $672,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. 79.91% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Meta Platforms Company Profile

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.