Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) COO Javier Olivan Sells 608 Shares

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) COO Javier Olivan sold 608 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $563.03, for a total value of $342,322.24. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 6,230 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,507,676.90. This represents a 8.89 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Javier Olivan also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, March 24th, Javier Olivan sold 608 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $614.97, for a total value of $373,901.76.
• On Monday, March 17th, Javier Olivan sold 608 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $607.50, for a total value of $369,360.00.
• On Monday, March 10th, Javier Olivan sold 608 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $609.00, for a total transaction of $370,272.00.
• On Monday, March 3rd, Javier Olivan sold 608 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $673.96, for a total transaction of $409,767.68.
• On Monday, February 24th, Javier Olivan sold 608 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $686.28, for a total transaction of $417,258.24.
• On Tuesday, February 18th, Javier Olivan sold 608 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $736.07, for a total value of $447,530.56.
• On Saturday, February 15th, Javier Olivan sold 4,706 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $736.67, for a total value of $3,466,769.02.
• On Monday, February 3rd, Javier Olivan sold 413 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $676.00, for a total value of $279,188.00.
• On Monday, January 27th, Javier Olivan sold 413 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $627.59, for a total transaction of $259,194.67.
• On Tuesday, January 21st, Javier Olivan sold 413 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $618.00, for a total transaction of $255,234.00.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

Shares of META stock opened at $583.93 on Thursday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $653.10 and its 200 day moving average is $610.50. The company has a quick ratio of 2.98, a current ratio of 2.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market cap of $1.48 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.41, a PEG ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.28. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a twelve month low of $414.50 and a twelve month high of $740.91.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The social networking company reported $8.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $6.75 by $1.27. Meta Platforms had a net margin of 37.91% and a return on equity of 38.17%. During the same period last year, the business posted $5.33 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.36%. This is a positive change from Meta Platforms’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 8.78%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on META. Truist Financial boosted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $700.00 to $770.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Susquehanna upped their target price on Meta Platforms from $675.00 to $800.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. KeyCorp lowered their price target on Meta Platforms from $750.00 to $710.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Argus set a $775.00 price objective on Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $790.00 target price on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, thirty-five have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $718.55.

Institutional Trading of Meta Platforms

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. JDM Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the third quarter worth $30,000. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms in the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Avondale Wealth Management bought a new stake in Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter worth about $43,000. 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.