Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) Stock Price Down 1.3% Following Insider Selling

Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META) dropped 1.3% during trading on Friday following insider selling activity. The stock traded as low as $638.12 and last traded at $648.18. Approximately 15,627,067 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 2% from the average daily volume of 15,872,220 shares. The stock had previously closed at $657.01.

Specifically, CFO Susan J. Li sold 55,702 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $633.61, for a total transaction of $35,293,344.22. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 13,186 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,354,781.46. The trade was a 80.86% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, COO Javier Olivan sold 629 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $652.68, for a total value of $410,535.72. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 2,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,882,981.80. This represents a 17.90% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In related news, COO Javier Olivan sold 926 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $652.68, for a total transaction of $604,381.68. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 17,039 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,121,014.52. This represents a 5.15% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on META. Wall Street Zen cut Meta Platforms from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 1st. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $900.00 price objective (up from $870.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $860.00 target price (up from $750.00) on shares of Meta Platforms in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Rosenblatt Securities boosted their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $1,117.00 to $1,144.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Truist Financial increased their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $875.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-nine have assigned a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $844.44.

Trending Headlines about Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Large AI infrastructure wins — Meta reported multiyear, multibillion-dollar arrangements to access external AI accelerators (reported deal to rent Google’s TPUs) that speed model training and reduce time-to-market for AI-enabled ad and product features. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Deepening GPU commitments and heavy capex plans — Meta is expanding AMD GPU deals and signaling very large 2026 infrastructure spending to scale model training and ad monetization, which supports long-term revenue/earnings upside. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Ad quality enforcement — Meta filed suits and took enforcement actions versus alleged celebrity‑impersonation scam advertisers, a move that could protect advertiser trust and ad yield over time. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Stablecoin payments trial — Meta is trialing stablecoin payments across WhatsApp/Instagram/Facebook (possible rollout later), a long‑lead monetization opportunity in emerging markets but with execution and regulatory uncertainty. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor access — CFO Susan Li will speak at the Morgan Stanley TMT conference (Mar 4), offering a chance for management to update on capex cadence and monetization — useful near‑term catalyst for guidance/clarity. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: EU regulatory setback — An EU court adviser sided with regulators over Meta’s objections in an antitrust data-information dispute, raising compliance and legal risk in Europe. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Ongoing litigation & reputation risk — High-profile U.S. trial testimony about social‑media harms and Instagram policy changes keep legal/regulatory headlines active, a recurring source of uncertainty for investors. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling — CFO Susan Li (and recent COO filings) disclosed large share sales; while often for diversification/taxes, such moves can pressure sentiment when combined with market rotation. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive pressure — Analysts note Alphabet’s stronger near-term search/AI ad position, which could favor ad-dollar flow to Google vs. Meta during the AI spending cycle. Read More.

Meta Platforms Price Performance

The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $656.04 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $686.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 2.60 and a quick ratio of 2.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.64 trillion, a P/E ratio of 27.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.28.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 28th. The social networking company reported $8.88 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $8.16 by $0.72. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 38.61% and a net margin of 30.08%.The firm had revenue of $59.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $58.33 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $8.02 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 23.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 26.7 earnings per share for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 16th will be issued a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 16th. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. Meta Platforms’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.94%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Meta Platforms

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in META. Westchester Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. RHL Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Strategic Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Niles Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Bare Financial Services Inc purchased a new position in shares of Meta Platforms in the second quarter worth $30,000. 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.