Sen. Shelley Moore Capito Unloads Shares of Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META)

Key Points

• Sen. Shelley Moore Capito disclosed selling $1,001–$15,000 of Meta shares on October 21; she also reported selling shares of Apple, Microsoft, and Zoetis that day.
• Meta reported quarterly EPS of $7.40, above the $6.54 consensus, while revenue of $64.6 billion beat expectations and rose 26.1% year over year.
• Meta’s AI expansion is drawing strong bond demand, with reported U.S. offering orders near $58 billion, but the company faces significant financing costs, including a reported 7.5% rate on 30-year debt.

Senator Shelley Moore Capito (Republican-West Virginia) recently sold part of their stake in Meta Platforms, Inc. NASDAQ: META. In a filing disclosed on November 4th, the Senator disclosed that they had sold between $1,001 and $15,000 in Meta Platforms stock on October 21st.

Senator Shelley Moore Capito also recently made the following trade(s):

• Sold $1,001 - $15,000 in shares of Apple NASDAQ: AAPL on 10/21/2026.
• Sold $1,001 - $15,000 in shares of Microsoft NASDAQ: MSFT on 10/21/2026.
• Sold $1,001 - $15,000 in shares of Zoetis NYSE: ZTS on 10/21/2026.

Meta Platforms Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:META opened at $630.00 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.61 trillion, a P/E ratio of 21.48, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.28. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1 year low of $520.26 and a 1 year high of $779.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 1.90 and a quick ratio of 1.90. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $673.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $632.21.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 22nd. The social networking company reported $7.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $6.54 by $0.86. The firm had revenue of $64.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $63.34 billion. Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 30.73% and a net margin of 31.15%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 26.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $7.25 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 29.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 28th. Investors of record on Monday, September 21st were paid a $0.5250 dividend. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 21st. Meta Platforms's payout ratio is 7.16%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Roth Capital cut their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $820.00 to $750.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $920.00 to $940.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. DZ Bank restated a "buy" rating on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Wedbush upped their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $700.00 to $730.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, October 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Meta Platforms from $1,000.00 to $995.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, forty-seven have given a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $833.12.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of META. Advantage Trust Co bought a new stake in Meta Platforms in the second quarter worth $28,000. Philadelphia Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Meta Platforms during the second quarter valued at $32,000. Horizons Wealth Management bought a new position in Meta Platforms during the third quarter valued at $33,000. Axiom Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms during the first quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Schuylkill Financial LLC bought a new position in Meta Platforms during the second quarter valued at $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company's stock.

Key Meta Platforms News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Meta acquired Conductor, a startup whose AI agents can work in parallel to build software projects. The deal adds AI coding capabilities, though financial terms were not disclosed. TechCrunch: Meta acquires AI coding startup Conductor
• Positive Sentiment: Investor demand for Meta’s bond offerings was strong: reports said orders for its U.S. sale reached about $58 billion. That suggests investors are willing to finance the company’s AI expansion. Reuters: Meta draws record orders for debut euro bond sale
• Positive Sentiment: Arista Networks said Meta remains one of its customers accounting for more than 10% of revenue, highlighting Meta’s role in demand for AI data-center infrastructure. Arista Networks Cashes In on the AI Infrastructure Build
• Neutral Sentiment: COO Javier Olivan reported stock sales under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. The planned nature of the transactions makes them less informative as a signal about management’s near-term outlook. SEC insider ownership filing
• Negative Sentiment: Meta is raising billions through U.S. and euro bond sales to fund AI infrastructure and expansion. One report said the company agreed to pay 7.5% on 30-year debt, pointing to a substantial financing cost as investment spending grows. Meta Just Paid 7.5% to Borrow for 30 Years

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Aaron Anderson sold 3,240 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $618.06, for a total transaction of $2,002,514.40. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 6,271 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,875,854.26. This represents a 34.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Christopher K. Cox sold 40,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $712.76, for a total transaction of $28,510,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 184,516 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $131,515,624.16. The trade was a 17.82% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 151,090 shares of company stock worth $103,150,807. Insiders own 13.53% of the company's stock.

About Senator Capito

Shelley Moore Capito (Republican Party) is a member of the U.S. Senate from West Virginia. She assumed office on January 3, 2015. Her current term ends on January 3, 2027. Capito (Republican Party) ran for re-election to the U.S. Senate to represent West Virginia. She won in the general election on November 3, 2020. Capito was first elected to the Senate in 2014, becoming the first female U.S. Senator in the state's history. Prior to serving in the Senate, Capito was a member of the West Virginia House of Representatives from 1997 to 2001 and a member of the United States House of Representatives from 2001 to 2015. At the start of the 116th Congress, Capito was a member of the U.S. Senate committees on Appropriations, Commerce, Science, and Transportation, Environment and Public Works, and Rules and Administration. As of a 2014 analysis of multiple outside rankings, Capito is a more moderate right of center Republican Party vote. As a result, she may break with the Republican Party line more than her fellow members. Capito earned her bachelor's degree from Duke University. After earning her M.Ed. from the University of Virginia, Capito was a college counselor and then director of an educational information center. She was the only Republican in the West Virginia congressional delegation until the 2010 elections and is the first Republican woman elected to Congress from West Virginia. Capito is a former chairwoman of the Congressional Caucus for Women's Issues, as well as a member of the Congressional Arts Caucus. After an explosion responsible for the death of 29 coal workers, Capito founded the Congressional Coal Caucus. Prior to her election to the U.S. House, Capito served in the West Virginia House of Delegates.

About Meta Platforms

Meta Platforms, Inc is a technology company that develops social networking, messaging, virtual and augmented reality, and artificial intelligence products. The company's principal platforms include Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp, and Threads, which enable users to connect, communicate, share content, and discover products and services.

Meta also operates Reality Labs, its division focused on virtual, augmented, and mixed reality technologies. Reality Labs develops products such as Meta Quest virtual reality headsets and related software and experiences, along with research and hardware intended to support immersive computing.

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