Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) COO Sells 946 Shares

Key Points

• Meta COO Javier Olivan sold 946 shares at an average price of $680.27, generating $643,535.42. The transaction, conducted under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan, reduced his stake by 8.83% to 9,770 shares.
• Meta shares traded at $744.10, near their 52-week high of $763.90, with a market capitalization of approximately $1.90 trillion. The company reported quarterly revenue of $60.80 billion, up 28% year over year, but earnings per share fell short of analyst expectations.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $796.95. Meta also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.525 per share, while investors continue to weigh the growth potential of its Muse AI product against valuation, spending, privacy and competitive risks.

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) COO Javier Olivan sold 946 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $680.27, for a total value of $643,535.42. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 9,770 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,646,237.90. The trade was a 8.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed 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.

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

• On Monday, September 21st, Javier Olivan sold 629 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $680.27, for a total value of $427,889.83.
• On Monday, September 14th, Javier Olivan sold 629 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $657.73, for a total value of $413,712.17.
• On Monday, September 14th, Javier Olivan sold 946 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $657.73, for a total value of $622,212.58.
• On Tuesday, September 8th, Javier Olivan sold 2,516 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $616.44, for a total value of $1,550,963.04.
• On Tuesday, September 8th, Javier Olivan sold 2,838 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $616.71, for a total transaction of $1,750,222.98.
• On Monday, August 10th, Javier Olivan sold 434 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $602.70, for a total transaction of $261,571.80.
• On Monday, August 10th, Javier Olivan sold 1,258 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $600.00, for a total transaction of $754,800.00.
• On Monday, July 27th, Javier Olivan sold 629 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $607.85, for a total transaction of $382,337.65.
• On Monday, July 27th, Javier Olivan sold 837 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $607.85, for a total transaction of $508,770.45.
• On Monday, July 20th, Javier Olivan sold 629 shares of Meta Platforms stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $645.85, for a total transaction of $406,239.65.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

Shares of META traded up $7.51 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $744.10. 30,318,016 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 17,355,260. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 2.23 and a current ratio of 2.23. The stock's fifty day moving average is $609.53 and its 200 day moving average is $610.57. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a 1-year low of $520.26 and a 1-year high of $763.90. The stock has a market cap of $1.90 trillion, a P/E ratio of 28.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.25.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $7.19 by ($1.01). Meta Platforms had a return on equity of 33.18% and a net margin of 29.83%.The firm had revenue of $60.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $60.22 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $7.14 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 28.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 27.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Meta Platforms Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 21st will be issued a dividend of $0.525 per share. This represents a $2.10 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 21st. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Raymond James Financial upped their target price on Meta Platforms from $825.00 to $850.00 and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. BNP Paribas Exane assumed coverage on shares of Meta Platforms in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They issued an "outperform" rating on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of Meta Platforms from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $640.00 to $820.00 in a research note on Thursday, September 10th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $680.00 to $860.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, TD Cowen decreased their target price on shares of Meta Platforms from $800.00 to $750.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty-five have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $796.95.

Meta Platforms News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Muse quickly reached the top of Apple’s U.S. free-app charts, with reported downloads approaching 900,000 in its first week. Positive reviews and demonstrations of the agent handling travel, reservations, insurance and financial tasks are strengthening the view that Meta has developed a potential mass-market product. Meta's standoff with Amazon over Muse could be a sign of things to come
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts raised their outlooks as Muse demonstrated a possible “third S-curve” for AI growth. KeyCorp lifted its price target to $900, Cantor Fitzgerald to $860, and Jefferies to $875, while maintaining bullish ratings. The opportunity includes subscriptions, advertising, transaction fees and lead generation. Meta Price Targets Hiked to $900 as Analyst Cite AI Momentum Revenue Growth Paths
• Positive Sentiment: Shopify and PayPal are integrating with Muse for agentic checkout, while Instacart has become another partner. These relationships support the thesis that Meta could become an intermediary for online purchases and monetize completed transactions rather than only user attention. Shopify Brings Shop Pay Checkout Solution to Meta's Muse AI Agent
• Positive Sentiment: Meta’s broad distribution across Facebook, Instagram and its other platforms, combined with internally developed AI models and infrastructure, is viewed as a competitive advantage. Investors are also watching Meta Connect for new AI and smart-glasses announcements. Muse AI Makes Meta Connect a Must Watch for Investors
• Neutral Sentiment: Amazon blocked Muse from accessing its shopping site, highlighting both the strategic importance of AI agents and the possibility of platform restrictions. The standoff could limit Muse’s usefulness but also signals that competitors view Meta’s transaction ambitions as a serious threat. Meta's New AI Agent Is an Instant Hit—and the Backlash Has Already Begun
• Negative Sentiment: The rapid rally has increased near-term pullback and valuation risk. Investors remain concerned about Meta’s heavy AI capital spending, dependence on advertising and whether Muse can convert popularity into durable profits. Meta Stock Forecast: Bullish Trend Strong Despite Pullback Risk
• Negative Sentiment: Privacy and security concerns are mounting, while reports that Meta is testing human contractors to handle some Muse calls raise questions about scalability and the product’s current level of automation. Meta testing a human concierge for Muse

Institutional Trading of Meta Platforms

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Auto Owners Insurance Co increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 76,587.7% during the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 105,292,277 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $69,502,379,000 after purchasing an additional 105,154,977 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Meta Platforms during the 4th quarter valued at about $22,152,075,000. Corient Private Wealth LP boosted its position in Meta Platforms by 723.1% in the second quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP now owns 8,801,764 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $4,957,946,000 after buying an additional 7,732,446 shares in the last quarter. Jupiter Topco LLC acquired a new position in Meta Platforms in the second quarter valued at about $2,948,486,000. Finally, Corient Private Wealth LLC grew its stake in Meta Platforms by 488.1% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 5,466,595 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $3,608,445,000 after buying an additional 4,537,076 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.91% of the company's stock.

About Meta Platforms

Meta Platforms, Inc develops technologies that help people connect, communicate and build communities online. The company's principal products include Facebook, Instagram, Messenger, WhatsApp and Threads, which enable social networking, messaging, content sharing and digital communication.

Meta generates most of its business through advertising displayed across its family of apps. It also develops artificial intelligence technologies, business messaging tools and hardware and software through its Reality Labs division, including Quest virtual- and mixed-reality devices and related experiences.

The company was founded as Facebook in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg and was renamed Meta Platforms in 2021 to reflect its broader focus on building the metaverse.

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