Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) CTO Sells 7,848 Shares

Key Points

• Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,848 shares at an average price of $558, generating $4.38 million. The Rule 10b5-1 transaction reduced his direct ownership by 90.46%, leaving him with 828 shares.
• Meta shares traded near $545.83, well below their 52-week high of $790.80. The company’s latest quarterly revenue rose 28% year over year to $60.8 billion, but earnings of $6.18 per share missed analysts’ $7.19 estimate.
• Despite concerns over heavy AI spending, legal risks and pressure on free cash flow, analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus with an average price target of $785.32. Institutional investors own approximately 79.91% of Meta’s outstanding shares.

Meta Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) CTO Andrew Bosworth sold 7,848 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $558.00, for a total transaction of $4,379,184.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief technology officer owned 828 shares of the company's stock, valued at $462,024. This trade represents a 90.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan.

Meta Platforms Stock Performance

META stock traded down $0.20 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $545.83. 13,828,073 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 16,841,658. Meta Platforms, Inc. has a one year low of $520.26 and a one year high of $790.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.39 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.93 and a beta of 1.25. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $594.30 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $617.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 2.23 and a quick ratio of 2.23.

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The social networking company reported $6.18 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.19 by ($1.01). Meta Platforms had a net margin of 29.83% and a return on equity of 33.18%. The business had revenue of $60.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $60.22 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $7.14 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 28.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Meta Platforms, Inc. will post 28.5 EPS for the current year.

Meta Platforms Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 25th. Investors of record on Monday, June 15th were given a $0.525 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $2.10 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.4%. Meta Platforms's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.91%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

META has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Wolfe Research reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $700.00 price objective on shares of Meta Platforms in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Meta Platforms from $830.00 to $750.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $830.00 to $780.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 30th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $766.00 to $715.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, DA Davidson reduced their price objective on shares of Meta Platforms from $850.00 to $700.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a 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 issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $785.32.

Key Stories Impacting Meta Platforms

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts say Meta’s heavy AI investments could eventually unlock significant revenue through better ad targeting, business agents, consumer subscriptions and enterprise tools. Meta’s advertising business remains strong, with recent revenue growth supported by higher ad impressions, pricing and AI-driven engagement. Meta's AI Spending Could Unlock Abundant Revenue
• Positive Sentiment: Meta expanded its experimental Pocket app across the United States. The AI-powered service allows users to create and share interactive games and other content, offering a potential new engagement channel and a test bed for future AI products. Meta brings Pocket to US users
• Positive Sentiment: Meta also launched a Mac app for Meta AI featuring system-wide dictation and screen-aware assistance. Separately, longtime Meta reporter Alex Heath argued that the company may be closer than investors expect to releasing frontier-level AI models, potentially improving sentiment around its AI strategy. Meta AI launches a Mac app
• Neutral Sentiment: Meta’s child-safety trial involving 29 states remains the dominant market concern. Prosecutors allege Facebook and Instagram were designed to encourage compulsive use among young people and that the company failed to address known risks. Even if Meta prevails, the case could prompt changes to product design, youth access and safety policies. Meta’s Trial Could Change Instagram Even If the Company Wins
• Negative Sentiment: Former employees testified that some safety tools were “designed to fail,” intensifying reputational and litigation risks. Potential penalties and mandated platform changes could weigh on engagement, ad monetization and investor confidence. Some of Meta’s safety tools were designed to fail
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned that elevated AI capital expenditures will pressure free cash flow and may not generate returns quickly enough. A recent earnings miss and the absence of direct compute revenue increase skepticism about whether Meta’s spending can justify its valuation. Meta’s H2 2026 risks and rebound prospects

Institutional Trading of Meta Platforms

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC boosted its stake in Meta Platforms by 17.4% in the 1st quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC now owns 18,000 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $10,299,000 after purchasing an additional 2,670 shares in the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH raised its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 15.7% in the fourth quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 133,798 shares of the social networking company's stock worth $88,319,000 after buying an additional 18,169 shares during the last quarter. WMS Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Meta Platforms during the fourth quarter worth $876,000. Consolidated Investment Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Meta Platforms by 61.2% during the fourth quarter. Consolidated Investment Group LLC now owns 7,900 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $5,215,000 after buying an additional 3,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Meta Platforms by 3.8% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 199,995,630 shares of the social networking company's stock valued at $132,015,115,000 after acquiring an additional 7,269,279 shares during the period. 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

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