Meta CEO Zuckerberg sells over 560,000 shares amid stock surge

Meta’s Chief Executive, Mark Zuckerberg, has offloaded a significant number of shares despite the social media giant’s stock surging to nearly a two-year peak in November 2023.

According to Form 4 filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Zuckerberg sold 560,180 Meta shares throughout November 2023, with an additional filing on Thursday, 30 November 2023, indicating his intention to sell an extra 28,009 shares that same day.

The total value of these share sales, calculated based on the weighted average prices and Thursday’s, 30 November 2023, closing figure of $327.15, amounts to a staggering $192.9 million (approximately Rs. 1,600 crores).

These shares, indirectly owned by Zuckerberg, were executed for various funds, as per the disclosures made in adherence to the Rule 10b5-1 trading plan initiated on 31 July 2023.

Despite the CEO’s significant divestment, Meta’s stock witnessed an 8.6% surge in November 2023, marking the third consecutive month of gains. The stock reached a peak closing price of $341.49 on 22 November 2023, the highest since 30 December 2021, before experiencing a slight pullback.

It’s worth noting that most of the shares sold by Zuckerberg were initially acquired in 2004 as part of a “founder stock purchase.” Of the sold shares, nearly 150,000 were obtained at $0 on the days they were sold through the exercise of options acquired in 2013.

Recent filings show that Zuckerberg still holds approximately more than 365 million shares as of 30 November 2023, securing his position as the ninth wealthiest individual globally, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

While the CEO’s sale of over $190 million worth of shares might appear substantial for a single month, considering the daily average trading volume over the past 30 days of 19.18 million shares, more than $6.2 billion worth of Meta shares change hands on an average day.