Ed Lin

Meta Platforms founder, Chairman, and CEO Mark Zuckerberg plans to sell up to $166 million of stock.

Along with the broader market, Meta stock tumbled on April 3, the first trading day after President Donald Trump announced "Liberation Day" tariffs on U.S. trading partners around the world. But Meta stock has clawed its way back, most notably in the early trading hours of Thursday, in response to the company's strong earnings report.

Two months before the tariffs announcement, on Feb. 1, Zuckerberg adopted a so-called Rule 10b5-1 plan to sell a total of up to 284,660 Meta shares, the company disclosed in its first-quarter filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Company insiders use trading plans to remove the appearance that they might benefit from the knowledge of nonpublic information. The plans automatically execute trades when preset conditions, including price, volume, and timing, are met.

Zuckerberg's plan covers up to 141,000 Class A shares and 143,660 supervoting Class B shares held by entities that he controls. Class B shares, which don't trade publicly, carry 10 votes each, while the publicly traded Class A shares carry one vote each. As of Meta's latest proxy, filed earlier this month, Zuckerberg entities own nearly all of Meta's Class B shares, 342.6 million shares, which accounts for most of his 61% voting power. The trading plan terminates Nov. 22.

Class B shares may be converted at the option of the holder into an equal number of Class A shares for the purpose of selling.

Meta, the parent of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, didn't immediately respond to a request to make Zuckerberg available for comment.

Based on an early-trading price of $583.04 on Thursday, the shares covered by Zuckerberg's plan are valued at $166 million.

Inside Scoop is a regular Barron's feature covering stock transactions by corporate executives and board members -- so-called insiders -- as well as large shareholders, politicians, and other prominent figures. Due to their insider status, these investors are required to disclose stock trades with the Securities and Exchange Commission or other regulatory groups.

Write to Ed Lin at ed.lin@barrons.com

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May 01, 2025 08:45 ET (12:45 GMT)

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