Meta Platforms, Caterpillar And 2 Other Stocks Insiders Are Selling

The Nasdaq 100 closed lower by around 0.6% on Friday. Investors, meanwhile, focused on some notable insider trades.

When insiders sell shares, it could be a preplanned sale, or could indicate their concern in the company’s prospects or that they view the stock as being overpriced. Insider sales should not be taken as the only indicator for making an investment or trading decision. At best, it can lend conviction to a selling decision.

Below is a look at a few recent notable insider sales. For more, check out Benzinga's insider transactions platform.

Netflix

• The Trade: Netflix, Inc. NFLX Director Jay C Hoag sold a total of 47,000 shares at an average price of $550.50. The insider received around $25.87 million from selling those shares.
• What’s Happening: Netflix said fourth-quarter revenue increased 12.5% year-over-year to $8.83 billion, which came in ahead of the consensus estimate of $8.72 billion, according to Benzinga Pro.
• What Netflix Does: Netflix's relatively simple business model involves only one business, its streaming service.

Have a look at our premarket coverage here

Meta Platforms

• The Trade: Meta Platforms, Inc. META Chief Operating Officer Javier Olivan sold a total of 4,500 shares at an average price of $395.00. The insider received around $1.78 million from selling those shares.
• What’s Happening: Responding to concerns about its services being used by "predators," Meta Platforms unveiled stricter messaging settings for teenagers on its social media platforms, Instagram and Facebook.
• What Meta Platforms Does: Meta is the world's largest online social network, with 3.8 billion family of apps monthly active users. Users engage with each other in different ways, exchanging messages and sharing news events, photos, and videos.

Morgan Stanley

• The Trade: Morgan Stanley MS Executive Chairman James Gorman sold a total of 50,000 shares at an average price of $87.93. The insider received around $4.4 million from selling those shares.
• What’s Happening: Morgan Stanley reported a fourth-quarter net profit of $1.5 billion, or 85 cents per diluted share, compared to $2.2 billion or $1.26 in the prior year.
• What Morgan Stanley Does: Morgan Stanley is a global investment bank whose history, through its legacy firms, can be traced back to 1924.

Caterpillar

• The Trade: Caterpillar Inc. CAT CFO Andrew RJ Bonfield sold a total of 10,000 shares at an average price of $300.04. The insider received around $3 million from selling those shares.
• What’s Happening: Caterpillar will release fourth-quarter financial results on Feb. 5, 2024.
• What Caterpillar Does: Caterpillar is the premier manufacturer of heavy equipment, power solutions, and locomotives. It is currently the world's largest manufacturer of heavy equipment with over 13% market share in 2021.

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